The Imperial Guard has a full strength of two thousand people. Logically speaking, with such a large number of people, it is difficult to ensure that no one among them has evil intentions.
However, based on his several experiences with the Imperial City Guards and Leonhart's attitude, An still ruled out the possibility of a mole in the Guards.
Influenced by its predecessor, the Imperial Guard replaced hundreds of thousands of Imperial troops and became the symbol of the Empire's military power. The history of its predecessor being founded by the Imperial Regent made this thousand-man team somewhat legendary. Soldiers are proud to be part of it.
If ordinary people become one of them, they will easily become arrogant. No one in the escort team that Ke An had seen showed such signs! His discipline and quality can be seen from this. The friendly attitude of the members of the escort towards An also reflects this.
Moreover, the Guards only expanded once after the war ended and the name was officially changed. Since then, the number of members has not increased or decreased, and now it is far from the time for the replacement of the old with the new. According to the regent's methods, the loyalty of this force can generally be guaranteed.
And if there is really a mole in the escort team, as An said, with the resources and reputation the escort team has, the attack will not end with him being injured!
An was willing to believe in the escorts and also in Leonhart's discernment of people.
But the guess he made put more pressure on Leonhardt!
Anben thought that Leonhardt would be very troubled after hearing his words, because if the mastermind behind the scenes was really the person with the authority to assign tasks to the Imperial Guard, then the other party's status would be at least equal to Leonhardt's. Even higher. In this case, it is more difficult for Leonhardt to take measures.
But An didn't expect that Leonhardt's face not only showed no distress, but also relaxed with joy.
For a moment, An thought that Leonhardt was about to reveal his identity and confront the other party.
Thinking about it again, this is unrealistic, otherwise why would Leonhardt hide his identity for so many years. An speculated that he would only regain his identity after Lyco Ampelus returned to the Empire.
Having doubts in her heart was not conducive to the next plan, so An asked her question tactfully:
"You have someone you suspect?"
Noticing his inadvertently revealed emotions, Leonhardt easily heard the hidden meaning of An's words, and suddenly felt a little embarrassed:
"No, I think as long as there is no problem within the escort team..."
An was stunned for a moment. Although he had expected that Leonhardt's respect for Leko would extend to his trust in the Guards, he did not expect that Leonhardt's words would be so...childish.
Leonhardt, who has always been more reliable and steady than most adults, actually has such a side?
An couldn't help but smile.
Liliana slapped Leonhardt on the shoulder hard, with an expression on her face that said, 'What's wrong with you at this time?'
"Ahem..." Leonhardt straightened his voice and said, "In the entire empire system, the Imperial Guard was created by the King's brother himself. It has a special status. Except for the Princess, the only external people who can give orders to the Guard are currently There are only two powerful ministers.”
Leonhart's expression became solemn.
"One is Lord Alvin, who is in charge of economics and culture. He is in his sixties and has a high reputation among the ministers. His family has connections with the royal family. Even when Ling meets him in private, he will be addressed by his honorific title."
"Although Brother Wang is in charge of the direction of the post-war development of the empire, the specific implementation details are finalized by Lord Alvin. He seems to be a gentle old man, experienced and experienced in handling things. In recent years, it may be because of his age. As we get older, there is a tendency to gradually delegate power to younger generations.”
"The other one is Mr. Yin Weng, who is in charge of various government affairs. He is currently handling the political affairs that Ling cannot handle."
"Ionqing is not from a noble family. He climbed up from the position of herald step by step during the war. His ability is quite outstanding. He never slacks off in his work and never stops learning. Ionqing has tough political skills, but There is no lack of benevolence and righteousness. Even if his family background is weak and he is promoted quickly, few people will be dissatisfied with him."
"These two are Brother Wang's right-hand men, and their current status is only lower than that of the Princess. Before Ling grows up or Brother Wang returns, they are responsible for managing all aspects of the empire. The reason why they can give orders to the escort is because Make it easier for them.”
An listened to Leonhardt's story without missing a word. The more he listened, the heavier he felt.
These two people are the absolute core figures of the empire. If they are separated from each other, not to mention breaking their muscles and bones, at least it will be difficult to breathe in a short period of time.
But unfortunately, the two of them are the most suspect!
No matter who among them is behind the scenes, whether it is the difficulty of dealing with it or the difficulty of dealing with it afterwards, it can make people's heads as big as cattle.
An even had some doubts. Even if Leko returned to the empire now, could he really suppress these two people?
Lecco, who is the regent, has disappeared, and the princess has not yet grown up. The power in the hands of the ministers who are second only to the king is bound to increase.
Although they seem to be good people in Leonhardt's description, power is poisonous and people's hearts are unpredictable. Are they really willing to give back what they have received?
To be honest, An wouldn't find it strange even if these two people were colluding.
… We will keep the worst case scenario and see if we can narrow it down further.
An was thinking, going through Leonhardt's words in his mind, paying attention to the details. He thought very quickly and had the direction almost within seconds after Leonhardt finished speaking.
"...You seem to have more trust in Mr. Ion?" An looked at Leonhardt.
