In the dead of night, the lights were extinguished in the entire Begonia Courtyard, and the lights were still bright in the study of Xi Yan.

"The emperor's suppression of the Xi family, this is just the beginning of the ......" Xi Yan saw the derogation he received today, "It's just that the matter of water can't always be deducted from the head of the Xi family, and someone has to carry it up, otherwise the Xi family will not be too comfortable in the court." ”

Xi Yun helped him sort out the news, and at the same time thought about it and agreed: "Yes, even if it is determined that the fourth prince is just negligent, this is always a stain." ”

"It's equivalent to Xiao They are back in Chongdu, so they are ready to take the next step, and they have to be prepared everywhere...... Don't be too deliberate yet, the next step is a risky move. Want...... It's only been three or five days. ”

"Yes, I injured a secret guard in the water last time, and the message is no longer in the way."

"Who was hurt?" Although Xi Yan didn't pay much attention to these secret guards, after all, he still put a lot of effort into it, and he still cared a little about it.

"Ninety-one." Xi Yun paused, "But if there is no blood, those people will not be impulsive so quickly, and fortunately, the injuries are not serious." ”

"Got it, this thing...... They did a good job. ”

Seeing that there was a thick pile of paper full of all kinds of news on the table, Xi Yan had to fight his spirits and immerse himself in that state of thoughtful thinking.

One by one, the news passed in front of him, but about An Ruofei's whereabouts...... There was still no news. There are not many people in the Begonia Courtyard to send out, and most of the secret guards are still on their way from the water to Chongdu.

Xi Yan is very worried, the evidence of this matter is conclusive, it won't take long, Dali Temple and the Criminal Department will definitely issue sea fishing documents, and An Ruofei will really have no way to escape at that time. She was alone and scattered, and what to do if she encountered a pursuer.

Just when Xi Yan was upset, there was a sudden sound of "click" in the courtyard, and he and Xi Yun looked out the window at the same time. Xi Yan frowned, Xi Yun immediately understood, only one dodge, and arrived in the court in a blink of an eye. After inspecting around, Xi Yun didn't find anything suspicious, turned around and wanted to go back, but saw Xi Yan coming out of the house at some point, holding a small bamboo tube between his fingers.

Back in the house, Xi Yun couldn't help but ask, "Childe, where did you get this bamboo tube from?" ”

"It just fell on the steps, you didn't see it." As he spoke, Xi Yan removed the wax seal, carefully opened the bamboo tube, and poured a thin roll of paper into his palm.

When I opened it, I found that the roll was two pieces of paper stacked on top of each other. Xi Yan took out one casually and glanced at it casually. It's just that the moment his eyes just touched, his eyes suddenly became hot, his originally pale face also flushed, his right hand trembled uncontrollably, Xi Yun leaned over for some reason, and saw that it was written on the note:

"I'm very good, you don't have to think about it."

Looking at the next one, the second piece of paper is noticeably longer than the first, and it reads:

"If you fly now in the cold house, please rest assured, Brother Yan, I hope to give you a reply."

Xi Yan took the two pieces of paper in his hand, read them over and over again, put them in front of his nose and sniffed them gently. There is no doubt that "the first one must be from Ruofei's hand, and there is still the smell of Yuelin incense on the paper, this incense is very cumbersome to make, and it is extremely difficult to buy on the market. ”

"What about the second one?"

Xi Yan didn't answer, but asked, "Just now, where did this bamboo tube fall?" ”

Xi Yun thought for a moment and said, "You said that you fell on the steps." ”

Xi Yan nodded, "Who is so familiar with the layout of the Xi Mansion that he can throw it in front of my study accurately." ”

"Throw? Why throw it instead of shooting it with a slingshot or something? Xi Yun was a little strange, so he asked.

Xi Yan explained: "The Begonia Courtyard is already in a corner of the Xi Mansion, and the closest wall to the study is the Fangling Princess Mansion. But the second piece of paper was clearly a man's handwriting, and the tone of his voice was not like that of a woman, and Princess Fangling's subordinates would never dare to take her in privately. Therefore, the person who sent the letter must be a person from the Begonia Courtyard. Moreover, the study is still some distance away from the courtyard wall, and if you want to shoot in from outside the house, and shoot so accurately, the difficulty is tantamount to climbing to the sky. ”

Xi Yun thought so, "Then I'll go and check the person who sent the letter immediately." ”

turned around and was about to leave, but was pulled by Xi Yan, "No, the top priority is to reply." ”

As he spoke, Xi Yan put down his pen, and after a while, the two replies were completed. Haosheng rolled up the paper, stuffed it into a bamboo tube, and then sealed it with wax as it was. After opening the door and looking around, he put the bamboo tube on the steps, and then instructed Xi Yun to extinguish all the lights in the room one by one.

After everything was in order, Xi Yan and Xi Yun waited quietly in the dark.

It was already halfway through the night, but there was still not a trace of wind and grass outside. Xi Yun was already a little sleepy, but Xi Yan was still in good spirits, as if he would not be tired.

More than half an hour has passed, and the sky has been slightly white, but there is still no movement outside.

