All Heavens: From Joy of Life to The Great Feng Night Watchman

Fan Jian was shocked to hear the news of Fan Xian's assassination, but he felt even more guilty.

He had Tiger Guards under his command, but he never expected that someone would go to such lengths to assassinate Fan Xian.

Emperor Qing glared at him and said, "Tell me, who wanted to assassinate Fan Xian?"

Fan Jian thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a solution. "It's hard to say right now. I don't know much either."

"Moreover, there are many troubles, and even if you see it with your own eyes, it may not be the truth. Let's wait for the investigation results from the Oversight Council."

Fan Jian certainly had some guesses in his mind, but he dared not speak recklessly without concrete evidence. The Emperor Qing in front of him was no longer his childhood playmate.

Emperor Qing sneered, "Old fox, the older you get, the more cunning you become."

Fan Jian felt a chill run down his spine. His Majesty was truly anxious; he was even scolding himself.

On the surface, Fan Jian remained calm and said, "I am of pure and good character and do not deserve such praise."

"I now regret it; I shouldn't have brought him to Kyoto."

Although Fan Xian was brought to Kyoto by Fan Jian, it was actually Emperor Qing who orchestrated it behind the scenes, and it was not something Fan Jian could decide at all.

"Kyoto has always been like this; it's your own fault for being incompetent and lacking in foresight."

"Since you're here, make the best of it. Just be more careful next time!"

Emperor Qing drew his bow, and a sharp arrow shot into the armor in the distance with a whoosh.

"Guess if Fan Xian can catch Si Lili?"

"You've been in charge of the Ministry of Revenue for many years, and you're most skilled at planning gambling schemes. Do you dare to gamble?"

Fan Jian lowered his head and said, "I dare not gamble. There are many variables in this matter. Who knows if Si Lili will be silenced?"

"Fan Xian has only been in the capital for a little over a month. He is unfamiliar with the place and the people, so it is understandable that he cannot be caught."

Emperor Qing narrowed his eyes, somewhat displeased. "You don't even dare to gamble? You're looking down on my son!"

The two old foxes knew perfectly well that Fan Xian was Emperor Qing's illegitimate son, but they just didn't say it out loud.

"This arrest of Si Lili is a test; if he can catch her, then he's truly capable."

"A few days later, the young martial arts champion will appear in the palace, and I will directly appoint him as the Assistant Director of Music at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices!"

Emperor Qing had already arranged for Fan Xian to become a low-ranking official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

If Fan Xian excels in literature, he will be appointed as the Assistant Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices; if he is outstanding in martial arts, he will be appointed as the Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Emperor Qing was anxious. "Fan Xian, quickly do something so I can give you an official position!"

With the Southern Qing and Northern Qi about to go to war, and Fan Xian still a commoner, how could Emperor Qing not be anxious?

Fan Jian looked worried and said, "Your Majesty, Zhu Ge is the presiding judge of the case. Fan Xian went out of the city to investigate without permission, and I estimate that Zhu Ge will try to stop him tomorrow morning."

Emperor Qing didn't even lift his eyelids at this concern, saying, "Go back and figure it out yourself."

Fan Jian could mobilize the Red Cavalry, but mobilizing them to block the Surveillance Bureau was an overreach of his authority, so he wanted to ask Emperor Qing for an imperial decree.

Emperor Qing was even more furious. Since it was an overreach of his authority, how could he possibly issue an imperial edict?

If there's a mistake and someone is responsible, the subordinate should take the blame. Why would they try to get their superior to take the fall? What are they thinking?

The next morning.

As expected, Fan Xian and Zong Zhui were stopped by Zhu Ge, who said that Fan Xian had interfered with the case without authorization.

At the critical moment, Fan Jian appeared with the Red Cavalry and stopped Zhu Ge's men. Zhu Ge knew that the Red Cavalry were elite imperial guards, so he had no choice but to let them pass.

Before leaving, Chen Pingping said that he should not confront Fan Jian directly unless it was a matter of treason, regicide, or betrayal.

Fan Xian and Zong Zhui arrived at the city gate, where Zong Zhui inquired about Si Lili's situation from the gate guards.

Si Lili rode out of the city in full view of everyone. Not far from the city, seven women dressed in the same clothes as Si Lili appeared on horseback.

Afterwards, the eight women in black rode off on different roads, clearly a tactic to avoid attracting attention.

The two arrived at a dense forest outside the city, where Zongzhui used a slingshot to shoot down a carrier pigeon belonging to the Surveillance Bureau.

Zongzhui has excellent tracking skills, is familiar with the flight routes of the Imperial Observatory's homing pigeons, and is even very knowledgeable about the breeding and management of homing pigeons.

Fan Xian couldn't help but sigh, if it weren't for Zong Zhui's help, he would have had no way to pursue Si Lili.

In the original drama, Fan Xian gained fame after entering the city, until he encountered a setback during the assassination attempt on Niulan Street.

