Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

Xie Xian scratched his head, smiling awkwardly.

He had learned it when he taught literacy in the county, but this thing was just an auxiliary tool for recognizing characters.

He knew how to read before that, and now he wasn't teaching anymore, so he had forgotten the useless stuff long ago.

Xiao Tao should recognize it; she's been in the Princess's mansion recently, so he should go there...

"This is a secret code. Decoding it will take time. Sir, please return first. I will find someone to decode it. If it's a matter of great importance, I will report it to the Crown Prince."

"I..." Chen Kai hesitated, wanting to say something.

Xie Xian quickly clasped his fist and said, "Chen Kai, Supervising Censor! I remember, I will definitely tell His Royal Highness the Crown Prince everything as it is. Congratulations, Lord Chen. Your timely arrival is a great contribution. If it's a major clue, it will be a merit to the country. Our Banshan News Agency must write a special feature to let the people of the world know of Lord Chen's achievements!"

"Oh my..." Chen Kai was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes, and he spread his arms, ready to embrace him.

He was so damn sensible!

Xie Xian took a step back, dodging his overwhelming enthusiasm, and pointed to Linglong, who was cowering in the corner, "Does this woman have anything else to confess?"

Chen Kai turned his head to look, and laughed, "She should be useless now. Men, take her to the capital prison!"

"No!"

Linglong's eyes, already filled with tears, instantly burst, and tears streamed down.

Her legs went weak, and she squatted on the ground, weak, pitiful, and helpless.

Liar! A pure liar! Deceiving me into coming to Da Jing was just to make me deliver a handkerchief?

"Lord Chen, please wait. Since she has nothing else to confess, why not hand her over to me?" Xie Xian stopped him, "I understand Lord Fang. Since he sent this girl to deliver the letter, he would definitely not mistreat her. I will notify the Embroidered Uniform Guard to handle the rest of the small matters, so I won't bother you, sir."

Chen Kai said, "Very well, then I'll trouble Brother Xie. This official's hasty return to the capital has broken the rules, so I need to go back early to bathe and change clothes, and find a suitable time to report to the court and meet the Emperor. When I came, I saw an inn near the news agency, so I'll stay there for now. Brother Xie, if you need any help, please let me know."

Xie Xian clasped his fist again, "Lord Chen, rest assured, once the contents of this handkerchief are deciphered, I will notify you immediately. When you meet His Majesty, he will surely be delighted."

Chen Kai was overjoyed.

It was so great to meet someone like Xie Xian; it was so worry-free!

After Chen Kai left the news agency with his men, Xie Xian helped Linglong, who was kneeling on the ground, up and said softly, "Miss Linglong, please rise. My master had no malicious intent in asking you to come here. Once everything is clear, I will send someone to take you home."

Linglong nodded, tearfully, and stood up accordingly.

Now she could only let others manipulate her.

......

With such an important matter at hand, Xie Xian dared not delay. He first greeted the nearby Embroidered Uniform Guard station, with whom he usually had close contact, to provide manpower support.

Then, he took the Embroidered Uniform Guard and Linglong to the Princess's mansion at full speed.

Inside the Princess's mansion, several women were sitting in a circle in the courtyard.

Normally, Xiao Tao, Shui Yibai, and Luo Ningxin lived in the Fang family's residence.

But after a long time, they became acquainted and would gather at the Princess's mansion.

Li Miaohan had the air of a head mistress. Although she was young, she was gentle and generous.

The family got along harmoniously, and there were no conflicts, and there were several people who could talk to each other.

At this moment, several women were sitting around the table, chatting.

Suddenly, a maid came from outside the moon gate and reported to Li Miaohan, "Your Highness, Xie Xian from the Banshan News Agency wishes to see you."

Li Miaohan blinked and said, "Why would someone from the news agency come here? Let him in."

Having received the report, Xie Xian walked in quickly, first hurrying to salute, and then said breathlessly, "Your Highness, I have an urgent matter to report. Our master has sent a secret letter back from the Jin Kingdom."

With that, he took out a moon-white handkerchief.

Several women gathered around, and Li Miaohan took the handkerchief and began to study it.

Suddenly, the faces of several women changed at the same time, and they immediately came to the conclusion: "This is a woman's handkerchief!"

"Heh... what kind of letter needs to be written on a handkerchief? He must be flirting with women outside again."

"Hmph!"

"Let him flirt, see how capable he is, let him work himself to death!"

The women began to clamor and denounce the scumbag, and Xie Xian stood there, his face full of embarrassment, not knowing whether to leave or stay.

Fortunately, Li Miaohan reacted quickly and asked, holding the handkerchief, "Where's the letter? Is it on the handkerchief?"

"Yes, there's a secret code written on it, called Pinyin..."

"Let me see, I can read it."

Before Xie Xian could continue, Xiao Tao took the handkerchief and examined it carefully. After reading just one line, her face immediately turned ugly.

After reading to the end, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing the strangeness on her face, several pairs of worried eyes looked at her at the same time, and Li Miaohan asked, "What's wrong? What's written in it?"

Xiao Tao frowned and said, "He said... he's trapped in the Jin Kingdom. The Jin Kingdom is about to go to war with Da Jing and asked him to manufacture hot air balloons. What's written inside are some subsequent war deployment plans. But don't worry, he's under house arrest now and is very safe. This matter must be reported to His Majesty immediately!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone present became extremely nervous, and the faces of several women paled instantly. Li Miaohan said urgently, "Did he say anything else?"

"Leaving aside everything else, quickly find me paper and a pen. I'll copy it down and send it to the palace immediately." After Xiao Tao finished speaking, she ran into the house in a panic to find paper and a pen.

After copying down the contents of the handkerchief one by one, Li Miaohan immediately summoned the eunuch from the Princess's mansion: "His Majesty should still be busy with government affairs at the moment. Go find the Imperial Brother first and have him go find His Majesty."

The eunuch took the letter and ran away as if flying.

"Besides the war, what else did he say? How is he doing over there?"

Everyone's eyes were focused on Xiao Tao again, and Xiao Tao smiled bitterly, holding the handkerchief, "There's nothing else... just one last sentence, 'Treat Linglong well.'"

As soon as these words came out, the courtyard was in an uproar again.

"Linglong, that's a woman, right... is she the owner of the handkerchief?"

"He's still in the mood to ask us to treat other women well, so he must be safe, right?"

"He's really something... his life is in other people's hands, and he still has the leisure to think about this kind of thing?"

"What if something happens... Chen Yu can't be without a father..."

As she spoke, Shui Yibai began to shed tears, and then the women began to jump up and down anxiously.

Xie Xian stood aside, dumbfounded, his head swelling two sizes from listening.

Until he couldn't listen anymore, he shouted loudly, "Everyone, calm down, Master is definitely fine! Since the Jin Kingdom is asking him to make hot air balloons, it means they value Master's worth. He has so many good things on hand, even a little bit revealed from his fingernails is enough to save his life. He will definitely not be harmed!"