Proud Feather

Chapter 88 Backer
As the night deepened, Chu Ling stepped out of the tavern. The once bustling capital city was now only dotted with a few scattered lights.

"Princess," Qingcha called after the horse was properly seated.

Chu Ling withdrew her gaze and calmly boarded the carriage.

A group of people bowed respectfully behind him.

Chu Ling looked through the car window at Xiao Yu's figure gradually disappearing into the distance, then lowered the car curtain.

The person she longed to see in her past life but could not appear before her, and her identity, which she never knew until her death, was so easily revealed, making her clearly realize that many things were different.

This time, destiny will surely be on her side!
……

When Xiao Yu returned to the tavern, the servant quickly brought him some hangover soup, saying, "The Taoist priest said that you must abstain from alcohol during treatment. You drank quite a bit tonight, so the medicine has been wasted. Alas!"

He obediently finished his drink and replied, "It wasn't much. The princess is still young, and she can't drink much herself. I only had two cups with her."

Speaking of this, Gongsun Hong clicked his tongue in amazement: "This princess is quite different from the rumors! Everyone says she is willful and spoiled, and is excessively pampered by her father and brothers. Tonight, it seems that she is willful and spoiled, but she is also shrewd and decisive."

“What’s most remarkable is that she knows how to be patient,” Xiao Yu said slowly. “There were clearly crucial clues about the Crown Prince’s murder, yet she managed to keep quiet about them.”

Gongsun Hong nodded in agreement, then thought for a moment and added, "However, young master, didn't you reveal your hand too early? If she knows our position, she'll lose her value."

Xiao Yu shook his head: "There's no need to put on airs. This incident reveals the princess's personality. She responds better to gentleness than force. It would be bad if we tried to do something inappropriate."

This is true.

"Besides, we don't have much time," Xiao Yu said in a deep voice. "We thought that with the Crown Prince's help, we could get out of this predicament quickly, but fate has not allowed us to live long enough. We must find a new backer as soon as possible, otherwise all our previous efforts will be in vain."

Gongsun Hong agreed with his opinion, but...

"Young master, aren't you being too optimistic? After all, a princess is just a princess. This time, His Majesty's decision to have her supervise the case is a special case. It's not certain that she will be able to interfere in politics in the future."

"What else can we do? We don't have any other options." Xiao Yu spread his hands. "We can't exactly go and rely on that second prince, can we?"

Gongsun Hong had nothing to say.

Upon hearing this, Wu Zhiyong couldn't help but say, "Sir, don't look down on people. I think this princess is not simple. We only made an appearance in the capital, and she already made us nowhere to go. Besides, look at her arrogant and domineering attitude from the moment she entered the door. She doesn't seem like a well-behaved person."

"You're only saying nice things about her because she didn't make you kneel, aren't you?" Gongsun Hong exposed Wu Zhiyong's ulterior motives, then sighed, "The princess and the crown prince are born of the same mother and are said to have a very good relationship, so how come their personalities are so different? The crown prince is gentle and refined, while the princess..."

“No, they are the same,” Xiao Yu said softly, his eyes closed. The person was gone, but he could still seem to smell that cold aura. “They had similar souls.”
-
Chu Ling slept soundly.

When I woke up the next day, the birds were chirping outside and the sun was shining brightly.

She lazily rolled over, only to be startled when she suddenly met a pair of curious eyes.

"what!"

The man was startled by her and looked around frantically, asking, "What? What's that? What's wrong?"

Chu Ling looked closely and realized it was her cousin Feng Lingwei. She breathed a sigh of relief: "Weiwei, you scared me to death! Why are you squatting by the bed?"

Feng Lingwei realized she was the culprit, stuck out her tongue, and said embarrassedly, "It's been so long since I've seen you. I heard you slept here last night, so I came over to check on you."

Chu Ling laughed: "It hasn't been that long. I've stayed here three times this month."

As she spoke, a palace maid came in to attend to her, and she got up to wash. Feng Lingwei followed her out: "How dare you say that! Last time you came in the middle of the night, and by the time I woke up, you were already back in the palace!"

After scolding her, she asked, "Ah Ling, are you that busy? Grandmother said you're doing important things and doesn't want me to bother you."

"I am a bit busy." Chu Ling spat out the mouthwash and replied in a moment, "But I definitely won't be running around today. After having dinner with my grandmother, how about we go for a walk in the streets together?"

Feng Lingwei was overjoyed: "Really? That's wonderful!" But then she felt a little guilty, "How's your case going? Will it cause any delays?"

"I don't need to investigate myself; I've already told them to hurry up."

"That's good." Feng Lingwei was still a little sad when she thought of her cousin, the Crown Prince. "I hope the truth will be found soon and the murderer will be brought to justice."

Chu Ling thought to herself that things were going well; they already had a crucial clue. As long as Gao Mian put in a little more effort to straighten out the chain of evidence, they could uproot the entire operation.

Thinking about this made her feel much better.

There was hope of avenging his elder brother, he learned about Xiao Yu's identity and background, and he even won over the Xining Prince's Mansion in advance. Everything was going well.

With such joy, Chu Ling chatted and laughed with Feng Lingwei as they went to find the old lady.

The old lady was very happy to see them and hurriedly asked the kitchen to add more dishes.

"Ah Ling, eat more. Look how thin you are. You're still growing, so you mustn't neglect yourself."

Chu Ling smiled and replied, "Grandmother, don't worry, Qiu Niang is keeping an eye on me! I'm probably moving around a lot lately and thinking a lot, that's why I haven't gained weight."

"Then eat some more." The old lady smiled and put some food on her plate. "When I was your age, my stomach was like a bottomless pit. I would get hungry again soon after eating. Especially since we practiced martial arts, which requires physical strength for boxing and wielding spears? Here, have some mutton buns. They taste great. The sheep was just slaughtered this morning, so they're very fresh!"

"Thank you, Grandmother." Chu Ling happily accepted it, took a bite, and the sweet taste made her squint her eyes.

It's been so long since I've had mutton buns from the Duke of Anguo's mansion; I really miss them.

“Grandma, Grandma, I want one too!” Feng Lingwei shouted.

The old lady chuckled, "Alright, alright, you get one too!" and put one on her plate as well.

After Chu Ling finished eating the steamed buns, the old lady asked with concern, "I heard you didn't get back until almost midnight last night? Did something happen to you?"

"No," Chu Ling replied, "I went to listen to Lord Gao's questioning."

"This Master Gao is quite diligent," the old lady said. "It seems we'll still have to rely on him to solve the case."

Chu Ling nodded: "Among the three judicial departments, the Censorate is too powerful and can't be relied on, and Lin Wenyu in the Ministry of Justice is unreliable. The only one we can command is Gao Mian."

The old lady laughed, pointing at her: "So mature for her age! But you have good taste; that Minister Lin from the Ministry of Justice is indeed somewhat..."

The grandfather and grandson were talking when Qingcha rushed in.

"Princess! Something has happened at Xianle Tower."

Chu Ling's expression turned serious: "Is it Zhu Fan? What happened?"

Qingcha said, "She has been taken away by the Ministry of Justice! Lord Gao is going to demand her release, but he can't win against Minister Lin, so he has come to inform the princess."

"Lin Wenyu?" Chu Ling's eyebrows shot up. "That old bastard has gotten bolder!"