I was a princess in ancient times

Ji Xinxue can understand Yu Heng's mood.

When he suddenly learned that Concubine Zhong Shu was bewitched by Princess Dekang and tried to use him to drug Emperor Changping... Not to mention the beginning, even now in retrospect, he still has no way to describe the complexity in his heart in words.

At this moment, Ji Xinxue can only hug Yu Heng tightly.

No matter what, he is willing to face it with Yu Heng.

Yu Heng had never specifically told Ji Xinxue that what happened that day when Qi Baixuan suddenly became critically ill was finally brought up now, and there was nothing worth hiding.

In the past ten years, Qi Boxuan was an abandoned son who was "exiled" to the south of the Yangtze River, and the inside information he knew was really limited, almost only related to Princess An's Mansion.

As early as when Chu Mo disappeared and Princess Qin had a miscarriage due to grief, the aristocratic family had been eyeing Princess An's mansion.

Relying on the fact that the patriarch, the British Duke, was a bit thin-faced and able to walk in front of Emperor Yanguang, the Qi family strongly suppressed the Cui family who was also about to make a move on the An Guo Princess Mansion, and 'obtained' the qualification to marry with the Anguo Princess Mansion.

Ji Xinxue subconsciously slowed down her breathing, for fear of disturbing Yu Heng's emotions.

Chu Mo just disappeared... Is Yu Yu eight or six years old?

These beasts!

If the British government had been eyeing Yu Yu long ago and trained Qi Boxuan according to Yu Yu's preferences, it would have become reasonable for Yu Yu to fall in love with Qi Boxuan at first sight.

Yu Heng was silent for a while, and when he spoke again, most of the pain in his tone turned blank, and he said in a voice that only he and Ji Xinxue could hear, "He told me, Auntie can't escape. Even after he accepts Mrs. Li, Aunt Mother did not come to the British government to look for him again, and the British government will find a way to ask Emperor Yanguang to grant them a marriage."

Ji Xinxue silently clenched her fingers.

The bad old man, before he died, he said something like 'a man's words are good when he is about to die', but every word poked at the softest place in Yu Heng's heart.

Although... this is the truth.

Even if there is no Qi Boxuan, there will be Cui Boxuan, Zheng Boxuan, Kang Boxuan...

The British government was the chief culprit who directly caused Princess Lu's tragedy, but it was Emperor Yanguang who really made Princess An's government helpless.

Because Chu Mo's disappearance and death touched the lunatic emperor's sensitive nerves, the Qi family who knew the inside story dared to covet Princess An's mansion unscrupulously.

The British government has nothing to fear, they feel that even Princess Qin sees through the British government's calculation of the title and fiefdom of Princess An's mansion, and is furious about it.Emperor Yanguang would not make decisions for Princess Qin and Princess Lu, and might even blame Princess Qin and Princess Lu instead, and punish Princess An's mansion for this.

Emperor Yanguang was already on guard against Princess Anguo's Mansion due to past events, and if the clan headed by King Qinghe also spoke for Princess Anguo's Mansion, Emperor Yanguang would only be more wary of Princess Anguo's Mansion.

The lunatic emperor had already proved with countless outrageous deeds what would happen to the people he cared about.

and many more!

Ji Xinxue immediately caught the flash of light in her mind.

Princess Qin originally firmly opposed the marriage between Princess Lu and Qi Baixuan, but she changed her mind and agreed to the marriage when Qi Baixuan took a concubine first and was unwilling to dismiss the concubines for marrying Princess Lu.

On the surface, there is no way to take the beloved daughter, so he has to compromise.

Actually?

Did Princess Qin compromise with Princess Lu, or sensed that something was wrong, she compromised with Emperor Yanguang who stood opposite Princess An's mansion, and bowed her head to the British mansion?

Based on the situation at the time, the British government only needed to let Princess Qin find out that Emperor Yanguang was 'dissatisfied' with Princess An's mansion, and then they could pretend to be powerful and deceive Princess Qin by secretly changing concepts.

In this way, it can also explain why the head of the princess mansion, Shi Shi, suggested that Princess Lu close the princess mansion and dismiss the left guard after the sudden sudden death of Princess Qin.

