The rough man in the backyard cursed loudly. He took a kitchen knife and was about to rush to the front door. The guards didn't want to hurt him, but when they saw him start to fight, they didn't hold back. They quickly put him down, tied him up, gagged him, and threw him into the woodshed on the side.
The shopkeeper and several waiters, who were hiding in the corners of the backyard, saw this and shrank their heads back.
When Yu Shu saw that there was no more noise, she walked out of the back hall and asked the guards, "Who was that person just now?"
The guard who followed Yu Shu downstairs said with a straight face, "It's the head chef of this restaurant. He makes a fuss every day. It's not a big deal. He'll be well-behaved when he's locked up at night. Miss Yu wasn't scared, right?"
Yu Shu shook her head and looked at the closed door of the woodshed. She felt a little strange in her heart.
"This chef doesn't want to cook. Miss, what do you want to eat? I'll go buy it on the street." The guard asked with some annoyance.
Yu Shu nodded, "I saw a roasted goose across the street. Buy two and try it. Also bring a few baskets of meat buns."
As she said this, she took off the embroidered pouch on her waist and took out a piece of silver and handed it to him, "The guards have been waiting for half a day. Buy a few more side dishes and come back to eat."
Although she didn't know why Xue Rui insisted on staying in the restaurant where the murder took place, she saw that the chef was on strike today. These people probably hadn't eaten in peace for a few days.
The guard hesitated, "Thank you for your kindness, but it's still early. The lord has ordered us not to leave our post. When it's past five o 'clock, we can just casually pay for a meal."
Hearing this, Yu Shu didn't insist. She nodded and gave the silver to him.
.....
The sun was about to set when Xue Rui woke up and went out of the room. He knocked on the opposite door and found that the person wasn't there. He asked the guards in the corridor and went downstairs.
Yu Shu was sitting alone on the second floor by the window. She was eating a goose leg when she saw him come down. He then pointed to the seat opposite him with a smile, "Big brother, you're awake. Come over and try this roasted goose. It's fresh out of the oven and tastes pretty good."
Xue Rui walked over and sat down. He turned his head and looked at the scene outside the restaurant through the half-open window. Soon, he found the figure sneaking around the alley and the corner of his mouth curled up. He casually shifted his gaze.
"Have you rested enough?" Yu Shu picked up a piece of tender goose meat and put it in the bowl in front of him.
"Mm." Xue Rui raised his chopsticks slowly. "Thanks to you. I finally had a good sleep. "
Yu Shu raised her eyebrows. He put down his chopsticks and said, "Let's talk while we eat. What's the secret behind this case?"
Xue Rui nodded. He chewed slowly for a while, then said under Yu Shu's unwavering gaze, "Zhou Qing's murderer is hiding in this restaurant."
Yu Shu narrowed her eyes, "Then why don't you get someone to arrest him?"
There was a murderer hiding in this restaurant. He actually had the mood to sit here and eat roasted goose with her.
Xue Rui waved his chopsticks, "I can't arrest him."
"I can't arrest him?" The more Yu Shu listened, the more confused she became. How could they not arrest the murderer when they found him?
Xue Rui was not in a hurry to explain. He changed the topic to another matter, "Do you know who the Governor of Guangxi and Guangxi is?"
Yu Shu shook her head. She didn't know much about court affairs. She didn't even know all the officials in the capital.
However, the position of the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi sounded like a very high position.
"The Governor of Guangxi and Guangxi, Lu Buhuan, is the elder brother of Concubine Lu Xian."
"Concubine Lu?" Yu Shu asked suspiciously, "Isn't that the Eleventh Prince's mother?"
Xue Rui nodded.
Yu Shu was puzzled, "Isn't the Lu family one of the Twelve Prefectures? How did Lu Buhuan become a high-ranking official there?"
"High-ranking official," Xue Rui sighed softly, his tone inexplicable, "It is indeed a high-ranking official. Lu Buhuan relied on his own abilities to climb to this position. In the early years, Guangdong suffered from frequent floods, causing countless victims. Bystanders wanted nothing more than to stay away. He had a bright future, but he volunteered to go to Xiushui and governed it for eleven years. Nowadays, in the Guangdong and Guangxi region, some people don't know who the Emperor is, but everyone knows Lu Buhuan. "
Yu Shu listened carefully. She had read the history books that most of the civil and military officials who protected faraway lands had achieved a certain level of merit. The slightest movement would arouse the Emperor's suspicions. This Lu Buhuan was too popular. It was likely that he had angered the Emperor.
It was no wonder that the Emperor had secretly sent an Imperial Censor to secretly investigate the place he was in charge of.
Thinking of this, Yu Shu's mind flashed. She leaned forward and asked in a low voice, "Could it be that the mastermind behind Lord Zhou's assassination was from the Lu family?"
The Lu family knew that the Emperor wanted to catch Lu Buhuan's weakness, and that Lu Buhuan had indeed hidden something from the Emperor. Thus, the Lu family had arranged for an assassin to kill Zhou Qing on the way out of the capital.
This kind of speculation made sense.
"I also thought of the Lu family at first," Xue Rui told her honestly, "Although Concubine Lu does not like to show off, and the Lu family has always been content with their own affairs, Liu Yi is a brainless person."