However, Fan Xian has faced numerous hardships since entering the city, and he almost lost his life on Niulan Street.

Therefore, he tends to think things through more deeply when faced with problems.

He still doesn't understand why Zong Zhui is so loyal to him.

He wouldn't take money, and when offered drinks, he said drinking would affect his agility.

Therefore, Fan Xian guessed that Zong Zhui must have been entrusted by someone, probably his teacher Fei Jie.

"My lord, please look, this is a message from the Surveillance Bureau. Zhu Ge has mobilized secret agents from all over the country to begin the manhunt for Si Lili."

"Si Lili has divided her forces into eight groups. The Oversight Council has already launched a manhunt in various places. There are only two of us, and we can't catch up with these eight groups."

Zong Zhui then produced a map of the land and rivers and began to point out the direction of Si Lili's escape.

Fan Xian couldn't help but exclaim, "Zong Zhui, is this a map of the Supervisory Council? It's drawn so well."

Upon hearing the praise, Zong Zhui looked smug. "I am most skilled in geomancy. All the maps in the entire academy are copied based on my maps."

Fan Xian frowned and said, "I don't trust Zhu Ge. We must interrogate Si Lili first!"

Zong Zhui suggested, "The best way now is to capture Si Lili in the courtyard and then intercept her on the way using the Ti Si's waist token."

Although Fan Xian felt something was wrong, he couldn't think of a better idea for the time being, so he did it this way for the time being.

After running for several miles, Fan Xian stopped. "Zong Zhui, something's not right!"

"If Si Lili wanted to escape, why would she split into so many routes, and why are they all heading north?"

"She made such a big fuss to attract attention and draw everyone's attention to the north."

"If I were her, now would be the best time for her to disappear and flee!"

Zong Zhui stroked his beard, seemingly lost in thought. "Now that a major war is about to break out in the north, the key passes and towns in the north must be heavily fortified."

"Therefore, the direction she actually fled in might not be north!"

Fan Xian then asked, "Zong Zhui, besides going north, what other routes are there from the capital to Northern Qi?"

The two opened the map, and Zong Zhui pointed to Danzhou, where Fan Xian grew up.

"My lord, this is the most feasible route! Head east from Kyoto, enter Dongshan Road, board a ship at the harbor of Danzhou City, and then escape to Northern Qi by water."

Fan Xian carefully examined the map and found that the only feasible route to reach Danzhou Port was from the east gate of Kyoto.

"Zongzhui, there's no time to lose, let's go after them right now!"

"If I'm wrong, I can always turn back and ambush the people in the courtyard!"

Chapter 83 Si Lili: You are not Duoduo, you are older than Duoduo!

Kyoto.

A certain courtyard.

At the eighth rank of martial arts, a female official with the rank of third-grade imperial attendant was instructing Lin Gong.

"Young Master Lin, His Highness asks you why Si Lili didn't silence him immediately!"

Lin Gong replied, "This subordinate never expected that seven experts would run into the Shadow Guards while trying to assassinate Fan Xian!"

"Si Lili reacted quickly; the assassination attempt had barely failed when she had already made her escape!"

The female official angrily shouted, "Immediately send your strongest experts to silence her! We absolutely cannot let Si Lili be caught alive by the Surveillance Bureau!"

Lin Gong replied respectfully, "Last night, I dispatched two eighth-rank experts to pursue and capture Si Lili!"

Upon learning of the failed assassination attempt on Niulan Street, Li Yunrui immediately informed Zhu Ge, instructing him to utilize the resources of the Surveillance Bureau to arrest Si Lili.

Once Zhu Ge has captured Si Lili, there are countless ways to ensure that Si Lili will never speak.

However, Zhu Ge does not have absolute control over the Supervisory Council, and Yan Ruohai, Xuan Jiu, and Fan Xian are all unstable factors.

Therefore, Li Yunrui adopted a two-pronged approach, having Lin Gong also track down Si Lili to silence her. As long as there was no concrete evidence, no one could do anything to the princess.

Li Yunrui still has a final insurance policy, since Si Lili has only met Lin Gong. If Si Lili confesses to having met Lin Gong, they can just kill Lin Gong directly.

Therefore, Lin Gong was more anxious than Li Yunrui.

The plan was extremely meticulous; he didn't even use his own bodyguards.

He directed four Northern Qi assassins and two female swordsmen to carry out the entire operation.

"Your Excellency, the City Patrol Division's Assistant Commander Fang Da is also an insider. We don't know how to handle this."

The female official replied, "You don't need to worry about Fang Daren, I will handle it myself."

Hearing the lady-in-waiting's words, Lin Gong felt relieved. All he needed to do was tell Si Lili to shut up.

Lin Gong never imagined that Si Lili was in a small alley just three miles away from the villa.

Si Lili, wearing a pink coarse cloth dress, crawled out of a bamboo basket containing vegetables.