Chapter 644: You motherfucker, you're the one cross-dressing!

During these years in Wusun, I am no longer a naive princess.

I, Empress Dowager Ana'er, how could I easily get drunk and easily speak soft words to others?

I've deceived these stupid people of the imperial court.

Only the true Kuerte could tell whether his mother was really drunk...

Saying this, Ana'er's face filled with anguish.

Li Qingluo handed her a cup of hot tea: "Junior also guessed that."

Your drunken gaze and demeanor are very similar, even almost fooling us, but your steps, though appearing unsteady, are steady without missing a step.

Ana'er's movement stalled.

Nan Gongdi said: "Rest assured, no one else suspects."

Ana'er: "Have I been speaking with you?"

Nan Gongdi glumly closed his mouth.

Li Qingluo hurriedly came out to smooth things over: "Senior, do you have a suspect?"

Ana'er: "At the banquet, I have been mentally eliminating; of the ten people that scoundrel mentioned, six are collateral branches of the imperial court."

Of the four closer blood relatives, aside from the excluded Third Prince, there are three who are respectively the offspring of three uncles' families.

And of those three, two have times that do not match the period of Kuerte's drastic change in temperament.

The remaining one is the eldest legitimate son of the Fourth Prince's Uncle.

This child is talented and intelligent, fond of Buddhism from a young age. Moreover, he has deeply immersed himself in your Han culture, and is highly respected throughout Hala City and even the Western Regions.

His sudden death also surprised me.

It is said that on the way to the Central Plains to study Buddhism, he encountered bandits and a sandstorm, got separated from his retinue, and when found again he was already dead.

Logically he is the most likely candidate. But his nature is completely opposite to that of the present Kuerte.

You have also seen today that this Kuerte is violent and tyrannical, while that child is extremely gentle, unable to bear even killing.

Li Qingluo: "But it cannot be completely ruled out."

What if he, having experienced life and death, instead harbors a demonic obstacle?

After considering Li Qingluo's words, Ana'er also nodded in agreement.

You're right; I cannot assume I fully know him just from my past slight understanding of that child.

Moreover, after elimination, only he remains.

Li Qingluo shook his head: "Aren't there still some collateral relatives? Senior, why not investigate them?"

Ana'er sighed: "The sealed records state that this dark art cannot be applied to relatives beyond the five degrees of mourning."

That is to say, even if the birth characters match, souls cannot be transferred if the relation is several generations apart.

Li Qingluo then thought of another possibility: "How can you be sure that among these six remaining distant relatives, none of them might not be true distant relatives?"

Ana'er's face changed: "What do you mean?"

But she quickly understood and gasped: "You mean the illegitimate—"

Li Qingluo: "I don't know whether the imperial court would ever have such an unthinkable event."

But junior recently indeed experienced a real event where an illegitimate child replaced the legitimate line.

Even the woman who did this came from the Western Regions.

Although Ana'er was somewhat shocked, what hasn't she experienced over these years?

She quickly accepted this possibility as well.

I will personally investigate this matter tomorrow.

However, I might borrow two of your guards to protect me.

Li Qingluo: "Senior, feel free to borrow them; also use my master, if you wish."

That is what he ought to do.

Li Qingluo hurriedly pushed Nan Gongdi forward.

Ana'er hesitated a moment, then nodded and reluctantly accepted: "Okay."

Just as a hint of relief appeared on Nan Gongdi's face, Li Qingluo added: "Senior, perhaps we should start by investigating that Consort."

Ana'er: "I thought the same."

After returning to the mansion, Li Qingluo rested.

Only the next day did Que'er say: "Miss, Granny and Sha Er didn't return all last night. Should we send Sha San and the others to look for them?"

Li Qingluo had been lying down, but hearing this he immediately woke and sat up: "What did you say?"

Not returned all night?

Why only tell me now?

If they haven't returned, was any message sent back?

Que'er was also anxious, but could only shake his head.

Moreover, last night at midnight the front courtyard's King Kuerte returned and even quarreled with the Empress Dowager of Wusun.

The Empress Dowager of Wusun left in a huff early this morning.

That Kuerte in the front courtyard also forbids our people from coming and going; everyone acts cautiously, afraid to provoke that king's suspicion.

The whole courtyard is full of Central Plains people.

Although some wear leather masks, not everyone has one.

So to avoid being discovered by Kuerte or even taking the chance to cause trouble, we only detour around him.

Li Qingluo felt extremely vexed.

At worst, we'll tie him up!

"Anyway, Ana'er has a way to swap back the real Kuert; if provoked, just swap the person back first!"

Li Qingluo simply did not know what Ana'er's true intentions actually were.

Is she thinking of taking revenge first? Or does she have certain harsh conditions for swapping back Kuert, so she must first investigate his true origins?

Li Qingluo rubbed her brow.

"Who went out with the Empress Dowager?"

Que'er: "Sha qi and Sha shiliu. Decided by drawing lots."

