Huanzhu Time Travel: Yan Luo's Unbreakable Love in the Yong Dynasty

Just then, a group of soldiers burst into the teahouse, and the leader shouted, "Someone reported that there are suspicious people here. Search the place!"

Xiao Yanzi and Hongli were startled and quickly lowered their heads, trying to hide their faces.

Xiao Yanzi nervously grabbed Hongli's hand and whispered, "Fourth Prince, what should we do?"

Hongli's eyes remained calm as he replied in a low voice, "Don't panic, let's assess the situation."

The officers and soldiers searched the teahouse, gradually approaching the corner where they were located.

"You two, raise your heads!" a soldier shouted as he walked up to their table.

Hongli slowly raised his head and calmly said, "Sir, what has caused such a commotion? We are just ordinary people having tea here."

The officer sized him up and said suspiciously, "Hmph, you don't look like an ordinary citizen. Come with me!"

Little Swallow couldn't help but stand up and shout, "What right do you have to arrest us? What crime have we committed?"

The officer leader said impatiently, "Someone reported that there are suspicious people here who are related to the Shadow Pavilion. If you are not, then go to the yamen and explain yourselves!"

Just then, the teahouse owner rushed over.

"Sir, sir, these two are regular customers of our shop. They are honest and law-abiding people. There must be some misunderstanding, some misunderstanding!" the shopkeeper said with a smile.

The officer in charge refused to believe it: "Boss, you think you can just say it's not true? If there really is a problem, you can forget about keeping this teahouse open!"

Little Swallow's eyes darted around, and a plan came to her. She suddenly feigned weakness and cried, "Sir, we are truly innocent! My brother and I depend on each other for survival, and our ailing mother is waiting for us to take care of her. If you arrest us, what will happen to her?"

Hongli also played along, putting on a sorrowful expression: "Your Excellency, please investigate thoroughly! We were just here to discuss how to treat my mother's illness, and we are by no means suspicious people."

The officers and soldiers hesitated after hearing their words.

Just then, Lin Yuhang and General Zhaohui arrived outside the teahouse. They had learned that Xiao Yanzi and Hongli had come to the teahouse to investigate and, fearing for their safety, had followed them.

Seeing that the soldiers were about to arrest people, Lin Yuhang hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Sir, wait! These two are my friends. I can guarantee that they are not bad people."

General Zhao Hui stepped forward and revealed his identity: "I am here. What is the reason for you officers and soldiers to arrest people indiscriminately?"

When the officers and soldiers saw that it was General Zhao Hui, they all saluted.

The officer in charge of the troops said, "General, we are just following orders. Someone reported that there are suspicious people from the Shadow Pavilion here, so we dare not be negligent."

General Zhao Hui frowned and said, "I have been investigating the Shadow Pavilion. These two are assisting me in the case. You must not disturb them."

The officers and soldiers dispersed after hearing this.

Little Swallow breathed a sigh of relief and said to Lin Yuhang and General Zhao Hui, "Brother, General, you came just in time. We were almost captured by them."

Lin Yuhang said with a smile, "Sister, I knew you might be in danger here, so the general and I came over quickly."

Hongli said, "We owe you all this time, otherwise we would have had a hard time getting away. However, this also shows that our actions have been watched, and we need to be more careful."

General Zhao Hui nodded and said, "Fourth Prince is right. It seems that the Shadow Pavilion is secretly monitoring our every move. We must find their weakness as soon as possible."

The group left the teahouse and returned to a safe place to stay.

Xiao Yanzi said, "I overheard those two talking at the teahouse today. The Minister of Rites is definitely up to something. We can't just give up on investigating him like this."

Hongli pondered for a moment: "That's right, but what just happened has alerted them. We need to find a different approach."

Lin Yuhang suggested, "We can start by investigating the people around the Minister of Rites, such as his advisors or confidants. Perhaps we can get some clues from them."

General Zhao Hui agreed, saying, "This is an excellent plan. I can send people to secretly monitor their movements and see if we can find any clues."

So they began to act according to the new plan. General Zhao Hui's men closely monitored the actions of those around the Minister of Rites, while Xiao Yanzi, Hongli, and Lin Yuhang analyzed the clues they had obtained earlier, trying to find the connections between them.

"Look, in the records of the Minister of Rites' exchanges with the frontier, there are several transactions that are highly suspicious, seemingly involving the smuggling of contraband," Lin Yuhang said, pointing to some documents.

Little Swallow's eyes lit up: "Could these contraband items be related to the Shadow Pavilion's conspiracy? For example, are they used to manufacture some secret weapon or to bribe officials?"

Hongli pondered for a moment and said, "That's possible. We need to find out where these items went and what they were used for."

Just as they were having a heated discussion, news came from General Zhao Hui's men that they had discovered that an advisor to the Minister of Rites was frequently visiting a remote village and behaving very suspiciously.

"Let's go see what secrets that village holds!" Little Swallow said excitedly.

The group immediately set off, quietly approaching the manor. When they arrived near the manor, they found it heavily guarded, with many men in black patrolling.

"It seems there's definitely something wrong here. Everyone be careful," Hongli whispered a reminder.

They cautiously sneaked into the village, only to find a pungent odor permeating the place.

"What's that smell? It's awful!" Little Swallow said, covering her nose.

Lin Yuhang frowned and said, "This smells like some kind of medicine. Could this be a place where they develop poison or antidote?"

Hongli said, "Never mind what it is for now, let's look for any evidence related to the Shadow Pavilion."

They searched the estate thoroughly and finally found some letters and ledgers in a secret room. The letters recorded details of transactions between the Minister of Rites and the Shadow Pavilion, while the ledgers showed their financial transactions.

"Haha, we've finally found it! This evidence is enough to link the Minister of Rites with the Shadow Pavilion." Little Swallow jumped up happily.

But just then, the door to the secret room suddenly closed, and a triumphant laugh came from outside.

"Do you think you can take the evidence so easily? Today is your death day!" a voice shouted.

Xiao Yanzi, Hongli, and the others were startled; they were now in a new crisis. Would they be able to break through this time and bring the evidence out?