The First Lackey Under The Empress

Inside the prison.

After the others withdrew, Zhao Du'an leaned back in a large chair, his hands clasped together, and asked:

"Tell me, why was Zhuang Xiaocheng able to escape in advance?"

According to his memory, Zhuang Xiaocheng was hiding in a small courtyard in the East City. After the original owner found out, he dispatched the Imperial Guards to arrest him, while he hid in the back to reap the rewards.

This book is first published on the entire network by 𝕥 𝕨 𝕜 𝕒 𝕟 . 𝕔 𝕠 𝕞

However, before the Imperial Guards arrived at their destination, this rebellious master and disciple had already fled out of the city. Fortunately, there was a special person watching them, so the Imperial Guards chased them out of the city.

During this period, they happened to encounter the daytime curfew. Zhao Du'an used the rules to block the people from the Imperial Censorate, but ended up pushing himself into a desperate situation.

It can only be said that he did a "beautiful" job…

Seeing the wailing of the "Revival Society" members fade away, Yun Xi smiled miserably and did not resist any further.

After all, in her opinion, the "intelligence" she possessed was no longer valuable.

She didn't say it before, just to express her attitude.

If she could use useless "intelligence" to reduce the suffering of her companions, she thought her teacher would agree.

"Because we received news in advance that we had been exposed, my teacher decisively decided to evacuate," Yun Xi sighed and said.

As expected, there are still accomplices of the rebels in the capital… Zhao Du'an was not surprised.

According to the known information, the Revival Society has branches all over Da Yu. Zhuang Xiaocheng, as one of the core figures in the society, travels around all year round, coordinating intelligence and issuing orders.

This time, he sneaked into the capital, also to orchestrate the activities of the rebellious party near the capital.

A role similar to a regional "command headquarters".

He then asked:

"Who is transmitting messages to you? What method are they using?"

Yun Xi shook her head and said:

"I don't know."

Seeming afraid that Zhao Du'an would not believe her, she added:

"In order to prevent the members of the society from being arrested by the imperial court and implicating others, there is no fixed pattern for intelligence transmission.

Sometimes, my teacher would order me to drop a note somewhere in the city, or retrieve intelligence from somewhere. The members never meet each other…

The meeting points are also different each time. Important information is transmitted using spells. Only my teacher knows these things, and I have no idea."

Zhao Du'an was expressionless, feeling like he had traveled into a "spy drama".

So professional…

Spell transmission… probably similar to sending a telegram. No wonder the "imperial secret agents" lurking in the dark didn't see anyone contacting the two of them.

The plan to catch the messenger and follow the clues failed before it even started.

"So? After receiving the news, Zhuang Xiaocheng chose to take you away?"

Zhao Du'an questioned:

"Does he not have any real experts protecting him?"

Yun Xi shook her head and said:

"This is the capital. Once a strong expert enters the city, it is easy to attract the attention of the imperial court. Only someone like me is the safest."

Very reasonable… Zhao Du'an thought for a while and suddenly asked:

"At what specific time did Zhuang Xiaocheng learn that I was going to take action?"

Yun Xi hesitated for a moment before saying:

"About a quarter of an hour before fleeing, my teacher came out of the study in a hurry, his face was very ugly, and he told me to pack up immediately and leave the city with him."

A quarter of an hour… Zhao Du'an's eyes suddenly sharpened, and he said:

"You're lying!"

Yun Xi was stunned, not understanding why.

Zhao Du'an stared at her and said:

"At that time, I went to your residence first and found it empty, then I rushed out of the city. At that time, I ordered people to search the house. At first glance, it did look like you left in a hurry, but including the study, there was not a single trace left behind.

Your teacher is in charge of intelligence transmission, so there should be some paper records left behind, but there were not only no remaining letters in the study, but even very little charcoal ash in the brazier. If it was as you said, and you found out temporarily, how could you destroy the evidence in a quarter of an hour?"

Yun Xi opened her mouth, speechless.

"It seems you are unwilling to cooperate, then I have no choice but to…" Zhao Du'an gestured, wanting to call his subordinates to drag "Qingyun" back.

