My wife has a secret

Chapter 239 Si Tianjian

"Ah."

Lu Wanhe lifted up a few strands of her messy hair in front of her forehead, and a blush appeared on her bright and pretty face, making her look like an ignorant girl with amorous feelings.

Qin Shuying seemed to smell the disturbing sour smell of love. She blinked her beautiful eyes, coughed lightly and said, "Wanhe, you just moved back from the Nie Mansion today. You don't know anyone in the mansion yet. Why don't you let me take you around and arrange the furniture?"

In the ambiguous atmosphere, Lu Wanhe naturally didn't dare to look directly into Xu Qing's eyes, and responded in a weak mosquito-like voice.

"Ah."

"There are also a lot of things to do in the palace. Every household is in the city purchasing cloth, food, clean water... to prepare for the attack of the Liao army. Moreover, those roofs are 20 to 30 years old and need to be reinforced."

Xu Qing looked at Qin Shuying in surprise. He didn't expect that this courtesan who came from a brothel would consider the affairs of the mansion so thoughtfully.

When facing a siege, the price of food and water in the city will gradually rise to a sky-high price. This is entirely because all military supplies will be supplied to the city defense troops first, and the remaining supplies will be put on the market by the government and sold at high prices.

And in the entire siege, the weapon that could affect civilian residences was the catapult.

Although the targets of those catapults were the defenders on the city walls, based on the hit rate in ancient times, most of the stone bullets would pass over the towering city walls and smash into the city.

If this siege lasted for a year or so, countless houses would surely be destroyed.

"After we have finished touring the courtyard and the flower garden, we will ask the housekeeper to find some craftsmen."

Xu Qing listened to Qin Shuying taking care of everything in an orderly manner and asked, "Then what do I need to do?"

"There is no Marquis's business in the mansion, so naturally I will stay where it is cooler."

After Qin Shuying scolded Xu Qing in a joking tone, she took Lu Wanhe's arm and walked towards another courtyard.

As they walked, he chatted with her about family matters. "Two days ago, Wang, the wife of the Minister of Personnel, informed me that the Ministry of Personnel had received a batch of smoked gauze from the Ministry of Revenue. In wartime, these are scarce materials. Let's go get the goods together tomorrow and see which ones are bright and suitable for making new clothes..."

Lu Wanhe responded to Qin Shuying's words, but she felt a little uneasy in her heart. She felt that it was impolite and disrespectful to treat her husband in this way.

And she didn't know whether her husband was really willing to let her enter the mansion, or whether he disliked her as a burden and trouble.

Taking advantage of the break in the conversation, Lu Wanhe walked out of the door and secretly looked back, looking at the man in the pavilion again, only to see that he was looking at her with burning eyes, and she turned her head back with a blushing face.

……

In the suburbs of Beijing, there is the Chengxuanfang master's workshop.

As the intelligence center of the entire Qi State and the source of information from all directions, the layout of the main workshop is still the same as when Xu Qing came last time, neat and orderly.

With the help of various huge water wheels, the steps of the main square slowly changed direction, evolving into the legendary six-story square formation.

However, unlike before, the gate of Chengxuanfang was locked tightly this time, and all the people inside were forbidden to go out. Xinfu and the steward were called to the inner and outer rooms to wait for their fate.

Shan Yongpei, dressed in the attire of a butler, was waiting in the abbot's room. Through a screen, he reported the intelligence he had obtained in recent days to Shen Shuangxu.

"According to the self-inspection and reports from various departments, there were a total of 6,732 intelligence letters in the past three months. All of them have been reported and placed in the file library."

When Xu Qing briefly took over Chengxuanfang, Shan Yongpei became the assistant to the master, handling various affairs in the main workshop.

Gradually, he has become the backbone of Chengxuanfang. Not only does he know a lot of inside information, but he can also handle things in the square with ease.

Therefore, when Shen Shuangxu was on a diplomatic mission to the Liao Kingdom, most of the things in the town were handed over to him instead of Mingzhu.

When Shen Shuangxu returned from the Liao Kingdom, Shan Yongpei thought that such days would continue, but he did not expect that the other party would just throw out a sentence of investigating traitors and launched a massive action inside the main workshop.

"Master, I have carefully checked the books they presented to me and confirmed that they are correct."

After Shan Yongpei finished speaking, he stood aside calmly, waiting for the woman behind the screen to give orders.

Shen Shuangxu stood quietly in front of the desk, her jade-like fingers brushing across the case files, with a look of indifference and arrogance on her face, as if all worldly emotions had nothing to do with her.

