The whole family died tragically? The eldest daughter is the most powerful in the capital after her

Lin Ruoxuan took her two sisters for a walk, and asked Hongya and Luqiao to accompany the sisters to drink tea and appreciate flowers in the courtyard.

During this period, no elders or others from the Gu family came to cause trouble, and everyone in the mansion was respectful and polite to Lin Ruoxuan.

Lin Ruoxue saw everything and felt relieved.

When the sun set, the two felt relieved and said goodbye to Lin Ruoxuan reluctantly.

Just after seeing off Lin Ruoxue and Lin Ruoqiao, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo walked in. Seeing Lin Ruoxuan's calm expression, she couldn't help but smile with relief on her face.

"Ruoxuan," Madam Zhenguo said in a gentle voice, sitting on the chair next to Lin Ruoxuan, with a loving look in her eyes, "How have you been feeling these days? Have you recovered well?"

Lin Ruoxuan quickly put down the book in her hand, stood up and bowed slightly: "Thank you for your concern, mother. My daughter-in-law is much better now."

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo waved her hand, indicating that she didn't need to be polite, and her tone was full of concern: "You have done very well. Mother knows how much effort you have put into Yanqing. Although people outside have many gossips, you must not take it to heart, just rest in peace."

When Lin Ruoxuan heard this, she was slightly stunned, with a blank look on her face: "People outside? Mother, what happened outside?"

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo was stunned for a moment, then realized that Lin Ruoxuan might not know about the rumors outside. She quickly restrained the emotions on her face, put on a gentle smile, and gently patted her hand: "It's nothing serious, it's just that some people like to talk nonsense. You don't have to pay attention to it. As long as you take care of yourself, it will be the greatest comfort to me and Nanyuan."

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo's voice was gentle, but it could not conceal her concern for Lin Ruoxuan.

Lin Ruoxuan felt warm in her heart and quickly nodded and agreed: "Don't worry, mother, your daughter-in-law will take good care of herself."

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo smiled with satisfaction, gave a few more instructions, and then left.

After the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo left, Lin Ruoxuan was still somewhat confused, so she called Hongya and Luqiao over.

She frowned and asked, "Just now, mother-in-law mentioned the rumors outside. It seems that she is hiding something from me. Do you know what is going on outside?"

Hongya and Luqiao looked at each other, with some hesitation on their faces.

Hongya took a step forward and said tentatively, "Madam, in fact, people outside... did say some gossip, but we servants think that you don't have to take it to heart. The prince will definitely handle it for you."

"Gossip?" Lin Ruoxuan frowned slightly, her tone revealing confusion, "What kind of gossip is it? Explain it clearly."

Hongya sighed and told Lin Ruoxuan all the rumors from the outside world.

"People outside said that you made too much trouble at the Zhu family and even held Zhu Kang hostage with a knife, which led to Wang Yanqing's premature death... Some people also mentioned that you made trouble at the Ou family for the eldest girl, saying that you have been arrogant and domineering since you were a child, and you have no respect for rules."

Lin Ruoxuan was stunned when she heard this, and then she laughed out of anger: "How dare you say such things. I went to the Zhu family to save people, how come I became the culprit?"

Lu Qiao quickly comforted him: "Madam, this kind of gossip is groundless. Please don't get upset. We believe that the prince will definitely not sit idly by."

Lin Ruoxuan suppressed her anger, her expression gradually calmed down, and she whispered, "If Nanyuan knew about this, he would definitely deal with it. This is not the first time I have heard rumors from the outside world, so I am not too affected by them."

In Gu Nanyuan's study.

Qingji and Qingxiang walked in side by side, each holding a thick stack of documents in their hands.

"Prince," Qingji spoke first, his tone faintly excited, "We have already investigated the Zhu family's situation, and it is indeed not simple. This investigation has yielded a lot of results, and has also brought up some unexpected people."

Gu Nanyuan raised his eyebrows slightly, his eyes turned cold: "Oh? Tell me about it."

Qingxiang put the document on the table, opened the first page, pointed to a few paragraphs and said, "On the surface, the Zhu family relies on the pawnshop and caravan business, but behind the scenes they also run some shady businesses. They use human traffickers from all over the country to force some poor families to send their daughters to become prostitutes, and even men are not spared. All the money they earn goes into the Zhu family's pockets."

Qingji took over the conversation and added: "What's worse is that those who are controlled by them live a miserable life. Most of their monthly income is taken away by the Zhu family, and the remaining is not enough to make a living. In the cases we found, many people can hardly afford three meals a day."

Gu Nanyuan's face gradually turned cold, and the jade pendant in his hand made a "crackling" sound and almost broke.

He said in a deep voice: "They are so cruel and crazy, they really treat human life as worthless."

Qingji continued, "There's more to come. The Zhu family not only does this, they also engage in human trafficking, picking out handsome men and women, imprisoning them, and selling them to some powerful people with special fetishes. Most of these people were transported from the south, all over the capital and several large cities in the south."

"Southern China?" Gu Nanyuan narrowed his eyes and said in a low voice, "This business spans a lot. The Zhu family dares to be so bold, I'm afraid there must be a bigger backer behind them."

Qingxiang nodded, turned to another page, pointed to a few lines of text and said, "We found out from our investigation that Zhu Kang is very close to King Falcon. King Falcon's fiefdom is in the south, and the affairs in the capital are backed by the Prime Minister's people. There seems to be a division of labor between them. King Falcon is responsible for the supply chain in the south, and the Prime Minister provides protection for transactions in the capital."

"King Falcon and Prime Minister..." Gu Nanyuan repeated softly, a cold light flashing in his eyes, "One in the south and one in the north, they really protect the Zhu family. No wonder the Zhu family seems insignificant in these years, but in fact, they have been secretly doing things that anger the heavens and the people."

Qingji added, "Prince, all the evidence has been compiled. In addition, we have found out that King Falcon's business is not limited to human trafficking, but also involves smuggling of salt and contraband goods. The profits are extremely lucrative. Most of these contraband goods are sold to the aristocratic circle in the capital through the Zhu family."

Gu Nanyuan sneered: "No wonder Zhu Kang is so fearless, it turns out that he relies on these two big mountains behind him. However, no matter how perfect they are, they can't stay at large forever."

Qingxiang continued to ask: "Prince, what should we do next?"

Gu Nanyuan waved his hand, signaling the two to go down first. He sat alone in the study, with the evidence files sorted out by Qingji and Qingxiang spread out on the desk.

His eyes were fixed on Zhu's name, his brows were slightly furrowed, and his knuckles turned white from clenching his fists so hard.

"These evidences are enough to completely destroy the Zhu family." Gu Nanyuan muttered to himself in a low voice.

He knew that this matter would affect the entire body.

The Zhu family is just the tip of the iceberg; the Prime Minister and King Falcon behind them are the real threats.

If this attack alone fails to completely deprive them of the ability to fight back, these people will definitely counterattack.

“The Zhu family can fall, but it must be completely and cleanly collapsed, without giving them even a chance to breathe.” Gu Nanyuan slowly stood up, his eyes fixed on the starry night sky outside the window, his gaze firmer.

He called Qingji and Qingxiang and ordered in a deep voice: "Prepare the carriage. I want to go to the palace to meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."