It was rare that the snow stopped and the sun came out. The temperature inside and outside the house was the same, so Nan Yi simply sat in the yard to bask in the sun.
The female envoys came and went, as if they didn't even see Nan Yi and ignored her tacitly.
Nan Yi sat there until noon, feeling really hungry. She thought about Xie Queshan's words and made a mental calculation. In such a big place as Xie's house, people couldn't starve to death in the yard.
She decided to give it a try, gathered up her energy, stopped a group of female servants, and ordered in a commanding tone.
“Bring me a pot of water—and a bowl of mutton noodles.”
Nan Yi thought that he would have to fight with the female envoys for a while, but unexpectedly they just said "Here" with expressionless faces. Nan Yi was stuffed with words but was choked back - is it that simple?
Soon, what she asked for was delivered. Hot water and hot mutton noodles are both good, but she will never give her more than she wants.
"Name is more important than reality." Xie Queshan's words swirled in Nan Yi's mind. When she carefully followed through on her words, she realized that everything he said was right.
Nan Yi felt as if he was alive after he sucked the whole bowl of hot mutton noodles into his stomach. For her, survival is just one meal and one night's sleep, and it comes bit by bit.
She felt good every day she lived.
Nan Yi touched his rounded belly and decided to do some exercise in the yard. When he was getting up, there was an announcement from the female envoy.
"Good morning, Miss Six."
Nan Yi turned around and saw a girl in red walking toward her in a hurry. Nan Yi didn't know who the sixth girl was, but she thought she was a noble person and quickly knelt on the ground to salute.
"Sixth girl."
Xie Sui'an was startled and quickly helped Nan Yi up.
"Sister-in-law, you are trying to offend me. Why are you giving me such a big gift?"
"Don't you have to...kneel down?" Nan Yi felt inferior to others in a wealthy family, and she was a little frightened when someone suddenly treated her so politely.
Xie Sui'an cordially took Nan Yi back to the pavilion and gave orders to the female envoys around him.
"You all go down. My sister-in-law and I have something to say. Don't let anyone come into this courtyard."
Xie Sui'an turned her head and smiled at Nan Yi: "My name is Xie Sui'an, and I am the sixth in the family. Sister-in-law, you can just call me Xiaoliu. How can a sister-in-law be polite to her younger sister?"
Xie Sui'an put his elbows on the table and leaned over to look at Nan Yi curiously.
Nan Yi also looked at Xie Sui'an carefully.
She looked about the same age as herself, but she exuded vigorous vitality. Her crescent-like smiling eyes had a pair of thick sword-shaped eyebrows. Even though she used a conch to press down the ends of her eyebrows, they could not be concealed. Keep the heroic spirit on your face.
"Sixth girl, you...see what I do?"
"Is it you? Sister-in-law."
Nan Yi was confused.
"Eldest brother mentioned before his death that Bingzhusi has a top-secret secret chess piece, code-named 'Yan', is it you?"
"I don't understand what Miss Six is saying."
Xie Sui'an had an "I understand" expression.
"Sister-in-law is very cautious, but I am one of my own, and I also work for Bingzhusi, so you can rest assured. If you hadn't sent out intelligence that you would create chaos at the funeral site, allowing our people to take the opportunity to contact King Ling'an , How could King Ling'an enter Lidu Mansion so smoothly?"
This news came out of Xie Sui'an's mouth lightly, but it fell on Nan Yi's ears like a bolt from the blue.
So that’s it!
When she kidnapped Xie Queshan, all the Qi soldiers gathered around her. Naturally, there was no one to monitor the entire funeral procession. She probably took advantage of that time to complete the response.
But she hadn't told anyone about her plan to kidnap Xie Queshan. Who had tricked her into the plan?
Xie Queshan?
If it weren't for the conversation in the ancestral hall that day, she would not have changed her mind and stayed to wait for the day of burial. But how could Xie Queshan be sure what she would do? Even if he was used to manipulating people's hearts, why would he help King Ling'an? He is obviously a traitor to the Yu Dynasty.
Could it be...
impossible. An absurd idea flashed through Nan Yi's mind, but she quickly rejected it. She guessed that someone might have planned other accidents, but she made such a fuss and accidentally helped them complete the plan. She is not a "goose", but the "goose" didn't show up, right?
"Name is more important than reality", Xie Queshan's words echoed in her mind again, and Nan Yi quickly made a decision.
"Yes, I am. I also know about Hu Kneeling Mountain's response plan."
"Sure enough, it's you!" Xie Sui'an was even more surprised, "Sister-in-law, what a good plan! Then your Qin family identity is also fake?"
"The identity is naturally false. These are all things I have discussed with the eldest young master. Of course, he can't just find a random woman and use her wedding team to meet the new emperor from Tiger Kneeling Mountain. I can sit in the wedding sedan. Help him see the six directions and listen in all directions."
Nan Yi opened his mouth and came.
Xie Sui'an looks bright and smart, and is quite popular. If she can win her favor, it will help her establish herself in the Xie family faster. She couldn't escape from this place for the time being, so she had to find a way to live a better life. What's more, who could guarantee that the Xie family would think she was unlucky again and arrange a new way for her to die?
