Her guards

Chapter 83 Speculation about the Assassination

The night was at its darkest, and torches blazed brightly in the streets and alleys.

Wei Jiao didn't look at the scattered corpses on the ground first. Instead, he looked around and realized that this place was some distance from the street where the incident occurred, but very close to the alley where he had rented a place when the incident happened.

He quietly observed the undulating houses, and combined his observations of the street earlier with the traces left by the Embroidered Robe, sketching out countless figures, each heading towards an alley from different directions.

That bastard said he noticed they were being followed, and to avoid implicating others, he deliberately led them away from the alley.

But those people are suicide squad members; they will definitely make their move the moment they spot their target while infiltrating the alley.

Why would I wait to be led away by her?

He squinted; running into the street might be another possibility.

The assassins were hunted down while they were escaping.

That bastard would actually do something like that.

Back in Zhao County, they dared to make their move before Xiu Yi could.

As for those accomplices in the alley, they must be there.

However, if he were to investigate now, the traces would surely have been cleared away, and the Imperial Guards would have already intervened, so there was no need for him to go.

It's better to stare at this bastard; you'll get a clearer view.

"Captain, these corpses are not from the same group of people."

The sound of embroidery came from inside.

Wei Jiao turned his gaze back to the corpse.

Unlike the scattered corpses on the street earlier, the corpses here were tangled together.

For example, two people are lying against a wall, and one of them has a knife plunged into the other's heart...

“But this person was immediately killed by others who cut off his neck.” A woman in embroidery pointed out the wound on the corpse to Wei Jiao.

“These two corpses killed each other,” said another woman in embroidered robes, pointing to the two people lying in the middle of the road.

Wei Jiao walked over and saw that the two men had each stabbed the other with a knife.

“These people are all clean and you can’t tell where they came from,” Xiuyi said.

Wei Jiao squatted down in front of the corpses, examining each one's face, hands, feet, and skin, even sniffing the wounds. He quickly stood up and pointed to two of them: "These are the same group of assassins on the street."

The women in embroidered robes nodded without any doubt.

“Then these two must be Miss Yang’s accomplices,” said one of the women in embroidered robes.

Wei Jiao shook his head: "It doesn't seem like it."

"Doesn't look like it?" The women in embroidered robes were puzzled and couldn't help but look down at the corpse.

These people were dressed in simple cloth clothes suitable for nighttime travel, and they had no patterns or accessories on their bodies. At first glance, they looked like a group of people.

“Their method of killing doesn’t seem right,” Wei Jiao said, glancing at the corpses.

That bastard is better.

That bastard is skilled, so his accomplices must be just as good.

Furthermore, judging from the deceased's posture and the signs of a struggle at the scene...

Wei Jiao looked around the streets and alleys, and seemed to see several people rushing towards them, colliding with the figures by the wall, and then a chaotic battle ensued...

He narrowed his eyes.

"It looks like there's another group of people."

"Interesting," Wei Jiao said, squinting at the night sky and waving his hand.

"Take all the corpses away and clean up the traces so that no one else can find them."

……

……

"Dad! It's so late..."

Chai Yuan, the third son of the Marquis of Yichun, entered the room wearing only his nightgown and a cloak. Seeing the water clock beside him, he thought, "It's so early. The night is already over, and it's still early for dawn." He shouted in annoyance.

"What does that old bastard Yang Bin take our family for? Is he never going to stop?"

The Duke of Ding'an knocked on the door again in the middle of the night, saying he had something of utmost importance to discuss with the Marquis. Because the Marquis had indeed met with the Duke of Ding'an last time he knocked on the door in the middle of the night, and then went to the palace to see His Majesty, the gatekeeper reported this to the steward on duty. The steward did not stop him or consult Chai Yuan first, but went directly to wake up the Marquis of Yichun.

Chai Yuan was awakened by the successor of the Marquis of Yichun. It was the time when people are most tired, especially since he had been drinking and making merry with his newly bought concubine until late at night before going to sleep.

Chai Yuan was angry but dared not refuse to come. When he found out that it was the Duke of Ding'an who had come, he became even angrier.

As soon as he finished speaking, the Marquis of Yichun, who was applying a hot towel to his eyes, grabbed a silk handkerchief and threw it at him.