He himself immediately ran to the fief of Princess An's mansion overnight on the grounds of being seriously ill, and replaced Lin Zhao, who was in charge of the affairs of the fief, to Chang'an.

Then dragging his sick body, he took care of the fief conscientiously for more than 20 years without making any mistakes.

Thinking deeper, when Princess Lu heard the news of Princess Qin's sudden death, she immediately rushed back to Princess An's mansion. When she hadn't returned to the British mansion for a long time, Mo Changshi had no intention of stopping her.

Until Princess Lu was diagnosed with pregnancy, under the persuasion of the British government, she decided to return to the British government to raise her baby.Mo Changshi persuaded Princess Lu to close the princess mansion, dismiss the left guard of the princess mansion in Chang'an, and then ran away overnight.

Ji Xinxue tried to bring Mo Changshi's perspective.

Influenced by "unknown pressure", Princess Qin changed her original insistence and agreed to marry Princess Lu and Qi Baixuan.

After the two got married, the princess of Qin State tried her best to find the handle of the British government, trying to make her beloved daughter understand each other's wolf ambitions, and then encountered an accident in a very 'reasonable' way.

As the well-informed chief of the princess's house, if he knew that the "unknown pressure" was Emperor Yanguang, he would definitely link the death of Princess Qin to Emperor Yanguang.

How much Mo Changshi still knows, only he himself knows.

Ji Xinxue can only assume that after the death of Princess Qin, Mo Changshi was very worried that Emperor Yanguang would kill the grass and take back the fiefdom of Princess An's mansion.

If the British government just made a false appearance to threaten Mo Changshi at this time...

It just so happened that Princess Lu was diagnosed as pregnant.

Mo Changshi not only did not stop Princess Lu, but also persuaded Princess Lu to cut her own way.

Not only showing weakness to Emperor Yanguang, but also using the heir of Princess Anguo's mansion in the womb of Princess Lu as a bargaining chip to openly seek asylum from the British government.

He immediately fled back to the fief, not only being able to manage the last support for Princess Lu, but also reminding the British government all the time that if they want something from Princess An's mansion, they cannot treat Princess Lu and the little master of An Guo's mansion harshly.

Mo Changshi has made the most correct choice when he is on the verge of extinction.

What the British government wants is the fiefdom of Princess Anguo's mansion and the wealth accumulated by generations, rather than simply taking pleasure in persecuting the descendants of Princess An's mansion.Therefore, they will be afraid of Mo Changshi who is far away in the fief and other retainers who are loyal to Princess An's mansion.

Otherwise, knowing full well that the contradictions would escalate and Emperor Yanguang would only criticize Princess Lu and Yu Heng, the British government would only use more severe means to persecute Princess Lu and Yu Heng.

They were also afraid that Mo Changshi would die in the fief, and Emperor Yanguang would take advantage of the situation to take back the title and fief of Princess Anguo's mansion.

It's a pity... Mo Changshi, like Princess Qin, lost because he failed to see through that the British government was pulling a tiger's skin for a big game. He never understood the root cause of Emperor Yanguang's dislike for Princess An's residence.

The conspiracy of the British government is certainly heinous, and it is worth a thousand cuts.

Are Emperor Yanguang who connived the evil of the British government and the Yu family who concealed key information not accomplices?

Especially the Yu family, Ji Xinxue didn't believe it, the Yu family didn't know about Qi's plans for Princess Anguo's mansion.

Their choice was the same as that of the past, and they turned to the strong side against the wind.

Between Emperor Yanguang, the British government, and Princess An, he chose the former without hesitation, and turned a blind eye to the sufferings of the latter.

Straightening out the logic, Ji Xinxue didn't know what to say for a long time.

It has been seven days since Qi Boxuan suddenly stepped into the gate of hell. With Yu Heng's intelligence, he must have figured out all kinds of things back then.

After a while, Ji Xinxue asked hoarsely, "When did he know about Qi's plot?"

Although no matter what the answer is, there is no way to change the ending of Princess Lu and Princess Qin, but it has completely different meanings to Yu Heng and Princess Lu.

