The First Lackey Under The Empress

Zhao Du'an!

In the narrow alley, Zhao Du'an's smiling face came into view.

The Little Grand Secretary, son of the esteemed Chancellor, felt a wave of dizziness.

Strictly speaking, this was their first formal meeting, but images of each other had long been imprinted in their minds.

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Not Ma Yan... it's Zhao Du'an...

Today, the mastermind behind the trap set for him was actually this lackey of the Empress, who had repeatedly targeted the 'Li Party'.

Li Yinglong found that he wasn't surprised at all.

Partly because he had already guessed after seeing the imperial officers.

And partly because, in the past few months, Zhao Du'an's methods and style had already been stained with a strong color.

This kind of scheming was indeed something the Zhao could do.

At this moment, Li Yinglong suddenly regretted why he had listened to his father and temporarily abandoned targeting this person after the last failure.

Clearly, Zhao Du'an's reputation for being vindictive was deeply rooted in people's hearts.

Yes, he was still too confident, not believing that Zhao Du'an dared to attack him, especially at this time.

"Little Grand Secretary actually remembers me, I'm truly honored," Zhao Du'an said with a raised corner of his mouth, as if flattered.

Li Yinglong forced himself to calm down, took a deep breath, and said calmly:

"Lord Zhao is not in the yamen, what is the purpose of bringing so many men here?"

Zhao Du'an smiled and said:

"This official learned that there were traces of rebellious parties appearing here, so I came to investigate, but I didn't expect to stumble upon the Little Grand Secretary's good deeds instead of finding any rebels."

Li Yinglong stared at him with deep eyes and slowly said:

"What does Zhao Jisi mean by this? This official doesn't understand."

Now, he could only play dumb and remain unchanged to cope with all changes.

With witnesses and evidence, and more importantly, the Yuan Consort upstairs, the affair was likely to be confirmed.

The best explanation seemed to be that he was tricked, but Zhao Du'an, having painstakingly set up this situation, must have been prepared.

It would be underestimating the enemy if he could get away with just saying "I was deceived."

"Don't understand? Hehe, it doesn't matter. There's a quiet place in the imperial prison, Little Grand Secretary can sit there, and I'm sure you'll remember many things," Zhao Du'an said casually.

Li Yinglong narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice: "What if this official doesn't go?"

Zhao Du'an said: "Then I'm afraid it won't be up to you."

Li Yinglong questioned with a gloomy face:

"You, a mere sixth-rank official, what right do you have to arrest me? Is Ma Yan backing you up?"

Zhao Du'an shook his head and earnestly corrected:

"First, it's not arrest, it's just an invitation. Just inviting the Lord to sit in the Pear Blossom Hall, nothing else. Second, there's no one behind this official, only a loyal and patriotic heart."

Saying that, he said lightly:

"What are you still standing there for? Aren't you going to invite the Little Grand Secretary to sit down?"

The guards revealed their white teeth and stepped forward to make a move.

"...Zhao Du'an, very well."

Li Yinglong's eyes twitched, his gaze like an eagle, at this moment he somewhat resembled his father:

"No need to trouble your men to do it, this official will go willingly."

After saying that, he didn't entangle further and turned to the officers behind him and said:

"Aren't you going to lead the way?"

Zheng Laojiu looked at Zhao Du'an, and after seeing him nod, he led Li Yinglong out of the alley.

Two teams of men jointly "escorted" Li Yinglong to the imperial prison.

...

"Tsk... more difficult to deal with than I thought..."

Zhao Du'an looked at his departing back, somewhat disappointed.

He expected Li Yinglong to react with great anger or say something reckless.

But in fact, apart from being tricked into a trap, Li Yinglong's response from beginning to end, although not good, didn't make any big mistakes.

Although caught in the act, there was still room for maneuver if investigated deeply.

After all, the two of them didn't actually do anything else.

Li Yinglong didn't know how much Zhao Du'an had arranged or how much he knew, so the best strategy was to shut up and cooperate.

Waiting for the "Li Party" to receive the news and provide rescue.

"Brother Zhao, what exactly is going on?" At this time, Dong Da, who was completely confused, finally spoke.

