When Xiao Jin heard the words "swordsman", she knew that what Bai Zheng was about to say next was probably not that simple.
Under the high-rise building, the sound of the pipa gradually slowed down.
Bai Zheng's voice was as clear as a stone hitting water.
"A swordsman came to the building a few days ago. He looked decent and not like a wicked person, but he seemed a bit down and out."
Xiao Jin could only remember what the assassin's body looked like after Su Tan dissected it, and had forgotten what his face looked like specifically.
But as a listener, out of politeness, she still nodded her head in feigned interest.
As they chatted, Bai Zheng found a chair and sat down leisurely. "The girls at the Yanyu Building usually only see aristocratic children, and they have never encountered such a destitute young man before."
"She was also curious about the stranger and welcomed him into her room. She played a few songs on the pipa for him and listened to him talk about the world and martial arts. She was very happy."
Xiao Jin thought it was nothing out of the ordinary. After all, the plot that Bai Zheng mentioned was just a normal development in online novel.
But Chu Shao, who was standing aside, smiled slightly and surprisingly took over the conversation, "I see."
Bai Zheng furrowed her brows, not understanding what Chu Shao was talking about.
Even Xiao Jin and Su Tan, who were colleagues, didn't understand why she suddenly came up with such a sentence.
Just as Xiao Jin was puzzled, she saw Chu Shao reach out and stroke the ivory-carved fan bone.
She smiled softly and said, "I can understand their thoughts. After all, canaries are destined to be locked in cages all their lives until they rot and turn into corpses. When they are trapped in a cage for too long and suddenly see a person with a sword, they long for the vastness of the world, which is also normal."
Through a layer of white silk, Xiao Jin looked up and vaguely saw the soft curve of Chu Shao's lips.
Her smile was very naive, like a child blinking their eyes, talking to adults about their views on all things in the world.
Certainly, the scene was beautiful. However, she didn't quite understand where Chu Shao's sentiments came from.
Bai Zheng frowned, thinking that Chu Shao was implying that she imprisoned the girls' freedom.
But most of the girls in Yanyu Building were at their wits' end before they were taken in by her. Their coming and going were casual, and she did not deliberately confine them.
Just as she was about to explain, she saw Chu Shao's gentle smile, seemingly candid and straightforward.
Bai Zheng swallowed her words of retort, not really taking this matter to heart, and continued speaking, "But when that swordsman smelled the fragrance on the girls, his expression changed drastically. He changed his manner from before and without a word, he pulled them into a room. He was skilled in martial arts, and it wasn't until I arrived in haste that I sent someone to barely subdue the swordsman."
"At the time, I asked the swordsman why he did such a thing. He had a mournful look on his face and said he was selling his life for his lord, who had little time left, and so before he died, he wanted to come to Yanyu Building to listen to some music and pass the remaining time."
"However, when he smelled 'Spring Mountain Empty', he felt it was very familiar and wanted to ask the girls something, which led him to make a rash move."
Xiao Jin listened to this and couldn't help but frown. She lowered her voice and asked, "Miss Bai, the swordsman recognized the fragrance correctly. But why did he want to ask something after smelling the fragrance?"
Bai Zheng looked at the blind woman in the wheelchair, feeling a little surprised. Because the other party seemed unapproachable, as if not a person trapped in the world.
This kind of feeling of detachment was very similar to that of Prince Yan, but she did not expect that this person's reaction speed was so fast that she could immediately find the key point with just a few words.
If Xiao Jin could understand Bai Zheng's thoughts, she would probably feel embarrassed.
After all, she had received nine years of compulsory education, and even though it didn't fit in with the ancient dog-blooded world, she should still be able to pass the most basic reading comprehension, right?
Bai Zheng looked at Xiao Jin for a while and smiled, "Miss Chu asked a good question. That's what I thought at the time too."
"......"
Xiao Jin's face showed no expression, thinking that you praised me for asking a good question, but is it because you yourself asked the same question?
Is this what it means to sell melons while boasting?
