Chapter 32 Chapter 32 It was just a matter of chemistry, not quite enough for him...

Morning and evening, Biezhi left early in the morning.

She didn't rush to Xu Wenche's house to find him, but instead went to Mingyuefang, just across the street from the residence. The shopkeeper, Su Tao, nodded slightly upon seeing her approach, then winked at the embroiderer, who was meticulously weaving brocade.

Su Tao stepped forward and said, "Miss, you've arrived just in time. Over ten rolls of Suzhou satin were delivered just half an hour ago. Please come in and take a look."

Biezhi said nothing, slowly following the woman's steps.

It was still early, and there was no one else in Mingyuefang except the maids. The only sound in the huge backyard was the rustling of people sweeping fallen leaves. Biezhi's lips were almost motionless: "Senior Sister, is Tingzhi here?"

"She hasn't been here for some time recently." Su Tao took her to the wing room without looking away, and said: "Qingshan came to give her a task yesterday, and she left last night."

Biezhi's eyes curved when she heard this: "She was complaining about not going out for a long time a few days ago. Now she has the opportunity, she must be ecstatic."

Su Tao laughed, of course he could hear the inquiry mixed in Biezhi's excited words, and a little bit of defending for Fang Tingzhi: "It will be beneficial for her to stay in the capital for a while."

The vague answer clearly showed that she was unwilling to say more. Biezhi had been in Xianyun Tower for many years, and naturally understood that no matter whether it was her master or the heads of the other four pavilions, if they didn't want to say something, no matter how hard you tried to pry open their mouths, you would not be able to hear a sound.

The first Pavilion Master of Shanju passed away four years ago, and her last disciple, Su Tao, took over. Of the five Pavilion Masters, Su Tao had the least experience, yet was the most discerning and meticulous. Only the master could obtain true intelligence from her.

Biezhi stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind her.

She pulled out the note she had found under her pillow last night, pushed it across the table, and presented it to Su Tao. "Senior Sister, you summoned me. What's the matter?"

"Jingqing was seriously injured in a fight last night." Su Tao's expression lost its earlier relaxed expression. "We suspect someone has uncovered a bounty order from Hezhou, and we're planning to send a joint team all the way to Hezhou to investigate. From what Jingqing said, you also clashed with them last time?"

The faint smile in Biezhi's eyes gradually faded, and the corners of her mouth tightened. "How is Senior Brother?"

"The stab didn't hit a vital point," Su Tao said.

Biezhi heaved a sigh of relief, thinking back to the situation that day, and said slowly: "The group of people I fought with didn't seem like people from the martial arts world. They seemed like a premeditated and planned organization." Her eyes narrowed slightly, "The arrow shot at the beginning was an order."

"Premeditated, organized..." Su Tao's expression froze, realizing that things were not as simple as they thought, "It was others-"

"Don't look like them." Biezhi shook her head. Whether it was the style of drawing the sword or the way of holding the sword, it didn't look like people from other pavilions in the martial arts world. "I have fought with people from other pavilions, and their skills are not similar." She paused and said, "They don't seem to use swords."

Hearing this, Su Tao's frown deepened a bit, and he murmured, "Even if they don't use swords, they are enough to compete with you who have used swords all year round."

Biezhi pursed her lips: "Are they the ones who fought with senior brother?"

"He fainted before I could even ask." Su Tao was silent for a moment, his frozen expression relaxing slightly as he returned to normal. He said to her, "You still have a mission to complete, so leave this matter to us."

Biezhi nodded, noncommittal.

Regardless of whether she could spare the attention, even if she didn't have a mission, the matter wouldn't fall on her shoulders.

Seeing that Su Tao had no further questions, she stood up and said, "Senior Sister, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving first."

Su Tao nodded.

Biezhi opened the door, nodded slightly to the maid under the eaves, and left Mingyuefang through the small gate.

The morning sun rose slantingly above the treetops, and the streets were sparsely populated.

She put on her veil and, as usual, hurried to the tallest building nearby. She took out some small change and handed it to the shopkeeper, allowing them to lead her to the upstairs wing.

Biezhi closed the door, removed her veil, and quickly walked to the window, opening it and gazing out at the Xu family residence not far away.

Over the past few days, she had figured out Xu Wenche's outings. He usually left around noon, went to a building on a certain street, sat for half a day, and observed the customers. After sunset, even if he had no other appointments, he would go to a restaurant and stay until closing time.

If her guess was correct, he was probably surveying the major districts in the capital, using this as a preliminary plan for the Xu family's business to enter the capital.

Biezhi watched silently for a while, and then a flash of inspiration suddenly occurred to her mind. In an instant, her brows furrowed, and her gaze fixed on the wide-open Xu residence.

On the night Xu Wenche met Zhang Yan, the command seemed to be an arrow.

The arrow pierced the sky and pierced the beam. Only half a breath later, the assassin hidden in the shadows appeared and ran towards her at the same time.

Biezhi narrowed her eyes.

She couldn't be sure whether the two incidents were the work of the same group of people, but they did seem to be similar.

It was hard to determine because the killer who followed Zhang Yan's orders that night had superb swordsmanship, which was very different from the killers he had fought before.

In any case, Zhang Yan was indeed not as gentle as he appeared.