She is like a snow lotus on a glacier, fresh and unworldly, poetic and picturesque.

"Is this... all?"

"Yes, the personnel roster and account books of Chengxuanfang are all here."

"Where are the things from the Sitianjian?"

Hearing Shen Shuangxu's question, Shan Yongpei was slightly stunned, and after hesitating for a moment, he replied: "Master, the Sitianjian has always been responsible for weather and star fortune, and has no contact with the various departments of Chengxuanfang."

"Really no contact?"

After listening to Shen Shuangxu repeat the question, Shan Yongpei began to seriously think about the information from Si Tianjian.

When he first came to Chengxuanfang, he had heard of the name of Sitianjian.

The reason why he had such a deep impression of the Sitianjian was entirely due to the mysterious daily life of the people in the Sitianjian. Although they were affiliated with Chengxuanfang, they did not even share the same supplies with the people in the square.

Most of them live on the other side of the main workshop, occupying the top two floors and having their own observatory.

I heard that the people in the Imperial Astronomical Observatory used this observatory to observe the daily weather and report the records to the palace one night in advance to make it easier for the people inside to arrange the emperor's itinerary.

"The Imperial Observatory was previously under the jurisdiction of the palace. All the people inside had been castrated. They had no parents, no relatives, and no friends outside the palace... After being assigned to Chengxuanfang, they were also strictly prohibited from leaving this place."

Shan Yongpei thought for a moment and felt that the possibility of a traitor appearing in the Imperial Observatory was low.

The reason why the previous investigation did not involve the Sitianjian was that those people who observed the stars and predicted fortunes were all eunuchs who had no desires or demands.

The astronomical observatory was separated from the external affairs room. Not to mention that they could not access the letters and intelligence, they did not even have a way to transmit the information out.

Only letters that have been strictly checked by Chengxuanfang can be sent to the Foreign Affairs Office by Xinfu and delivered by carrier pigeons.

“I thought so originally.”

Shen Shuangxu analyzed calmly: "But this time when I was on a diplomatic mission to Liao, I remembered one thing... that is, the local spies and undercover agents basically use some secret codes that are difficult to detect and understand to write the corresponding intelligence information."

Shan Yongpei had also heard about what Shen Shuangxu said.

The living customs in the north and south are quite different, so the spies lurking in the enemy country will not use the common domestic secret codes to prevent others from noticing any abnormalities. "Inside Chengxuanfang, there are actually astronomy and geography."

Shan Yongpei was stunned for a moment, and replied: "There is indeed astronomy and geography, but the Sitianjian, which uses astronomy, actually only uses it as a means of stargazing, to facilitate recording the daily movement of the stars and their whereabouts."

Even after hearing Shen Shuangxu reveal the secret code, Shan Yongpei didn't think there was a traitor.

It’s still the same question as before. Even if the Sitianjian really had the means to deceive the internal investigation, how did it pass the information on?
You know, they are not allowed to contact the Foreign Affairs Office.

"Ordinary means may not work, but if these secret codes are recorded in the daily weather information, they will naturally be presented to the palace by a special person, and then the traitors in the White Lotus Palace will interpret the information and make corresponding arrangements."

"what?"

At this moment, Shan Yongpei finally realized where the problem lay.

No wonder Shen Shuangxu rushed back to Suzhou from the capital earlier, and the information about the White Lotus Sect was delivered to Suzhou first, allowing Dongzangshi to make arrangements in advance.

If there is such a method to transmit information, coupled with the concealment of secret codes, it makes sense that Chengxuanfang did not find any problems after several self-inspections.

"Master, I will take people to capture them right away."

"No need, I have already sent Mingzhu to take action."

After hearing Shen Shuangxu's answer, Shan Yongpei realized that the majestic figure was missing from the room.

It seems that this was an arrangement Shen Shuangxu had made long ago.

However, what Shan Yongpei could not have imagined was that even today's self-examination was actually a means of targeting the Imperial Observatory. Under the pretext of investigating traitors, they could naturally close all the gates of the main workshop to prevent these people from becoming alert and escaping early.

After all, Si Tianjian has lived here for so many years and has taken great pains to pass intelligence to the White Lotus Sect. Naturally, he would have thought of a retreat plan and prepared means of escape in case of exposure.

Shan Yongpei felt that things had come to this point and there was no need for him to add unnecessary details, so he stayed here quietly, waiting for Mingzhu to arrest the traitors of the Imperial Observatory.

