"I was ordered to investigate the Sangbo case. After searching for a while, I found that the case was related to Prince Yu," Xu Qi'an sighed.

Prince Yu glanced at him and calmly shook his head, "I have retired for a long time. It shouldn't be a false accusation. Tell me, what happened?"

Although he said that, there was disbelief and disdain in his eyes. Obviously, he didn't believe what Xu Qi'an said.

"More than a year ago, a monk named Heng Hui from Qinglong Temple had an affair with a female incense customer. The two of them made a lifelong vow and fled with a law artifact from Qinglong Temple that could conceal their breath."

"Because the woman's identity was extraordinary, she couldn't escape the jurisdiction of the capital without the law artifact to conceal her breath."

Prince Yu, who was drinking tea with his head down, suddenly raised his head and stared at Xu Qi'an, his eyes full of excitement and ferocity. "Nonsense, nonsense! Princess Pingyang has been well-educated since childhood. How could she elope with a wild monk... Guards, guards, drag this thief away and chop him up!"

The guards outside the hall rushed in and surrounded Xu Qi'an. He was not flustered at all and just looked at his raging father with some emotion. Any father would have a breakdown after hearing such news.

But for Prince Yu, this was just an appetizer.

After the guards rushed in, Prince Yu, who had been raging just a moment ago, suddenly lost his temper and waved his hand, letting the guards back out.

"Yes, I am not surprised. Before Pingyang disappeared, I arranged a marriage for her, but she strongly opposed it and even said that she had someone she liked." Prince Yu smiled bitterly.

"How absurd! Marriage is the order of parents and the words of matchmakers. How can a woman decide for herself? How does she know that the other person is not deceiving her and has ulterior motives?"

Although I don't agree with the traditional Chinese view of marriage, freedom of love was indeed deadly in this era. After all, it was not like my era where breaking up and getting back together was a commonplace thing.

Xu Qi'an nodded.

"After hearing this, I was furious and slapped her. Not long after, she disappeared. I thought she was kidnapped by that wild man... That's what I thought."

"At first, I hated her so much that I gritted my teeth. I hated her for being shameless, for bringing shame to the royal family. But the longer time passed, the more I missed her. I just want her to come back to me, call me father, and I won't care about anything else."

... Maybe you will never see her again.

From the conversation between Heng Hui and Pingyuan's legitimate son that night, it was not difficult to hear that Heng Hui had died before. If Heng Hui was like this, what about Princess Pingyang who eloped with him?

The outcome for that woman was nothing more than three possibilities: one, she died. Two, she was taken over by someone else.

The third possibility was a combination of the first two.

"I am not here to reveal Prince Yu's scars, nor am I here to tell you who the man is who eloped with Princess Pingyang," Xu Qi'an said.

Prince Yu was startled for a moment, then became excited. He rushed to Xu Qi'an in three steps and grabbed his wrist with one hand and his collar with the other. "Do you have news about her? Where is she, where is she?!"

Xu Qi'an frowned."...I lost my temper." Prince Yu released his hands and took a step back. He straightened his back, suddenly bowed deeply, and said in a deep voice:

"If Mister Xu can help me find her, I owe you a huge favor. I will definitely repay you in the future."

"I came here precisely for this matter... Has Prince heard of the Pingyuan Marquis Mansion Massacre?"

"Not yet," Prince Yu said, somewhat surprised.

"How is Prince's relationship with the Pingyuan Marquis?" Xu Qi'an asked.

"He is also a member of the nobility and we used to have some dealings. However, the Pingyuan Marquis is ambitious and dissatisfied with his current power. He is at odds with the civil officials and is disliked by other nobles." Prince Yu said.

Xu Qi'an nodded and continued, "I heard that Prince almost entered the cabinet?"

Prince Yu fell silent for a moment and said, "His Majesty did have that idea last year. The cabinet is now under the control of Wang Zhenwen, the current Prime Minister. Although there are other factions and Wei Yuan to balance him, it is only barely maintaining a balance."

"I have the support of the nobles behind me, and I am also a member of the royal family. His Majesty wants to support me to enter the cabinet and stir up trouble."

Emperor Yuan Jing was very powerful. Although he rarely interfered in politics and spent money recklessly, he still maintained a high degree of control over the court after years of neglecting it. His political skills were unparalleled... Xu Qi'an asked casually:

"Who benefits the most from Prince's recuperation at home?"

"Prime Minister Wang Zhenwen and the Minister of War Zhang Feng... Heh, that was originally my position." Prince Yu smiled helplessly.

After saying so much, he could not hide his fatigue. Xu Qi'an also knew the information he wanted to know and got up to leave.

The horse's hooves were light and fast. This young mare had been ridden by his uncle for several years and was now ridden by his nephew. Although the person on top had changed, it did not have any sadness or melancholy. It remained gentle and happy.

Xu Qi'an's mood was not so cheerful. According to Prince Yu's words, the elopement of Princess Pingyang and Heng Hui might have been a trap.

If he couldn't handle you, would he not be able to handle your daughter?

People who play politics can do anything. This possibility was very high.

Heng Hui's revenge indirectly confirmed this point.

