“Click~”
The soft sound of the mechanism echoed in the bright and sunny bedroom.
The hidden passage leading to the secret room slowly closed, blending seamlessly with the surrounding floor tiles.
From noble mtl dot come
Wei Changtian returned the chair to its original position, sat down, and poured himself a cup of tea.
No mistake, Ning Yukuo was hiding in the secret room he had just built in his home.
Originally, the three secret rooms were meant to be used as a storage room, a meeting hall, and a prison cell.
However, to accommodate Ning Yukuo, he had to modify the prison cell and make do with it.
After taking a sip of tea, Wei Changtian thought back to Ning Yukuo’s last kneeling gesture.
“Slave”…
This self-proclaimed title was quite common.
Yang Liu Shi had always referred to herself as “slave” in front of him, and Li Su Yue did the same.
However, women from prominent families like Lu Jing Yao and Liang Qin rarely used this term, at least Wei Changtian had never heard it.
After all, the word “slave” implied a sense of inferiority.
And for Ning Yukuo, a princess, to call herself “slave”……it felt like Ning Yong Nian calling himself “your humble servant” when facing him.
It seemed she had made up her mind…
Wei Changtian sighed, finished his tea, and stood up to head outside.
It was almost time for lunch, and the chimney of the kitchen was emitting wisps of smoke. Although it was already winter, the sun still shone with a warm, gentle light.
Zhang San had gone out to attend to some business, Li Su Yue was washing his clothes in the courtyard, occasionally holding up the wet garments to inspect them in the sunlight, probably checking if the stains had been removed.
Ying Er was teaching Ah Chun how to play a game, but the little girl seemed unenthusiastic, unlike Wei Qiao Ling, who loved to play.
As for Liang Qin and Yang Liu Shi, who had just returned from the mountains……the two were now chatting like close sisters under the old cypress tree in the courtyard.
One was smiling, the other had a serious expression, probably discussing some “husband-taming techniques”.
It had to be said that this scene was indeed harmonious.
No matter how turbulent the outside world was, this small courtyard remained peaceful and serene.
However, just as Wei Changtian shifted his gaze to the gate, the good mood he had barely managed to muster instantly vanished.
He saw an old man standing outside, his face creased with wrinkles, dressed in luxurious silk attire, his hands clasped together in front of him, with a fake smile plastered on his face.
From this demeanor, Wei Changtian knew at a glance that he was from the palace—
An old eunuch.
……
“Li Gong Gong, please have some tea. If the tea is not to your liking, I hope you won’t be offended.”
In the main hall, Wei Changtian gazed at the elderly eunuch sitting beside him, already aware of the latter’s identity.
The Grand Inner Servant, Ning Yongnian’s most trusted eunuch, Li Huaizhong.
“Ah, Lord Wei is being too polite.”
Li Huaizhong lifted his tea cup with his orchid-like fingers, took a light sip, and smiled even more: “Everyone says you’re hot-headed, but I’ve never believed it. Today, I’ve finally seen it for myself, and those rumors outside are indeed unreliable.”
“Haha, thank you for your praise, Grandpa.”
Wei Changtian laughed and asked casually, “Grandpa Li, how did you end up in Shu State?”
“It’s because of the Crown Prince’s affair, of course.”
Li Huaizhong let out a sigh: “After the Crown Prince was stabbed, the Emperor was worried that the Ministry of Justice and the Imperial Court wouldn’t investigate the case thoroughly, so he sent me to secretly follow up.”
“I see.”
Wei Changtian nodded and asked again, “Then, Grandpa Li, what brings you here today…”
“Of course, it’s about Princess Rou’an.”
Li Huaizhong’s words came somewhat suddenly, but Wei Changtian had already prepared himself mentally, so he didn’t show any unusual reaction.
“Princess Rou’an, isn’t she missing?”
“Yes, she is, but the Emperor is still concerned about her safety, which is why he sent me to ask you… do you know where she is now?”
“Ask me?”
Wei Changtian feigned surprise: “Grandpa, how would I know where the princess is?”
“Don’t be anxious, Grandpa Li is just asking.”
