Lou Lianyu returned to the Lou Mansion. Before he could reach the study, he encountered his mother Shangguan Qiaoxi and his wife Cheng Shuyu on the way.
"Lianyu, what did Ming'an say? When is he coming?" Shangguan Qiaoxi asked eagerly.
When she had married into the Lou family years ago, Lou Qingzhi was just a 12-year-old boy. In her memory, that young lad always politely called her "sister-in-law" with a gentle demeanor.
Later, after she gave birth to Lou Lianyu, Lou Baili was so busy with court affairs that he barely had time to set foot at home. It was Lou Qingzhi who ran around taking care of all the household matters, big and small.
Shangguan Qiaoxi genuinely regarded Lou Qingzhi as her own brother. When he left home years ago, she cried for several days. Afterwards, she would go to the Fragrant Leaf Temple every year to pray. After asking Buddha to bless her family with health and peace, she would always add in her heart: "Bodhisattva, please bless Lou Qingzhi with longevity and freedom from worries for years to come!"
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
Upon returning home and learning that Lou Qingzhi had died fourteen years ago, Shangguan Qiaoxi couldn't help but break down in tears once again.
She understood that the dead cannot be brought back to life, but this made her especially eager to meet Lou Qingzhi's child. She had heard that the boy named Liu Ming'an looked very much like him.
Hearing his mother's question, Lou Lianyu suddenly remembered this matter but didn't know how to respond.
His wife, Cheng Shuyu, also looked over at him.
When Cheng Shuyu married into the Lou family, Lou Qingzhi was already long gone from the household. But she knew that her husband had always been thinking about this uncle of his.
Cheng Shuyu had learned about the incident from 25 years ago from Lou Lianyu. As an outsider, she could better understand the choices made by Lou Qingzhi and Liu Ming'an.
Seeing Lou Lianyu's silence, Cheng Shuyu seemed to understand something: "Lianyu, is your cousin unwilling to come back?"
Lou Lianyu sighed, nodded without saying anything more, and turned to walk towards the study.
In the study, Lou Baili was handling official business while Lou Yuhuan sat at the table playing chess by himself.
Seeing Lou Lianyu enter, both men looked up, eagerly awaiting his news.
With two intense gazes fixed upon him, Lou Lianyu pressed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.
"Ming'an... he said he needs to wait for someone in that courtyard and can't leave. I guess it's that girl he likes."
The light in Lou Yuhuan's eyes immediately dimmed. The chess piece he had been fingering fell onto the board with a "thud," disrupting the entire game.
Lou Baili turned to look at his father's expression, feeling uneasy but not knowing how to comfort him.
The room was silent for a long while before Lou Yuhuan smiled faintly and slowly began picking up the black and white chess pieces one by one, returning them to the box. "This child really is like him..."
"Grandfather, should I go again in a few days?" Lou Lianyu suggested after some thought.
"We certainly need to go, but not just you alone," Lou Yuhuan said, putting away the chess pieces and standing up. He walked to the window, gazing out at the courtyard as he made his decision.
"It's the Lou family who owes Ming'an, not the other way around. We should have been the ones to pay him a visit in the first place. We were indeed discourteous this time."
Lou Baili and Lou Lianyu exchanged a glance before saying in unison, "Then let's go together."
Having made the decision, Lou Baili looked at Lou Lianyu and arranged, "In a couple of days, after you've wrapped up the Zhu Yuxuan case at the Ministry of Justice, we'll go see Ming'an together. Your mother wants to meet him too. Shuyu can stay home to take care of your grandmother and Yi'er."
Lou Lianyu's eyes flickered upon hearing this, realizing his father also knew some inside information.
"Father, why do you think that case will be resolved in a couple of days? The Ministry of Justice hasn't found any leads at all."
Lou Lianyu looked at Lou Baili, utterly confused as to why his father and Yuan Kaizhi were so certain.
Lou Baili hesitated, unsure whether he should explain.
As a father, he understood Lou Lianyu well. After achieving the top score in the imperial examinations, Lou Lianyu could have directly entered the Ministry of Revenue, but he chose the Ministry of Justice instead. Lou Baili knew then that his son had a strong sense of justice and a desire to punish evil and promote good.
