You expect me to serve your mistress? The mistress is driving this scumbag and his entire family cra

Chapter 172 You're Being Followed
Finally, the night was deep and quiet.

At Fang Chengxu's urging, Tong Zhao'er returned to her room, leaving two servants to guard her.

Everyone in the mansion was asleep, and all was quiet.

Galangal then began to take action.

She used a sleeping potion to knock out the two servants who were on guard duty.

Then he took out an iron rod that he had just found at the blacksmith's shop and pried open the coffin lid with great effort.

Things weren't as easy as I had imagined.

The coffin was made of the finest nanmu wood, extremely heavy, and the nails were driven in very firmly. Liang Jiang's tools were not handy, and she was afraid of disturbing the people in the house. She worked up a sweat, but only managed to loosen it a little.

I really wish I could slap it and split the coffin in two.

Just as they were concentrating, they suddenly heard a soft "hiss" as a hidden weapon pierced through the air and tore through the cloth.

Liang Jiang was startled. As she turned her head, her body reacted quickly, nimbly dodging to the side.

A dart flew through the air and, with a "thud," embedded itself deeply into the coffin.

Someone plotted against me.

Liang Jiang's first thought was that Fang Chengxu had discovered her whereabouts.

It's not a good place to stay any longer, otherwise it would be too embarrassing if Fang Chengxu found out it was me.

Before she could even pull away, a long sword slashed open the mourning hall and stabbed straight at her face.

At the same time, a dark figure leaped in through the breach.

His swordsmanship was sharp, fast, accurate, and ruthless.

Liang Jiang broke out in a cold sweat, not daring to underestimate her opponent. She used the iron rod in her hand as a weapon to deflect the opponent's attack.

The two people who were sleeping on the ground keeping vigil were startled awake, rubbed their eyes, and woke up.

Liang Jiang inwardly groaned, for the black-clad man's swordsmanship was too fierce, like a white ribbon that completely enveloped her, leaving her unable to escape for the time being.

Once Fang Chengxu and Tong Zhao'er arrived, there would be no way for him to escape.

Just when things were at their most critical, the once steadily erected mourning shed suddenly collapsed as if uprooted by a hurricane, crashing down on the four people.

Both the man in black and Liang Jiang had to temporarily withdraw their offensive and turn to self-defense.

Liang Jiang felt the light above her head dim, and then with a "whoosh," a pair of large hands tore open a crack in the ceiling, and then grabbed Liang Jiang's raised hand.

"go!"

Liang Jiang was instantly pulled up by a force, and her whole body was lifted into the air. She knew in her heart that she had a benefactor helping her, so she did not resist, but took off with a burst of energy.

At the same time, the black-clad man wielding the sword also used his long sword to slash open the mourning hall and charged straight up.

Without hesitation, Liang Jiang threw the iron rod in her hand at the man in black to stop his attack.

The man in black brandished his sword to defend himself, and Liang Jiang seized the opportunity to leap onto the roof.

By the dim moonlight, Liang Jiang saw clearly that the person who saved her was Gu Xizhi, which surprised her greatly.

The commotion had alerted Fang Chengxu, who rushed to the front yard with Tong Zhao'er. They were stunned to see the collapsed mourning hall and the black-clad man with a sword, not understanding what had happened.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

The man in black didn't speak. He twisted his body, leaped onto the opposite rooftop, and with two quick leaps, disappeared into the night.

Gu Xizhi grabbed Liang Jiang's hand: "Aren't you leaving?"

Liang Jiang reacted quickly, and the two of them took off running, covering a great distance in one breath.

Once they were sure no one was chasing them, the two stopped. Liang Jiang awkwardly pulled her hand back.

Gu Xizhi quickly let go.

"Your Highness, what are you doing here?" Liang Jiang couldn't help but ask.

"What you're here for, I'm here for the same reason."

"Then how did Your Highness know the purpose of my visit?"

