On the quiet long street of Suzhou, the clear sound of carriage wheels drowned out a gasp from within the carriage.

The Third Prince, startled, said, "This lawsuit can still be fought?"

"Why not?" Fan Xian said with a smile. "Whether we win or not is another matter, but we must fight it."

The Third Prince was only nine years old, still a child, and he became interested in this matter, saying, "Teacher, let's go watch the fun then. I heard that Xia Xifei's biological mother… was beaten to death by the current Old Madam Ming."

Fan Xian sighed. "It's a lawsuit over family property, not a murder case from the past. It only involves the articles in the Qing law. It's not very interesting."

The Third Prince asked curiously, "Teacher, no chance of winning?"

"No," Fan Xian said with a bitter smile, shaking his head. "If there were a chance of winning… why bother doing all those tricks? I only hope to delay the time, the longer the better."

The Third Prince sat back in his seat, dejectedly, looking at the unfamiliar street scenes flashing by, and asked subconsciously, "If we're not going back to Hua Garden, where are we going?"

Fan Xian looked at him and said, "His Majesty allows Your Highness to study with me, and Your Highness has been diligent. Since Your Highness has come out with me today… we'll stop by to learn something you will definitely need to learn in the future."

The Third Prince was taken aback, unsure of what Fan Xian was talking about.

The carriage went from the West City to the North City, but did not enter the areas where the tough guys usually hung out. Instead, it quietly turned into an alley to the west. Under the cover of night and the secret vigilance of the Qinian Team members behind them, they got rid of any possible surveillance and disappeared into the city of Suzhou.

————————————————————————

The carriage stopped outside a civilian residence, a secluded location unlikely to attract attention. Gao Da got down from the driver's seat, his hand gripping the hilt of the long saber behind him. After a cold and meticulous observation, he signaled safety with a fist, and only then did Fan Xian lead the Third Prince out of the carriage.

The assassins from the Sixth Bureau who remained by Fan Xian's side were all recovering from injuries. Fan Xian was unwilling to let the only two unscathed ones risk their lives again. Therefore, their personal safety was now entirely the responsibility of the Tiger Guards and the Qinian Team, making their actions even more cautious.

Walking along the quiet doorway, the Third Prince felt a little uneasy. The surroundings were dark, but he could smell a hint of smoke, a sensation that made his hair stand on end.

Unconsciously, the child gripped Fan Xian's hand tightly.

They entered the house and turned into another room, which turned out to be a bedroom. Everything was in place, a large bed, a dressing table… even a couple sleeping on the bed!

The Third Prince opened his mouth wide, unable to speak for a long time, wondering what this was all about. Fan Xian paused slightly and looked back at the official from the Supervisory Council who was leading the way.

The official's expression remained unchanged. He went straight to the bed, pulled a hook on the bed frame, and with a click, the cloth curtain above the bed slowly opened, revealing a sloping passage. Then, he gestured to indicate they should proceed.

Throughout this process, the couple on the bed simply shifted inward without any reaction, not even looking at the people by the bed, as if they were blind and deaf, or as if Fan Xian and his party were ghosts.

Watching this scene, Fan Xian couldn't help but smile wryly, scratching his head. It felt very much like a certain novel he had read in his previous life, never expecting it to become a reality before his very eyes.

This civilian residence was naturally a secret stronghold of the Fourth Bureau of the Supervisory Council in the city of Suzhou.

……

……

At this point, the Third Prince naturally knew what kind of place they had come to. Holding Fan Xian's hand, he walked cautiously into the underground passage, his heart pounding. He said in a trembling voice, "Teacher, although I am a prince, according to the court rules, I am not qualified to know about the Supervisory Council's secret strongholds."

Fan Xian smiled. "Every state city has three to five secret strongholds. It's not an unusual matter. As for the rules, with me here, no one can say anything."

He was the Supervisor of the Supervisory Council. After Chen Pingping's handwritten letter, he possessed absolute and supreme power within the Supervisory Council.

