Cui Jintang tightened her grip, and the blood from the maid's neck stained her hand.
However, the maid seemed oblivious to the pain, and the other seven maids also appeared deaf and blind.
They looked as if they wouldn't even bat an eye if Cui Jintang killed them all.
Each of them was eerily like a puppet.
"Slap!"
Cui Jintang dropped the hairpin in her hand and shook off the maid.
The maid bowed to her and took two steps back. The others stepped forward with wooden trays. "Miss, please make a selection first."
Looking at the dazzling array of jewelry, Cui Jintang suddenly said, "I'm hungry. Prepare some food for me first."
The maid was stunned for a moment. After thinking for a while, she said, "Please wait a moment, miss."
---
In the study.
After Pei Zhaolin finished reading the secret letter, he burned it all.
The deputy general standing beside him was still reporting, "The personal guards brought by the eldest elder of the Cui family searched for Miss Cui's whereabouts last night on a large scale. All of them have been locked up in the barracks by your subordinate. No one noticed."
Fu Li flipped through the ledger and reported one by one, "Last night, 176 shops such as Yongle Gambling House, Baohua Silver Bureau, and Shunji Carriage Firm sent people out to search for Miss Cui's whereabouts."
Even Fu Li was shocked when he saw the ledger.
Which one of these wasn't a top - notch big business in the capital?!
It turned out that they all belonged to Miss Cui!
If Miss Cui was unhappy one day and closed all the shops, wouldn't the business in the capital be in complete chaos?
In other words, Miss Cui was directly in control of the economic lifeline of the Yan State!
Pei Zhaolin's eyes were deep. Compared with others' shock, he was relatively calm. "Anything else?"
Doctor Wu handed him the secret letter in his hand.
"The eldest princess, the imperial concubine, and the elders of various noble families who came to the capital because of the autumn study have all sent people to search for Miss Cui's whereabouts vigorously."
She had only been missing for one night!
They were almost turning the capital upside down!
Pei Zhaolin didn't care about all this.
He said calmly, "What's the emperor's reaction?"
The deputy general quickly said, "I heard that the emperor was extremely angry, but in the end, he only sent a team of personal guards to secretly patrol the city."
Perhaps the so - called patrol was just a guise. Like him, the emperor was actually investigating the power of the noble families.
"Last night... Chu Yingfeng, holding the token only the Cui family has, stayed in Jinsheng Mansion in the name of Miss Cui's husband. And that young musician, A Xun, was also there."
"The matter of Miss Cui's disappearance has become a big deal. My lord shouldn't have been so reckless last night." The deputy general said tactfully.
Pei Zhaolin's fingertips tightened, and the writing brush in his hand was directly broken by him.
The three of them fell silent and didn't dare to say another word.
Didn't Pei Zhaolin know that his actions last night were reckless?
He just... having been kept in the dark for so many years, he was unwilling.
Throughout his life, what he hated most was deception.
But Cui Jintang said that she was an orphan without father or mother, and had no one to rely on.
But there were clearly so many people around her, accompanying and protecting her. She didn't need him.
She said, "I only have feelings for you."
But there were men around her one after another!
She said, "There will be no more secrets between you and me."
Suddenly, Pei Zhaolin covered his forehead. The constantly flashing memory fragments accompanied by intense pain made him grunt.
"My lord!"
Pei Zhaolin's hand trembled slightly as he stopped the three of them from approaching.
Pei Zhaolin smiled self - deprecatingly.
He had believed it all.
But last night, he just wanted an explanation from her.
As long as she explained, he wouldn't pursue it anymore.
But Cui Jintang didn't.
"My lord!"
Doctor Wu quickly stopped the other two. Looking at Pei Zhaolin's departing back, he sighed, "This is a matter between the two of them. You shouldn't get involved."
"But..."
Doctor Wu motioned for them to be silent.
---
Pei Zhaolin pushed the door open and entered.
