After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

Lin Yuchuan was completely convinced and felt that it wasn't a bad idea to deal with Lu Jian from the Investigation Bureau as well. "Yes."

"besides......"

Lu Jian paused for a moment before remembering what he wanted to say, "After the amnesty, have your people find a way to get rid of An Luoshi."

Anluo must be eliminated to appease public anger.

"As for the others, you can handle them as you see fit."

"Yes, Your Majesty. May I ask what should be done with that ebony hairpin bearing the personal seal?"

"Since it belongs to the Baili family, it should naturally be returned to its rightful owner." Having chosen the Baili family, how could he possibly keep their belongings?

Besides, it's just a hairpin.

If Baili Ce wants to, or if Baili Ming doesn't want to acknowledge it, they can easily get another hundred or two hundred, or something else, as a token. What use is this broken thing to him?

Why not do someone a favor?

Lin Yuchuan understood. "Yes, Your Majesty, I have another matter to report."

"speak"

"Based on the route provided by Yang Jinbao, his men went up the mountain to investigate twice, but found no trace of large-scale military activity."

"Moreover, although those bandits were fierce, they did not seem to have received military training, and most of the horses in the stronghold did not meet the specifications for warhorses."

Lu Jian lowered his head and pondered...

A guess began to form in my mind.

After pacing back and forth a few steps, he changed his mind again, "Don't touch An Luoshi for now."

"Keep a close watch on Baili Ce's every move, and report any news to me immediately."

"Yes"

......

"So you really want to be granted amnesty?" Baili Ming wanted to laugh when she heard this.

Feng Lan: "Yes."

"They either surrendered earlier or later."

"Wang Qingyan only offered amnesty when he was about to get serious, which clearly shows he was forced into a corner."

But if you ask her, she deserves it!

This will make the dog emperor trust no one.

"However... there was no imperial edict."

Bai Li Ce smiled nonchalantly, "Normal~"

If he didn't even have this much thought, what kind of emperor would he be?

She had always admired Lu Jian's skill.

But no matter how strong he is, he is still just a person.

At most, add an Investigation Division and half of the Ministry of War.

How could they possibly stand against all the powerful families?

How could someone possibly want to use the power of aristocratic families to incite them to fight each other and weaken each other, yet not want to get involved with them and dirty their own hands?

It's not so easy to sit firmly on a high platform.

"What did the informant in Thorncity say?"

Feng Lan shook her head, indicating that there had been no valuable news during this period.

"However, the Wang family head did send a considerable amount of real gold and silver up the mountain."

"They really are willing to spend that much," Baili Ming thought with a hint of envy.

"If it were any other young girl, she probably would have already offered herself to him."

But her sister didn't seem interested at all.

"Since the young lady is your sister, she must be exceptionally intelligent. How could she be like those young women, indulging in love?"

"Hahaha..." Baili Ming's laughter was truly as bright as the morning sun, and her eyes were like stars.

Feng Lan's words praised both of them!

and so--

With a deep look in her eyes, Baili Ming asked again, "Why is she unmoved?"

......

"Yes, why isn't she even slightly interested?"

Mingchuan asked the same question.

The person opposite her was her younger sister, Mingxiang.

"Well... I don't know either. Anyway, besides praising her master for being powerful, wealthy, and inhumanly rich, she didn't say anything else."

Completely inhuman?!

If this gets back to Wang Qingyan, he'll probably be unhappy.

"After receiving the food box, Miss Baili didn't say anything?" Mingchuan couldn't believe that Wang Qingyan's sweetheart wouldn't think of using this opportunity to reconcile.

Mingxiang immediately mimicked Baili Ce's actions and tone, saying to herself, "Want some? No, no, forget it."

“......” Mingchuan.

"Gone?"

"Gone"

Mingchuan took a deep breath and reluctantly accepted the fact.

"Alright, be careful and don't let An Luo find out."

Mingxiang nodded and, taking advantage of the darkness, skillfully made her way back to her room in the mountain stronghold.

Inside the room, Baili Ce was fast asleep, wrapped in a blanket.

