Lin Mengya looked the magistrate Lord Xu in front of her up and down. She had only heard that he came from a notable family and was known as an incorruptible and fair official not afraid of bigwigs.
However, after several interactions, Lin Mengya found him quite interesting.
He, who was just and tactful and capable of maneuvering among several forces, must have plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
After looking down and thinking for a while, Lin Mengya decided that she had to draw him over to her side in any case.
“Your Excellency, you’re overthinking it. Actually, I’m here to report a case. After all, it will be inappropriate if I don’t personally escort the thieves breaking into my mansion here, right?” Lin Mengya said.
After hearing Lin Mengya’s words, Lord Xu realized what was going on.
As long as she did not mean to ask him to release Lin Nansheng, nothing else was serious.
Lord Xu said, “Well, thank you for being considerate, Madam. However, I’m afraid that these thieves…”
Although the menservants she sent here last time were proved to be from the Shangguan Family, the Shangguan Family took no action so that he could not find any evidence against them.
After all, he couldn’t prove that the menservants were sent by the Shangguan Family to make trouble.
If he acted rashly, the Shangguan Family could shirk the responsibility as long as they presented evidence that they had sold the menservants a long time ago.
He believed that the First Miss of the Lin Family knew this better than him.
However, Lin Mengya smiled and interrupted Lord Xu.
“These thieves are all fleeing bandits. I believe that you have a deep-seated hatred for them. Why don’t you punish them as a warning to other thieves and rascals? Of course, I have no idea how you are going to deal with them, but I believe as a fair and impartial lord, you will definitely improve the public security of the Capital City. I come here this time to do my duty as a victim. Your Excellency, you don’t have to think too much.”
After finishing her words, Lin Mengya got up and was about to leave.
In an instant, Lord Xu, who was about to persuade Lin Mengya to give up pursuing this matter, was tongue-tied.
Watching her leave, Lord Xu was lost in thought for a long while.
It was said that the Shangguan Family and the Lin Family were deadly enemies. Why did the First Miss of the Lin Family provide him with a way out of this difficult situation instead of asking him to find out the relationship between these thieves and the Shangguan Family?
If these thieves were just convicted as bandits, wouldn’t the Shangguan Family be able to stay out of this?
At the moment, Lord Xu froze, thinking it was really hard to figure out what was going on in the former Princess Yu’s mind.
Lin Mengya did not return to Lin’s Mansion after coming out of the government office.
Instead, she had her sedan chair stopped in front of a teahouse.
Then she took her maids to a private room on the second floor for a rest and a cup of tea, while Qinghu, who had followed her all the time, didn’t join them.
No one knew what Lin Mengya was up to.
However, judging from her composed look, she seemed to have a well-thought-out plan.
The four girls had gotten used to their master’s mysterious look, so they just stayed by Lin Mengya’s side without asking any questions.
After 15 minutes, Lin Mengya still sat there.
However, the noisy street became much quieter when they didn’t notice it.
Lin Mengya fixed her eyes quietly on several small stalls that had just disappeared, and said with a knowing smile, “Let’s go to the Ziwei Alley.”
Before she could finish her sentence, Qinghu appeared in front of her.
With a frivolous and bright smile on his handsome face, he revealed his regular white teeth and said to Lin Mengya, “Now, all the flies have been driven away. This is the best time to go there.”
Lin Mengya smiled brightly, seeming to be having a mysterious interaction with Qinghu.
The four girls looked at each other, at a loss what Qinghu and their master were up to.
Walking out of the teahouse, Lin Mengya bent over to get into the sedan chair.
On both sides of the street, the stalls, that had just disappeared, had been replaced by some new stalls without being noticed.
She inadvertently glanced over the stall owners, whose faces were dark, thinking they really didn’t do a good job in disguise.
How could there be such stall owners, who fixed their eyes on her sedan chair and forgot to attract customers by shouting?
The stall selling rouge was next to the one selling water, while the stall selling candied fruits was next to the one selling lime. The fisherman wore a pair of brocade boots, while the woodman tied a brand new ax on his waist.
Shaking her head, Lin Mengya let down the curtain of the sedan chair. Perhaps, they were good at martial arts as spies.
However, in terms of disguise, they probably had neglected many details.
Any cautious person could recognize their mistakes. Besides, she knew that she was under close watch.
“As you expected, Lord Xu sent someone to the Imperial Palace to deliver a message after we left.”
Qinghu, who was dressed as a guard, leaned against the sedan and whispered to Lin Mengya.
“Of course he’ll do that. Lord Xu works for the Emperor. Since I’ve done him a favor this time, his master will naturally return a favor with a favor.”
