Chu Heng initially did not understand, but once he did, he envied his cousin for having t a woman he trusted so much.
"Even so, do you have the heart to put Miss Mo in a difficult position? Rather than that, you should first speak clearly with Mr. Mo. If Mr. Mo has no objections, then it wouldn’t be too late for you to send matchmakers to propose marriage; if Mr. Mo is unwilling to have you as a son-in-law, wouldn’t it be inappropriate to brazenly bring matchmakers to his door, potentially ruining Miss Mo’s reputation? Should Mr. Mo hold a grudge against you, your hopes of marrying Miss Mo would be even slimr."
Xiao Ruiyuan furrowed his brow, deep in thought and silent. He had been so intent on marrying the woman he loved as soon as possible that he planned to directly take matchmakers to propose. His cousin’s reminder made him realize that this was not a wise move.
However, as to what exactly he should do, Xiao Ruiyuan really had no idea, and couldn’t help asking Chu Heng, "What do you suggest I should do, cousin?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Heng felt an even greater headache coming on, but seeing the hopeful look in his cousin’s eyes, he couldn’t bear to let him down and reluctantly agreed, "When I have a day off, I’ll accompany you on this visit. I believe Mr. Mo won’t refuse you in front of , sparing you any embarrassnt!"
"Thank you, cousin!" Xiao Ruiyuan clasped his fists in gratitude, his voice softening appreciably.
As long as he could marry his beloved, he was not afraid of embarrassnt or being given a hard ti. But the thoughtfulness of his cousin deeply moved him.
Seeing Xiao Ruiyuan already showing signs of a henpecked husband even before getting married, Chu Heng’s eyes ached, and he suddenly missed the old days when his cousin was indifferent to everything, as cold as a block of ice.
Just then, the door to the study was knocked, and Chu Heng said, "Enter." A Hidden Guard hurried in, knelt down, and reported to Xiao Ruiyuan that the Chen family of three had escaped and were nowhere to be found.
Xiao Ruiyuan suddenly stood up, not bothering to ask how the Chen family had managed to escape so silently under the strict surveillance of the Hidden Guards, and gave the order with a stern face, "Search! Dig three feet into the ground if need be, but find them!"
"Yes!" The Hidden Guard took the order and, as if he had never appeared, vanished quietly into the moonlight.
After the Hidden Guard left, Xiao Ruiyuan bid farewell to Chu Heng and hastened back to Lord Wei Yuan House, leading twenty personal guards to the Chen’s residence himself. After spending half an hour, they finally found a secret passage in the well of the Chen family’s backyard, leading outside.
The secret passage was several miles long, leading to an abandoned temple outside the city. Not far from the temple, it was clear the Chen family of three had escaped from Jing City through this passage.
Not far from the temple was the Moat. If the Chen family took a boat downstream, they would have already left the bounds of Jing City by this ti, heading south.
Secretly digging such a long tunnel obviously wasn’t the work of a year or two; judging from the chisel marks, it had taken a decade. Even Xiao Ruiyuan had to admire Chen Ji’s cunning and precaution, having prepared an escape route ten years earlier.
Xiao Ruiyuan was well aware of how dangerous Chen Ji was. No matter what, he had to find him to avoid future trouble. After questioning the other boats moored by the river and confirming that the Chen family had indeed fled down the Moat, he imdiately dispatched n in two directions: one downstream in search of the Chen family and the other on fast horses along the riverbank. The Chen family couldn’t drift on the water forever; they had to co ashore for supplies.
...
Early the next morning, the death of Master Lin and the confiscation of the Lin Family were news that spread among the people. Overnight, this stirred up more discussion than the recent examination fraud case and even the house arrest of King Heng and the execution of Old Master Lin (Lin Imperial Concubine) were only briefly ntioned before fading away.
Within the Scholar’s Forest, many suspected Emperor Huian of harming the loyal and upright, driving Master Lin to death. These suspicions subsided significantly once news that Master Lin was posthumously conferred the title of Duke Wen Zhong and given a state funeral with Duke-level honors ca out.
Not long after, when the conspiracy of Old Master Lin and Lin Imperial Concubine poisoning the late Empress Dowager and manipulating the recent examination fraud ca to light, people finally understood why the Lin Family was raided and why Master Lin took his own life with gold—brought down by his own ungrateful descendants!
Thinking of the heinous acts committed by Old Master Lin and Lin Imperial Concubine, acts severe enough to warrant the extermination of their line, yet Emperor Huian posthumously honored Master Lin as Duke Wen Zhong, preserving the last dignity of the Three Dynasties’ Imperial Teacher, people couldn’t help but praise the benevolent ruler.
The storm that was about to erupt due to the death of Master Lin thus dissipated.
After Master Lin’s grand funeral, the deposed Chu Ye was sent back to Prince Heng’s Mansion. The plaque above the main gate of the mansion that signified the prince’s dignity had been taken back by Emperor Huian; from then on, it was nothing more than a gorgeous prison.
The downfall of the Lin Family and the imprisonnt of King Heng ant that the two threats looming over the Mo Family were no more, and the father and daughter of Mo Family finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Yet, since Chen Ji’s escape, seven days had passed and the trio had vanished as if evaporated, despite thousands searching everywhere, their whereabouts remained undiscovered.
Mo Yan knew, the longer the ti dragged on, the slimr the chances of finding them. She couldn’t resign herself to let Chen Ji escape so easily, yet she had no way to uncover his whereabouts.
One day, she couldn’t help but ask Xuetuan again about Chen Ji’s whereabouts, but Xuetuan asked her a grave question in return, "Yanyan, Chen Ji has committed cris so grave, that were he found, not only he but his wife and daughter would also die. Knowing this, do you still wish for him to be found?"
"Of course!" Mo Yan answered without hesitation, about to question Xuetuan why she asked such an obvious question. She then belatedly realized what Xuetuan was really asking and her expression changed suddenly...
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