Yan Cigui

 The backyard of the spice shop.

Su Chang sat beside the stone bench, his body upright, his head lowered and silent, and he did not raise his head to look at Shen Chen.

Not long ago, Su Yi's secret message was delivered to Su Chang. After reading the content, he did not dare to make any decisions and just lit the lantern after dark.

 Originally I said, as long as there is news, click on it no matter day or night.

Later I thought, lighting a lamp during the day is unnatural and abnormal, which is a demon. If someone is caught in the eye, it will be a bad thing.

Therefore, when it is still dark and there is news, the bottom one of the string of lanterns on the right is replaced with a new candle, with a higher flame and a brighter candle.

 After closing the shop and waiting for two quarters of an hour, the young man came.

Su Chang had dealt with him several times, but he always covered his face and refused to reveal his identity.

Su Chang is not stupid. Even if he is curious, he avoids looking at the other person. He can talk with his head lowered and will never meet his eyes.

 Speaking of what Su Yixin had told him, Su Chang was in a state of confusion.

 Something is wrong, everything seems wrong!

Shenchen didn't care what Su Chang was thinking about, he read the letter in his hand carefully.

Su Yi’s handwriting is no different from the handwriting he received previously.

This time the letter stated that Su Yi contacted Li Du again.

After Li Du left the capital, he did not go far and lurked in the mountains south of the capital.

The mountain stretches out, and Li Du built Zhuangzi in it in his early years. Because of the deep mountains and forests, it was very hidden from people's eyes and ears.

Su Yi had heard Li Du talk about it before, but he had never been there, and he didn’t know the detailed location.

Although he formed an alliance with Li Du, alliances are not forever. Li Du could not completely reveal his hidden hiding place to him, just to guard against "today".

However, what is certain is that Li Du is in that village, because there is a town called Ji'an at the foot of the mountain. In the past two months, someone from the town's Chinese medicine shop came to buy a lot of medicinal materials for treating coughs.

As for Li Du, according to Su Yi's correspondence with him, he contracted a cough when he escaped from the imperial city and never recovered.

Zhuangzi's position has not yet been fully figured out, but Su Yi and Li Du have made an appointment to meet at the Yishan Temple five miles southwest of Ji'an Town at midnight on September 24th.

"Li Du is very scheming. If he comes in person, we can catch him on the spot. If he doesn't come in person, someone should lead me up the mountain to the village. You should bring fewer people and follow me quietly to avoid being discovered. , and when Zhuangzi is found, we will deploy additional manpower to capture him."

Shen Chen looked at the letter and frowned: "Zhuangzi?"

Su Chang thought about it and took the initiative to say: "Brother, I have to talk to your master about this matter and think about it more."

 “What?” Shen Chen asked him.

Now that Su Chang had surrendered, no matter how hesitant he was, he still made up his mind.

"Don't worry about whether there is Zhuangzi on the mountain or not. Once there, it will be Su Yi and Li Du's territory. What we want to do is to bring less manpower and follow us. Someone might ask you to come in and pull the big net to wait for us. If we don't have enough manpower, we will fall into the trap. In the pit, they were all caught in one fell swoop!”

Shen Chen naturally thought of this, but seeing Su Chang's worried look, he asked again: "What should we do? With more people, we can scare the grass and scare the snake."

Su Chang smiled bitterly.

 How can he have any good ideas?

If he was a flexible person, would he still be caught in the middle and act as a double spy?

 Oh, wrong.

 Now it’s a three-faced spy.

 He was still singing in front of His Highness Dashun.

Thinking about it this way, it’s still quite active, isn’t it?

Su Chang was enjoying his hardships. Hearing Shen Chen tell him to rest and wait for dispatch, he agreed.

As soon as the younger brother left, he looked at the bright moon in the sky and licked his lips. With all this trouble, when can he bring his family back to live together in peace?

 On the other side, Shen Chen handed the letter to Lin Yunyan.

Lin Yunyan didn’t speak for a long time after reading it.

When she spoke again, she said: "I'm sure, Li Du's plan was either for him to join forces with Su Yi, or for him to use his strength knowing that Su Yi was fishing for him. But from my point of view, it was still the two of them who joined forces. "

After hearing this, Shen Chen was surprised. Why could the princess make such an assertion?

Before he could think of how to ask, Xiang Wanyue asked first.

 Lin Yunyan's tone just now was very calm. Shen Chen couldn't hear any emotion, but Wan Yue was familiar with her and knew that the princess was angry.

Wanyue was very concerned and was afraid that the princess would lose her judgment in anger.

“On September 24th, the third update begins,” Lin Yunyan pointed out, “that means in half an hour it will be the 25th.”

　　Wanyue’s eyes suddenly widened.

 September 25th, still early in the morning.

That, that was the time of the fire in Dingguo Temple, and it was the death anniversary of the late Queen and Madame.

"This, this..." Wan Yue was dumbfounded, "It's so abominable! It's so vicious!"