If it weren’t for the fact that Lord Xu worked for the Emperor, her brother would not have received some preferential treatment during the period when he was detained in the prison of the government office, and Long Tianyu would not have been able to arrange the meeting between her brother and her.
Moreover, the Emperor probably understood that the Lin Family could hand over the military power and give up pursuing this matter. However, they could not bear to be manipulated.
Otherwise, the Emperor would lose the support of an old force that had always been loyal to the royal family.
The Emperor was probably aware that her brother was able to prove that he did not collude with the enemy state.
Even if her brother didn’t present any evidence, the Emperor would let her brother get off the hook.
As such, she did Lord Xu a favor so that the Emperor, as Lord Xu’s master, had to do her a favor in return.
She and the Emperor had a tacit understanding of this.
Regarding the disappeared spies, they were replaced by those sent by the Emperor.
It was a fanciful illusion for her to try to make a visit without being noticed at this time.
Therefore, she had to give up her first choice. As long as the Emperor did not intend to stop her from cleaning her brother’s name, she didn’t mind if he knew it or not.
“I’ve confirmed that the Ziwei Alley is not far from here. But no one has heard of a man named Gou San. Are you sure that we can find the man your brother mentioned there?” Qinghu said.
Compared with Lin Mengya, such a big target, Qinghu, who was extremely agile, could come and go more freely.
Lin Mengya glanced at him, shook her head thoughtfully, and said, “I don’t know either. We’d better make every possible effort.”
Since her brother said so, it meant that this man Gou San could really help clear his name.
But Qinghu was right. How could she find this man?
Moreover, the Emperor managed to help her throw off the spies sent by the Shangguan Family before the Shangguan Family realized their plan.
Once she missed this opportunity, she did not know when she could get another one.
As such, she had to make good use of this opportunity so as not to let her brother down.
The Ziwei Alley was the most common alley in the Capital City.
Located close to the government office with a few residents, it was quite tranquil.
At the thought that it would be too conspicuous if all of them went there, Lin Mengya sent her maids and menservants back and only brought Qinghu with her.
Standing at the entrance of the deep alley, Lin Mengya was at her wit’s end.
She couldn’t shout. Otherwise, if it was discovered by someone, all her previous efforts would be wasted.
“What about if I check over from door to door? Your brother’s friend must be an extraordinary person. I believe I’m discerning enough to recognize him.”
Reluctant to see Lin Mengya upset, Qinghu volunteered to help her.
Lin Mengya thought for a while but rejected his idea.
“No. He doesn’t know what we’re here for. Besides, the news of my brother’s being sent to prison probably has spread throughout the Capital City. What if he thinks we’re going to hurt him, so he hides or takes the opportunity to run away?”
There was a big locust tree outside the Ziwei Alley.
At this time, the green leaves intertwined and cast a faint shadow.
Lin Mengya and Qinghu were standing in the shadow and whispering to each other.
One of them was an exceedingly delicate beauty, and the other was a peerless beauty, whose gender was hard to tell.
The scene where the two of them stood together was definitely a very eye-catching picture.
However, they did not know that they had come into someone’s view.
Lin Mengya, who was at her wit’s end, was trying to think of a way with a frown when Qinghu, who had been comforting her in a soft voice, dragged her into his arms in an instant.
Then, he stretched out his hand over her shoulder as fast as lightning. The next second, Lin Mengya was shocked at the crisp sound of bones breaking mixed with a man’s screech.
When she raised her head, she found that the tenderness on Qinghu’s face had disappeared and his eyes were filled with intimidating coldness.
It had been a long time since she last saw him show this look.
Lin Mengya turned around, only to see a man grimace in pain.
“Ouch! My hand! My pretty, let… let go of my hand!”
The man almost burst into tears in pain, but he still spoke in a frivolous tone.
Qinghu, who hated this kind of person the most, grasped the man’s hand with a little more strength. Suddenly, the man’s wrist was bent appallingly.
“My… my pretty, I’m sorry for being rude… Ouch, let go of me!” the man said with a twisted face.
Lin Mengya looked at him, finding that although he was glib-tongued, there was no evil desire in his eyes.
Instead, although he was in such great pain, he still managed to force a barely polite smile when he noticed that Lin Mengya was looking him up and down.
“My pretty… Can you persuade the other beauty… to let me go, please?” the man said.
Lin Mengya just thought that this man, who kept calling her “pretty”, was a little weird. In fact, she didn’t sense any other emotion in his tone.
It was just the way he addressed her, just like people addressing a woman as pretty and a man as a handsome guy in modern society.
