Jiang Ruan walked to the person's side and stopped. The secret guards looked at each other. Jiang Ruan looked down at the top of the person's head and finally said, "Bai Zhi, you don't dare to look up at me?"
The hidden guards at the side were all startled. The name Bai Zhi was not unfamiliar to the servants of Jinying Wang fu. She was the maidservant who had accompanied the Young Madam in her dowry. Of Jiang Ruan's four maidservants, apart from Tian Zhu, who was originally Xiao Shao's people, the other three were all favored by Jinying Wang fu. Bai Zhi was usually the calmest and quietest among the maids. She was also beautiful and pleasant, so the guards often sent gifts to her. Bai Zhi was deeply trusted by Jiang Ruan and was also an old person who had accompanied Jiang Ruan since childhood. Today's capture of the mole was arranged by Jiang Ruan. Hearing Bai Zhi's name, the secret guards were all shocked.
The person on the ground did not react for a long time. Jiang Ruan was not anxious, but stood calmly at the side and waited. After a long while, the person on the ground finally tidied up her clothes and slowly stood up, revealing a familiar face.
Bai Zhi's expression was as gentle and calm as usual, as if she had just completed a task that Jiang Ruan had instructed her to do. There was not even a trace of panic on her face when she was caught. She just looked at Jiang Ruan and said, "Miss is smart, you still caught this servant."
"This …" When the surrounding secret guards saw that it was really Bai Zhi, they were somewhat puzzled. They stared at Bai Zhi as if she was unfamiliar with her, in case she did something harmful to Jiang Ruan. At this moment, Lian Qiao and the others who had rushed over after hearing the news also caught up from behind. Seeing Bai Zhi surrounded by secret guards, they could not help but be shocked. Lu Zhu was someone who could not keep her cool, and immediately said, "Bai Zhi jiejie, how can it be you?"
Lian Qiao and Bai Zhi grew up together, and the two of them had a deep friendship. Seeing this scene, Lian Qiao was shocked, and the first thought that came to her mind was that Bai Zhi had been wrongly accused. She anxiously said, "What is going on? Bai Zhi, could it be that there is some misunderstanding? Miss is here, I will definitely clear your name. Quickly tell me. "
She was very anxious and wanted to help Bai Zhi clear her name. This was because, in Lian Qiao's opinion, Bai Zhi really had no reason to frame Jiang Ruan, and it was even more impossible for her to be a mole, as the informant had said. However, Bai Zhi didn't clarify as she hoped. She just smiled and said, "It's not a misunderstanding. I am the mole around Miss. Miss has always been observant, and this time you didn't catch the wrong person. "She glanced at Lian Qiao and said softly," I'm sorry, I lied to you. "
"How is this possible?" Lian Qiao couldn't hold it in any longer and rushed forward to grab Baizhi's sleeve. Her expression was a little agitated, and she didn't care that there were so many people present. Like a bamboo tube spilling beans, she said, "You and I have served Miss since we were young. Everyone can clearly see how we treat Miss. At that time in the Manor, you also wholeheartedly helped Miss. After all these years, I have the right to say what kind of person you are. Baizhi, do you have any difficulties? We have been friends for many years, and I regard you as one of us. If you tell me, I will definitely help you. Did something happen to you? "
Bai Zhi was slightly stunned, but she used more force to pull Lian Qiao's hand from her sleeve and said, "I have nothing to say, and I don't have any difficulties. You don't trust me, but do you not trust Miss? When has she ever caught the wrong person?"
Lian Qiao was shocked by the determination in Bai Zhi's eyes and couldn't help but take two steps back. Looking at the woman in front of her again, she only felt that she was a complete stranger. She was completely different from the friend who had been by her side in the past. She looked at Jiang Ruan in confusion, but Jiang Ruan's expression didn't change. She only said to the surrounding secret guards, "All of you can leave, just leave a few people to guard outside the courtyard."
"Young Furen," a secret guard said worriedly, "Young Furen's safety is important."
