Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 31 The Prince's Murderous Intent

After Xue Sui finished his meal, he tidied up a bit and went to Shou'an Court to pay his respects to Old Madam Cui.

"Please sit down." In just one night, Old Mrs. Cui seemed to have aged more than ten years.

His loose eye bags drooped as he lay listlessly on the couch. His hair, which used to be neatly combed, was now disheveled, and he looked like an old tree that had been drained of its juice, with its branches drooping.

Xue Sui prepared some porridge and snacks, and motioned to Aunt Jinshu to put them in a blue and white porcelain bowl and bring it to Old Lady Cui.

Old Mrs. Cui shook her head and sighed, "I can't eat it."

Aunt Jinshu looked embarrassed and looked at Xue Sui.

"I'll do it." He took the bowl gently, sat down steadily on the edge of the couch, and advised softly, "I only spent a short time with Third Uncle that day, but I also found that Third Uncle is the most filial to Grandmother. A mother can't bear to let her son go, so how can a son bear to let his mother suffer? If Third Uncle is still alive in heaven, he will definitely not want to let Grandmother grieve and hurt herself because of him."

Her tone was calm and steady.

The tears in Mrs. Cui's eyes rolled down.

"He was a good person, and he happily told me, 'Mom, I'm leaving now.' I thought he was going to lose everything, and got scolded by his wife, so he came to me and begged for it... How could he be gone just like that? It's all my fault. I shouldn't have scolded him and said those irresponsible words to him. I think I angered the Bodhisattva, and now he is being punished..."

Xue Sui held the bowl, stirring slowly with a spoon, and listened to her.

After she finished speaking, he handed the spoon to her mouth again.

Old Mrs. Cui swallowed a few times with tears in her eyes, but refused to take it.

At this time, the maid Cuiping came in through the curtain, glanced at Xue Sui, and stood there in embarrassment.

The old lady raised her head and said, "Just say what you want to say. Sixth Miss is not an outsider."

Cuiping bowed quickly and replied, "The eldest lady asked for a carriage early in the morning and went back to her parents' home."

The old lady was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned her head and asked Xue Sui, "I heard that your father came out of there angrily last night, and the fourth girl was also confined. This is the first time in so many years. Sixth girl, you went to Qinglan Courtyard with your father last night, do you know anything?"

Older gingers are more spicy.

Even though she was immersed in grief, Mrs. Cui still had sharp ears and eyes.

Xue Sui calmly brought the hot water in the purple clay teapot to the old lady.

"My father asked me to wait in the outer room, but I didn't hear anything."

Old Mrs. Cui knew exactly what her status was in the Xue family.

So after hearing this, he didn't suspect anything and just sighed heavily.

"It is unfortunate for the family to have such an evil woman."

After scolding Mrs. Fu, the old lady thought of her dead third son and her tears could not stop flowing out, and she could hardly control herself.

"Your uncle is all alone in the morgue of Jingzhao Prefecture. Even though he is gone, he cannot be buried. As his mother, I feel like my heart is being stabbed by a knife. It hurts so much..."

Xue Sui said in a gentle voice: "Once we catch the murderer, we can bring Third Uncle back and bury him properly."

Old Madam Cui snorted coldly, "Why are you still catching the murderer? I know it clearly in my heart. They just dislike the third son. They think he is useless and has a bad character. They are afraid that he will bring down the reputation of the Xue family... That vicious woman is just hoping that something bad will happen to the third son."

Obviously, the purse incident made Old Mrs. Cui resent Fu.

Xue Sui did not say those clichés of "my condolences" and waited until the old lady had vented all her resentment before saying:
"My granddaughter knows a wizard who has the ability to summon spirits and ask questions. Otherwise, I can ask him where my uncle's soul is now and whether he has any unfulfilled wishes."

When the old lady heard this, she burst into tears and nodded repeatedly.

He then took Xue Sui's hand and held it tightly in his palm.

"Sixth girl, there are so many children in the mansion, and grandma only knows when things come to an end... You are the one who understands my feelings the most."

There were people crying, talking, muttering, and comforting her in front of her, one after another.

But this usually silent Sixth Miss, with just one sentence, let go of her anger.

"My poor child, from now on, your grandmother will not let anyone look down on you."

Xue Sui drooped his eyelids slightly, gently patted the old lady's hand, and said nothing.

If Mrs. Cui had said this when she was eight years old, perhaps things would have been different.
-
Xue Sui came out of Shou'an Courtyard, brought a bowl of soup from Old Lady Cui's small kitchen, and asked Ruyi to deliver it to Liuli Pavilion.

Ruyi went there happily, but the maid from Liuli Pavilion showed no mercy at all and stood at the door with her hands on her hips, refusing to let her go.

Ruyi stood on tiptoe and peeked inside. "Oh, the fourth girl is crying?"

The faint sound of crying made her feel relieved, so she put the soup bowl on the ground.

"The fourth girl was confined to her house. Our daughter was very distressed. She specially begged the old lady to give her a bowl of black chicken soup and asked her to stay at home properly. She was told not to cry and hurt herself. No matter how old you are, you should also take care of the younger one."

When Qingzhu and Qinghong heard this, they felt as if their feet were burned by burning coals. They wanted to jump up and curse at the man, but they couldn't find any fault with the man at all. If they really started arguing with him, they would be the ones who didn't know what was good for them.

Seeing that they were angry, Ruyi pretended to be a smug person and said something with a smile.

"Drink slowly and take care of yourself. I'm leaving. I won't see you off."

Back at Lixiangyuan, she described the whole thing vividly, and Xiao Zhao laughed out loud.

