Gu Chengyin led Cui Zilu out of the Left Vice Minister's estate, once again bathing in the outdoor sunlight and gentle breeze.
Outside the estate gates, the Cui family's carriage and guards waited quietly.
Just as he was about to board the carriage, the Heir Apparent Token in his robes suddenly vibrated.
Gu Chengyin paused his steps, reached into his robes, and took out the token.
A faint light swirled across its surface, revealing a concise line of text:
(Discoveries made regarding the imperial merchants in Lanling Commandery)
Gu Chengyin's eyebrows shot up.
So fast?
At this speed, either the efficiency of Wenli Hall was astonishingly high, or the things hidden within the accounts of Lanling Commandery's imperial merchants were simply too obvious.
So much so that upon investigation, they immediately exposed themselves.
He put away the token and, with an unchanged expression, led Cui Zilu onto the Cui family carriage.
"To the Heir Apparent's Palace," Gu Chengyin instructed the driver.
The carriage started smoothly, leaving the district where the Left Vice Minister's estate was located, and headed toward the Heir Apparent's Palace.
Inside the cabin, Cui Zilu sat quietly, her gaze occasionally drifting out the window with curiosity at the passing street scenes.
She also secretly glanced at Gu Chengyin, who was deep in thought beside her.
When the Cui family carriage stopped in front of the Heir Apparent's Palace, Gu Chengyin looked at Cui Zilu beside him and found himself in a dilemma.
Take her inside with him?
Go straight up to the second floor of Wenli Hall and participate in core confidential discussions?
This was obviously inappropriate.
While Gu Chengyin was still weighing his words, Cui Zilu seemed to see his predicament and took the initiative to speak.
"Brother Chengyin, I won't go in with you. I'll just wait for you in the carriage."
Her voice was crisp, carrying an understanding and obedient tone.
As she spoke, Cui Zilu's gaze drifted toward the gates of the Heir Apparent's Palace outside the window, and she said timidly,
"Sister Her Highness... I am a little afraid of her."
This reason sounded perfectly reasonable.
As the Heir Apparent, Luo Zhao had long held a high position; her temperament was cold and aloof, possessing a natural majesty. Ordinary people would feel an invisible pressure upon seeing her.
However, only Cui Zilu herself knew that this was merely half the reason.
The other half of the reason she secretly muttered in her heart:
"If Sister Yunying sees that I dressed up so carefully, specifically changing into these clothes and styling my hair like this, she will definitely realize that I was lying to her yesterday."
Gu Chengyin nodded and said in a gentle tone, "That works. Then you wait for me in the carriage."
"Mhm! Brother Chengyin, go quickly, I will wait for you!" Cui Zilu nodded vigorously, a bright smile blooming on her face to show that she was completely fine with it.
Gu Chengyin turned and got off the carriage, walking steadily through the gates of the Heir Apparent's Palace.
He familiarly made his way to Wenli Hall.
He ascended the stairs and entered the second floor.
Luo Zhao sat behind the main desk, holding an account book in her hand. She was discussing something in a low voice with Shangguan Yunying beside her, her finger occasionally tapping on a certain line in the ledger.
Not far away, at a relatively smaller desk, Gu Xiaoli had her head buried as the writing brush in her hand flew rapidly across the paper.
The moment Gu Chengyin appeared at the door, Gu Xiaoli, who had been burying her head in her writing, twitched her ears slightly.
She immediately snapped her head up. Her large eyes, like the most precise radar, locked directly onto Gu Chengyin's figure.
When she saw clearly that the newcomer was Gu Chengyin, Gu Xiaoli's eyes suddenly lit up.
She opened her small mouth, wanting to call out, but realizing the setting, she quickly covered her mouth with her hands, simply staring at Gu Chengyin without blinking.
Gu Chengyin naturally saw Gu Xiaoli as well. Meeting her eyes that were filled with starlight, he nodded and revealed a comforting and encouraging smile.
This subtle interaction did not escape the perception of Luo Zhao and Shangguan Yunying.
The two stopped their discussion, raised their heads, and turned their gazes toward the door.
Upon seeing Gu Chengyin, there was no surprise on Luo Zhao's face. However, deep within her cold eyes, some emotion seemed to flash by extremely quickly, so fast that it was uncatchable.
She put down the account book in her hand and picked up a stack of organized and marked papers from the pile of documents in front of her.
