Chapter 4 undercurrent
It was still raining outside, and because the windows were closed, the sound of pedestrians passing by on the street was muffled by a layer of fog. Compared with the eerie and silent atmosphere in the house, it actually made her heart beat faster.
Su Moyi seemed to have heard it but also seemed not to have heard it.
From the beginning to now, he was like a jade sculpture, hidden in the fragrance of tea, without any distinction between emotions.
Perhaps it was the pressure of someone who had been an official for a long time, or perhaps it was his temperament of being a nobleman, Lin Wanqing put away her recklessness for no reason and only looked up at him.
Putting his white jade-like fingers on the rim of the cup, he tapped it three times. Su Moyi said with a half-smile, "Lin Lushi's analysis makes sense."
Lin Wanqing was stunned for a moment. This compliment that didn't sound like a compliment made her laugh. She didn't know how to answer the question, so she just asked in a low voice: "Does Lord Su want to take this case away?"
Su Moyi didn't reply to her, only raised the corner of his mouth, stood up, and lifted the hem of his robe as if to leave.
Lin Wanqing was even more confused, and turned around after him, "Lord Su?"
The man in front of him paused, and there was both appreciation and regret in his voice.
"This case belongs to Jingzhao Prefecture. Although Dali Temple has the right to propose a case, since Li Jingzhao said that the case has been solved, it is a matter for review by the Ministry of Punishment.
"So even if your Excellency knows that Wang Hu was wrongly accused and the real culprit is on the loose, Are you not going to intervene?"
Su Moyi turned to look at her. Because of the difference in stature between the two, he leaned forward slightly and looked at Lin Wanqing with disdain in his eyes: "I don't know whether Wang Hu is innocent or not, but I know that you only know about the rape and murder case, but you don’t know about the Wang Hu case. You only know about Li Jingzhao, but you don’t know about me.” He smiled and asked back with a questioning certainty"“Isn’t?”
Lin Wanqing had nothing to answer.
Su Moyi walked straight out of the small room and ordered the guards to prepare the car. It wasn't until Su Moyi and the others left the restaurant and got on the carriage that Lin Wanqing came back to her senses. She looked at Liang Weiping, who was even more confused than she was, and asked, "What did he mean by what he just said?"
*
Washed by the rain There is some water on the street where we pass, and there will be some water stains when the wheels run over it.
Ye Qing was riding the horse, occasionally turning his head to look at the person behind him who was a little unusual today.
He had followed Su Moyi for nearly ten years, and this was the first time he had seen his master do such an unbelievable thing.
First, he was sent to follow the two petty officials, and then he was asked to invite the two people who insulted him. Finally, he walked out of the restaurant with a smile on his face and contentedly... The more Ye Qing thought about it, the more strange he felt. The reins in his hand were tightened without noticing, startling the horse and causing a commotion in the carriage.
"If you keep looking around and complaining in your heart, don't follow me. From tomorrow onwards, go to Dali Temple to sweep the floor."
A voice came from behind, unhurried and not angry.
Ye Qing felt a shiver run down his spine, and he turned around as if he was in a hurry, but he heard the person behind him say again: "That little clerk is indeed a rare in the prison, and just being a clerk is a waste of his talent."
Ye Qing was shocked, feeling that his master might be able to read minds, and no one's thoughts at any time could escape his eyes.
"Then why don't you..."
Before Ye Qing could finish asking, Su Moyi laughed and threw something on the small case in the car with a muffled sound.
"It's a pity that he only knows how to solve crimes and has no knowledge of officialdom. It's not a good thing to put his flamboyant temper in Dali Temple."
Ye Qing didn't expect this and asked again: "What are you going to do, sir?"
Su Moyi was silent for a moment. His eyes fell on the file on the small case, and the look in his eyes brightened a little.
He folded his index finger and thumb on his knees and said warmly, "Just wait, he will understand after some hardship."
"But sir do you really not care about those two cases?" Ye Qing asked, perhaps because he was afraid of being criticized. Gotta be careful.
Su Moyi was too lazy to tell him more, and said angrily: "Is this the first day you have met me? The emperor just wanted to clean up the imperial court, and the people he planted in Songzhong Academy were gone. How deep is Wang Hu's case? , He is a little recorder and doesn't know about it, but don’t you know about it?” Ye Qing was scolded by Su Moyi for no reason, and he said unwillingly: “Then if you just leave it alone and go to the Ministry of Justice, how can you have any room?”
