By the moonlight streaming in through the window, Xuan Yuanjue saw the hesitant look on Shen Li's face. He felt a twinge of anger in his heart. Did she still want to stay here and court death?
Xuan Yuanjue glared at her crossly and whispered in her ear, "If you don't leave now, you'll really lose your life here! I know you want to stay and find out what's going on, but you don't have to do it here!"
"Once we're out, we can still investigate. I've said I'll help you!"
Shen Li glanced at Xuan Yuanjue, who was glowering at her, and said reluctantly, "We've finally found some clues. We can't just give up like this."
Xuan Yuanjue was so amused by her stubbornness that he laughed. "There are other ways to handle this. You don't have to be so pig - headed. Which is more important, the clues or your life? Don't you know?"
Of course Shen Li knew that they could find other ways to investigate after leaving. But she just couldn't bear to let go of this opportunity.
In the end, Shen Li finally compromised and promised to leave with Xuan Yuanjue the next day.
The men guarding Boss Wang and Li Erhua noticed that it was already broad daylight, but there was still no sign of the people in the room getting up. They kicked open the door and found that the two people who could talk and move last night were now lying motionless on the bed. One of them stepped forward to check their breaths and found that they were both dead.
Regarding this, Zhuang Yusheng thought that Boss Wang and Li Erhua must have been silenced by their superiors. He regretted that they should have interrogated them more strictly yesterday. Maybe they could have found out something instead of just having two corpses left.
At this time, Shen Li and Xuan Yuanjue were on their way back to the capital and had no idea what was happening in Panhu Fort.
She had no idea how Xuan Yuanjue managed to evade the people watching them, secretly replace the corpses of two death - row inmates to impersonate them, and then lead her out of Panhu Fort through a secret passage.
Shen Li and Xuan Yuanjue were sitting opposite each other in the carriage. Shen Li kept stealing glances at Xuan Yuanjue. Based on her previous encounters with him, she found that he was not only extremely skilled in martial arts but also very meticulous and well - planned. He was truly a man of both courage and wisdom.
Logically, a man like him shouldn't have met such a tragic end at a young age in his previous life, and even all the people in the Prince Liqin's Mansion couldn't survive.
Shen Li just couldn't figure it out.
Just as Shen Li looked at Xuan Yuanjue again, Xuan Yuanjue, who had been pretending to sleep, opened his eyes and looked at her. Shen Li quickly shifted her gaze away in a flurry.
Xuan Yuanjue looked concerned and said, "Little one, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Shen Li shook her head shyly. "I'm fine. I just didn't rest well last night."
"Take a good rest in the next few days. I'll inform you if there's any news from there."
"Okay!" Shen Li agreed and closed her eyes, leaning against the carriage wall, pretending to sleep. But in her heart, she kept thinking that maybe there was a hidden reason behind Xuan Yuanjue's death in his previous life.
Shen Li was away for three days this time. When she returned to Ye You Si, Jiaoyue, Mingyue, and Hanyue were all very happy. They had been worried sick about her these days.
When Jiaoyue saw Shen Li come back, she immediately stepped forward and said with concern, "Miss, you must be exhausted these days! I'll go fetch some water for you. After you wash up, go back to bed and rest for a while."
Mingyue also showed her concern. "Miss, I'll massage your legs and shoulders later. It'll help you relax."
Although Hanyue didn't say a word, her eyes were filled with joy. She was also very happy that Shen Li had returned safely.
Shen Li had indeed slept very uncomfortably on that narrow bed in the past few days and felt really sore. After washing up and being massaged by Jiaoyue, she fell into a deep sleep on the bed. She didn't wake up until the afternoon.
After getting enough rest, Shen Li started to prepare for the things she had planned in her mind. "Mingyue, I remember there was a personal maid beside Shen Miao who tried to curry favor with you. What was her name? Chun something?"
Since Shen Li couldn't remember clearly, Mingyue continued, "Her name is Chun Nuan. She's really a senior maid serving the second miss and has passed on some news from the second miss to us twice."
Shen Li nodded. "I have something for her to do. Find an opportunity to meet her."
"Doesn't the Shen family always want the power to manage the household? I'll give it to her this time!"
Hearing this, Jiaoyue said anxiously, "Miss, it was so hard for you to get back the power to manage the household. Why are you giving it away again? All our influence and the people we've arranged in the mansion will be in vain!"
"Hehe! It's no use for me to hold the power to manage the household now. It's better to use it as a bait to lure the Shen family into the trap. Let her taste a little sweetness first, and then make her spit out all the benefits she's swallowed before."
Mingyue continued, "Miss, we can also take this opportunity to test the people in the mansion. Whether they're sincere or not, we'll know right away!"
Shen Li nodded at Mingyue with satisfaction. "Good!"
Besides these two reasons, she also wanted to use this as a foreshadowing to make the Shen family step into the trap she had set for her step by step and never be able to turn things around in this life.
In the Shen Mansion, the atmosphere in the East Courtyard had been quite pleasant these days. Shen Miao and the Shen family were preparing for the trip to the Royal Hunting Ground in a few days.
The Shen family had generously ordered seven or eight sets of dresses and several sets of new headdresses for Shen Miao in the past few days. Shen Miao tried on new hairstyles, makeup, and clothes every day. She was busy but happy.
Chun Xi had just styled a new hair bun for Shen Miao. Shen Miao was looking at herself in the mirror with satisfaction, and several maids stepped forward to say flattering words.
"The hair bun today is really novel. It must be the first of its kind among the noble ladies in the capital!" Chun Mian flattered.
"Of course. Look at our miss's appearance. She's as beautiful as a celestial beauty." Chun Xu said obsequiously.
"Our miss is like a fairy descending to the mortal world. How can those other people compare with her? When we go to the hunting ground, our miss will surely outshine everyone and attract everyone's attention." Chun Nuan also praised with a smile.
Shen Miao said coquettishly, "You little girls are so sweet - tongued! Alright, go and get two taels of silver each later!"
"Thank you, miss!" The maids bowed to express their gratitude.
After getting up, Chun Nuan saw Shen Miao constantly trying on jewelry on her head. She seemed dissatisfied with several of them, and her face looked a bit unpleasant.
Shen Miao tried on a few pieces of jewelry that the Shen family had just bought for her, but found that they didn't suit her well. She put them down and said disdainfully, "What are these things? They're so ugly!"
Chun Nuan took the opportunity to say, "Miss, these pieces of jewelry are not worthy of you! If you had a hairpin with inlaid gems, it would suit your appearance even better."