The man stammered, "Lord Feng... was also burned to death."
They found Feng Jinxu's corpse amidst the ruins of the post station.
Because it had been burning in the fire for a long time, it was incomplete. Only by finding Feng Jinxu's jade pendant next to the pile of "coke" was his identity confirmed.
Moreover, this was the room where he slept.
For a moment, everyone fell silent.
They had seen a bright future ahead of them with a smooth career path after returning from disaster relief, only to have their lives cut short in Qingzhou.
The Sixth Prince was deeply saddened. Feng Jinxu was arguably his only close friend.
When he was not valued in court, Feng Jinxu still maintained frequent contact with him.
When he was given important responsibilities, Feng Jinxu never fawned over him.
Such a true friend, what more could one ask for?
Thus, the Sixth Prince was so grieved that he did not eat that day.
If he hadn't had to continue with the disaster relief, he might have stayed in Qingzhou for ten days to half a month.
The next day, the news of Feng Jinxu's death was sent back to the Eastern Capital, and at the same time, the news was also sent to the Southwest with the fastest speed.
When Xiao Tingyi received the news, he didn't know how to tell Feng Jinyao.
If Feng Jinyao knew, she would surely be heartbroken again.
Their time in the Southwest had been busy and fulfilling.
He was constantly busy with disaster relief, and Feng Jinyao was not idle either.
She had taken the opportunity to disguise herself as a man and travel all over the Shu Prefecture.
One moment she was by the Xishui River, inspecting the latest progress of the embankment, and the next she was in the city, observing the houses being erected everywhere.
Although they could only see each other for a short time, sometimes only once every few days.
However, with their hearts connected, Xiao Tingyi was happy.
It was evident that Feng Jinyao truly loved freedom. The wealth and glory of the Eastern Capital had constrained her, which was why she had been so resistant to him before.
The four walls of the inner courtyard were truly unable to contain her.
With this in mind, he made a plan.
Unexpectedly, before he could put it into action, something happened to Feng Jinxu.
Just as he was struggling with how to break the news, Feng Jinyao returned.
"Your Highness, why are you here? Aren't you going out today?"
"Yes, there's urgent news."
"Has the corruption case in Jinling City been resolved?"
They had been away for quite some time, and she figured her second brother and the others must have finished their investigation.
In the past few days, she had learned quite a bit from Prince Ding. Although she was not in Jinling City, she was not entirely unaware of the situation.
After much deliberation, he decided not to conceal it.
So, he handed her the secret letter, "It's not about Jinling City, it's about your elder brother."
"Elder brother?"
Feng Jinyao was a little curious. She noticed Xiao Tingyi's expression was not good, but he was indeed quite stern when he didn't smile, so she didn't think much of it.
However, after reading the message, she froze.
How could this be! How could this be!
Hadn't she avoided all the calamities?
Why was her elder brother burned to death!
"Qingzhou again! Qingzhou again! Your Highness! How could this happen!"
She was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. She didn't know where she had gone wrong, and why her elder brother had followed the same path!
His life cut short in Qingzhou!
Even if the manner of death was different, he was still dead!
"It's my fault, all my fault!"
A wave of self-blame washed over him. Xiao Tingyi didn't understand why she felt this way.
"Ayao, your elder brother's death has nothing to do with you! Don't take everything upon yourself."
"No, you don't understand, you don't understand!"
What Feng Jinyao was thinking was that it must be because Hehuan had died, so Fu Yi, who was by her elder brother's side, had become disloyal again, leading to this outcome.
If she hadn't insisted on coming to the Southwest, Hehuan wouldn't have died.
If Hehuan hadn't died, Fu Yi wouldn't have harmed her elder brother.
Therefore, tracing back to the root, the entire problem was her.
Feng Jinyao's heart ached as if being torn apart. She knelt on the ground, weeping uncontrollably.
Xiao Tingyi held her tenderly. Although he didn't understand the source of her inexplicable self-reproach, the tears falling on his hands felt as if they were burning him, causing him immense pain.
If only this pain could be transferred to him.
Then Feng Jinyao wouldn't be so heartbroken.
After an unknown period of grief, Feng Jinyao's emotions gradually subsided.
When she realized it, she found that Xiao Tingyi had been accompanying her for most of the day.
His arm had been supporting her back, and it must be numb by now.
She glanced at his arm, and before she could ask, Xiao Tingyi said indifferently.
"It's nothing. Are you feeling better?"
Feng Jinyao nodded, then shook her head.
The pain of losing her brother seemed to pull her back to her past life, which was why she cried so sadly.
She was afraid that she hadn't saved everyone, and if it were like before, with her family dying one by one, what would be the meaning of her rebirth?
For a moment, she felt self-reproach and confusion.
However, she had cried enough, and she had to pull herself together.
Since the problems all stemmed from Qingzhou, she naturally had to make a trip there.
If she didn't get to the bottom of this matter, she would be letting down the Feng family and her sister-in-law.
So, she took a deep breath and said to Xiao Tingyi.
"Your Highness, I need to set off for Qingzhou."
"You want to investigate your elder brother's cause of death?"
"Yes, I don't believe it. With my elder brother's alertness, how could he have been burned to death? And why are so many things related to Qingzhou, the corruption case, and my elder brother's affairs? There must be a huge secret within. If this is not exposed, I fear there will be endless future misfortunes!"
Xiao Tingyi fell silent after hearing Feng Jinyao's words.
There were too many mysteries in Qingzhou, and he did not want Feng Jinyao to put herself in danger.
Especially after the earthquake incident, he was even more worried about Feng Jinyao's safety.
If something were to happen to her in Qingzhou, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
So, he made up his mind and said, "I will accompany you."
"Your Highness, we are still in the midst of disaster relief here."
"There's no need to worry. With the Dingwang Army here, no one will dare to act rashly. I will leave Yang Zhao here; he can assist with matters here. As for Xu Lin, he will travel with us. What about your cousin?"
"Let him stay here as well. The matters in Qingzhou have nothing to do with him. The path to the Bai family has already been paved for him, and he is just waiting for your uncle to pick him up."
"Good."
They split into two groups, one to arrange matters and the other to pack.
After dinner that day, they left Shu Prefecture lightly equipped and headed straight for Qingzhou.
No one noticed anything unusual, except that Wen Zhonghe mentioned that Mr. He had to leave early due to a family emergency.
This Mr. He was not an important figure and rarely spoke or gave orders.
So, no one said anything.