Xue Sui, however, showed no expression.

This move was originally taught by Xue Yueying, so it's nothing new.

But things change, and she will eventually have to taste the feeling of being isolated.

This is just the beginning, take your time. She can't rush.
-
The next day, after the rain had stopped, Xue Sui took two maids and went out through the back door holding umbrellas.

As the master and his two servants reached the entrance of the alley, they saw a carriage parked there.

A man was pacing back and forth in front of the carriage, his familiar face full of anxiety.

The servant came running breathlessly from the other side of the gate. He didn't see Xue Sui and the other two, and was only concerned with replying to Gu Jie:
"Fifth Master, the Fourth Miss has been confined to her house. Master Xue does not allow her to go out." "I have delivered the things that Fifth Master sent to the mansion. I cannot find out anything else."

It was too late for Gu Jie to stop the servant, so Xue Sui heard everything.

He was extremely annoyed, and looking at Xue Sui who was walking towards him, he took the initiative to attack.

"Are you here to see my joke?"

Xue Sui watched him approach, his eyes meeting his.

Gu Jie's heart skipped a beat, thinking that she was going to complain or feel wronged, but unexpectedly, she didn't even move an eyebrow.

"Excuse me, give way."

Gu Jie looked back and realized that the coachman had not parked the carriage properly, blocking the entrance to the alley. His face flushed and he quickly signaled the driver to move to the side.

After saying that, he saw Xue Sui walked straight past him without saying a word, and he felt inexplicably irritated.

"Xue Liu, what happened to Ying'er?"

"Why did Master Xue punish her?"

"Is it you who did this? You must have caused trouble again!"

No one answered.

Xue Sui turned a deaf ear.

Gu Jie raised his voice: "Xue Liu!"

Before Xue Sui got angry, Xiao Zhao got anxious first.

"girl……"

Before she could say "Kill him", she was blocked by Ruyi's "Pah".

Ruyi was seen blocking Xue Sui, spitting out poisonous saliva.

"Master Gu Wu, don't blame us servants for being talkative and without restraint. You like to treat the stinky stones in the pit as treasures, and no one can stop you. It's your own habit to like eating shit. We find it smelly and just stay away. But you are so shameless that you want to get close to our girl..."

"Tsk tsk, look at you, you have no shame at all. You married a nobody who had an affair with a man and got her pregnant before marriage, as if you married a fairy. Aren't you ashamed? I think the girls in the prostitutes in Beijing are more decent than her..."

"Please be magnanimous and don't bother with me. But from now on, don't say such embarrassing words in front of our girl, so as not to dirty her ears and waste several buckets of clean water!"

When has Gu Jie, a scholar, ever been insulted like this since he entered the officialdom?

He was stunned and speechless for a long time.

When I came back to my senses, the master and his servant had already left...

He gritted his teeth, got on the carriage, and just as he drove out of the alley and onto the main street, he was worried about Xue Yueying when a man rode towards him in the distance.

The man dressed as an attendant of the East Palace, stood on his horse with his sword in hand, and with a whip, he shouted at the top of his voice:
"Who is blocking the road ahead? Hurry up and take your people and carriage and get out of the way!"

The driver of the Jingyuan Marquis's mansion looked back at Gu Jie and bowed carefully, "Sir, this road is wide enough..."

"Stop talking nonsense!" The man shouted, "I'm Ma Da, I can't get through!"

Martha! You are just looking for trouble, right?
The servant muttered in front of Gu Jie, "This road is wide, how can it block the horse of the East Palace? This is too overbearing."

Gu Jie's face looked extremely ugly, but Li Zhao was such an unreasonable person on weekdays, and even those dogs and slaves in the East Palace were more arrogant than each other. The one riding a horse actually asked the one driving a car to give way?

Outrageous!

Gu Jie's face flushed: "Forget it. We'll give in!"

Guan Ya waited for Gu Jie's carriage to stop by the side of the road before he rode his horse through the street, then went back in a circle to report.

"Master, I did everything you told me to do. That grandson dared not say a word!"

In the carriage, Li Zhao straightened his clothes and said calmly, "Let's go back."

When Xue Sui came out, he also saw Li Zhao's car.

Although the carriage was not as luxurious and ostentatious as the prince's sedan chair, she had previously learned a lot about Li Zhao and recognized it at a glance.

The car was parked on the wet stone road. The air after the rain seemed to be covered with a layer of mist, and the water vapor was dense. The eaves of the houses on the street were still dripping with water...

Xue Sui walked past quickly with his head down.

A corner of the carriage curtain was opened, and a faint warm fragrance wafted out.

A person can be vaguely seen in the car, with black hair as black as ink, casually tied up with a white jade hairpin. The simple dress makes her look more lazy and casual, but her angular jaw is slightly tense, her black eyes are sharp, and her eyes are lightly swept, which can send a bone-chilling chill.

Xue Sui's heart sank slightly. He went to the second floor of Yanyu Tower and sat down in the private room where Yaoguang was waiting. His first words were:

"Li Zhao wants to kill me."

After drinking the strong liquor, Yaoguang asked with a smile, "Maybe he is tired of all the delicious food and wants to try our stir-fried vegetables for a change?"

Xue Sui was stunned for a moment before he reacted.

This unreliable senior brother!

Xue Sui said: "He's got his eyes on me. I can feel his vigilance and the murderous aura in him!"

　Li Zhao: Lai Fu, come here and smell it, what's the smell on me?

　　Lai Fu sniffed around and said: Master, we smell good!
　　Li Zhao: Get out!

　　Lai Fu: It really is murderous!
　　(End of this chapter)