Hearing Fan Xian say this, the Third Prince felt somewhat relieved. In the dim light, he continued forward. In fact, the Fourth Bureau's residence in Suzhou was not the largest, but it was the most secret. They descended for a short while before arriving at a secret room.

The room was dimly lit with flickering firelight, illuminating a somewhat cramped space. In the room were a charcoal brazier, two branding irons, several boxes of medicine, a few long benches, and a dozen or so sharp metal objects of varying lengths and shapes.

It was the standard equipment for extracting confessions, especially with the two people on the rack, barely alive, covered in blood and flesh.

Fan Xian sniffed the familiar, intimate scent and couldn't help twitching his nose. He felt the Third Prince's hand grip even tighter, and he smiled inwardly. This child was cunning in the palace and in Kyoto, but he was still a child after all, and had never truly seen such a slaughterhouse scene.

The Fourth Bureau officials who were interrogating, because of the heat, had taken off their clothes and were working with their upper bodies bare. When they saw the superior's superior's superior suddenly arrive at the secret residence, they were startled and quickly began frantically searching for clothes to put on.

Fan Xian waved his hand to stop them, saying, "Continue working… How's the questioning going?"

An official, half-dressed, walked to the corner table in a disheveled manner and carefully took a few sheets of paper, which contained the information extracted from the interrogations.

Fan Xian looked at them and frowned. Because he had been keeping the Junshan Society in mind, he had personally come to see the interrogation situation today to seize the time. He did not expect that several days had passed, and there was still not much progress.

The two people who had been captured by the Supervisory Council and subjected to continuous torture… were the two assassin-like swallows who had assassinated Xia Xifei in front of the Jiangnan Residence on the night of March 22!

That day, these two assassins were poisoned by the Sixth Bureau's swordsmen. They reacted quickly and tried to escape, but unexpectedly, they were knocked unconscious by Haitang on the way. Afterward, Fan Xian's side naturally took them over without hesitation and hid them in a secret residence, torturing them to extract information, hoping to learn something about the Junshan Society—to the Supervisory Council, the Junshan Society was too mysterious, and Fan Xian couldn't help but worry about a force that even the Supervisory Council had failed to grasp.

A loosely organized group? Yet they could use the Second High Priest of the Qing Temple as a pawn?

Fan Xian frowned as he looked at the results of his subordinates' interrogations. These two assassins were famous killers in the Jiangnan area, highly skilled in martial arts and ruthless in their actions, but they seemed to know very little about the Junshan Society, only that they had been hired by the Ming family with money.

"Wake them up," he said, shaking his head helplessly.

An official took a small bottle and brought it to the noses of the two men on the rack, letting them sniff it. The two men struggled weakly, their muscles contorted, and blood seeped out of the wounds on their bodies again. They woke up.

The two assassins forcibly opened their eyes, and their dazed gazes revealed fear. They were no longer as tough as they had been when they were first captured. It seemed that they had been badly tortured by the cruel officials of the Fourth Bureau these past few days.

Fan Xian and the Third Prince sat on the not-so-clean long bench. Fan Xian flipped through the papers in his hand and asked softly, "What is the relationship between the Mr. Zhou you mentioned… and the Junshan Society?"

Knowing the methods of the Supervisory Council, the two assassins were not prepared to be martyrs, so they rushed to answer, roaring hoarsely, "Sir, Mr. Zhou is the accountant of the Junshan Society. As for what he specifically does inside, this lowly one really doesn't know."

Fan Xian raised his head in slight surprise, "Isn't Mr. Zhou the Ming family's chief steward?"

One of the assassins said in a trembling voice, "This lowly one only heard it once by chance. Regarding the Junshan Society, I really only know this one thing."

"After enduring for a few days, you two are still quite energetic, it seems you haven't suffered too much," Fan Xian said, shaking his head.

A trace of despair flashed in the eyes of both assassins.

The Supervisory Council officials began to use torture again, carrying out such an unaesthetic yet repetitive and uninteresting job. The screams in the torture chamber rose and fell, incomparably shrill, but there was no way to transmit them to the surface.

Fan Xian did not cover the Third Prince's eyes.

