Although it seemed to be resolved. With lightning speed, Jinghong returned to the Intelligence Pavilion and resumed her position as the pavilion master. It seemed as if the matter had come to an end. However, Song Yan still had his concerns.
The origin of the group of assassins that Ye Zhiqiu had encountered last time remained unknown, and the words Jinghong had said to him that day still bothered him.
How many people knew about Ye Zhiqiu's special constitution, and how many of them wanted him dead?
Song Yan knew that there were some things he couldn't figure out on his own. So he went to the Qin Tower. Jinghong owed him a favor last time. Using this as an exchange, she probably wouldn't refuse.
When he arrived at the Qin Tower, he found someone at the door. Song Yan watched Shen Huaian pacing back and forth at the door. He gave a light cough to let the other person know his presence.
"Song Yan... What a coincidence..." Shen Huaian felt a jolt when he heard the cough. When he turned around, he saw that it was really Song Yan. Meeting him outside the Qin Tower, for some reason, he felt a bit embarrassed as he greeted him.
Song Yan raised an eyebrow as he watched Shen Huaian pacing back and forth several times. "The case has already been solved. Why are you here?"
Song Yan knew Shen Huaian well. He never seemed like the type to frequent brothels. Seeing him here now, could it be...
"Don't think too much. I just... I just heard about the day Jinghong regained her position as the pavilion master, and I wanted to come and visit her." Shen Huaian could tell from Song Yan's expression that he must be thinking something that would damage his image. So he quickly explained.
But the more he explained, the more puzzled Song Yan's expression became. "When did you get so close to Jinghong?"
"I... This... I..." Shen Huaian was stumped by his question. He didn't know how to explain for a moment, so he changed the subject. "Alright, stop talking about me. Since the case has been solved, why are you here at the Qin Tower?"
"I have some things I want to ask the pavilion master." Song Yan said calmly, his expression remaining unchanged. Shen Huaian didn't doubt his reason.
"In that case, since our purposes are the same, why don't we go together?" Shen Huaian smiled and didn't say much about his words.
Anyway, the things Song Yan wanted to ask must be related to the case. But...
Had there been any new cases in Yuling since the Emerald Case?
Forget it. It had nothing to do with him. He had just been struggling with whether it would be appropriate to go alone. He didn't know if Jinghong would see him. With Song Yan around, things would be much simpler.
As he said this, he didn't wait for Song Yan's consent and directly pushed him in. After telling the servant at the door that they wanted to see the pavilion master, they followed the servant through a series of twists and turns and arrived at a wing room.
The door creaked open with a soft sound. Inside the room, there were many veils. A person was sitting behind the veils, playing the guqin. The melodious music filled the wing room.
They didn't interrupt but just quietly listened to the music.
I don't know how long it took before the person stopped playing. She raised her eyes, glanced at the people sitting at the table, slowly stood up, lifted the veil, and a smile curled up on her lips.
"Director Song, Young Master Shen, why have you come together today?" Jinghong's voice was soft. There was no trace of surprise in her eyes at the arrival of the two of them, as if she had known it all along.
Song Yan didn't beat around the bush. He directly asked, "What exactly was the matter you told me last time? Also, I want to know who ordered the previous assassination."
Jinghong slowly picked up the teacup and blew away the floating tea leaves on it. "Director Song should know the rules of our Intelligence Pavilion. However, since Director Song helped me last time, I can answer one of your questions for free."
As she said this, she raised her eyes, winked in Song Yan's direction, and said with a smile, "Which question does Director Song want to know the answer to?"
Shen Huaian looked at the conversation between the two of them, looking completely out of the loop. What assassins? Were the assassins not sent by the same person?
Song Yan looked at Jinghong's expression. Although he knew that she was a profit - seeking person, he didn't expect her to be so calculating.
It wasn't this attitude when they had cooperated before. But forget it. It was better to know one thing than nothing.
"Who ordered the assassins?" Song Yan said after a moment of silence. For him, finding out who ordered the assassins was much more important now.
Only in this way could he lock in the target and better protect Ye Zhiqiu.
Jinghong wasn't surprised when she heard this answer. She put the teacup on the table with a soft sound, took out a letter from her sleeve, and handed it to him.
"Here. Everything you want to know is in it. But let me give you a piece of advice. The person that Teacher Ye has offended has a rather extraordinary background. It's better to stay away from the imperial city." Jinghong tapped on the table. She still had that smiling look on her face, and her words seemed casual.
Song Yan opened the envelope, took a look, then carefully put away the letter with a solemn expression and left the Qin Tower.
Shen Huaian, who was left behind, watched Song Yan's departing back and didn't make any further move for a long time.
"Does Young Master Shen have anything else to ask?" Jinghong looked at Shen Huaian, who was left behind, and said with a smile. She already knew what Shen Huaian's purpose was for coming.
