The beloved baby has a space

Chapter 790 Finding Ayu

Qin Huai got up in the middle of the night to investigate the case, hoping to gather more evidence before dawn and hand it over to Ayu.

He never intended to disturb her peaceful sleep.

After Ah Yu's martial arts skills improved, coupled with the fact that she had been on the move and fighting for the past few months, Ah Yu developed the habit of being constantly on guard against any movement around her.

Previously, Tuanzi would take care of everything, but Ayu didn't want to rely on it for everything, so she started paying attention to noises at night.

Even the slightest noise at night would disturb her, so the guards who were supposed to be watching over her were not constantly on guard.

With Tuanzi's help, Ayu could easily evade the loyal and dutiful Chi-surname guards.

She also left a signal that only they could understand, letting them know that she had something to do and was leaving on her own.

It wasn't until Qin Huai discovered that some teachers at Fengming Academy were colluding with the rebels, and that Ayu was secretly investigating the matter, that he arranged for assassins to attack.

Qin Huai sent men to stop the assassins, but when they arrived outside Ayu's courtyard, Ayu did not come out for a long time.

As alert as she is, it's impossible that she was unaware of what was happening.

"Ayu?" Qin Huai called out from outside the courtyard, but received no response. He then drew his sword and entered.

The room was empty, and the bedding was already cold.

Qin Huai's voice turned cold: "Red Hare, Red Dog!"

The two flew out from the shadows, and upon seeing the room, they were immediately astonished, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Without any rebuttal, the two knelt down heavily.

"Subordinates deserve to die!"

Qin Huai also saw the signal left by A Yu, but in these turbulent times, and with A Yu acting alone, how could he feel at ease?

He found General Hua and entrusted him with full authority over military affairs.

Ayu trusted General Hua, so Qin Huai confided most of his secrets to him.

Upon hearing that Ayu was secretly investigating the disappearance of students from Fengming Academy, General Hua was extremely shocked: "If this is true, how dare the Prefect keep it a secret!"

As a military general, he didn't have much appreciation for the talents of students, but as a father, he had great affection for those young children.

"Go find Ayu without worry, leave this to me. Those little bastards are no match for me."

General Hua pulled a simple dagger from his waist and handed it to Qin Huai: "The greatest taboo in military strategy is indecisiveness. When things happen, there is no need to hold back. Your safety is more important than anything else. Do you understand?"

As long as you're alive, everything is negotiable.

At a glance, Qin Huai knew the significance of the dagger—his ancestor had bestowed two imperial swords upon him, one of which was given to General Hua.

Because the national treasury was not abundant, our ancestors only gave a dagger a token inscription of "Imperial Sword".

These few words are enough.

Qin Huai accepted the dagger and bowed respectfully, saying, "Thank you, I understand."

Qin Huai brought many of his trained experts with him on this trip.

Some of the bodyguards he trained for Ayu have also infiltrated the team this time.

That night, he gathered all these people together and gave the order: "Find Yuxiangjun at all costs, and remember not to alert anyone else."

Ayu needs to find him, but he can't be allowed to interfere with what Ayu wants to do.

For the first hour, Qin Huai's search was relatively restrained.

Two hours passed and Qin Huai still hadn't found any trace of A Yu, so he became anxious.

At that time, the sky was just beginning to lighten, and everyone in Phoenix City except for the patrolmen was still fast asleep.

Qin Huai ordered his secret guards to investigate each household, focusing their investigations on those whose behavior seemed suspicious.

As a result, Ayu was not found, but some people who were doing evil under the cover of darkness were found instead.

Two of the officials were caught patronizing prostitutes and were trembling with fear when they were brought out.

According to the laws of Dachang, if an official is found to have patronized prostitutes, he or she shall be demoted by at least one rank and fined one year's salary.

Those who gather in groups to patronize prostitutes shall be severely punished.

The prefect immediately declared righteously, "How dare you! You disregard the 'Great Chang Law' and commit such an act that disgraces official conduct! You have no regard for the law! Guards, I will punish these unscrupulous individuals!"

In the past, the prefect had no power and could only turn a blind eye. Now that Qin Huai and others are leading troops to support him, what is there for him to be afraid of?
Anyway, he's already offended everyone he needed to offend.