Based on Ji Xinxue's selfishness, he hoped that at least before the death of Princess Lu, Qi Boxuan would not know about Qi's vicious schemes.

It's all about giving Princess Lu and Yu Heng some comfort that is better than nothing.

"I don't know." Yu Heng suddenly relaxed his tense body, allowing all his weight to press on Ji Xinxue, with a tone of timidity that he had never felt before.

He didn't ask.

It's not that I didn't expect it, it's that I don't want to ask.

The answer is meaningless, it just adds to the resentment.

Even before they met each other, Qi Boxuan treated Yu Yu as a prey, and led Yu Yu step by step to a gloomy ending, what could he do?

Killing Qi Boxuan to avenge Yu Yu made Qi Boxuan get his wish.

Or to get revenge on Qi Boxuan and try to keep him alive?

It took Yu Heng and Ji Xinxue five days to finally finish sorting out the wooden box that Princess Lu told Yu Heng to put away when she was dying.

In addition to the clothes and toys that Yu Heng used or did not use when he was young, there are also many private belongings of Princess Lu, such as two pairs of poorly carved red sandalwood hairpins, several books for copying love poems, several pairs of water lamps and sculptures. A jade pendant that can be used as an heirloom...

Through these carefully preserved objects, it is not difficult to judge that although Princess Lu had many quarrels with people in the British government and was frequently disappointed with Qi Boxuan before her death, she did not hate Qi Boxuan.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many traces of Qi Boxuan among the things she deliberately told Yu Heng to leave behind.

They also found a small wooden box full of rice paper, which contained many beautiful characters, most of which were written by Qi Baixuan.Occasionally, the strength of the characters circled by the vermilion pen is obviously different from that of the person who wrote them. In all likelihood, it is the Princess of Lu.

In addition to 'Heng' and 'Feng', there is also the word 'Qian'.

Ji Xinxue immediately thought of Chu Qingjiu who was obviously a gentleman but was called "Qianqian" by Qi Baixuan.

So he looked through all the rice paper carefully, looking for the words 'Qing' and 'Jiu'.

No.

Only 'qian'.

It's really hard to judge whether the 'qian' in Qianqian is the 'qian' here.

Ji Xinxue hesitated, and said in a low voice, "He said he named Chu Qingjiu according to a poem by his predecessors, and I found that poem."

Yu Heng stared silently at the rice paper in his hand, and since he didn't say he wanted to know the content of the poem, he didn't stop Ji Xinxue from speaking.

The red sun is not good, and the moonlight will be clear.

Read Wuqiong Jiubao, and talk about re-entering the carving cup. ①

A very plain half poem, only 'Qiong Jiu' made Ji Xinxue hesitate.

Heng: Rare and precious jade.

Qiong Jiu: generally refers to beautiful jade.

According to the ancient meaning, it means that Heng is the master and Qiong Jiu is the slave.

In the poem, Qiongjiu refers to talents, and the poet waited for the moonlight before appreciating the red sun enough, lamenting how fast time passes, because there are still no talents coming, so he can only continue to toast and drink alone.

Given that Qi Boxuan was bad when he arrived in the south of the Yangtze River, and he never acted diligently because of political affairs, he should not expect goodness.

Ji Xinxue feels that the 'Qiong Jiu' here is the original meaning of Qiong Jiu.

Did Qi Boxuan lie to him?

Thinking back carefully, Qi Boxuan did not deny that he would name Chu Qingjiu because of Yu Heng, but just cited the differences between the two, denying that Chu Qingjiu was Yu Heng's substitute.

Ji Xinxue frowned, now, he would rather be Qi Baixuan lying to him.

otherwise……

Yu Heng put down the rice paper, went to fetch pen and ink, and wrote a letter to Mo Changshi who was far away in the fief.

First ask him if he is willing to go back to Chang'an, and then ask Chu Mo if he has any relatives to look for.

In the end, I wrote down the conjecture that Ji Xinxue refused to think about in one go.

'After I was born, did Auntie get pregnant? '

Two days later, the British Duchess went to the funeral for the first seven days.

