GBP Chapter 468 A Glimpse of the Leopard Through a Tube: One Spot Is Enough to See
Chapter 468 A Glimpse of the Leopard Through a Tube: One Spot Is Enough to See
Princess Xuan Nan, residing in her fiefdom in the southern border, was a wise woman who could see the coming of autumn from a single leaf.
By observing only a part of the leopard, one can understand the whole picture.
The situation in the capital and the fact that the Prince of Xuannan had not left his fiefdom before the Prince of Xuannan had already been analyzed by the Princess of Xuannan.
It's a blessing in disguise, or a curse you can't escape.
After much deliberation, he could not disobey the imperial decree and still had to travel thousands of miles to the capital.
Even if you're doing well and comfortable in the South, you still have to pack your bags and travel all the way.
On the way, he was betrayed by one of his own and almost lost his life.
The Prince of Xuannan already had a bellyful of grievances with nowhere to vent them, and now he had to get involved in the messy affairs between the Emperor and the Prince.
During his long stay in the imperial study, Prince Xuan Nan tried several times to reveal the actions of his advisor along the way, but he never had the chance to speak.
The Emperor's actions were unilateral, leaving Prince Xuannan with no choice but to passively accept them.
At this moment, the Prince of Xuannan regretted it; he should have brought his queen with him.
He had been worried about the safety of the capital, which was why he had persuaded his wife to stay in her fiefdom. Now, things were even worse; he had no one to discuss matters with.
If the princess were here, how would she handle the situation?
It's too late to write back and ask now; investigating the case is just a hot potato.
No, we can't just sit here and wait to die. We need to find out what happened from the official who was in charge of the case before.
After all, everything about the assassination attempt on the day of the Crown Prince's wedding, from the beginning until now, has been hearsay.
Even if the officials in charge of the case were incompetent, it's impossible that they hadn't collected any evidence at all.
Prince Xuannan soon found out who the official in charge of the Crown Prince's case was. Even he didn't expect that the Emperor would let a callow youth oversee the case.
Although the other party has the title of top scholar and is a sixth-rank compiler in the Hanlin Academy, he is still not even fifteen years old. Isn't this child's play?
Prince Xuan Nan felt a slight ache in his temples; the emperor was truly unconventional.
First, they appointed a fourteen-year-old top scholar to investigate the case, and then they appointed an old prince, who was practically buried in the ground, to investigate the case as well.
So, the Great Zhou Dynasty has no middle-aged officials who are in their prime?
What is the Ministry of Justice doing? And what is the Court of Judicial Review doing?
It's ridiculous to let Hanlin Academy scholars investigate a case, and it's equally ridiculous to let a prince who has just returned to the capital investigate a case.
Prince Xuannan shook his head helplessly. Since he had nothing to do in Taiji Palace anyway, he decided to go and meet this young champion first.
The palace is locked at night, but who would dare stop a prince who wants to go out?
Moreover, with His Majesty the Emperor's decree in place, the palace gates were opened smoothly.
When they arrived at the Jiang residence, the moon was already high in the sky. Prince Xuan Nan did not think there was anything wrong with his impulsive decision.
The old man didn't need much sleep, and he wasn't particularly tired, since he had rested quite well at the Tongxian County Government Office the night before.
Today we traveled only a few dozen miles in a comfortable carriage, without any bumps or jostles.
Jiang Xiaoqi hadn't slept, but he really didn't expect that a prince would personally come to him late at night just to find out about the so-called case.
Is this person really not here to cause trouble on purpose?
However, His Majesty's decision is indeed intriguing. Hadn't he already submitted some of the evidence concerning the Marquis of Chengen and the Third Prince through Minister Lin?
So, my investigation hasn't made any real progress? What kind of real progress does His Majesty expect?
Cut off the head of the Earl of Chengen, put it in a box, and present it to him. That would be considered progress.
Old Li, the gatekeeper, had never seen such a high-ranking official as a prince before. He felt that the visitor was of extraordinary importance and immediately ordered the head steward to welcome him inside.
Landlord Jiang and his wife quickly got up, tidied themselves up, and came out, only to be told that the prince had gone directly to his grandson's courtyard.
"Grandpa, what's going on?"
"How would I know? I only know that this is His Majesty's uncle, who just arrived in the capital today."
"He just arrived in the capital and came to see Mingfei? Does this prince know our Mingfei?"
"How would I know? I'll just ask Mingfei tomorrow during the day."
"You don't know this, you don't know that. You're a government official, old man, how come you know nothing?"
“I at least know that this prince is of high rank and great power, and our Jiang family absolutely cannot afford to offend him. Forget it, why talk about this? Let’s go back to our courtyard.”
The elderly couple returned to their courtyard, but still felt uneasy, so they called the housekeeper.
"Butler Wen, have your servants take good care of him. Send him the most expensive tea and snacks."
"Yes, sir, don't worry, everything has been arranged. The young master's small kitchen is being watched 24 hours a day. It was all arranged long ago."
Landlord Jiang nodded, knowing that his grandson was a capable man, but he was still somewhat worried about the child facing a prince alone.
It seems unlikely that she will sleep well tonight. Madam Jiang, too, also suffered from insomnia after blowing out the lamp.
In Jiang Xiaoqi's courtyard, an old man and a young man were playing chess.
There was no mention of the case, nor any further small talk.
It was as if they had known each other for a long time, like old friends of different ages, and they started playing hand games directly.
A person's chess style can reveal their personality, temperament, way of dealing with people, and habits.
The Prince of Xuan Nan didn't think there was anything wrong with him playing chess with a boy who was about the same age as his grandson as soon as he arrived at the door; it was his usual way of doing things.
Since I don't possess the extraordinary eloquence of my queen, I'll let the chessboard be the place to settle things.
After several games of chess, Prince Xuannan had gained a preliminary understanding of Jiang Xiaoqi.
This young man's chess style is sharp yet composed; every move he makes is full of hidden meaning, showing the demeanor of a great general.
Seeing that the game was about to end, Prince Xuan Nan put down his chess piece and smiled slightly, saying, "Young friend, your chess skills are superb, which has impressed me."
Jiang Xiaoqi stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Highness is too kind. You are being too accommodating to this junior."
Prince Xuannan waved his hand and said seriously, "I came so late at night to discuss with you the assassination attempt on the day of the First Prince's wedding. I heard that you were in charge of this case before. Do you have any leads?"
The Prince of Xuan Nan finally cut to the chase, and Jiang Xiaoqi realized that this was exactly what had happened.