Chapter 444 - Chapter 444 Tu Jiulin’s Case

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“I’m not free,” Yan Huaijing answered coldly after thinking for a second.

“Yes, Your Heir-apparent.” Little Dezi turned to Wei Qiufu behind him and apologized, “Fourth Miss Wei, I’m sorry. The heir-apparent is not free now.”

“But, Sixth Younger Sister is missing. What should I do?” Wei Qiufu looked anxious.

“Fourth Miss Wei, why don’t you look for Sixth Miss Wei where she was last seen?” Little Dezi suggested calmly.

“But, it has been quite a while since she was last seen. Besides, Miss Lin’s courtyard is where Eldest Miss Jing’s maid had an incident. If Sixth Younger Sister was also knocked unconscious, I… I’ll be blamed by Eldest Uncle!”

Saying so, Wei Qiufu wept her tears with a handkerchief.

Earlier, Jing Wenyan came down weeping and took a few young ladies with her when she left. However, there were still a few young ladies wandering under the bamboo building. Now, seeing Wei Qiufu suddenly cry, a young lady went over and asked with concern, “What happened, Fourth Miss Wei?”

“Well… Sixth Younger Sister is missing. I last saw her in the courtyard where the incident happened.” Wei Qiufu cried even more.

“Which courtyard? The one that Miss Lin used to stay in? Ah… I hope she’s alright,” someone said worriedly.

“Could she… just like Eldest Miss Jing’s maid…” Another person speculated.

Hearing the malicious guesses made by the young ladies toward Wei Yuewu, Wei Qiufu was extremely pleased in secret. Just now, she followed Jing Wenyan all the way here, intending to prevent Jing Wenyan from getting the upper hand. However, Jing Wenyan came down with red eyes. It was obvious that she didn’t get what she wanted. Somehow, Wei Qiufu suddenly thought of Wei Yuewu.

Before the incident, Wei Yuewu had agreed to wait for Wei Qiufu outside the courtyard. But, when Wei Qiufu followed the crowd out, Wei Yuewu was already gone.

The bamboo building was not big, and the commotion downstairs was loud. Slowly, Wei Yuewu’s face turned cold. She realized that Wei Qiufu was seizing the chance to ruin her reputation.

“Do you want me to help you?” Yan Huaijing asked, staring at Wei Yuewu’s angry puffy face with interest.

“No!” She declined determinedly.

Raising his eyebrows, Yan Huaijing asked with interest, “Does this mean you have a way?”

“Your Heir-apparent, is there any other exit in this bamboo building for me to go downstairs?” Wei Yuewu looked at Yan Huaijing expectantly.

“What do you think, Yuewu?” Yan Huaijing replied lazily.

“There must be!”

A wily hare would secure safety with three exits to its burrow, let alone Yan Huaijing, who was menacing and cunning.

At the sight of Wei Yuewu’s extremely serious and certain expression, Yan Huaijing couldn’t help but laugh and get up, holding her tiny waist. “Yeah, there is another exit. But if you go out now and the Crown Prince finds no Miss Lin who interests him, he’ll suspect that there is something special about my bamboo building.”

“I don’t wanna see it then,” Wei Yuewu stated firmly. Knowing the danger of crossing Yan Huaijing’s line from the first time meeting him, she had no intention to spy on him.

Seeing that Yan Huaijing was still standing and seemed to want to take her to see something, Wei Yuewu pulled his sleeve and sat down. “Your Heir-apparent, can I go down and drive Fourth Elder Sister away?”

Of course, she couldn’t allow Wei Qiufu to ruin her reputation because the reputation of a noble young lady was fragile. Sometimes, it could be destroyed with just a little rumor.

“Sure. Actually, I can help you!” Yan Huaijing replied smilingly.

“Your Heir-apparent, you sure know how to joke. How could I trouble you with such a small matter?” Wei Yuewu said flatteringly, to which Yan Huaijing was very satisfied and stopped insisting on helping her. Instead, he leaned back and waved his hand, indicating that she could leave as she pleased.

He looked like he was ready for a good show.

However, Wei Yuewu did not move and requested very sincerely, “I want Jin Ling!”

Of course, it was inconvenient for her to show her face at this time since Yan Huaijing claimed that the Crown Prince would come later. Right now, she was supposed to be “Miss Lin” from the State of Yan. If people found out that she was dressed the same as Miss Lin, it would be troublesome.

With his lips curled, Yan Huaijing nodded gently and clapped his hands three times. A guard came in, bowed his head, and greeted respectfully, “Your Heir-apparent.”

When Wei Yuewu heard the guard’s voice, she was stunned for a moment and looked at the guard in surprise. “Jin Ling?”

“Miss, it’s me!” Jin Ling looked up at Wei Yuewu and beamed.

“Why are you…”

“His Heir-apparent asked Little Dezi to give me these clothes to change into. He was worried that it’ll be inconvenient for me to come up if Miss needs me,” Jin Ling explained with a smile.

On the side, Yan Huaijing narrowed his eyes and gazed at Wei Yuewu with interest. He just smiled and commented nothing.

“Go outside, change your clothes, and come back to take Wei Qiufu away with you. Tell her that I’ve been looking for her and ask why she disappeared after she entered Miss Lin’s courtyard. She was in there for long, so I grew impatient and went away to take a stroll.” As Wei Yuewu instructed, she raised her watery eyes.

“Yes, Miss!” Jin Ling took the order and left.

“Fourth Young Lady from your family is quite ambitious. She and Jing Wenyan are a perfect match. Now, I wonder who is more skilled and will win over the Crown Prince’s favor!” Yan Huaijing remarked leisurely.

“Don’t you think that Eldest Miss Jing has a higher chance of winning?” Wei Yuewu asked curiously.

