Yu Shu found a chair and sat down. Liu Tan waved to the servant behind him to serve her tea.
"How many days has it been since the murder happened in Taishi Shuyuan?" Liu Tan didn't beat around the bush and asked directly.
Yu Shu also guessed his intention, so she answered after thinking, "It happened on the sixth day. It's been six or seven days."
"I heard that you were the first one to find Miss Cao?"
"Yes, I accompanied Miss Six of the Xin family to the observatory to measure the stars at night, and then I saw her hanging in the hut." Strictly speaking, the first person to find Cao Youling's body was Xin Liu.
"Then what about the note that was found in Miss Cao's room?" Liu Tan frowned slightly, "Why is there a false rumor that she was killed because she came out at night to meet Martial Uncle Jing Chen, and Cousin Rui sent someone to monitor him? Is it true?"
Yu Shu hesitated and said, "A note was found in Miss Cao's room. The handwriting on it was the same as Daozi's. Brother Xue sent someone to follow Daozi to avoid arousing suspicion. It can't be regarded as monitoring."
If it was really monitoring, it should be closely watched. But two days ago, she saw Jing Chen and Ji Xingxuan walking together in the rain, and she didn't see any officers around them.
Liu Tan's face was a little clear. Seeing that Yu Shu didn't understand, he sighed and said,
"Yesterday morning, someone reported the case and distorted the facts, claiming that Miss Cao was killed tragically. They also said that Martial Uncle was monitored because of the murder, but the Supreme Court covered up and neglected the investigation. In a rage, my father reprimanded Guo Huaian, the Minister of the Supreme Court. Then he summoned Cousin Rui, who was responsible for the case, to the palace and met him in the imperial study to question him personally. I don't know what happened at that time, but this morning, I heard that Cousin Rui was ordered to arrest the real murderer within a month, or he would be severely punished for dereliction of duty. "
Yu Shu was shocked when she heard this. Then she thought that Xue Rui came back late yesterday and was so busy today that she didn't even see him. He thought to himself, No wonder.
To think that he dared to say that he was fine. This involved the Emperor's order, and he had to be punished according to his crime. Dereliction of duty would cause him to lose his position. You call this fine?
Yu Shu was a little annoyed. Xue Rui had concealed such a big matter from her, but it was not appropriate for her to reveal it in front of Liu Tan. She pulled a long face, weighed the situation, and asked doubtfully,
"Who purposely twisted this matter in front of His Majesty?"
It wasn't hard for Yu Shu to guess the reason why the Emperor was angry. It was because he cherished his nephew, Jing Chen. He did not want the reputation of his Daoist conferred title to be tarnished.
He just didn't know who was fanning the flames.
Hearing Yu Shu's message, Liu Tan's expression changed, he said, "It's the Imperial Censor Yin Qingfan."
This was a strange name. Yu Shu had never heard of it before she entered the court. However, she was familiar with the surname Yin in Anling City. He was one of the two prime ministers in the court. One was Minister Xue, the head of the six ministries, and the other was Prime Minister Yin. The Yin family was the same as the Xue family. They were all the top nobles in the capital.
The Xue family had a daughter who was an imperial concubine in the palace. She was Liu Tan's mother. The Yin family also had a daughter who was an imperial concubine in the palace. She was Prince Ning Liu Hao's mother, Concubine Yin.
Yu Shu thought of this and couldn't help but feel that this Imperial Censor Yin must have something to do with Prince Ning.
Maybe it was Prince Ning who ordered him to stir up trouble. No matter whether Jing Chen or Xue Rui didn't please anyone, he would be happy to see it.
Just when she was full of suspicion. Someone outside the door reported,
"Your Highness, Lord Xue is back."
"Please come in."
Yu Shu turned her head and saw the door was opened. Xue Rui was still wearing the official robe that he left in this morning. She could see a trace of fatigue on his eyebrows. He looked at her. He turned to Liu Tan and bowed,
"To Your Highness."
Liu Tan had been promoted to a prince. His status was far higher than when he was a prince. Xue Rui was cautious. Even if he had a good relationship with Liu Tan, he wouldn't be careless about these details.