"Did you do this?!"

The handkerchief hitting him didn't hurt, but Chai Yuan was startled: "What...what did I do?" As he spoke, he mentally went through everything he had done recently...

There was nothing that should have angered my father; it was all trivial matters, such as selling official positions, land reclamation, and monopolizing shops.

Marquis Yichun looked at him and said, "The Yang family's child was attacked and killed tonight."

Chai Yuan was stunned for a moment, then remembered who the Yang family's child was referring to. He clapped his hands and laughed, "Great! Good riddance! Good riddance!"

"What's so good about it!" Marquis Yichun roared. "It would have been better if he had died in the beginning, but what good is it for you and me to die in the capital now! You idiot, can't you use your brain before you act!"

Chai Yuan was stunned for a moment, then finally realized what his father meant.

“Dad, I didn’t do it,” he said. “You told me to pretend I didn’t know, but I ignored you.”

Actually, he didn't take it seriously.

So many years have passed, and that woman is dead. She was just a child, a girl, and she wouldn't threaten the Crown Prince's position in the East Sea. There's no need to care about her at all.

Marquis Yichun scrutinized him: "It really wasn't you?" He then recounted what had happened that night, "Duke Ding'an said that the child was being chased when he said he was in Baima Town, and it wasn't a robbery by mountain bandits at all."

She frowned slightly as she said this.

He remembered what happened in Baima Town. Ji Ying had sent someone to report back, saying some vague things like whether to investigate or not.

Before Ji Ying left the capital, he told Ji Ying to be careful of the people along the way, including the woman from Baima Town.

When he heard that the woman had died, he was surprised, but he figured that was that. He told Ji Ying to suppress the matter on the spot and never mention it again.

“Father, it really wasn’t me.” Chai Yuan swore to the heavens, “I don’t have that kind of free time. I’ve long forgotten about that woman.”

Marquis Yichun frowned. Who did that?
Very few people know this woman's identity, even fewer know about the child's existence, and besides, even those who do know wouldn't dare to do such a thing.

People who want to do this, and who dare to do it...

Marquis Yichun frowned as he looked at Chai Yuan, seemingly thinking of something: "Go and have Qin Fu come here."

Qin Fu was the chief eunuch serving the Empress.

Chai Yuan was taken aback, then suddenly realized something: "Father, you think it was my eldest sister who..." He then added, "Even if it was my eldest sister who did it, don't scold her. There's nothing wrong with what she did..."

Marquis Yichun raised his hand and threw the teacup at him: "I have to ask her! If it really is her, I have to clean up her mess! Even murder shouldn't be done so crudely!"

That's true. To kill someone right there in the street, my sister has become too complacent as empress and has lost all her cunning.

Chai Yuan said happily, "I'll go right now."

There are many bloodless methods of killing; he can teach the Empress that.

But as soon as he turned around, he remembered something else.

"Is Father going to the palace? I'll have them prepare the carriages and horses."

The emperor couldn't possibly be unaware of an attack that occurred in the capital at night, especially since it involved the young lady of the Duke of Ding'an; he must try to cover it up.

Marquis Yichun shook his head and picked up the handkerchief again: "I arranged for Che Ji to go. It's his duty. He just needs to report back to the emperor. It would be better if we got too involved."

Chai Yuan still didn't leave, thinking about what had just happened. Xiu Yi was there at the time, and Wei Jiao was the emperor's dog.

Shouldn't we give him a separate explanation?
Marquis Yichun placed the now-cool brocade handkerchief on his face, his voice muffled: "No need. He is the emperor's dog, but he is not stupid. He will weigh the pros and cons, barking when he should and not barking when he shouldn't."

His father had made arrangements, and Chai Yuan understood. He stopped asking questions and went out wrapped in his cloak.

The room returned to silence, but Marquis Yichun did not take advantage of the remaining night to rest. Instead, he called for help.

An old servant came in.

"Where is Ji Ying now?" Yi Chunhou asked.

The old servant pulled out a few letters from a shelf, looked at them under the lamp, and said, "They should have arrived in Yu County by now."

The Marquis of Yichun's voice came from under the handkerchief: "Let him come back."

(End of this chapter)