"She's just a defenseless woman, why worry? Tian Zhu being here is enough," Jiang Ruan said lightly. The surrounding secret guards saw her firm attitude and knew that Jiang Ruan wasn't someone who could be easily swayed, so they could only retreat outside the courtyard.
Only Lian Qiao, Tian Zhu, Jiang Ruan, and Bai Zhi were left in the courtyard.
"Miss has always treated you well, why did you do this?" Lu Zhu was the first to lose her composure. She had a temperament that made a clear distinction between love and hate, and she had always cherished Jiang Ruan as a family member from the bottom of her heart. Suddenly discovering that Bai Zhi was the one who had secretly plotted to harm Jiang Ruan, the anger in her heart could be imagined. Previously, she still had some doubts that Bai Zhi had been wrongly accused. But now, seeing Bai Zhi's attitude and Jiang Ruan's certainty, Lu Zhu also saw some clues. She was filled with righteous indignation towards Bai Zhi.
However, Bai Zhi didn't answer Lu Zhu's words. She only looked at Jiang Ruan and said, "Miss set up this trap today just to catch me? Miss already knew that I was the one who drew the poison? "
"Yes." Jiang Ruan said lightly, "Previously, when I said that I had found the mastermind and wanted to enter the palace to set up a trap, I deliberately said it for you to hear. I knew that you would think of a way to spread the news, so I specially ordered people to wait in the fu to catch the ghost. "
"Miss has always been smart, nothing can be hidden from your eyes." Bai Zhi smiled. Her expression was actually very calm, "When did Miss discover that this servant was the spy?"
A strange emotion flashed through Jiang Ruan's beautiful eyes. Her red lips slightly hooked, but her smile was somewhat cold, "Bai Zhi, if I could, the person I least want to suspect is you." She said lightly, seemingly without any emotion, "You are the maidservant that my mother gave me, and you have always been by my side. You have accompanied me for too long. I have always believed that the person who can accompany me to the end will never betray me. If there are few people in this world that I trust, Bai Zhi, you can be considered one of them. "
Bai Zhi was stunned, as if she hadn't expected Jiang Ruan to say such words. Her lips moved, but in the end, she still remained silent.
"My meals in the fu have all passed through Steward Lin's hands. The fu is very strict with these matters, so I don't doubt that there is any mistake. If there is a place where the poison was introduced, it must have been outside. I thought that it was in the palace, or that Jiang Dan had done something, until later I remembered that on the day I married Xiao Shao, when we were waiting in the bridal chamber, Lu Zhu was afraid that I would be hungry, so she gave me pastries, and you gave me a cup of tea. "
Lu Zhu also seemed to recall, "Yes, because I was afraid that Miss would eat the pastries and choke, Sister Bai Zhi gave you a cup of tea. Could it be that there is a problem with the tea?"
"But just based on a cup of tea, how can Miss conclude that this servant did it?" Bai Zhi smiled.
"A cup of tea indeed cannot prove anything, perhaps it was thrown in by someone else. But you know that I am not used to eating things that are too sweet. The pastries that day were already very sweet, but you still brought me honey lotus leaf water to drink. This may not seem like anything, but for you, Bai Zhi, you have followed me for more than ten years, and no one knows my eating habits better than you. You are my first-class maidservant, and you have always done things properly, so you would not make such a mistake. The reason why you did this was because you were flustered, and did not notice these things. Pastries that are too sweet and tea that is too sweet, Bai Zhi, in your normal state, you would not do this. "
Lian Qiao paused and looked up at Bai Zhi. She and Bai Zhi had served Jiang Ruan together for so many years, so naturally, she knew that what Jiang Ruan said was right. Bai Zhi had always been meticulous about Jiang Ruan's daily life, and with her cautious temperament, she would not make such a mistake.
After a while, Bai Zhi laughed lightly, "Miss is indeed very meticulous, but I did not expect that such a small detail would betray this servant. This servant is sincerely convinced. "
"No, it is not just this." Jiang Ruan looked at the burning torch, the bright light illuminating everything until there was no place to hide. And her face carried a kind of austere beauty. She said, "Also, when I came back, Lian Qiao and the others surrounded me. They were happy that I was detoxified, but only you were sad."