The Third Prince watched this scene, his face pale, but he forcibly controlled his head from turning to the side, just watching the bloody scene. He suddenly felt that the food in his stomach wanted to rush out of his throat, and his chest was full of depression.

Fan Xian took out a box of ointment from his arms, scooped a small amount with the tip of his index finger, and carefully rubbed it under the Third Prince's nose, saying softly, "The matter of the Junshan Society has already been reported to His Majesty… The other party's courage is so great. Your Highness will understand what kind of courage the other party possesses. For the enemies we face now and in the future, there are some methods we must learn, but… we must never revel in them."

The Third Prince knew what Fan Xian was teaching him.

On the other side, the fresh flesh on the assassins' chests, mixed with blood, had turned into charred lumps of meat sizzling on the iron plate.

"We cannot regard torture and cruel officials… as the supreme remedies for maintaining the court's rule, nor can we become dependent on such methods. Spreading a wide net still leaves some fish slipping through, and strict torture still cannot obtain all the information we need." Fan Xian said calmly, "The way to govern, alternate between leniency and strictness, trust those you trust and resolutely do not use those you distrust, with leniency as the foundation, and the rest are just small tricks that play a supporting role."

The Third Prince smelled a very cool scent that cleared his head and understood Fan Xian's meaning. The extremely different attitudes towards Ming Qingda and Xia Xifei clearly illustrated Fan Xian's method of trusting those he trusts and resolutely not using those he distrusts. Coming to witness the torture tonight was to make him understand that not all forceful methods are effective.

……

……

"It's not bad to be able to get information about the Ming family," Fan Xian comforted his subordinates. "Handle the confession papers properly, heal these two people's injuries, they will be useful in the future."

After leaving this secret residence of the Supervisory Council's Fourth Bureau in the city of Suzhou, Fan Xian's mood was somewhat heavy. He had initially hoped to trace the Junshan Society, but he had not expected that these two assassins would not be able to provide any information. He had no choice but to teach the Third Prince something along the way, which was actually just to cover up some of his own helpless embarrassment.

Sitting in the carriage returning to Hua Garden, he thought carefully. The Supervisory Council was, after all, His Majesty's special agency, and there were many things that could not be done openly. Therefore, in terms of organizational structure, it had innate limitations, such as the number of people could not be too large… As a result, even in a major town like Jiangnan, although it had always been an important area for the Fourth Bureau's supervision, the manpower still seemed quite insufficient.

To investigate a mysterious organization like the Junshan Society floating in the clouds, the Supervisory Council's current power in Jiangnan was far from enough.

At this moment, Fan Xian really hoped that Xiao Yan could be by his side, but he also understood that Yan Bingyun, now in charge of the Fourth Bureau, could not easily leave Kyoto, and most of the work of his directly subordinate First Bureau also needed Yan Bingyun to help Deng Ziyue make decisions.

Even if Wang Qinian were here, things might be much easier.

He sighed.

———————————————————————

Yang Jimei not only gave the Hua Garden to Imperial Envoy Fan Xian with both hands, but also left the servants, maids, and cooks in the garden. After the Supervisory Council checked and confirmed that these people were clean, Fan Xian did not refuse this kindness.

As a result, Sisi began to enjoy the treatment of a young mistress, except for her personal matters, although she herself was somewhat unaccustomed to it, but there was no way around it. And the few pitiful little girls that Fan Xian bought on the way to Jiangnan did not have the opportunity to do any rough work, and were truly raised like the great maids of wealthy families.

What was especially commendable was the cook that Yang Jimei left behind. His skill was so high that even the imperial cooks in the palace would be ashamed. He prepared three meals a day with a variety of dishes, so that Fan Xian was reluctant to go out and taste the delicacies of Jiangnan, and was content to stay in the garden.

Sisi liked this cook the most, and the Third Prince naturally hated this cook the most.

This morning, Fan Xian, Haitang, and the Third Prince were sitting around a small table drinking porridge made of old corn mixed with diced ham and watercress. The color of the porridge was not very pretty, but several completely unmatched flavors were mixed together, and it was extremely delicious and strange. Fan Xian drank three bowls in a row, so that Sisi, who was serving the porridge, was a little too late.

