"What do you want to know, Brother Yan?" asked Li Yixiu.
"Everything you know so far," answered Yan Li.
"Brother Yan's appetite is too big." Li Yixiu couldn't help saying, "Zhi Zhen went through a lot of trouble to find them."
Yan Li shrugged, "Not necessarily as much as me."
Li Yixiu smiled bitterly, "It's all Zhi Zhen's hard work. Brother Yan should at least show me some sincerity first."
Yan Li thought for a moment and said, "Alright. Listen, Skycloud Pavilion …"
He deliberately dragged out his words to whet Li Yixiu's appetite before continuing slowly, "Skycloud Pavilion is hard to deal with."
Li Yixiu didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Are you joking with me, Brother Yan?"
Yan Li said seriously, "Of course not. Think about it. Isn't Skycloud Pavilion known to resist cultivators? They even came up with the Asura List. But when I visited them today, I found that there were many experts. Not only did they not resist cultivators, but they even nurtured a lot of them. Isn't this a serious problem? Why hasn't anyone paid attention to it or investigated its background? "
Li Yixiu seemed to be intimidated by him. He pondered, "Are you saying that Skycloud Pavilion's backer has a great background?"
Yan Li smiled, "Young man, you're very perceptive. I have high hopes for you."
Li Yixiu blinked and said, "But Brother Yan still hasn't said anything."
Yan Li sighed, "It seems that doing business with you is bound to be a loss. Alright, I'll be frank. Skycloud Pavilion has an underworld background."
Li Yixiu said, "I already know that."
Yan Li said, "Then you definitely don't know that their pavilion master is Yu Youwei."
"Huh?" Li Yixiu said, "Not Ma Yunpeng? I've seen him before. "
Yan Li said, "Don't pretend. Aren't you investigating Skycloud Pavilion for Yu Youwei?"
"I can't hide it from you, Brother Yan." Li Yixiu also smiled, "Since Brother Yan has shown his sincerity, then tell me what I know. Zhi Zhen didn't find any clues about Yu Youwei, but she did find something suspicious. "
"What doubts?" Yan Li asked.
Li Yixiu's smile faded as he said, "After participating in the poetry meet, someone went into seclusion and refused to come out. What's even more abnormal is that not a single victim has reported it."
"I've heard about it too," Yan Li said. "It's said that the whole person has changed."
"Zhi Zhen's death confirms one thing," Li Yixiu said.
"What is it?" Yan Li asked.
Li Yixiu said, "The Skycloud Pavilion is plotting a shocking conspiracy."
"A conspiracy?" Yan Li fell into deep thought. After a moment, he said, "Actually, I was asked by Assistant Minister Fang to investigate the disappearance of his daughter."
"Are you talking about Fang Junyi?" Li Yixiu asked.
"Do you know her?" Yan Li asked.
Li Yixiu said, "Her poems and beauty are somewhat famous in Yongling. It's hard not to know her. What's wrong? Is she missing? "
Yan Li said, "Not only did she disappear, but she also disappeared after participating in the poetry meet. I only found out that there were so many experts hidden in the Heavenly Cloud Pavilion. Do you know why I want to cooperate with you? "
"Why?" Li Yixiu asked.
Yan Li said, "I just saw your subordinate hand you a sachet, which made me have some guesses."
Li Yixiu took out the sachet from his bosom and asked, "Is this it?"
Yan Li didn't look at the sachet, but turned to Zhao Qiping and ordered, "Go to the Fang Residence and invite Assistant Minister Fang and Liu Hong here."
Zhao Qiping didn't dare to say anything else and immediately left.
About an hour later, Fang Xianhuai and Liu Hong were brought over. After exchanging greetings, Yan Li pointed at the sachet and said, "Take a look and see if this belongs to Miss Fang."
Fang Xianhuai didn't have any reaction after seeing it. It seemed that he rarely paid attention to his daughter's personal belongings.
Liu Hong was different. She only took a glance and said, "Milord, this is Miss Fang's sachet. It was made by the embroidery workers of the Xiao Pavilion. This servant can't be wrong."
"It seems that my guess is very close to the truth," Yan Li said.
Fang Xianhuai said excitedly, "Did you find my daughter's whereabouts?"
Yan Li said, "It can only prove one thing. She was caught at the scene of the murder."
"What do you mean?" Li Yixiu said.
Yan Li said, "You've also seen the traces of fighting in the courtyard and Miss Fang's sachet. According to common sense, can we deduce that Chang Zhizhen discovered that the murderer had taken Miss Fang away during the surveillance process and wanted to rescue her, but the result was not satisfactory?"
Li Yixiu listened and fell into deep thought.
Fang Xianhuai couldn't help but say, "My daughter, how is my daughter?"
Zhao Qiping said, "Miss Fang was not found at the scene of the murder. She should be fine now because if the murderer wanted to kill her, he wouldn't have taken her away."
Fang Xianhuai let out a sigh of relief.
Yan Li said, "Milord Fang, I have another question."
"Go ahead," Fang Xianhuai said.
Yan Li said, "I remember you told me that some people's temperament changed greatly after coming back from the poetry meeting. Is there such a thing?"
"Yes, yes, yes. I don't know what Skycloud Pavilion is up to. Otherwise, I wouldn't have troubled Milord …" Fang Xianhuai said.
Yan Li said, "Do you know whose family it is?"
"The son of Lord Yan, the Minister of Transmission."
