Legend of the Embroiderer

The night in the palace seemed to be splashed with thick ink, becoming darker and darker, so thick that it was almost impossible to dissolve.

Li Zhao and Su Mengyao were like two parallel lines, each busy in a different corner of the huge palace, trying their best to find out the truth from the confusing and complicated clues.

Li Zhao was sitting in the center of the hall at this moment, his face stern and his eyes sharp as an eagle, staring closely at the envoy and his subordinates kneeling below.

His voice was low and majestic, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth. With an unquestionable sense of oppression, he launched round after round of fierce interrogation on these people.

Su Mengyao stood quietly on the podium. Her graceful figure, a light blue dress fluttering in the wind, made her look like a fairy descending to earth.

Her beautiful face was now filled with solemnity. Her eyes slowly swept over each of the palace maids in the audience, and she softly said, "I'm sorry, but I'm sorry."

"Sisters, please do not panic. His Highness has already apprehended the thieves who dared to sneak into the palace. We will investigate this matter thoroughly and protect you all."

Although the palace maids gradually regained some composure after hearing this, the deep inside of their eyes still flashed with unconcealable anxiety and fear.

Su Mengyao took in all of this and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. The turmoil before her was just the tip of the iceberg; the true mastermind and their terrifying conspiracy had probably only just begun to emerge.

Just as she was lost in thought, suddenly, a palace maid stood up from her seat, breaking the brief silence.

The maid walked quickly to the podium and, with trembling hands, handed over a piece of embroidered cloth. The cloth was of fine texture and intricately embroidered, with a lifelike, delicate peony flower appearing vividly on the surface.

What was surprising was that the edges of the fabric were jagged and torn, as if they had been torn violently.

Su Mengyao carefully took the piece of cloth, as if it were some rare treasure. She spread the cloth flat on the table and examined it attentively.

The torn parts of the cloth were uneven, obviously not caused by natural wear and tear, but more like traces left by someone tearing it hard.

There was some dirt around the damaged area, making the whole piece of cloth look a little dirty.

Seeing this, Su Mengyao's heart suddenly shook, and a bad premonition came to her mind.

She raised her head, stared sharply at the maid in front of her, and asked anxiously, "Where did you find this piece of cloth? Tell me the truth!"

The palace maid was startled by Su Mengyao's sudden question. After calming down a little, she quickly replied:

"Princess, I stumbled upon this piece of cloth in a cabinet at the academy. Originally, the cabinet was filled with many items for embroidery, but now, only this single piece remains."

After listening to the palace maid's narration, Su Mengyao nodded thoughtfully.

With years of experience and keen intuition, she already had some guesses in her mind.

Without further ado, she stood up and walked hurriedly out of the school.

Along the way, she walked swiftly, her skirt fluttering in the wind, like a light butterfly. In a short while, she arrived in front of the hall where Li Zhao was.

The atmosphere in the hall was extremely solemn at this time. Li Zhao sat upright on the dragon throne with a frown on his face, and was whispering with the eunuch chief beside him about how to deal with the situation.

In a corner of the hall, the envoys and their men were being held captive. Although they had been subdued, a hint of rebelliousness still lingered on each of their faces.

Li Zhao and the chief eunuch were both surprised to see Su Mengyao rushing in.

Before the two could ask, Su Mengyao walked straight up to Li Zhao and said in a low voice, "Brother, I have something important to tell you."

Then, she told Li Zhao what she had just discovered in the school and all the guesses in her mind.

After listening to Su Mengyao's story, Li Zhao's expression grew increasingly gloomy. He turned to look at the detained envoys and their companions, a cold glint in his eyes.

At this time, the chief eunuch said: "Your Highness, these people still refuse to admit that they have any conspiracy.

They insisted they were only there out of curiosity and had no ill intentions. "After saying that, he shook his head helplessly."

Li Zhao frowned slightly, his eyes flashing with thought, and he already had some calculations and ideas in his mind.

He slowly turned around and gave a solemn order to the eunuch standing respectfully behind him:

"Take these people back to the cells immediately and keep them under strict supervision! Do not slack off in the slightest! I want to see what kind of absurd lies they can fabricate to confuse the public."

After saying this, the eunuch chief hurriedly bowed in agreement, and then led a group of guards to hurriedly leave to carry out the order.

Li Zhao, however, took long strides without hesitation and rushed out of the palace. His steps were steady and powerful, as if the wind was blowing under his feet.

Because he knew very well that at this moment, the person who made him worried - Su Mengyao, must be in the school anxiously waiting for the news he brought.

When Su Mengyao rushed to the hall in a panic, she saw Li Zhao standing quietly outside the hall under the bright moonlight.

His posture was as straight as a pine tree, but his face was solemn, as if he was carrying a heavy burden on his heart.

Seeing this, Su Mengyao quickly quickened her pace and ran forward. When she got closer, she deliberately lowered her voice and said softly, "Brother Zhao, I have found something here, which may be a very important clue."

Hearing this, Li Zhao's spirits instantly perked up, a hint of surprise and anticipation flashing in his eyes. He quickly stepped forward and asked impatiently, "Oh? Tell me quickly, what kind of clue is this?"

Su Mengyao did not dare to delay and hurriedly handed the piece of embroidery cloth in her hand to Li Zhao, and explained slowly:

"This is something I just stumbled upon in a cabinet in the academy. Look, the edges of this cloth clearly show signs of being roughly torn, and it's stained with quite a bit of dirt. In my opinion, this is most likely the crucial clue the thief accidentally left behind in his hasty escape."

Li Zhao carefully took the piece of cloth and held it in his palm as if he was holding a rare treasure.

He opened his eyes wide and examined it carefully, not missing any details.

As he observed more deeply, Li Zhao was surprised to find that the mud on the cloth had a unique color and texture, which was exactly the same as the mud on the land outside the palace wall!

This astonishing discovery made his heart skip a beat, and countless thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant.

He raised his head excitedly, looked straight at Su Mengyao beside him, and said excitedly:

"Yao'er, your guess is correct! This must be an important clue left by those damn thieves. They must have sneaked in from outside the palace wall and stole the precious embroidery supplies."

When Su Mengyao heard this, a barely perceptible smile appeared on her beautiful face.

She nodded slightly, indicating her agreement with Li Zhao's judgment, and a glimmer of unwavering determination flashed in her bright eyes, like the brightest stars in the night sky.

"In this case, we absolutely cannot sit idly by. We must take action immediately and search the area outside the palace walls right away. Maybe we can find more key clues." Su Mengyao said firmly.

Li Zhao nodded vigorously and gave orders to the eunuchs around him without hesitation:

"Listen carefully! Now, set out immediately to search the area outside the palace walls. Remember, focus on finding any hidden embroidery supplies. Also, everyone must be extremely cautious, as those cunning individuals are likely hiding in a corner nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike."

The eunuchs responded in unison, then quickly turned around and left to carry out the task assigned by Li Zhao.

Li Zhao and Su Mengyao did not dare to delay for even a moment. They followed the eunuchs closely and walked out of the palace wall together.

Outside the palace walls, shrouded in darkness, everything was quiet, with only the occasional chirping of insects breaking the tranquility.

In the woods not far away, there were several sneaky figures hiding. These people were lurking there quietly, secretly watching every move of Li Zhao, Su Mengyao and others.

When they saw Li Zhao and Su Mengyao leading the eunuchs rushing towards them aggressively, the leader raised his lips slightly, revealing a sly smile... and said in a low voice:

"It seems they've discovered our plan. However, this is unimportant. Our real goal is still to come."