"There are so many days, but we chose the late night of September 24th. Once a conflict breaks out, it will soon be the 25th," Lin Yunyan said. "According to the words in the letter, the date was agreed upon by Su.

 Su Yi Neng has been planning with Li Du for many years, so he cannot be a confused person. If he wants to 'invest' in Li Shao this time, he will naturally understand Li Shao's situation.

Knowing what day the 25th was, Su Yi didn't dare to provoke Li Shao like this. If it exploded, his path would be cut off.

Only Li Du would do such a heartbreaking thing to make a fuss about the late Queen's death. "

Wan Yue asked again: "Princess, you can tell it at a glance. Could it be that His Highness..."

 Don’t you doubt Su Yi and Li Du?

"I saw it because I was angry," Lin Yunyan asked Wan Yue, "What do you think Li Shao saw?"

 Wan Yue understands.

His Highness will only be angrier than the princess.

 The princess is angry, but she will not be impulsive and will analyze the situation.

Your Highness is different. When you get angry, you won't listen to other people's advice. And knowing that Li Du is making trouble there, you will be sure to catch him regardless.

Then, you fell into a trap.

“Li Du will not let His Highness be caught easily. He is plotting against His Highness,” Wan Yue thought about it and asked, “He wants to deceive His Highness and kill him?”

　　I was frightened by this question, and I covered my mouth and did not dare to say anything further.

Lin Yunyan shook her head.

 It doesn’t look like it.

It was once easy for Li Du to kill Li Shao. Feng Chang and Wang Gouzi were close to serve Li Shao. Before the incident of killing Li Jun, either of them could easily drug Li Shao.

It can't be that your painstaking planning is ruined in one move, and you want to kill Li Shao to vent your anger, right?

 That means seizing Li Shao as a hostage?

 But what can this hostage be exchanged for? Force the Holy One to give way?

No matter how much the Holy Emperor favored Li Shao, he could not give up the throne, because he was the emperor, he had so many ministers, and the destiny was vast, and not all of it belonged to him alone.

 So, what is the use of Li Shao?

Lin Yunyan closed her eyes, and faces flashed through her mind.

Mrs. Enrongbo was angry when she heard someone talking about the madness of the late empress. The empress dowager recalled her tears when she decided to be the king. Mrs. Xu’s pain and hatred when she tore off Liu Jing’s disguise for Xu Jian. Their father traveled thousands of miles to find them. , the reluctance and concern before dying...

 The Holy Master was talking about Li Shao's worries and entanglements in Cining Palace.

 The heavy love parents have for their children.

Li Shao is the sharpest blade that stabs the Holy One.

 What is the most painful thing?

 When the Holy Master held the knife and stabbed it into the chest, the blood was dripping most. To make Li Shao so doomed that even the Holy Emperor could not hold him back and had no choice but to let him go, this was the situation Li Du laid out for Li Shao.

Just as I was thinking about it, Mother Ma called out from outside.

Lin Yunyan let people in.

With a serious look on her face, Grandma Ma reported: "I reported back from Quzhou, but the person is missing."

Lin Yunyan blinked.

 Quzhou refers to the place where Liu Xun was exiled.

The verdict of the case was reached that day. Liu Jing was expelled from his career and repatriated to his native place. Liu Xun was exiled and traveled far away. The two of them had already gone back to the capital and the government of Fuguo.

It is said that there is no possibility of meeting each other again in this life, and Xu Jian and Lin Yunyan do not want to see those two people again, but they also need to beware of some changes.

 Furthermore, Liu Xun was born and raised by Mrs. Xu after all. No matter how cruel a mother is, she can't really let go of her son. It's just hard to mention it again.

Mrs. Xu did not dare to mention it, but Xu Jian was thinking about her mood and promised that if she had any news about Quzhou, he would tell her. This moved Mrs. Xu very much.

 Xu Jian also told Lin Yunyan later that she had to keep an eye on people anyway, just say a word or two about things that would not be in the way, so as not to really become a knot in Mrs. Xu's heart and get into trouble again.

 Xu Jian has always been afraid of Mrs. Xu going crazy.

 For this reason, Liu Xun arrived in Quzhou. Liu Xun's arm was injured, but it did not affect his life. Such news would be told to Mrs. Xu.

 I just didn’t expect that the news this time was “missing”.

Lin Yunyan would not mention this to Mrs. Xu. She would only ask Mother Ma: "How did you say it specifically?"

Mother Ma said: "That person was still honest at first. He worked during the day and went back to sleep at night. Suddenly he found that his body shape had changed and his appearance didn't seem right. Only then did he realize that it was someone else. After checking again, it was almost the Mid-Autumn Festival. It’s changed since then.”

"If I change someone else, there won't be any reaction. It seems that someone let him go on purpose." Lin Yunyan said.

Mother Ma nodded: "The people who were following me thought the same way. They didn't dare to make any public announcements to scare the snake. They just pretended that they didn't know anything and immediately sent a letter to the capital."

No matter how quickly the letter was delivered, it took ten days.

