The imperial prison was not very big, and there were not many prisons in it. Like other prisons, the prison was small and cold, with no sunlight all year round. The cell door is a row of iron bars, and every iron bar on the iron bars is as thick as a thumb.
Generally, people who are caught in prison will look very scared and desperate. Some people will collapse on the ground like dead fish, and some people will hold on to the bars and scream at the top of their lungs. Some people will fight for their lives in order to be forgiven by the emperor, while others will remain silent and accept the final judgment.
Du Ziqi was different. His expression was still calm, his breathing was still gentle, and he stood leisurely behind the iron fence with his hands behind his back.
When Zhou Jin came to him, Du Ziqi bowed slightly and said respectfully, "Wei Chen has met Her Royal Highness the Princess."
Zhou Jin didn't speak, just waved his hand. Du Ziqi stood up straight, looked at Su Zhou again, smiled and said, "I have met General Su."
After an hour's rest, Su Zhou also calmed down, looked at Du Ziqi calmly, and said, "I've met Captain Du."
Finally, Du Ziqi's eyes fell on Su Shi.
When he looked at Su Shi, his eyes were slightly closed and his pupils were slightly dilated, with a look of scrutiny in his eyes.
Su Shi stood behind Zhou Jin and Su Zhou and kept looking at Du Ziqi.
Du Ziqi, now forty-one years old, entered the Secret Guard at the age of eighteen.
His father, Du Cheng, was once the emperor's sword-wielding guard and was loyal to the emperor. The emperor was grateful for his loyalty, and when Du Ziqi was eighteen years old, he was admitted into the secret guard and became the emperor's personal soldier.
And Du Ziqi lived up to expectations. In the past twenty-three years, everyone admired him both as a person and as a person, and he had never made a mistake.
His family is also very happy, his wife is virtuous and modest, his children are gentle, respectful and thrifty, and his grandchildren are lively and lovely.
So no matter which way you look at it, Du Ziqi has no reason to betray the emperor.
At this time, Du Ziqi's face suddenly showed a playful expression. He looked at Su Shi and suddenly shouted: "Su Shi, Mr. Su."
Everyone couldn't help being surprised. They didn't expect that Du Ziqi would recognize Su Shi.
Su Shi tilted his head slightly, touched his nose, and said, "Do you know me?"
Du Ziqi said calmly: "Young Master Su is so well-known in the capital. If you don't even know Mr. Su, wouldn't it mean that I am too ignorant?"
Su Shi showed his face and said, "So Master Du also likes poetry?"
Du Ziqi said: "I know nothing about poetry."
"Then I wonder why Mr. Du pays attention to me?"
Du Ziqi said calmly: "Anyone who looks strange in the capital will be the target of the Secret Guard's attention. Don't take it personally, Master. This is just the responsibility of the Secret Guard."
"Is there anything strange?" Su Shi's pupils shrank and he asked slowly, "I don't know how to explain it?"
"Anyone who is different from what he appears to be, who is different from before and after, and who behaves differently, speaks differently, and behaves differently, can be said to be strange."
Su Shi held up his palm and said: "The appearance is different, the inside and the outside are inconsistent, and there are different behaviors, different words, and different behaviors. Those who are called strange, Mr. Du summed it up well."
Then he asked lightly: "Does Mr. Du belong to the category of strangers? As a soldier of the emperor, but you deceive the emperor, does it count as a duplicity?"
Du Ziqi's expression did not change at all. He said word by word: "Since I am the emperor's personal soldier, I should do my best to serve your majesty. How can I deceive you?"
"So, the haunting of Hongmei Pavilion and the death of Cui Peng have nothing to do with you?"
Du Ziqi smiled slightly: "Everything is just the young master's speculation. If the young master has any evidence, please bring it out so that everyone will not have a quarrel of words."
Su Shi suddenly asked in a deep voice: "How do you know that all this is my speculation?"
Du Ziqi's expression finally changed at this time and became extremely ugly.
Su Shi didn't look at him. He was looking at Zhou Jin and asked, "Did you tell him?"
Zhou Jin looked surprised and immediately shook his head: "I never mentioned your name."
He looked at Su Zhou again, and Su Zhou smiled and said, "I never mentioned it either."
Su Zhou thought for a while and said: "Whether it was on the boat or in the general's mansion, the only people who knew about this matter were Her Royal Highness the Princess and you. Since you didn't say anything, I don't know where Du Da learned about all this." My guess?"
Then he looked at Du Ziqi doubtfully and asked, "Does Master Du have clairvoyance and ears?"
Du Ziqi's eyes flashed, his lips tightened, and he no longer had the calmness he had before.
Seeing that Du Ziqi didn't speak, Su Shi was not in a hurry. He continued, "Actually, there is one thing that I haven't figured out until now."
Zhou Jin asked: "What happened?"
"Cui Peng's death."
Zhou Jin was a little strange and couldn't help but said: "When the other party knew that we were tracking Cui Peng, they naturally understood that the conspiracy they did nine years ago had been exposed, and of course they wanted to silence Cui Peng out of desperation."
Su Shi shook his head and said: "Being still is worse than moving. For them, the risk of killing Cui Peng is far higher than that of Cui Peng being caught."
"Why?"
"Because as Mr. Du said, all this is my speculation and there is no solid evidence. So even if you arrest Cui Peng, as long as he insists on denying it like Mr. Du, there is not much you can do against him."
"Maybe they were worried that Cui Peng wouldn't be able to withstand the torture?"
Su Shi asked back: "Will you use torture?"
Zhou Jin and Su Zhou remained silent.
The reason they didn't arrest Cui Peng immediately was because there was no reason to arrest him, so they couldn't use torture.
Su Shi sighed: "I believe the other party must know you very well."
Su Zhou mused on the side: "Maybe they were already panicking at that time. Anyone who knows that the bad things they have done will be exposed soon will panic and choose a way out."
His explanation made sense, and even Zhou Jin couldn't help but nodded slightly.
But Su Shi said: "Others may do it, but he won't."
"He? Who is he?" Su Zhou frowned.
"He's the one behind all this."
"Why wouldn't he?" Zhou Jin couldn't help but ask.
Su Shi said slowly: "It is not easy to come up with a perfect plan in a short period of time, because a plan contains countless details. The more perfect the plan, the more precise the details, and they are interlocking and must not be There’s just the slightest mistake.”
At this point, he couldn't help but sigh: "And since this person can think of such a perfect plan in such a short period of time, and can also implement it perfectly under the supervision of your eyes and ears, it shows that this person is not only Very smart and calm, but also very determined and courageous.”
"How can such a person be as panic-stricken as a rabbit being chased by a hunter?"
Zhou Jin and Su Zhou couldn't answer, and Su Shi couldn't figure it out either, so he looked at the pale Du Ziqi and said with a smile, "I wonder if Mr. Du can help me clear up my confusion?"
