Upon hearing Zhu Yu's words, Lu Qing neither admitted nor denied them; he merely laughed and asked, "Then, madam, why don't you tell me why I would do such a thing?"
"Trying to catch me off guard, test my skills?" Zhu Yu did not understand Lu Qing's character, nor could she fully grasp his style, so she could only rely on her own speculation. "But next time, if the Prince needs anything, just instruct me. There's no need to go through such trouble.
Eating too many pastries makes one a fool, and at that time, even if I wanted to help the Prince, I'd be helpless."
Lu Qing watched Zhu Yu's tense expression, clearly displeased, but constrained by his own status, he had to restrain his anger. He picked up a teacup from the table and poured her a cup of hot tea.
"Then I, with tea instead of wine, apologize to madam." He held up the tea and handed it to Zhu Yu, "This tea was brewed by the old post house manager; madam can drink it with confidence.
Earlier, the calming powder in the pastries was just a common medicine shop concoction.
On the night of the wedding banquet, I heard your tone, it seemed you wished to hide your abilities, not wanting to reveal your talents; to spare some talk, I used the last resort, and hope madam won't mind."
Zhu Yu received the cup of tea but didn't drink it and casually placed it on the table, "What does the Prince want me to do?"
"To be of use to me." Seeing her ask straightforwardly, Lu Qing moved the booklet and brush in front of him aside and answered directly.
Zhu Yu sighed, "I'm just a weak woman..."
Lu Qing, upon hearing this, lowered his eyes and lightly laughed, "A weak woman who can save a dying person and fears not even bones."
His words made Zhu Yu choke a bit, feeling annoyed in her heart. The Lu Qing before her was hardly the indulgent libertine of the rumors, he was evidently a fox one couldn't see through.
She seriously doubted that even if she hadn't stepped forward on the wedding day, this man had his own ways to resolve that crisis.
But she couldn't keep her cool, the moment she heard someone wanted to execute the entire Prince Xiaoyao Mansion, she hurriedly stepped out...
Half wanting to be a leisurely wealthy person, and yet unable to control herself, truly as the saying goes, "One is responsible for their own misfortune."...
Seeing her get a bit annoyed, Lu Qing subdued the smile in his eyes, and said solemnly, "I had no intention of marrying, yet the Holy Emperor's will is not to be defied.
Since the Holy Emperor bestowed you upon me in marriage, I planned to keep you in the inner quarters or open another residence for you.
Gold, silver, jade, jewelry, bracelets, pearl hairpins, silk, and satin, whatever other noble women have, I will ensure you have. Apart from that, we will stay out of each other's way."
Zhu Yu quickly nodded.
No problem, she could do that, she could do that very well!
Her reaction made Lu Qing pause, shaking his head with amusement, "It's a pity, no one expected that the night of the wedding, Prince Yi's guards would suddenly be poisoned, initially thought to be a complication but unexpectedly revealing your skills.
Although I don't know where your courage and skills came from, those are exactly what I need.
And hearing Duke Yan make trouble that day and you voluntarily stood forward to resolve the situation, I suspect you too seek to rely on Prince Xiaoyao Mansion, hoping for a peaceful life for us all.
Since tonight we've already spoken this much, I might as well be open with madam."
As he spoke, he took out a waist card from his belt and placed it on the table.
Zhu Yu thought he was taking out the Prince Xiaoyao Mansion waist card, but she looked closer and found it wasn't. She had seen the Prince Xiaoyao Mansion's waist card before, with gold paint outlined in vermilion, carrying a royal family's opulent aura.
Yet the one now on the table was also gold-painted, but with indigo patterns, and at the bottom, there seemed to be a design resembling a tiger's head.
"His Majesty appointed me as a Golden-faced Imperial Censor, granting me a golden face token, to travel around, evaluating whether various officials govern with integrity, investigating public sentiment, including overseeing criminal cases." Lu Qing withdrew the waist card, "This matter is unknown to outsiders."
Zhu Yu held her forehead.
At this moment, what she least wanted was this kind of "Heaven knows, earth knows, you know, I know" secret.
The more she knows, the harder it is to remain idle.
"It's not an easy task," Lu Qing said to her, "if done splendidly, it's accepting the Emperor's salary, bearing his worries.
If botched, it's total failure, everyone will push as the wall topples.
On a grand scale, it's about the nation's stability, the citizens' livelihood.
On a smaller scale, it's about the Prince Xiaoyao's family's peace and prosperity.
On the wedding day you witnessed it yourself, even the coroner found in the Capital was aged and blind, error-prone, what's it like outside the Capital, you can imagine.
This world is not calm waters, outwardly tranquil, but beneath are turbulent currents.
With madam's means and courage, you are not one to be content spinning circles in the inner chambers, better to use this talent to assist me, for the public, for yourself, both are good."
"Understood publicly, what good privately?"
"You can dress as a man, travel with me as Chief Historian. The world outside is vast, better than being confined in a small world."
"What if I just want to live quietly in the inner chambers?" Zhu Yu vaguely felt regardless of how beautifully Lu Qing spoke, she was already on his pirate ship and hard to disembark, but still unwillingly struggled, "What would you say?"
Lu Qing seemed to anticipate her words, smiled: "No problem, either way, since you're here now, madam please accompany me till the end.
If after this affair concludes, madam still longs for a life cooped in the inner chambers, I certainly won't force you.
Lu will keep his word, never going back on it."
Lu Qing's words were quite candid, yet also answered Zhu Yu's earlier questions.
"So, the corpse in the ruined temple today was indeed your arrangement?" She couldn't help but ask.
Lu Qing shook his head, "Tonight that corpse was indeed unexpected.
I originally heard there was a Qingshui County in this area, rumors of 'Ghost Immortal Wealth Transport' abound, several people died recently, and planned to investigate. Unexpectedly, a heavy rain fell, while seeking shelter in the rain, I inadvertently encountered a murder case, it can only be attributed to fate."
Zhu Yu was unwilling, but there was no choice.
At this moment, regardless of fate or not, knowing her character, after examining that corpse, if she didn't continue investigating, her heart would be restless, ultimately unsettled.
Thinking thus, she accepted Lu Qing's proposal, picked up the cup of tea he poured earlier for her, drank it in one gulp, placed the empty cup on the table with a "thud": "It's a deal!"
Lu Qing raised an eyebrow: "It's a deal."
After clarifying her doubts, Zhu Yu stood up to return to her room, paused at the door, turned back to Lu Qing watching her leave from the table, and said, "That corpse in the ruined temple, though the undershirt was stained with blood, the cloth felt very smooth, unlike the coarse hemp undershirt worn by ordinary villagers, I suspect it belongs to a wealthy family in this area.
When you report it to the authorities tomorrow, you can tell the rune to inform the officer in the government office."
After instructing this matter, she then exited the room and went to her own room to rest.