Gong Xiaohua looked at the sheepskin scroll in her hand. When she was injured and had just come over, she didn't think too much about it. After she recovered and went back to work in the Ministry of Justice, she realized that the prison of the Ministry of Justice was heavily guarded, and even she could not sneak in silently without anyone noticing and then successfully escape. What's more, she finally managed to get out smoothly.
At that time, she guessed that the murderer must have had inside help from someone in the Ministry of Justice, or that person was someone inside the Ministry of Justice.
Looking at the contents of the sheepskin scroll now, her hands gripped it tightly. She did not expect that person to be someone she respected.
After the inner turmoil, His Majesty decided to eradicate the accomplices of the inner turmoil with thunderous methods, causing many officials in the capital to be suspended from their jobs while being investigated. Backlogs of government affairs made people feel uneasy.
She also suspected that there were still people secretly making trouble in the capital. Otherwise, even though their route was changed at the last minute during this trip escorting the two Wei Country princes back to Wei, they were still subjected to several assassination attempts. One must know that their route was changed at the last minute, so it was impossible for the assassins to accurately locate them many times. There must have been insiders among the guards.
"I will take the sheepskin scroll to the capital and hand it over to the court, but Hao is still young and needs his mother. So you must take care of your health."
"Okay, I will. Thank you, Gong."
"Sister-in-law, you don't have to be so polite. These are things I should do."
On the fifteenth day Gong Xiaohua stayed there, her wound had just about healed. She planned to sneak away from the mine under the cover of night tomorrow.
However, Qin Chuyuan managed to track down the mine where Gong Xiaohua was staying that day using the bracelet.
Gong Xiaohua was in the thatched cottage teaching little Hao'er to read when she suddenly felt the ground shake. She deduced that there were at least a few dozen horses heading in their direction less than two hundred meters away.
She gestured for Hao not to make a sound and cautiously peeled back a corner of the curtain at the door to take a look. To her surprise, the person leading the cavalry was Qin Chuyuan. She let down her guard and lifted the curtain to walk out.
Seeing Gong Xiaohua ahead, Qin Chuyuan whipped the reins to spur his horse forward. When he was about ten meters away from Gong Xiaohua, he jumped off his horse and quickly ran up to her, sweeping her into his arms.
"How did you..." Gong Xiaohua had not even finished asking before she was silenced by his sudden embrace.
The most handsome bachelor in the capital, known for his unparalleled looks and his aloofness, had abandoned his usual composure.
Qin Chuyuan buried his head in her neck, reveling in her warmth. The joy of finding her again after fearing her lost made him hold her even tighter, as if afraid she would disappear from his sight in the next moment.
Only he knew how desperate and terrified he felt when he learned she had been shot and fallen off a cliff, her whereabouts unknown.
"There are many people watching." Gong Xiaohua whispered, embarrassed by the audience surrounding them.
"I don't care."
Gong Xiaohua laughed. She didn't expect the usually composed Qin Chuyuan to have such a childish side as well.
The onlookers were quite stunned to see this gentleman with his graceful bearing and noble aura openly embracing a plainly dressed, beautiful young woman in front of everyone without a care in the world, and he didn't let go for a long time either.
Especially this group of guards, their preconceptions about their young master's indifference towards women were completely overturned. Who said their young capital master didn't care for women? When it came to someone he liked, he was even bolder than them!
Due to Qin Chuyuan's sudden arrival, their departure was moved up to today itself. When they left, Gong Xiaohua left Qin Shiyi behind to bring Hao and his mother back to the capital after their names were cleared.
On the way back, they didn't need to hurry or spend nights in the open. This time, they took the official road back to the capital. Along the way, Qin Chuyuan would occasionally take Gong Xiaohua to experience the local culture and scenery.
Although Qin Chuyuan was an official from the capital, he still spent a period of time each year traveling to inspect the military and government affairs, so he was very familiar with the culture and scenery of other places.
Sometimes the two of them would climb high up to appreciate the wonder of nature, other times they would dress up as commoners and go to local temples and fairs together, buying all kinds of fun stuff and snacks. These were the most carefree days Gong Xiaohua had experienced in her two lifetimes.
"In the future, I must travel all over the world." Gong Xiaohua said.
"I'll go with you." Qin Chuyuan took Gong Xiaohua's hand as they smiled at each other.
Since Gong Xiaohua was originally on official business for her assignment, and there was also Hao's matter, she didn't dare delay too long. The twenty days of travel were shortened by one or two days as they raced back to the capital.
Upon returning to the capital, Gong Xiaohua did not go to the palace to pay her respects first, but secretly went to the Li manor to see Minister Li alone.
"Minister, why did you do it?" On the way back, she kept wondering why Minister Li helped the Third Prince.
"What do you mean?"
"A few months ago, someone broke into the women's prison silently, injured several female prison guards, and escaped unnoticed. In the end, the matter was dropped with no investigation. I thought someone from the ministry must be involved, but I didn't expect it to be you."
"I just want to ask, were you really involved in the inner turmoil?"
"No, I only helped once to repay someone's kindness."
"I see. I hope you can prepare evidence in advance to avoid being caught off guard."
"Alright, thank you for taking the risk to come warn me beforehand."
The next day after court, Gong Xiaohua brought the sheepskin scroll to meet with His Majesty.
His Majesty handed the sheepskin scroll to trusted ministers to verify its authenticity. They found it to be real. With it, the investigation into the inner turmoil conspirators progressed swiftly. Those heavily involved were executed, those less involved were exiled, and those with minor roles were demoted or had merits offset their faults.
One person that surprised everyone was Minister Li. The person who went to the dungeons to search for the account books turned out to be Minister Li.
He did not actually collaborate with the Third Prince or accept his bribes, but he was tricked by the Third Prince's party to abuse his position to repay a debt of gratitude, creating loopholes that led to injustice and indirect loss of life. Also, if not for Minister Li's actions, the inner turmoil might have been discovered earlier.
In the end, His Majesty considered Minister Li's decades of devoted service and allowed him to resign his post and return to his hometown, banning him from staying in the capital.
When Minister Li's whole family left the capital, Gong Xiaohua saw them off at the city gates.
Minister Li thanked Gong Xiaohua alone: "Xiaohua, thank you this time. If not for you giving me advance notice a day ago, I wouldn't have had the chance to prepare evidence in advance."
"Minister, because from beginning to end, I never believed you were that kind of person."
"Xiaohua, your courage and insight are no less than any man's, perhaps even better than most men's. Work hard, this Dayi Dynasty will have a place for you in the future."
"A place in history is not what I seek. From start to finish, I only wanted to protect those I care about."
Minister Li smiled without responding. Perhaps your original intention was only to protect your family and friends, but now, you have subconsciously started wanting to protect this country, even if you don't realize it yourself.
The Dayi Dynasty's inner turmoil was thoroughly eradicated. The Crown Prince had also largely completed the purge of Wei Country's secret organization. On the surface, the Dayi Dynasty had regained its tranquility.
