The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 57 - 56

Chapter 56

Jingyuan City

While the war between the royal court and the rebels raged on, Jingyuan City, the major city that served as a military stronghold, began to gain the upper hand after being at a disadvantage for a long time. The refugees were receiving aid, with Mu Gongzhen doing his utmost to assist them.

He ordered people to organize the refugees, set up tents specifically for them, and distribute the supplies that had been delivered, ensuring everyone had enough food to last until the war ended.

For the past two months, Mu Gongzhen had been working tirelessly. If he wasn’t immersed in the refugee camps, he was inspecting the city and military camps. As a result, every resident and soldier in Jingyuan City knew Master Mu!

In Mu Gongzhen’s personal lodging, the tall figure, having just returned from the refugee camp, sat resting on a chair. The past two months had taken their toll on him; he had lost a considerable amount of weight, and his face and skin had noticeably darkened.

Ding Yang, who brought in a tray of food, sighed quietly to himself. Despite his efforts to stop his young master from overworking, Mu Gongzhen never listened. In the end, he worked himself to the state he was now in.

"Your meal, sir."

"Not yet. I’m not hungry," Mu Gongzhen replied weakly, raising a hand to massage his temples for a moment. "Is there any news from the capital?"

"Yes, there is news from our informants and Uncle Wang." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Ding Yang walked to place the tray of food on his master’s desk. He then checked outside the room before closing the door securely.

"Our informants report that the capital has been quite unstable recently. Multiple waves of unrest have left various power factions uneasy, especially the Su family..."

Mu Gongzhen opened his eyes, revealing a calm expression as he raised his brows with surprise. He had only been away from the capital for two months, but within that short time, so much had happened. He found it hard to believe that the cunning old official, Su Anming, could be targeted successfully.

"Two months ago, there was a series of coordinated raids and vandalism on thirty businesses, all occurring on the same day. And all those businesses belonged to the Su family, causing them significant damage. A month later, Duan Wang Palace made its first move in many years. Duan Wang himself submitted a petition with evidence and witnesses concerning the illegal salt trade."

"Because this is a significant issue with complete evidence and witnesses, the power factions in the capital are all on edge, having to send people to eliminate any traces leading back to them. Especially the Su family, who hold the most interest in this matter, have had to eliminate many of their own people and lost a considerable amount of money in the process..."

Ding Yang reported all the facts while pouring tea for his master. Mu Gongzhen took the tea and sipped it to quench his thirst, a cold smile spreading across his face.

"I never thought someone would dare to target the Su family like this. Quite admirable."

"And that’s not all. Even now, the Su family hasn’t found any clues. It’s as if the perpetrators vanished without a trace."

"It seems likely that both incidents were orchestrated by the same person. The first attack on the Su family was through a raid, a plan that caused them significant pain. It didn’t attack their political strength but rather targeted their finances to draw their attention and disrupt their cash flow,"

Mu Gongzhen said with a light laugh, his eyes showing amusement.

"In the second attack, while it appears to involve multiple factions and not just the Su family, a closer look reveals two objectives. The first was to create turmoil for the Su family by disrupting their finances again. The second was to create chaos in the capital."

Mu Gongzhen ran his finger along the rim of the teacup as he thought. "Whoever this person is, they must be significant enough to enlist the help of Duan Wang, which means they are no ordinary person. What I am certain of is that they are stirring the waters in the capital..."

"Could it be a new power faction?"

Ding Yang asked, puzzled. But Mu Gongzhen shook his head with a faint smile. "I don’t know, but what I do know is that this person is hiding in the shadows, with no one aware of their true identity."

"And what did Uncle Wang’s message say?"

Mu Gongzhen shifted the conversation to Uncle Wang’s news. Earlier, he had sent someone back to inform Uncle Wang about the culprits and instructed him to investigate the mastermind behind the attacks while he focused on his duties in Jingyuan City.

"Uncle Wang reported that he managed to capture one of the culprits in time. After a long interrogation, it was discovered that the person was from Chief District Jian Ping. However, a mere chief district official couldn’t have orchestrated such a grand scheme, so Uncle Wang sent people to investigate further. While investigating, an assassin came and killed the entire Jian family to silence them."

"Although Uncle Wang couldn’t investigate further, he did find one clue. Jian Ping was once helped by the Left Side Chancellor in his youth..."

Mu Gongzhen immediately frowned upon hearing this. He hadn’t expected the situation to be more complicated than he initially thought. From the circumstances, it was plausible that the Su family was behind the assassination and sabotage, but without solid evidence and witnesses, it was difficult to draw a definitive conclusion.

It was true that several months before he set out for Jingyuan City, the Su family had frequently sent gifts and invited him to join their side, which Mu Gongzhen had consistently refused. This made it possible that the Su family might be motivated to target him because of this.

However, without solid evidence, he didn’t want to beat the grass and startle the snake.

“Ding Yang, send someone back to thoroughly investigate Jian Manor again. Make sure to find out if there was any contact between the two sides and look for more concrete evidence linking them,” Mu Gongzhen ordered in a firm voice, his expression more serious than before.

“Yes, sir,” Ding Yang responded immediately before turning to leave and carry out the orders.

Mu Gongzhen turned to look out at the view outside the window, his eyes cold and sharp. If this was truly the work of the Left Side Chancellor, he had his own secret cards to deal with that sly old fox as well.