But the next moment, several deafening explosions began to be heard inside and outside the main workshop.

Soon after, all the pavilions and connecting corridors began to collapse, and even the room where the abbot was in charge began to shake and tilt to one side.

Shan Yongpei originally wanted to rescue Shen Shuangxu, but when he was about to act, he felt an inexplicable chill.

The instinctive avoidance allowed him to avoid the critical point at the critical moment.

But even so, he was injured by the sneak attack. He felt a surge of true energy hitting his back, causing his muscles and bones to burst into pain and make a heart-pounding crackling sound.

"As expected, she is the most talented woman in the past hundred years."

The voice of the person who spoke was like a bat in the night, dark and slightly fierce.

But the most impressive thing is that this tone is unique. It is sharp and piercing, accompanied by a strange breathing sound.

"When we at the Astronomical Bureau were planning this, we never thought about the consequences of it being exposed. After all, everything was arranged so well. Who would have thought... that a woman like you could see through the loopholes in Chengxuanfang with just a little guesswork."

Shan Yongpei supported his body and barely looked at the person who was attacking him.

I saw that the man was very tall and was wearing eunuch's clothes. This outfit was definitely the same as the one worn by the Imperial Observatory.

Shan Yongpei was filled with uneasiness. Didn’t Mingzhu already bring people to capture the other party?
Why would this traitor from the Imperial Observatory appear here?

Before he could think too much, the other party stepped into the room and began to carefully search for Shen Shuangxu's whereabouts.

As for Shan Yongpei, after the successful sneak attack, this person had lost interest in him.

After all, that palm strike just now was enough to dissipate Shan Yongpei's internal strength and make him a cripple.

"found it."

With a strange laugh, the eunuch from the Imperial Observatory saw a woman's skirt in the ruins. When he tried to pull a corner of it away from the rubble, his smug expression suddenly disappeared.

Because the things inside were weightless, after using internal force to break open the stones, only a few broken pieces of wood and vines were seen.

"Cao Teng, why did you mistake the figure behind the screen for me?"

Shen Shuangxu's voice came from the other side of the house. The intact wall was pulled open by two maids. The dignified and beautiful Shen Shuangxu appeared in front of the eunuch and Shan Yongpei, sitting upright and looking at each other with cold eyes.

Eunuch Cao Teng realized that he had been deceived and then reacted. The "Shen Shuangxu" he had painstakingly lurked and attacked before was actually just a puppet made of wood blocks, vines and women's clothing.

It was only because of the uniqueness of Shan Yongpei's voice and the way he reported his work that he mistook his identity.

"No! I just heard clearly that your voice came from behind the screen. Why would your real body be somewhere else? This doesn't make sense!"

Cao Teng retorted subconsciously. He could not accept this result.

In fact, when Princess Danyang was under house arrest, the White Lotus Sect lost the hub for transmitting information in the palace, and the Imperial Observatory made arrangements in advance to prevent any abnormalities from being detected and wiped out.

Shen Shuangxu cleaned up faster than anyone expected, but the Sitianjian was also well prepared.

They knew that the most capable people in Chengxuanfang under the leadership of Shen Shuangxu were Mingzhu who was beside him and Shan Yongpei who was transferred from Zhennan Zhongwu Army, so they formulated this seemingly perfect plan.

When one of the two men leaves Shen Shuangxu and leads a team to capture Si Tianjian, someone will detonate the gunpowder that has been set up in advance and trap him in a corridor.

At this moment, he clamped the poison needle of the Ice Heart Scorpion in his hand, causing the other person to lose consciousness.

In this way, the owner of Chengxuanfang will become a lamb to be slaughtered.

Even if she survived in the house where the explosives were laid in advance, she would be stabbed to death on the spot.

But why did such a rigorous plan fail?

"Sending Mingzhu to search and arrest and summoning Shan Yongpei was a trap I had prepared in advance... After all, when I was arresting the Si Tian Jian, I had already considered the possibility that all the members of the Si Tian Jian would rebel."

Shen Shuangxu certainly understood Cao Teng's confusion. She had a complete grasp of the situation and had plenty of time to explain the situation.

"After the Si Tian Jian was merged into Cheng Xuan Fang, they basically lost their personal freedom. From this, we can infer that the traitor was bewitched by the White Lotus Sect before the Si Tian Jian was merged into Cheng Xuan Fang. The Si Tian Jian was able to use secret codes when spreading information, which also secretly proved that the traitor was in a high position and had enough power to touch the most core secrets of the Si Tian Jian."

(End of this chapter)