The girl tied to the cross in a large character shape became anxious, her face turned pale, and she hurriedly shouted:

"I didn't lie to you! It's true! My teacher usually doesn't let me into the study, but he cleans it often, maybe it's always like this."

Zhao Du'an pressed closer: "How often does he clean it?"

Before the latter could think, he scolded:

"Don't think, answer immediately!"

Yun Xi panicked and said:

"Usually every three to five days, he would take out a basin of paper ashes and ask me to throw it away. Last time, it was about three days ago, and there was a particularly large amount, a big bag, I remember it very clearly…"

Three days ago… Zhao Du'an's eyelids twitched!

According to the original owner's memory, this time point was exactly when he learned this fresh information from the Imperial Censorate through a bought informant.

There really is a problem.

He was expressionless, taking advantage of the girl's panic, and threw out the second question:

"How did Zhuang Xiaocheng escape? What's the matter with the Earth God Temple in the bamboo forest in the southern suburbs?"

Yun Xi shook her head again:

"I don't know… Because of the daytime curfew and the heavy rain, we didn't go through the city gate. My teacher used a spell scroll to tear a hole in the city wall, but the road was muddy and the carriage couldn't go fast, and we were still caught up by the soldiers.

I fought desperately, and then escaped into the Earth God Temple according to my teacher's instructions, and was surrounded by you. You know what happened after that. As for the sorcerer, I think he was an expert from the society who cast a spell to rescue us."

After spitting out these words in one breath, Yun Xi bit her lip, closed her eyes, and stiffened her fair neck:

"What I know is only this."

It was obvious that she was lying flat and letting them do whatever they wanted, and that threatening her would be useless.

On the other side of the prison.

Zhao Du'an fell into deep thought.

At this moment, from the perspective of an outsider, he searched through the original owner's memory in his mind.

Combining the known information, he immediately noticed many anomalies:

In the Earth God Temple.

The first thing Zhuang Xiaocheng said after seeing him was, "I never expected that you, a running dog, would find me."

At that time, he didn't feel anything strange, but after careful consideration, there is another interpretation:

He didn't expect to be caught by Zhao Du'an, so who did he expect to be caught by?

In addition, Zhuang Xiaocheng's behavior was very strange from beginning to end.

Why did he start destroying incoming and outgoing letters three days in advance, but then leave in a hurry with an ugly face a quarter of an hour before Zhao Du'an took action?

Why did he have a "magic weapon" that could tear open the city wall, but rely on a female disciple with ordinary martial arts skills for protection, and not have a protective magic weapon?

Why did he linger in the bamboo forest after arriving, and wait until Zhao Du'an arrived before reinforcements appeared?

"There's a problem, a big problem!"

Zhao Du'an's thoughts raced:

"First of all, the Earth God Temple in the bamboo forest is obviously a 'teleportation point'. Whether it was a temporary agreement or an early arrangement, it was Zhuang Xiaocheng's means of self-preservation, and there is no problem."

"Secondly, Zhuang Xiaocheng seems to have known that his whereabouts were leaked, which is why it makes sense to destroy the intelligence documents in advance, but why didn't he run?

He waited until I was about to take action before hurriedly evacuating? It's almost as if he deliberately led me to the southern suburbs…"

Zhao Du'an's expression changed slightly, and he couldn't help but have a bold idea:

"Could it be that Zhuang Xiaocheng's target is me? He wants to lure and kill me?"

But the thought only existed in his mind for a second before he dismissed it:

"No, it doesn't make sense logically. If it was aimed at me, some of the details can't be explained."

"Moreover, to pay such a big price and take such a huge risk, just to lure and kill a gigolo under the Empress' skirt?"

Zhao Du'an laughed at himself.

If it was a game of chess, sacrificing the risk of the "general" and losing a female pawn to exchange for the enemy's "advisor"…

This kind of chess player might as well surrender.

Since it can't be aimed at him, then who in this game of chess is worth the other party's painstaking efforts?

In Zhao Du'an's mind, a flash of lightning suddenly flashed, and a name almost blurted out:

"The Imperial Censorate!"