Jian Manor

Three cities away from the capital lay Laifeng City, a small town. One of the town’s chief district officials was a man named Jian Ping. He was a small chief district official who kept to himself, living a simple life. However, in reality, he was a pawn in the hands of the Left Side Chancellor.

After he had completed his tasks as ordered by his superior, who would have thought that in the end, both he and his entire family would be silenced, murdered to keep them quiet? Since then, the Jian Manor had been sealed off.

Ding Yang, tasked with finding evidence, entered the Jian Manor secretly with five personal guards using their lightness skills, unnoticed by anyone. They split up to search for clues in different rooms. Most of the belongings in the house were destroyed and scattered.

Especially in Jian Ping’s study, where there wasn’t a single piece of paper or document left, everything had been cleared out. Ding Yang sighed deeply before trying to search every nook and cranny. However, the empty study seemed to yield nothing.

As Ding Yang was about to move to search another room, his eye was caught by the wall. At a glance, or during the night, it would be hard to notice, but in daylight like this, upon closer inspection, he saw that the surface of the wall was uneven.

He reached out to touch the wall, feeling the uneven surface, and found a spot that was slightly indented. He rubbed the area for a while before pressing on it.

Krrr~

The sound of a mechanism inside the wall echoed suddenly. Ding Yang quickly withdrew his hand and stared at the wall cautiously. Soon, the seemingly ordinary wall split into two sections, opening a passage just big enough for a person to walk through. It was a hidden passage!

Raising his eyebrows in surprise, Ding Yang hadn’t expected a small chief district official like Jian Ping to have a secret room. He stepped down the stairs of the hidden passage. The walls on both sides were thick, leading down to the lower level of the residence, to an underground chamber that had been constructed.

When he reached the bottom, he discovered another study-like room similar to the one above. However, this place was filled with documents and scrolls arranged on various shelves. It seemed that when the assassins came to kill the Jian family and destroy all evidence, they had not found this hidden passage. Thus, all the documents remained intact.

Ding Yang walked over and picked up a document from the table, reading its contents. He found that it detailed illegal mining activities occurring in the Yunchang Mountains nearby. As he continued to examine other documents, he found information about various corrupt activities.

When his eyes caught sight of an old wooden box, he immediately opened the lid. Inside were secret correspondence scrolls used to communicate with officials both high and low. The first scroll he picked up and read made him frown deeply without knowing.

Because the content inside was about the assassination and destruction of supplies related to his young master they had encountered!

Moreover, the secret message was closing with the Su character. Though it was small, he was very confident that it was an unmistakable character for Su!

Without hesitation, Ding Yang ordered his men to help gather all the documents in the underground room to report back to the young master in Jingyuan City swiftly.

This visit to the Jian Manor seemed to yield considerable benefits...

Upon returning to Jingyuan City, Ding Yang and his men immediately reported all the gathered documents to their master. Mu Gongzhen read through the documents and connected the events in a short time, realizing that the mastermind behind the sabotage of the supplies was indeed the Su family!

Moreover, he uncovered many more dirty secrets and corrupt activities perpetrated by the Su family. Given all the documents and the events that had transpired, it was evident that Jian Ping was not a fool. He must have known he might meet such an end one day, so he had gathered and hidden all the evidence in the underground room. If the Jian family fell, the Su family would not escape unscathed.

“What will you do next, young master?”

Ding Yang asked curiously. With all the evidence, they could confidently identify the true culprit.

“If the Su family thinks of attacking me, do they think I’ll just sit idly by and let them have their way?” Mu Gongzhen smirked coldly, his eyes glinting with a chilling light.

“If I’m not mistaken...Deputy Commander Wei is aligned with the Su family, right?”

“Yes, sir. Deputy Commander Wei is a close associate of the Left Side Chancellor, managing military affairs on his behalf.”

Mu Gongzhen smiled mockingly upon hearing. “Previously, Uncle Wang uncovered evidence of embezzlement by the Wei family involving military funds. Now, we have both the evidence and witnesses. Since the Su family is already in turmoil, a little more chaos would be quite beneficial.”

“Although this might not bring down the Su family entirely, gradually cutting off their limbs until they have no way out would be much more effective.”

Mu Gongzhen spoke while laughing, his laughter sending chills down one’s spine. “The Wei and Su families are well-known for their close relationship. If the Wei family faces major troubles this time, the Su family certainly won’t be able to escape unscathed.”

Upon hearing this, Ding Yang immediately understood his master’s intention. It was clear that he wanted to take revenge by further adding insult to injury. The capital was going to be in turmoil once again.

Not long after the illegal salt trade issue had been resolved, the capital fell into chaos once more. The investigation officials submitted a petition about Deputy Commander Wei’s embezzlement of military funds, complete with witnesses and evidence, leaving no need for further investigation.

This news became a major scandal in the capital. The involved officials couldn’t escape, and His Majesty seized the opportunity to conduct a massive purge of corrupt officials. The stench of blood spread throughout the capital, with many families falling under execution orders.

The Su family was particularly anxious. Problems attacked them continuously, and even though the Left Side Chancellor held significant power, he turned pale from being targeted all at once.

In just three months, the capital experienced a series of major events. The royal court purged dozens of families, with thousands of lives taken. It was one of the bloodiest periods in many years...

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