Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

Dressed as a farmer, Chu Jiuchuan sat cross-legged on the ground, holding a long pole with a fishing line made of sausage casing at the end submerged in the water, visibly swaying slightly with the current.

"grandfather."

Su Zhi called out, and the old man slowly opened his eyes and turned to look at her.

"The child has arrived."

He wanted to call his servants to bring a chair for his granddaughter, but there was no one around. So he propped himself up on his hands and sat down, then invited her to sit in the pavilion.

"It's been quite a while since I've seen you. How has Xiao Zong treated you? Has he bullied you?"

"No, he treats me very well."

Su Zhi brushed the grass clippings off his clothes and said, "Grandfather, I have come today to ask you something."

Chu Jiuchuan had heard a little about what was happening in the imperial court, and seeing her solemn expression, he had already guessed most of it.

"Grandfather will answer any questions you may have."

"Among the Empress, Consort Zhou, and the princes, has Your Highness ever received any favors from any of them?"

"Hmm... probably not." Chu Jiuchuan pondered, "Ma Shuo served the late emperor. When Your Majesty ascended the throne, he was already highly respected and did not need to curry favor with the empress and the princes."

Su Zhi frowned, then asked, "If you were the Ninth Prince, and had to choose one person from several to serve, who would you choose?"

"King Kang".

"Ninth Prince? Why?"

“Prince Kang was frail from childhood, and Ma Shuo was assigned by the late emperor to take care of him for five years. To put it presumptuously, Ma Shuo treated Prince Kang like his own son. Given this affection, he would have chosen Prince Kang.”

“But my granddaughter has met Prince Kang, and he has no ambition to become the heir apparent.”

"Ambition can be hidden."

Chu Jiuchuan's eyes swirled with dark glint. "Born into the imperial family, power struggles are commonplace for him. How could someone who could sever ties with his past and repent after your father faked his death be considered a good-for-nothing?"

Su Zhi was stunned, suddenly recalling the time when Prince Kang entered the palace to save her, he was also calm and composed in the face of danger.

She was horrified. Yes, someone like that couldn't possibly be a good-for-nothing!

“Grandfather, I understand.”

"After careful consideration, I think we can also add the Empress to the list of candidates."

"Didn't you say he wouldn't know how to please the Empress?"

"To be precise, it wasn't the Empress, but the former Crown Prince."

"The late Crown Prince Li Heng..."

"Yes, His Highness is kind and benevolent. From officials to commoners, everyone loves and respects him." As he said this, tears welled up in Chu Jiuchuan's eyes.

He paused, then asked with certainty, "You've heard about the years-long war between Su Tuo and Da Qi, haven't you?"

Su Zhi was taken aback. How did this turn into a discussion about war?

"heard about it."

Chu Jiuchuan nodded. "There have been hundreds of battles, large and small, that have lasted for eight years, finally bringing an opportunity for negotiations. Who would have thought that the Su Tuo envoy would openly humiliate the Ninth Prince in the main hall? Everyone knows that the Ninth Prince served the late Emperor; to humiliate him is to humiliate the Great Qi royal family."

However, the nation's strength at the time no longer allowed for continued fighting. His Majesty exercised restraint in order to negotiate peace, but fortunately, His Highness the Crown Prince stepped forward, thus preserving the dignity of the Great Qi.

Su Zhi's eyes darted around. "Assuming the person behind this is indeed the Empress, the Ninth Prince helped her because he owed the Crown Prince a favor. But I can't understand why the Empress, who has neither money nor an army, would conspire with the prince of the Southern Frontier?"

If you want to rebel, just send a message to your brother and start an uprising.

Chu Jiuchuan didn't notice her strange expression, but instead asked seriously.

You mean the prince from the southern border?"

Su Zhi obediently replied, "Yes, the physician *** presented to His Majesty was named Pu Hong."

Chu Jiuchuan's body trembled, and he exclaimed in surprise, "The Xunyong Pass, where the Empress's brother is stationed, is only a hundred miles away from the Southern Frontier!"

Su Zhi stood up abruptly. "So, if the Empress and General Zhao collude with each other to launch a rebellion in the Southern Frontier, Daqi will be in grave danger! I will go to the palace now and explain this to His Majesty."

