I angrily ran back to my courtyard. I was too lazy to return to my room. I saw that the trees in the courtyard were luxuriant because no one had taken care of them. I jumped up, picked up a thick branch, and lay down to rest. Time passed very quickly. For me, it seemed to pass in the blink of an eye. When I came back to my senses, the moon was already in the middle of the sky.
/p
Actually, I knew that time flew by in an instant. I wasn't surprised that I slept for an entire afternoon. Instead, I was surprised to see a familiar figure sitting at the end of the branch.
/p
As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw a figure in the pitch-black darkness. Fortunately, I had a good heart. Otherwise, I would have been scared to death.
/p
Prince Yue was sitting there. He was playing with the 'Night Sky Spirit Bead' that he had shown me yesterday. Today, he had changed into a silver mask. The faint green light was imprinted on his mask, like a ghost fire in a graveyard.
/p
I sat up and rubbed my sore waist. I greeted the prince in a not-so-formal manner. "Your Highness, please be well."
/p
Prince Yue seemed to be surprised by my distant attitude, but he didn't show it on the surface. He only threw an oilcloth bag to me: "Don't put on an act in front of me. There are no outsiders here."
/p
I untied the cotton string on the oil bag. As soon as I opened it, I smelled a sweet aroma. A piece of osmanthus cake was inside. It was soft and fluffy, and the fresh osmanthus flowers on it were as yellow as the real thing. I raised my eyes to look at him. He was also looking at me. Seeing my gaze, he coaxed in a soft voice. "Hurry up and eat."
/p
How did he know that I wanted to eat the osmanthus cake? I'm afraid that there are spies in the entire residence.
/p
I sorted out my thoughts and understood this man's perfect calculation. At this moment, I naturally did not have a good expression towards him. I said, "With your status as a prince, instead of walking through the main gate properly, you took a detour around me. Those who didn't understand would think that you coveted the daughter of a noble family and wanted to be a gentleman who plucked flowers from the beam."
/p
"Your words today are filled with thorns. I don't know how I've offended you."
/p
He made it sound as if I had wronged him. Actually, smart people like me have always believed in the importance of not going overboard. If I made things too clear, it would really hurt the friendship between the two of us.
/p
So I said, "It must be troublesome for you to bring in the Osmanthus cake."
/p
"It's no trouble at all. Fortunately, your courtyard is remote."
/p
Seeing that he was trying to cover up for me, I felt stifled. I didn't know who I was trying to anger, so I continued, "But the dining hall is on the east side. People come and go from there. Prince Yue spent a lot of effort on it."
/p
Prince Yue was startled. He sat down on the tree branch and said softly: "This Prince knew that you were much smarter after you woke up, but this Prince never thought that you would become so intelligent. Tell me, how much have you guessed about this matter?"
/p
Let me tell you first, then you can follow my train of thought. When the time comes, the truth will still be kept in the dark. Is this prince really trying to coax a child?
/p
I pondered for a moment, then asked directly, "What is your highness looking for in my residence?"
/p
"A bead."
/p
Good, it was right. Not bad, not bad. He was telling the truth.
/p
So I asked directly, "What bead?"
/p
Prince Yue raised the Tianxuan Bead in his hand. He said, "This bead's twin sister. Can you guess what its name is?"
/p
Actually, I had already guessed it. If there was a Tianxuan Bead, how could there not be a Rehmannia Bead?
/p
"The Tianxuan Bead is an excellent Night-Luminescent Pearl tribute from the Southern Sea. But the same pearl has a different fate. The Rehmannia Glutinosa was only offered as a Southern Pearl. Such a precious pearl was mixed in with a chest of pearls of the same origin. It lost its luster. It is truly a pity."
/p
I said, "It would be great if it really was a Southern Pearl. It would save you people with bad intentions from fighting over it."
/p
Prince Yue looked at me with a smile, "Two pearls are twins. How could they bear the pain of separation?"
/p
"They are just two pearls. If they separate, then they separate. How could they cry like humans?"
/p
The Prince of Yue didn't answer me. Instead, he raised the bead and said, "Look at this rare treasure. Why isn't it safely staying in the magnificent Grand Hall of Taihe for His Majesty to admire? Why is it in this prince's hands?"
/p
"You stole it."
/p
Anyone with a discerning eye would know that my words were only meant to provoke him, and that the content could not be taken seriously. However, this prince still replied to me with a deadpan expression, "Of course not."
/p
I said, "Over there, His Majesty took pity on you for your hard work and meritorious service. He especially rewarded you."
/p
He shook his head, "It is a man's duty to protect the country. He shouldn't fight for fame and fortune."
/p
These words were true feelings, but they were unrealistic. Fortunately, he was a prince, the son of the current emperor. Everything he ate and used was paid for by the imperial family. If he were a soldier of the common people, he would have starved to death.