“I heard that you went to the prison today to investigate what happened that night, and I’m sure you must have made some discovery.”

I was planning to go to the Duke's mansion to find you tonight, and I happened to see you coming out of the blacksmith's shop, followed suspiciously by someone. So, without disturbing you, I followed you here.

"Was that man in black who tried to kill me just now following me?"

When did it begin? At the Duke's mansion? Or when I left the Fang family just now? Or perhaps at the blacksmith's shop?

Was he being watched? Or was it just a chance encounter? If so, wouldn't he be unaware of his own identity?
Gu Xizhi nodded: "That's right, it's him. He was following you the whole time. When he saw you enter the Fang residence and make a move, he suddenly attacked you. He was so fast that I didn't have time to stop him."

"It was my negligence that I didn't notice anything at all. Does Your Highness know who he is?"

Gu Xizhi shook her head: "Judging from his physique and movements alone, this person's martial arts skills are definitely no less than yours or mine."

Liang Jiang asked suspiciously, "If he wanted to kill me, he could have done it right there at the blacksmith shop. Why did he have to wait until now? Besides, he doesn't seem like Fang Chengxu's kind of person, otherwise he wouldn't have needed to run away so quickly."

“Perhaps he wanted to see what you were up to,” Gu Xizhi guessed. “Once your actions confirmed his suspicions, he planned to kill you to silence you.”

After a slight hesitation, Liang Jiang decided to tell the truth: "I want to open the coffin and examine the body."

Gu Xizhi's heart skipped a beat, and she raised her face: "Why?"

“I went to the mortuary yesterday.”

What were you doing at the mortuary? What clues did you find?

Liangjiang then recounted how she and her mother had gone to the cemetery to pay respects to her father the previous day, and how her mother had noticed something suspicious.

"Perhaps I am being paranoid, so I made a special trip to the mortuary and listened to what the old man there said, which made me even more suspicious."

"Do you suspect that Tong Shouliang's death was staged, and that the person who died was not Tong Shouliang?"

Liang Jiang nodded: "I think it's very likely that Tong Shouliang had already planned everything before he was arrested. He colluded with people in the prison to impersonate him, using a dead body to escape punishment and continue to evade justice."

Gu Xizhi hesitated for a moment, then said, "Guanqi said that after you received news of Tong Shouliang's suicide, you immediately went to the prison. Didn't you see Tong Shouliang's body at the time?"

Liang Jiang shook her head: "When I arrived, they had already moved Tong Shouliang's body onto a carriage and were heading to the mortuary. I intercepted them halfway, and his body was so mangled that his features were completely obscured. Just as I was about to examine him closely, the Emperor's edict arrived."

Furthermore, I heard from the old man at the mortuary that when Tong Zhao'er prepared Tong Shouliang's body for burial, she didn't clean away any impurities before sealing the coffin. I suspect that Tong Zhao'er was also aware of this.”

Gu Xizhi's expression turned serious: "No matter how powerful Tong Shouliang is, he doesn't have such extraordinary abilities, does he? Who would dare to take such a huge risk and secretly have someone else die in his place in the imperial prison?"

Liang Jiang said helplessly, "I only had a suspicion, and I had no clue what to do. After thinking it over, I could only risk sneaking into the Tong residence at night. As a result, I encountered this person before I could even pry open the coffin lid."

Gu Xizhi thought for a moment and said, "If you trust me, then don't take this risk."

"Why?" Liang Jiang asked suspiciously, "If I don't investigate now, I'll never have another chance."

"Even if you can confirm that it wasn't Tong Shouliang who died, what then?"

“Naturally, we must continue to investigate, and we must also hold the Dali Temple accountable.”

Gu Xizhi looked at her and said seriously, "Do you really think the people in prison have that kind of guts?"

Using someone else's corpse to impersonate a death row inmate is not impossible in prison.

However, Tong Shouliang was a wanted criminal, and anyone who dared to tamper with him was indeed extremely audacious.

(End of this chapter)