Reincarnated as the daughter of my mortal enemy, all I want is to ascend the throne.

Before Consort Ling could even tell Li Qingyan, the assassins had already relayed the news to the Hall of Diligent Governance.

Li Qingyan was sitting on the bookshelf, holding Li Yan's porcelain bottle in her hand.

Today, Li Qingyan wore a purple dress embroidered with gold peach blossoms, and her hair was styled into two bunny ears. The fresh pink peach blossoms made her look especially cute.

Her toes dangled back and forth.

After hearing what the assassin had to say, Li Qingyan clicked her tongue, finding it extremely troublesome. When it came to Duke Wencheng, not only would she have to give way, but even Li Yan would likely have to defer to him.

Some people exist just like the Imperial Seal of the State.

Li Qingyan's eyes darted around, and she climbed down from the bookshelf.

"Dad~"

Li Yan, who was discussing matters with Yan Xu, suddenly trembled.

"That little brat's up to no good again."

A man who dared to venture into enemy territory alone has now been startled by a four-year-old brat; it would be a laughing stock if word got out.

"If you have something to say, just say it. Don't scare people like this."

Li Qingyan pouted, "Has Old Deng never seen anyone act cute before? Every time I act cute, it's like it's going to kill him."

【Hahaha……】

Flying Fork was laughing so hard he was rolling around in the air.

[Host, you're the one who's never seen a human act cute before.]

After all, who is the kindest person who always schemes before they act cute?

Li Qingyan reached out and let Yan Xu lift her onto the table. Then she rolled up the drawings on the table, put them aside, and sat down cross-legged.

"I have something to tell you."

Li Qingyan stroked his non-existent beard with a serious expression, like an old scholar.

Li Yan leaned back in her chair. "Tell me."

"That potting soil comes from Mingyan Manor," Li Qingyan grinned, "the very same manor that belonged to Duke Wencheng."

Li Yan rubbed his temples, and even Yan Xu, who was standing next to him, frowned slightly.

"It is a bit troublesome, but if you want to do anything, I will stop you."

Li Qingyan shook her head, "That's not necessary, but I need to take Zheng Taohua to Duke Wencheng's house."

Li Yan sat up straight, looking puzzled. Asking directly wouldn't be a good approach.

Li Qingyan and he rested their heads together. "Dad, what do you think people with good reputations fear most?"

Li Yan's eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on her lips.

The two people, one big and one small, even had the same curve in their smiles.

Yan Xu reluctantly moved the inkstone aside to prevent ink from dripping onto the two of them.

-----------------

The sound of sobbing came from inside the Duke Wencheng's residence.

"Lord Wencheng, look at this! How pitiful these peach blossoms are!"

Li Qingyan's eyes were red from crying.

"Those people are utterly depraved and even hid in your Mingyan Manor. I... I had no choice but to come to you for help. Waaah... When I saw Sister Peach Blossom..."

"Her body was covered in wounds. Those people didn't treat people like human beings at all. They were clearly... clearly slaughtering and bleeding her like chickens, ducks, and geese. They don't even know where they took those gardeners. Peach Blossom Sister's mother has been missing for three years."

Li Qingyan started crying as soon as she sat down at Duke Wencheng's house.

Zheng Taohua, who was standing to the side, also shed tears.

Two girls, one older and one younger, pitifully begged for help.

Wen Cheng tapped the ground a few times with his cane and said to his son, "Eldest son, what's going on? What exactly happened at Mingyan Manor?"

The Crown Prince of Wencheng, standing not far away, was dressed in nothing more than the most ordinary dark blue clothes.

He frowned. "Father, I don't know anything about this either. Mingyan Manor was rented out five years ago. Someone comes to deliver the rent every year, so I haven't asked any questions."

Duke Wencheng took a deep breath. "Not going to ask? When did you become so muddle-headed? Look at this girl's injuries. Lead the men and take the young prince to Mingyan Manor."

Upon hearing Wen Chenggong's words, Li Qingyan immediately jumped off her chair and bowed to him, saying, "Wen Chenggong is very righteous. On behalf of those girls, I thank you for saving my life."

After Li Qingyan finished speaking, she led Zheng Taohua away with the heir of Duke Wencheng.

