Chapter 40 is about to come out
"It's just a child, is it that serious?"
The voice is unfamiliar.
"Why not? As long as you can perform meritorious deeds in front of the Marquis, you will be appreciated by Yuan Changshi. Don't you want to be a guard in the palace and receive a long salary?"
The two discussed for a long time but could not come to a conclusion.
"Splash" sounds were heard, followed by a smell of urine. Zhu Hao was startled at first, then shook his head. These two guys actually discussed the matter on the spot when it was convenient. It seemed that they had drunk a lot of alcohol before, otherwise they would not have talked about such secret things outside without restraint, and he happened to hear it.
Zhu Hao wondered if they came here on purpose to scare him, but then he rejected the idea... It seemed that they didn't know he was hiding nearby.
After Jianmao Hao and his companions left, Zhu Hao was worried that his life was threatened when he saw another person walking out from the crack in the wall on the other side.
There was actually someone hiding behind the wall in the corridor and eavesdropping on their conversation?
This really surprised Zhu Hao.
He was hiding in a high place and keeping watch, but he didn't expect that there was someone hiding in the dark. Fortunately, he didn't move rashly and was not discovered by this person. It can be said that the other party was very cautious. He appeared from the dark after the person had left for a long time, and he walked close to the wall. This alertness showed that he was a professional intelligence officer. Zhu Hao was really ashamed of himself.
Zhu Hao was glad that he was hiding in the dark corner of the roof. If he had moved just now, he would have lost the initiative.
The black shadow walked out along the wall without passing the windproof tung oil lamp. Zhu Hao knew nothing except that it was a burly figure.
“Danger lurks on every side.”
Zhu Haoming realized that he had entered a wolf's den, surrounded by jackals, tigers and leopards.
It is a foregone conclusion that the sharp-haired hoe is his enemy, but he does n't know whether the black shadow is an enemy, a friend, or a third-party force.
…
…
Zhu Hao didn't sleep all night that night .
It was almost dawn when he came down from the roof, and no one else appeared in the meantime.
After successfully exiting the east gate of Prince Xing's Mansion, Zhu Hao felt like he was reborn.
Although he had only been in the palace for a few days, his state of mind had grown during these days, and he had also strengthened his belief that he must stay in the palace and become friends and partners with Zhu Houcong as soon as possible.
Back home.
Unexpectedly, Butler Liu came into the city early in the morning, waiting to take Zhu Hao back to the Zhu family.
"Madam, since Hao Ge'er has returned, I will take him back to see the old lady first and send him back to you before noon."
Butler Liu is different from Zhu Wanjian. He is scheming, but he is still a servant and has to be respectful to Zhu Niang.
Zhu Niang originally wanted to check on her son and ask about his daily life in the palace, but she didn't expect that he would be taken away by the old lady's people as soon as they met, and she was helpless.
"Xiaohao, go early and come back early."
Zhu Niang's concern was evident in her words.
…
…
Butler Liu drove the carriage and took Zhu Hao out of the city to the Zhu family manor.
After entering the manor, he went straight to the back hall, where he saw the old lady Zhu Jia and a man dressed in the uniform of the Jinyiwei official, who was obviously a man of relatively high status in the Jinyiwei.
"Captain Lin, my grandson has been brought back. Can we discuss things now?"
When Zhu Jia saw Zhu Hao, she was no longer cold and disgusted as before, but instead looked proud and confident. It seemed that Zhu Hao had become the most important bargaining chip in her negotiations with Captain Lin.
Captain Lin nodded, and went into the main hall with Zhu Jia and Zhu Hao, closed the door, and prepared to talk to Zhu Hao alone.
"Grandson, did you see the little prince after entering the palace?" Zhu Jia asked as soon as she came up.
Zhu Hao can't say that he didn't even enter the inner quarters after entering the palace. Wouldn't that make him seem useless?
Zhu Hao said what he had prepared long ago: "I have seen them. They are two young men of the same age, but I cannot study with them at the moment."
When lying, you should tell half the truth and half the lies to avoid being exposed.
As expected, Captain Lin sneered: "I heard that you were assigned to chop wood after entering the palace, and you haven't even entered the palace's inner courtyard gate. How did you meet the little prince?"
has a problem.
Zhu Hao immediately realized that Captain Lin had an insider in Prince Xing's Palace who could find out the news inside.
"Captain Lin, do you mean that you don't believe what my grandson said?"
It was rare for Zhu Jia to stand on Zhu Hao's side.
Captain Lin showed a playful smile on his face. It goes without saying that I just don't believe what this little brat says.
Zhu Hao said, "After I entered the palace, I went in and met two little princes, both of whom were seven or eight years old , and a teenager, only four or five years old, who seemed to be the child of an official in the palace's ceremonial guard department. His surname was Lu, and he was also a companion. The other one was the son of the magistrate of Jing County, but I haven't met him yet."
"The tutor in the palace is named Sui, and he is a local scholar. He has tested us before. We just met briefly this time. If nothing unexpected happens, I will study with him in the future..."
Zhu Hao had a deep understanding of Prince Xing's Mansion, so he could probably fool the two people in front of him.
