"My wife likes to collect special items from different places. We just arrived here, and she insisted on dragging me out for a stroll."
The waiter blinked his eyes. "You two guests are the ones from other places who are staying at the prefect's mansion, aren't you?"
Gu Ruobai nodded. "We're here to do business. The prefect was kind enough to accommodate us."
The waiter let out an "oh." "No wonder... I was just thinking you looked so unfamiliar."
Gu Ruobai gave the waiter some small silver coins. "Could you please tell us where the stores selling special items are?"
After taking the silver, the waiter became talkative. "Actually, there's nothing really special about this place. If there's anything a bit different, it's the red pottery. The ceramics fired from the local clay are all red. They're not only durable but also very nice-looking, even without glaze."
Gu Ruobai nodded in understanding. "Thank you."
Seeing Gu Ruobai being so easy to talk to, the waiter hesitated for a moment.
Gu Ruobai frowned when he saw the waiter still standing there. "What's up? Is there anything else?"
"Well..." The waiter scratched his head. "Normally, I shouldn't say much about this kind of thing."
"But I think you two don't seem like bad people, so I'll just say one more thing. But don't tell anyone I told you."
Seeing the waiter's embarrassed look, Gu Ruobai's eyes darkened imperceptibly. This Yan Liping really bullied the local people badly!
"Just speak your mind. My wife and I aren't gossips."
Hearing this, the waiter bent down and whispered in Gu Ruobai's ear. "That prefect may look decent on the surface, but in fact, he's extremely evil."
"Not only he and his son forcefully abduct young women, but they also often extort stall fees, entrance and exit fees from us. They've made life here miserable."
"Really?!" Gu Ruobai feigned surprise. "Don't the higher-ups care?"
The waiter shook his head and sighed. "The emperor is far away. Who's going to care? There's nothing we can do. Fortunately, he's finally leaving."
After saying this, the waiter carefully looked around. When he found no government officials noticing him, he turned around and left.
Su Mingyu heard it all clearly. "This Yan Liping is really as evil as they come."
"If such a person really enters the capital, he might cause trouble." Gu Ruobai's face was terribly gloomy.
Su Mingyu raised an eyebrow. "Then don't let him go to the capital."
Just then, Mu Yi came over.
Su Mingyu and Gu Ruobai exchanged a look and followed Mu Yi to a small room in an alley.
"Master, I've found out something."
Mu Yi's expression was a bit complicated, which made Su Mingyu startled. "What could be so difficult for you?"
"Yan Shiqi is not actually Yan Liping's daughter." Mu Yi seemed quite surprised when he said this.
Su Mingyu pouted. "We already know this. I want to know who Yan Shiqi's real father is."
Hearing this, Mu Yi's expression became even stranger. "I did find out, but the person... I find it a bit hard to believe."
Su Mingyu frowned. "Who on earth is it? Can't be a prince or the emperor himself, can it?"
Before Mu Yi could answer, Gu Ruobai suddenly said coldly, "Jiang He?"
Mu Yi nodded vigorously. "Yan Shiqi's mother used to be a maid in Jiang He's mansion. One night when Jiang He was drunk, they spent the night together, and unexpectedly, she got pregnant after just one night."
Su Mingyu was a bit confused. "Jiang He is a high-ranking official. How could he let his daughter end up in such a place?"
"You don't know this." Gu Ruobai continued after Mu Yi. "Jiang He used to be a poor scholar. He owes his current status entirely to his wife."
"Mrs. Jiang's family has been in the officialdom for generations. By the time of Mrs. Jiang, since she only had a daughter, she couldn't enter the officialdom. But the Jiang family still has a lot of influence in the court."
"During that imperial examination, Mrs. Jiang took a fancy to Jiang He at first sight and recruited him as a son-in-law. Jiang He was also very talented. He passed the top exam and then was promoted all the way with the help of Mrs. Jiang's family connections. He became a minister before he was forty, which is unprecedented in the court."
Su Mingyu nodded. "But I still don't understand what this has to do with Yan Shiqi."
Mu Yi scratched his nose and continued awkwardly after Gu Ruobai. "Mrs. Jiang is extremely ambitious. After she married Jiang He, not only was Jiang He not allowed to take concubines, but even if he took an extra look at another woman, Mrs. Jiang would scold and beat him at the least, or even use family rules on him. All the women who 'seduced' Jiang He were secretly disposed of without exception."
In this male-dominated world, there was actually such a "heroine" like Mrs. Jiang, which really surprised Su Mingyu.
At the same time, she also roughly understood why Mu Yi had such a strange expression.
In his eyes, women should serve men. How could there be a woman so spicy and unreasonable?
Su Mingyu propped her chin with her hand. "So, Yan Shiqi and her mother came here to take refuge?"
Mu Yi nodded. "You can say so. Yan Shiqi's mother's hometown is here, so she wanted to come back to find someone to rely on."
Unexpectedly, she met someone like Yan Liping.
But Su Mingyu suddenly thought of a question. "How old was Yan Shiqi when she was brought here?"
Mu Yi thought for a while. "I heard from the neighbors that she was about six or seven years old."
At this age, she should remember everything.
Su Mingyu and Gu Ruobai exchanged a look. They understood each other without words. "It seems that Yan Shiqi wants to kill off the witnesses by sending Yan Liping to the capital."
"Should we start our journey back now?" Mu Yi felt that they had investigated the matter almost enough and it was time to return to the capital.
"No, don't be in a hurry." Su Mingyu frowned. "Since Yan Shiqi wants to send Yan Liping to the capital, then we'll send him there."
Gu Ruobai looked at Su Mingyu and immediately understood what she meant. "Bring the evidence of Yan Liping's corruption. Once Yan Liping gets settled in the capital, we can take this opportunity to take down Jiang He, Yan Liping, and Yan Shiqi all at once."
Su Mingyu nodded. "That's exactly what I mean."
Gu Ruobai raised an eyebrow. "Then this task is yours."
He was talking to Mu Yi, who readily accepted it.
Watching Mu Yi leave, Su Mingyu suddenly sighed. "It's really good to have a capable subordinate."