She married a dying prince and she won three babies.

"Since you have all guessed it, there is nothing more to say. I am just a servant who follows orders. It is our duty to go through fire and water for our master. When the prince was training us guards, the most important thing he emphasized was loyalty." The old man admitted his identity.

"Are you from my grandfather's side?"

"Yes. Later, the prince arranged four guards to be with the Third Young Master, and I was one of them."

The prince he was referring to was of course the old prince.

"What's your name?"

"Mo Zhen." The old man lowered his head again.

Shangguan Ziqi had some impression of his name, but it was rather vague.

After all, he was still quite young at that time, and he didn't always serve his grandfather.

He seemed to have nothing more to ask. This was the person that his uncle had arranged to provide him with money outside.

The whole family works for him and is willing to sacrifice their lives for him.

The secret guards trained by my grandfather are all very loyal.

Or perhaps the secret guards trained by the palace are all very loyal.

"You said there were four of you. Where are the other three?" Shangguan Ziqi asked after a while.

"I don't know. I've been away from my master for over ten years. I don't even know if they're still alive. We're both over sixty years old."

It’s not easy to live at this age.

As guards, each of them must have been injured. It is unlikely that they will be in good health, and they may even die of illness early.

"Were the six killers who mixed in with the bandits yesterday your men?" Shangguan Ziqi wanted to confirm his guess.

"No, I just received the order." Lin Zhen answered very straightforwardly. There was nothing to hide.

The eldest son is not a stupid person, he can definitely guess what is going on.

After asking clearly, Shangguan Ziqi sighed deeply.

I don't have the heart to torture him, and there's no need.

He is just a loyal subordinate who works for his master.

Moreover, he has been away from his master for more than ten years, so he probably doesn't know many things about his third uncle.

He is already over sixty years old and has little strength to resist. Being treated as a bandit now is a compensation for his many years of sacrifice for the palace.

And for his loyalty.

Although he was used by the third uncle to deal with the eldest wife, at least he was loyal to the master of the palace.

"Let's go!" Shangguan Ziqi took Yu Yuanzheng's hand and walked out of the cell.

Looking at the gloomy sky outside, Shangguan Ziqi's heart was extremely heavy.

Why does Uncle San need so much money?

In Luohe City, he cultivated a Lin family to provide him with money.

Here he met another subordinate who organized a group of bandits to rob people on the road and also provided him with money.

With this question in mind, the two returned to the inn.

However, not long after they returned to the inn, County Magistrate Liu hurried over again.

"Young Master, it's bad. The bandit leader committed suicide." County Magistrate Liu ran over breathlessly and reported as soon as he saw Shangguan Ziqi.

When Shangguan Ziqi and Yu Yuanzheng were questioning the county magistrate, he was of course not present.

As soon as they left, Mo Zhen committed suicide, which showed that he didn't want to live anymore.

His son and wife are both dead, and he is old.

It would be more decent to die like this.

The secret guards and bodyguards of the palace are not emotionless assassins, but are allowed to marry and have children.

"Bury it." Shangguan Ziqi just gave a light order.

This made County Magistrate Liu stunned.

But he knew how to read people's faces and knew that Shangguan Ziqi was in a bad mood, so he had to return to the county government office in shame, thinking that the bandit leader had been killed on the spot.

Then they began to interrogate them one by one and write files.

This is a great achievement!

Although it was Shangguan Ziqi who helped him catch the bandits, it was also during his term of office that he solved such a large group of bandits.

Promotion is a sure thing.

After resting for a day in Yonghe County, they set off again on the third day.

When they arrived at the place where the city was guarded, Shangguan Ziqi personally went to find the captain of the garrison and borrowed a hundred people to escort them back to the capital.

They also gave each person ten taels of silver as a reward for their hard work.

There were only more than a thousand soldiers stationed there, and when they heard about this good thing, they all scrambled to come.

