Young Master Gao? Call me Little Grand Secretary!

After Zhang Yunniang and her father left, Gao Zhao's expression also became serious. He paced back and forth in the room, his brows furrowed.

His actions weren't because he hadn't succeeded with his sister-in-law, but because he was worried about Lin Chong...

You know, Lin Chong is my good brother!

Although the young master had long coveted his sister-in-law, he also greatly admired Lin Chong's martial arts skills!

Now that Lin Chong has suffered such a calamity, could he perhaps earn another round of gratitude points and skills...?

Obviously, this comes down to cost-effectiveness!

He couldn't understand it. Lin Chong was just a minor instructor in the Imperial Guard, an insignificant figure like an ant. He was usually cautious and submissive in his actions. What kind of disaster could he possibly cause?

He was amazed that the other party could set up such a grand scheme to harm him!

This concerns military equipment, which is no small matter. There are very few people in the entire Song Dynasty who have the power to orchestrate such a scheme!

There must be some misunderstanding here!

If I could clear up the misunderstanding, could I save Lin Chong's life?

Hmm, that's one way!

After all, the more skilled one becomes with spear and staff techniques, the fewer people are willing to upgrade their abilities!

If I let Lin Chong go, I'm afraid I'll either have to go find Luan Tingyu or Lu Junyi!

These two are too far away, and we don't have much of a relationship with them, so it's much more convenient to keep attacking Lin Chong!

Now that the decision has been made, the next step is to find out the inside story and find out who Lin Chong offended that would make him go to such lengths to frame him!

Gao Zhao wandered around the house for half a day. Seeing that it was almost time, he hurriedly went to the door to wait. Not long after, Gao Qiu returned from his shift. Gao Zhao rushed to greet him and said ingratiatingly, "My lord is back. Did your official duties go smoothly today? You must be tired. Please come in and rest. My lord, you must take good care of your health!"

Gao Qiu stopped in his tracks, glanced at him warily, and asked, "What trouble have you gotten into this time?"

"My lord, what are you saying!" Gao Zhao's smile remained unchanged as he continued to help Gao Qiu inside, saying with a fawning smile, "It's only these past two days that I've had some free time, and reflecting on the hardships of my shifts, I've come to realize how difficult it has been for you, my lord. I've come to understand that my past leisure was all thanks to you bearing the burden!"

Gao Qiu looked at him suspiciously, not believing a word he said, but too lazy to expose him, he sneered: "Don't give me that. If you really think that way, just don't cause me any trouble in the future!"

"That's easy!" Gao Zhao patted his chest and said confidently, "My lord, rest assured, I won't make empty promises. We'll see how things go!"

A warning bell rang in Gao Qiu's mind. He was about to ask what it was about when Gao Zhao, without giving him a chance to speak, helped him into the study.

After they were seated, Gao Zhao brought tea from a servant and served it to them personally, showing great attentiveness.

Gao Qiu took the teacup but hesitated to touch it, staring at him warily, waiting for him to continue.

"I think the Imperial Guards are all good-for-nothings, useless and a burden to my master! Are they causing him trouble every day?" Gao Zhao asked with concern.

Gao Qiu scoffed, "They're alright, but even combined, they can't cause as much trouble as you!"

Gao Zhao choked, feeling that the old man was being rather ungrateful. He had flattered him for so long, but the old man didn't give him any face at all and even mocked him repeatedly.

This is treating the young master's son like he's not human!

He raised his chin and shouted, "How can that be the same? I get into trouble because I have a good dad who can bail me out! Do they have that? They have no backing at all, yet they dare to cause trouble. That's just stupid!"

"Get out! Get out!" Gao Qiu waved him away impatiently, too lazy to pay him any attention. He was always audacious and troublesome, yet he could still make him sound so refined and elegant.

Gao Zhao gave an awkward smile: "I only spoke up because I saw Lin Chong being detained when I entered the camp that day, and I thought he must have caused trouble again."

Gao Qiu's gaze turned cold, his face immediately darkening. He slammed his teacup heavily on the table and said sternly, "Don't be ridiculous. Lin Chong's matter isn't that simple. Mind your own business, or you'll get yourself into trouble!"

"What's the matter?" Seeing Gao Qiu's demeanor, Gao Zhao was not afraid at all. Instead, his eyes lit up, feeling that he was indeed very clever and had guessed that something was going on. He quickly moved closer to Gao Qiu and asked excitedly, "My lord, tell me! Isn't Lin Chong one of your men?"

"Nonsense! What do you mean 'my people'? Who do I have people? They're all officials, people of the imperial court!"

Gao Qiu glared at him and sternly rebuked him, "Your attitude is problematic! Let me tell you, factionalism is unacceptable!"

"There are no outsiders here..." Gao Zhao rolled his eyes, but seeing Gao Qiu's displeasure, he quickly changed his tune, saying, "Tell me, who exactly did Lin Chong offend? What did he do wrong?"

Gao Qiu criticized with dissatisfaction: "How would I know what crime I've committed? That's for the authorities to investigate and determine the verdict according to military law and discipline..."

"This is no fun!" Gao Zhao said impatiently as he watched Gao Zhao continue to talk in official jargon.

Gao Qiu immediately rebuked him, "Who cares about whether it's interesting or not? The Imperial Guards have their own military laws, how dare you, a mere envoy, question them! Get out of here!"

Gao Zhao was furious. This was too much! From the moment you came back, I was polite and kind, yet you have ridiculed me time and time again. Isn't this bullying an honest person?

He immediately flew into a rage: "Do you believe I'll raid the camp tonight?!"

"You bastard! How dare you threaten me!" Gao Qiu roared in fury, slamming his fist on the table and shouting, "Do you believe I'll whip you to death?!"

Gao Zhao jumped back a step, showing no fear whatsoever, and said, "If you dare to provoke me, I dare to raid your camp! I'll even announce your name!"

"You wretched creature, you're utterly lawless!" Gao Qiu trembled with rage, pointing at him and shouting, "If you dare to cause trouble, I'll break your legs!"

Gao Zhao blinked and said, "Then I'll report this to the Emperor and have this case brought to light!"

"No!" Gao Qiu's expression changed, and he quickly stopped him.

Gao Zhao burst into laughter. "Haha, I knew it! There's definitely something fishy going on here! Let the authorities investigate what kind of powerful force is so extravagant, daring to even rob military equipment!"

Gao Qiu's anger subsided, and he said in a deep voice, "This matter is of great importance. Even if the Emperor knew about it, he would only keep quiet about it. But you're in trouble!"

Gao Zhao's eyes darted around, then he narrowed them and lowered his voice, saying, "My lord, are they asking Lin Chong to settle the tent?"

Gao Qiu gave him a deep look, sighing inwardly. This kid was usually so stubborn and obstinate when it came to serious matters, but when it came to crooked ways, he seemed to suddenly become incredibly clever...

He got to the point in just a few words!

Seeing his expression, Gao Zhao suddenly realized what was going on and asked, "Sir, you've also embezzled?"

"What greed! That's utter nonsense!" Gao Qiu was furious, shouting, "That was waste!"

"I understand, I understand, no one understands losses better than me!" Gao Zhao nodded repeatedly, then asked curiously, "But Lin Chong's official position is too low; he can't possibly shoulder such a huge burden, can he?"

"Of course he can't handle it!" Gao Qiu sneered. "He was added at the last minute, so he must have offended someone."

Upon hearing this, Gao Zhao understood. He realized that no one would go to such lengths to harm a mere instructor like him. It turned out that the scheme had been set up, and he had simply happened to be there.

That means Lin Chong is no longer important in the overall situation.

It's not like it's beyond saving!