The little heroine investigates a mysterious case

The marriage of the Princess of Yue was finally finalized by Emperor Gu Li of Xia. The auspicious date and time remained unchanged, but the groom was replaced by the real King Gu Jingfeng.

Everyone was delighted and left in a bustling atmosphere. Gu Li finally had some peace and quiet. He rubbed his brows and then remembered something. He asked Han Gu, "What has Qin Shao been busy with these past two days? Why haven't I seen him come into the palace to play a game with me? He really knows how to avoid quiet time!"

Han Gu said hurriedly, "Maybe they're renovating the General's Mansion. No one has lived there for over ten years, so it needs some repairs."

Outside the city of Liyang, General Qin Shao, who had just returned from his expedition, finally arrived at the gate of Qingfengyuan in the suburbs with several of his personal soldiers at dusk that day.

More than ten years have passed, and only half of the two wooden doors of Qingfengyuan that were once painted red are left. They are dilapidated and swaying in the wind.

The plaque with the three big characters "Qingfengyuan" written on it had already fallen to the ground, half buried in the soil. Even the characters that were exposed above the ground were covered by mud and were blurred. It was impossible to tell whether it was "Qing" or "Yuan".

Qin Shao dismounted, a stern face on his face, and walked into the courtyard with his hands behind his back. He saw wild weeds growing wildly, almost waist-high, blocking the buildings not far away, revealing a few broken walls and ruins. Only the stone table and stone bench in the small pavilion remained intact, reminding Qin Shao of the past times when he and Zhao Xiaoman had laughed, quarreled, shared tenderness, and also had estrangement...

Qin Shao couldn't help but murmur: "After so many years, she really hasn't come back..."

The guards around him didn't hear Qin Shao's words clearly: "General, what did you just say?"

Qin Shao looked at his guards and ordered, "Ma San, this general orders you to lead your men to repair this place within ten days. No mistakes!"

Ma San stared at the reality before him in disbelief, scratching his head repeatedly. "Ten days? That's it?"

Qin Shao said calmly, "I think Ma Si is more qualified than you..."

Ma San hurriedly said: "Report to the General, I promise to complete the mission! But..."

Qin Shao turned around and asked, "But what?"

Ma San grinned, "Just enough silver! Hiring a craftsman, buying materials, and at least providing a meal—all that requires money, General!"

Qin Shao's expression remained unchanged: "Just go to the general's mansion and ask the butler to pick it up."

At this time, another personal guard cavalry officer quickly walked up to Qin Shao and bowed, "General, the lady and the young lady will arrive in Liyang in three days!"

Qin Shao asked the visitor, "Ma Si, have you cleared out the General's Mansion?"

Ma Si patted his chest and said, "Of course, it was completely completed yesterday! General, if you have any other tasks, just tell your subordinates. I guarantee steady, accurate, and ruthless work!"

Ma San was very disdainful: "What do you mean by steady, accurate and ruthless? It should be fast, good and economical!"

Ma Si looked at Ma San and asked, "What do you mean by fast, good and economical?"

Ma San said proudly, "Of course it's done quickly, well, and cheaply! By the way, General, why do you want to renovate this dilapidated yard?"

Qin Shao glared at Ma San and said, "Because this will be my residence from now on!"

Ma San widened his eyes in surprise.

"Then you won't live in the General's Mansion? What a pity, what a waste! Why not just rent it out? My father rented out the room my sister lived in right after she got married. The rent is only one or two taels of silver a month!"

Ma Si also quickly agreed, "That's right, there are a lot of empty rooms in the general's mansion, and we can bring in at least dozens of taels of silver every month!"

Qin Shao pointed at their noses and snorted coldly, "You two brothers are just as stingy as your father! This general really regrets leaving you two in Yancheng and taking your brothers Ma Da and Ma Er back to the capital!"

After Qin Shao finished speaking, he ignored the two of them, pushed aside the weeds, and walked towards the depths of Qingfeng Courtyard.