Just now, the Golden Decree Divine Officer suddenly said: "It's okay now."

Then he disappeared without a trace, and then Zhao Du'an led him to this place, and they ran into the Little Grand Secretary.

"Brother Dong, please don't be impatient," Zhao Du'an said with a smile to comfort him, leading him to the alley entrance, and after waiting for a while, he saw a carriage slowly stop.

The driver was Shen Juan: "Lord, the person has been brought."

"Was there any disturbance?"

"Naturally, I wouldn't dare."

Zhao Du'an nodded, waved his hand, and all the officers from the Pear Blossom Hall retreated, isolating this area.

Leaving only him and Dong Da.

Zhao Du'an cupped his hands towards the carriage and said: "Zhao Du'an, the Imperial Prison Investigator, greets the Yuan Consort."

Yuan Consort? Dong Da was shocked.

Then, an even more shocking scene occurred, as Zhao Du'an raised his hand and lifted the curtain of the carriage.

Inside, there were two figures sitting side by side, one was naturally the Yuan Consort, dressed as a man and distraught.

The other was the maid who delivered the message for her and was on the lookout downstairs, trembling.

"Lord Zhao..." The Yuan Consort subconsciously trembled, and then squeezed out an ugly smile, but she no longer had the arrogance and dignity of the past.

Her expression carried a hint of unnatural flattery.

This was also their first meeting, but they were not strangers to each other.

The Yuan Consort had heard his name too many times and had seen portraits.

As for Zhao Du'an...

"So similar to Lin Niangzi... No wonder Li Yinglong insisted on having her, no, Lin Niangzi is even younger," Zhao Du'an thought with emotion.

He said politely: "This official was late in rescuing you, causing the Consort to be frightened."

The Yuan Consort didn't know how to respond, she just smiled stiffly.

Zhao Du'an said to himself:

"This official and others were searching for rebellious parties here, but I didn't expect... this kind of thing to happen. I will send the Consort back to the palace."

After all, the Yuan Consort was the late Emperor's concubine, and Zhao Du'an, as an outsider, absolutely could not touch her, this was a matter of principle.

Having said that, before Imperial Concubine Yuan could refuse, he gave a look.

Shen Juan took the initiative to volunteer and, after thinking for a moment, handed over the jade pendant from his bosom:

"Sir, I got it. But the letter was burned by her."

"It doesn't matter; it should have been burned anyway." Zhao Du'an nodded calmly, putting away the "evidence."

Imperial Concubine Yuan, dazed and about to be sent away, suddenly lifted the curtain and said:

"Lord Zhao, you sent the letter, didn't you?"

She's actually become smarter… Zhao Du'an said earnestly:

"What is Her Highness saying? This humble official doesn't understand."

Imperial Concubine Yuan smiled bitterly and closed her eyes.

…

Once the carriage left, Dong Da couldn't hold back any longer. His expression changed slightly, and he said in a low voice:

"Brother Zhao, why did Imperial Concubine Yuan and Vice Minister Li both appear here? Could this be your plan…"

"Brother Dong, be careful what you say!" Zhao Du'an interrupted him, clasping his hands in his sleeves, looking like a righteous gentleman, and repeated the fabricated story once more.

The general gist was that he had obtained clues about the rebel party and happened to stumble upon Li Yinglong and Imperial Concubine Yuan having a secret rendezvous. Because it involved the imperial family's reputation, he had acted expediently and invited the Little Grand Secretary back to investigate.

After listening, Dong Da looked at him with an expression that said, 'Are you kidding me?'

"Brother Zhao, although this foolish brother's poetic talent is mediocre, my mind isn't bad," the eldest grandson of the Dong family said seriously.

Then, he lowered his voice:

"You invited me here today to see this?"

Dong Da already understood that Zhao Du'an must have secretly set a trap and orchestrated this entire charade.

Considering that it wouldn't be a baseless accusation, he had already guessed that Li Yinglong was indeed having an affair with Imperial Concubine Yuan.

What a huge scoop.

Zhao Du'an put his arm around Dong Da's shoulder and whispered:

"Brother Dong, see through but don't speak through. What you saw today is just as a witness. I only ask Brother Dong to keep this matter in your heart for now and not tell anyone else. Remember not to spread it. By tomorrow at the latest, I will explain everything to you."

