Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 120 Who sent you?
The two were clearly quite familiar with each other. Before Huang Yu could even speak, the other person had already rattled off several sentences, indicating that he had indeed been tormented quite a bit by the people above him.

At this moment, Liang Heng's gaze swept over the two quiet beauties standing behind Huang Yu, and a mysterious smile appeared on his face that said, "You know what I mean."

"You've changed concubines again? I'm not trying to be mean, but your tastes change way too fast. You used to like petite beauties, but today you prefer tall and slender ones? But that's your only hobby. If you can't even satisfy this one, wouldn't that be too pitiful? I've got another batch of pretty girls coming in. I'll let you choose before I send them away."

A batch? Sensing the strange word, Jiu Que subconsciously made a mental connection: could beauties be described as a batch? This word didn't seem to describe beauties gathered together, but rather a batch of goods.

I suddenly remembered the surviving women I found in Wuyou Cave. They had been sent around to different places, not really knowing where they were, but I knew that some of my sisters had been chosen and their destinations were unknown. Comparing the two, it seems that the whereabouts of those women who were sent away are unknown. I had previously thought that those women had probably all been killed, but now that I think about it, could that not be the case?

How could the two seemingly unrelated cases of Wuyou Cave and the cinnabar mine possibly be connected?
What exactly is going on?

At this moment, Huang Yu remained seated with her head down, neither rising to greet him nor offering a response. Liang Heng paused for a moment, then spoke quite naturally.

"Look at you, I only said a couple of words and you're already upset? Why are you so temperamental? Alright, I'm not just saying that, I'll go and bring those beauties here for you to see right now. I'm not lying to you, those beauties are all different shapes and sizes, each with their own unique beauty..."

He turned to go out and call for help.

However, he found that he could only take two steps and could not take the third step. At the same time, his whole body was stiff and he could not move at all. He was terrified and his expression was quite strained.

"Youyu, what's wrong with you?"

However, standing beside him was not Huang Yu, but one of the beauties who was veiled and partially obscured.

Cui Zhufeng pulled off the veil from her face and let out a long sigh. She still wasn't used to this kind of thing. What was the difference between covering her face and covering it with a cloth? It even made it hard to breathe. Besides, this thing could only barely conceal her appearance, making it vague and indistinct. If someone really stared intently, how could they not see her face? She guessed this was what was called the pleasure of scholars.

Ugh, it's disgusting. Those two beauties taken away by Huang Yu are only fifteen years old, still just children. These corrupt officials really have the heart to do that. She thinks it would be better if all officials were women; at least there wouldn't be so much filth going on!

Jiu Que also removed her veil; she wasn't quite used to it either. She sat down and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Lord Liang, I've long admired your name."

Liang Heng struggled for a moment, but couldn't break free at all. Even the sounds he made were extremely faint, and the guards outside couldn't hear him at all. Realizing he had been tricked, he sighed heavily.

He had been wondering why his right eyelid had been twitching all morning; it turned out this was the cause. Liang Heng was a man of considerable stature; though anxious, he remained calm and composed, maintaining a steady smile on his face.

"What requests do you two ladies have? You say that we are now in a time of peace and prosperity, with a clean and just government. If you have any grievances, please feel free to speak them out. I will certainly handle them impartially."

Was he trying to portray himself as a brave and incorruptible official? If it were someone unaware of his true nature, they might actually be fooled by his righteous demeanor. But tonight, he was facing Jiu Que. Jiu Que clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Lord Liang, I have long heard of your reputation, but I never imagined you were such a righteous and upright official. In that case, please listen to my grievances."

"Actually, it's not a long time, but it's not short either. My first half of life can be summarized in a few words. I was originally a village girl from a remote mountain village in Qianzhou. Although life was poor, it was a peaceful and prosperous time. As long as everyone worked hard, no one would starve. But one day, a group of soldiers suddenly came, saying they were looking for thieves. But our little mountain village could be seen from one end to the other, and everyone knew each other. We didn't see the so-called thieves at all. Those soldiers were like wolves and tigers. Since they couldn't find the thieves, they assumed we were harboring criminals and arrested everyone in our village. Although I can't read many words, I know that if people are arrested, shouldn't they be locked up in jail? But strangely, we were taken to a cinnabar mine."

"On my first day there, many of my relatives were killed on the spot as a warning to others. It was so that we would stay in the mine and dig for cinnabar in peace."

“At first, I found it strange. It’s true that Qianzhou is rich in cinnabar, but why would they have to be so secretive about mining? They even went so far as to make up this excuse to arrest everyone from our village. Later, I found out that the cinnabar mine we were mining had changed its name. It’s no longer called Jing, but Liang!”

"Lord Liang, do you think this is a coincidence or not?"

Large beads of sweat had formed on Liang Heng's face. His worst-case scenario had come true. But thankfully, if these two were simply seeking revenge, they would be easy to fool.

He subconsciously ignored the two men's unpredictable methods, probably because he still held a sliver of hope.

"I've never heard of what you've described before, so the shared surname is probably just a coincidence. However, given that such a tragedy has occurred within my jurisdiction, rest assured, I will definitely find the culprit and bring you justice!"

Jiu Que stared at him for a long time before bursting into laughter.

"Lord Liang, it's a waste of your talent that you don't go into opera. You can come up with such an excuse in the blink of an eye. No wonder you can be such a veritable local tyrant."

"you?!"

"Lord Liang, there's no need to panic. I think you've already guessed it in your heart, but you just didn't dare to say it. The account book you asked for is right here. Would you like to take another look?"

"But I don't think you're in the mood right now. Why don't you take us to see the wealth you've accumulated over the years, sir? Hmm? If it's not here, then where was it moved to? And who ended up in its hands? There should be some kind of explanation for all of this."

"I've heard that people like Lord Liang, when working for their superiors, often secretly leave behind an account book or other evidence to protect themselves and avoid being held accountable later. Why don't you show me the hidden evidence, Lord Liang?"

Liang Heng was sweating profusely. He barely managed to maintain his composure and subconsciously asked a question.

"Who sent you?"

(End of this chapter)