"Previously, we were just traveling, and staying in inns was more convenient. This time, we'll be in Cangwu City for a while, so a small courtyard would be more comfortable."
Feng Xi Wu said, and had Li Yang push him into the room. He immediately began to inquire, "How did the matter in Ye Yu City conclude?"
"Shadow One sent word that they found a large field of You Ming Hua at Qing Quan Mountain Villa and discovered a lot of smuggled salt. Lin Qing Quan, along with the Prefect of Ye Yu City, Yan Shou Yi, have both been apprehended.
Xiao Wu Ying, as the Consort ordered, has been sent back to Shang Jing. However, there was an unexpected incident while investigating Lin Qing Quan.
The new leader of the martial arts alliance seems to be closely associated with Xi Liang. Shadow One was unsure of the proper course of action and didn't dare to act rashly, still awaiting the Prince's instructions."
Lu Qing Wan waved a small bamboo tube in her hand, "Wu Ying's message has also arrived. She never told Xiao Yue Ying that I was the one who rescued her.
Moreover, the Xiao family has no intelligence sources in Shang Jing. However, there's someone in your Shen Ce Camp who is Xiao Han Yun's disciple and is also from Xi Liang. Did you know about this?"
Li Yang was startled, "Lu Qing's side just found out, how did Consort know?"
"I just found out too."
Lu Qing Wan handed a small piece of paper to Feng Xi Wu, a hint of pride in her expression.
"You've been looking for the mole in Shen Ce Camp for so long, and Wu Ying found out in just a few days. Doesn't that show that my judgment of people is slightly better than yours?"
Feng Xi Wu looked at the intelligence on the paper and calmly eyed her, "Who told you that there was only one mole in Shen Ce Camp?"
Lu Qing Wan was taken aback, a little unwilling, and retorted, "Is it something to be proud of that the great Shen Ce Camp has so many moles?"
Feng Xi Wu: ...
This was indeed, unanswerable.
Lu Qing Wan puffed up her chest like a triumphant peacock, "The mole in Shen Ce Camp who leaked information to Xiao Yue Ying is from Xi Liang, and Ming Wu Ya also has close ties to Xi Liang.
This shows that Xi Liang has been coveting Da Qian for a long time. What progress have you made in your cooperation with Princess Fei Feng?
If it's not working, send someone to Xi Liang. We can't let the people of Xi Liang infiltrate Da Qian, can we?"
After all, it was the empire her own father had desperately protected. Not to mention anything else, as long as her father was still alive, Lu Qing Wan, out of affection for him, would also protect this empire.
Feng Xi Wu deliberately played coy.
"There has been progress. Can you guess who is behind Ming Wu Ya, Xiao Yue Ying, and that mole in Shen Ce Camp?"
"How would I know that?"
Lu Qing Wan blinked, "No, since you already know who is behind this, why haven't you eliminated them? Could it be that you can't even touch that person?
It wouldn't be Xiao Jing An himself, would it?"
If it were the Emperor of Xi Liang, it would indeed be difficult to deal with him so quickly.
"If it were truly Xiao Jing An, that would be better."
Feng Xi Wu's tone was peculiar, "It's his remarkably talented Imperial Consort.
I never expected a woman under twenty years old to have established such a vast network of influence.
Her hand is in the courts of various countries and the martial arts world, in all sorts of sects and factions.
Furthermore, she has buried something called gunpowder in the imperial mausoleums of various countries. If anyone makes a rash move, she will blow up the mausoleum.
At that point, they might not be dead, but those who oppose her will have committed treason."
The imperial mausoleum was the dragon脉 of a dynasty. Especially since people of this era had never seen landmines, the destruction of the imperial mausoleum would surely lead to rumors of divine retribution or the like. Calling it treason would be an understatement.
However, Lu Qing Wan found this matter a bit unreliable, "Is your intelligence accurate? Has anyone seen this gunpowder?"
"No one has seen the gunpowder, but who would dare to risk the imperial mausoleum?"
"That's true."
Lu Qing Wan had to admit that Xie Shi Yu had indeed grasped the lifelines of people in this era.
Whether she had truly created gunpowder or not was not important. If even someone like Feng Xi Wu dared not act rashly against her, she had already won.
However, she beckoned to Li Yang, "Go, get me some things..."
Isn't it gunpowder? She could make it too. Whether Xie Shi Yu had real skill or if it was Schrödinger's gunpowder would be revealed soon.
Li Yang was stunned, "Consort, do you want to learn alchemy from those traveling Taoists?"
Lu Qing Wan: ...
She had indeed forgotten that gunpowder in the Great Heavenly Dynasty was originally invented for alchemy and firecrackers. She forced out an awkward yet polite smile, "Get the things first, and I'll tell you their use.
Remember, keep everything separate. If they are mixed together, I'm afraid you won't see me again."
Li Yang was a bit confused, but his intuition told him it wasn't good news, so he didn't press further and went to run errands for Lu Qing Wan with a head full of questions.
Lu Qing Wan didn't inquire further about what Xie Shi Yu had done and directly asked Feng Xi Wu, "When are we going to Yaowang Valley?"
"No rush."
Feng Xi Wu was calm and composed, as if he wasn't the one seeking medical treatment.
"Yaowang Valley is not easy to enter, so I need to prepare a good token of allegiance."
Lu Qing Wan's eyes lit up, "What do you plan to prepare?"
"Li Jin had someone find a Nine-Leaf Chong Lou. It will be delivered tomorrow. This item is rare and should be enough to open the gates of Yaowang Valley."
Feng Xi Wu said calmly, but Lu Qing Wan couldn't remain calm.
"Nine-Leaf Chong Lou, is it real? Does Nine-Leaf Chong Lou truly exist in this world?"
Feng Xi Wu nodded, "Shen Ci personally authenticated it, so there should be no mistake."
"Give me such a good thing!"
Lu Qing Wan exclaimed, "I have plenty of tokens of allegiance, from medicinal formulas and prepared medicines to medicinal herbs and acupuncture techniques. Any one of them is enough as a token of allegiance!
I've lived this long and never seen a Nine-Leaf Chong Lou. How dare you give it to the old geezers at Yaowang Valley and not to your Consort?"
She was so excited that she stumbled over her words and almost jumped onto Feng Xi Wu.
The latter quickly reached out and pulled her into his embrace, "Don't get excited. If you want it, I'll give it to you. I can find another token of allegiance."
"No, I don't want to take advantage of you for nothing, really..."
Lu Qing Wan calmly stood up from Feng Xi Wu's embrace, "I'll prepare the token of allegiance for you, but you've reminded me.
Six Kun Jade Brocade is not an ordinary item. Do I still need to prepare something as a bargaining chip?"
After discussing for a while, they agreed to exchange a thousand-year-old Wenshu Lan for the Nine-Leaf Chong Lou as a token of allegiance to open the gates of Yaowang Valley.
However, upon actually reaching the vicinity of Yaowang Valley, Lu Qing Wan was stunned, "This setup, it seems they never intended for outsiders to enter, right?"
The forest before them looked ordinary, yet it formed its own pattern. The short grass on the ground was eerily green.
As they walked, Lu Qing Wan pulled back the person in front of her, "Stop walking. If you go any further, you'll lose your life."
As she spoke, the sharp-eyed guards also noticed the tiny, almost invisible insects in the grass.