Chapter 50 "What?" Qin Ji…

Chapter 50 "What?" Qin Ji…

"What?" Qin Ji looked up at Wei Xun kneeling below, his eyes dark and unreadable, and uttered only two words: "Tell me."

Despite those two seemingly casual words, Wei Xun felt his heart tighten as if bound by a rope, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Wei Xun was well aware that his lord, who usually did not show anger, was clearly displeased with this expression.

"A secret message from the guards: Tang Shisan was shot and killed while passing through Meng County." Facing his lord's gaze, Wei Xun swallowed hard, feeling as if a red-hot iron was stuck in his throat.

"Meng County?" Upon hearing this familiar place name, Qin Ji quickly glanced at the route map still lying on his hand. Meng County was clearly marked within a circle on the outer edge of the Jiangzuo territory.

"Continue." He tapped the table twice; the sound was soft, but extremely authoritative in the moment.

Wei Xun subconsciously quickened his pace: "That arrow was not only cunning and precise at an angle, but also extremely powerful, piercing straight through the heart. Neither the guards accompanying the Tang family nor the secret guards following us had any chance to react."

Tang Shisan was killed on the spot by an arrow.

Our men quickly searched the surrounding area but found nothing. However, they managed to steal the arrow from the Tang family guards and send it back with a secret message. My subordinates noticed something unusual about the arrow.

After speaking, the guard, who was kneeling on one knee, lifted up a long wooden box that had been placed beside his knee.

Wei Sa, who had been standing quietly to the side without saying a word, stepped forward and took the box from his hand.

He opened it and saw that there was indeed an arrow and a secret letter inside. Then he turned around and placed the items on the table in front of Qin Ji.

Seeing Wei Sa's action, Wei Xun's fingers trembled slightly as he withdrew his hand from his side. He understood what Wei Sa's action meant; it meant that he, his lord's closest bodyguard, was already on guard against him.

For people like them, if they lose their master's trust, their only fate is death.

This suspicion and defensiveness on Wei Sa's part is understandable, given that he had made two fatal mistakes within a single year, both related to the Lord's plans in the salt industry. The last time, when the salt ships were hijacked and the secret formula stolen, the Lord had leniently forgiven him as a warning, but this time...

Although the Lord's attitude has not yet been revealed, Wei Sa's actions made Wei Xun feel as if a sword was hanging over his head.

Qin Ji looked at the arrow placed in front of him. The arrow had been cut in two by a sharp weapon. It must have been cut by Tang Shisan's guards when they tried to treat him.

Qin Ji pulled out a white cotton handkerchief and examined the end with the arrowhead; the break was very close to the arrowhead.

The reason for this break is that the arrow still carried considerable force after hitting Tang Shisan, causing it to pass directly through his chest. Just as Wei Xun said, the person who used the arrow had immense strength.

Upon closer inspection, although the arrowhead gleamed with a sharp, cold light, it was made of only ordinary materials. On the contrary, the shaft, which was soaked in blood and turned a dark reddish-brown, was a bit off.

"You say this arrow is wrong?" Qin Ji put the broken arrow back into the box and looked at Wei Xun.

"Yes, my lord. The secret letter says that on the very day Tang Shisan was shot and killed, the Meng County government received the body of a hunter who had accidentally fallen off a cliff. They then hastily concluded the matter by saying that the hunter had mistakenly killed Tang Shisan and, in his panic, had also fallen off a cliff himself."

The arrow's craftsmanship and materials are ordinary, making it seem somewhat like an arrow used by a mountain hunter. However, the problem lies precisely with this mountain hunter: although the mountains near Meng County are abundant with bamboo forests, the arrow shaft is made of poplar wood.

“Arrows made in the north mostly use poplar shafts.” Qin Ji’s eyes swept over the arrows in the casket again, and he chuckled. “If I remember correctly, when the salt ships were hijacked last year, the first to strike were a few skilled archers, but when they were cleaning up the scum afterwards, there were no archers at all.”

"Yes, my lord. The leader that night was an exceptional archer, and he seemed to have a military style when he fought. During the fierce battle, he was stabbed by one of his men and fell into the water. After that, he... never appeared again." At the time, he thought the man was dead, but now it seems that not only is he alive, but he is also continuing to lurk near Jiangzuo, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Cold sweat dripped from Wei Xun's forehead.

"Well done, they've managed to leave no trace, neither alive nor dead," Qin Ji sneered, his praise carrying a sarcastic undertone.

"Please give me another chance, my lord." Wei Xun kowtowed heavily to the ground.

"Alright, since we said back then that if you safely escorted Su Mingyue back to the capital, the salt boat incident would be wiped clean, we won't bring up this old grudge now. But... find out who shot Tang Shisan as soon as possible. If he was the leader of the hijacking that day, bring him back alive, understand?"

Qin Ji took the secret letter from the box and then gestured to Wei Sa, who was standing to the side, to return the broken arrow to Wei Xun.

"Yes, I understand." Wei Xun clasped his hands in a salute.

After seeing Wei Xun leave, Qin Ji quickly read through the secret letter carefully. After pondering for a few moments, he instructed Wei Sa, "Send someone to investigate the Meng County government office. There should be someone deeply involved in this matter. Once you find out who it is, let him be killed by accident."