Ji Xinxue took Yu Heng to Zhuangzi in the suburbs of Beijing to relax in advance, and specially asked the servants to stop the people from the British government outside the door.

At least until Yu Heng adjusted his mood, Ji Xinxue didn't want to see anyone related to the British government anymore.

The people in the British government were quite sensible, but they just mentioned that Qi Baixuan had difficulty swallowing for several days because of his guilt towards the British wife, and his figure lost a lot.

Ji Xinxue sneered after hearing this.

According to Qi Boxuan's performance, it is already an expression of extreme filial piety that he didn't make a fuss about the death of the British wife.

Can't eat?

It must be that the British prince was afraid that he would not be able to get back the principal and interest of the century-old goddess Xuelian, so he deliberately told the servant to only give Qi Baixuan light meals.

Although Ji Xinxue and Yu Heng are far away in Zhuangzi, they are very well informed.

Because the investigation of the small official's family involved horrific past events, it was unavoidable to startle the snake, and the courtiers' investigation of the small official's family gradually changed from open to dark.

As a monarch, Emperor Changping, of course, would not be deceived by false news.

There are two old cases that the courtiers are investigating. One is that the king of Xinyang County hinted to the king of Qinghe County during the Yanguang period that he suspected that the Qi family had disobedience.

Because both parties are very dignified people, and they are relatives of their sons and daughters, very few people were lucky enough to know the inside story back then.Only King Qinghe, Emperor Yanguang, Duke Ying and a few courtiers who were ordered to investigate the matter.

Ji Xinxue was shocked.

He counted the time, when the king of Xinyang reported the British Duke's real name, Princess Yiyun had been married to the British Duke for five years and gave birth to the eldest son and eldest daughter.

This incident ended with Emperor Yanguang perfunctorily ordering his courtiers to verify the report of King Xinyang County, even Jin Wuwei did not dispatch.

The courtiers noticed Emperor Yanguang's attitude, no matter what they thought in their hearts, they tried their best to carry forward Yanguang Emperor's perfunctory when investigating the case.

It is easy to draw conclusions:

The British government is innocent, and it is actually a loyal person.

The king of Xinyang County is very worried, and he is also a loyal person.

Mix the mud clearly.

Most people have no way of knowing the inside story, they only know that the king of Xinyang County suddenly wants Princess Yiyun to return home.

Having been married for five years, Princess Yiyun, who is deeply in love with Qi Baizhi and loves her children on weekdays, did not hesitate at all, and immediately asked people to count the dowry.

So much so that until today, there are still rumors that Qi Baizhi once raised a concubine when Princess Yiyun was pregnant, and even allowed the concubine to have children.

According to reliable news from Emperor Changping, it was Princess Yiyun who first went home and told King Xinyang that something was wrong with the Qi family, so King Xinyang said to King Qinghe that he suspected that the British government was disloyal.

This incident greatly changed Ji Xinxue's view of the Prince of Xinyang County, and he finally understood Emperor Changping's tolerance for the Palace of the Prince of Xinyang County.

From the king of Xinyang County to the owner of Yiyun County, although his character is flawed, as a son of the clan, he is very clear about right and wrong.

No wonder Princess Yiyun is the wife of the Qi clan, but her status in the clan is not as good as that of the 'not my clan' Zheng clan.So much so that Princess Yiyun was disheartened, and no longer cared about the title of the Duke of England and the false name of Mistress Qi.

Since last year, Princess Yiyun has returned to the Xinyang County Prince's Mansion every now and then to serve the Prince of Xinyang County and take the initiative to mediate the conflict between the princess and the crown prince.

Presumably, he was looking forward to gaining a foothold in Chang'an with the backing of his natal family after the separation.

It turns out that in the eyes of the Qi family, Princess Yiyun is even more unfamiliar than the Zheng family.

Recently, I was in charge of investigating the courtiers in the small official's family, and there happened to be some people who "followed the order" and made muddle along.

When they investigated the general's job as a small supervisor, they first discovered that the purchases made by the small official during the Yanguang period were very outrageous, and they always bought old goods with gold and silver hundreds of times higher than the normal price.