The result was decided by a duel, and finally the one hundred with the strongest martial arts skills were sent.

They were not allowed to return until they were sent to Mingyang County, a county town less than a hundred miles away from Beijing.

We were escorted by the army along the way and encountered no problems.

It was already early October.

Shangguan Ru's injuries have almost healed.

The fact that the army was sent out to escort them must have alarmed the county magistrate.

This place is close to Beijing, so the county magistrate, as the county's chief official, must of course come and visit.

The next morning after staying overnight.

"Master, the magistrate of Mingyang County, Zhong Weiliang, requests to see you." Qingfeng reported.

"Well, let him in." Shangguan Ziqi also met him as a routine.

Along the way, whenever they settled in a big city or a county town, local officials would inquire about them and then come to meet them.

Qingfeng brought in a young county magistrate who looked to be in his early twenties, of medium build, neither fat nor thin.

"Your humble servant, Zhong Weiliang, the magistrate of Mingyang County, pays his respects to the distinguished person." Zhong Weiliang bowed deeply without being humble or arrogant.

He did not deliberately inquire about who Shangguan Ziqi and his group were, but anyone who could be escorted by the army must be a noble person.

"Master Zhong, please don't be so polite." Shangguan Ziqi said calmly as he gave a helping hand.

Zhong Weiliang then stood up.

I saw two people sitting there, a young man and a young lady.

"Excuse me, who are you?" Zhong Weiliang asked with a smile, without any flattery or fawning tone.

Shangguan Ziqi can judge a person's character from his expression.

He is a good county magistrate.

"Shangguan Ziqi from Prince Rong's Mansion, this is my wife."

"Greetings, Eldest Master, Eldest Madam." He bowed again.

"Master Zhong is a Jinshi who passed the imperial examination. If I remember correctly, he was also a Tanhua Lang, right?"

As soon as Yu Yuanzheng heard it, she knew that he was a Jinshi from the same class as her father, and he had ranked third in the exam.

"That's right." Zhong Weiliang admitted generously.

"Please sit down." Shangguan Ziqi pointed to the chair on the right.

They stayed in the upper room of this inn, which was divided into inner and outer rooms.

They met the guests outside.

"Why didn't Lord Zhong, a top scholar in the imperial examination, enter the Hanlin Academy, but instead came here to be a county magistrate?" Shangguan Ziqi was just curious.

Such talents usually enter the Hanlin Academy, and after a few years of training, they can directly take up positions in Beijing.

"I have no connections or influence in the capital, and I am too young, only twenty-two this year, so I am not suitable to enter the Hanlin Academy. So I asked for the position of county magistrate first." Zhong Weiliang was frank.

He speaks the truth and is very practical.

Yu Yuanzheng saw that he had a square face with regular features. Although he was not very handsome, he gave people a more upright feeling.

He didn't show much bookishness.

He must be a person with a story and rich experience to be so calm and reserved.

"Well, the emperor also values ​​talent. When your term as county magistrate expires, you can consider coming to the capital. You can apply to the eldest prince's mansion. This young master can help you connect."

After just a brief encounter, Shangguan Ziqi felt that this person was good and could be introduced to the eldest prince.

"Thank you, young master." He stood up and bowed again.

At this moment, the sound of Shangguan Ru chasing the child came from outside the door.

"Yuer, come back here. Your uncle and aunt are entertaining guests."

As soon as she finished speaking, a small figure appeared at the door.

"Uncle, aunt." That sweet voice makes people's hearts melt.

Yu Yuanzheng smiled and waved to her.

"Xiao Yue'er, come in."

Shangguan Ru picked up the child embarrassedly.

"Brother, sister-in-law, I'm sorry, it's my fault that I didn't take good care of the child."

"It's okay." Yu Yuanzheng stood up and walked in front of the two of them, reaching out to pick up Xiao Yue'er.

"Miss Shangguan?" Zhong Weiliang's shocked voice rang out.