Liu Xun has disappeared, and it has been a month since he disappeared.

Lin Yunyan pondered for a while and said: "If you think of it, the person who molested Liu Xun was probably Li Du. Liu Xun started all the way from Quzhou. If he comes to the capital, he can almost reach there by carriage."

How can you guess whether he will come or not, what day he will arrive, whether he will enter the city or the capital, or whether he will be settled nearby?

Lin Yunyan starts with things she can control well.

She told Shen Chen: "Let's explore the mountain temple first, and remember to be careful."

Shen Chen responded and asked where Li Shao was.

Lin Yunyan then said: "There are still a few days until the 24th. It's going to cost him. Tell Su Chang..."

 There is no doubt that Li Shao is even more anxious at this moment.

 Seeing that there had been no news from Su Chang for a few days, Li Shao came to Fu Guogong's mansion again.

"Then what's going on with Su Yi?" he asked, "You want to cooperate, but why are you procrastinating like this? Even if he and Li Du planned to plot against me, it's time for him to take action, right? If he doesn't take action, how can I take the bait?" "

Lin Yunyan frowned, with a hint of irritation in her eyes.

Li Shao saw this and asked, "Am I right?"

"Perhaps it was delayed? I can't say, Su Chang didn't send any news to Shen Chen."

This time, it was Li Shao's turn to mutter.

 Ning'an is acting strange today.

 The people in the palace follow the rules. When talking to others, they should look at people with suitable status. Those with low status should keep their eyes down. There is no one with flying eyes. He looks guilty at first sight!

 Feeling guilty?

 Li Shao suddenly felt energetic.

 To feel safe and guilty is lying!

Su Chang gave the news, but Ning An did not intend to tell him.

 What a peaceful time!

 If you are timid and afraid of getting into trouble, you must be timid and afraid of getting into trouble!

Li Shao was too lazy to argue with Lin Yunyan and was afraid of getting into an argument. Ning An was afraid of getting into trouble and went to the palace to file a complaint. How could he make a contribution?

Leaving behind a sentence of "Tell me if you have any news," Li Shao left in a hurry.

 If you don’t want to say it, don’t say it. He can go to Su Chang.

The man said before that he could not find a spice trader on West Street?

The carriage went to Qianbulang and passed West Street. The street was busy when Li Shao suddenly called to stop.

Eunuch Gao asked: "Your Highness?"

Li Shao said: "Look for anyone who is in the spice business. The rarer the better, the better. My mother likes to play with incense. It will be her death anniversary soon. I will order something unusual for her then."

With such a good reason, Eunuch Gao couldn't bear to violate it, so he explained it to the guards following him outside the car.

Soon, the guard came back and reported: "There is a spice shop not far ahead, which is engaged in Gu Yue business..."

 At war with Gu Yue, this shop is now deserted and no one wants to buy.

Li Shao is the complete opposite. As soon as he heard it was Gu Yue Shop, he knew he was inseparable: "Let's go to this shop first!"

As soon as we walked in, the waiter saw that he was an important person and greeted me with a smile.

"I'm looking for your boss," Li Shao said. "Do you have a private room? Let my boss come and try the incense for me."

The clerk hurriedly responded and invited Li Shao to go upstairs to the private room, and then invited Su Chang.

Su Chang knew what was going on as soon as he heard it, and hurriedly carried the incense box upstairs.

“The shop makes ancient moon spices, which are used in food and for burning incense.” Su Chang said with a smile.

 Li Shao was impatient to hear this, so he only asked Dian to try.

Su Changyiyan.

 The rich fragrance lingered, Li Shao closed his eyes, then opened his eyes and said to Mr. Gao: "You go and stand outside, don't block me from smelling the fragrance."

 Eunuch Gao:…

He exited and closed the door, but he kept his ears open to listen to what was going on inside.

There was nothing wrong inside. He introduced the incense and changed the incense. What he didn't know was that Li Shao nodded on the table, and Su Chang took out a letter from the incense box and handed it to him.

Li Shao was furious when he read that letter and gritted his teeth.

 The letter was taken back by Su Chang, and Li Shao came out of the private room with an unhappy face.

Eunuch Gao asked: "Your Highness?"

“They all say that some incense is soothing, but I’m getting more and more angry when I smell it,” Li Shao strode out of the shop, “If you don’t buy from him, try another one!”

Li Shao visited four spice sellers on West Street. In addition to the local ones in Dashun, there were also those from across the ocean. In short, the goods of no one were satisfactory.

After returning to the palace, Eunuch Gao reported to Eunuch Cao: "His Highness has always looked bad and was very angry. I originally thought that His Highness was referring to Sang and Huai, and was disgusted with Gu Yue before saying that Gu Yue's spices were not good. Later, I thought about it, maybe it was for the sake of the First Queen. thing."

　　It is said that the first queen lit incense to control her madness and calm her mind, but Your Highness insisted on saying that the reason for lighting incense was to make her feel uneasy. (End of chapter)