Mo Yi sneered and hit the low table in the car with the distinct knuckles of her index fingers, making a muffled sound.
Before Song Zhengxing was promoted to Zhongshu Ling, he was the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment.
The case reached the Ministry of Punishment, and he just happened to dig up the remaining members of his men who were left in the Ministry of Punishment. Look up and see what kind of monsters, ghosts, and demons are standing behind this person.
You must know that the few cases that the emperor is staring at are not handled by a mere secretary of the Central Committee.
But he was too lazy to tell Ye Qing about these twists and turns and court intrigues, so he just said coldly: "You are my personal bodyguard, not the Prime Minister of Dali Temple."
"..." Ye Qing was shocked. He was speechless, thinking that his ancestor's poisonous tongue syndrome might have recurred again, so he had no choice but to hang his head, shut up and drive in silence.
After passing a few streets, the carriage stopped at the entrance of Dali Temple.
Su Moyi took off his official robe and got out of the car. He ordered the people to move all the files in the car to the study room where he was handling official documents. The sound of wheels came from a distance through the rain.
"Your Highness," the person who came was the old steward of Su Moyi's mansion. He handed a jade plaque to Su Moyi and said, "Your Highness, have you forgotten what day it is?"
Su Moyi looked at the jade plaque. Startled, I suddenly remembered that today is the Empress Dowager's birthday.
It seems that I have been so busy recently that I can even forget days like this. The Empress Dowager raised him single-handedly, like a father and a mother. If she knew that he couldn't even remember her birthday, she would be really sad.
He couldn't help feeling a little regretful, took the jade token from the steward's hand, and looked up behind him.
As expected, he was a considerate old man. He even brought the clothes he needed to wear when entering the palace.
Su Moyi felt relieved and followed the old steward in to change clothes. She casually asked Ye Qing to find the set of unique books that he had collected in his study room.
The Queen Mother loves books. In her early years before she left the imperial court, she had the temperament of a little girl and loved all kinds of short story books.
Later, when she entered the palace and received divine favor, she had to be dignified and generous, and her mother should be courteous to the world. She left behind such unseemly hobbies as reading storybooks.
Of course, Mr. Su, who is very perceptive, can see everything clearly.
After Su Moyi had sorted everything out and wrapped the storybook in a history book, he entered the palace before the banquet started.
The Empress Dowager's birthday banquet is a big event. But the Empress Dowager has always been frugal, and this time it wasn't her tenth birthday, so she didn't make any extravagant arrangements. The banquet is only held in the imperial garden of the palace, and relatives of the emperor and officials of the third rank or above can bring their family members to attend.
It was still early when Su Moyi arrived. After meeting his fellow clan members who were present, his attention turned to Song Zhongshu's position - Kong Kong.
Although it was reasonable, Su Moyi felt an unexpected wave of depression in her heart...
"Jing Che."
Su Moyi paused for a moment, then turned around and bumped into the person next to him. Just when he was about to bow and apologize, someone held his hand in a very affectionate manner. He was startled, and then said, "Prince Liang."
Seeing his formality, Prince Liang smiled loosened his hand, and said, "In terms of seniority, I am your uncle's grandfather. Is this habit of calling you by your title forced by the officialdom"
Su Moyi nodded and did not answer.
In terms of seniority, Prince Liang was indeed his mother's uncle. However, due to his in-law relationship with the prince's mother's family, he was known throughout the court as a "princeling".
Su Moyi only worked for the emperor and did not want to get involved with any forces in the court, so on such occasions, he adhered to a business-like attitude.
"You also know about that matter?"
Su Moyi looked up and saw Prince Liang looking at Song Zhongshu's empty seat.
"Well, I didn't know until today when I was ordered to go to Jingzhao Prefecture."
"I heard that the murderer was arrested on the spot?" Prince Liang casually asked while brushing his sleeves.
The two of them walked along the path in the imperial garden to the seats where the royal family members were seated.
The atmosphere was filled with the fragrance of flowers, but Su Moyi frowned slightly when he heard this, and replied lukewarmly: "The arrested person has not been reviewed by the Ministry of Punishment, so he may not be considered a murderer yet."