The look of disappointment on his face quickly faded, and a smile just started to curl up on his lips.
A cold light flashed before his eyes -
"Puff -"
The dagger plunged into his left shoulder, and blood splashed on Cui Jintang's fair face.
It was like a scarlet Chinese flowering crabapple suddenly blooming in the snow.
Pei Zhaolin grunted, but didn't take a step back. Instead, he took advantage of the force of the dagger and stepped forward, pulling her into his arms.
His ragged breath brushed against her earlobe, carrying the smell of blood.
"Tangtang, are you resenting me for locking you up?"
His voice was hoarse, and the end of his voice was so soft that it was almost a plea.
Cui Jintang froze in his arms. Looking at the blood, her pupils trembled violently.
She almost lost her voice. "Why is it you?"
Her hand trembled, and the dagger fell to the ground with a loud noise.
"You let go quickly -"
But Pei Zhaolin tightened his arms. As if it wasn't him who was in pain, he hugged her tightly. "I won't let go."
Cui Jintang was afraid of tugging at his wound, so she didn't dare to move.
"Three days, just three days."
He leaned over, his chin resting on her shoulder, and his voice was extremely low.
He tried his best to suppress the unwillingness in his heart and pleaded in a low voice.
"After three days, I'll let you go..."
On the way from the study to the main courtyard, Pei Zhaolin thought a lot.
He was unwilling to just part ways with her because of her concealment.
The blood stained Pei Zhaolin's robe, spreading a dark color. But he just hugged Cui Jintang and closed his eyes with a smile.
It was as if he was happy that he had finally convinced himself.
Cui Jintang, who had been interrupted several times and couldn't speak, angrily gritted her back teeth.
"You let me go quickly! A thief broke in just now. Didn't you notice that the maids you sent are not here now?!"
Pei Zhaolin's expression changed suddenly.
Suddenly, there was a very soft sound from the tiles on the roof, like a cat stepping on them, silently.
His eyebrows didn't move. He just helped Cui Jintang to sit on the embroidered stool beside him.
He raised his hand, his fingertips brushing past her temple, and took off a gold - beaded hairpin.
The beads trembled slightly in his palm, making one or two clear sounds.
He looked at Cui Jintang, smiling, and said gently, "This hairpin doesn't suit you. Let me change a hairpin for you, okay?"
Cui Jintang frowned.
The next moment, a gust of wind from his sleeve blew up.
The door "banged" and burst open. Before the wood chips fell, Pei Zhaolin's figure had flashed to the corridor.
The hairpin turned into a cold bolt of lightning and shot through the air -
"Shh!"
The lurking assassin covered his throat that had been pierced. He didn't even have time to let out a grunt before he fell heavily into the dust.
Pei Zhaolin stood in front of the steps, his long eyes looking down. His side face was as cold and hard as if it had been carved by a knife.
He shook the blood off his fingertips, glanced at the dozens of black - clothed assassins who suddenly appeared, and then looked back at Cui Jintang with a gentle smile.
"It might take a while. Please wait for me a little longer."
Looking at the dense crowd, Cui Jintang couldn't help but feel her heart rise. "Be careful!"
Pei Zhaolin's eyes lit up.
The wind blew by.
His voice became even more gentle. "Okay."
As he turned around, the tenderness on his face faded, and a look of determination showed in his eyes.
The killing intent spread from his fingertips, condensing into a bone - chilling coldness.
In less than half an hour, dozens of assassins had all fallen.
Cui Jintang wasn't afraid of the blood flowing like a river at all. She crouched down nearby and lifted the mask of one of the assassins.
After seeing the pattern behind his ear, she exclaimed, "The totem of the hornless green ox? They're from the Dongman tribe!"
Pei Zhaolin first wiped his hands clean with a handkerchief, and then helped Cui Jintang up. "It's dirty. Let me do it."
After hearing her words, he frowned slightly.