Jian Zhaoxing

Chapter 273 Making Wedding Dresses for Others
With that in mind, Lin Zhiqing recorded the information of most of the opposing neutral faction according to the contents of Lu Huai's booklet.

Looking at it this way, it's quite simple and clear.

The Grand Secretary, fifty-five years old, was rigid and serious, and maintained close ties with the Director of the Imperial Observatory.

Duke of Pei, fifty-two years old, was a forthright and generous man with considerable prestige in the army. He had no sons, and his only daughter was a virtuous concubine in the palace, though she was not considered a favorite.

The Grand Tutor, who was sixty years old, was the Crown Prince's teacher. He had many children and was exceptionally learned, but he was also aloof and preferred to stay alone.

Minister of Works, forty-eight years old...

Upon seeing the information about these key neutral court officials, Lin Zhiqing stroked his chin.

What she could most clearly see was that these people were all older.

If we analyze it solely from the perspective of age, could it be that these people are all content with the status quo and do not want to cause any more turmoil in the court?

No, no, no, let's leave the others aside, but the Duke of Pei is a very brave man. He was a proponent of war when he was young, and although he no longer needs to go into battle now that he is old, he is still active among the military officers.

This is not a sign of complacency.

Aside from that, Lin Zhiqing couldn't think of any other points related to age.

She shook her head, temporarily setting aside the clue about age.

Thanks to Lu Huai, he now has a more detailed understanding of the officials in the court than before.

She connected people she had private interactions with using a thread.

After seeing so many ministers, her vision was already filled with a dense, overwhelming number of them.

If these people did have some dealings with the Marquis of Zhenyuan, they did, but not closely.

In particular, both the Grand Tutor and the Duke of Pei had a grudge against the Marquis of Zhenyuan.

If we were to say that these two were faking it, it wouldn't be impossible, but the probability is low.

Unless the entire court was controlled by the Marquis of Zhenyuan, Lin Zhiqing did not believe that so many neutral officials were just putting on an act.

But to say that the Marquis of Zhenyuan controlled the court... Lin Zhiqing shook his head, that's impossible.

If that were truly the case, why would Jiang Liuyun need to infiltrate her life under the guise of her fiancé and secretly cause trouble?

He could have directly targeted the Lin family.

Having ruled out the possibility that all these people were on the same side as the Marquis of Zhenyuan's family, Lin Zhiqing couldn't think of any other possibilities for the time being.

She took a slight breath.

This is not the way things were initially expected; the direction of the neutral faction is uncertain.

After thinking for a moment, Lin Zhiqing gathered the Lin family members in the main hall.

This also includes Fourth Aunt and Lin Jiusi.

Since the last incident, the two seemed to have realized their mistake and have been staying quietly in their own courtyard ever since.

They were, after all, members of the Lin family, and Lin Zhiqing was confident that she could keep an eye on them, so she revealed to them that Lin Congrong had colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country.

Of course, the details of the Lin family's involvement were omitted, and Lin Zhiqing and the others pretended not to know about the newspaper.

Fourth Aunt and Lin Jiusi knew the seriousness of the matter, so they didn't interrupt.

Seeing that the two of them already understood the seriousness of the matter, Lin Zhiqing gave Chaoyan a wink outside the door.

Asagao understood and gestured to the servants and maids outside the courtyard gate.

Soon, Fourth Aunt and Lin Jiusi were called down.

Lin Zhiqing then told Lin Congli and Lin Congyan about how the neutral ministers had taken sides and were reopening the case of Lin Congrong.

She figured that these two were, after all, people from the imperial court, and might be able to see something.

Lin Congli always remained silent when his younger brother was mentioned.

But he wanted to exonerate Lin Congrong more than anyone else.

They looked very carefully, but in the end, they still couldn't find any problems.

Lin Zhiqing could only figure it out on her own: "Aunt Mu, let's go back to Shuqing Pavilion." "Okay...okay." Aunt Mu turned her gaze away from the names written on the paper.

She helped Lin Zhiqing put her things away.

On their way back to Shuqing Pavilion, Aunt Mu was somewhat uneasy.

When they arrived at the garden, Lin Zhiqing immediately noticed: "Aunt Mu, is something on your mind?"

Aunt Mu frowned: "Miss, those ministers..."

"Miss!" It was Asagao's voice. Lin Zhiqing and Aunt Mu looked back at the same time.

Asagao circled around from the other side of the pond, moving quickly and hurriedly. Halfway there, she cried out "Ouch!" and clearly tripped and fell.

Seeing this, Aunt Mu went over and helped the person up: "You child, didn't I teach you not to make loud noises in the house?"

"If you're going to walk, then walk properly. Why run?"

"It was my rudeness. I know this road very well and have never fallen before. I don't know what happened today." Asagao lowered her voice and casually patted her dress.

"Auntie, something terrible has happened."

Upon hearing this, Aunt Mu immediately fell silent, and the two quickly went to Lin Zhiqing's side.

Chaoyan bowed and said, "Miss, Young Master Yunfeng has sent word that the ban on the Zhenyuan Marquis's residence has been lifted and the murderer who harbored the flute player has been found."

"So fast..." Lin Zhiqing murmured, then looked at Chaoyan: "Is the murderer someone from the Office of Transmission?"

Asagao was startled, then nodded: "It's the Left Minister of the Court of Transmission, Miss. How did you find out?"

"I had guessed some of it before." Lin Zhiqing didn't say much, and she quickly led the two back to the main hall.

As she walked, she pondered the situation. As expected, Jiang Liuyun had indeed chosen to sacrifice the pawn to save the king in order to escape the predicament!
Treason is a serious matter, and this matter involves the Zhenyuan Marquis's mansion.

With the Marquis of Zhenyuan not at his residence, Jiang Liuyun is bound to be restless.

He needs to quell the rumors and deal with the Lin family, so he must first gain his freedom in order to investigate and curb the spread of the rumors.

To gain freedom, one must first be freed from the charge of harboring a wanted criminal.

There are only two ways to achieve this goal.

First, shift the blame back onto the Lin family.

Second, shifting the blame onto others.

The first path is the simplest, but Jiang Liuyun won't take it.

Because of the recent accusation by the Jiang family that Lin Congrong was a traitor, his every move is being watched.

If we rashly attack the Lin family, wouldn't that confirm that there's something wrong with the Zhenyuan Marquis's mansion?
Jiang Liuyun had no choice but to find someone to take the blame.

Who is the best candidate to take the blame?
Of course, it refers to someone who frequented the Office of Transmission and had a close relationship with Liu Mang.

The Left Grand Master of the Court of State Affairs is undoubtedly the best choice.

However, since someone has been found to take the blame, Lin Zhiqing's suspicion of harboring the suspect will also be cleared.

She only needs to sit back and reap the benefits.

This matter has more than one benefit for her.

That was how Lin Zhiqing used the flute player to remove another thorn in Jiang Liuyun's side.

This Commissioner of State Affairs was a high-ranking official of the third rank. He was very likely to serve under Marquis Zhenyuan and Jiang Liuyun, just like Liu Mang.

Zhou Chongzheng, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, was no ordinary man. Unless pressured by the emperor, he would never hastily close a case.

To fool him, you have to choose someone who is heavy enough and absolutely capable of doing this.

The Left Vice Minister of State Affairs was destined to be cannon fodder.

Jiang Liuyun certainly knew in his heart that this matter was actually benefiting Lin Zhiqing, but as the saying goes, he had no choice.

Even if he was unwilling, Lin Zhiqing had won this round completely!