It was already late at night when Gu Zhanghua returned to Prince Xian's Mansion from the palace. Mainly because his mother was so excited that he finally didn't have to marry the Princess of Yue. Instead, she took out a large stack of portraits and first-hand information of noble ladies in the capital that she had collected, and asked Gu Zhanghua to quickly decide on the candidates for the main wife, concubines, and all the necessary wives and concubines to avoid any unnecessary complications!

Gu Zhanghua took great pains to persuade his mother to remain calm.

But lying in bed, Gu Zhanghua tossed and turned and couldn't sleep, thinking about the hidden worries his mother was worried about, which might really happen. After thinking it over, he felt that his third brother was not a problem, but the concubines in his third brother's house might very likely ruin the marriage.

Those ladies have been aiming for the position of the main wife over the years, but now they have completely given up on it. If something happens, such as crying, making a fuss, or even threatening to hang themselves, and his third brother is particularly sympathetic to women, it will be troublesome if they regret it!

So the next morning, he hurriedly got up early and took the servant to the Zhenwang Palace again. As soon as he got off the carriage, he was stunned.

I saw that the gate of the Zhenwang Mansion had been decorated with flowers, and two big red lanterns were hung at both ends of the gate, with the big "囍" character on them clearly visible.

The servants who came to greet the two were all dressed in new clothes, with a big red peony pinned to their ears, and each one looked more joyous than the other.

When Gu Zhanghua and the maid walked into the mansion, it was more like walking into a sea of ​​red. Lanterns were hung everywhere, and happy couplets were posted everywhere. Maids, servants and attendants shuttled back and forth, their hands busy, all holding, hugging or dragging wedding-related items.

The attendant was shocked: "His Royal Highness the True King has made a huge investment in marrying the Princess of Yue! Your Highness, you can finally rest assured now!"

Gu Zhanghua walked forward: "Let's go see what my third brother is doing. Has he already started trying on his groom's suit?"

The secretary followed Gu Zhanghua, watching the show with great interest, and said happily: "You won't say it, it's really possible!"

As soon as the two of them walked to the door of the main hall, they saw all the concubines dressed in gorgeous clothes kneeling on the ground. Gu Jingfeng was sitting on a chair against the wall in the middle with his legs crossed, looking like a mountain king, showing off his power.

As soon as Gu Zhanghua and his attendant walked in, they heard Gu Jingfeng shaking his legs and shouting, "Tomorrow, Princess Tian Shiliu of Yue will be my true wife! From now on, none of you are allowed to fight for the center position! There is already a legitimate wife! All of you should live your lives honestly for me, be respectful and obedient to the princess, and no quarrels are allowed! However, I will not be too partial. As long as you are obedient, I will treat everyone equally! Do you hear me?"

The concubines were all listless, their voices were as thin as mosquitoes, and their replies were intermittent and chaotic.

Gu Jingfeng was about to say a few more words when he turned around and saw Gu Zhanghua standing at the door. He immediately jumped off the chair, rushed towards Gu Zhanghua, and put his arm around Gu Zhanghua's shoulders affectionately.

"Fifth brother! A rare guest! A rare guest!"

"Third brother, are you really stupid? I was just here yesterday..."

Gu Jingfeng laughed heartily: "That's a rare guest! Let's go! Third brother, have someone prepare some wine and food, let's celebrate properly!"

Gu Zhanghua reminded Gu Jingfeng: "Third brother, are you confused? The wedding is tomorrow..."

Gu Jingfeng hugged Gu Zhanghua tightly in his arms.

"I'm not confused, I'm really excited! The play we put on yesterday was so brilliant! Even the Emperor was fooled by us! Third brother, thank you so much, Fifth brother, for letting me go with such a heavy heart! We should both have a drink for this!"

"Third brother, you are too polite. I really don't feel any pain..."

Gu Jingfeng hugged Gu Zhanghua and walked out the door: "If it doesn't hurt, you should drink a few more cups!"

Gu Zhanghua struggled desperately: "But it's only morning..."

Gu Jingfeng said indifferently: "What's the big deal? It got dark while we were drinking!"