Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 112 Each has his own merits
The carriage from Marquis Jingyuan's mansion arrived at noon.

At that time, Xue Sui was invited by Xue Yuechen to have dinner at Heyuan...

Xue Yueying was weak and was carefully supported by two maids and taken to the carriage.

Gu Ruoyi was the first to notice her and ran towards her from a distance. Her apricot-colored skirt brushed against the moss, looking very friendly.

"Sister Xue, Sister Xue..."

A series of shouts and joy.

Xue Sui walked around the vermilion lacquered pillars and went towards her.

The woman in plain clothes had gentle features and a sweet smile.

Gu Jie staggered unconsciously. There was clearly no threshold or stone under his feet, but he almost tripped over his own feet and fell in front of the stone steps. His jade crown was askew and he looked very embarrassed.

"Brother, be careful." Gu Ruoyi gave him a hand.

"Nothing, I'm fine." Gu Jie stood up awkwardly, steadied his trembling fingertips, bowed slightly to Xue Sui, his voice hoarse.

"Thank you, Miss Xue Liu, for taking care of my sister."

Obviously, the person who was hit the hardest by Xue Yueying's incident was Gu Jie.

But in just one night, Master Duan Fang turned into a frustrated bastard.

Xue Sui did not respond to Gu Jie. He raised one corner of his mouth and looked at Gu Ruoyi with a smile.

"Miss Gu San, the road back will be bumpy, so be careful."

Gu Jie listened to her cordial conversation with Gu Ruoyi, his Adam's apple rolled as if he had swallowed charcoal, and his heart was filled with bitterness.

He remembered how Xue Yueying was screaming crazily when he saw her just now.

She said Xue Liu was an evil ghost that crawled out of hell and was a Rakshasa who came to seek revenge on them.

But at this moment, the woman in front of him had calm eyes and brows, and it was clearly the breeze, bright moon, and blooming flowers of spring, which made his disheveled appearance look so shabby in contrast.

Gu Jie has admired Xue Yueying for many years...

Ever since Xue Yueying spoke for him in front of Princess Pingle and often gave her small favors in private, he felt that Fourth Miss Xue was a beautiful and kind person.

But at that time, his mother looked down on Xue Si, saying that she was frivolous, unstable, and not a good match. Gu Jie didn't listen to a word his mother said at that time. Teenagers are rebellious. The more his mother said bad things about Xue Yueying, the more he indulged in it. He thought Xue Yueying was as beautiful as a fairy...

He wanted nothing more than to marry.

But Xue Yueying refused to agree.

Just say that they can only last long if they are close friends instead of husband and wife.

He accepted it and cared about her silently...

She never thought that one day, the fairy would extend an olive branch to her.

She was finally willing to join hands with him to fight against the opposition from her parents.

Unfortunately, their feelings are still not accepted by their parents.

Gu Jie was a filial man. He quarreled with his parents for Xue Yueying and took great care of her. Originally, he did not dare to cross the line between men and women, but Xue Yueying said that in order to be with him, she was willing to take a risk and marry him with the baby, and only then did she get her mother's approval.

At that time, Gu Jie was deeply moved. He felt that she had given up her innocence, reputation, and future to marry him, and he could not let her down. He was willing to do everything for Xue Yueying, even if she was thrown into prison for embezzling money from the Ministry of Finance, he would not say a bad word about her...

Therefore, he hated Xue Liu who interfered.

He didn't expect that all that sweetness and tenderness were just his own fantasy.

From the beginning to the end, he was just a puppet of Xue Yueying, used when needed and thrown away when no longer needed.

Poor his parents, they were exhausted and spent all their money for this unfilial son...

Seeing Xue Liu again at this time was like a loud slap in the face.

Gu Jie's face was burning, and his footsteps and voice seemed weak and powerless.

Xue Sui seemed not to see him and smiled at Gu Ruoyi.

"It's getting late, Miss Gu San, please set off early."