According to the default rule of Jiang Zuojian, it is about ten times the normal price to buy, and the maximum is no more than fifteen times.

The goods must be good goods, even if they are afraid that the masters in the palace are used to using the best things, they will be harsh when they occasionally fail to produce the best things, and deliberately do not include the best things in the list, but they must use common things in the world. The 'pass' goods.

The small officials who will serve as prisons not only obey the law and violate the law, but also blindly deceive the officials who will serve as prisons, and there are also big problems in purchasing channels.

Even if there are obvious traces of alteration in the account books, there are still marks that are very familiar to the courtiers.

All of them were Jiangnan businessmen involved in the Shangzhou case in the second year of Changping.

Because an obvious abnormality was found, the routine investigation immediately turned into a special investigation, and more and more things were involved, including what the King of Xinyang told the King of Qinghe back then.

The Qi family colluded with the minister of the Ministry of Industry to mine iron ore privately and sell it to businessmen, seeking huge profits.

The king of Xinyang County has only an average brain, but a good memory.

When Emperor Changping summoned him to ask about the past, even Zeng sent someone to quietly follow behind Qi Baizhi according to Princess Yiyun's reminder.It is confirmed that Qi Baizhi remembers all the details of meeting with the minister of the Ministry of Industry who manages the iron ore and the businessman who bought the iron ore respectively.

If it was just stealing and selling iron ore, Princess Yiyun would not have turned against Qi Baizhi.

The businessman who bought the iron ore had a big problem himself, and he didn't even last until the second year of Changping.

When the king of Xinyang County reported that the British government had disobedience, Qi Baizhi's confession stated that he had long known that the businessman had problems.It was because he wanted to find out the mastermind behind the merchant that he personally contacted the merchant.

In short, he is loyal to Yu Chao, stealing and selling iron ore is only to gain the trust of businessmen, and wipe out those who are really disloyal to Yu Chao.

Ji Xinxue and Yu Heng carefully studied the confessions of all parties and came to a conclusion.

Back then, Princess Yiyun would know about Qi Baizhi, the iron mines and the businessman. Nine times out of ten, the British government saw that Princess Yiyun had a son and a daughter, and they had a deep relationship with Qi Baizhi, so they tried to pull Princess Yiyun into trouble .

Unexpectedly, Princess Yiyun 'turned his face ruthlessly' and immediately went home to file a complaint.

The king of Xinyang County doesn't care much about his only daughter on weekdays, but at critical moments, he is still very reliable.

He was specially summoned to Fengxiang Palace to recall the events of the past, and immediately realized the seriousness, and swore to the heavens that Princess Yiyun would not do anything to betray the Yu Dynasty, and begged Emperor Changping to spare Princess Yiyun's life no matter what. , the county prince's mansion is willing to take Princess Yiyun home.

After Emperor Changping hinted that the King of Xinyang County did not need to mention this matter for the time being, the King of Xinyang County also visited the King of Qinghe County with a heavy gift.

Presumably, it was to ease the relationship with Qinghe County King in advance, hoping that Qinghe County King could win Yiyun County Lord at a critical moment.

In addition to generals serving as supervisors, court officials were also shocked by the investigation of the Ministry of Households, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Industry, and the Sinong Temple... small officials.

While everyone was angry and afraid, they all had a deep fear of the aristocratic family that had revealed the tip of the iceberg. They would rather spend more time and energy investigating than to completely block the news.

The so-called geese leave voices, people take pictures, the family has repeatedly committed evil for many years, how could it be possible to hide it seamlessly?

They have spent decades infiltrating and building a thriving family of small officials, and they have unknowingly become sympathetic with it.

Even if Ji Xinxue and Yu Heng no longer pay attention to the family, and Emperor Changping will no longer pursue the remnants of the previous dynasty, as the crimes of the small official family are gradually revealed, the family will inevitably be liquidated due to heavy responsibilities.

This process should not exceed five years.

Ji Xinxue put the letters into the brazier one by one, and said as if complaining, "It's been too long."

Why let them enjoy another five years of luxurious life?