Most of those officials were incompetent and wanted protection after their deaths. Who would dare to protect them at this time? In order to protect themselves, they were willing to have their property confiscated, be demoted two ranks, and be detained for half a month.

Their faces were ashen, as if they had lost their parents.

Has the crackdown on pornography and illegal publications in Dachang really gotten this serious?
In a single day, officials in Fengming City were investigated under various pretexts, resulting in the arrest of more than forty people, nearly 90% of the officials currently in office in Fengming City.

Of course, not everyone is willing to surrender; there are always those who try to use their power to intimidate others.

Qin Huai used that small, exquisite imperial sword to kill two of the subordinate officials who had led the disturbance on the spot.

Some people tried to use their family connections to intimidate others: "I am a direct descendant of the She family of Huai'an. Even the royal family would have to give our She family some face. Lord Qin, you should think twice before you act."

His response was a sword thrust straight into his chest by Qin Huai.

Looking at his corpse, Qin Huai said indifferently, "The She family, what are they?"

Blood was spilled in the courtyard, and everyone fell silent in fear.

Bystanders hurriedly asked, "Just who is this person? So arrogant, isn't he afraid?"

An insider speculated, "It's said to be the Empress's own child."

The others hissed in protest.

The current emperor comes from the Qin family of Jiangnan. The Qin family is the leader of the Jiangnan aristocratic families and is a first-class aristocratic family in the entire Dachang.

The Empress Dowager was the legitimate daughter of the Qin family, so the Emperor was naturally protected by the Qin family.

Logically speaking, all the princes have Qin family blood, but the Qin family never takes sides in matters of imperial power.

By default, they do not participate in matters of imperial power.

Therefore, from the moment the Third Prince rebelled to his death, and then to the attack led by Yu Xiangjun and Qin Huai, the Qin family remained completely silent.

The news that Qin Huai was a prince was still just speculation until Emperor Minghua officially confirmed it.

That's why the direct descendant of the She family is so arrogant.

Only after Qin Huai killed someone did these people vaguely realize that Qin Huai might really be the emperor and empress's biological son.

It's not so bad that there are only princes; although Emperor Minghua doesn't have many children, he still has two left.

But the weight given to the Queen and her own children was quite different.

The Qin family of Jiangnan valued the Empress even more than Emperor Minghua.

After all, in the Qin family's eyes, the Empress was the one who truly cared for everyone, while Emperor Minghua was more driven by emotion.

"If it were that person's biological son, not to mention the She family, even the entire aristocratic family of Huainan combined wouldn't be qualified to speak to him like that." The others looked at the fresh bloodstains on the ground and felt a chill of fear.

Some people were genuinely indignant: "What exactly does he want to do?"

"I heard that his fiancée has gone missing and he's looking for her."

"Who is this fiancée?"

"Ahem, this is Yuxiang-kun, Inspector Wang who is leading the team this time."

"My God, which audacious fool has kidnapped someone?!"

Seeing that Qin Huai was about to target wealthy idlers again, everyone was devastated.

By the evening of the following day, Qin Huai had thrown the entire city of Fengming into a state of panic.

The main problem was that high-ranking officials and nobles were filled with anxiety, while ordinary people were secretly applauding.

As for the rebels, General Hua immediately led his troops to attack after saying, "I suspect that these treacherous officials are detrimental to Commander Yu."

He was used to fighting border defense battles. These hastily assembled rebels, now without any legitimacy, had long lost the support of their troops. They surrendered completely after just one battle, in no more than a day.

When Ayu brought Cheng Yuhe out, bonfires were lit everywhere in Fengming City, and people were being counted.

As soon as she appeared at the city gate, she saw several people flying towards her, followed by several tired-looking guards of the Red Clan.

At the forefront was a young man dressed in a finely striped lychee-colored riding outfit, the dagger in his hand flashing as he tucked it into his sleeve, striding towards her.

Qin Huai hadn't eaten or drunk anything for two days, his voice was hoarse, and he suppressed his barely concealed urgency: "You're back?"

"Didn't I leave you a letter? Why are you in such a hurry?" Ayu felt helpless. She took out a handkerchief and wiped away the bloodstains on his forehead that she didn't know where they were. "I found some key things."

"No rush, let's eat first."

Qin Huai pulled A Yu aside and headed straight for the prepared carriage, without glancing at Cheng Yuhe beside him once.