Chapter 880: Riding Together, Enchanting and Alluring

Love Shenjing, Dali Temple official offices, Yang Hongbin's office.

Yang Hongbin looked at the handkerchief spread out on the desk, inside which lay dark red, shriveled food, emitting a faint, gamey, mutton-like scent.

After many days of investigation and speculation, he had finally obtained clear confirmation; he quickly organized his thoughts in his mind, integrating the cause and effect.

Zhou Ping said, "My lord, we have been watching Duan Chunjiang for many days. He didn't reveal the slightest flaw; I didn't expect that a single dish of food would cause him to show his true colors."

"It's just that there is one thing your subordinate does not understand, as I have been watching Duan Chunjiang for many days."

"Whether it is his appearance, demeanor, clothing, or daily routine, he is exactly the same as a Han person, not at all like a Mongol."

"He mixes among the commoners, and is fundamentally indistinguishable from ordinary Han people."

"He also speaks extremely fluent Han language; if he grew up in the Great Desert, how could he speak it so authentically?"

Yang Hongbin pondered for a moment and said, "This matter is not considered strange. Back then, when the Founding Emperor invaded the Great Capital, the last Emperor of the Remnant Yuan was assassinated and died."

"The Remnant Yuan imperial clan fled north beyond the passes, and many high-ranking and powerful Han officials also fled north with their families along with the Remnant Yuan imperial clan."

"These people have since multiplied in the Northern Desert; it is said that they all intermarried within Han bloodlines, rarely marrying into the various Remnant Yuan tribes, and the families passed down Han learning and Han language."

"Thinking about it, Duan Chunjiang must have come from such a family background, so it is not surprising that his appearance, language, and demeanor are no different from ordinary Han people."

"Originally, these Han people who fled north had already vanished without a trace, but now that the Great Zhou and the Remnant Yuan are at war, these people have become a scourge, infiltrating everywhere, impossible to guard against."

Zhou Ping said, "My lord, now that we infer Duan Chunjiang is a Mongol, he definitely cannot escape involvement in the major case of the military grain depot leak. Can we close the net?"

Yang Hongbin shook his head and said, "The closer we get to this kind of juncture, the less we can startle the snake."

"Now that the great army has set out on the expedition, news is circulating in the city; it is truly impossible to guard against."

"Catching him alone is useless; only by catching the whole nest can we eliminate future trouble, so we must still hold our breath for now."

"However, we must strengthen surveillance on Duan Chunjiang. All the relatives, friends, and merchants who have dealings with him must all be registered, strictly investigated, and scrutinized; not a single one is to be let go!"

"For example, that Xue Pan, although he is a dissolute son of a wealthy family and doesn't look like someone who can accomplish things, this person's social circle is too broad, and those he associates with are all sons of Love Shenjing nobility."

"Among these sons, many serve in the military; thinking about it carefully, it is quite thorny."

Yang Hongbin sighed and said, "Since we have set our sights on him, we must be more cautious both inside and out."

Zhou Ping heard the hesitation in his superior's words, which seemed to contain an unclear meaning and even carried a trace of inexplicable concern.

Suddenly, his heart stirred; Yang Sizheng and Weiyuan Count Jia Cong were known to be close friends, a fact known to many in the capital.

When it comes to blood relations, Xue Pan is related to Jia Cong; otherwise, why would he have lived in the Jia household for so many years? Yang Sizheng is somewhat in a difficult position...

Yang Hongbin said, "We have watched Duan Chunjiang for many days, and apart from that dish of food, he hasn't revealed the slightest flaw."

"This shows that this person acts extremely cautiously. I have said that if he were to steal major military and state secrets, he might not act directly."

"He likely achieves his goals by beating around the bush through others."

"Among the people Duan Chunjiang associates with daily, apart from Chen Ruichang, Xue Pan is an unemployed son of a wealthy family who does not know the secrets of the government offices or the military."

"We have also checked the backgrounds of the other merchants who associate with Duan Chunjiang, and for the time being, we haven't discovered anything suspicious."

"However, I always feel that there is something hidden behind that woman in Huarong Alley."