"Don't worry."

Chu Jiuchuan grabbed her, "You, a woman confined to the inner quarters, are interfering in court affairs and attacking the Empress. This will inevitably endanger your husband. Moreover, this is just our speculation. We cannot act rashly without concrete evidence."

"Then what do we do, just wait like this?"

Where is Doctor Pu now?

Su Zhi was taken aback. Xiao Zong's poisoning had caused such a big stir, yet her grandfather was unaware of it.

She thought about it for a moment and then she had the answer.

The old man was getting on in years, and his family was worried that he would be overly anxious, which might harm his health, so they kept the news from him.

"In the Leopard Guard."

"What's there to worry about now that we have the person in our hands? Let Xiao Zong interrogate him, and then we can take his confession to the palace."

Su Zhi initially wanted to tell Xiao Zong that he had already entered the palace, but after a moment's hesitation, she decided not to say anything.

Jiang Rou is a concubine of the Emperor and also a native of the Southern Frontier, making her a person of special status.

The case of her death remains unsolved. The most important thing now is to find the murderer so that Xiao Zong can be freed from his constraints and investigate freely.

“Grandfather is right, I’ll go back now.”

"Have dinner before you leave. You've come all this way, but you haven't seen your father yet."

"The situation is urgent, let's do it next time."

"Alright, bring Congyun along next time for a family reunion dinner."

Su Zhi agreed, curtsied, and turned to leave.

Leopard Guard.

Dou Zhao, dressed in military uniform, was about to leave when he saw Su Zhi and asked in surprise, "What brings you here?"

Su Zhi asked in confusion, "Why can't we come? Where's Xiao Zong? Has he returned yet?"

"Haven't you heard? His Majesty has appointed Your Highness as the General of Suiyuan to suppress bandits in the southwest. He will be departing soon!"

"So sudden..."

She murmured very slowly, when suddenly a thought flashed through her mind: the southwest, isn't that the southern border?

His Majesty, under the guise of suppressing bandits, actually intends to thwart General Zhao and the Empress's plot to rebel in the southern border region before General Zhao does.

But there is no evidence. How did Xiao Zong persuade His Majesty to send troops?

Where is Pu Hong?

"His Majesty just sent guards to take him away. He's probably in the palace now."

Su Zhi remained silent, lost in thought. Why would Pu Hong be so obedient and readily confess the real culprit behind the scenes?

However, the way things are unfolding now leaves her no choice but to believe it.

"Young Madam, I should go now. Why don't you come with me and see the master off?"

"Perfect timing, let's go."

Upon reaching the city gate, Su Zhi lifted the curtain and immediately saw the agile figure in front of thousands of troops.

Just as she was about to jump off the carriage, Xiao Zong looked over, shook his head at her with a stern face.

The man rode over, displeased, and said, "A person with twin bodies, still acting so recklessly."

Despite saying that, he was secretly overjoyed. Heaven knows how anxious and uneasy he felt when he went home to pack his bags and didn't see her!

Now, she appears before him in perfect health, her eyes reddening with tears of reluctance, making him feel incredibly sorry for her.

Su Zhi pouted and said aggrievedly, "I rushed here to see you, and the first thing you said to me was that you were mean to me."

She flung the curtain shut and angrily sat down in the sedan chair.

snort!

Never talk to him again!

Xiao Zong spurred his horse a few steps, then used his whip to lift the window screen, coaxing the little white dumpling inside.

"Angry?"

Su Zhi pounced and bit down.

Xiao Zong put away the whip, offered his hand, and watched her act arrogantly without flinching.

Its pearly white teeth touched its bronze skin, but it couldn't bear to actually bite, so it just rubbed against the skin for show before letting go.

"That's it?"

Su Zhi rubbed her cheek. "It's too hard, it hurts my teeth."

Xiao Zong reached out to help her, saying, "You're too soft."

Su Zhi: ...

With so many people watching, how can I say such things openly?

She took out a map and said, "You haven't seen a map of Worry-Free Valley, so I drew one. Take it with you."

Xiao Zong caught it and put it in his bosom, but said, "I already have it."