"You're here."
Luo Zhao's voice was calm and placid, devoid of any discernible emotion.
She handed the stack of documents to Gu Chengyin.
"These are the suspicious and abnormal records compiled from the accounts of the relevant imperial merchants in Lanling Commandery over the past three years. See if there is anything you need among them."
Gu Chengyin took the stack of documents. They were still warm to the touch, clearly having been compiled just recently.
"Thank you, Your Highness. Everyone has worked hard," he said politely, his gaze falling onto the documents in his hands.
Then, standing beside Luo Zhao's desk, he began to flip through them page by page, extremely carefully.
Luo Zhao and Shangguan Yunying did not disturb him, merely watching quietly.
Gu Xiaoli also stopped her pen, rested her chin on her hands, and stared unblinkingly at Gu Chengyin.
Time passed minute by minute.
Gu Chengyin's flipping speed was not fast; sometimes he would even linger on a single page for a moment.
His gaze repeatedly swept over certain numbers or entries, his brows furrowing slightly at times and relaxing at others.
Finally, when he reached the middle section, Gu Chengyin's fingers suddenly paused.
His originally smooth page-turning motion stopped completely, his entire attention seemingly firmly drawn in by the contents of this page.
He brought the paper closer, reading line by line by line.
He read every word on it extremely slowly and carefully, even every inconspicuous annotation mark.
From time to time, he pulled out a few pages and placed them together.
Until he pulled out the last page, Gu Chengyin's eyes suddenly lit up, like the sun parting the clouds.
He looked at Luo Zhao and said,
"Your Highness."
Gu Chengyin waved the small stack of carefully selected documents in his hand.
"These things."
"Will overturn the entire Xiao Clan."
Gu Chengyin solemnly handed the stack of documents back to Luo Zhao, instructing,
"Your Highness, please keep these safe first, and wait until I return from the Cabinet."
"In addition, regarding the final conclusion of the sudden death case of Xiao Bichang."
"It is suicide out of fear of punishment."
Luo Zhao took the documents, her fingertips able to feel the slight coolness of the paper and the unevenness of the ink.
In her heart, she was actually very curious about what exactly inside could make Gu Chengyin assert this so confidently.
But the following sentence directly drew her attention away.
The sudden death case of Xiao Bichang closed as a suicide out of fear of punishment?
This was entirely different from the relentless pursuit style Luo Zhao had expected from Gu Chengyin.
Gu Chengyin did not wait for her to ask, but took the initiative to explain.
"Your Highness, the evidence in the sudden death case of Xiao Bichang is irrefutable. The opposing party has made foolproof preparations."
"From the scene, autopsy, to the physical and witness evidence, all proof seamlessly points to suicide out of fear of punishment."
"Within the three-day limit set by His Majesty, it will be very difficult to find substantive flaws sufficient to overturn the case."
"Forcibly entangling ourselves in the case itself will only waste time, and we might even be bitten back."
Luo Zhao frowned slightly, hearing the unspoken meaning in Gu Chengyin's words.
"So...?"
Gu Chengyin said, "So, I plan to close the case first and then split it."
"Split the case?" Luo Zhao's eyes flickered, as if she had caught onto something.
"Exactly."
agon king storylines. At the start, I obtained the "Ultimate Lackey System" - the more I act as a lackey, the stronger I become. What else could I do? I chose to become the personal henchman of the ultimate villain, Su Muwan. I provoke all sorts of chosen ones, snatch away their opportunities, and commit every evil deed imaginable. You ask who's behind me? Hmph! You're not worthy of knowing my lady's name! ...... ....... I am Su Muwan, the eldest daughter of the Su family. Since childhood, I've possessed extraordinary talent in martial arts, which led to my arrogant and domineering personality in my past life. I was even foolish enough to repeatedly challenge those favored by heaven, ultimately resulting in a tragic death. In this life, I must behave and absolutely cannot walk the same path again!! However... SLAP!! "So you're the Dragon King, huh?!" When I saw my little lackey swagger over and viciously slap the Dragon King who was hiding his identity, I felt my heart sink. Su Muwan's suspended heart finally died as she watched Qin Luo, her utterly loyal lackey, standing before her. She fainted on the spot from shock. Heaven is determined to destroy me!! (Pure love 1v1, light-hearted, no angst, single female lead, villain, reincarnation, lackey)
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
e, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
