Housekeeper Han watched as the doorman closed the gate, then chuckled lightly, "Who would have thought our Marquis now enjoys playing mind games too."

Gu Shiba also smiled.

Inside the study.

Marquis Gu sat behind the table and asked, "Has the Yelv Clan member we released returned to the Hostage Mansion yet?"

Gu Shiliu nodded, "Our men followed from afar and have left him with half a life."

Marquis Gu chuckled softly and said, "I would like to see how magnanimous Yelv Guza can be."

Gu Shiliu also smiled.

"He’s been rampant for quite a while, it’s time he tasted some hardship."

Marquis Gu ordered the servant to come in and light the lamp and clear the table.

After a while, he said, "Hurry General Jin again. For the Empress Dowager’s birthday, coinciding with the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Old Madam and the lady must enter the palace for the banquet. They must have a few skilled maidservants with them for protection."

Social interactions with other families can be dismissed with the excuse of the Old Madam’s poor health and the recent mourning at home.

For the Empress Dowager’s birthday, no one dares to miss it.

Gu Shiliu acknowledged.

Marquis Gu pondered for a moment then, worried, instructed, "Make sure to get the best. If none are available, I hope Madam Jin can come up with some ideas."

Gu Shiliu laughed, "General Jin naturally knows this well, I will mention it again."

Marquis Gu then asked, "Has the Five Cities Military Department discovered anything?"

Gu Shiliu replied, "They are meticulously registering and investigating the household and business registries, but nothing of Zhao and Xu Zhen has been found."

Marquis Gu stood up, hands behind his back, and paced a few steps, asked, "Has the lady said anything?"

Gu Shiliu said, "The lady suspects Zhao and Xu Zhen might be hidden outside the city."

The soldiers of the Five Cities Military Department, the Great Camp, and the Ministry of Industry have together cleared some sewer systems within the city, found several hiding places for children traffickers, aiding the Capital Governor Mansion in solving several cases.

Yet there’s still no trace of Zhao and Xu Zhen.

Marquis Gu stopped, "It’s not impossible. Therefore, we can only keep a close eye on the Yelv Clan members."

Gu Shiliu said, "Now, Shiba and I can gather some sparse news from beggars, porters, and cleaners every day, but not much of it is useful. Yelv Guza is trying to raise silver to renovate the Hostage Mansion, and the Crown Prince and King Jin have quietly sent him some gold and silver."

"The Crown Prince and King Jin."

Marquis Gu spat out a few words through gritted teeth, "They are frequent in their activities."

Gu Shiliu dared not speak.

After a moment, Marquis Gu asked, "How is Brother Cheng doing?"

Gu Shiliu said, "Now that Yelv Guza is overwhelmed, those two caused a fuss; seeing no one paying attention, naturally they quieted down."

Marquis Gu’s face darkened, his expression somewhat desolate.

He and those two children eventually grew apart, drifting further away.

Gu Shiliu watched his expression, hesitantly said, "But..."

"But what?"

Marquis Gu was a bit impatient, "Just speak, what’s all this fuss about?"

Gu Shiliu shut his eyes and went straight to the point, "News from Old Lady Qi says she once saw the Fake Yang Pozi and Brother Cheng speaking foreign language, it seems to be Yelv Clan language."

"What?"

Marquis Gu slammed a heavy palm on the rosewood table, which creaked and cracked into two halves with the sound.

Gu Shiliu shrank his neck back in surprise.

Marquis Gu raged, "This Fake Yang Pozi is indeed from the Yelv Clan?"

Gu Shiliu said, "Old Lady Qi isn’t very sure, I asked Xiao Hong and Zihe, they’ve never encountered them, so I’m a bit hesitant."

Marquis Gu sneered, "Everyone from the Qi family except Brother Qi has been on the battlefield, how can Old Lady Qi not recognize Yelv Clan language? If she says it seems like it, it’s almost certainly true by now."

Everyone knew the skill of Old Lady Qi.

Neither Xiao Hong nor Zihe who attended the sibling closely had encountered them, revealing the secrets of the Fake Yang Pozi and Brother Cheng’s daily lives.

Gu Shiliu said, "The matter is significant, it’s better that I find ways to verify it. Old Lady Qi’s eyes are almost healed, I’ll find ways to take her out then to listen to the Yelv Clan speak and see if it’s similar."

Marquis Gu reluctantly restrained his anger, said, "Alright."

It’s always better to be cautious.

If it turns out to be true...

A flicker of sadness passed through Marquis Gu’s eyes.

The two children grew up under his watch, their father died in wars against Yelv Clan, yet the Fake Yang Pozi secretly spoke the Yelv Clan language with Brother Cheng.

Who exactly is this Zhao?

He looked up outside the window, a crescent moon half-hidden in the clouds.

Everything seemed shrouded in impenetrable fog.

"I must go back to accompany the lady."

At this moment, he desperately needed to see his young wife.

Gu Shiliu immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Several strides later, Marquis Gu swept from the outer yard into Wutong Garden and slowed his pace.

Little flying insects danced around the sheep horn lamp under the corridor.

After a while, as the weather cools down, these insects will disappear.

Autumn insects plaintively sang in the corners.

Their good times were limited.

The autumn night already held an air of murder.

Marquis Gu, with hands behind his back, slowly walked down the corridor.

The little maidservants announced repeatedly, "The Marquis has returned."

Before the curtain was raised, Hong Ye’s voice came out, "Miss, quickly, the Marquis has returned."

Followed by Qin Yuan’s voice, "Slow down, you’re pulling my hair."

Cui Ming complained, "Always so hasty, seeing the Marquis is like a mouse seeing a cat, what’s with all the shyness about marriage?"

This laughter brought a smile to Marquis Gu’s lips.

People would eventually enter the ground.

By then, all grievances would have resolutions.

While alive, all that mattered was this present warmth and the smell of fireworks.

What’s true and what’s false seems not so important anymore.

Marquis Gu strode in and saw Hong Ye and Cui Ming trying hairstyles at the dressing table for Qin Yuan.

It was a complete set of pearl headpieces, threaded with gold, sparsely embedded with red gemstones.

Adding a touch of elegance to that beautiful face.

Indeed luxurious yet elegant.

Marquis Gu racked his brains and couldn’t come up with words to describe it, just stared in amazement.

Qin Yuan felt anxious as she was watched.

She felt her entire being was about to be absorbed by the Marquis’s bright black eyes.

Hong Ye and Cui Ming both felt quite redundant in the presence.

After a long while, Marquis Gu said hoarsely, "Truly beautiful, especially under the lamp."

Qin Yuan felt somewhat bashful.

"This is the headpiece mother gave me, saying for the Empress Dowager’s banquet, I should wear this set."

Marquis Gu didn’t respond but looked at the box on the table and asked, "Are there others?"

According to Old Madam Gu’s temperament, she naturally wouldn’t only give one set of headpieces.

Sure enough, Qin Yuan said, "Mother gave two more sets, told me to choose from them."

In several steps, Marquis Gu went to the Arhat Bed and sat down, reclining on the armrest, said, "Try them all."

Qin Yuan felt a bit troubled.

After all, each hairstyle took half a day to do, and each set of jewelry suited different hairstyles.