"Sister Xue." Gu Ruoyi's eyes suddenly turned red and her throat choked with sobs.

She understood the broken light in her brother's eyes - it was the pain of ten years of delusion turning to dust, and also the endless guilt towards Miss Xue Liu.

Gu Ruoyi wanted to express her brother's apology.

"Before, my mother said you were good, but I didn't know what was good about you. Now I finally know, but it's too late..."

"Silly girl." Xue Sui interrupted her with a chuckle, and said calmly: "Go back and say hello to Aunt Chun for me. After this incident, the Marquis of Jingyuan's Mansion may be busy again. Tell Aunt Chun to take care of herself and not to overwork herself."

Gu Ruoyi nodded heavily.

Xue Sui didn't even look at Gu Jie and turned away.

Gu Jie looked at Xue Sui's receding back, and his throat ached.

He once thought that Xue Yueying was the bright moon in the night sky, shedding its brilliance.

Now I realize that what the moonlight illuminates is just my wishful thinking.

And the woman in front of him was the one he missed.

Xue Yueying insisted that the jade pendant and the secret letter were a conspiracy between Xue Liu and the prince, saying that Xue Liu had ordered the maid to frame her. She also cried in front of him, swearing that the child in her belly was from the Gu family, and refused to admit that she had an affair with the King of Wei many years ago...

Li Huan will continue to investigate the matter of Yujue.

But he had doubts about the size of the fetus in his belly and whether it was Gu's child, but he didn't dare to take the risk...

"Miss Xue Liu!"

Gu Jie suddenly called her.

"Please listen to what I have to say."

Xue Sui paused and slowly turned his head.

"Mr. Gu, you should call me Madam Ping An."

"Mrs. Peace."

At this point, Gu Jie's voice was choked with sobs.

"I was foolish in the past, I was blinded by others, and I failed your sincerity. It was Gu Jie who let you down. Now I regret my actions and I only ask for your forgiveness. I also apologize to you on behalf of my wife. She has committed many mistakes and has paid the price now. I beg you to forgive me and let her go this time."

Xue Sui was startled and raised the corners of his lips.

Her smile is bright and dazzling, like a blooming flower.

But the more beautiful her smile was, the more embarrassing it was for Gu Jie.

"Mr. Gu, I have never been sincere to you. Please respect yourself!"

She turned and left, the smile on her face completely gone.

Who could have expected that the baby in her belly would become Xue Yueying's life-saving talisman?
She didn't care what Gu Jie and the Marquis of Jingyuan were going to do to Xue Yueying. But she didn't see Qiao'er among the maids in the Marquis's mansion, and she couldn't help but feel confused.

She was not able to take Qiao'er away last night, so she sent Jinshu to inquire about it.

Xue Yueying looked like a madman, making random accusations, and her words were completely untenable. Li Huan had doubts in his heart, but given his "kind" character, he only arrested a few maids for questioning and did not beat or scold them.

Qiao'er had already prepared for this and was able to withstand the interrogation. I don't think she would lose her life...

But Xue Yueying had already left the villa.

Where is Qiao'er?

……

When the moonlight was swallowed by dark clouds, Xue Sui stepped onto the jade steps with a lantern in hand.

"Stay outside and don't let anyone in."

Xiao Zhao and Ruyi responded softly.

Xue Sui then slowly pushed the door open and walked in.

It was so quiet everywhere that you could hear a pin drop. Under the light of the lantern, pottery jars were arranged in an array on the antique shelf, and the aroma of medicine mixed with a hint of blood wafted into your face.

The smell of blood...

who?

Xue Sui's expression froze. Just as he touched the pottery jar on the antique display shelf, he suddenly heard the sound of a door opening behind him.

"Madam, did you come here in the middle of the night to destroy the evidence, or... did you have another intention?"

Xue Sui turned around and raised the lantern to shine over there.

