Liu Yifu was somewhat surprised that the people from the Jingzhao Prefecture had arrived so quickly. In his haste, he didn't have time to think much about it and simply waved his hand.
"Lord Liu, are you alright?" The captain rushed over and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Liu Yifu was unharmed.
Liu Yifu quickly replied, "I'm fine. There are a few wounded people here. Please take them out first!"
Having finally escaped from Chunfeng Tower, Liu Yifu signaled to the captain to rescue the others.
Shen Tangning inhaled a lot of smoke and coughed incessantly, clutching his chest. His eyes narrowed slightly: "Are you alright?"
She shook her head, her eyes reddening from the shock: "I'm fine, it's the adult's injury..."
She glanced at Liu Yifu's hand, which was blistered from the burns, and he subtly concealed his thoughts: "It's alright. Listen to me, go home now. No one will know you were here today, and don't mention it to anyone, understand?"
Seeing Liu Yifu's solemn expression, Shen Tangning paused in surprise. She hadn't expected him to be so considerate. Without refusing, she nodded and said, "Please be careful, sir."
She turned and left, and Yuan Zhao followed. The two figures disappeared into the night in no time.
Liu Yifu slowly withdrew his gaze, lowered his eyes to look at the black box he was carrying in his arms, his eyes deep and unfathomable.
One woman, Pingting, has led to so much trouble; this case is indeed quite complex.
...
Inside the carriage, Shen Tangning had already changed back into her own clothes.
Xueqing dampened a handkerchief to wipe her face, her tone resentful: "Miss, why are you in such a disheveled state?"
"Something unexpected happened." Shen Tangning thought of something and gently knocked on the car door. Yuan Zhao, who was driving, turned around and asked in a low voice, "What are your orders, Master?"
Shen Tangning's eyes flickered slightly: "Did you summon the people from the Jingzhao Prefecture?"
She guessed that the Third Prince might send someone to retrieve the items, so to prevent any unforeseen events, she had Yuan Zhao lie in wait outside. However, she never expected that the other party would set a fire.
Yuan Zhao frowned and his face turned cold: "My master told me to wait outside. During that time, I noticed two people coming out of the room looking nervous. I wanted to go up and ask them, but they ran away as soon as they saw me. I chased after them for a few steps and then realized something was wrong, so I bribed a passerby to run to the Jingzhao Prefecture to report the case."
That's why it took some time.
Shen Tangning couldn't help but admire his keen insight: "You did a great job. It's all thanks to the timely arrival of the people from the Jingzhao Prefecture. Otherwise, there would have been many casualties today."
Looking back now, it seems the other party had probably made two preparations: one person was responsible for finding the items, while the other was responsible for setting fires to cause panic and destroy the evidence.
Yuan Zhao asked, puzzled, "What is it about Pingting that makes them go to such lengths?"
Shen Tangning's eyes were deep as she curled her lips into a smile: "Just wait and see, some people will lose both their wife and their army this time."
The fact that the other party valued the contents of that black box so highly confirmed her suspicions: even if it didn't contain evidence of the officials' crimes, it was something that could threaten the Third Prince.
This led him to take a risk, and one wrong step led to another.
——
Chi Yan looked up through the small skylight, listlessly counting the stars. He had been in prison for so long that he could hardly remember the time.
During the day, those people came to interrogate him as usual, asking the same questions that he already knew by heart; he was tired of hearing them!
Heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor. Chi Yan looked up and saw Liu Yifu, looking disheveled. Liu Yifu stopped at the prison door and looked at him with complicated emotions.
He paused for a moment, then still had the mood to joke: "Lord Liu, are you dressed like that because you're going to rob and plunder?"
Liu Yifu took a deep breath and said calmly, "Young Master Chi, you can go back now."
Chi Yan was completely bewildered, her eyes widening in confusion: "Huh?"
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