"Who could it be? Prime Minister Wang? Minister Zhang? Or both... But there is a problem here. What does the struggle between the civil officials and the nobles have to do with the Sangpo case and the demon race?"

"Besides Emperor Yuan Jing, who else knows what is sealed under Sangpo?"

"Not good, Heng Hui's next target for revenge is either the Prime Minister or the Minister of War."

Xu Qi'an's heart sank. He urged his horse to go as fast as possible towards the palace and was intercepted at the gate.

"Is Lord Wei still in the palace?"

"He left half an hour ago." The guard at the gate answered.

Xu Qi'an immediately turned his horse's head and left the imperial city. He rode on the wide streets of the inner city for a long time and finally saw Wei Yuan's carriage.

When he heard the sound of horse hooves approaching from behind, Wei Yuan's guards turned around vigilantly and gripped their swords.

But when they saw that it was Xu Qi'an, they relaxed their guard.

"Lord Wei, Lord Wei... I have urgent matters to report." Xu Qi'an shouted.

Jiang Lvzhong heard Wei Yuan's voice coming from the carriage, "Stop the carriage."

He immediately pulled the reins and stopped.

Xu Qi'an rode up to the window and whispered, "Lord Wei, I have urgent matters to report."The curtain of the car window was lifted, revealing the face of an old man with deep features and frosty temples. He frowned and said, "When will you fix your habit of giving incomplete reports?"

After criticizing Xu Qi'an, he asked, "What's the matter?"

"Heng Hui's next target is likely to be the Minister of War or the Prime Minister. If something happens to either of them, it will be trouble for you, Lord Wei." Xu Qi'an said in a deep voice.

...

At Zhang Mansion...

Minister of War Zhang Feng returned to his mansion in a carriage and asked the steward who came to greet him, "Where is Yi'er?"

"He hasn't woken up yet," the steward replied.

Zhang Feng's face darkened and he said, "Tell him to dress and come to my study within ten minutes."

The cautious steward glanced at Zhang Feng's face and left to carry out his order.

Zhang Feng returned to his study, took off his robe and handed it to his attendant. He sat in his chair, leaned back and closed his eyes to rest.

As the ten minutes were about to pass, Zhang Feng's eldest son, Zhang Yi, entered the room on time.

"Dad, what do you want?" Zhang Yi's face looked slightly pale, and his puffy eye bags and deep dark circles revealed his identity as a time management master.

"Pack your things and leave the capital immediately." Minister Zhang spoke after careful consideration.

"What?"

"Right now!" Zhang Feng's gaze was stern.

"Okay, okay." Zhang Yi was always afraid of his father, so he did as he was told.

With the help of the servants in the mansion, Zhang Yi packed his clothes, provisions, gold, and silver, and other portable items. He took more than ten of the mansion's servants with him and headed towards the outer city.

But when the carriage arrived at the gate of the inner city, the soldiers guarding the gate stopped them after checking their identity.

"The emperor has issued an order that officials of sixth rank or higher, including their families, are not allowed to leave the capital."

...

In the evening, Chu Caiwei, who had spent a day having fun in the Princess Chang's Mansion, rode her horse to Xu Mansion and knocked on the door of the small courtyard.

"Caiwei." Xu Qi'an had already changed out of his official uniform into ordinary clothes that were sewn by his sister, Lingyue.

Sister sews, brother wears.

Chu Caiwei took out two porcelain bottles from the deerskin bag at her waist and said, "Be careful not to waste them. The Big Power Pill is very expensive, costing two taels of silver per pill."

One pill is half a month's salary for me... Chu Caiwei was actually a hidden rich woman, young but already having a lot of money... It didn't matter whether she was a disciple of the supervisor or not. The main thing was that Xu Qi'an wanted to take care of her. He envied this "rich second generation". Although he had more than 900 taels of gold, this money was used to buy a house.

Theft is never good, try looking at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

"Miss Caiwei, come in and have some tea." Xu Qi'an had a tempting smile on his face.

Blushing, Chu Caiwei said, "The sun is setting soon. What are your intentions for inviting me into your courtyard at this hour?"

After speaking, she gave him a disdainful look, led her horse by the reins, and walked away, swaying her little butt.

Hmph, flat in front and flat in the back, it's ridiculous... Xu Qi'an also gave her a disdainful look as she walked away and closed the courtyard door.

After the case of Sang Bo was over, he would make a simple version of chicken essence to reward this girl.

After having dinner in the main house and chatting with the elegant and graceful sister for a long time, Xu Qi'an returned to his own small courtyard and practiced breathing exercises for half an hour.

"Meow~"

Suddenly, he heard the clear meowing of a cat.

"The door isn't locked." Xu Qi'an said.

The door was pushed open, and an orange cat walked in with elegant steps. Its tail was held high, and its yellow-orange eyes stared at him as it spoke in human language:

"What did Luo Yuheng say?"

...Did Taoist Master Jin Lian open the door to some new world or have some special fetish?

Xu Qi'an examined the orange cat and said, "I've got the Gathering Yuan Pill."

PS: This case has been written for a long time, mainly because it's too important. It can be said to be the cornerstone of this book and will affect the second, third, and fourth volumes later. I have to extend its length to have enough space to buy foreshadowing. Well, it's about to end, there are only a few chapters left.