A few hearty laughs came, and the person walking in front stopped and looked back at him, with a joking tone he said: "Lord Su's style of doing things in a strict and rule-by-the-book manner, Today I have finally experienced it."
Seeing that Su Moyi still had no expression, Prince Liang changed the topic and said, "I have heard about Wang Hu of Jinwu Guard."
"Oh?" Su Moyi was surprised.
"He was quite notorious among the Jinwu Guards before. According to his colleagues, Wang Hu is addicted to wine and sex. He was also a frequent visitor to Brothels. I never thought that he would indulge himself to this extent..." Prince Liang sighed, and he said with a bit of regret in his tone: "He is now under arrest, and even if he died to atone for his crime, it can be said that he deserves it."
Su Moyi did not answer and followed Prince Liang silently along the path.
The willows on the palace walls are in the moonlight, and the night wind blows in the evening tower.
The melon-shaped palace lantern cast a dim halo on him, making the whole person appear close yet indifferent.
It has to be said that Su Moyi, who is only in his weak years now, even when facing a prince who is much older than himself, the coldness that comes from enforcing the strict laws also carries a natural majesty.
When he doesn't speak, he can put invisible pressure on people.
Prince Liang also fell silent. He was about to say something more, but the roaring sound of Dahuangmen came from a distance. Everyone present knelt down when they heard the sound.
The banquet began, and after all the officials paid homage, there was singing and dancing.
Su Moyi's position was arranged among the princes, only one step lower than the prince.
He sat down and looked up at the Empress Dowager, who was not far away. The old lady was wearing a festive gold-red dress today. She was leaning sideways to talk to the nanny next to her, but her eyes were fixed on the people sitting below her as if she were looking for someone.
Who else could she be looking for?
Su Moyi lowered his head and chuckled, rubbing the script with his fingertips, making the script rustle.
"Royal Grandmother," he walked over slowly, "today is your birthday, and your grandson will definitely be here."
Then the Empress Dowager focused her eyes and watched his face instinctively stretch out, but halfway through, she didn't know what to think. So she pretended to be sulky and held it back, and she showed a weird look of neither getting up nor down, laughing and angry at the same time.
The Empress Dowager raised her hand and grabbed Su Moyi in front of her.
"I thought you still don't know the birthday of your royal grandmother."
With this tone, he knew the expression on the Empress Dowager's face without even looking at it.
Su Moyi immediately handed over the small storybook in his hand and said with a smile: "This is a gift specially prepared for Grandmother." The Empress Dowager saw a set of history books in his hand and became even more angry and was about to get angry. At this time, Su Moyi moved to her side, blocking the sight of the palace maids, and opened a corner of the book and whispered: "This is the only copy."
The anger that was about to burst out disappeared in an instant, and the Empress Dowager smiled happily and ordered someone to put the book away. Turning to Su Moyi, she muttered, "It's a pity to use your heart on this old woman. It would be great to use it to coax a little girl."
Su Moyi's spine shudders with an ominous premonition.
The Empress Dowager has been keeping an eye on his marriage for more than a day or two. Before, it was fine, and she always wanted to do it for him. But since he became the minister of Dali Temple, he has gradually become busy. Every time the Queen Mother saw him, the topic of conversation became "forced marriage"...
"This... ahem... isn't it because I am so busy with official duties that I can't spare time to pay attention to others..."
He put his hand into his fist and coughed lightly. While looking for a reason, he turned around and prepared to escape, but was pulled back by the Empress Dowager again.
"Look at you, you are either dealing with dead people or criminals all day long. You used to be a handsome young man, but now you always have a stern face. When grandma sees you, I have to give you an extra coat, otherwise, I will always feel that you are too scary and ugly."
After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, she actually had an extra thin coat.
"..." Su Moyi stood calmly, not daring to say anything.
"Grandma feels that you have reached the age of starting a family and starting a business too early. It might be a good idea to find someone to take care of you or take care of you so that grandma can feel more at ease."
"My grandson respects grandma's teachings." Su Moyi didn't dare to listen anymore. Go down, bow obediently, and get ready to leave.
"So, don't run away!" The Empress Dowager said and pulled Su Moyi back, "Did you know that your cousin returned to the palace a few days ago? She hasn't seen you for many years, and she misses you so much. It’s hard to get into the palace. Will you meet me later?”
——
Su Moyi:…
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