My Lord, please respect yourself. I am the wife of a marquis.

As soon as these words came out, it was like thunderclaps from a clear sky. The emperor stood up in shock, bringing the memorials on the desk to the ground with a crackling sound. "What evidence do you have?"

"There is no evidence. I received news from my Tao County fiefdom that someone was buying up food and grass on a large scale and transporting them to the Cangliang Mountain area. I sent someone to investigate."

"How is the result?"

"All of them died, and no one came back alive."

Cangliang Mountain is located in the southernmost part of the northwest. Across the mountains is the border of the Rain Country.

The Rain Country is different from the barbarians in the northwest. Their weather is like spring all year round and they have never lacked food and grass. They are eyeing the Dayun Dynasty covetously.

Prince Huaiyang was ambitious and controlled more than half of the military forces of the Dayun Dynasty.

If it weren't for the pressure from the Yu Kingdom, King Huaiyang would have declared himself king long ago for fear of being attacked from all sides.

The emperor granted Su Muxi a county, which was Tao County at the foot of Cangliang Mountain.

There was yellow sand everywhere, and people made a living by making pottery figurines. It was a very poor place, and even the surplus food was sent to the northwest.

So there must be some truth in what she said.

"Come in," the emperor stood up and walked towards the inner room, where there was a map hanging, the same as the one in the Duke Zhenguo's house, only more gorgeous.

The emperor stared at the map. The desolate mountains meandered from southwest to northeast, from wide to narrow, and went straight into the Dayun Chaofu land.

If the Yu Kingdom wanted to attack the Dayun Dynasty, apart from attacking the fiefdom of Prince Huaiyang, it could only cross the Cangliang Mountains and enter the northwest.

The Desolate Mountains were extremely dangerous, and it was impossible for the Rain Country to lead its troops over the dangerous peaks.

There is only one possibility for the people who could appear in Cangliang Mountain: multiple people or an army.

Half a year ago, in the battle with the Rain Kingdom, Prince Huaiyang falsely reported the casualties and hid his troops in Cangliang Mountain.

The rebellious intentions of Prince Huaiyang were obvious.

"What does this have to do with you sending someone out of the capital? You have learned to avoid the important issues completely."

It was impossible to tell whether the emperor was happy or angry in his voice, and Su Muxi was a little unsure.

But she couldn't find any information about the real He Yuncheng, so she could only use this method to muddy the waters.

After all, there was indeed a team of private soldiers kept in Cangliang Mountain, but it was not Prince Huaiyang, but Xiao Yunjin.

"I suspect that there are people from the Prince of Huaiyang in the court."

"You dare to think so, what evidence do you have?"

"I have no evidence, but my sister-in-law was assassinated right after my wedding. If it weren't for the joke I made with the prince, I'm afraid the Duke's Mansion would have already hoisted the white sails and sent off the young one."

This one sentence brought up the emperor's sad story and also touched the emperor.

"Go down!"

Su Muxi knew that the emperor would no longer pursue her crime of deceiving the emperor, so she kowtowed obediently and left.

As soon as he went out, he saw Eunuch Yu waiting outside. He handed over the umbrella in his hand and said, "Master Su, it's raining."

Su Muxi took the umbrella and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Yu."

"I don't deserve your thanks, sir. The Duke of Zhenguo and the Marquis of Yong'an still have matters to discuss, so I'm afraid they won't be able to come out in the short term. Should I send someone to escort you away?"

Su Muxi was treated with such courtesy and took out a piece of paper from her bosom. "This is a prescription I often use in the northwest. Apply it to the knee to relieve pain."

"Master Su is really thoughtful." Yu Tan's smile became more sincere, and he raised his hand to call his little apprentice over, "Be careful and serve."

"I understand, godfather, don't worry," the young eunuch was very clever, with two dimples on his face when he smiled, and he bowed his waist and said, "Please come in, Lord Su."

Su Muxi followed the eunuch out, "What's your name, eunuch?"

"Master Su, you can just call me Xiao Linzi."

It is true that you cannot judge a book by its cover. Who could have thought that the little eunuch who now has two dimples when he smiles would become Xiao Yunjin's confidant who would kill people without blinking an eye in the future? Su Muxi couldn't help but mutter to herself.

"What did Lord Su say? I didn't hear it clearly."

Su Muxi came back to her senses, "Xiao Linzi, where does this piano sound come from?"

"It came from Yuhua Palace, the palace of Concubine Lan."

Concubine Lan, the palace of Prince Jin's biological mother, "Does she always play the zither like this?"

"It's often like this."

"You are so sad, you must be missing Prince Jin."

"I guess so."

Su Muxi observed Xiao Linzi, who was humble and respectful, worthy of being trained by Xiao Yunjin. It was difficult to judge the truthfulness of his words from his expression.

After Xiao Yunjin ascended the throne, he locked his biological mother up in the cold palace.

The conversation stopped here. Su Muxi stopped talking without further ado, but she felt heavy in her heart. Xiao Yunjin was more powerful than she had imagined.

While thinking about things along the way, he met Xiao Yunjin who was waiting at the palace gate.

The carriage moved slowly, making clattering sounds on the streets late at night.

There was an oil lamp burning inside the carriage, and the flame flickered and jumped as the carriage moved, casting a layer of soft light on Xiao Yunjin's already dazzling face.

The exquisite teapot is tilted, and the tea falls steadily into the teacup. Every frown and smile is a painting.

"What are you looking at, madam? Is there something wrong with my face?"

Su Muxi took the tea he handed over and took a sip, "The prince is handsome."

"It seems that this face is all I have left to please my lady."

Su Muxi smiled and said, "Prince, what do you think about Princess Kangping's matter?"

"About the burial?"

"Ah."

Xiao Yunjin was looking at her the moment before, and the next moment he saw her close her eyes.

Compared with the women in the capital, she was not very pretty. Her facial features were prominent and her eyebrows and eyes were sharp. Only when she smiled did she look bright and beautiful.

Xiao Yunjin put away the teacup, looked at her from a distance, and answered her question.

"The Emperor is just making things difficult for her. Princess Kangping is divorced and at home. There are at least 80 male favorites in the palace. Thirteen looks so handsome that he is not even fit to carry the princess' shoes."

"Then what's the solution, my lord?"

"If there is no solution, no matter how much the emperor dotes on Princess Kangping, he will not really let a 15-year-old boy be buried with her. It will only make things difficult for my father!"

"I am a little curious, and I would like the prince to explain it to me." At this point, Su Muxi opened her eyes, "Do mother and the Concubine Lan in the palace really look exactly the same?"

"Exactly the same," Xiao Yunjin looked at her.

"Where are the Crown Prince and Prince Jin?"

"Hasn't Madam met Prince Jin?"

One asked casually, and the other answered nonchalantly.

"I saw it when I was a kid, but I can't remember it clearly."

These words were spoken lightly, but Xiao Yunjin's heart skipped a beat, and a little girl in a red dress suddenly appeared in his mind.

That smile was so sincere and dazzling. When I came to my senses, I saw that Su Muxi had closed her eyes again.

He stared at that face for a long time before he secretly sighed. Why did he think Su Muxi's smile was pretty just now? It was obviously very fake.

There was silence for a moment, only the clatter of the carriages could be heard on the street.