After Captain Lin heard what Zhu Hao said, the muscles on his face twitched a few times. It was obvious that he was stunned by the intelligence Zhu Hao had obtained a few days ago.
Zhu Jia took the opportunity to ask, "You mean, there are two princes of the same age?"
"yes."
Zhu Hao said, "But they may not all be princes. Maybe only one of them is. They usually live together and are inseparable. It seems that they are really brothers from the same mother..."
Captain Lin did not dwell on this question and asked, "You mean, besides you and the son of the Jing County Magistrate, there is also a child named Lu from the Royal Palace's Yiwei Division as your companion?"
This attitude made Zhu Hao suspicious.
It should not be a secret that I was selected as a companion with Master Jing, but you didn't know that Lu Bing was a companion? Jiang Lun blurted it out at the time, which shows that Prince Xing's Mansion did not hide Lu Bing's selection.
As a captain of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, you were most likely sent by the court to investigate Prince Xing's Palace. You know my whereabouts very well, but you don't have the most basic intelligence?
"He is in the palace now. He is a little young... Of course, it is also possible that he just came to the palace to play. It's hard to say." Zhu Hao wanted to use this excuse to see how Captain Lin would react.
Seeing that Captain Lin had a strong reaction to "Lu's companion", Zhu Jia couldn't help but smile smugly: "Captain Lin, it seems that the intelligence you have gathered is also insufficient. Now can we talk about which spy you have planted in Prince Xing's mansion to exchange with my Zhu family?"
They actually discussed the issue of intelligence sharing.
In front of Zhu Hao, Zhu Jia told him that Captain Lin had set up a secret agent in Prince Xing's Mansion. Zhu Hao was surprised. Did Zhu Jia want him, a child, to contact Captain Lin's secret agent?
Captain Lin said indifferently: "We should wait until your grandson officially starts studying with the little prince to discuss the details of the cooperation... I have something else to do, so I'll take my leave."
He actually stopped asking Zhu Hao what information he had found out and turned away, indicating that he had obtained the information he wanted.
Could it be that Lu Bing's study companion was the information he wanted?
…
…
Captain Lin left and Zhu Jia went to see him off. When she came back, her face returned to her usual cold expression.
"In the palace, besides the two people who might be the little prince, who else did you meet?" Zhu Jia was only concerned about obtaining intelligence.
He completely treats his grandson as a tool.
Zhu Hao asked back, "Grandmother, I want to ask, that Captain Lin should be sent by the court to supervise Prince Xing's Palace, right? Does he have spies in the palace? But I don't know who they are?"
"This is none of your business."
Zhu Jia looked down on Zhu Hao and didn't want to answer her grandson's questions, let alone explain them in detail.
Zhu Hao said, "But... Grandmother, in the past few days since I entered the palace, I have probably found out that someone in the palace's ceremonial guard department is acting suspiciously and often enters and leaves the palace in the middle of the night... Although I don't know who it is, maybe it's Captain Lin's spy?"
The contempt on Zhu Jia's face disappeared, and she looked at Zhu Hao with caution.
"What else do you know?"
Zhu Jia took it seriously.
"My grandson needs time to investigate, but right now I want to know more about Captain Lin's spy. Is this person from the Jinyiwei, and did he and his son go to Anlu together? Or did something happen during the journey that made Captain Lin's relationship with this person... not very close, but rather ambiguous?"
Zhu Hao had roughly guessed the direction.
Since he is a spy, lying in ambush in the palace, he must be from the Imperial Guard.
Why was such simple information as Lu Bing's tutor hidden? Unless Captain Lin's spies didn't want to put young Lu Bing in danger...
In this way, Captain Lin's spies were about to be exposed.
Isn’t it Lu Bing’s father Lu Song?
Lu Song's father, Lu Chi, was the chief flag officer of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. He came to Anlu when Prince Xing was enfeoffed. With such a background, it is reasonable for him to work for the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
Zhu Jia's face was solemn: "Captain Lin...did he come to you alone?"
Zhu Hao shook his head.
Zhu Jia frowned and whispered, "I don't think so... but how do you know so much? No, no, who was Mr. Lu who introduced you to the palace earlier?"
Perhaps what Zhu Hao said was beyond Zhu Jia's understanding, which made the old lady start to wonder how Zhu Hao suddenly "woke up"?
"Grandma, I'm just guessing... You just mentioned to Captain Lin that he has spies in the palace. I guess it might be related to the guards from the palace's ceremonial guard department. I figured it out step by step, not because of what anyone told me." Zhu Hao said.
Zhu Jia thought about it.
That's the only explanation that makes sense.
Zhu Jia's tone softened a little: "I didn't expect that you have such a keen insight into people at such a young age. No wonder you were chosen as a companion to Prince Xing's palace among so many other children without any prior education."
"Grandma, you're overpraising me."
Zhu Hao quickly showed the humility that a child should have.
"You are right. Captain Lin mentioned that this person has been hiding in the palace for many years. He is the son who inherited his father's job. Perhaps when his father passed away, he did not tell his son about the court's mission, so the court has not been aware of his existence in the past few years. It was only recently that they were contacted..."
"But Captain Lin did not mention who this person is. If you can find out who this person is... it will be a great achievement, and Grandmother will definitely reward you greatly."