With Duke Wencheng's permission, no one will object to entering Mingyan Manor and searching for anything.

Moreover, this is also helping Duke Wencheng.

If we wait until Li Yan orders an investigation and finds out something, Duke Wencheng will suffer some losses.

Now that he's taking the initiative to help Li Qingyan investigate, that's a different story.

It was precisely because she had calculated this that Li Qingyan dared to bring Zheng Taohua over to play the victim. Li Qingyan yawned inside the carriage and handed the ointment from her sleeve to Zheng Taohua.

The two of them used medication to make themselves cry, and now that they've finished crying, they need to apply the antidote.

Li Qingyan wiped her face. "Our people will be investigating later, so don't go in. There will be bodyguards protecting you, so don't be afraid."

Zheng Taohua nodded. She knew that going in would only cause trouble, and besides, she was afraid of what might happen, so staying outside was the best option.

Mingyan Manor is not far from the eastern suburbs. The heir of Duke Wencheng arrived at the manor gate with a large entourage and knocked on the door.

The person who opened the door was the manager of the mountain villa, who looked exceptionally honest. "Young Master, what brings you here? We've already paid this year's rent."

The young master, hands behind his back, stared at the manor manager. "What have you done with the manor?"

The shopkeeper looked puzzled. "We rented the mountain villa specifically to grow tea."

Without exchanging any more pleasantries, the heir of Duke Wencheng waved his hand, and his servants rushed inside. Li Qingyan's men followed behind, and together they made a grand entrance into Mingyan Manor.

Cuiping escorted Li Qingyan inside.

The area in front of the manor was filled with tea plants, so the heir of Duke Wencheng led his men towards the back of the mountain. Beyond the tea plantation lay the back, a completely different world from the front.

The same soil is used, but the hill behind the mountain is barren, as if someone is deliberately preventing vegetation from growing there.

As soon as Cuiping's feet touched the ground, she quickly picked up Li Qingyan and whispered in her ear, "Your Highness, be careful, this soil is strange."

This scent was all too familiar to the assassins; it was the smell of human blood.

The assassins rushed into the back mountain to search and quickly found a place that looked like a cellar.

The sounds of fighting erupted.

It quieted down in a few breaths.

The Crown Prince of Wencheng, standing to the side, also had a furrowed brow.

One by one, the men in black were dragged out and thrown out.

Then a group of girls came out; they had no wounds on their faces, but their wrists were covered in scars.

Li Qingyan patted Cuiping on the shoulder, telling her to put herself down.

"Your Highness?"

Li Qingyan nodded. "I'm the case handler, so don't worry, I can handle it."

Stepping on the mud, Li Qingyan felt a chill run through her body.

She walked up to the girls and looked at them one by one. Their eyes were devoid of light, only numbness remained.

She grabbed a girl's wrist and glanced at it.

Those hands were chillingly cold.

Then more and more bodies were carried out, and all the dead girls had their faces disfigured.

Li Qingyan covered them one by one with white cloth.

These poor girls just died like that...

There are four corpses here, plus the girl who was rescued, making a total of only twenty-three people.

It's definitely not just these girls who are missing; what about the other corpses?

Li Qingyan drew a dagger from her waist; it was given to her by Yan Xu before she left, and it was extremely sharp.

She walked towards the shopkeeper, holding a knife to his neck. "It can't be just these girls who died; what about the other bodies?"

The shopkeeper, no longer the naive man he had been moments before, turned sinister. "I have no idea. You might have all seen him. Hahahaha..."

Li Qingyan stabbed his hand with a knife. "Someone, pry his mouth open."

Li Qingyan tossed a bottle of medicine powder to the assassin.

This powder can make people tell the truth. But after asking a few questions, the person will faint. And some will wake up as mentally impaired.

Therefore, Li Qingyan doesn't like using this medicine, since it's easy for her to accidentally cut off the clues herself.

The assassin quickly dislocated the shopkeeper's jaw and fed him the medicine powder all at once.

Soon the shopkeeper began convulsing on the ground. After a while, his eyes became vacant.

Where is he/she?

The man said in a muffled voice, "Perfume, perfume."

He fainted after saying those four words.