Whether it was in terms of status or appearance, Jing Wenyan had a great advantage. So, no matter how Wei Yuewu compared the two, she felt that Jing Wenyan was much more likely to win than Wei Qiufu.

“Not anyone can be the Crown Princess. It was obvious that the Crown Prince treats your Fourth Elder Sister differently.” There seemed to be a hidden meaning in Yan Huaijing’s words.

Wei Yuewu agreed with him. The Crown Prince did treat Wei Qiufu differently, and Wei Yuewu wondered why.

Suddenly remembering her doubt, Wei Yuewu put aside the matter of Wei Qiufu and asked directly, “Your Heir-apparent, do you know Tu Jiulin?”

“Tu Jiulin was once a legitimate descendant of the Tu family. His father was Grand Preceptor Tu’s cousin. Originally, his lineage was supposed to take over the Tu Family’s power. However, when he was young, there was an incident where his parents went on a leisure trip and encountered bandits on the way. His parents were killed by the bandits, so his lineage took a downturn thereafter. Hence, the family’s power was taken over by Grand Preceptor Tu.”

Yan Huaijing picked up the wine glass on the table and poured himself another glass. He then glanced at Wei Yuewu with his handsome eyes. Without asking why Wei Yuewu mentioned Tu Jiulin, he directly gave Wei Yuewu the answer she wanted.

Wei Yuewu’s heart skipped a beat as she asked in surprise, “Did the incident… has nothing to do with Grand Preceptor Tu?”

No matter how one looked at it, Grand Preceptor Tu’s lineage would be the one to benefit from the incident. It was almost impossible for a side branch of a prominent aristocratic family to change its status to become the main lineage. For centuries-old aristocratic families, reputation was everything. And even if a side branch was talented, it could never be compared with the main lineage. Of course, there was also the concept of sub-lineage. But if a family was split up, the overall strength of the aristocratic family would be significantly weakened.

Therefore, large aristocratic families never divided themselves into sub-lineages.

“Yeah, there was no evidence pointing that the incident had something to do with Grand Preceptor Tu.” Yan Huaijing was not surprised by Wei Yuewu’s sensitivity. His little fox had never really been a well-protected young lady who knew nothing.

“Did Tu Jiulin, I mean Lord Tu, not suspect anything?” Wei Yuewu raised her gaze and looked at Yan Huaijing curiously.

“With Grand Preceptor Tu’s current strength, how can he be easily overthrown by Tu Jiulin’s suspicion? Even though Tu Jiulin holds a position in the court and is very trusted by the Emperor, Grand Preceptor Tu is the father of Empress Tu and Zhaoyi Tu, as well as the maternal grandfather of the Crown Prince.” After Yan Huaijing said that, he cast a gentle smile at Wei Yuewu, elegantly picked up the wine glass, and took another sip.

In other words, without evidence or irrefutable proof, it was impossible to bring down Grand Preceptor Tu. Besides, even if there was evidence, it might still be difficult.

With Grand Preceptor Tu’s current position, as long as the Crown Prince’s status was stable, no one would be foolish enough to cause trouble for Grand Preceptor Tu. Although he was considered semi-retired now, Wei Yuewu heard that there was still a constant stream of visitors at his doorstep.

“Back then, Tu Jiulin was still very young. It could be considered that Grand Preceptor Tu raised him. Oh, speaking of his younger days, his younger sister disappeared around that time.”

“His sister disappeared?”

“Yes, it was said that his sister was on the way to their maternal grandfather’s house when she encountered robbers. None of the robbers and his sister were found, so she went missing just like that,” Yan Huaijing recounted lightly.

“I have a plate for you to take a look at later. It is said that the flower-shaped pastry on it has been seen at your household before.” Some dots had already formed a thread in Wei Yuewu’s mind, although they were slowly connecting together. However, there were still some points that remained questionable, and she couldn’t sort them out at the moment. Some evidence was needed to prove them.

“Well, you can give it to Jin Ling for Lin Fang to see. He has the answer!” Yan Huaijing curled his lips slightly. Elegance and calmness were seen in his delicate and sculpture-like facial features.

At the sight of his good looks, Wei Yuewu couldn’t help but sigh at how much the heavens favored some. Yan Huaijing was indeed charming. He always exuded a gentle and elegant charm that was pleasing to the eye. It was no wonder that both the Third Princess and Fourth Princess were fond of him. The battle between the two princesses was very obvious.

“Who exactly is Young Master Lin to Miss Lin though?” At the mention of Lin Fang, Wei Yuewu thought of something. Today, everyone was calling her “Miss Lin”.

“Of course, Lin Fang is Miss Lin’s cousin. The Lin family has always been wealthy and influential. In the State of Yan, they are considered one of the most prominent among the aristocratic families. By the way, when Lin Fang was younger, he also had a cousin sister who went missing,” Yan Huaijing hinted when Wei Yuewu finally came to the topic.

After thinking for a while, Wei Yuewu said, “So, Miss Lin is the missing cousin sister of Lin Fang. Even though Eldest Miss Jing is familiar with the State of Yan, she still can’t find Miss Lin, huh?”

“Take a guess!” Yan Huaijing smiled gently.

Helplessly, Wei Yuewu rubbed her forehead. “Could you give me a hint?”

She was not familiar with the State of Yan. So, how could she be able to understand Yan Huaijing’s thoughts?

“You’re half right! Anyway, since you’re Miss Lin now, I’ll get Lin Fang to give you a genealogy of the Lin family later. So, you can get familiar with it!” Yan Huaijing replied casually.

“Is it necessary?” Wei Yuewu was surprised.

“Of course!” Yan Huaijing sounded confident.

“Why?” Just then, Wei Qiufu’s sharp voice suddenly came from downstairs. The peacefulness of the bamboo forest was interrupted.