Although Ming Jiu did not understand what Xuanyuan Yan meant, he also knew that he had his own considerations.
"Do we need to send someone to keep an eye on General Qin's place?"
Xuanyuan Yan shook his head, "No need."
After returning to the General's Mansion, Qin Yuchuan sent someone to gather intelligence from the Chancellor's Residence.
Although the Chancellor's Residence was heavily guarded, the people sent by Qin Yuchuan still managed to find some clues.
The Chancellor of the Tianqi era was named Qiu Tongfu, the highest-ranking official, below one man but above ten thousand. He had many supporters in the court.
Qin Yuchuan was not familiar with him, but he had never imagined that he would collude with the Southern Frontiers.
Moreover, he brazenly provided cover for them, which explained why he could not find any information in Shengjing.
It was not that he dared not search the Chancellor's Residence, but rather that he could not.
Xuanyuan Sheng respected Qiu Tongfu, and without concrete evidence, he would not dispose of the Chancellor based solely on Qin Yuchuan's word.
Even if Xuanyuan Sheng agreed, the court officials would not consent.
For the time being, the only option was to search secretly for evidence of Qiu Tongfu's collusion with the Southern Frontiers, in the hope of eliminating them all at once.
...
In mid-October, the evening breeze carried a hint of coolness. Feng Qingyi sat on a chair on the second-floor balcony, gazing at the dazzling lights in the distance.
She checked her phone; it was already 9:10 PM.
She didn't know why she hadn't received Qin Yuchuan's video call yet.
He was always very punctual, calling her at exactly 9 PM for a video chat.
Today, over ten minutes had passed, and she wondered if something had delayed him.
Feng Qingyi decided to take the initiative and call him. After connecting the video call, the phone rang for a long time without being answered.
Could he really be busy? She might as well send him a message first.
[Qingyi: Are you busy?]
Feng Qingyi waited for a reply, but she did not receive one until 10 PM.
Could something have happened to him? Or was he injured?
Feng Qingyi was a little worried, but they could only communicate via phone.
Since she couldn't reach him now, she had no way of knowing, and all she could do was silently pray that he was doing well.
On the other side, Qin Yuchuan sat on the bed, looking at the screen displaying "Upgrading, please wait patiently" on his phone, lost in thought.
He had just turned on his phone and found it had gone black. When he tapped it, it showed that it was upgrading.
He didn't know how long this phone upgrade would take.
He didn't video chat with her today, and he didn't know if she would be worried.
He seemed to have gotten used to video chatting with her every day. Sometimes, just listening to her ramble about trivial daily matters made him feel content.
He had also become accustomed to waking her up every morning and saying good night every evening, as if they had become inseparable.
He hoped this phone upgrade wouldn't take too long.
However, to Qin Yuchuan's disappointment, even after a whole night, the phone was still upgrading.
When Feng Qingyi woke up at 6 AM, she checked her phone to see that she still hadn't received a reply from Qin Yuchuan to the message she sent him yesterday.
In the past, even if he occasionally replied slowly, as long as he saw her message, he would respond.
She had also agreed with him that he would call her at 5 AM to wake her up, but there was still no news from him.
Could something have really happened to him?
[Qingyi: Are you there?]
[Qingyi: Please reply to me if you see this message.]
After sending the messages, Feng Qingyi went about her morning routine of washing up, exercising, and attending classes at school, though she kept thinking about Qin Yuchuan.
Shen Hanyue, who sat next to Feng Qingyi, was very perceptive and noticed her unusual behavior.
"Qingyi, what's wrong? You keep checking your phone today."
Feng Qingyi put her phone down on the desk, "It's nothing, let's focus on the class."
These days, she and Qin Yuchuan had been chatting and video calling every day, and without realizing it, she had become accustomed to his presence.
Suddenly losing contact with him, she was worried.
On one hand, she was concerned about never seeing him again, and on the other, she was worried that he had encountered some danger.
As a result, Feng Qingyi was a little distracted.
Even during lunch, she only took a couple of bites before sitting there preoccupied, waiting for the others.
Qu Jingqiu: "Qingyi, what's wrong with you today? Are you feeling unwell? You seem to lack energy."
"Just thinking about some things," Feng Qingyi said, clutching her phone tightly.
Shen Hanyue said, "Qingyi, if you're dealing with something, you can tell us about it. We might be able to offer some advice."
Feng Qingyi thought for a moment, "If a friend you usually chat with suddenly becomes unreachable, what should you do?"
"He might have run into some issues. You could go find him!" Qu Jingqiu thought it was a straightforward solution.
"..." The problem was that she couldn't find him at all since they were from different eras. Where could she look?
Shen Hanyue: "Are you talking about your best friend? I remember she's from the music academy."
"There's a talent show recently, and I think I saw her name listed."
"Those kinds of shows are completely closed off, so it's normal if you can't contact her."
Feng Qingyi shook her head, "I'm not talking about her. She told me she was participating in that show. It's another friend of mine."
"Tomorrow's Friday anyway. After class, you can go find him," Shen Hanyue suggested.
Feng Qingyi: "I don't know where he is."
"Don't tell me it's an online friend?" Qu Jingqiu asked.
Feng Qingyi nodded, "Sort of, but we've met in person before."
Lou Xi spoke up, "These days, online scams are all too common. Be careful you don't get swindled."
"It's not like that. Our relationship is good." If anything, she was the one who swindled him, with that crate of gold ingots she hadn't had a chance to exchange for cash yet.
Shen Hanyue considered it, "Maybe you think your relationship is good, but to him, you're just someone to chat with to pass the time."
"Now he doesn't feel like talking to you anymore and has cut off contact unilaterally."
Qu Jingqiu said, "If he doesn't want to stay in touch, he could just block you. I think he might have run into some kind of trouble."
"You can wait a few more days and see how it goes. No need to worry; in today's society governed by law, nothing too serious should happen."
"Oh, I get it now!" That wasn't exactly a society governed by law.
She hoped the emperor hadn't taken a dislike to him and had him eliminated!
However, it seems that last time he mentioned that the emperor still needs him to deal with the southern frontiers.
From the current situation, it doesn't appear that anything will happen to him, and he likely has no connection with the emperor.
Perhaps she has just been too busy lately, and she should wait a few more days to see.
Lou Xi was a little curious, Feng Qingyi's social circle was quite simple.
Everyone knew each other well, so where did this so-called online friend come from?
"When did you get this kind of online friend?"
