Pretending to be jealous in the arms of Dali Temple

The two stood under the palace wall in silence for a moment.

"My lord, what will happen if the painting can't be found?"

The little girl was full of worry, and her eyes were foggy.

Su Jizhi chuckled, "Exile to the northwest or demoted to Tongshan Mansion?"

Wan Yan didn't want to, "My lord can still laugh? I see that the emperor is moody, I really don't know what will happen to us tomorrow?"

"So we can only solve the case and find the paintings." Su Jizhi was very firm.

"The imperial palace is so big, and there are only five hours left. I don't know where the painting is now? How can I find it?" The little girl was aggrieved, her voice choked up.

"Don't be afraid, with me, we haven't started yet, why do you think it won't work?"

Su Jizhi pulled up Wanyan and shook the pill box in his hand, "I'll take this box of pills out of the palace first, let's go, let's talk about it on the way."

No matter how the little girl was feeling, Su Jizhi was still as calm as before.

"Wan Yan, as long as things happen, there will always be mistakes. We just need to see if we can catch the clues. Don't think about how to solve the case now. Tell me what your first reaction would be if you heard that a painting was lost?"

"Of course thieves stole it and sold it. Master Wen's painting is worth tens of thousands of taels. I don't know which one it is in the palace. It should be more valuable."

Su Jizhi listened carefully, and thought for a moment: "Very well, don't think about the consequences of not being able to solve the case. When you hear that the palace lost paintings, who is the first thief that comes to mind?"

"People in the palace, but today is the autumn tea banquet, and people outside the palace may also seize the opportunity to enter the Qianqing Palace."

Su Jizhi smiled, "Look, isn't there a direction here? Let's hurry up, five hours is indeed very tight."

Wan Yan trotted to follow Su Jizhi, the cool autumn wind hit her face, and what was even colder was her worry about solving the case.

After a stick of incense, the two returned to Qianqing Palace.

The gate of the palace was wide open, and there were more than 30 people standing neatly inside.

Wan Yan saw Su Jizhi's face darken.

The leading Gongzheng is the man Wanyan met in the imperial study just now.

"Master Su, everyone is here."

"Thank you, Father." Su Jizhi looked around the crowd and asked him in a low voice, "I took a golden pill just now, and I feel refreshed. Thank you, Your Majesty."

The father-in-law lowered his head and smiled, "The emperor will be very happy to hear that."

"Is there any extra golden elixir? The case has been solved, and I want to ask the emperor for one."

The father-in-law laughed, "This slave doesn't know. The emperor personally took the pills to the imperial study. Where did the golden pill come from? Is there any more? This slave doesn't know either."

Wan Yan listened behind her, knowing that the adults did not believe in the father-in-law, and the father-in-law also had reservations about the adults.

So the two seem to be having a conversation, but in fact neither of them knows what the other is really thinking.

That's right, in this deep palace, who is trustworthy?
Su Jizhi walked through the crowd, Wan Yan looked at these people lightly, there were court ladies and imperial guards.

The adults just told her that these are the people who shuttled between Qianqing Palace and Wenhe Palace today.

"Is everyone here?" Su Jizhi asked.

"They're all here. Today's concubine Yi personally selected these court ladies. The list is here."

The father-in-law handed it to Su Jizhi, and Su Jizhi took it lightly, and looked at a dozen imperial guards, "Which of you is in charge here?"

Four people raised their hands.

The square-faced soldier in the lead seemed to be familiar with Su Jizhi, and said loudly, "Master Su, the four of us are in charge of this place. Since Sishi, we have never left."

"What about after the palace banquet?"

"According to the procedure, we need to close the hall door before we can leave, but before the hall door closed, I heard that sister shout that the painting was lost. The four of us waited until just now."

"That is to say, the four of you have not left?"

"Yes."

"What about the positions of the four of you? Are there any changes in the middle?"

Fang Lian replied loudly, "My lord, please believe us, absolutely not."

Su Jizhi showed a slight smile, "It's just right, I will need your help in a while, now think about it, is there something special about today?"

The four of them got together and recalled in a low voice.

Su Jizhi turned to the court lady, "Which one of you found out that the painting was lost just now?"

A maid of seventeen or eighteen came out of the crowd and raised her hand, "My lord, it's me."

Wan Yan looked at her, the maid was wearing a gray palace gown, her hair was combed neatly, she didn't have any accessories on her body, and she had a second-class badge on her waist. It seemed that she was an aunt in charge.

"How do you know that the paintings hanging in Qianqing Palace are lost?"

"The slaves are responsible for cleaning the Qianqing Palace every day, and they know where everything is. Today, the concubine Yi said that she would open the gate of the Qianqing Palace, so the servants paid more attention. These maids are also recommended by the slaves to the concubine Yi. There will be problems."

Su Jizhi sneered, "I'm very happy that you can guarantee this, but... do you know the consequences you have to bear for these words?"

The aunt in charge was taken aback.

"If the person who took the painting is not among these people, you have ruled out many suspects for me. If the thieves are among these people, you are covering up the criminals. In the end, you made a big mistake. I will ask you for questioning."

The aunt in charge looked at the crowd, glanced around, and finally lowered her head, "I can't be sure."

"it is good."

Wan Yan saw a smile on the adult's face, as if he knew the result a long time ago, "Now I have given you a task to ask all the court ladies whereabouts for most of the day."

Su Ji's ring swept over everyone, "You can give evidence to each other, and if it helps to solve the case, I will reward you heavily."

Wan Yan heard the maids talking in low voices.

Su Jizhi turned to the square-faced soldier again, "Here are four of you, be sure to record what they say, and if you find anything unusual, please notify me immediately."

Leaving the crowd, Wan Yan grabbed Su Jizhi's sleeve and asked in a low voice, "My lord, do you think there is something wrong with these maids?"

"Except for the aunt who is in charge, most people will not be bribed. Even if they are bribed, it is a kind of tipping off. They dare not send the paintings out of the palace."

"why?"

"To survive." Su Jizhi turned his head to look at Wan Yan, his eyes were deep, like the twinkling stars in the night sky, "Wan Yan, they are the lowest people in the palace, they can't leave the palace until they die, and The emperor also said that they were all temporarily assigned to enter the Qianqing Palace."

Su Jizhi calmly analyzed, and said firmly, "I believe it was accidental. Before today, no one thought of stealing the painting of Qianqing Palace."

Wan Yan tilted her head, still a little puzzled, "Then why did your lord investigate them in detail?"

Su Jizhi chuckled, "Soldiers never tire of deceit. They are not the ones who took away the paintings, and they might have tipped off the news in the palace. Wan Yan, let's think this way. If the paintings are taken away by the palace people, are the thieves just asking for news?"

Wan Yan smiled, the gleam in the adult's eyes was like a hunter waiting for an opportunity to hunt.

Entering the inner hall, Su Jizhi lit the candles, and the figures of the two were instantly projected onto the four walls of the palace.

Wan Yan saw several paintings hanging on the walls of the left and right temples.

The middlemost position is empty.

Su Jizhi approached in a few steps and held up a candle.

With the help of candlelight and smoke, there is a square paper card under the picture frame, which reads:

Wen Daoyan: A map of the purple air coming from the east.

Wan Yan took a deep breath, it turned out that Master Wen's original work is here.