Biezhi carelessly stroked the teacup with her fingertips, her mind becoming clearer and clearer. Even if it was not for the bounty, just for the sake of protecting Xu Wenche, she needed to find out Zhang Yan's background.

She thought about it, her eyes swept across the environment in the pavilion, and she found a pen and ink. Just as her teacher had asked her to do when she was young, she wrote each stroke neatly.

It was almost noon when Xu Wenche left the house. He was going to Ning'an Street today.

Biezhi followed him closely with a veiled hat on.

Xu Wenche did not see many people today. He went to four or five restaurants by himself, and also went to a music hall. He did not get up to return home until late at night.

Biezhi left only after watching him step into the main courtyard.

She did not return to the Qin family.

Cheng Jin, who had received the note early, was waiting at the gate of the palace. "The prince is in the courtyard right now, thank you. Miss, just follow me."

Biezhi thanked her.

Just as she was about to step onto the arch bridge in the courtyard, the clear and long sound of a flute came slowly.

Biezhi subconsciously looked in the direction of the sound, and in an instant she saw the figure of a man standing under the treetop, standing tall and straight like a green pine.

Against the backdrop of the bright moonlight, it was more gentle and less cold.

She looked at the man's figure, her eyes lit up for a moment, and a little bit of reluctance arose in her heart, she couldn't bear to go forward and break such a beautiful scene. Sure

enough, no matter what the handsome man did, he always had a sense of temptation.

He seemed to have noticed something, the pleasant flute sound suddenly disappeared, and the tall figure with his back to her turned around. The moment their eyes met, Biezhi could see that he was in a good mood today.

Fu Huaiqing handed the flute to the side and looked at the person who came quietly.

Cheng Jin made way and called her.

Biezhi passed him with a clear mind, heading towards Prince Su, who had already ascended the stairs.

He sat quietly in the pavilion, the light of the lanterns and candles swaying in the wind pouring down, followed closely by the sound of the teapot pouring tea into the tea utensils.

The man poured two cups of tea and pushed one in front of Biezhi.

Seeing this, Biezhi fell silent, took a step forward, and said with a bow, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Fu Huaiqing caught her movement, his eyes darkening slightly.

He was used to seeing girls being lively and outgoing, but this was the first time he saw her being so cautious.

To be fair, Biezhi did nothing wrong. She was not facing Ji Ran, who could listen to her wild and imaginative words, but the regent who had all the power in the world. If she was not careful, she would be doomed.

Fu Huaiqing was not used to it, nor did he like it.

It was like a bird flapping its wings and flying around, but was suddenly caught and locked in a cage carefully made by a craftsman, losing its vitality and life.

Fu Huaiqing took a sip of tea, put down the teacup in his hand, and slowly made a gesture of invitation, "Sit down and talk."

An indescribable voice echoed in his ears. Biezhi, with her head down, closed her eyes and felt that she was going crazy.

The eyes enjoyed it, but the ears suffered.

She had previously believed that the Master was fair, having given Prince Su everything but stripped him of his voice. Now, she hoped that Heaven wouldn't be fair in this matter.

Because it wasn't good for her.

Biezhi took a deep breath, her eyelids slightly raised, and she bowed, not taking her seat.

Facing the man's dark, deep gaze, she explained her purpose: "Biezhi has come here today to ask the Prince for something."

"Zhang Yan," Fu Huaiqing said calmly.

"It seems Lord Qin has already spoken to the Prince." Biezhi raised her eyes slightly, observing his expression. Seeing that his mind remained as gentle as before, her slightly tense heart relaxed a little. "I wonder if the Prince agrees."

Fu Huaiqing looked at her quietly, and after

a long pause, he said, "Of course." Biezhi breathed a sigh of relief.

With her current knowledge, the only information she could gather was that Zhang Yan was currently serving as the Minister of War. Beyond that, it was difficult to gather any more information.

But even with this little information, she sensed something strange.

The Xu family's businesses span a wide range, often traveling between various countries. Zhang Yan, the Minister of War, suddenly interacting with Xu Wenche, must have his own reasons.

"I heard Miss Biezhi has a crush on a man."

"Lord Zhang—"

Two voices, one cold and one warm, rang out simultaneously.

At Prince Qingsu's words, Biezhi's eyes narrowed, then suddenly sank into a pair of boundless, deep, and profound eyes.

It looked like doubt, but in reality, it held conviction.

The man's knuckles tapped against the table, one after another. Her fingertips, hanging by her side, trembled, and she hesitated for

a moment before replying vaguely, "It's not really a crush, it's just that we're on the same page." Fu Huaiqing's brows furrowed slightly, and he said, "It's truly remarkable to be on the same page. I wonder who he is and when they plan to get married."

Biezhi's expression shifted, confused as to why he was asking such questions.

Did he have anything to do with her and Ji Ran's affairs?

Or is it that no matter who we are, we all like to listen to other people's emotions. Prince Su is like this too?

Does he have so much free time?

Fu Huaiqing looked at the girl's slightly surprised eyes and asked, "I heard that he is deaf."

In an instant, Biezhi's breathing stagnated.

She vaguely realized that something was wrong. If it were someone else, they would definitely not ask so many questions.

Unless...

he wants to use Ji Ran to control her!

Thinking of this, Biezhi subconsciously said, "Your Highness, you are too kind. We just have a good impression of each other. We are not in a relationship that would allow us to get married. We are just good friends."