son, don't mess around

Chapter 816 He's Going to Be Arrested by Prime Minister Zhao
In the dead of night, a cold wind swept through the capital city.

In the darkness, a dark figure silently swept through the bustling city, avoiding the patrolling city guards, concealing itself as it leaped across rooftops and over residential buildings, finally arriving at a mansion.

Outside the courtyard, guards patrolled. All around was silent, and the world was plunged into darkness, with only a few sparks of starlight remaining.

The shadowy figure evaded the patrolling guards, nimbly leaping over the courtyard wall and entering the inner courtyard. All was quiet; except for a few maids on night watch, everyone else was already asleep.

Lin Jiang walked into the courtyard with familiarity and came to the eaves. The door was tightly closed, but that didn't stop him. He turned around and went to the windowsill. With a gentle flick of his wrist, he pushed the window open and then leaped into the room.

She closed the window again and tiptoed toward the bed behind the screen.

Outside, a biting wind howled, but inside the room, warmth reigned, and a faint, pleasant fragrance filled the air. Although it was pitch black all around, it did not hinder Lin Jiangnian's movements in the slightest. He had already memorized every detail of the room's furnishings.

Passing through the screen, a bed gradually came into view in the distance. In the darkness, a beautiful figure slept soundly on the bed.

Zhao Xi was sleeping soundly on the bed.

In a daze, I seemed to sense some movement by the bed. Then, I felt one end of the mattress being pulled back.

Then, something suddenly crawled in.

Zhao Xi was startled and almost instinctively opened her eyes, still groggy. Before she could even react, a pair of hands reached out from behind her and effortlessly pulled her into an embrace, a familiar, warm breath washing over her.

Zhao Xi's vigilance and worry vanished, her body relaxed, and a hazy drowsiness washed over her again.
In the darkness, she was still in a daze, her voice nasal, quite unlike her usual self: "You, what brings you here?"

Lin Jiangnian, who had just brought in a gust of cold wind from outside, felt the warm and fragrant body in his arms, and gently rubbed the sleeping Zhao Xi closer to his chest, taking a deep breath with his head close to her neck.

"Stop, stop it..."

Zhao Xi shifted groggily, her voice weak, "I...I'm so sleepy..."

She was sleeping soundly in the middle of the night when she was suddenly woken up by a noise, and she was still very sleepy.

"Okay, let's sleep together then."

Lin Jiangnian looked at Zhao Xi in his arms, whose tone was slightly coquettish due to drowsiness, and lowered his head to kiss her delicate face.

He was quite tired after a long day.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xi gave a soft "hmm," shrank back slightly, then turned around and rubbed her head against Lin Jiangnian's chest.

Then, he drifted off to sleep peacefully.

Zhao Xi slept very soundly. It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky, and she felt something pressing on her chest, causing her some pain, that she slowly opened her eyes and woke up.

As soon as I opened my eyes, a familiar face appeared in my line of sight, sleeping soundly with its eyes closed.

Zhao Xi was stunned for a moment, looking at Lin Jiangnian who suddenly appeared in front of her, before she gradually recalled what had happened last night.

It seems that last night, when she was half asleep, this guy suddenly barged in and crawled into her bed?
Why is this guy coming over in the middle of the night?
What's he doing, coming so late? Did he steal something?
Zhao Xi stared blankly at the face so close to hers, lost in thought. She looked at it with a slightly dazed expression, her beautiful eyes revealing a hint of joy and an unconcealable tenderness.

until……

Zhao Xi glanced down and then noticed a pair of familiar groping hands.

Seeing this, Zhao Xi's beautiful eyes instantly turned red with embarrassment and anger, and she gritted her teeth and said, "Still pretending to be asleep, huh?!"

no response.

Lin Jiangnian in front of me seemed to be sleeping soundly, motionless and completely unresponsive.

Seeing this, Zhao Xi became even more embarrassed and angry. Seeing that this scoundrel was pretending to be asleep again, she was furious and wanted to expose him.

But then, Zhao Xi's eyes suddenly darted around, a glint of something flashing in them. She subconsciously looked down, her face slightly flushed, gritted her teeth, and suddenly reached out, as if to yank downwards...

The next second, Lin Jiangnian, who was sleeping soundly in front of her, suddenly rolled over and just dodged her 'sneak attack'!
Seeing this, Zhao Xi became even angrier!

"You're still pretending, aren't you?!"

Zhao Xi gritted her teeth in anger and kicked him.

Are you addicted to pretending?
At this moment, Lin Jiangnian opened his eyes, still looking sleepy, and asked somewhat groggily, "W-what's wrong? What happened?"

