Miss Truth
Chapter 516 - 342: Is It Su Fu?

Chapter 516: Chapter 342: Is It Su Fu?

What’s even more worth mentioning is that since all the men placed inside the mansion had somewhat feminine features, driven by the effects of the opium, they would often engage in such acts with each other. Some guards had no strong aversion to such homosexual relationships and would easily become involved with them.

Ran Yan analyzed in secret, Xiao Song had used the Imperial Censorate once again to stab at Princess Baling with another accusation. Last time, it was merely some rumors that were let out. Most princesses were quite virtuous, especially Princess Changle, Princess Xiangcheng, Princess Dongyang, and Princess Jinyang, who all had quite the bearing of Empress Zhangsun. Hearing of such disgraceful conduct, the Imperial Censorate naturally couldn’t restrain from mentioning it to the Emperor. And this time, it was clearly more serious, with evidence being presented.

This matter was definitely known to the guards of the Princess’ Courtyard. With Princess Baling being placed under house arrest, and the outcome hard to predict, the Courtyard must have been thrown into chaos. Moreover, with Xiao Song deliberately stirring the pot, finding a breakthrough would be quite easy.

"You all wait here first until we deal with the outside guards. You can follow us in afterwards," Bai Yi pointed to several people, including Ran Yan and Liu Qingsong.

Liu Qingsong had trained in martial arts, but his skills were even cruder than those of Duke Song, who at least had some brute strength. However, when he had first transmigrated, he was convinced that there existed wall-scaling and light-body techniques in this world. Out of considerations for being dashing, mysterious, escaping danger, and a composite of unseemly and impractical thoughts, he truly practiced diligently and thus could run faster than ordinary people.

Weak as he was, he prudently prepared to stay at the back with full self-awareness.

The closer the moment of action came, the calmer Ran Yan became. Anxious to save someone, she was even less willing to drag her feet.

Bai Yi felt somewhat reassured seeing their cooperation and led a dozen people into the woods.

After a while, one or two frog calls were heard, and subtle movements began all around. Not far from Ran Yan, she was aware of them in advance, enabling her to easily detect the changes, while people in the manor below the mountain would definitely not notice such subtle disturbances.

"Cough, do you think Shilang might be in this Courtyard?" Liu Qingsong had approached Ran Yan unnoticed and asked in a whisper.

With his distinctive physical features, and Ran Yan’s being equally recognizable, Liu Qingsong had recognized her early on.

Ran Yunsheng must be locked up here, only most likely in some secret room, and certainly not easy to find. Although Ran Yan knew the answer, she felt that striking up a conversation with Liu Qingsong would definitely not end well, so she silently moved a bit to the side.

A guard nearby answered, "Our master has ordered us to investigate. Princess Baling has left the palace five times in the past two months, mostly after Ran Shilang’s disappearance, and each time she came here. So, there’s a ninety percent chance that he’s held here."

Ran Yan fixed her gaze on the manor. The gate, which was somewhat active before, suddenly went silent, clearly indicating they had succeeded.

Due to the manor’s size, they had to incapacitate most people in order to conduct a thorough search without disturbance. Fortunately, they had plenty of sedatives, with absolutely potent effects.

Thanks to her usual practice of exercising her vision, Ran Yan’s eyesight was unmatched. While observing, she noticed a shadow flashed by another side gate. With a flash of a cold light, the guards stationed at the door fell to the ground without a chance to make a sound. The shadow swiftly tied the four bodies together with a rope, threw the other end of the rope to a nearby tree, and with a strong pull, hoisted the corpses up into the tree canopy. The entire sequence of movements was completed within a few breaths, even before blood could spray from the wounds.

Ran Yan watched as he effortlessly entered the estate, disappearing into the shadows of the buildings and trees.

"My goodness!" Obviously, some of the guards close to Ran Yan also saw it and couldn’t help but exclaim in shock, "That’s terrifying."

"Who is that person? I wonder if it has anything to do with our operation, and should we inform the eldest brother?" another person asked.

"I’ll go and send the message." No sooner had the person’s voice faded than they had already disappeared into the bushes.

Given the gravity of the situation, it was imperative to inform Bai Yi of the matter. Although Ran Yan felt the figure and killing method of the person were eerily familiar, she did not speak out to stop the messenger.

The moonlight was obscured by a swath of dark clouds, plunging the surroundings into darkness and making the lights from the manor stand out even more.

After a long wait, the messenger finally returned. "All of our men have gathered at the back door, and we’ve already succeeded on the perimeter. The boss tells us to wait before joining up with them."

"Why go to the back door?" Liu Qingsong voiced the question Ran Yan had wanted to ask.

The guard, seeing it was Liu Qingsong, dared not conceal anything. "Someone sent a message to the boss, saying that Ran Shilang is being held in a solitary courtyard near the back door. The boss thinks the message might be true, but he can’t be completely sure, so he told us not to act for the time being."

"What if it’s Jiulang’s enemies who found out and want us all to die here!" Liu Qingsong was startled and angry, but then he thought about it—Bai Yi was not one to adapt flexibly, so if he decided to change direction, he must be very confident. He steadied his emotions and asked, "Do we know the identity of the person who sent the message to us?"

"We don’t," the guard answered.

Liu Qingsong stamped his feet, cursing softly, "Damn it, they really dare to risk their lives. You may be heroes and warriors, but if something happens to my elder brother-in-law, and my wife runs off, who am I to turn to!"

"What does a great man have to fear of no wife!" Someone murmured in response. They had all followed Bai Yi for many years. Bai Yi was righteous and respected by his subordinates, so naturally, they had no objections to his decisions.

Liu Qingsong, anxious to find an ally, reached out and tugged at Ran Yan’s sleeve.

Ran Yan remained silent. What Liu Qingsong said could very well be true. She felt that the man she had just seen was likely to be Su Fu. However, Su Fu was currently serving Prince Wei, Li Tai. If Li Tai intended to take down Xiao Song or wanted to deal with him, then setting up Xiao Song to attack and kill the guards at the Princess’ Courtyard was also a possibility.

Even though Su Fu dealt in the business of assassination, lurking in the shadows year-round, Ran Yan, from the time she had interactions with him, could feel that he was inherently honest. And analyzing from his method of killing, he was straightforward and scorned underhanded tricks and schemes...

Ran Yan set aside personal factors and conducted a rational analysis. From every aspect, she concluded that Su Fu wouldn’t set a trap. But that was predicated on the assumption that the person was indeed him.

Unable to find a supporter, Liu Qingsong finally said, "I have to go check it out."

"You stay here!" Ran Yan was afraid Liu Qingsong would do something unreliable again, putting both Bai Yi and Ran Yunsheng at risk—she couldn’t afford to joke with Ran Yunsheng’s safety.

"Ouch, so the lady Ran Yan has finally said something," Liu Qingsong said with a laugh.

"Not good, we’ve been discovered!" Suddenly, a guard exclaimed in a low voice.

The hearts of everyone gathered there went cold. At first, they thought their hiding place had been found, but following the exclaimer’s gaze, they saw the light in the courtyard moving towards the back door and could faintly hear the sounds of weapons clashing.(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket and monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation.)