"Cousin, you don't have to be so polite. Sit down." Liu Tan's tone was much gentler than when he was talking to Yu Shu. He said that he would give up his seat, but he didn't move.
Xue Rui sat down beside Yu Shu. When Yu Shu saw the pale corners of his mouth, she quickly poured a cup of tea and passed it to him to quench his thirst. After that, she didn't wait for him to speak before she sensibly stood up and said to Liu Tan,
"Your Highness, since Big Brother is back, I will leave first."
Liu Tan nodded and didn't ask her to stay. What he and Xue Rui wanted to say was not suitable for others to listen.
Yu Shu turned her head and glanced at Xue Rui again. Then she left the door.
***
When Yu Shu returned to her room, she wasn't in the mood to copy the data. She put away her pen and paper and called for a maid to pour water for her to wash up. She also ordered the kitchen to prepare food and wine. Looking at Xue Rui's appearance, it seemed that he hadn't eaten dinner yet.
Xue Rui and Liu Tan didn't talk for long. After Yu Shu washed up and changed her clothes, she heard the door open. It was Lin Fu outside.
"Miss, Jing Wangye is leaving. Gongye is calling for you."
After Liu Tan left, Yu Shu definitely had to respectfully send him off. She hastily fastened her belt and hurriedly went downstairs. She just happened to catch up with Xue Rui who was sending Liu Tan to the entrance of the backyard.
She quickened her steps and stood next to Xue Rui.
"Your Highness, take care."
Liu Tan put on a scarlet cloak and turned his gaze to her. He smiled slightly and said: "Ben wang is holding a banquet in Xuan Chun Garden. Don't miss the lotus room."
After she finished speaking, she got into the carriage with the help of the eunuchs who bowed. Yu Shu and Xue Rui watched the carriage leave. Only when it was out of sight did she raise her head and say to the man beside her,
"Why did you lie to me and say that it's nothing? Are you sure that you can find the murderer within a month?"
"Regardless of whether I'm sure or not, I'll only know after I try." Xue Rui was exposed by her, but he didn't seem embarrassed at all. He said something ambiguous and walked towards the courtyard.
Yu Shu gave a light "hmph" and didn't pursue the matter of him hiding it from her. She slowly followed his footsteps … When Xue Rui was eating, Yu Shu sat beside him. She rested her chin on one hand and swirled an empty wine cup as she suggested:
"If there's no other way, why not find a reason to arrest Ji Xingxuan and force her to talk?"
"How can we extort a fifth-class Master of Yi without solid evidence? Moreover, Prince Ning is protecting her." Xue Rui rejected the idea.
"Why don't I come out and testify for you? I'll use my special technique, and we'll perform the 'Questioning the Underworld' to help you keep your black hat." Yu Shu continued to give him bad ideas.
Xue Rui shook his head again, "Not everyone can understand the Yi Xue. You can't explain it one by one. In the end, it's just empty talk. It's hard to convince people unless you're willing to give your strange art to Celestial Commissioner for verification. Are you willing to do that?"
Yu Shu said honestly, "I can't bear to."
What a joke! Even if she was willing to share her hard work with others, she couldn't explain to those old fogies how to apply the mathematical knowledge from five hundred years later to the Yi Xue from five hundred years ago. If she told them the truth, she might be locked up as a sorcerer.
Xue Rui saw her unhesitant look and felt a little frustrated. He pretended to be unhappy and said: "Can't you think about it before you speak?"
Yu Shu smiled embarrassedly, "I'm just thinking about it. I can't bear to do that either. Why do I have to do that … Facing such a heartless person, Xue Rui couldn't get angry or laugh even if he wanted to.
This time, it was because he was careless that he fell into a trap and fell into a dilemma. That was why he had to make a military pledge. Facing this murder case with hidden secrets, he really had a headache.
It's not that he didn't have the means to investigate, but it was inevitable that he would offend some people. If he became a target, it would be like drinking poison to quench his thirst.
Fortunately, he still had some time to slowly worry about it.
Yu Shu looked at Xue Rui's inadvertent frown and knew that he was troubled. She thought for a moment and straightened her face, saying:
"Stop joking. I do have some ideas. Maybe I can help you."
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