Zhao Xi sneered and watched his performance quietly.

"Oh, Xi'er?"

Lin Jiangnian seemed to only then notice that Zhao Xi was looking at him: "You're awake?"

As he spoke, Lin Jiangnian reached out to hug her with a look of delight, only to be lightly kicked by Zhao Xi in annoyance: "If you keep pretending, get out of here."

"Cough...No!"

Lin Jiangnian chuckled, pulled her into his arms, and kissed her on the cheek: "Why are you angry so early in the morning?"

"Isn't it because you made me angry?"

Zhao Xi glared at him: "Can't you just behave yourself?"

"Wasn't I very well-behaved last night?"

"You're as honest as I think!"

Zhao Xi rolled her eyes and said quietly, "Last night you went to favor one of your concubines. It was the middle of the night. I thought you were so engrossed in your love that you forgot all about me."

"Listen to that, you sound like a complaining woman."

Lin Jiangnian clicked his tongue and said, "What concubine? This young master has no concubines."

"Ha, don't you have enough concubines?"

Zhao Xi glanced at him: "Do you need me to count them for you?"

"That's not necessary!"

Lin Jiang cleared his throat and chuckled, "What do you mean by loving concubines? Those are just empty words... In my heart, you are all equal."

"Oh, Your Highness is quite benevolent, isn't he? He treated everyone fairly in one night?"

Is this a compliment?

"What do you say?"

"Then take it as a compliment."

Lin Jiangnian, being thick-skinned, naturally didn't care about such things, and as he spoke, he kissed her cheek again.

Delicate and smooth, with an excellent taste!
Zhao Xi wiped the drool off her face in disgust before saying irritably, "So, what did you do yesterday?"

"We've accomplished something big!"

"What's the big deal?"

"There's been a resolution to Tao Ya's matter..."

After joking around with Zhao Xi for a while, Lin Jiangnian finally got down to business.

News of Tao Ya's suicide spread throughout the capital, and Zhao Xi naturally knew about it long ago. Like Lin Jiangnian, she also didn't believe that Tao Ya would commit suicide.

Lin Jiangnian told Tao Ya about what happened yesterday, from his solo trip to the Lü family to offer condolences and test Lü Fusheng, to the appearance of the Tao family members and his return to the Secret Observatory with Chen Changqing, ultimately confirming that Lü Fusheng had a problem.

Finally, he returned to the Lü family home in the middle of the night and confronted Lü Fusheng.

As Lin Jiangnian and Lü Fusheng reached a deal, the secrets behind Tao Ya gradually came to light.

"We were right, there is indeed a mysterious force behind Tao Ya..."

Lin Jiangnian narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "Back then, the eldest daughter of the Tao family in the capital died of illness. In order to climb up the social ladder to the Lü family, the Tao family in the capital reached an agreement with the Tao family in Jiangnan, secretly arranging for a daughter of the Tao family in Jiangnan to take Tao Ya's place and marry Lü Xuan..."

"Tao Ya is now a member of the Tao family in Jiangnan!"

"And that's why Tao Ya and the Tao family in the capital each have their own plans..."

As previously speculated, the Lü family plummeted overnight after their involvement in the Third Prince's failed rebellion. Having lost their gamble, the Tao family naturally wanted to cut their losses and quickly distance themselves from the Lü family, severing all ties.

But Tao Ya refused!
The powerful force behind her kept her in the Lü family, using their reputation as a cover. If it weren't for Lin Jiangnian's meticulous investigation and Hu Yao's explanation, which exposed Tao Ya's true colors, probably no one would have suspected her, the young mistress of the Lü family, at first glance.

The intricate relationships within the Lü family provided her with a safe haven. Furthermore, with Lü Fusheng still alive, the Lü family wasn't entirely in decline. With her status as the young mistress of the Lü family, it wouldn't be easy for anyone to harm her.

"However, she probably never dreamed that the person who would ultimately kill her would be her father-in-law!"

Lin Jiangnian sighed.

Tao Ya died at the hands of Lü Fusheng.

In the Lü family, the former Minister was the one with the best chance and the most ability to kill her.

In a sense, Tao Ya's death was not unjust.

She wanted to drag the entire Lü family down with her, using them as pawns to conceal her true identity. But how could that shrewd former Minister of Personnel tolerate the Lü family being used as a shield and dragged into unknown dangers?

Therefore, he acted decisively.

Even his own son's beloved wife showed him no mercy. The matter was settled before the person behind it even made a move.

"So, who exactly is the force behind Tao Ya?"

Zhao Xi asked thoughtfully, "Is it that Sixth Prince?"

Lin Jiang nodded, then shook his head.