Li Qingluo: "They're both fairly quick-witted, so there's no need to worry about them."

"You let Sha san, Sha si, and Sha wu go together to look for Sha er and granny. Be sure to bring them back!"

"Go out from the rear courtyard and avoid that Kuert's surveillance."

Que'er hurriedly turned and left.

Li Qingluo sighed, and her mood grew heavy.

Could something have happened in Nanping?

Li Qingluo even didn't know whether she had successfully reached Hala City; if she had indeed come to the imperial court, logically she couldn't have missed last night's banquet.

She hadn't even heard a word about her at the banquet.

Nanping seemed to have vanished amid the journey to Hala City; nobody remembered her at all.

Li Qingluo's unease grew heavier and heavier.

Just then, someone from the front courtyard actually said to let Li Qingluo go attend.

Que'er wasn't there, so only Li Yunchu remained in this courtyard.

Li Yunchu originally wanted to say, "Why should Luoge go? Luoge's status is noble; she absolutely cannot go attend to some Wusun king."

But she didn't speak the Western Regions language; opening her mouth would risk exposing herself, so she could only stomp her feet in anxiety.

Li Qingluo's current identity is Ana'er's personal maid.

As the king of Wusun, Kuert indeed has the qualification to command me.

But I am not truly a Western Regions person; going there, it's highly likely I'll be seen through.

But for now, I can't avoid it.

Although I don't know what scheming Kuert has in mind, it certainly won't be anything good.

Li Qingluo had already made preparations in her heart in just a moment.

The servant Kuert sent had already urged several times, and in Western Regions language at the courtyard door he cursed: "Just a lowly maid, yet you dare to take credit for the king—what sort of thing are you?"

"Today the Empress Dowager went out without bringing you, but it's not a good time for you to be lounging lazily in your room!"

"Letting you attend the king is a blessing from your three lifetimes of cultivation—don't be ungrateful!"

"Come out quickly! If you keep dilly-dallying, do you want us men to personally come in and catch you?"

"Pah, just a lowly servant, yet you actually have your own courtyard—when did our Wusun slaves ever have such grandeur? Truly, no rules left."

Li Yunchu didn't understand most of it, but she knew the person in front of her was definitely not saying anything good.

She opened her mouth to let out a roar, and glared fiercely at the servant.

The servant was startled by her.

Filled with shame and anger, he snatched up a stick from beside him and angrily raised it: "You damned bastard, you actually dare to scare me—"

Li Yunchu was frightened, covering her head and screaming, but before the stick could fall, someone grabbed it.

"What do you want to do?"

Li Qingluo only needed to exert a little force to snatch the stick away.

A fierce look appeared on her stunningly beautiful face.

The servant's heart gave a 'thump' from being scared by her expression.

Moreover, how did she so easily snatch the stick from his hand?

She—she, how could she have such great strength?

"Is it you—you, what do you want to do?"

"I—I am the king's person; if you offend me, you won't even know how you'll die later!"

Li Qingluo weighed the stick in her hand.

"How I die, I truly don't know."

"But how you die today, I absolutely know."

"You dare come to my courtyard and move my people."

"Seek death!"

Before the servant could react, Li Qingluo raised her hand and slammed the stick heavily onto his body.

The servant was beaten, rolling and screaming miserably.

Li Qingluo, however, showed no mercy whatsoever.

Stick after stick, the servant was beaten to the point of having no power to resist.

Moreover, no matter where he ran, Li Qingluo could catch him in just a few steps.

Finally, she dragged him along the ground and continued beating him.

That servant originally wanted to seize the door and flee, but Li Yunchu was a step faster and slammed the door shut.

"Heh. Today you've fallen into our Luoge's hands—consider yourself unlucky!"

"You had it coming!"

"Lowly trash, who let you spout madness and still dare to insult our Luoge!"

"I'll beat you to death!"

Hearing Li Yunchu's voice and words, and after carefully comparing her face, the young servant finally realized: "You—despicable slave—you're actually from the Central Plains, and you're a man in women's clothing!"

Li Yunchu, furious, stepped forward and kicked.

"You motherfucker, you're the one who's a man in women's clothing!"

Li Qingluo shouted, "Kill One!"

Kill One immediately leapt in from outside the wall.

"Miss."

Li Qingluo: "He knows our identities now; we can't let him leave the courtyard. Bind him first!"

Li Yunchu, hearing that, asked excitedly, "Luo'er, can you hand him over to me and Qin Ling? We promise we won't let him escape!"

She has a hundred ways to make this despicable slave wish for death!

Li Qingluo, seeing Li Yunchu's demeanor, only ordered, "Fine. But don't lose humanity."

She could imagine the methods of the couple.

And this young servant, having followed this Ku Erte, surely hasn't done any good deeds, but Li Qingluo also dislikes having people around her who have lost even the last shred of humanity.

Having said that, she walked outward.

And she instructed Zhui Yu, who had followed outside, "Prepare to capture Ku Erte alive!"