What they had seen before, and what they had investigated, was mostly arrow shafts made of bamboo. Bamboo has good toughness, and it has always been a variety of arrows recommended by the Great Zhou. Even if it was the soldiers in the north, if they were not forced to choose wooden arrow shafts, most of the rest were bamboo arrows distributed by the imperial court.

This is also why the imperial court will strictly control the cultivation of bamboo, and even make the cultivation of bamboo into a controlled scale planting.

While speculating in her heart, she flipped the shaft of the arrow in her hand and looked at it, and after a moment she was stunned, "There seems to be something similar to the clan emblem here?" ”

Xiao Qinglang saw that she no longer cared about her previous emotions, and she breathed a sigh of relief in her heart. He didn't know that the arrows this time were different from the previous ones, and although the previous ones could also hurt people, most of them used the poison on the arrows to kill people. But now, he didn't need to look at it, just looking at the strength of the arrow shot down by the dark guard just now and the sound of the arrow handing over the weapon in the guard's hand, it was enough for him to guess that the forging skills of the arrow this time were very exquisite.

Wei Guang's words, which he pretended to answer in a deep way just now, were originally intended to change the topic. Therefore, Xiao Qinglang actually has a desire to survive.

He saw that Xu Chu was puzzled, and he also knew that when she was investigating the case, she would rarely delay the case because of the entanglement and displeasure in her heart, so he also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

"This is a fine carving, which can only be used by the royal family in the Great Zhou."

Because the carving feather is not easy to obtain, the number is limited, so it is naturally used by the royal first, and the arrow feathers used by the general military generals or soldiers are mostly made of goose feathers.

While explaining, he reached out and took the arrow in Xu Chu's hand to look at it, and after a while, his tone condensed and said, "Made of pestle elm, the so-called southern red sandalwood, northern pestle elm, is very valuable in the Great Zhou pestle elm." Those who can use such wood as discarded arrows must be rich or noble. ”

Xiao Qinglang's fingers groped for the carved lines, and after a while, he frowned and said, "The emblem engraved on it is the emblem of Tantra, which is preserved in the remnants of the Jinling Weimou Rebellion Dossier of the Three Law Divisions. But above this, it seems that there is another word that should be the word king in the deed text."

After a pause, he shook his head again and said, "I'm not good at this, I'll have to find a great Confucian who specializes in this kind of rune emblem later." ”

Xu Chu also looked at it for a long time, silently wrote down the lines in his heart, and then nodded in approval of Xiao Qinglang's proposal.

If a knowledgeable and knowledgeable person like Xiao Qinglang couldn't figure out what the lines on the arrow shaft meant, the other people around her probably wouldn't be able to see what it was.

Unexpectedly, the secret passage went all the way, and it actually involved the relationship between the black hand behind the scenes and the royal family. But if you think about it carefully, it seems that it should be expected, after all, there are so many things, starting from the alchemy furnace in the Dong family's courtyard, there are shadows of the first emperor and the royal family everywhere.

Now, it's just that Emperor Chengzong and the former British Duke are also involved.

Things seem to be getting more and more cheerful, but when you think about it, it's foggy. Fortunately, in their opinion, there is only this layer left in the maze of these complex clues.

As long as the network of secret passages can be broken, then this case will see the light of day after all

Xiao Qinglang instructed Wei Guang to collect the arrows on the ground, and then he and Xu Chu looked around in the British Mansion.

The British Mansion is now quite desolate, and even the secret passages where they appear are surrounded by weeds. As far as the eye can see, you can't even see the original appearance of this courtyard.

The wind and rain were falling, and the deep house was silent and cold, and there was no trace of the prosperity of the British government.

In fact, since the accident of the British Gong Xiao Heng, the British Gong has been completely broken. After that, he caught up with the death of Dong Guifei, and the first emperor absurdly indulged in the way of alchemy, and even the first emperor killed everyone in Changli Palace, erasing his experience of being bewitched by the demon path and asking for the elixir, and then the first emperor died, and now he ascends the throne.

At the beginning of the current ascension to the throne, Northern Xinjiang was in turmoil, and the Seventeen Kingdoms of Northern Xinjiang wanted to get a piece of the pie in the Great Zhou before the new emperor sat on the dragon chair.

No matter which one of these things is proposed, it is much more serious than the decline of the British government.

In addition, there is no intention to support the façade of the British government today, one is that the defense of Gyeonggi has already been taken over by people trusted today, and the other is that compared with the British prince who was promoted by Emperor Seungjong and the previous emperor, he is now more inclined to promote his own ministers like the protectors. After all, once a son of heaven and a courtier, there is still some truth in this.

What's more, the British government has been in decline for a long time, and the military power it once had has been taken back by the emperor. And his prestige in the army is not worth mentioning in front of a god of war like King Qi who has made immortal achievements. In addition, there are no descendants in his palace, and if he wants to use it again, he will have to put more effort on his part, so no matter what aspect he says, there is no reason to let go of the generals who are loyal to him today, but like Emperor Chengzong and the previous emperors, in order to continue the inheritance of the British government, they found a child to teach them carefully.