Li Huaizhong narrowed his eyes, staring straight at Wei Changtian: “After all, you’ve saved the Crown Prince and Princess Rou’an’s lives, and you’ve also removed the scar on her face…”
“Grandpa, you shouldn’t bring this up, and now I’m getting annoyed!”
Wei Changtian suddenly slammed his hand on the table, interrupting with discontent: “To be honest, Grandpa, I had already made a deal with the princess – as long as I removed her scar, she would agree to marry me.”
“Resulting in me finally getting a rare herb to cure her scar, but who knew this would happen? It’s really frustrating!”
“…”
After speaking, Wei Changtian seemed to be angry, drinking a mouthful of bitter tea, but in reality, he wasn’t sure if his performance could deceive Li Huaizhong.
After all, he wasn’t a professional actor, and his acting skills were still a bit lacking.
Moreover, this old eunuch was particularly difficult to deal with.
The “difficulty” here referred not only to his cunning but also his superficial martial arts skills.
According to the original story, Li Huaizhong had never been listed on the various rankings in the Jianghu, but he was actually a deeply hidden second-grade expert, only slightly weaker than Qin Zhengqiu, who had long occupied the top spot on the black list.
Ning Yongnian really did have a resolute determination to eradicate the roots of the issue, even sending a second-grade expert.
In his heart, Wei Changtian cursed, “Damn it!” and clinked his tea cup onto the table, somewhat perfunctorily saluting Li Huaizhong.
“I apologize for losing my temper, Grandpa.”
“No need to apologize.”
Li Huaizhong chuckled, his expression still the same as before.
“I didn’t expect there to be such a twist, but you don’t need to be too disheartened, sir. The princess is just missing, and if we can find her, who knows, maybe you can still rekindle your past relationship with her.”
“Are you joking, Grandpa?”
Wei Changtian was taken aback, sighing bitterly: “Right now, everyone is saying that the princess instructed the Xuantian Sect to commit such heinous crimes.”
“If that’s true, the princess would have probably been killed by now.”
“If it’s true, then she’s guilty of unforgivable sins.”
“Even if the Emperor can pardon her… do you think I could still marry someone with such immense guilt, Grandpa?”
“What you said is correct, sir.”
Li Huaizhong nodded, but then smiled and said something that Wei Changtian never could have anticipated.
“But if we told the young master… the princess didn’t die, nor did she commit any heinous crimes?”
“Hm?”
His eyes widened slightly, and his body paused for a moment.
In this instant, Wei Changtian’s acting skills reached their peak.
He didn’t overact, but still conveyed the necessary surprise.
“The princess didn’t die? Nor was she the mastermind behind the scenes? Then why didn’t she reveal herself? Was she kidnapped by bandits? But didn’t the Heavenly Alliance already capture all the culprits?”
“……”
Facing a string of questions, Li Huizhong wasn’t in a hurry to answer, instead, he looked at Wei Changtian with great interest, suddenly laughing:
“Lord Wei, ever since you killed Director Liu, I’ve thought you weren’t simple.”
“But I never thought I’d still underestimate you.”
“If I hadn’t already gathered some information, I might have been fooled by you today.”
“……”
Ka-ching!
In an instant, Wei Changtian’s mood plummeted to rock bottom like a rollercoaster.
The situation had taken a drastic turn, and the current circumstances were undoubtedly unfavorable to him.
Gathered some information?
What information?
This was like the phrase used by interrogators in his past life: “We’ve already obtained evidence of your crimes, so you might as well confess now and receive a lighter sentence.”
Wei Changtian didn’t know if Li Huizhong had really discovered something or was just bluffing.
If he continued to pretend to be clueless, the outcome would be one of two possibilities.
If Li Huizhong was bluffing, then he’d be lucky to get away with it.
If Li Huizhong wasn’t bluffing, then he’d be finished, just like being hung up to dry in Ning Yongnian’s hands.
Was it true or false?
The time left for Wei Changtian was short, and no matter what he chose, he had to react quickly, otherwise, he’d be caught off guard.
Damn it… wait a minute!
Suddenly, Wei Changtian’s peripheral vision seemed to catch something.
Immediately after, he made a decision in the next instant.