The Minister of Transmission was the head of the Office of Transmission. He was in charge of the internal and external memorials and the sealed complaints of the subjects. To put it bluntly, he was a complaint box. Complaints could be made about anything, but whether it could reach the ears of the Minister of Transmission was not determined by the Office of Transmission but the mood of the Secretariat.
The Office of Transmission was just a small yamen. Although the Office of Transmission was the head of the government officials and a third-rank official, it didn't have any real power and was even weaker than the capital governor. However, the Office of Transmission had a function that other government offices couldn't compare to, and that was: Whenever the Emperor issued a decree, it would be reported to the people in all directions as a result of the situation.
That was to say, the Office of Transmission could announce the decrees of the Emperor, such as the official documents on border defense. As long as there was a piece of paper from the Office of Transmission, one could go anywhere in the world.
When Yan Liming learned that the Capital Governor and the Supreme Court Officer had come to visit, he was flattered and welcomed them in. He served them tea and exchanged greetings. These were all outside words.
After the greetings, Yan Liming said with a smile, "Milords, what brings you to my small temple today?"
Li Yixiu said with a smile, "The decree of the Minister of Transmission is heard by the Emperor. If this is a small temple, then the Capital Governor's Office is a thatched hut."
Although he knew it was a polite remark, Yan Liming still felt comfortable and had a better impression of Li Yixiu. "Milord Li is young and promising. It won't be a problem for you to make further progress in the future. The Capital Governor's Office is just a temporary shelter."
Yan Li didn't bother to exchange pleasantries with him. He went straight to the point. "Milord Yan, I heard that your son is autistic?"
"Who said that?" Yan Liming's expression changed slightly. "My son is just studying hard. How did he become autistic?"
"It's just hearsay," Yan Li said indifferently. "If he isn't, why is Milord reacting so strongly?"
Yan Liming's expression immediately turned cold. "My son is fine. There's no need for you to worry about him. If there's nothing else, please leave."
After leaving the Office of Transmission and returning to the carriage, Li Yixiu said, "There's something wrong with Yan Liming."
Yan Li said, "It's still a big problem."
Li Yixiu said, "If it's a family scandal that shouldn't be aired in public, he won't change his attitude."
Yan Li said, "It's because we've crossed his bottom line."
Zhao Qiping said, "Why don't we go to his house and have a look?"
Yan Li said, "That's easy to alert the enemy. Who knows if there's someone monitoring us? It seems that there's a need to go to the poetry meet and see what the Heavenly Cloud Pavilion is up to. "
Li Yixiu said, "I heard that the poetry meet is divided into the outer and inner fields. For the outer field, you only need to recite your own work. For the inner field, you need to have an invitation. I've received an invitation once, but that was a long time ago. "
Yan Li said, "Isn't that simple? Just grab two ready-made invitations."
Li Yixiu was startled. He then smiled bitterly. "Brother Yan is indeed a bandit."
"That's the highest praise." Yan Li laughed.
It didn't snow that night.
Li Yixiu learned through his subordinates that the poetry meet was going to be held again. Thus, he and Yan Li hid near Wind Moon Manor and successfully snatched two invitations.
Disguising, however, was a bit troublesome. After all, the two of them weren't masters of disguise. They couldn't completely change into another person, and if they were too exaggerated, they would be easily seen through.
In the end, it was Li Yixiu who suggested that they go to Xiao Pavilion and spend a large sum of money to buy two human skin masks.
When everything was ready, the two of them deliberately separated. Li Yixiu entered first. After a quarter of an hour, Yan Li arrived at the entrance of Wind Moon Manor.
There were two strong men guarding the door. They were a deterrent to thieves who liked to fish in troubled waters.
The one checking the invitations was a refined young man sitting behind a table. When he saw Yan Li walking over, he stood up politely and said, "Brother, did you bring an invitation?"
"Yes, I did." Yan Li handed over the invitation he had snatched.
The young man flipped it open and gave it back to Yan Li. "So it's Brother Wang from the Imperial Protectorate. Please come in."
Wang Yu, the son of the Imperial Protectorate General Wang Sheng. This was the identity of the owner of the invitation that Yan Li had snatched.
Yan Li took it without batting an eyelid and slowly walked into the venue.
The outer venue was a large hall, while the inner venue was much larger. Yan Li walked through a long corridor and arrived at the lakeshore filled with willow trees. He could see scholars in twos and threes who were in the "mood for poetry" under the influence of alcohol. They were muttering like charlatans, causing the beauties on the other side of the lake to laugh.
This place had also become a place for them to look for their sweethearts.
Feeling bored, Yan Li walked past the lakeshore and entered the rockery by the lakeshore. As he walked, he suddenly heard a conversation. "I saw someone here last night. You may not believe it."
"Oh? Who did you see? Could it be your dream lover, Fang Junyi? "
"You really guessed it."
"What is Miss Fang doing here?"
"She was called here by someone. It seems to be Lord Lu."
"Which Lord Lu?"
Yan Li's heart skipped a beat. He wanted to continue listening, but the two people had already turned out of the rockery and saw him. They immediately stopped talking.
He rolled his eyes and put on a smiling face to welcome them. "Brothers, I'm Wang Yu. I wonder if you can join me for a chat about good wine and beautiful women …"
He deliberately made friends and fawned over them. In less than half an hour, they were already calling each other brothers.
In a pavilion not far from here, Ma Yunpeng knocked on the door. Yu Youwei's lazy voice came from inside. "What's the matter?"
Ma Yunpeng whispered, "Two rats sneaked in. What should we do with them?"
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