Bai Zhi was puzzled, "This servant was sad because I was worried about Miss, what is wrong with that?"
"Yes, you should be worried about me. As a personal servant, it is understandable to worry about the master's injury. But a normal person would first rejoice that someone else did not die. Baizhi, from the moment you saw me, you didn't look happy at all. This is unusual. It's as if you don't feel happy because I'm better. Instead, you're worried and sad. What are you sad about? Is it because you failed? "she asked.
Bai Zhi paused and looked at Jiang Ruan in a trance, "So I also gave myself away here …"
"Not only that, when I returned to the fu, I saw that the house was in a mess, as if no one had tidied it up. You said that it was because everyone was worried about my injury, so no one was in the mood to clean it up." Jiang Ruan shook her head, "This sentence is suitable for Lian Qiao and Lu Zhu, because they are impatient and cannot hide things in their hearts. Once something happened to me, they would not have any other thoughts. But you are different, Bai Zhi. You have been with me for so many years, and your temperament is the calmest. Even when I fell into the water at Zhang Lan's manor and did not wake up, you would still do all the trivial things in an orderly manner. Because you are a very assertive person, you will not change because of external changes. Will you not be in the mood to do things because of my injury? No, you are just worried because there is something in your heart, and you cannot calm down. "
Finally, she suspected Bai Zhi, and perhaps there was also the warning about the dream of the previous life. In the previous life, Lian Qiao died under Jiang Quan's hand, but Bai Zhi stayed behind to accompany her into the palace. At first, she thought that Bai Zhi had a soft temperament, and Xia Yan's heart had softened. Now, it seemed that no matter what kind of person Bai Zhi was, with Xia Yan's cautious temperament, how could she have allowed her to bring her trusted aide into the palace?
Bai Zhi looked at Jiang Ruan and suddenly took a step forward. Tian Zhu vigilantly blocked in front of Jiang Ruan. Tian Zhu was the latest to arrive, and did not have the deep feelings for Bai Zhi like Lian Qiao. Now, Baizhi's identity as a spy was confirmed. The Brocade Uniform Guards hated people who betrayed their masters the most. In the eyes of India, Baizhi was just an enemy.
Once Tian Zhu made her move, Bai Zhi stopped in her tracks. She looked at Jiang Ruan and pondered for a while before smiling bitterly, "Everything that Miss has said is correct. After following Miss for so many years, Miss knows this servant like the back of your hand. What's more, Miss is a person who easily guesses people's hearts. This little bit of skill of this servant, in front of Miss, is not something that can be put on the table. It will only be a source of ridicule. "
"No," Jiang Ruan said indifferently, "It is not because I understand you that I know your abnormality, and it is not because I am good at guessing people's hearts that I know that you are a spy. The only reason I can understand your identity is because you deliberately revealed it to me. " She crossed Tian Zhu and slowly walked in front of Bai Zhi. She looked at Bai Zhi calmly and spat out the truth, "These clues were deliberately revealed to me by you. You no longer want to hide your identity. You hoped that I would find out that rather than saying that I arranged this ghost hunt, it would be more accurate to say that you borrowed my hands to arrange it."
Bai Zhi was stunned for a moment, then she smiled and said, "Miss really knows how to joke. I am not an idiot, why would I take the initiative to hand over my weakness to someone else so that they could catch me? Why would I do this? "
"Yes," Jiang Ruan sighed and stared intently at her eyes, "I also want to know, why would you do this?"
That pair of upturned charming eyes had a sharp gaze, as if it wanted to strip away all pretense, and all the thoughts in one's heart seemed to have no place to hide in front of that pair of bright eyes. Bai Zhi felt somewhat restless. She gritted her teeth and persistently looked at Jiang Ruan.