Just then, a few people walked in from outside the courtyard, accompanied by a Tiger Guard. When the people arrived in the courtyard, they looked at Fan Xian and the Third Prince sitting around the table, and then at Haitang, and were startled.

Fan Xian looked at the people who had stepped over the threshold and was even more surprised. The people who came were Sang Wen and Deng Ziyue. Miss Sang Wen had already come to Jiangnan to help him, but what was Deng Ziyue doing running to Jiangnan when he should have been guarding the First Bureau in Kyoto? When Fan Xian clearly saw the person standing between the two, he was even more shocked and stood up subconsciously, exclaiming, "Da Bao! Why are you here?"

That's right, the chubby man standing carelessly between Sang Wen and Deng Ziyue, with a dull expression, looking around somewhat timidly… Who else could it be but Da Bao?

Fan Xian was so shocked that he quickly stepped forward, grabbed his brother-in-law's hand, and asked Deng Ziyue, "What's going on? Where's Wan'er?"

Deng Ziyue's face was tired, and he said with a wry smile, "The madam has not been feeling well recently, so she has temporarily delayed coming to Jiangnan, but… this young master heard that he was going to see you, so he kept making a fuss at home. The Minister ordered this subordinate to bring this young master to Jiangnan."

"Nonsense," Fan Xian sighed, and then his heart tightened, and he asked anxiously, "Wan'er is not feeling well?"

"Oh, it's nothing." Miss Sang Wen, with a gentle smile on her face, still had those adorable chubby cheeks, and replied, "The Princess probably caught a cold and is a little tired. She'll be fine after a couple of days of rest."

She took out two letters from her arms and handed them to Fan Xian, saying, "These are letters for you, sir."

Fan Xian took them and saw that they were written by his father and Wan'er. He didn't even have time to read them and put them in his arms first, annoyed, saying, "What does my father mean? Jiangnan is in chaos now, how could he send Da Bao over?"

At this time, Da Bao suddenly grinned and pinched Fan Xian's ear, saying, "Little Xianxian, you've been hiding for so long in this game of hide-and-seek… you're really good."

Holding a bowl of porridge, the Third Prince, who was curiously staring at the doorway, found that the always terrifying Fan Xian was actually so… in front of this big idiot. He couldn't help it anymore and spat out the mouthful of porridge he had been holding in his mouth with a *pfft*.

Deng Ziyue smiled awkwardly and quickly stepped forward with Sang Wen to pay respects to the Third Prince, not daring to look at Fan Xian's embarrassed appearance. It was likely that these two had been troubled a lot by this Brother Da Bao on the way.

Since Da Bao had come, there must be people to serve him along the way. Sisi knew what was going on and quickly went out of the garden to arrange for those people. And Fan Xian finally pacified Da Bao and first settled him down in the back garden, and then had those little maids who had nothing to do all day to accompany him to crack melon seeds. Only then did the front hall become quiet.

Haitang got up, gave a slight bow, and left the front hall, knowing that Fan Xian must have a lot to talk about with Deng Ziyue.

After Deng Ziyue entered the hall, he acted as if he hadn't seen this country girl, but since the other party had taken the initiative to greet him, he still had to return the greeting quickly.

Sitting down at the table, Fan Xian frowned and said, "I was thinking last night that there are indeed few people around me now, it's good that you came, but what about Kyoto?"

"Young Master Xiao Yan is watching over Kyoto. After receiving the court report you sent back to Kyoto, Director Chen sent me to bring some people over to help," Deng Ziyue explained, "Besides, that thing you wanted to prepare took the Second and Third Bureaus several months to complete, so I simply brought it over on the way."

Fan Xian shook his head and said, "I thought someone else would send it, I didn't expect it to be you."

He glanced at the Third Prince, who was drinking porridge and eavesdropping beside him, coughed twice, and asked this little lord to leave.

After the Third Prince left somewhat dejectedly, Fan Xian frowned and said, "Why did you have such a strange expression when you came in earlier?"