Mingxiang touched the feather stuck in a crack in the door, and then checked her breathing.

After confirming that the two thin threads beside her pillow had not changed position, and that Baili Ce had indeed been sleeping the whole time, he felt relieved and went to bed.

"Mmm, mmm—"

July is the season when grass grows and orioles fly.

The chirping of insects was particularly loud, but it was inaudible to those who slept like logs.

Just as a short flute note came from outside the door, the sleeping Baili Ce suddenly sat up in bed.

She hurriedly put on her shoes and went out, while An Luoshi was already very impatient.

"follow me"

Bai Lize put on his shoes while following An Luo, who was not very happy.

Sure enough, all that talk about being a esteemed employer was just a bunch of lies.

She knew it; how could An Luoshi possibly truly believe her?

After rushing and nearly falling off the mountain, the two finally arrived at a cliff on the back of the mountain.

The chilly, windy environment gave Baili Ce goosebumps.

"here it is?"

"The place where the bandit gang usually dumps corpses."

Bai Lize suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and his feet go cold; there was someone on his back.

"That...Seventh Master?"

"I threw you off the spot where you were standing."

"What?!" Baili Ce quickly jumped away, covering a distance of more than two meters.

Then he clasped his hands together and bowed towards the spot, saying, "Don't be surprised if anything is strange, don't be surprised if anything is strange, please don't look for me, please don't look for me..."

With a familiar cold sneer, An Luoshi reverted to his displeased demeanor towards Baili Ce.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Baili Ce calmed down and moved to the other side of Anluo.

Phew, I suddenly feel much safer~

Then, trying to remain as calm as possible, I asked, "So you're finally willing to believe me?"

"It doesn't matter whether you believe it or not," An Luo said, crossing his arms and standing against the wind. "I just have no choice."

"Compared to Wang Qingyan, you can barely be considered a human being."

Upon hearing this, Baili Ce almost burst into tears.

You have to understand, what an honor it is for a ruthless and heartless capitalist like her to be praised as "a decent human being"!

"Why? Is Wang Qingyan so terrifying?"

An Luoshi didn't even look at Baili Ce before asking a disdainful question from the depths of his heart, "If you don't think he's scary, why did you come to me?"

"..."

Well... it's not that she's afraid of him.

It's after calming down...

In short, I'm not really willing to have too much contact with them.

"Does the He family really have a private army?"

"Have"

Bai Lizhe's nerves tightened immediately. "How many?!"

"Probably fifty or sixty thousand," An Luo replied without reservation.

So many...

Bai Li Ce was silent for a moment, then returned to the previous question, "Why are you so afraid of Wang Qingyan?"

"I thought you would ask where those private armies are hiding."

"Or do you think I'll definitely tell you?"

"The fact that you came to me means your death is not far off."

"And the one who has brought you this end must be more than one party."

"So?" An Luo asked.

"So all I have to do is wait for your death, and then the private army will come looking for me."

"..." This answer clearly displeased An Luo.

Bai Li Ce didn't care about any of that. "So, can you answer my question now?"

"And why are you so afraid of him?" An Luo asked again.

And then he began to analyze, "Wang Qingyan is so good to you, giving you 50,000 taels of silver so readily, and adding more whenever he wants."

"After you went up the mountain, they didn't hesitate to use their spies, whom they had planted for many years, to protect you."

If Mingxiang hadn't slipped up this time, he might never have found out.

"Just this affection, this care."

"You should believe him."

"Why would they rather trade with a ruthless bandit like me than with him?"

Yes, why is that?

From his abrupt change in attitude at their first meeting, the familiar scent on his wrist, the perfume he specially made for her, to his dietary habits of not eating Sichuan peppercorns and pork, Mingxiang's care for him, his understanding of her love for dried fruit, the shark pattern on the food box...

With so many hints and explicit statements, aren't they all telling her that he is her kind, that he won't hurt her, that he will treat her well, and that she should believe him?

But why didn't I look for him, and instead went to An Luoshi, that bandit?

because--

"My pleasure."