"Didn't you choose this method to tell me the truth?" Jiang Ruan's voice was gentle and seemed to contain a kind of temptation and bewitchment, causing people to involuntarily speak out their inner thoughts, "Bai Zhi, if you have any difficulties, you can tell me. This is not only an explanation for me, but also for yourself. You should at least give me an explanation for being betrayed by a maidservant who has been by your side for more than ten years. Otherwise, I will also think that I am such a master who can't keep people. "
Both Dezhu and Lian Qiao looked at Bai Zhi. As sisters who had been together day and night, in one night, she had become their enemy. This was really an unacceptable fact. Lian Qiao said, "Bai Zhi, you should at least tell us the reason."
Under such intense gazes, Bai Zhi finally lowered her head. When she raised her eyes again, her gaze was already very calm, as if she had made an important decision. She said, "Miss's guess is right, it is not that Miss can't keep people. The reason why Bai Zhi was the one who induced the poison was because Bai Zhi was originally Da Furen's person. "
"How could that be?" Dezhu said in surprise, "Da Furen is already dead, how could she let you poison Miss?"
"At that time, Lian Qiao and I were chosen by the former Madam to be given to Miss, but we are different. Lian Qiao's background is clean, she is the daughter of the Minister's household. Nubi's family lives in a manor under the Minister's Mansion. Nubi's older brother works under Da Furen's steward. Da Furen wants nubi to come and take care of Miss, but she holds nubi's family's contract in her hands.
Lian Qiao did not expect that there would be such a thing. She had always thought that Bai Zhi was like her, personally chosen by Zhao Mei to serve Jiang Ruan, so naturally, her background was also clean. Who knew that Bai Zhi's purpose of being sent here was not so simple.
"Although Da Furen wanted me to follow Miss, she did not ask me to do anything. She only occasionally asked about Miss's situation. I did not dare to stop her. Later on, Miss went to the manor, and my family was fortunate enough to be freed from their slave status. I have always been by Miss's side. Because there is no longer any threat, I want to serve Miss wholeheartedly, as compensation for the past few years. " She paused and laughed, "In the past, Miss's temperament was soft and gentle, and you were often bullied. Later on, at Zhuangzi Mountain, for some reason, your temperament changed. I am truly happy for Miss. Later on, Da Furen also died, and I thought that the past would be the past forever, as long as I continue living like this with Miss. Who knew that a few days ago, someone took my mother's keepsake and gave it to me. Someone found my family and wanted me to poison Miss, otherwise, my family's lives would be in danger. "
"So in order to protect your family, you used poison on Miss?" Lian Qiao asked in surprise. Perhaps this was pardonable, but as a servant, she could never betray her master. Therefore, Lian Qiao did not approve of Bai Zhi's actions. She immediately said, "Even so, when you did this, did you think of Miss? Let's not talk about the past for now. Even now, you can tell Miss about this. Miss is so smart, she will definitely think of a way to solve this problem for you! "
"You don't understand!" Bai Zhi shouted, "Lian Qiao, your family is innocent, and can be a loyal servant in front of Master. But I am Da Furen's person. If this matter is implicated, even if I did not do anything to Miss, the past will be dug up, and Miss will not see me in the future. Once this matter is brought up, I can never go back to the past. Moreover, no matter how resourceful Miss is, I would never dare to play around with the lives of my family. I still have my elder brother and younger brother, I cannot put them in danger because of me. "
"You are so stubborn!" Lian Qiao said angrily.
"You can scold me or blame me, I don't care." Bai Zhi smiled bitterly, "After all, I have committed such a heinous crime. No matter how Miss punishes me, I will have no regrets."
"Then who was the person who made you poison Miss?" Lu Zhu asked anxiously.
"I don't know." Bai Zhi shook her head, "He sent a message to me by tying a dart to a slip of paper. I don't know who that person is, and with the wall separating us, I don't know what he looks like."
"I only have one question for you," Jiang Ruan said indifferently, "More than ten years ago, when Jiang Dan poisoned my mother, did you know?"