Although the system gave her a clipped voice, as long as she didn't speak, Xiao Jin believed she could still fake a dignified demeanor.
In reality, everyone present, except for Chu Shao with her unique taste, was secretly holding back their laughter.
Even Bai Qin, who was hiding behind the screen observing in secret, felt that this woman's appearance and voice were not quite matching.
Bai Zheng knew that the other party was probably blind, but still politely didn't laugh out loud and continued, "At the time, I asked the swordsman what was wrong with the fragrance. But he hesitated for a long time and ultimately refused to answer. He also did not admit his identity and only hinted that he was serving his lord and had no regrets."
Hearing this, Chu Shao became curious and looked up at Bai Zheng with a smiling face, asking, "Miss Bai, then who is the person he serves?"
Bai Zheng averted her gaze and looked at Chu Shao with an ambiguous phrase, "Young Master Chu, it seems like you're asking too many questions."
"I'm asking too many questions?"
Chu Shao gently gazed at Bai Zheng and after a moment, a light laugh couldn't be restrained from her throat. "Miss Bai, it seems like you're also saying too much."
The sound of the pipa below did not stop, continuing endlessly.
Although Xiao Jin was unable to clearly see the expressions of the two people because her eyes were covered by white cloth, she could smell that familiar smell – the smell of gunpowder, the intense scent of war that was almost about to explode.
If she was not wearing an ancient costume but instead one from the end of the world, it was likely that these two people would not be calmly facing each other like they were now.
Perhaps they would smile and pick up a submachine gun and directly shoot the other in three to five seconds.
At this moment, Xiao Jin was extremely grateful that she was wearing an ancient dog-blooded costume where everyone had to maintain a facade of being gentle and courteous.
Ancient novel is really great. A world without guns is really peaceful.
As Xiao Jin thought, the two people only had a brief eye confrontation.
Of course, it was only a one-sided confrontation from Bai Zheng because Chu Shao's expression had not changed from beginning to end. She calmly smiled, showing no emotional fluctuations.
Finally, Bai Zheng lightly laughed and answered Chu Shao's question, "But after my repeated questioning, that assassin finally revealed some information."
"He said that the person he serves is... the most respected person in Qi country."
After speaking, there was silence in the room.
Xiao Jin sat in her wheelchair, also falling into silence, not knowing what to say."
After all, the most respected person in Qi country must be the emperor.
The original owner's father wanted to kill the original owner... to be honest, this was too magical and unreasonable.
Chu Shao held an ivory bone fan in his hand, and smiled slightly: "A fallen swordsman, but claiming to be loyal to the emperor. Miss Bai, do you also think this is absurd... full of interest?"
Bai Zheng sat on a mahogany chair, slightly tilting her head, and smiled at Chu Shao: "This young lady thinks that this person is talking nonsense and deceiving the emperor. According to the law of Qi country, he should be executed."
At this moment, Xiao Jin felt a headache, but couldn't help but lower her voice and question: "But, Miss Bai, you didn't send this person to the Dali Temple, did you?"
To Xiao Jin's surprise, Bai Zheng answered candidly: "Miss Chu guessed it right. I really didn't send this person to the Dali Temple."
Xiao Jin: "..."
No matter how many times Bai Zheng called her "Miss Chu", she could never associate this name with herself.
Bai Zheng sighed: "Just because this swordsman said that there were old and young people in his family, and all the money he earned from serving the lord was sent back home."
"I don't think this person is a wicked person, and considering that he had drunk one or two cups of wine before, he might have been talking nonsense. So I just kicked him out, and that was it."
After listening to Bai Zheng's one-sided account, Xiao Jinduan felt that the other party was still kind, and did not try to eliminate the troublemaker.
But when she thought of the incense pill stuck in the assassin's throat, she was a bit scared.
Xiao Jin looked at the smile on Bai Zheng's face and thought, if everything was true as the swordsman said and the assassin was eventually kicked out by her-
Then why did the incense pill end up in the assassin's throat?
Seeing that everything had been said, Bai Zheng still had important matters to deal with.
