Clouds and Moon Shadow

Chapter 391 The Divine Dragon Guards Secretly Surround the Prince's Mansion

"Yesterday morning, Father Emperor secretly dispatched a large force to control that mountain range and secretly arrested several junior managers of the manor. They're just waiting to uncover the mastermind behind it all before closing in..."

Gu Qingyue looked at Mu Yun Chu with bright eyes, waiting for his next words.

It's certain that the old emperor has dispatched a large force, but Mu Yun Chu's claim that there's progress means there's more to it than just this. She's looking forward to hearing more news about the misfortunes of the Prince An's mansion.

Looking at her, Mu Yun Chu chuckled and ruffled her hair. "We have already delivered Liu San to Father Emperor."

"So he knew that Prince An was the mastermind behind it all?"

Gu Qingyue pressed for an answer.

"I understand, but those stewards didn't reveal a single piece of information even under torture, and Liu San didn't actually see Prince An in person at that villa, so it still lacks persuasiveness."

Mu Yun Chu straightened her sleeves and continued, "However, this witness is enough to make Father Emperor suspicious of Uncle An. This morning, the An Prince's mansion was secretly monitored by the Divine Dragon Guard."

Upon hearing this, Gu Qingyue stroked her chin. "I wonder if Prince An has noticed?"

Mu Yun Chu raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying.

Based on his understanding of Uncle An, he must have noticed it; it's just a matter of how he will react next.

"You didn't ask Liu San to talk about the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, did you?"

When Gu Qingyue handed Liu San over to Mu Yun Chu, she instructed him to have another explanation and not to tell the Emperor about Qin Shi's arrest, as it was unnecessary.

Even if the Emperor knew, he wouldn't care about the jealousy and rivalry within his ministers' households. It would only damage Qin's reputation and complicate matters.

In particular, it is by no means a glorious thing for Lady Liu to collude with the Prince An's mansion to frame her own younger brother and sister-in-law.

"Don't worry, of course not. Doesn't he have dealings with the steward of the Prince An's mansion? He can just give any excuse," Mu Yun Chu nodded.

"Do you think those private soldiers might be the Crown Prince's? Didn't you say that Prince An supports the Crown Prince?"

Gu Qingyue asked, seemingly having thought of something.

She felt that since Prince An had sworn to the world many years ago not to contend for the throne and only wished to enjoy the beauty of nature, whether it was to save his life or because he was truly uninterested in the throne, he had already cut off any possibility of ascending to the throne.

What was the point of him keeping a private army?

Wouldn't it be better to be a carefree and leisurely prince?

“That’s possible, but we can’t rule out the possibility that Uncle An is cultivating his own power and wants to do something,” Mu Yun Chu said thoughtfully.

"It seems that Father Emperor will not let Uncle An off this time," Mu Yun Chu said calmly, stroking the teacup in her hand.

Upon hearing this, Gu Qingyue fell silent for a moment.

The discovery of the private soldiers in the mountain valley was purely accidental. If Prince An hadn't harmed the Qin family, they wouldn't have been able to track them to such a secluded place.

She later inquired in detail about the mountain valley in Jiangluo, which was said to be very difficult to find and quite secluded.

If we hadn't followed the people delivering grain to Prince An's side, it would have been very difficult to discover any clues.

To be honest, Prince An's private army was indeed very well hidden. They were close to the capital but left no trace, making them very difficult to detect. This made them perfect for launching a surprise attack on the capital.

But now that she and Mu Yun Chu have discovered it, this hidden danger must be eliminated.

This was not only to prevent Prince An and those behind the scenes from having any further opportunities to target the Qin family, but also for the sake of the stability of the Great Chu.

What she is wondering now is what Prince An is planning to do by secretly raising an army?

Prince An's Mansion.

"Are you sure the news is true?" In Prince An's study, Prince An sat calmly behind his chair, listening to his subordinates' report, before slowly raising his head and asking.

"Indeed, the Divine Dragon Guards have secretly surrounded the Prince's residence. Your Highness, what do you think we should do next..."

“It’s alright, let them surround it. We’ll see why. Go and investigate… see if the training grounds in the mountains have been discovered. If…” Prince An tapped the table, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Then... what does Your Highness intend to do? Does the Emperor suspect Your Highness?" the guard asked in a low voice.

“It’s time to leave. I’ve long since given up on staying in the capital. I’ve had enough of being a coward all these years, and it’s time to pay back the debts I owe to some people,” Prince An said, standing up.

"Then, should we send the princess, the noblewoman, and the young masters away first?" the guard asked.

Upon hearing this, Prince An snorted coldly, "Take away the Crown Prince, as for the rest..." Prince An glared fiercely at the guard, who shuddered, nodded, and immediately retreated.

After the guards left and closed the door, Prince An reached out and touched the lampstand next to the bookcase. Immediately, the bookcase opened to both sides, revealing a dark room.

Prince An flicked his sleeves and stepped inside.

Five days later.

The Duke of Zhenguo's mansion celebrated the old Duke's sixty-fifth birthday.

Gu Qingyue had just finished dressing up when Zhu Qing told her that both plays in the manor had already started.

She was startled. It was only breakfast time, and the guests hadn't even arrived yet, but the show had already started?

"Miss, you don't know, this is called 'Warm Blessing Opera.' Today is the old Duke's birthday, and starting the performance early in the morning is a lively and festive occasion, a good omen!"

No wonder she heard laughter and music outside while she was combing her hair; it turned out that the Nuanfu Opera had already started.

That's quite a peculiar custom.

Gu Qingyue was itching to go and watch the excitement.

Now that things have calmed down at the Prince An's residence, the marriage of Princess Chaoyue has been arranged, Liu Shi has been dealt with, and Hu Shi is reflecting on her mistakes behind closed doors, the external threats have been basically eliminated, and apart from that person hiding in the shadows who wants to harm the Qin family, everything else is relatively stable.

The Qin family is currently in charge of managing the household, but since they are not yet fully recovered, these matters have been assigned to the Wei family.

As Gu Qingyue walked towards the main courtyard, she saw the servants busily carrying out their tasks in an orderly manner, and she nodded in satisfaction.

She felt happy when she thought about how the people from Wenxianglou had come to help her today.

Today, we arranged for several chefs from Wenxianglou to come and take full charge of making all the pastries for the birthday banquet. Of course, they will mainly promote the pastries that Wenxianglou will soon be available.

Gu Qingyue even selfishly brought the twenty-odd tea masters she had trained into the mansion so that they could perform tea ceremonies on this important occasion.

Let's first advertise for Wenxianglou and create some buzz.

Because of the Liu family's affair, the opening of Wenxianglou was scheduled for the third day after my grandfather's birthday.

Of course, Wenxianglou has now quietly opened for trial operation and business is very good.

She certainly wouldn't let Liu's death interfere with her money-making endeavors; she definitely wouldn't allow that. She had already invited many people to try her dishes and had gained some fame, so she couldn't just sit idly by.

When Qin heard Gu Qingyue's arrangement, she couldn't help but laugh out loud. This daughter was unexpectedly good at business, even better than Qin herself, who came from a merchant family.

Gu Qingyue felt a little embarrassed when she recalled Qin's praise of her.

A moment later, she led Jiang Wan and Zhu Qing to the main courtyard.