After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Da da da, da da da!

The magnificent white horse, with its thunderous hooves, led thirty other horses from east to west towards Nanjing City on the main road.

Crack!

"drive!"

Ning Nan's eyes darkened slightly, his body bouncing up and down as he suddenly swung the whip on horseback.

call--

No wonder my mother trusted Li Baoxin so much… he thought… it turns out it’s because Li Baoxin once went to the capital to appeal to the emperor on behalf of her parents!

Uncle Buffalo told him last night that Muramasa wasn't just randomly getting into a conflict with such a large family as the Ning family.

Muramasa simply did not believe that Uncle Changping would jump into the river.

Firstly, Li He was always honest, and he was the first to call out, so everyone believed him and thought that Uncle Changping might have fallen into the water accidentally.

Secondly, Uncle Changping was known for his excellent swimming skills. It wasn't the flood season at the time, and it wasn't raining. Aunt Zhou Rui was also nearby, so Uncle Changping would never let anything happen to her.

Finally, and most importantly, Uncle Buffalo said that when he went downstream with the village head, he personally witnessed the Ning family steward's hand gripping Uncle Changping's neck!

Da da da, da da da!

A herd of horses galloped past, leaving a trail of deep hoofprints on the ground.

Around 7:00 AM.

Ning Nan rushed back to his family's Ning residence.

His mother happily rushed out to greet him.

Holding his arm, she kept looking at him, saying, "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back... Ugh, you little devil..." The woman patted her son's back.

Ning Nan's forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.

He didn't stand on ceremony with his mother.

Without stopping, he pulled the woman's rough hand aside and asked his mother about the matter.

"Back then, Grandpa and Grandma died like this... not from illness?" Ning Nan asked.

The woman hesitated for a long time, then lowered her head and said, "I won't talk about it... So much time has passed, don't ask about this anymore. The things of our generation... have nothing to do with your generation."

Ning Nan shook his head and said that Li Baoxin's death was probably related to the Ning family in the capital.

The woman was startled, then as if she remembered something, her face slowly turned ashen, and tears welled up in her eyes like a spring. "Uncle Baoxin, Uncle Baoxin..." she called out a few times in a hoarse voice.

The moment his mother started crying, Ning Nan felt a headache coming on. He quickly comforted her, "Mother, don't worry, I'm just guessing, just guessing... Er Lai is still in jail, I need to find out who has a grudge against Li Baoxin..."

There are plenty of people who have a grudge against you.

But generally speaking, the natural choice is to kill oneself.

Frame yourself, or even use Li Baoxin's life to frame yourself—this kind of tactic is quite rare.

"Son, your great-uncle..."

My mother recounted the story in fits and starts, naturally omitting the part about my grandfather wanting to marry her off, but everything else matched what Uncle Buffalo had said.

He also explained why the villagers remained silent about the matter and why Li Baoxin eventually withdrew his lawsuit and returned to the village.

Finally, the old woman spoke of her uncle with concern.

Ning Nan let out a sigh.

Like their family, their great-uncle Ning Changling was also a migrant from the south. However, over the years, his great-uncle had been under the protection of the Ning family in the capital, and being a military general himself, his family was naturally much better off than theirs.

After they recognized each other, his uncle even gave him two hundred acres of land, making him a small landlord... He was indeed a very good uncle.

Since Uncle Bo is under the protection of the Ning family in the capital, yet he himself is investigating them, Uncle Bo must be in a very difficult position once he finds out.

But since it involved the deaths of his grandparents, he couldn't let it go. He must also want to know whether his younger brother's death was related to the Ning family in the capital.

Ning Nan took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

If Li Baoxin hadn't died suddenly, and if Erlai hadn't been framed and imprisoned, I suppose these things would have remained a secret for my entire life. I would never have told my uncle about our past relationship with the Ning family in the capital, so as not to put him in a difficult position.

But Ning Nan didn't care anymore. If his uncle felt uncomfortable and put on airs as an elder, ordering him not to offend the Ning family in the capital or the Marquis of Jingbei... then he would have no choice but to return the land and house in Lijia Village.

Immediately afterwards, he summoned Uncle Fu to his residence and expressed his intention to meet with his uncle.

Uncle Fu immediately nodded and said, "Alright, young master, I'll go back to the manor and tell the master that I'll come to pick you up tomorrow."

Ning Nan shook her head vigorously, her eyes serious: "No, Uncle Fu, please take me to see Grandfather now. It's urgent. I need to meet with Grandfather as soon as possible and talk to him about some things, um... to get his understanding in advance."

Both surnamed Ning, Uncle Ning Changling received preferential treatment from the Ning family in the capital, but his grandfather Ning Changping was suspected of being killed tragically by the Ning family in the capital... Ning Nan didn't know what to say.

He didn't know if his uncle dared to offend the Ning family of the capital or the Marquis of Jingbei to find out the truth... But regardless of whether his uncle dared or not, he was determined to investigate this nobleman from the capital.

Ning Fu paused for a moment, then looked around. Although the Ning residence was far inferior to the Jingbei Marquis's residence, it was still considered a first-class mansion in Nanjing, especially since it was located on Datong Street.

The young master lives in such a big house, and he has married a beautiful young mistress. In addition, the young master's contribution to breaking through Black Tiger Mountain is so great that it makes his jaw drop.

Despite such great merit and wealth, the young master's temperament has not changed much. He even calls him Uncle Fu as he did when they first met... With such an outstanding person, the master shouldn't worry that the young master will become an arrogant and domineering spoiled brat after suddenly learning that the master is the famous Marquis of Jingbei.

The master gave him the right to use the camera, and Ningfu felt the time was right, so he grinned at Ningnan and said, "Okay, young master, Ningfu will take you to the master's house later."

Ning Nan breathed a sigh of relief and solemnly clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Fu!"

Immediately, he turned to Li Xing, who was standing on tiptoe and relaxing his bottom—Li Xing had been brought along on Qian Sijin's horse and his bottom was sore from the bumpy ride—and said, "Brother Xing, you and the two Jinyiwei brothers go and keep an eye on someone for me."

……

My mother said that the reason why the villagers were so reluctant to talk about this matter, and why Li Baoxin returned to Lijia Village and stopped talking about it, was all related to one person.

That was the village head who discovered his grandparents had drowned themselves—

Li He.

When Li Baoxin went to Beijing, the villagers were outraged.

But a few days later, Li He's family was thrown into chaos—his eldest son had died; he had fallen into the water and drowned.

Li He went from house to house kowtowing and crying, his forehead covered in blood, begging everyone not to say that he saw Brother Changping drown himself... He didn't see anything, he didn't see anything.

The villagers all knew exactly what was going on.

They immediately knew what had happened. There were a few reasonable people who said that Ning was too audacious! They were going to the capital to demand an explanation from Li He's eldest son.

The next day...

Li He's second son also died, drowned as well.

The villagers then fell silent.

Li Baoxin was brought back by Li He.

Li He said his wife had cried herself blind, and he only had one young son left...

Li Baoxin sighed several times in the capital. The court kept deliberately delaying and not giving any news. Disheartened, he could only take Li He back to Li Family Village.

……

"Mother," Ning Nanfang pondered for a moment before asking his mother, "did you see the bodies of Li He's two sons back then?" He paused, then continued, "?"