Deng Ziyue looked around and said with a wry smile, "When I left Kyoto, the rumors in Kyoto were too fierce… they all said that you and that Saintess of Northern Qi, Miss Haitang, go out together, sit together, and sleep… the court's discussions were unbearable, and now that you are in charge of the Inner Treasury, you should avoid suspicion. Those officials in the court are preparing to use this matter to attack you… This subordinate did not expect to see that lady as soon as he entered Hua Garden today, and then realized that the rumors were true, so he couldn't help but worry."

"Sleep in the same bed?" Fan Xian sneered, "It's a wonder those people can think of it, let's not talk about this, show me what you brought."

Deng Ziyue carefully took out a flat box from his arms and handed it to Fan Xian.

Fan Xian opened the box and carefully examined the piece of paper lying quietly in the middle of the box. The paper was slightly yellowish-white, and the edges of the paper were slightly curled, indicating that it was quite old, and the handwriting on the paper was somewhat crooked, indicating that the person who wrote it was near the end of their life.

"Not bad," Fan Xian frowned and said, "Although this will can still not play any role, but to drag this family property lawsuit down, we have to rely on this."

Deng Ziyue reported, "Don't worry, sir, the Second and Third Bureaus worked together, referring to countless of the late Ming family's former owner's handwriting, using the old paper that is extremely difficult to find today, adding the old-fashioned craft and the attention to detail, no one should be able to tell that it is fake."

"The Ming family of course know it is fake, the real one was destroyed long ago," Fan Xian said with a smile, "Confusing the fake with the real, our yard has a lot of professionals, in the future, doing fake antique business, would like to make a lot of silver too."

"Send it to Xia Xifei later. Tomorrow the trial opens, throwing this will on there… I'm afraid the Suzhou government will be dumbfounded."

The investigation into the Ming family has been continuing, but has not been effective, on the one hand, the Ming family's ability to erase traces is too deep, on the other hand, there are thousands of threads in the Jiangnan officialdom protecting the other party, and the Suzhou government, of course, is also one of them. Although Fan Xian has no way to directly overturn the Suzhou government, it is still easy to make the officials of Jiangnan Road panic with a "secretly made Chenpi will."

When he was alone in the flower hall, Fan Xian took out the two letters from his arms, first scanning them roughly, and then looking at them carefully. Wan'er's letter basically said that Kyoto was free, and occasionally mentioned the situation in the palace, but the language was relatively obscure.

His wife in Kyoto, has a greatest benefits, is to let Fan Xian understood at first time that where is the going wind of court blowing to.

The Eldest Princess has returned to the Guangxin Palace, the Second Prince has quietly returned to the stage, the Crown Prince's movements are the most secretive, and the Empress Dowager seems to be somewhat dissatisfied with Fan Xian's arrogance in Jiangnan.

The strangest thing is that the emperor is still calm, this… goddamn emperor, made the world so chaotic, what good does it do to him? Where does his confidence come from?

Fan Xian sighed, his fingers gently stroking the fragrant letter paper, and suddenly the thought of Wan'er welled up in his heart. In the months since they had seen each other, he knew that his wife was also worried about and planning for him in Kyoto.

After reading his father's letter, Fan Xian finally understood Da Bao's purpose in coming to Jiangnan.

Minister Fan Shangshu instructed Fan Xian in the letter that he should find a time to send Da Bao to Wuzhou. Prime Minister Lin Ruofu, who had retired and resigned, had been living in Wuzhou for a long time and had not seen his son for a long time, and Fan Xian sending Da Bao to Wuzhou would naturally also be able to visit his scheming old father-in-law by the way.

This excuse is very good, and even the emperor can't object.

(I saw the blessing strips everyone gave me on the homepage, that big character seems to be quite expensive, and the small characters are not cheap either, Wan Li, Brother Xiao Jin, Wind Blowing from the Sky, Burying Love with Blood… very happy, thank you everyone, I don't know what to say, telling everyone to spend less money seems a little affected, hehe, I can only say: I will still write novels next year, I will still write novels the year after next, I will still write novels the year after next, and I will write better and better, and more and more beautiful…)