Zhao Xi asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Tao Ya must have some connection with that Sixth Prince, but the specifics of their relationship are still unclear."

Lin Jiangnian began, "Tao Ya is hiding too well; the forces behind her have never revealed themselves. Lü Fusheng also couldn't get much useful information from her, but..."

"It's certain that there's a mysterious force behind Tao Ya, and..."

At this point, Lin Jiangnian paused, his gaze gradually becoming profound: "That force may be related to the imperial palace."

"what?"

Hearing this, Zhao Xi froze. She suddenly looked up at Lin Jiangnian, her beautiful brows furrowing slightly: "The palace? That wouldn't be..."

What other forces besides the reigning emperor could be connected to the imperial palace?
"Hard to say."

Lin Jiangnian shook his head.

As the investigation deepened, he gradually ruled out the emperor as a suspect. But now, the Tao Ya case has once again drawn Lin Jiangnian's attention back to Li Cining.

Lu Fusheng couldn't uncover the mysterious force behind Tao Ya, but he did discover that it was connected to the imperial palace. In the year since Tao Ya married into the Lu family, she rarely left the house, but she had interacted with forces within the imperial palace on several occasions.

"Could it really be him?"

Zhao Xi looked thoughtfully at Lin Jiangnian and asked, "Who else in the palace have you offended?"

"Besides His Majesty the Emperor, is there anyone else who could pose a threat to you?"

Lin Jiangnian sighed: "You're asking me this? Where am I supposed to ask anyone?"

"As the heir apparent of the Prince of Lin, I don't even know how many people I've offended."

"As for the palace itself..."

Lin Jiangnian frowned. He rarely interacted with the forces within the palace, so it was almost impossible for him to have offended anyone.

Within the palace, the only one who could pose a threat to Lin Jiangnian was the Emperor himself.

"Do you think it's possible..."

At this moment, Zhao Xi propped herself up and suddenly murmured, "What other mysterious forces are we overlooking within the palace?"

"Ignored?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiangnian thought about it carefully for a moment, and seemed to be deep in thought.

The palace is in chaos, and he doesn't know the exact situation. But it's possible that someone else is pulling the strings behind the scenes.

Lin Jiangnian pondered, "It seems I need to find a way to go to the palace again and find out what's going on."

Zhao Xi glanced at him with her beautiful eyes, a half-smile on her face: "You, the Crown Prince of Lin, are quite busy, aren't you?"

"Why not?"

Lin Jiangnian sighed, "I've been exhausted these past few days. Come on, quickly give this young master a shoulder massage."

"What a beautiful thought!"

Zhao Xi rolled her eyes and gave him a light kick.

Just as she was about to pull back, Lin Jiangnian suddenly clamped her thighs, holding her firmly in place. Immediately afterward, Lin Jiangnian's upper body suddenly leaned close to her.

"what are you doing……"

The intense heat of her breath made Zhao Xi blush slightly, and she looked somewhat uneasy.

"What do you say?"

"Are you trying to get yourself killed in broad daylight?!"

Zhao Xi blushed slightly and couldn't help but pat him twice: "Get up, I need to get up!"

"Get up? I'm not asleep yet!"

"You're still awake? Didn't you sleep last night...?"

Zhao Xi was about to say that he hadn't slept well last night when it suddenly dawned on him... This bastard probably meant sleeping with her when he said "slept"?

Realizing this, Zhao Xi was embarrassed and annoyed, and refused verbally: "It's broad daylight!"

"So what if it's daytime? Just draw the curtains and it's nighttime!"

"No, I don't want to... What if Xiaoyue finds out..."

"No, Xiaoyue is sensible and won't bother us."

"Then I don't want to either... Let me go, I... mmm..."

"Hehe, it's too late. Once you're in my hands, you won't have a choice!"

After a struggle on the bed, the room was soon filled with a warm, fragrant scent, mingled with the woman's soft voice.

It was as soft and suppressed as a sob, as if the voice was being deliberately lowered.

This, in turn, made the atmosphere even more intense!
Half an hour later, the dust settled!

"Get out of here! Get out of here! Get out of here!"

From the bed came Zhao Xi's weak, yet gritted-teeth voice.

She was exhausted and didn't want to talk to this heartless scoundrel.

Lin Jiangnian wanted to appease her for a while, but Zhao Xi, embarrassed and angry, kicked him out.

Standing at the door, Lin Jiangnian looked refreshed and straightened his clothes.

He turned around, preparing to leave the inner courtyard.

But after taking only a couple of steps, he suddenly sensed an invisible killing intent enveloping him in the air.

Lin Jiangnian suddenly stopped in his tracks.

……

(End of this chapter)