Xie Sui'an was now convinced of Nan Yi's identity.
If she was not "Yan", how could she know such important news as sending a wedding team to receive King Ling'an, and how could she happen to create chaos at the funeral site?
Xie Sui'an held Nan Yi's hand emotionally.
"That's great, sister-in-law. Even though the Xie family is a high-ranking family in Lidu Mansion and responds to hundreds of calls, what we do is to hang our lives on the tip of a knife and cannot be judged by others. It is like a single tree crossing a river. Alone and weak, having one more partner means one more chance of winning."
Nan Yi complained in her heart. She had no righteousness for her family and country, and she didn't want to risk her life for anything. When she accepted this identity, she just wanted to find a backer, but she didn't expect that the other party wanted to drag her into the water.
But she still acted flawlessly on her face and smiled towards Xie Sui'an. There is no other way, Xie Sui'an is her best choice at the moment.
At least she became Xie Sui'an's partner, and with Bingzhusi's blessing, the Xie family would no longer take her life easily. Even if she recognized the identity of "Yan", as long as she was hiding in the backyard of Wangxuewu, nothing big might happen to her.
Just as he thought this, Xie Sui'an's next words broke Nan Yi's fantasy.
"Sister-in-law, the next task will only be more difficult."
Nan Yi was stunned: "What mission?"
"Lidu Mansion is a transit point from land to water. Now King Ling'an is placed in a top-secret place in the city. What we have to do next is to find a way to send him to the ferry boat."
"Just getting on the ship...how difficult can it be?"
"The Quling River passes through Lidu Prefecture, so there is only one ferry going south in the city. That ferry was originally within the influence of the Tiger Kneeling Army in Lidu Prefecture, but the prefect Huang Yankun was a villain. He saw that the Qi people were so powerful that he was frightened. Feeling brave, he surrendered to the Qi people and opened the city gate to let the Qi soldiers in. So now, the only ferry has fallen into the hands of the Qi people. It is heavily guarded there and it is difficult to send people away. "
Xie Sui'an looked longingly at Nan Yi, who was deep in thought, and looked forward to her: "Sister-in-law, you are very resourceful, what good ideas do you have?"
Nan Yi and Xie Sui'an stared at each other.
Nan Yi's mind was spinning rapidly - she wanted to say something valuable, but she was an outsider, what could she know?
Suddenly, Nan Yi thought of Xie Queshan and the silk letter. How did the plan leak to Xie Queshan? There must be a traitor around Xie Heng.
Just as he was about to speak, there was a faint sound of commotion outside, and Xie Sui'an immediately became alert.
"I'm going to find out what's wrong."
After that, Xie Sui'an was about to leave in a hurry, and Nan Yi quickly followed. She didn't want to be left here as a transparent person again.
"Miss Six, let me go with you."
As soon as they walked out of the courtyard, Nan Yi and Xie Sui'an saw a group of officers and soldiers passing by escorting a middle-aged man.
Before Nan Yi could ask, she heard a clatter and Xie Sui'an's soft sword had been drawn out. She took the horizontal sword first and stopped in front of the officers and soldiers.
"Why are you arresting my third uncle!"
The person who was taken away by the officers and soldiers was Xie Zhu. Xie Zhu had an official status and was now the magistrate of the Shipping Department of Lidu Prefecture. He was about to go to the Shipping Department's office. He was still wearing an official robe, but his hands were shackled, making him very embarrassed.
The leading officers and soldiers were quite polite and replied to Xie Sui'an: "We are ordered by the magistrate to escort the murder suspect back to the Yamen."
"What murder?"
"A Qi man died in the restaurant last night. Someone saw Mr. Xie coming out of the restaurant that night."
"Nonsense! Who saw it? Tell him to confront him!"
Xie Sui'an refused to give up. She couldn't let her third uncle be taken away like this. The death of a Qi man was just an attempt to inflict a crime. Something more urgent must have happened, otherwise the prefect would not dare to touch Xie Zhu.
The officers and soldiers did not answer the call or give in. Their attitude was quite tough: "Please thank Miss Six for cooperating with the government."
"Xiao Liu——" Xie Zhu stopped Xie Sui'an and shook his head at her, his eyes seemed to contain deep meaning.
Xie Sui'an suppressed the anger in his heart: "You can't punish a scholar-official. My third uncle has an official status and cannot tolerate you humiliating him with shackles."
The leading officers and soldiers exchanged glances, raised their hands and saluted Xie Zhu: "It's the villain who took offense."
As soon as the officers and soldiers took out the keys, Xie Sui'an snatched them away.
"I'll do it myself."
Xie Sui'an stepped forward to unshackle Xie Zhu. She gave Xie Zhu a deep look, indicating that he could pass the words to her.
Xie Zhu opened his fisted right hand, spread the west fingers, and kept his thumb clasped in his palm. He paused, and then put his hand into his robe.
This is Bingzhusi's unique code, which means "there is a traitor and the news is leaked."
Xie Sui'an looked shocked.
