Chapter 1431: Chapter 1409 Clues (December Monthly Ticket Bonus 7)
Manbao was escorted back to Changqing Alley by palace attendants. Today she entered the palace early, so she came out early as well. She greeted Xiang Mingxue, who was sitting in the courtyard, and curiously asked, "Aren’t you going to read today?"
Xiang Mingxue shook his head and smiled, "I promised Mr. Zhuang to have tea with him today."
"And where’s the gentleman?"
Xiang Mingxue smiled and said, "Mr. Zhuang forgot where he kept the tea leaves; he might have accidentally finished them, so he decided to ask Mr. Jiang for another pack."
Manbao: ...
She nodded silently and returned to her room.
After washing her hands and face, Manbao lay on the bed, drew down the mosquito net, and then, feeling refreshed, leaned on the bed and let her consciousness sink into the system to watch the video of the Crown Prince.
In the past two days, she’s figured out a new way to enjoy herself: leaning on the bed, eating snacks, and watching the Crown Prince’s daily life. Honestly, it’s quite entertaining.
Much more fun than attending Teacher Mo’s classes.
Once she was ready, Manbao clicked on the video recorded yesterday.
At night, the Crown Prince was alone in the study, wiping a sword. Manbao watched for a while, noticed he was remaining alone, and fast-forwarded.
The next morning, the government office was on break. Yesterday, Manbao didn’t enter the palace for consultation, so he changed clothes, carried the sword, and went out with guards.
It had been nearly twenty days, and this was the first time Manbao saw the Crown Prince leave the palace. Curious, she followed the direction he was going.
Since that one time she recorded the Crown Prince speaking with the secret guards, Manbao had become much more cautious about her comings and goings. She always had either the family coachman or Jishi Hall’s coachman take her around, or used the palace’s transportation. She never rented a carriage randomly outside again.
However, it was only that once; Keke hasn’t recorded any information related to her or military affairs since then.
Of course, she estimated half the reason was the Crown Prince often being outside Keke’s scanning range.
Watching the Crown Prince gallop at a fast speed, Manbao feared he might exit the scanning range, but surprisingly, he didn’t. He stopped in front of a large gate, which opened to let him in.
Manbao observed the door, noting there were no characters on it, and it wasn’t too large, resembling a private courtyard.
The Crown Prince entered, while Manbao nibbled on a snack, impatiently pulling Keke’s progress bar forward. The Crown Prince was sitting cross-legged on a couch, and there seemed to be some commotion outside. Though there were no lively people within ten meters, many sounds were captured.
Manbao perked up her ears to listen; it seemed to be the sound of persuading one to drink.
Feeling puzzled, a somewhat familiar person entered from outside, directly approached the Crown Prince, paid respects, then sat cross-legged opposite him, poured himself a cup of tea, and said, "Wang Sanlang lost. Everyone is making a fuss about making him drink."
He laughed and said, "It’s a pity the Crown Prince can’t drink now, otherwise everyone could have a blast together."
Manbao stared at the person for a while before recognizing him, clapping her hands, "Isn’t this Su Jian? How did he get so much fatter?"
Keke had relaxed a bit over the past two days and responded, "The host hasn’t seen him for three months."
So what if he’s fat; what’s surprising about that?
Manbao seriously looked at him again and said, "Getting fat so quickly."
Keke: "...Shouldn’t the host be focusing on their conversation?"
"Oh." Only then did Manbao pay serious attention.
In the video, Su Jian took out a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to the Crown Prince, saying, "This is the newly confirmed list."
The Crown Prince unfolded it and asked sternly, "Is it reliable?"
Su Jian nodded, "Not to mention our years of friendship, just the credit for following you is enough for them to take risks."
After the Crown Prince read it, he folded it up and put it in his pocket, asking, "How much have you told them?"
"I didn’t explicitly explain; this matter can’t be rushed. I only asked if they were willing to pledge allegiance to your Highness."
The Crown Prince nodded with satisfaction and said, "Do not make any moves until Gan Bin returns."
Su Jian agreed.
Gan Bin is the Crown Prince’s confidant. He is in the imperial guards and has some troops. Last year, he was ordered to lead the imperial guards out of the capital for training. He would soon be back to rotate shifts.
After discussing this, Su Jian began talking about other matters, lowering his voice, he said, "Your Highness has some clues regarding the matter you asked me to investigate last time."
"Oh?"
"Hou Ji did indeed send people to Luozhou, but lost track when they reached Luozhou. I have people watching Prince Gong’s residence; perhaps there will be results."
The Crown Prince’s face darkened, and he asked, "Has the origin of that stone not been found?"
"No, the trail stops at Hou Ji’s residence," Su Jian’s face also looked grim. He had only recently learned about the Crown Prince being poisoned earlier. He said, "But if Hou Ji has contact with Prince Gong’s residence, it must be Prince Gong’s doing. If your Highness allows, I will immediately arrest people and bring them back to the capital for His Majesty to decide."
This person is certainly not Prince Gong but Hou Ji’s confidant who liaised with Prince Gong.
The Crown Prince sneered, "Do you think father will stand up for me?"
Su Jian said, "After all, this time is aimed at your Highness’s life. Even if His Majesty wants to protect, the ministers will not agree."
In fact, both he and his sister had the same opinion. If such a matter could not be done, it should not be done. It’s not easy to rebel, is it?
Wasn’t it true that the Prince of Yizhou prepared for over ten years but ultimately failed miserably?
Su Jian was quite scared, but he had no choice but to side with the Crown Prince.
His sister is the Crown Princess, and the State Duke Pi’s household is naturally tied to the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince’s face darkened for a moment, then he didn’t continue the topic but turned to take the sword behind him and handed it to him, saying, "Doesn’t Zhang Erlang like swords a lot? A famous sword matches a hero. Pass it on to him."
Su Jian was stunned, looking at the sword handed to him, and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, isn’t this the sword the foreign nation gifted five years ago, your favorite one?"
The Crown Prince stuffed the sword into his arms, saying, "I’m telling you to give it, so give it. Once the matter is settled, won’t there be any sword I want? If defeated, a good sword in my hand is useless."
Su Jian held the sword silently for a long time before bowing and agreeing.
Listening to the noise in the distance, the Crown Prince, who always loved the hustle and bustle, couldn’t help feeling eager, but thought it pointless in front if he couldn’t drink.
If everyone sees him, they might feel restrained without being able to drink together. Since that’s the case, why bother making things unpleasant?
So after hesitating for a moment, the Crown Prince stood up, "I’ll head back first; you entertain them."
Su Jian quickly stood up to send him off, but the Crown Prince stopped him, "Though my presence today need not be deliberately concealed, it should not be specially mentioned either. I’ll go out myself."
Su Jian had to stop.
The Crown Prince rarely ventured out, but didn’t want to return right away, so after leaving the alley, he leisurely rode back.
Manbao watched him, thinking about the conversation he had with Su Jian earlier, affirmed the suspicion she and Bai Shanxin had in their hearts, then couldn’t help looking at the vial in the mall.
Actually, it only takes one vial...