Chapter 112

"Regarding your background, it is not as the letter stated, but rather something the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince did intentionally."

Lu Fang sighed: "This is a conspiracy; you don't need to worry about it."

Lu Ling shook her head repeatedly: "No, I was indeed adopted by the Lu family. My parents told me this in my ear when they were on their deathbed."

Lu Fang frowned. Seeing Lu Ling's serious expression, he could not help but recall that his parents had indeed met with her alone before they passed away.

This meant that the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince had investigated this matter and used it to lure Lu Ling out of the city.

"Sister, this matter is not yet clear. You come back with me first. Once everything is investigated, if it is true, I will accompany you to see your master."

Lu Fang said solemnly.

Xiao Tao, who was on the side, also persuaded: "Young Lady, listen to the Young Master and go back first. That group of villains we encountered earlier was clearly premeditated."

Lu Ling looked at Zhou Yi Yi and sighed: "This time it was indeed my fault. I shouldn't have been so reckless, wanting to go find my master alone without discussing it with my brother first. I will go back with my brother and plan for the long term."

"A happy ending!"

Zhou Yi Yi clapped her hands.

Lu Fang brought the three women back to Shangjing City. As soon as he arrived at the Lord Minister of Literature's Mansion, he received a sound transmission from his Third Senior Brother, Wang Fu, telling him to go to the Hall of Supreme Harmony immediately.

After making an excuse, he walked toward the Imperial Palace.

Hall of Supreme Harmony.

The Zhou Emperor sat expressionlessly in front of his desk, with the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince kneeling below. This Highness looked very disheveled, coughing into his hand from time to time.

The Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince complained: "Father, Lord Wenguan beat me up without rhyme or reason..."

The Zhou Emperor interrupted him impatiently: "Shut your mouth. Don't think I don't know about the good deeds you've done."

A somewhat old scroll appeared.

Upon seeing this scroll, the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince's pupils shrank, and a look of terror appeared on his face as he said: "Father, this is a misunderstanding."

"Whether it is a misunderstanding, I know in my heart." The Zhou Emperor snorted coldly: "Go to the Imperial Clan Court to receive your punishment yourself!"

The Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince opened his mouth, but in the end, he did not argue further. This scroll before him should have been stored in his own mansion.

However, it was now in His Majesty's hands.

It was conceivable that the Zhou Emperor had placed someone by his side, and this person was someone he trusted deeply, or perhaps a Semi-Sage was watching him.

Then everything he had plotted must be known to the Zhou Emperor.

Now, it was useless for him to argue.

The Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince stood up with a dejected expression: "This son knows his mistake and will go to the Imperial Clan Court to receive punishment."

The Zhou Emperor watched the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince leave and said with a tone of frustration: "It is truly a disappointment to me. This child's character was not bad originally; it was all the people of the Xiao family who led him astray!"

He changed the subject and asked: "Has Lord Wenguan arrived?"

"He is already waiting outside the hall."

A eunuch replied.

The Zhou Emperor nodded: "Summon Lord Wenguan into the hall."

Upon hearing the summons, Lu Fang walked into the Hall of Supreme Harmony with some trepidation; he had just seen the dispirited Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince.

Previously, in order to save Lu Ling, his actions had been very violent.

Now that he thought about it carefully, this Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince was, after all, the son of the Zhou Emperor. If he had beaten the other party and the Zhou Emperor decided to hold it against him, he would certainly suffer some hardship.

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

Lu Fang performed a salute.

The Zhou Emperor chuckled: "My official, please rise."

Lu Fang said truthfully: "Because I was anxious to save my sister, I was somewhat impulsive and had a conflict with the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince. I know I am guilty; please punish me, Your Majesty."

The Zhou Emperor laughed heartily, stood up, and personally helped Lu Fang up, saying:

"My official, I have already investigated this matter. Everything was caused by the Twenty-Seventh Imperial Prince's excessive jealousy. I have already punished him by sending him to the Imperial Clan Court to receive his sentence. What crime do you have?"

Lu Fang smiled bitterly: "Even so, I should not have..."

The Zhou Emperor interrupted: "Enough, this matter is in the past. My official, look at this scroll; does it look familiar?"

The scroll floating in mid-air slowly unfolded.

This was a portrait of a beauty. The young woman in the painting was sitting in a pavilion holding a book, and her appearance was six or seven parts similar to Lu Ling.

However, judging from the yellowed scroll, it must have been over a dozen years old.

The age was likely older than Lu Ling, so the woman in the painting was not her, but someone else.

Before Lu Fang could ask.

The Zhou Emperor said slowly: "Your sister Lu Ling was adopted. I imagine you already know this. The woman in this painting is her mother."

"According to intelligence, this woman is named Feng Ying and comes from the Buddhist Kingdom in the Western Regions. After giving birth to Lu Ling, she returned to the Western Regions. The specific circumstances, however, remain unknown."

Lord Wenguan.

"My biological mother is named Feng Ying?"

Lu Ling said somewhat urgently: "Brother, why did she leave me at the Lu family and return to the Western Regions alone? And who is my biological father?"

Lu Fang sighed: "Back then, your mother and a scholar named Yu Wen were in love. I don't know what happened, but your father sent you to the Lu family and then supposedly went to the Western Regions to find your mother. As for what happened, it is still unknown."

Zhou Yi Yi, who was sipping tea on the side, murmured: "Something must have happened in the Western Regions Buddhist Kingdom; otherwise, she should have returned to see her biological daughter."

Lu Fang also felt this was the case. He patted Lu Ling on the shoulder and comforted her: "Don't worry, when I go to the trial grounds of the Western Regions Buddhist Kingdom, I will definitely investigate this matter clearly."

Lu Ling pondered for a moment and said: "Brother, how about we go to the Western Regions Buddhist Kingdom right now? I want to ask my parents in person why they didn't come back to find me."

"You want to go too?" Lu Fang looked at Lu Ling's determined expression, sighed softly, and said: "Fine, I will take you with me to the Western Regions Buddhist Kingdom. I have to go sooner or later anyway, so it's a good opportunity to investigate this matter."

The next few days.

Lu Fang went to see the group who were going to perform the Dream of the Red Chamber and gave He Zixuan the general direction. If he could not return, he would have He Zixuan start rehearsing the Dream of the Red Chamber according to his ideas.

After all, the "Dream of the Red Chamber" had already been written.

The main characters for the performance had also been decided, so they just needed to rehearse according to the story.

Then, there was the "Smiling Proud Wanderer" currently being serialized in the Great Zhou Literary Gazette.

In order for the Great Zhou Literary Gazette to be successfully popularized across the nineteen provinces, Lu Fang did not intend to stop the serialization of the story, but he did slow down the update speed.

With the current craze for the Smiling Proud Wanderer, it was more than enough to satisfy the popularity of the Great Zhou Literary Gazette.

After Lu Fang went to the Western Regions Buddhist Kingdom, he planned to let the Book Spirit Yan Chixia stay here to continue updating the Smiling Proud Wanderer.

After finishing all this.

Lu Fang then disguised himself, took Lu Ling and Xiao Tao, as well as his bodyguard, Fourth Senior Sister Zhou Yi Yi, and secretly left Shangjing, heading toward the border connecting the west of Great Zhou to the Western Regions.