"Yes, my lord." After accepting the task, Wei Sa said, "My lord, last year we suspected that the person who hijacked the ship was either the Second Prince or the Fifth Prince. Now it seems that the Second Prince is more suspicious." After all, the Second Prince's maternal family still controls a portion of the military power in the Northern Frontier.

"They're just some skilled archers. If you're willing, you can find them anywhere. If I asked you to prepare a group of men and weapons, couldn't you do it?" Qin Ji retorted.

"Understood, Your Majesty." Wei Sa suddenly understood after being asked this question. Indeed, although skilled archers were hard to find, and military equipment was officially controlled, it was still easy for princes and even powerful nobles to prepare enough for murder, robbery, and framing. Besides, those arrows were only likely from the north, and might not even be military equipment.

"The news of Tang Shisan's death in Meng County will likely reach the Xiao family soon. He was a distinguished guest of Master Xiao, and he came to Jiangzuo specifically for two reasons: first, to cooperate, and second, to attend your wedding with the Third Miss. After this incident, will Master Xiao have any different ideas about the wedding date?"

After all, on the surface, both the Xiao family's textile business in Sichuan and the salt well business that the Qin family was about to discuss with the Tang family relied heavily on the Tang family. Now that his son had died on his way to the wedding, if the wedding were to continue in a joyous manner, the Tang family would likely feel uneasy.

Upon hearing Wei Sa mention this, Qin Ji gave him a slightly appreciative look.

If Wei Sa hadn't brought it up, he really wouldn't have considered this aspect, but after being mentioned, he felt that this concern was quite reasonable.

Given Xiao Fuyan's temperament and his emphasis on the family business, he might actually postpone the wedding between the two families and then personally travel to Sichuan to escort Tang Shisan "home".

"Grind the ink." He was going to send a letter each to the Xiao family and the Tang family in the name of Prince Cheng.

When he met Master Tang in Sichuan, he used the identity of Qin Ji to reveal that the person behind the Qin family was Prince Cheng.

At the time, he thought that as long as the Prince's Mansion remained hidden, all business matters could be handled by the Qin family as a front. But now that things have changed so much, the Qin family alone might not be enough to make a difference in this cooperation.

Tang Shisan died. Although it was ostensibly an accidental killing, Old Master Tang was a shrewd old man and would not easily dismiss him with such a reason.

The Tang family's anger needs an outlet, so let's give them one.

The mastermind behind the scenes intended to kill Tang Shisan to sabotage their cooperation with the Tang family, but if handled well, having a common enemy might actually deepen and solidify their cooperation.

Of course, in order to resolve this matter smoothly, the Prince Cheng's Mansion will have to show more sincerity—for example, the truth of the matter, the murderer's head, and this personal letter from Prince Cheng.

As for the letter from the Xiao family...

"Go back to the Prince's residence and instruct Shenku to attend the wedding of the Qin and Xiao families on my behalf. This will put the Xiao family at ease." Shenku, whom Qin Ji mentioned, was the chief secretary of the Prince's residence.

In recent years, Prince Cheng has lived a secluded life and rarely appeared in public. Whenever there was an occasion that required the Prince's Mansion to appear, he would usually go to Chenku. In Jiangzuo today, Chenku can, to a certain extent, represent the face of Prince Cheng's Mansion.

Hearing this, Wei Sa struggled to keep her lips from twitching and her expression from showing any unusual reaction.

In her heart, she couldn't help but think, "My Prince, you're really something, having someone stand in for you at your own wedding. You're just trying to use your princely status to prevent Xiao Fuyan from changing the wedding date. Who are you trying to fool with this serious act?"

Of course, Wei Sa would not reveal such thoughts at all. When asked, she would say that her lord was doing it entirely for the sake of the overall situation and had no selfish desire not to postpone the wedding.

“It is indeed difficult to change the wedding date. If we don’t get married in the fall, it will be delayed until winter. Preparing for a wedding in the cold winter is really unbearable. If we delay it again, it will be next year. This is the best way. Letting Old Shen step in will not only save face for the Xiao family, but also give the Xiao family an explanation to the Tang family. The wedding can be carried out smoothly.”

Why is Wei Sa able to stand closest to the Lord and have the Lord's trust among all the Wei generation? It's because he is the most loyal, knows his place best, and understands the Lord's heart best!

Unlike that idiot Wei Xun, who gets arrogant when praised and cowers at the slightest mistake. He may have ability, but he makes mistakes frequently and doesn't know how to make amends. What good is kowtowing and being terrified? He messed up his duties once or twice and still came to see his lord like this? If only he had presented his lord with a solution or a plan to make amends!

Thinking of the person who had just left in a cold sweat, and looking at his master's relatively gentle expression, Wei Sa hesitated whether to plead for him. After much deliberation, he decided to remain silent for now and talk to Wei Xun later.

That person... sigh!

His master had actually figured him out; as long as he was loyal and honest, he was actually a very easy master to serve. But Wei Xun was the one who was terrified and still couldn't figure him out.

Having risen through the ranks, he's probably now more favored by his superiors than even Qin Xi, who came down to him.

Such an idiot, who knows what will happen to him in the future.

"Wei Sa, send someone to deliver the letter." Qin Ji pointed to the two sealed letters on the table. When Wei Sa saw the character "Xiao" written on the letter, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration and felt that his foolish friend might have another way out.