She couldn't keep Xiao Jin and her party any longer, just smiled and talked about some other things, and also expressed concern about Xiao Jin's eye and leg problems.
And meaningfully said to Xiao Jin: "Miss Chu, take care of yourself. After all, the illnesses on the body often depend on human intervention, not just destiny."
Xiao Jin was stunned, and had not yet realized what Bai Zheng's words meant, she saw the other party stand up and send them to the door.
Bai Zheng's laughter lingered in the empty room of the Spring Mountain, seeming to become blurred and elusive.
Before closing the door, she just smiled and said a sentence, "Miss Chu, see you again."
...
[Congratulations, host, unlocked key character: Bai Zheng]
[Bai Zheng's favorability +10]
[Due to the original host having 55 initial favorability points with Bai Zheng, Bai Zheng's current favorability towards you is 65 points. Please continue to work hard!]
"..."
Xiao Jin was completely taken aback that the original owner already had so much favorability towards Bai Zheng.
She began to question her life choices, feeling like she had watched a pirated version since she hadn't read the extra chapters.
If the original owner had so much favorability towards Bai Zheng, it meant that what she said was somewhat trustworthy.
However, just now, she disguised herself as a blind woman, and Bai Zheng probably didn't know who she really was, so she definitely wouldn't reveal everything.
Moreover, there was no reason for Qi Huang to assassinate the original owner, so Xiao Jin didn't believe the assassin's claim that the most esteemed person was Qi Huang, but she would believe it if it were the Crown Prince.
After all, given the male lead's character, he seemed like someone who could do such things.
If it weren't for Su Tan standing next to her and Chu Shao pushing her wheelchair, Xiao Jin would have sighed and marveled at the magical plot development.
She only stole a bride for the mission, but she had a feeling of reshuffling and restarting.
However, this feeling didn't even last for a second before things changed even more rapidly.
As soon as the cloud ladder descended to the third floor, the wooden frame violently shook for a moment. Then it got stuck between the second floor and the bottom floor, unable to go up or down.
As Xiao Jin was sitting in a wheelchair, she didn't feel much of the disturbance. Chu Shao had strong martial arts skills, so this small-scale shaking couldn't affect her much.
It was only Su Tan who suffered. She was not a martial artist and fortunately managed to grab the edge of the wooden frame in time to avoid falling to the ground.
This shake completely threw off Xiao Jin's train of thought.
Through a layer of gauze, she frowned and looked at the group of guards pouring into the Yanyu Building, feeling that the clothes they were wearing seemed familiar.
Before Xiao Jin could recall where she had seen these people, she heard a voice from outside the building that she was very familiar with.
The voice was light, but the ending tone slightly rose, sounding quite arrogant, "Only upon seeing it today do I know that Yanyu Building is truly extraordinary, deserving of being the number one building in the capital."
Just from this sentence, Xiao Jin instantly knew who it was.
The previous sentence could still be considered praise, but the next sentence clearly changed the tone.
"It's just too lively, and it's inevitable to get burned."
The sound of the pipa suddenly stopped.
Hearing such words, the songstresses stopped playing and turned their heads anxiously to look outside the Yanyu Building in the misty rain.
They saw the fourth prince, dressed in a fur coat, slowly stepping into the threshold with his guards.
After standing still, he smiled at the crowd inside the hall and said loudly, "Someone reported to this palace today that the Yanyu Building was involved in the assassination of the Prince Yan. Therefore, this palace specially came here to help my third brother catch the mastermind behind the scenes."
"So, you don't have to listen to this song today, everyone. This palace will invite you to listen to more songs at its mansion another day. As for now..."
The people already had suspicions about this person, who they knew was Xiao Yizhi. They were so scared that they even dropped the beauties in their arms.
They hadn't figured out what play the fourth prince was performing today, and then they heard him lightly say the last sentence.
"...Now, block the Yanyu Building and search it for this palace."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's note: Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated me with nutrient solution between 23:59:00 on February 8, 2022, and 23:59:23 on February 9, 2022.
TO BE CONTINUE...