Lu Zhu and Lian Qiao were shocked. They did not know that Jiang Dan had poisoned her. Originally, they did not know who the person behind the Xia fu was, but it turned out to be Jiang Dan?
Bai Zhi was silent for a moment before she nodded.
Jiang Ruan looked at her coldly. Previously, her attitude towards Bai Zhi had always been gentle, and she did not show any anger at being betrayed. But now, her indifference made people feel cold. She said, "You have been with me for so many years, and as you said, you have not done anything to harm me. In the most difficult times, it was you and Lian Qiao who were by my side. Although I did not say it, as long as I am safe in this world, I will use all my power to protect you. Bai Zhi, I will not pursue the matter of you luring poison to me. You did these things for your family. If it were me, I might not have done better than you. But you watched helplessly as my mother was harmed by Jiang Dan's poison. You could have taken the initiative to warn me like you did today. You did not say anything. Although everyone has their own master, and this is pardonable, I will never be able to forgive you for this. "
Bai Zhi was shocked and suddenly raised her head to look at Jiang Ruan. Jiang Ruan's temperament had always been cold. On the surface, she did not seem to care much about anything, so she had always been very tolerant towards the mistakes of her servants. But only those who were close to her knew that she could be very crazy and stubborn about certain things. Previously, Bai Zhi was certain that Jiang Ruan would be disappointed in her because of this matter, but she would not really vent her anger on her. But now, Jiang Ruan's words had clearly expressed that she and Mo Tiange were in opposing camps.
"I have nothing to say about you luring poison to me. I cannot forgive you for watching my mother stand by and do nothing. Bai Zhi, the relationship between you and me is that of a master and servant. In this world, we no longer have any connection. "
Jiang Ruan's words were powerful and unquestionable. Lian Qiao, Lu Zhu, and Tian Zhu stood silently at the side, no one spoke. Bai Zhi was dumbstruck. Small snowflakes fell on her body, and the fire burned silently in the snow. She felt very lonely, as if everything in the world had abandoned her.
After a moment, she suddenly laughed softly. Then, her laughter became louder and louder, almost to the point of tears. She said, "I did not complete that person's task. In the end, he will not forgive me. He is afraid that I will bite him again. In the end, there is only one way. "Before her voice died away, she suddenly slammed her head against the stone wall. She was originally very close to the stone wall, and Tian Zhu, who was the best at martial arts, was by Jiang Ruan's side to protect her. There was simply no time to save her. This time, Bai Zhi used all her strength. It was obvious that she was wholeheartedly seeking death. There was only a muffled sound, and Lian Qiao cried out in alarm. Bai Zhi fell limply, and the blood on her forehead was a ghastly sight.
She breathed in big mouthfuls, and blood flowed continuously from her mouth, drenching the snow beneath her into a captivating red. She panted, and her voice was like a broken bellows. With great difficulty, one could make out an unspoken sentence, "Sorry …."
The snow once again fell into silence. There was no sound at all. Large pieces of snow fell, almost drowning the bloodstains on the ground. Jiang Ruan's voice was so low that it was almost inaudible. She said, "Bury him."
She turned and walked out of the courtyard, her long crimson skirt blending with the blood on the ground. Her expression was ice-cold, and her back was perfectly straight. She walked coldly and resolutely, never turning back to look at the figure on the ground again. However, she walked faster and faster, almost as if she was jogging in the snow. Finally, after rushing out of the courtyard, she stopped abruptly. With one hand supporting herself against the vermilion pillar, she only felt that her whole body was unusually cold.
She tightly pursed her lips. The corners of her mouth were stiff, but the rims of her eyes were slightly red.
A cold and cheerless figure walked out from behind her and stood behind her. He slowly pulled her shoulders and embraced her in his arms. The young man's features were handsome, and his slender figure seemed to contain an infinite power that made people feel at ease. In this cold winter day, there was a trace of warmth.
"Xiao Shao, I am very sad." Jiang Ruan's voice had a weariness that was not usually present. She reached out and hugged the young man's thin waist, and buried her head in his shoulder, "Don't betray me."
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