/p
Prince Yue saw that I didn't say anything, so he solved the mystery himself, "Ever since this luminous pearl was presented as a tribute, every night, there would be raging waves, and the sorrowful cries of conches would resound in a corner of the palace. But if it was just a strange noise, it wouldn't be a big deal. But after two days, corpses would mysteriously appear in the palace. There were two corpses on the steps, and seven corpses on the steps.
/p
Ha, I couldn't help but laugh, "There are corpses, but you don't investigate who did it. Instead, you blame it on this pearl. You blame it on ghosts. How strange."
/p
"Do you understand the strategy of two parallel lines?" He looked at me and suddenly laughed, "I don't think you understand."
/p
He said to me, "This prince had long ago arranged for people to guard the palace. But after night fell, there were no guards. Every two days, nine corpses would appear. Don't you think it is strange? At the same time, this prince went to the South Sea and asked around. I found out the origin of these two pearls. "
/p
"How troublesome." I didn't hesitate to comment, "If this pearl is really evil, you can smash it with two bricks, crush it into powder, and scatter it with the wind. Even if it is an evil thing, without its original body, I want to see what kind of trouble it can cause. "
/p
"How unreasonable." Prince Yue shook his head, "Fortunately, the pearl didn't fall into your hands."
/p
"Unreasonable people naturally have their own way of dealing with things," I said. "Since Your Highness knows the secret of these two pearls, how did you overcome it?"
/p
The prince said, "This prince keeps it by my side."
/p
"That is a good idea."
/p
"When the Heavenly Profound Pearl was in this prince's possession, it didn't cause any trouble. In order to deceive the public, there was a similar fake pearl placed in the palace. This pearl didn't cause any trouble, and no corpses were placed in the palace. Imperial Father was furious, and ordered me to secretly find the twin pearls and collect them. They should not enter the national treasury. "
/p
I shook my head and said, "Your Highness is making a fuss over a minor issue. Isn't the twin pearl on the list of tributes? A few meticulous people can slowly compare it. There is no need for Your Highness to do anything. "
/p
Prince Yue looked at me and smiled, "The pearl is on the list of tributes?"
/p
According to him, the twin pearl should not be on the list of tributes to the South Pearl. But according to his way of doing things, he came to me, the Prime Minister's Office to look for clues. Wasn't he hinting at something?
/p
"If it was really a treasure that shouldn't enter the national treasury, then even if we gathered all the servants in the palace, we would still be able to find it." The Lord said, "It's a pity that the beads are not in the palace. When I sent someone to investigate, they found that out of the 1,800 first-grade Southern Pearls that were supposed to be offered as a tribute, only 1,200 of them were genuine, and the rest were fake low-grade Southern Pearls."
/p
Listening to this, I found it interesting and said, "Interesting. Your Highness, from a case of evil in the palace, you found a case of corruption. Is it not the Heavens that guided you to do these things?"
/p
"What Heavens, I don't want to think about it. If the world relied on Heavens to punish evil and promote good, then the immortals in the heavens would not have a moment to rest. But to say that greed has its retribution, and that the world is interconnected, it is a bit interesting. "
/p
I thought that since the prince came to my residence every three to five days, it couldn't be because of me, his fiancee, so I asked him, "Where is the origin of this corruption case?"
/p
As expected, he coldly replied, "The Prime Minister's Tang Residence."
/p
Prince Yue slowly said, "This Prince wanted to thoroughly investigate this matter, but when I reported it to Imperial Father, he hesitated for a moment and rejected this Prince's secret memorial. He only ordered me to not make it public and to sneak into the Tang family's residence to take back the Tianxuan Pearl."
/p
I couldn't help but sigh and said, "Your Imperial Father really likes the Tang family."
/p
"Whether he likes it or not, it's just a matter of words. Today, he sees it, tomorrow he will go to prison."
/p
I didn't want to listen to the gossip of the imperial court, but I was interested in the demonic bead. "So, have you found the bead yet?" I asked. Judging from the noise of the old woman's house being overturned, I was certain the bead wasn't with her anymore.
/p
He looked at me and seriously said, "I didn't find it."
/p
I asked, "How many things did my family hide? Half a box of first-grade South Pearls, or the twin of the Tianxuan Pearl?"
/p
Prince Yue replied, "It's half a chest full of first-grade Southern Pearls. Unfortunately, the Old Madam of your mansion is really a cunning fox. That day, this prince made a big commotion in your mansion. After running into the water for a long time, this prince went into the storehouse to compare them one by one, but I still couldn't find that pearl."
/p
He seriously looked at me. Scared, I repeatedly waved my hands. "I don't know, I don't know."
/p
Hearing this, he laughed under his mask and gently scolded me, "Stupid."
/p
Stupid is stupid, but I live a comfortable life, so why can't I be stupid?
/p
I said, "Although I don't know where the pearl is, I can tell Your Highness that the pearl is no longer in my residence. On the night of the fire, I'm afraid that someone took a step before you."
/p
Prince Yue was surprised and said, "Took a step before me?" Then he sneered, "The famous Tang family's defenses are so tight that even a mosquito can't fly in. How could they let two thieves in?"
/p
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