Without anyone else, he openly expressed his disdain for Prince Liu Yi.
Killing the Imperial Envoy and cutting off his path of retreat was indeed an act of trying to cover something up. This move was both cruel and stupid. The Lu Family would not be able to do it, but if it was Liu Yi, he might be able to.
"So, Liu Yi sent someone to do it?" Yu Shu frowned. She only had a bad impression of the shameless Eleventh Prince.
Xue Rui smiled coldly. "If this case continues like this, when I catch the culprit, it will undoubtedly be Liu Yi's doing."
"… Then, was he the one who did it?" Yu Shu gritted her teeth. Hearing Xue Rui keep her in suspense, she really wanted to pry open his brain and see how many twists and turns there were in it.
"I was not sure at first, but after your divination, I am sure that it was not Liu Yi's mistake. Someone made up a good show and set up a trap to kill two birds with one stone."
Xue Rui's gentle expression suddenly turned fierce. He said in a low voice, "His Majesty has his eyes on the Lu family and specially sent people to the Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. It is very likely that he wants to punish Lu Buhuan and strip him of his position as the Governor of the Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. At this time, something happened to the imperial envoy, so the Lu family will definitely be suspicious. Furthermore, the case was investigated by me and they blame it on Liu Yi. When I return to the capital, they will definitely blame it on me. "
Yu Shu's face darkened. Thinking about it, it made sense. If it was Liu Yi who did it, then it would be fine. But if it was not Liu Yi. If Xue Rui found out that it was him and the Emperor blamed him, the Lu family would definitely think that it was Xue Rui who did it. They would hate him to death.
This way. The Lu family lost power, Concubine Lu lost favor, and Liu Yi was wrongly accused. Xue Rui was equivalent to provoking an enemy.
"Who set this trap?" She asked. Then, without waiting for Xue Rui to answer, she gritted her teeth and whispered, "Was it … Prince Ning?!"
Yes, the mastermind behind the scenes, Xiao Hou, was none other than that treacherous hypocrite, Liu Hao!
Xue Rui smiled coldly and told her something else. "When the news of Zhou Qing's death reached the capital, there was a meeting in the imperial study. Prince Ning was there and it was he who suggested that I investigate this case. "
At that time, among the officials present, his grandfather Xue Lingnan was not there. However, there was a scholar from the Hanwen Academy who was his teacher when he was learning the art of tea. After he left the palace, he told him about this matter and inadvertently let him know about this matter.
It was also this matter that aroused his suspicions. That was why he delayed investigating the case. He knew that the "murderer" was still hiding in this restaurant, but he did not arrest him.
He was sure that once he found out who the culprit was, the culprit would never let Liu Yi off.
"Then what do you want to do now?" Yu Shu was anxious for Xue Rui.
He was investigating the case under imperial orders and could not delay. But if he continued, he would fall into Prince Ning's trap again. Now he could not investigate, nor could he not investigate. He was in a dilemma.
"Now that things have come to this, there are only two choices." Xue Rui put up his chopsticks and supported his chin with the back of his hand. He looked at Yu Shu and said, "First, I can be passive and slow. If I continue to delay, His Majesty will lose his patience and send someone to take over this task."
"No." Yu Shu rejected it without thinking. "Not to mention the fact that you will be belittled by His Majesty, should we let Prince Ning go so easily when we know that it was a trap?"
Yu Shu still held a grudge against Liu Hao for sending people to kidnap her and Shui Yun. If she hadn't been lucky and quick-witted, she would have been silenced long ago and become a rotten corpse in the cellar.
There was also Ji Xingxuan, who had wanted to kill her. She had been rescued by Liu Hao and kept her little life.
Now he was scheming against Xue Rui, adding the new grudge to the old. Yu Shu gritted her teeth when she thought of it.
"Haha."
Seeing her angry appearance, Xue Rui laughed lightly and said, "Then let's change our path."
"En?"
"Beat him at his own game."
***
Under the pavilion of Ning Wang Fu, Liu Hao, dressed in a plain brocade robe, sat idly, a small handful of fish feed in his hand that he slowly sprinkled down. He looked with interest at the red carps in the pond that were competing to please each other.
The sound of footsteps came from the distance. He didn't turn his head and asked carelessly, "How is the situation in Pei County? Did Xue Shaoqing solve the case?"
The scout that had been brought by the steward respectfully stood at the bottom of the steps of the pavilion and reported in a small voice, "Replying to wang ye, Xue Rui is still living in that restaurant. There has been no progress in the case."
"Is that so?" Liu Hao frowned slightly, "How are they doing things?"
He was well aware of Xue Rui's capabilities. This case looked concealed, but in reality, there were many flaws. Other people might not be able to investigate, but Xue Rui would definitely not be incompetent.
The incomer shrank back and said, "Xue Rui had people seal off the restaurant and didn't allow the yamen to interfere. Not even a fly can fly in. Our people couldn't send a message in, and we don't know what happened to the death warriors that sneaked into the restaurant that caused Xue Rui's suspicions."
Liu Hao thought for a while and faintly felt that something was wrong. He asked, "Has there been any activity in the past two days?"
The incomer paused and then said, "Early this morning, a carriage stopped at the back door of the restaurant. Someone came and was very secretive. I don't know who it was."
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