This villain has become a ghost

However, Daying is a vast area, and information is not well developed nowadays, so it spreads very slowly. The fact that it "cannot be suppressed no matter what" means that this matter has been brewing for a long time, and the textbooks are probably just the fuse.

Qiu Shuangwan sighed, "...We've already sent people to stop them, but they're popping up like mushrooms after rain, making it quite difficult to stop them."

"Plus, the tyrant has been busy with the imperial examinations and General Qiming's affairs these past few days. This incident is so inopportune and strange."

Yue Liuyun also felt that there seemed to be a vague connection between these things.

"Wait," Yue Liuyun suddenly asked, "General Qiming's incident happened just a few days ago... and the news has already reached the palace? How did you know?"

Qiu Shuangwan and Nangong Wanqing both looked at her strangely.

Nangong Wanqing asked doubtfully:

"Ah? Don't you know? Two days ago, there was a huge uproar. The whole city knew that General Qiming was suspected of treason and rebellion and had been imprisoned in the Sky Prison. General Qiming's mansion was also raided.

Yue Liuyun: “!!!”

She was shocked and confused. The whole city knew about it, so why didn't she know?

What was she doing two days ago?

She stayed in Qingyunzhai. During that time, she wanted to go out for a walk, but Jiang Wenjin stopped her with a smile, saying that it was unsafe outside. She also called many plainclothes guards to guard the outside of Qingyunzhai.

He took out two pots of fine wine and drank with Yue Liuyun, completely unaware of what was happening outside.

Jiang Wenjin was hiding something from her and even trapped her in Qingyunzhai. He sent people to guard her not for her safety, but to prevent her from coming out.

But in the final analysis, who does Jiang Wenjin belong to?

To whom did she give all the evidence she collected?

Yue Liuyun had a complicated expression, she held the cards tightly in her hand, and no one knew what she was thinking.

"What's wrong?" Nangong Wanqing asked with concern.

Yue Liuyun shook his head: "It's okay."

After thinking for a moment, she said:

"It's better to simply call rumors 'false propaganda'. If there are legal provisions that criminalize spreading false information, once those labels are attached, it will be considered high treason, punishable by death or even the extermination of the entire family."

"Ah? Isn't that too harsh?"

"Of course, it's best to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys. However, strict laws will make the people realize the seriousness of this matter. The ancient Han Dynasty had such laws, and Emperor Wen of Han also did so."

These are all very simple principles, and Nangong Mingzhu can definitely think of them.

"We still have to solve the problem from the root, such as... who did these things." Yue Liuyun murmured.

The printing was handled by the Imperial Household Department and the Imperial College, so there must have been a problem there...

Qiu Shuangwan said, "King Xuan said that the relevant people have been taken to the Dali Temple and are currently under investigation."

Yue Liuyun nodded slightly, as if thinking about something.

-

Cloud shadows were spread across the sky, thin clouds hung low and unevenly beside the moon, and night insects were chirping softly.

Yue Liuyun put on a thin coat and stared at the night sky outside the window, feeling that everything outside was silent.

She held the brush, and the ink soaked the entire paper, but she was unaware of it, and her eyes seemed to drift into the distance.

She didn't know how long it had been before she felt faintly sleepy. She sighed deeply, put away all her pens, ink, paper and inkstone, closed her eyes and lay down on the table to rest.

When the window creaked and Nangong Mingzhu appeared, he saw Yue Liuyun resting her head on his arm, playing with her hair, and almost falling asleep out of boredom.

Yue Liuyun smelled the familiar plum fragrance and shivered at the sudden cold wind. His sleepiness disappeared instantly. He propped up his head and looked at Nangong Mingzhu, saying, "Are you here?"

Nangong Mingzhu chuckled, then closed the window, sat down next to her casually, and said, "Waiting for me?"

"Nonsense," Yue Liuyun yawned, his eyes slightly rippled as he said, "You told me during the day, 'Wait for me in the evening,' so naturally I wouldn't dare stand you up."

Although Nangong Mingzhu didn't know what "standing up" meant, he could still understand the implication of her words.

He gradually calmed down, stared at her quietly, and asked, "Are you angry?"

"You should know that I'm not waiting for you, but your explanation," Yue Liuyun said, tilting his head. "Why did you hide the matter of General Qiming's Mansion from me?"

Even if she knew about this, since she was the one who collected the evidence of rebellion and hidden possession in General Qiming's mansion, she would certainly support everything he did.

So, why did he hide it from her?

Nangong Mingzhu looked at her steadily, took out two letters from his arms and handed them to Yue Liuyun. One was wrinkled, obviously having been read many times, while the other was as clean as new.

Yue Liuyun unfolded the two letters separately, and his face gradually darkened.

Although the contents of the two letters were narrated differently, they both told basically the same story: Yue Liuyun was an undercover agent planted by the emperor in General Qiming's mansion.

More importantly, the handwriting of the old letter is exactly the same as Yue Liuyun's.

"One letter was sent from the imperial palace and was intercepted by me. The other one actually reached Liu Zeyin's hands and was found during a search in the Heavenly Prison." Nangong Mingzhu said calmly.

Yue Liuyun suddenly raised his eyes, staring straight at Nangong Mingzhu, and said word by word: "...So, you are doubting me, and it was I who betrayed my identity?"

The one that was originally intended for Liu Zeyin was intercepted, so who wrote the one that finally ended up in Liu Zeyin's hands?

Looking at the handwriting, there is no doubt that she is the biggest suspect.

So, he hid the truth from her because of this incident. He was doubting whether he had switched sides and chosen Liu Zeyin's camp.

Yue Liuyunqi smiled, but his heart felt cold, as if a basin of cold water was poured over his head, and he felt a chill all over his body.

She originally thought that there would be no rift between them and that they could trust each other completely, but she didn't expect... that he would actually doubt her because of this matter.

So what are those good times they had? Are they seaweed?

Yue Liuyun gritted her teeth and said, "As for who it is... she will find a way to find out."

"No need to explain, I naturally know it's not you."

Nangong Mingzhu pursed his lips and looked at her, his clear eyes darkening.

Yue Liuyun felt that she was becoming increasingly unable to discern what he was thinking. Frowning, she asked, "Since you knew it wasn't me, why did you hide it from me? What was the reason?"

Nangong Mingzhu sighed softly.

He leaned over and approached her, with a bottomless dark light under his long eyelashes, and her whole body was shrouded in the shadow of his figure.

The distance between them closed in an instant. Nangong Mingzhu's familiar aura pressed down, and his eyes were deep and sad. He looked directly into her eyes and said slowly, "You are always like this."