The first time in history

He wanted to discuss it with Ran'er, and Qian Mingduo signaled Zi'er. Zi'er looked through a hidden hole in the wall, and after coming down, she said, "Your Highness, only Sister Ran'er is here."

Qian Mingduo nodded, "You go up and ask Ran'er to come down."

The bookshelf slid gently to the sides, and Ran'er quickly stood at the entrance of the tunnel.

"Sister Ran'er, His Highness asks you to go down." Zi'er and Qing'er saw Lu Ran disappear into the tunnel and closed the entrance again. They quickly hid themselves.

"Your Highness." Ran Er held Qian Mingduo's hand, "Did you go to see the owner of Mo Yi Tower?"

Qian Mingduo nodded and said, "I have a lot of things to discuss with you." He pulled Lu Ran and slowly walked towards the cellar.

There was only one candle lit in the cellar, and the crystal lampshade made the dim candlelight shine brightly.

"How did Chu Xiang give you this piece of paper?" Qian Mingduo asked.

"I was walking on the street, and the man in front of me suddenly dropped this piece of paper." Lu Ran said slowly: "I was about to remind him, but I saw him turn around and smile at me. Then he left quickly."

Qian Mingduo nodded, "Are you sure it's Chu Xiang?"

Lu Ran nodded and said, "Sure, he has been to our house several times. I will never be wrong."

"What's the news from Moyi Tower?" Lu Ran asked.

Qian Mingduo sighed softly, "Liu Jingxue said that the imperial aunt invited her to the palace because she wanted her to use her connections in Japan to find an assassin. As for who she wanted to assassinate, the imperial aunt did not tell her."

"Another Japanese?" Lu Ran couldn't help but frown. "The one who assassinated the emperor was a Japanese. Now the emperor is looking for another assassin from Japan."

"Not only is the Imperial Aunt looking for someone from Japan, but my second brother has already hired a Japanese assassination expert, and he has already arrived in the capital!"

"Ah...Does Liu Jingxue know who the Second Prince wants to assassinate?"

"Me!" Qian Mingduo pointed at himself.

Lu Ran walked up to Qian Mingduo and asked, "Liu Jingxue said that the Japanese expert that the Second Prince invited is here to assassinate the Second Prince?"

"That's what she said." Qian Mingduo lay down on the bed, "I don't know whether I should believe what Liu Jingxue said."

Lu Ran slowly sat down on the edge of the bed, "Why did the Second Prince want to assassinate you, Your Highness?"

"According to Liu Jingxue, one less prince means one less competitor. If all of us die, my second brother will be the only one left. Wouldn't he be the only candidate for the crown prince?"

Lu Ran took Qian Mingduo's hand and said softly, "The Sixth Prince has been imprisoned, and Your Highness has also been wanted by the Emperor. Now only the Second Prince and the Third Prince are left."

"My third brother invited me to dinner a few days ago. He has made it clear that he wants to compete for the position of crown prince. He also wants me to help him and use our information network to serve him."

"Did Your Highness agree to him?" Lu Ran gently massaged Qian Mingduo's arm.

Qian Mingduo nodded, "Since he wants to dream, I will give him a pillow. Let him feel that I will do my best to help him."

"Ran'er, I have an idea."

"Your Highness, what do you think?" Lu Ran asked, looking up.

Qian Mingduo closed his eyes and thought for a while. "Third brother wants to use our information network, but he also has many spies and secret agents. I bet that third brother should also know about the Japanese people coming to Beijing."

"Yes, the Third Prince also has many subordinates, so he would know this kind of news."

"But it's hard to say whether Third Brother knows the purpose of the Japanese people." Qian Mingduo looked at Lu Ran gently.

Lu Ran put Qian Mingduo's hand on her thigh and continued to massage his arm. "Your Highness, do you want to send a message to the Third Prince, reminding him that the Japanese are here to assassinate him and ask him to be more cautious. Then wait and see how the Third Prince will deal with the Second Prince?"

"No one is smarter than my Ran'er." Qian Mingduo's hand gently stroked Lu Ran's leg.

Lu Ran blushed slightly, "How do we inform His Highness the Third Prince? It would be best if His Highness goes in person to show the seriousness of the matter. But His Highness cannot show up now." She thought for a moment, "I'll go."

Qian Mingduo shook his head. "It's not a good idea for you to go. It's not safe."

"Could it be possible that His Majesty the Third Prince would arrest me again?"

Qian Mingduo said, "I am now a criminal under imperial control, and you are the most important person to me. When the imperial guards came to arrest me yesterday, I was very worried that they would take you away to interrogate me about my whereabouts."

"If you rashly show up at my third brother's house, he will detain you and torture you severely. How can I bear that?" Qian Mingduo said softly.

"I will never betray Your Highness even if I die!" Lu Ran said resolutely.

Qian Mingduo smiled and nodded. "Of course I know this. But I can't let you take any risk."

He took Lu Ran's hand and kissed it. "I will write a note later and ask Qing'er to go. After giving it to Third Brother, I will ask him to leave quickly. I don't think Third Brother's people can stop Qing'er."

"There is one more thing," Qian Mingduo's expression suddenly became serious, "Liu Jingxue said she knows who our father wants to be the crown prince."

"How did he know that?" Lu Ran asked in surprise, "Who is the emperor's choice for the crown prince?"

Qian Mingduo smiled and said, "She didn't tell me, but said she would tell me when the time was right."

Lu Ran stood up and paced slowly. Suddenly, she said, "The people who can best know the emperor's heart must be those around him, and they must be the closest people to him to be able to peek into his heart."

"Go on." Qian Mingduo sat up.

"Liu Jingxue is obviously not the emperor's closest person. So..."

"Gao Quanfu?" Qian Mingduo blinked rapidly. "I always thought that the person who adopted Liu Jingxue was the imperial aunt, but now it seems that the person who adopted her is most likely Gao Quanfu."

"The Moyi Building has become increasingly powerful in recent years. Without the secret support of the people in the current government, they would not have been able to become so powerful." Lu Ran continued, "But they have never been enemies with the government. They only collect and sell intelligence."

Qian Mingduo frowned and said, "You mean Gao Quanfu is supporting Moyilou behind the scenes... Since Gao Quanfu is supporting it secretly, then it is very likely that it is my father..."

Lu Ran nodded, "This possibility is very high. Another possibility is that Gao Quanfu used Moyi Tower to help one of the princes without telling the emperor."

"That prince is definitely not me." Qian Mingduo smiled slightly.

"But..." Lu Ran blinked as he looked at the motionless candlelight, "This is a huge risk. Given Gao Quanfu's cautious character, the safest thing to do is to obey the emperor. So..."

"So, Gao Quanfu is using Moyi Tower on behalf of my father."