For these reasons, it is natural that the British government is in the same situation as it is today. Even if at the beginning, there was still an old housekeeper guarding the house, but after many years, when the British prince Xiao Heng died, the old housekeeper, who was already over sixty years old, could not reverse the decadent ending of the house.

So when Xiao Qinglang and Xu Chu arrived, they saw such a desolate scene.

Beyond the high walls, there is the bustling and bustling capital market, and the left and right are the homes of the dignitaries of the dynasty. But who could have known that this courtyard wall, which symbolized a high family in the eyes of the people, was so desolate?

At this time, the sky is getting more and more gloomy, and there is a faint rain falling. Xu Chu glanced at the dark sky, frowned at Wei Guang and said, "Brother Wei, I need you to help me see if there are footprints nearby, or clothes and strips of cloth or something."

Judging by the looseness of the incense ash before the tablet in the secret room, that person should have often gone to worship. Since he often enters secret passages, it is likely that he will leave marks near the exit.

Whether it is clothing fabrics, sachet accessories, or footprints, they can all be clues to guess the person's height, weight, or even identity.

When Wei Guang heard this, he subconsciously responded yes. But when he turned his head to look at Xiao Qinglang, he found that although his prince had a calm face, his gaze at him seemed to be a little angry?

He was excited, and then he thought about it, didn't Xu Chu just lose his temper with the prince again?

As soon as he thought of this possibility, he let out a long sigh of grief in his heart. In the past, every time Xu Chu called himself Brother Wei, the prince's knife eyes would come to him. Later, after a long time, I got used to it, and secondly, the relationship between Xu Chu and the prince became clear, so the prince rarely looked at himself so coldly.

But what's going on now? It's really a disaster

But after thinking about it, he still resigned himself to his fate, bent down and carefully swung the half-man-tall weeds away with his saber, and then looked for them in the places where the weeds were more obvious and had been trampled on.

After a while, Wei Guang got up and shook his head and said, "That person obviously walked on the weeds, and did not leave any footprints and traces. ”

At this time, Xu Chu and Xiao Qinglang also got up from the weeds separately, and the two looked at each other and saw solemnity in each other's eyes.

The man was more cunning than they thought. The huge mansion really didn't leave the slightest clue.

A few people didn't stay in the courtyard for half an hour, and the dripping rain became heavier and heavier, and water curtains were hung between the canopies in an instant, making everyone's vision more and more blurred.

"Let's go to the promenade to take shelter from the rain." Xiao Qinglang saw that Xu Chu's body was wet, his heart tightened, and he immediately ordered to go down. Xu is still a little weak-hearted, so he deliberately explained to Xu Chu before taking a step, "This is the backyard of the British Mansion, according to the drawings of the British Mansion, I guess this should be the courtyard of Xiao Heng and his wife, and at the end of the left side of the corridor is Xiao Heng's study."

"But looking at this courtyard, it is not big, and it is only separated by a wall from the Protector's Mansion, if it is a normal mansion, is the location too remote? Isn't the courtyard of the dignified British Duke supposed to be the most open and best place in the house? Xu Chu frowned, and asked in a low voice while following Xiao Qinglang closely towards the corridor.

The layout of the British Mansion, she was not very clear before. However, even though she was a little annoyed by Xiao Qinglang's actions in her heart, she instinctively believed his words. It's as if there is nothing false as long as he says what he says.

Xiao Qinglang glanced at Xu Chu, and when he saw that she was talking about the case, his angry expression was really much lighter, so he sighed softly and said thoughtfully, "Before Emperor Chengzong, the main courtyard of the British Mansion was always in Sude Garden. Later, the old British duchess was overly sad because of the death of the Marquis of Xiangyang, which made Youxi's body worse and worse, so she liked to be quiet and happy. In order to make her feel comfortable and raise the baby, the old British father moved the main courtyard here. Because this place is easterly, and it is close to mountains and rivers on the left and right, it is not easy to expand, so it is only repaired and the courtyard is not expanded. ”

Because of the meritorious homes in the capital, the regulations on the mansion have a fixed number, and if you want to start construction, you need to report to the yamen. After making sure that there will be no trespassing, people can build the construction.

"Because the British government was only repairing at that time, and Emperor Chengzong valued it, the Ministry of Industry found craftsmen to come and help repair it."

Xu Chu nodded, knowing the inside story. In other words, the death of the Marquis of Xiangyang is like an introduction

"Since there is an opportunity, and it was still placed after Ning Subai came, so the day before yesterday or yesterday, the person who led Ning Subai to discover the secret passage must have returned. Since he wants to see the excitement, wouldn't it be too unsatisfactory for me to fulfill his wish? ”