Li Huan, wearing a light robe and leather belt, leaned against the door frame, playing with the "Xiz Jade Pearl" in his hand, with a gentle and harmless smile.

The light from the lantern stretched his shadow very long, and also revealed a hint of coldness hidden beneath his smile.

Seeing that she didn't respond for a long time, Li Huan walked to the table, poured a cup of herbal tea, sat down and took a sip slowly.

"Are you thinking about how to lie?"

He looked up while holding the teacup, with a meaningful smile in his eyes.

"Hmm? Safe?"

A gentle and affectionate voice, deep and mellow.

It was as if she wanted to chew on the name. It was very different from the teasing and joking tone that Li Zhao usually used when calling her, but when it came to arousing people, they both had their own merits.

Xue Sui's heart sank, his cheeks felt stiff, and there was a feeling of a foreign object blocking his throat.

Very uncomfortable.

That was an instinctive defense.

Xue Sui glanced at Li Huan's gentle but ruthless face and slowly stood up straight.

"Your Majesty still believes those rumors and is suspicious of me?"

Li Huan said: "What others say may not be true. But your eyes——"

He suddenly raised his hand and waved towards Xue Sui.

"Come closer."

There must be a way to the front of the mountain.

Xue Sui calmed himself and slowly walked towards him.

"Sit down." Li Huan said again.

all will be good.

Xue Sui suppressed the uneasiness in his heart, slowly sat down in front of him, and looked at him.

Li Huan's eyes were sharp but his smile was extremely gentle. No one knew how he did it, but he approached her with a smile, pinched her chin and lifted it up. The scent of medicine and ambergris on his body entangled with each other, giving people a heavy pressure.

"Madam is much more indifferent when she looks at me than when she looks at the prince."

Xue Sui did not retreat or evade, his eyes reflecting the light of the wind lantern, and he calmly replied, "Only a cold eye can see the situation, a warm heart can easily burn oneself - Your Highness, tell me, Xue Liu is in the whirlpool, what else can he do except a cold eye?"

Li Huan suddenly let go and chuckled. His fingertips brushed across the jade hairpin in her hair, then he slowly retracted it and poured her tea.

"What a cold-eyed observer! You can deceive me, but if you deceive yourself, that would be bad..."

Heavy rain beat against the window frames.

A loud thunderclap sounded outside the eaves.

It seemed as if to split open his unfinished words.

Li Huan slowly pushed the teacup in front of her.

"Tell me the truth, what are you doing here? Who ordered you to do this?"

Xue Sui's expression remained unchanged, and he frowned slightly, "I am confused about what happened last night, and I want to find out."

Li Huan looked at her deeply.

"What's not clear? Tell me."

Xue Sui said, "I don't understand why Fourth Sister would do such a shameful thing, and why does she hate me so much? And she insisted that I framed her? I asked myself, I don't have any deep hatred with Fourth Sister, and I have no entanglement with Gu Wulang. Why does she hate me so much?"

Li Huan's eyes were full of brilliance: "Have you found the answer?"

Xue Sui shook his head, "Didn't the prince say that he would give me an answer?"

Li Huan hesitated for a moment, gently pinched his forehead, and let his wide sleeves fall on the table, fluttering gently, just like his mellow voice, as if it carried some vicissitudes of life.

"Human hearts are hard to predict. How can gratitude, hatred, and love be explained in a few words?"

Xue Sui didn't answer for a long time.

Li Huan said, "It's very humid here, so we can't stay here for long. Let's go back and talk about it slowly."

After saying this, he stood up and waved his sleeves, looking graceful and gentlemanly.

"Let's go. I'll take you back."

Xue Sui stood quietly, lowering his brows and speaking softly.

"No need to trouble you, Your Highness. It is enough for me to have the maid accompany me."

Li Huan smiled and said, "Tonight I will stay under the willow trees and go home in smoke."

Li Zhao: Today I want to say, good night, everyone go back to your own homes and sleep, don’t sleep in other people’s homes!

Li Huan: :)