After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Today is not his first day in Dongjiangmi Lane, nor is it his first day in Wangfu Street.

Four days after entering the capital, Lu Chong went completely into hiding after learning that the Southern Embassy in Dongjiang Rice Lane had been reduced to ruins.

The Beijing Daily reported that the Southern delegation was safe and sound and had been accommodated in a villa in Dongjiangmi Lane.

Following the successive bombings of the South Korean and Siamese embassies, many wealthy families were so frightened that they quickly moved out, resulting in a significant decrease in the population of Dongjiang Rice Lane.

There were only four or five courtyards on the entire street that could be called "separate courtyards".

The Southern Kingdom delegation consisted of twenty people, plus their maids and servants, making a total of at least forty. There were only three courtyards that could accommodate more than forty people.

The amount of excrement produced by forty people every day would fill two large chamber pots.

But after wandering around Dongjiang Rice Lane for two days, he checked almost every courtyard, looked at the vegetables that the servants of each courtyard bought every day, and the chamber pots that each household changed every morning. It was clear that no household had more than forty people living there.

The largest mansion probably housed only about twenty people.

"The Southern delegation has disappeared."

This fact, along with the news that "there's been a problem with the spies in Beijing," weighed heavily on his mind.

Adding to his despair was a news report published in the Beijing Daily that the Grand Prince Consort had died on the night of the attack by the Rakshasa and the Heavenly Principle Sect.

He slowly tore the newspaper into pieces.

It was at this moment that he suddenly realized something. He returned to the outer city and inquired around at Yongding Gate, learning about the encampment of the Southern Kingdom delegation outside the city.

He crept over to investigate at night and found the camp empty, the elm stakes removed, leaving only traces of where it had been set up.

However, there was no blood or burn marks at the camp, indicating that the delegation had not been attacked at all, but had simply disappeared like the previous delegations from the Southern Kingdom.

Zhang Yaozuo, Tong Shun, Zheng Xiao, and the other generals who were supposed to protect the mission, along with the mission's one hundred cavalrymen and fifty infantrymen, all disappeared.

The unpredictable situation completely ruined his planned trip to brothels in Beijing.

The old spy sighed and lamented for a long time in the inn. However, after tapping his fingers on the table, his mood improved considerably.

The news in the newspaper that the so-called Prince Consort of Ning died from serious injuries is probably not true.

Given Jia Shi'an's character, if an attack were to occur, he would undoubtedly prioritize protecting Prince Jing and his son-in-law.

If things really came to the point where the Grand Prince Consort would die, then the other envoys should also be unlikely to survive.

Moreover... was the defense of Beijing really that weak?

How could they launch such a large-scale attack in the inner city?

The two embassies were almost completely reduced to ruins...

His various doubts temporarily suppressed his anxiety.

The news he received from Zhao Yunji today brought him a great sense of relief. At least based on what happened that night, the truth was quite different from what was written in the newspapers.

For example, the one who went out of the city to capture the thieves of the Heavenly Principle Sect was the Grand Prince Consort himself, and Alin, the head guard of the Sticky Rod Office.

Judging from the fact that the Grand Prince Consort leisurely had Zhao the blacksmith deliver the message, and from the behavior of Shangguan Xiu, the eldest son of the Marquis of Zhenguo who had secretly run away from Nanjing to Beijing, the Grand Prince Consort was at least in a good mood that night and at that moment.

Based on this, we can infer that the civil officials in the inner city, the prince consort, and the main camp outside the city were involved.

There should be three different whereabouts for the three groups of people.

As for him... the old spy's laziness stirred up, but he quickly suppressed it... He needed to find out the whereabouts of the three groups of people as soon as possible.

Entering the Prince Duan's Mansion.

Amidst the lively banquet, they found a table filled with Manchu merchants and began chatting and exchanging toasts.

After wandering around for several days, it seems that the disappearance of the Southern Dynasty envoy is inextricably linked to the Third Prince, who performed meritorious service that night and was granted the title of Prince. If we want to find the Southern Kingdom delegation, we really have no choice but to come to the Prince Duan's residence.

To prevent further attacks by the Rakshasa and the Heavenly Principle Sect, it was only right to house the Southern Dynasty's envoys in the residence of Prince Duan, who was in charge of military affairs, for proper protection, and to continue the alliance and peace talks.

Lu Chong, speaking in a strange accent that was a mix of Liaodong and Beijing dialect, chuckled and raised his glass to a bearded man next to him:

"Brother, I come from Ningguta. I have a few old ginseng roots that are quite old. If you know any of my grandparents who would like them, please do me the honor of letting me do them for them..."

The aroma of the wine is rich and strong.

Night was falling.

Dong dong dong qiang qiang qiang, the stage was set up, and the troupe's gongs and drums sounded precisely on time...

…………

The maid entered the room.

Princess Gege went outside.

The princess, whose golden hairpin shimmered in the moonlight, said nonchalantly, "Remember what this young master wants, and come out to tell me."

The maid, dressed in plain clothes with her hair tied in a bun and a red ribbon tied to it, knelt down and bowed, saying, "This servant obeys Your Highness's orders."

He speaks with a distinct Beijing accent.

Click.

The maid closed the door.

She pointed to the desk: "Young master, please tell me, and I will write it down for you." Her voice was clear and melodious, filled with deep respect.

Ning Nan stared blankly at the woman in front of him.

Her eyebrows were a little thicker than Su Su Fox's, and the ends of her eyebrows were also a little longer.

The nose seems a little pointed.

Her cheeks seem a little thinner and paler.

But no matter how you look at it, the woman in front of you is the missing Zhen Susu!

As he walked, the maid gave him a wink.

He pointed to the roof and then to the outside.

Without uttering a sound, she said with her lips, "Master, I am Su Su."

Ning Nan immediately understood and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Miss. Please thank the Seventeenth Princess for me."

Sitting back down at his desk, Ning Nan said, "I do need a Huizhou inkstone."

He picked up a pen and wrote on the paper:

"What happened?"

"Yes, young master."

As Zhen Susu spoke, she took the pen and began writing rapidly on the paper...

half an hour.

Ning Nan squinted at the densely packed small characters on the white paper, and only then did he understand the whole story.

"That Ah Lin..."

Old Master Ning sighed, his hands resting on the desk.

That night, before leaving the cavalry and heading to Shuijing Township with him, Alin specially arranged for a 30-man cavalry unit from among the 300 riders to watch over the Imperial Guards and their servants. They did nothing else and ignored Chang Rui's orders.

Once Su Su and the others leave, these thirty riders will immediately catch up and kill them without mercy, leaving no survivors.

That night, although Xiuxiu attracted three hundred cavalrymen from the Northern Dynasty camp, as soon as Zhen Susu and the others began to escape, the thirty cavalrymen immediately began to pursue and kill them.

"We had no armor, and we couldn't see clearly at night. They were riding horses at full speed. We fired a round of muskets, but we missed and only killed four or five people. We couldn't shake them off. They also had guns, flintlock muskets and three-barreled guns. As soon as they fired, six or seven of our men died."