The next day, Ji Cheng, Li Jinhuan, Zhang Siyi, Yan Meng, and Huo Yu, who received Ji Xinxue's invitation, rushed to Zhuangzi before noon.

Ji Xinxue used the excuse of having a headache to temporarily change her mind and didn't go hunting with them.After Yu Heng and others left, they hurried back to Chang'an and went straight to the British government.

He has something to ask Qi Boxuan.

I haven't seen him for many days, and Qi Boxuan really didn't lose weight as the servant of the British government said, and his skinny cheeks became plump instead.

It's a pity that he still looks sleepy, looking at the white clouds in the sky full of longing.

Only Chu Qingjiu sat beside him quietly reading a book, neither Qi Zhu brothers and sisters nor young children were seen.

Because of the suspicion in her heart, when Ji Xinxue saw Chu Qingjiu again, her boredom turned into pity.

The timidity he hated in the past, now it seems that he knows how to advance and retreat, understands the rules, and has not been carried away by Qi Boxuan's favor.

"You go out first, I have something to ask Qi Honglu alone." Ji Xinxue said to Chu Qingjiu.

Chu Qingjiu immediately went out, turned her head suddenly when she came to the door, her eyes were full of embarrassment, "What tea do you drink?"

Ji Xinxue could easily see how unfamiliar Chu Qingjiu was when he was a servant, which shows that he was also a master when he was in Jiangnan.

"You don't need to pour tea, just go further away, the palace guards I brought will guard the gate."

Chu Qingjiu nodded, and exited the room in a gentle manner, without looking at Qi Boxuan from the beginning to the end.

Knowing who is in charge, although obedient to naive, but not stupid.

Ji Xinxue didn't speak immediately, but thought carefully about Qi Zhu and Qi Mei's attitude towards Chu Qingjiu when Qi Baixuan was seriously ill.

He was neither particularly close nor repulsive, nor would he order Chu Qingjiu to do things, and would even serve tea and snacks to Chu Qingjiu.

The more details came to mind, the more anxious Ji Xinxue became.

He raised his hand to loosen the neckline, and asked straight to the point, "Whose substitute is Chu Qingjiu?"

Qi Boxuan asked weakly, "Why does he have to be someone else's substitute?"

Ji Xinxue sneered, "Because I know that you are a cold-blooded and selfish person, and you won't be nice to Chu Qingjiu for no reason."

Before deciding to meet Qi Baixuan, Ji Xinxue had Jin Wuwei investigate Chu Qingjiu in detail.

His parents were offshoots of the descendants of big businessmen, and they could almost be called self-made. Although they had outstanding abilities, they died young and failed to leave him much property.

However, under the name of Chu Qingjiu, there are not only a three-entry house, two shops and a Zhuangzi left to him by his parents, but also two five-entry mansions in Jiangnan, five two-story prosperous shops, five Zhuangzi, and Chang’an’s. One three-entry house, two two-story Wangpu and two Zhuangzi.

The extra things are all the tribute Qi Boxuan has received in Jiangnan for many years.

Ji Xinxue ordered the Jinwu Guard to investigate Qi Baixuan's family property.

It was only after discovering that Qi Boxuan gave Qi Zhu and Qi Mei far more than what he gave to Chu Qingjiu, and that he still had at least half of the family property and the dowry of Princess Lu in his hands, that his mood eased a little.

He doesn't care how Qi Boxuan divides the family property, the princess Lu's dowry must go to Yu Heng.

Qi Boxuan stood up with support, although he still looked lazy, the decadence in his eyes dissipated a little.

He gave Ji Xinxue a thumbs up, and boasted sincerely, "Your Highness has sharp eyes, and you can see clearly."

Ji Xinxue rushed back to Zhuangzi before the curfew, so she didn't have time to talk nonsense with Qi Baixuan, so she directly asked Yu Heng a question that made Yu Heng toss and turn for days, "After the princess of Lu State gave birth to Fenglang, was she pregnant again?"

The careless laziness between Qi Baixuan's brows suddenly turned into a knife-like hostility.

Ji Xinxue's complexion was not at all prettier than Qi Baixuan's, and her eyes, which were already rounder than others, almost stared into perfect circles.