Dong Da looked at him for a long while before finally forcing a bitter smile:

"I will remember what Brother Zhao said."

Many things don't need to be said too clearly.

Zhao Du'an invited Dong Da over today to have a witness, as an extra layer of insurance.

As Dong Xuan's grandson, Dong Da was absolutely loyal to the Emperor, so his stance was not a problem, and he would never favor or fear the Li family.

This was the carefully selected candidate.

Someone like Yuan Li, although also a very influential third party.

Firstly, his every move would be watched, easily alerting the enemy. Secondly, once Yuan Li found out, Zhao Du'an would probably no longer have the chance to perform this play.

"Zhao Du'an, the thing you wanted."

Suddenly, a petite figure lightly descended from above, only hovering at the height of everyone's shoulders before stopping.

Jin Jian's figure was semi-illusory, her small face calm, as she threw a recording scroll to him, then left a sentence:

"I have something else to do."

And then disappeared without a trace.

Wait… why are you running so fast? I always feel like something's weird today, like you're afraid I'll ask you for money… Zhao Du'an muttered in his heart, clutching the scroll.

Then, his heart stirred:

That's right, the Dog Days are over, and the ice business is almost over too. The Heavenly Masters Manor's dividends should be coming out soon.

"Brother Zhao's preparations are truly thorough."

Dong Da's expression was complicated. Without even looking, he knew what was recorded on the scroll.

Zhao Du'an smiled, tucked the scroll into his sleeve, and complained about being poor:

"I owe a huge favor for this. After all, Li Yinglong definitely has anti-recording magical artifacts on him, so I could only ask for help…"

Dong Da nodded in understanding, thinking that being able to get the Heavenly Master's personal disciple to act must have cost a fortune.

If he knew that Zhao Du'an hadn't paid anything at all, and had just strong-armed a helper with empty words, who knew what his expression would be.

…

Dong Da left, filled with heavy thoughts.

Nearby, only a small team of Embroidered Uniform Guards led by Qian Kerou remained.

The little secretary walked into the alley and said in a low voice:

"Li Yinglong's coachman ran away. He's a martial artist, and we couldn't stop him."

Zhao Du'an wasn't surprised at all and smiled:

"It doesn't matter; everything is according to plan."

Qian Kerou looked surprised, thinking, could even this person's escape be a part of her Lord's plan?

"What's wrong?" Zhao Du'an asked curiously, seeing the round-faced female martial artist hesitant to speak.

Qian Kerou hesitated for a moment but still said in a low voice:

"Lord, Imperial Concubine Yuan will be implicated, won't she…"

As one of the people who had witnessed Zhao Du'an's entire operation, she felt a bit awkward.

She was both amazed by her Lord's methods and felt that… some of the operations were a bit excessive.

If it was said that Hanlin Xu had attacked her Lord first, wanting to kill him, then retaliating by drowning him or dealing with him in some other way would be tit-for-tat.

He had only himself to blame.

Lin Niangzi volunteered to sacrifice herself, which was an equal exchange.

Then Imperial Concubine Yuan was the only pure victim in this matter, and could be said to be a tool in Zhao Du'an's scheme.

Hou Renmeng and the others were men and didn't care about this kind of thing, but Qian Kerou, as a woman, couldn't help but empathize.

"Hehe, does Xiaorou think that I, your Lord, am a bit too ruthless?" Zhao Du'an asked with a smile.

Qian Kerou didn't say anything.

Zhao Du'an didn't explain, but just patted her on the shoulder and said:

"The matter isn't over yet. The real key scene hasn't even started yet. If you want to evaluate a play, you have to wait until the curtain falls. Let's go, we're going to the next place."

Qian Kerou asked in confusion:

"Lord, where else are you going? To see Director Du? Or to enter the palace to meet the Emperor?"

She thought that Li Yinglong's "evidence" had already been obtained, and the next step was to present it.

However, Zhao Du'an shook his head, stepped out of the alley, and looked at the rolling dark clouds above the narrow strip of sky, saying:

"No, I'm going to see someone."

"Who?"

"The Chancellor, Li Yanfu."