181 Responding to Changes by Staying the Same
Yu Niaoniao was not the kind of person who insisted on poking at someone’s wound.
She raised her hands in surrender.
“All right, all right, I’ll stop. Go home yourself. I’m leaving.”
Yu Pingping hurriedly stopped her. “Don’t leave!”
Yu Niaoniao said, “Is there anything else?”
Yu Pingping clutched her handkerchief and squirmed.
“Thank you for earlier.”
Yu Niaoniao rolled her eyes and asked gossipily, “If you really want to thank me, tell me about what happened between you and Yang Yi. I’m curious how you fell for him.”
Yu Pingping didn’t want to say. She was afraid of losing face.
But the other party had just helped her, so she could not burn bridges.
After much hesitation, she finally braced herself and spoke.
“It’s a long story…”
Yu Pingping used to go to the Yang family to play with Yang Xianrong. After some time, she got to know Yang Xianrong’s brother, Yang Yi.
Yang Yi was good-looking and gentle.
Coupled with Yang Xianrong’s instigation, Yu Pingping had a good impression of him.
Yang Yi did not reject her goodwill.
Whether it was their family background or their age and appearance, they were very compatible. Originally, Yu Pingping was already prepared to spend the rest of her life with him.
Unexpectedly, her relationship with Yang Xianrong suddenly collapsed.
This was a separate matter and had nothing to do with Yang Yi. Yu Pingping would not vent her anger on Yang Yi just because Yang Xianrong’s character was bad.
However, Yang Yi’s actions just now were like a basin of cold water that drenched Yu Pingping’s heart. As she spoke, the grievance welled up in her, making her want to cry again.
She choked. “I thought he was a good man, but he didn’t care about me at all. He was only thinking about his sister and did not think about me at all. He just said that about me. As if I’m to blame. I was furious. What right does he have to say that about me? What right does he have!”
She put a handkerchief to her face and sobbed.
Yu Niaoniao did not expect her emotions to collapse so quickly and hurriedly comforted her.
“Stop crying, stop crying. He’s blind. You don’t have to cry for him. It’s not worth it.”
Yu Pingping cried as she said, “I know it’s not worth it, but I still feel terrible.”
Yu Niaoniao coaxed her for a long time before she was done. She wiped the tears from her face with a handkerchief, but her eyes were still red.
Yu Niaoniao patted her shoulder and said earnestly, “You’re an excellent young lady. There’s absolutely no need to shed tears over a man. Get rid of this scumbag and you’ll meet someone better in the future. There’s still a long way to go. I want you to do well.”
With that, Yu Niaoniao gently pushed her away.
Yu Pingping took two steps forward. She turned back to look at Yu Niaoniao and saw her give her an encouraging smile.
Yu Pingping was very touched and asked eagerly, “What about you? Aren’t you coming with me?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “I’ll take the carriage.”
With that, she strode across the street and got into the carriage.
The carriage started and drove past Yu Pingping. Soon, it was far away.
Yu Pingping, who had been thrown to the side of the road, was speechless.
She murmured with a wooden expression, “Did she fool me again?”
The little maid beside her did not dare to respond.
‘Aye, poor Second Miss.’
… .
In the carriage, Xiao Juan had already heard Yu Niaoniao tell him what had happened.
He asked, “Aren’t you afraid your sister will throw a tantrum if you just leave her there?”
Yu Niaoniao snorted.
“Previously, she made me eat raw eggplant, causing me to have diarrhea. Today, I’ll teach her a lesson. Consider it paying her back for harming me previously.”
If not for the food poisoning, she would not have been kidnapped by Che Xuekun so easily.
She remembered it all!
Xiao Juan did not say anything else. He remembered Yang Yi’s name and planned to talk to Yang Yi’s father about this tomorrow morning.
Yu Niaoniao took a pastry from the box and ate it.
“There’s something else. I suspect we’re being followed.”
Xiao Juan frowned. “Who followed us?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “When I was looking at the roadside scenery in the carriage just now, I saw a man on the street. Later, when I went to the snack shop, I saw that man again. When I was talking to Yu Niaoniao and Yang Yi, that man was mixed in the crowd. I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”
That man had an ordinary appearance and was the type that would be lost in a crowd.
If anyone else had seen it, they would probably forget.
But Yu Niaoniao was different. She had a photographic memory and extraordinary observation skills. As long as she had seen someone, it was impossible to forget.
Xiao Juan asked, “What does that person look like?”
Yu Niaoniao spoke as she recalled.
“He’s probably disguised. He’s very ordinary-looking, nothing special, but…”
She deliberately dragged out the syllable to keep him in suspense. She looked as if she was asking him if he really wanted to know.
Xiao Juan was very supportive. “What did you discover? I really want to know.”
Only then did Yu Niaoniao continue.
“I found something. The man’s Adam’s apple was very inconspicuous. The beard was stuck on his mouth. There was something wrong with his voice. I guess he could have been a eunuch.”
Xiao Juan quickly reacted. “It’s someone from the palace.”
Yu Niaoniao asked, “Why are the people from the palace following us?”
Xiao Juan had already come to a conclusion.
“The emperor must be suspicious of me. He sent someone to keep an eye on us.”
Yu Niaoniao blinked. “Aren’t you the emperor’s most trusted person?”
Xiao Juan said indifferently, “The only person the emperor trusts the most is himself.”
“What are you going to do next?”
Xiao Juan said slowly, “In this situation, the more we do, the more mistakes we make. It’s best if we deal with all changes by remaining unchanged.”
Yu Niaoniao nodded, indicating that she understood.
In the afternoon, Xiao Juan went to the Justice Department.
The autopsy results on Che Xuekun had come back.
Lo Pingsha spoke methodically.
“There are many wounds on the victim. He must have been tortured before he died. The fatal wound was the knife wound at the neck. It was deep and almost severed the neck bone. The incision was smooth. The person who did it was calm and cruel. He wasn’t an ordinary person.”
He took out a piece of paper and placed it in front of Duke Lang.
“This was found on his body. Please take a look.”
Xiao Juan unfolded the paper.
When he saw the contents of the paper clearly, his eyes froze.
This was actually the border map of Liaodong County!
Lo Pingsha said, “This map is hidden in the compartment of his inner garment. He went to great lengths to infiltrate our country, presumably to obtain this border map.”
Chen Country was close to Liaodong County. If this border map was leaked, the consequences would be unimaginable!
Xiao Juan looked at the blueprint in front of him and fell into deep thought.
The border map was an important secret of the Dayan Kingdom.
If no one helped Che Xuekun, he would never have obtained this map.
It seemed that the anti-government poetry case was just a façade. There was a bigger conspiracy hidden underneath.