But affairs of the court were complex and unpredictable. How could there be so much clear-cut right and wrong? It was nothing more than various factions fighting like dogs.
"Baili, tell him! He's a father himself now, why are you still treating him like a child?" Lou Yuhuan ordered when he saw Lou Baili's indecision.
"Sit down," Lou Baili gestured to the chair by the table. After Lou Lianyu was seated, he began, "Some time ago, there were rumors in the palace that His Majesty was gravely ill. Not long after, the Prince of Xiang was nearly assassinated in Jinzhi City."
Lou Lianyu's brow twitched, surprised that he hadn't known about this.
"With no crown prince established, the Princes of Xiang, Rui, and Lin form a tripartite balance of power. His Majesty used this illness to test people's loyalty. The Prince of Lin was the first to make a move. When he realized the Emperor was fine, he tried to withdraw, but His Majesty won't let him retreat unscathed."
"But the Prince of Lin's mother is the Noble Consort who holds sway over the six palaces, and his maternal grandfather commands military power. He already had the best chance, so why would he do this?" Lou Lianyu's confusion deepened.
"The prince is tired of being a prince and wants to be emperor!" Lou Yuhuan interjected, gazing at the gloomy sky through the window without saying more.
"Minister Zhu is the Prince of Lin's man, and as luck would have it, his son's killer happens to be his rival. As long as someone comes forward and throws mud at the Prince of Lin's confidant, the prince's faction will inevitably suffer a setback and won't be able to stir up any trouble for some time."
"With his only son killed, Minister Zhu will surely become estranged from the Prince of Lin. It's a plan that kills two birds with one stone, so why not do it?"
After finishing his explanation, Lou Baili looked at his son's haggard appearance with some heartache. "That old fox Yuan Kaizhi must have seen through it all long ago. He's been running around not doing any real work himself, but left you at the Ministry of Justice earnestly investigating the case. Ah, you're too honest, what's the point?"
Lou Lianyu's lips twitched into a wry smile, seemingly unconcerned. "After all, three lives were lost."
"Zhu Yuxuan was no good person. He'd done plenty of bullying and harassing. His death was well-deserved," Lou Baili said, a flash of disgust in his eyes as he thought of that fat man.
"It's raining," Lou Yuhuan suddenly said softly, reaching his hand out the window to feel the cool drizzle on his palm. "This is the first rain of the year..."
At the same time, in a mansion in the northern district of the imperial city, Nangong Ya, who had just returned from the palace, listened to Jin Yao's report with utter disbelief in his eyes.
"You're saying that Ling climbed over the wall and left right in front of you?" Nangong Ya's eyes were wide with shock.
Jin Yao nodded. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it either.
"Actually... Jin Hui also told me that the Third Young Miss grabbed his collar and threw him out..."
Nangong Ya's eyes grew even wider.
"My lord, I feel... the Third Young Miss is quite different from before," Jin Yao continued, recalling Jiang Ning's cold eyes and how she had directly called Nangong Ya by name. "It's as if she's become a completely different person."
Nangong Ya sat there in a daze, recalling the events of the past few days. In his heart, he completely agreed with Jin Yao's words.
The formerly timid and shrinking Nangong Ling, who wouldn't dare meet anyone's eyes, was nowhere to be seen since her return home this time.
"Jin Yao, dispatch two groups of people. One group to find the Third Young Miss, and the other..." Nangong Ya stared into Jin Yao's eyes, giving a solemn order, "Go to Qushui City, find the human trafficking ring, and investigate all the way down. I want to know exactly what Ling experienced during these past few months!"
"Yes, sir."
As Jin Yao left to carry out his orders, Nangong Ya sat alone in his chair for a long while before slowly rising to head towards the main courtyard.
He should go check on Luo Siyi.
Ling was causing worry on one side, while Yan was even more unruly on the other, even making her mother fall ill from anger.
Thinking of this, Nangong Ya felt utterly exhausted.
As he stepped out of the room, the fine drizzle fell on his face, and Nangong Ya suddenly realized it was raining.