She had seen clearly how he had been pacing back and forth at the door. But she just wanted to tease him.
Shen Huaian fell silent. He lowered his head and grabbed his sleeve, not daring to meet her gaze. Jinghong sighed at his uninteresting reaction. "If Young Master Shen has nothing else to do, I'll have to ask someone to show you out."
As soon as Jinghong finished speaking, Shen Huaian suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist. There was a bit of distress in his voice. "I've already heard about it."
"Hmm?" Jinghong was startled by his sudden action, but then she regained her usual expression. She tilted her head and looked at his face. "What have you heard?"
"About the Intelligence Pavilion. I came here just to ask how your injuries are. I brought some medicine. After all, you're a girl. If you get scars, you'll be so sad." Shen Huaian looked down at Jinghong's wrist. There was an old scar there.
He had noticed it when they had met before. There were so many scars just on the visible parts. He couldn't even imagine what kind of life Jinghong had been living these years.
To make a girl pick up a sword and kill without blinking an eye, he didn't even dare to think about such a life.
Jinghong was actually quite shocked when she heard Shen Huaian's words. She didn't expect him to say such a thing.
"I'm fine. But since Young Master Shen is so concerned, why don't you apply the medicine on me yourself and see how many injuries I have on my body." Jinghong said with a smile as she pulled Shen Huaian towards the depths of the veil.
The veil was lifted and then fell. Only two overlapping figures remained inside.
At the same time, in the private school, Song Yan was leaning against a tree by the door, waiting for Ye Zhiqiu to finish his class. During this time, his brows were tightly furrowed.
He had already read the letter that Jinghong had given him. The assassins were the death - warriors trained by the nobles in the imperial city. But why was Ye Zhiqiu targeted by the death - warriors?
Did he have any connection with someone in the palace? Now the situation seemed to be worse than he had thought.
If it was really someone in the palace who had done this, even Song Yan didn't know if he could protect Ye Zhiqiu.
Just as he was lost in thought, the noisy voices of the children pulled his thoughts back. He looked at Ye Zhiqiu walking towards him and subconsciously hid the letter behind him.
"Why are you here?" Ye Zhiqiu saw his small action of hiding the letter but didn't expose him.
Song Yan didn't answer his question. His face looked very grim. Thinking that he couldn't hide it anyway, he might as well ask the question clearly now so that he could come up with a countermeasure.
Although he thought so, he didn't know where to start for a moment.
His embarrassed expression was too obvious. Ye Zhiqiu sighed, took a few steps forward, and said, "It's not convenient to talk here. Come with me."
As he said this, he took a few steps forward, and Song Yan also stepped forward to follow Ye Zhiqiu. They walked into the courtyard together. Ye Zhiqiu poured a cup of tea and handed it to him. "Ask whatever questions you have."
Song Yan handed the envelope he had received from Jinghong to him. Ye Zhiqiu opened it and took a look. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. Song Yan said, "Do you have any grudges with the people in the palace?"
Ye Zhiqiu folded the letter and put it back on the table. He thought about Song Yan's question for a moment and then shook his head. "I'm just a private tutor. It's impossible for me to have any contact with the people in the palace..."
At this point, he paused. His handsome brows furrowed, as if he had thought of something.
"Do you have any clues?" Song Yan saw his expression and thought that he must have thought of something, so he asked.
Although Ye Zhiqiu had his suspicions in mind, he wasn't sure. If this matter was really what he thought it was, he couldn't involve Song Yan anymore.
Now the matter had already involved the palace. Song Yan was the director of the investigation department. If he got too involved with him, it would be very dangerous for his situation.
So he shook his head and suppressed his doubts. "No. I'm just a private tutor."
Song Yan listened to his answer. His expression had been different just now. He thought that Ye Zhiqiu must be hiding something about this matter. But since he didn't want to say, he felt embarrassed to ask.
After a moment of silence, he just stood up and said softly in Ye Zhiqiu's direction, "In that case, I won't bother you anymore."
After saying that, he turned around and left.
Ye Zhiqiu watched his departing back. He knew that Song Yan was in a bad mood when he left. He thought that it was understandable. Song Yan had done his best to find out who the assassins were last time, but he didn't appreciate it at all.
If it were him, he didn't know if he would still be so persistent.
But things had reached this point. He didn't need to involve an innocent person anymore.
His special constitution might have been discovered. The other person was probably the murderer of the serial cases.
Ye Zhiqiu reached out and touched his neck. The feeling of being attacked last time was still vivid in his mind. The attacker didn't kill him with one blow. He could even clearly feel the pain of his chest being cut by the blade.
He had endured this kind of pain once, and it would become a nightmare every time he woke up in the middle of the night.
He didn't want Song Yan to experience this kind of pain.
So... He had to keep Song Yan out of this. It would be better for everyone.