The suburbs of Beijing were very quiet at night, and a crescent moon appeared in the sky.
The coachman of the Duke's Mansion finally, with the help of Li Linhuai, cut a piece of wood to serve as a temporary coach shaft, and repaired the broken wheel.
Seeing the Fourth Young Master of the General's Mansion skillfully doing these car repair jobs, Li Linfu marveled at the side: "The Fourth Young Master is so good at doing this, it really impresses the subordinates."
"Not worth mentioning!"
Li Linfu, regardless of how reticent he was, struck up a conversation with him by praising him for his ability to repair cars.
"Did the Fourth Young Master learn this skill when he was on an expedition to central Guizhou?"
As if thinking of the difficulties of going to central Guizhou, Li Linhuai hummed and nodded.
Li Linfu went on to praise: "The lower official admires heroes like Fourth Young Master very much. At a young age, I have already followed General Fu Guo on an expedition through central Guizhou, and made great achievements in capturing the leader of Wuxi, Qin Xingzhang."
Faced with Li Linfu's enthusiastic conversation with him, Li Linhuai looked a little reserved, obviously uncomfortable.
"It's so ridiculous!"
Li Linhuai felt a little uncomfortable and looked at the driver of the Duke's Mansion: "Please wait here for a moment."
After saying that, he ducked and climbed up the mountain.
I thought it was getting late and the Fourth Young Master of the General's Mansion would be eager to lead his uncle's coachman back to the manor. Unexpectedly, at this time, he insisted on climbing to the mountain to check, regardless of the darkness.
Through the faint moonlight, Li Linfu's eyes darkened when he saw the person climbing on the rock like a dexterous bat.
Compared with Li Linfu, the coachman of the Duke's Mansion was obviously more restless.
Seeing the man climbing on the rock disappearing into the night on the mountain, the driver broke out in a cold sweat. He looked to Li Linfu for help.
After meeting Li Linfu's stern eyes, he didn't dare to murmur.
Fortunately, after a while, Li Linhuai returned along the original road and jumped back to the carriage.
"The Fourth Young Master is still very careful. There are no flash floods, and it has not rained in the past few days. How come rocks suddenly roll down?"
Li Linfu asked him: "Did the Fourth Young Master find anything wrong?"
"No, it's too dark!"
Li Linhuai's eyes were dim and unclear: "It's getting late, Mr. Jiang is waiting for his coachman to pick him up. I'll check back tomorrow morning."
Li Linhuai got on his horse and wanted to lead the Duke's coachman to Li Sixu's manor.
Li Linfu stopped him and said, "Fourth Young Master, I have a merciless request from you."
"The manor in Xiaguan's mansion is next to my uncle's manor. It is far away from here. It is very inconvenient to travel in the dark. At this moment, Xiaguan is very hungry. Can you follow me to the princess's manor to drink some hot soup to satisfy your hunger. "
Li Linhuai said expressionlessly: "Then follow me!"
Originally, the manor had left food for them, but because Li Linfu, his entourage and the coachman also came to the manor, the food left by the kitchen was not enough.
The steward had no choice but to ask the cook to add a few more dishes.
While waiting for the cook to serve the food, Li Linfu came out of the carriage to get something. He saw a person who looked like a maid stopping the kitchen boy.
"Agui, is the hot water in your kitchen ready?"
"Miss He'er, don't rush me!"
The boy told her: "The pot of hot water prepared in the kitchen was first sent to the Crown Princess and the tenth princess. At this time, Master Zuo Qingdao led another guest to the village. The kitchen had to prepare dishes and heat them. The water will have to wait a while.”
"Do we have to wait a while?"
The girl named He'er looked anxious: "But the princess's guest, Mr. Jiang, was very anxious. He said that his wife was frightened by the rocks that fell from the mountain today. She broke out in a cold sweat and wanted to take a hot bath to ward off the shock. .”
"These noble people are too delicate. They can be frightened like this if a stone rolls down the mountain..."
The boy's words were interrupted by the maid named He'er: "You don't know anything, just talk about it. Be careful and pull out your tongue. That Lord Jiang is a close minister of today's emperor. His wife is naturally more noble and delicate. Besides, the lady was so frightened that she also felt that it was strange that the pebbles rolled down today."
"Think about it. If it doesn't rain, there won't be flash floods. How come the rocks from the mountain rolled down for no reason, and hit the carriage of the Duke's Mansion. I heard that if it hit the carriage a little further, it would hit Mrs. Jiang."
He'er whispered to Agui: "During dinner, I heard Duke Jiang of Chu and his wife mention the dangers of falling stones. His Highness the Crown Prince felt something was wrong. When I went to serve in the inner courtyard, I saw the Crown Prince giving a few words to the guards around him. , and then the guard left Zhuangzi overnight."
Agui became interested: "Are you saying that someone wants to harm the Duke of Chu and his wife?"
"How dare you talk nonsense without proof or evidence? After all, Mr. Jiang and his wife were almost hit, and they suffered an unreasonable disaster. It is right for His Highness to be suspicious."
He'er sighed and said, "I used to envy those ladies from wealthy families who were well-fed and well-clothed. Now I think about the difficulties that wealthy families have. Look at an official as big as Mr. Jiang, and there are still people who want to harm him and his family." lady……"
Probably because he didn't ask for hot water, and knowing that the kitchen had to prepare dishes first, it was useless. After chatting for a while, He'er went to the inner courtyard.
Li Linfu stood in the corridor and did not move for a long time.
what to do?
Not only was Li Linhuai suspicious, but His Highness the Crown Prince was also suspicious. Hearing what his uncle and aunt said about the danger today, he had sent guards to check.
But fortunately, the night was very dark tonight, and Li Linhuai was as alert as he could climb the hillside without finding any traces. It must be difficult for the guards around the prince to gain anything.
It's just that there will be some trouble when it gets dark tomorrow.
There were so many masters around the prince, and there was also Li Linhuai who had followed the general of the auxiliary country on an expedition to central Guizhou.
If they saw any traces and traced them to him, it would be a serious matter. Not to mention being beheaded and exposed in the court, he didn't know whether he could keep his empty post as Prince Yu De.
Especially when he stood in the dark and saw a dark figure turning over into the courtyard wall, Li Linfu no longer even thought about going to the carriage to get something, and hurriedly turned back to the house.
The food in Zhuangzi is very delicious, and they are all special mountain delicacies and farm dishes, but Li Linfu, who was very hungry, couldn't taste the food for a while.
The carriage of the Duke of Chu's residence was hit by stones rolling down the mountain. The carriage of his residence happened to pass by, which would indeed arouse suspicion, if it were anyone else, but whether it was the prince or the tenth princess, they were all like human beings.
Only by finding a scapegoat can he be completely cleared of suspicion and become the crown prince or the tenth princess.
When Agui, the kitchen boy, brought the hot soup, Li Linfu easily pushed it to the groom of the Duke of Chu's mansion. However, when he pushed the bowl over, his fingers accidentally got dipped in the soup.
The coachman didn't notice his subtle movements at all, but was a little panicked because of Li Linfu's eyes falling on him.
When he entered the mountains from Li Linhuai to investigate, the coachman, who had something in his mind, had been uneasy for a long time. Now he met Li Linfu's eyes. He had almost eaten and got up quickly, and left on the pretext of feeding his horse.