"This woman is also from Datong. According to the documents you checked from the prefectural government, she arrived in the Love Shenjing only half a month later than Duan Chunjiang."

"Judging from the results of the investigation so far, among the people around Duan Chunjiang, this woman is the most suspicious."

"In the next two days, you should go to Huarong Alley more often to see if there are any new discoveries."

"Tomorrow morning, I will not be in the office; I have to go see someone off. If there are any gains from the investigation, come to the office after the si hour to discuss..."

Rongguo Prefecture, Rongxi Hall.

Yu Chuan walked back and forth in the east side room, wearing a dark indigo floral-patterned satin vest, a light blue square-collared lined jacket, and a pale green embroidered long skirt.

Her waist was slender and graceful, her pretty face flushed, and she was packing her personal clothes and makeup box, neatly arranging them in a clothing trunk, and also had the old woman roll up her personal bedding.

At this time, Xiao Hong walked into the room to help Yu Chuan pack her things.

She said, "You are lucky this time, moving to the East Prefecture to stay, leaving me alone again."

Yu Chuan smiled and said, "The Second Master gave me to the Cong Sanye. The Cong Sanye is about to set out on an expedition, and the Second Young Lady let me move over first; it's just the Second Master putting on a show."

"Going there now, the Cong Sanye isn't home either, so it's the same as me being in Rongxi Hall."

"You are now the managing maid of Rongxi Hall; aren't you better off than a maid like me who serves tea and water? What else are you dissatisfied with?"

"Sister Ping'er said that because the Cong Sanye is away on an expedition, the daily affairs over there are leisurely, and it's fine to walk back and forth."

"I will come over to talk whenever I have time, just to make you less lonely. Bao Er Ye has already moved out of the West Prefecture, so there is no need to worry about coming and going daily; it doesn't count as anything."

During these days, Yu Chuan had been temporarily residing in Rongxi Hall, sharing a room with Xiao Hong, and daily followed Jia Cong to grind ink and practice calligraphy, so they had already developed quite a friendship.

This morning, when Yingchun left Rongqing Hall, she passed by Rongxi Hall and thought of Yu Chuan; because Jia Cong often stayed in the West Prefecture during the New Year, she had let Yu Chuan temporarily reside in Rongxi Hall to serve.

Yu Chuan was a personal maid given by the Second Master to his brother; maids rewarded by elders in a great household are somewhat different, so it wouldn't be good to be too cold to her.

Now that Third Brother Cong is about to set out on an expedition, and it is unknown how long he will be out, it seems inappropriate to let his personal maid live in Rongxi Hall all the time.

Therefore, she let Xiu Ju pass the word to let Yu Chuan move back to the East Prefecture today, and also let She Yue arrange a place for her to stay.

Xiao Hong smiled and said, "I have remembered what you said. Since you and She Yue, the two who are close, have both gone to the East Prefecture, you must not forget me in your daily life."

"However, you said that Bao Er Ye moved to the East Courtyard, but he still often comes to walk around, because Cai Xia is still living here and is pregnant."

"Although it is clearer than before, it is necessary to push away the entanglements cleanly; only when Cai Xia's child is born and Bao Er Ye truly gets married will it be considered a real conclusion."

Yu Chuan had served Lady Wang since she was a child and knew her temperament and demeanor best, so it wasn't as clear and simple as Xiao Hong thought.

She vaguely felt that Cai Xia raising her fetus in the West Prefecture would not be an easy matter to conclude.

The Old Matriarch is always close to the next generation and likes liveliness; when Cai Xia's child is born, it is unknown if she will keep it by her side.

If it really turns out like this, the Second Lady will definitely be very willing to use this excuse to get entangled with the West Prefecture.

Ordinary maids have limited vision and are not as shrewd as Wang Xifeng, so they would never think of this layer of meaning.

But Yu Chuan was a clever maid and had followed Lady Wang for many years, so she knew everything about her temperament and could vaguely guess the meaning.

It's just that although she could think of it in her heart, she wouldn't say it to Xiao Hong; after all, it involved the entanglement between the two branches, so she naturally wouldn't speak of it casually.