Xi Yun was about to get up to check, but was stopped by Xi Yan, who put his index finger to his lips and signaled Xi Yun with his eyes not to act rashly. At this moment, there was a rustling sound outside the window. The sound came from far to near, and when Xi Yan felt that the voice was close to the door, he took the lead in pushing the door out, Xi Yun followed, and the two of them came outside the house in an instant like a gust of wind.

Seeing Xi Yan and Xi Yun appear in front of him together, he turned around and fled, Xi Yan and Xi Yun chased after him at the same time, the man was very skilled, and he knew the terrain in the Begonia Courtyard well, and a few dodges disappeared behind the rockery. Xi Yan chased after him, climbed the rockery in a few jumps, jumped down, and directly took a shortcut to block the way of the comers.

At this time, Xi Yun also chased after him, and the two of them sandwiched the man in the middle. By the faint light of the sky, Xi Yan immediately recognized the person who sent the letter.

"How are you?" Xi Yan's breath was a little disordered, but he still tried his best to maintain his demeanor. I saw that the person's outfit was completely the appearance of the guards of the Begonia Courtyard, and Xi Yun also recognized the person, who was a guard chief under Xi Yan.

The head of the guard looked a little embarrassed, so he had to say, "Childe, Xi Yun...... You haven't rested yet, have you? ”

Xi Yun said angrily: "Can we rest in the study?" ”

Xi Yan looked at him sharply and asked directly, "Is it you who sent the letter last night?" ”

The chief of the guard nodded and admitted: "It is the subordinate, the subordinate did not leave after delivering the letter, and kept around until it was almost dawn, I estimated that you were all asleep, so I came out to get the letter." ”

Xi Yan didn't doubt this, but there was already a look of displeasure on his face, but the captain of the guard under his command was doing things for others behind his back, and he wouldn't be very relieved if he changed anyone.

"Who asked you to send the letter?"

The chief guard thought for a moment and said truthfully: "It's a young son." Yesterday evening, I went out of the house from the north corner gate, and just went out, I was blocked by this son, who handed over the bamboo tube to his subordinates, and told his subordinates how to send the letter. I asked him who he was so that it could be conveyed. He only said that he was your friend, and I would do as he did, and you would know who he was. ”

"Young boy? What does it look like? ”

Without thinking, the chief of the guard immediately replied: "It seems that he is the son of a rich and noble family, not very tall, green robe, always with a smile on his face, but he looks very personable. ”

"What else?"

The chief guard pondered for a long time before he said, "There seems to be a mole in the corner of the eye." ”

"It seems?" Xi Yan was obviously a little dissatisfied with this ambiguous wording, "Then he told you how to reply to the letter?" ”

The head of the guard looked at Xi Yan blankly, Xi Yan sighed heavily, and had no choice but to order him: "Go to the place where you met him yesterday now, go and wait." If he writes back, send it directly to me. Heavy exposure at night, you don't have to wait outside. And also...... Three days later he went and got twenty sticks for himself. ”

"Yes!" The chief of the guard took the order, he knew that he should not hide his master, and he was willing to receive the punishment this time.

Xi Yan and the others also walked back. On the way, Xi Yun asked, "Childe, he said that the man had a mole in the corner of his eye, why not follow this clue to find it?" ”

But Xi Yun thought it was a good proposal, but was refuted by Xi Yan, "Since he dares to send a letter blatantly, he is naturally not afraid of his appearance being remembered." I guess he must have come in disguise. If we follow this clue, we will find nothing. ”

Xi Yan seemed to be in a good mood, and then said: "But he still showed his timidity. Think about it, in the entire Chongdu City, how many young men can accurately find the inconspicuous side gate of Xi Mansion and recognize the guards of Haitang Courtyard? ”

Xi Yun said with a smile: "Zuo is just some princes and nobles, and they are similar to you." ”

"Exactly!" Xi Yan nodded, "Now as long as I know that Ruofei is not in danger, my heart is half relieved." ”

Xi Yun wanted to say something again, but when the words came to his lips, he hesitated. Xi Yan saw through his thoughts, and said, "Do you want to ask, why am I not worried that person will expose Ruofei?" ”

Xi Yun nodded yes, and Xi Yan said leisurely: "If my guess is correct, with the importance that the Criminal Department and Dali Temple attach to the Xie family's case seventeen years ago, when I was still kneeling in the ancestral hall yesterday afternoon, the wanted notice should have been posted." But the person who delivered the letter obviously only went to the outside of the Begonia Courtyard yesterday evening, if he wanted to reveal that Ruofei went to receive the reward, why bother to deliver the letter? ”

While talking, the two had returned to the study, and Xi Yun said, "I was tired yesterday and didn't sleep all night, son, go and rest." ”

"No," Xi Yan shook his head with a wry smile, "I have to go to the Praetorian Guard to take office today, at this juncture, how many pairs of eyes are staring at the Xi family, but people can't make mistakes." ”

Counting up, it has only been half a year since Xi Yan returned to Chongdu, but it is already the third time he has taken office. But since you have chosen to stay, you have to pay the price of staying and bear everything you have to endure to stay.