When Leonhardt described Alvin, his tone was somewhat suspicious, but when it came to the latter, this feeling disappeared.
Leonhardt nodded: "Yin Wengqing was promoted by Brother Wang. He encountered resistance from some old factions in the process. Brother Wang stood up to all odds and held him in high regard. In the past few years, Qing Yin Weng has been very important to him. Ling took care of everything and never hesitated to give guidance. There are many ministers who take care of Ling, but if you want to say who has the greatest contribution, it is undoubtedly Yin Wengqing."
Leonhardt was about to say this key information, but he just happened to get stuck after An's question. Next to him, Liliana showed a look of distress and gratitude.
Seeing that she had nothing to say here, Liliana simply said: "I'll go tell Mr. Hutto and them the news that you've woken up."
"Um."
After watching Liliana leave, Leonhardt looked at An:
"In my opinion, Sir Irwin is more suspicious, but there is no evidence that there is nothing wrong with Sir Ivonne. From the bandit attack to this assassination, these two people did have the conditions to organize themselves."
An was a little surprised that Leonhardt also suspected Ion. She was grateful but also had a headache. He still can't explain the exact relationship between himself and Leko Ampelus. If there is really a relationship, what is the situation of his sister Meiko...
Shaking his head to get rid of distracting thoughts, An thought about how to deal with it.
One is a highly respected veteran, and the other is an important minister with a prosperous career... Even if you only have suspicions, you must be cautious when facing them later.
Hey, economics, politics? What about the military?
Sensing the oversight, An asked: "Who is in charge of the imperial army?"
Leonhardt was stunned for a moment, and then said with some embarrassment: "Captain of the Imperial Guard, nominally also holds the position of general, but I am not qualified enough, and my instructor is currently taking care of me."
Well, this is suspicion on one of our own people, no wonder I didn’t mention it...
An's face also showed a bit of embarrassment.
But it’s better to ask clearly to avoid having to worry about it later.
"Then let's see if we can find clues to lock the target first, and then test it if conditions permit..." Halfway through, he realized it was all nonsense. An rubbed his dizzy head and said, "Assassin, you said you were being raped..." Did Miss Xiaoyue take her away?"
"Well, maybe Sister Xiaoyue can find some clues."
An paused for a moment.
He found that both Leonhardt and Liliana had an extremely high degree of trust in Xiaoyue, no less than their elder brothers.
If you think about it carefully, Miss Shinozuki is more suitable to be called a sister to Suzu and Lian than a close servant. When Miss Shinozuki was not present, they even directly called her sister!
Could it be that Xiaoyue is...
An suddenly trembled.
Inadvertently seeing Miku in his arms, An An started to murmur.
He looked at Leonhardt with some trepidation: "Well, uh, the relationship between Miss Xiaoyue and your brother is..."
Hearing An's words and seeing his expression, Leonhardt suddenly became happy.
Leonhardt suppressed a smile and said: "Sister Xiaoyue was the maid beside Brother Wang at first, and was later entrusted by Brother Wang to take care of me and Ling. She can even spend more time with us than Brother Wang, right. To us, she is more like a sister. Ha——"
In the end he couldn't hold it back.
An Neng felt that Leonhardt had not finished what he said, and was very dissatisfied with this unappetizing speaking habit, and asked urgently: "Miss Xiaoyue is really just a maid?"
Leonhart finally stopped laughing and was about to speak when a voice came from the door:
"I'm just a maid."
An and Leonhardt looked sideways, and Xiaoyue stood at the door.
The door was opened by Liliana and not closed. Even so, Xiaoyue did not enter without permission.
She leaned forward slightly and asked, "Can I come in?"
After asking about other people's affairs, the real owner broke the news. An was slightly flustered: "Please come in, please come in."
Xiaoyue walked over with a decent pace that even the most demanding person could not fault.
An asked: "Anything gained?"
He was referring to the interrogation of the assassin.
Embarrassing is embarrassing, business is more important after all.
"There is something gained, please allow me to talk about it later."
Ann and Leonhardt were heartened when they heard there were new clues.
As long as there are clues...
Feel happy in your heart.
Xiaoyue came to the bedside, leaned down slightly, and asked, "How is your wound recovering?"
An subconsciously pressed the bandage and said, "Ah, it's okay..."
Suddenly, his movements stopped.
Leonhardt saw that Ann's eyes suddenly widened, her pupils shrank, and her fingertips touched the bandage on her shoulder and remained motionless, as if her whole body was frozen.
"What's wrong? The wound is open?" Leonhart asked with concern, and at the same time he was a little confused, "There can be no problem with the wound treated by Xiaoyue."
"...It's nothing, I'm just surprised at how quickly the wound healed. Now I don't feel any pain at all."
To prove it, Ann shook her arm slightly.
Leonhardt was relieved and said with a little pride: "It's not surprising, she is the most outstanding doctor, but you still have to pay attention to your cultivation."
An nodded and suddenly looked at Xiaoyue.
Xiaoyue's expression is calm, as calm as a well, and will never change for anything...