Xiao Hong said, "Just now when I went out to handle affairs, I saw from afar the Second Master entering Rongqing Hall, and his face didn't look very good."

"I heard the maids passing by say that the Second Lady and Baoyu came over early in the morning; I don't know what kind of mystery they stirred up again."

Yu Chuan smiled and said, "Sister is just worrying blindly. As long as the Second Master is present, Bao Er Ye is like a mouse seeing a cat and absolutely wouldn't dare to cause trouble."

"I have seen too much of this over the years; it's not fresh at all. I guarantee it will be peaceful and nothing will happen."

The two chatted casually while nimbly packing things up. Yu Chuan carried a small parcel, Xiao Hong accompanied her out, and two old women carried the clothing trunk behind them.

When they left Rongxi Hall and walked along the covered corridor for a while, passing a fork in the garden, they heard footsteps coming from behind.

Yu Chuan and Xiao Hong looked back and saw many people coming from behind, led by the Second Master Jia Zheng, but his face was gloomy, and his anger seemed not to have dissipated.

The two felt a bit strange in their hearts; why was the Second Master so angry when coming to the West Prefecture? When they saw Lady Wang and Baoyu following behind, they roughly understood.

Yu Chuan had been holed up in Rongxi Hall these days, serving tea when Jia Cong came, or grinding ink and practicing calligraphy in her spare time, almost never walking outside the hall.

After the fifth day, Baoyu came to walk around, but Yu Chuan hadn't met him even once. Seeing him still dressed in bright red, his waist becoming more and more plump.

The sorrow and depression on his face, revealing a familiar sense of grief and indignation, only his left cheek was swollen and red, with clear palm prints on it, faintly showing five marks.

When Yu Chuan saw Jia Zheng coming, she and Xiao Hong stopped, stepped to the side of the road, and bowed to Jia Zheng.

Although Jia Zheng had an angry face, when he saw Yu Chuan bowing, his expression softened a bit. He saw Yu Chuan carrying a parcel and the old woman behind her carrying a trunk.

He asked casually, "Where are you going?"

Yu Chuan said, "The Second Young Lady sent word to let me move back to the East Prefecture today."

When Lady Wang heard this, seeing Yu Chuan's pretty face flushed, her eyebrows and eyes looking as if they contained joy, she became even more moving. Looking at her, she must be very proud of moving to the East Prefecture.

She couldn't help but feel disgusted in her heart; how long had this dead girl been gone, and she already had such behavior and demeanor, her eyebrows and eyes frivolous and lewd; she had mostly already been taken by that brat.

Jia Zheng said, "After going to the East Prefecture, serve Brother Cong well; you might get a good result in the future. After all, you are from the Second Branch, and I think it is decent."

Yu Chuan's pretty face flushed slightly, and she said, "Yu Chuan will definitely serve the Cong Sanye well."

Baoyu, listening to this exchange from the side, looked at the pretty and beautiful Yu Chuan, his heart aching unbearably, and even the burning pain on his face lost sensation for a moment.

The best-looking maids in the Lady's room that day were the two sisters, Jin Chuan and Yu Chuan.

He had flirted with Yu Chuan many times, but she was like a clam that couldn't be pried open; although she was pretty and cute, she was completely oblivious, which made Baoyu very regretful.

He didn't expect that just after she entered Jia Cong's room, she would be so joyful, contrary to her usual icy face; she was originally a person of exceptional beauty, but she had become so worldly.

Baoyu naturally understood the meaning in the Old Master's words; when elders give maids to juniors, they mostly intend for them to serve in the bedroom.

This lecherous, greedy Jia Cong is going to ruin another pretty girl; it is truly hateful to the extreme. Why doesn't Heaven take him away?

Jia Zheng only greeted Yu Chuan once and then stepped out of the mansion again, suddenly feeling that the footsteps behind him were missing. Turning back, he saw Baoyu standing there in a daze.

A foolish look appeared on his face, and he couldn't help but feel irritable, shouting, "You rebellious beast, what are you doing standing there? Do you want to stay and lose face!" ===== CHAPTER 881 =====