Chapter 529 Lintian’s Past

This group of rebels among the subjects had never stopped working since the generation of Zuo Qiuyu’s father.

Later on, when Zuo Qiuyu was fifteen years old, someone even attempted to poison the two princes in order to usurp the throne.

If Master Yuan had not risked his life to test the medicine as a guinea pig, Zuo Qiuchen and Zuo Qiuyu would have died without knowing the reason.

Later on, those evildoers even sent men to pursue their lives. Once again, it was Master Yuan, together with his friends, who gave their all to send the two brothers back to the palace.

Later on, Master Yuan returned to the Pavilion of Herbs and continued corresponding with his disciple through letters.

However, Master Yuan’s health deteriorated because he took the poison on behalf of the brothers.

“In the last letter from Master, he cautioned us that those men were coming after me and my brother. In addition, Master said that my character was way too soft for a life in the palace, so he troubled a true friend in Dajin to make arrangements for me to stay in his house and pretended to his son. In his letter, he also mentioned that despite being injured, he had found a suitable to recuperate. Who would have expected that this would happen to him.”

After he finished narrating everything, not only did Zuo Qiuyu become silent, but Long Tianyu and Lin Mengya were struck dumb by what they heard.

Not only Zuo Qiuyu, but Long Tianyu had also experienced discord from fighting for the throne.

Master Yuan was not the only and definitely not the last person to sacrifice his life for this.

It was only after some time that Zuo Qiuyu finally exhaled softly.

He had kept all these in his heart for a long time. Now that he had found his master’s remains, despite feeling grieved, at least this matter had come to a closure.

It was inevitable for him to agonize over the loss.

“Since this was the case, all the more you should fight for the position of the Chief Elder, Cousin Yu. Master Yuan was such a righteous man. If you take over the Pavilion of Herbs, his sacrifice would not be in vain. You can also take over and continue his legacy. If someone took over being the successor, Master Yuan’s name may perpetually be tarnished.”

However, Lin Mengya’s words did not make sense to Zuo Qiuyu.

“Don’t forget that in order to succeed in the position of the Chief Elder, one needs to prove that the current Chief Elder has passed away. Otherwise, even if there’s one candidate who eventually qualifies, he could only act as the Chief Elder’s proxy. You’ve seen it for yourself that they are aware of the fact that the Chief Elder had died in the stone chamber. What do you think they will do if one of them emerges the winner in the competition?”

Lin Mengya’s words seemed to have roused them from their stupor.

In the fit of the moment, all Zuo Qiuyu could think about was revenge for Master Yuan.

He had forgotten that his master had passed away and that he passed away alongside the Chief Elder.

Therefore, his master would become the most convenient scapegoat.

“Are you saying that they would push the blame entirely on my master?”

Lin Mengya nodded. Although it was truly difficult to open the stone door, it did not mean that they would not find a way to enter.

It only meant that they would mobilize many people just to achieve their goals.

Therefore, they could only open the door to the stone chamber for making sacrifices after someone among them succeeded in the position of the Chief Elder.

By then, whatever they said would be taken as the truth.

“Outrageous!”

He would never have imagined that the cautious man his master was and having sacrificed himself for them, would end up carrying a bad name after he passed away.

How these people deserved to perish!

“It’s pointless to get angry now. I guess they suppose that whoever fell into the passageway had been trapped inside and died. Following this, they would investigate to find out who exactly fell in. We must deal with this with caution.”

If Lin Mengya guessed correctly, these men would focus their attention on her.

People might not spread the word regarding the ice cube and the rock in the box, but it was no longer a secret after all.

She supposed someone would have guessed by now that it was a trick she played on those idiots.

Would it not seem coincidental when they were having difficulty carrying the box, someone fell into the stone chamber?

If they were to just think over it, Lin Mengya and her company would be the most obvious suspect.

However, they simply did not dare to do this openly. Therefore, while Lin Mengya and her company were catching up on their sleep during the day, many people ought to have come by to check on them.

However, they observed that not only Lin Mengya and the others were not missing an arm or a leg, but they were taking relaxed naps.

They had no choice but to strike them out as suspects.

“Your Highness, Elder Chang is here.”

Just when they finished talking, Yu An’s voice echoed from outside.

The few of them exchanged a look. Although they considered Chang Tianhua to be siding them, it was after all safer if fewer people knew about some things.

In that short span of time, the three of them came to an agreement.

Right after they agreed on what to do, a skinny figure appeared before the three of them. It was Chang Tianhua.

Chang Tianhua breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the three of them were calm and composed while they handled pressing affairs.

A rare, relaxed smile appeared on his think, dark face.

“I was just telling Cousin Yu that we should visit you to thank you. Look, it’s only been a few days and I can move my right arm. Last night, these two chaps could not stop arguing over this matter.”

Lin Mengya smiled faintly as she took the initiative to greet Elder Chang.

She invited him to sit down with them and personally offered him some tea. Once Chang Tianhua settled down, he started to speak.

“Actually, it was because the princess has a healthy body to start with. Oh yes, I’m here to tell you that it’s not a good idea to go out these few days. The situation in the pavilion is not as peaceful as before. It would be wise to stay indoors as much as possible.”

At Chang Tianhua’s words, Lin Mengya and the other two pretended to look surprised.

“We are rather clueless. May I ask what has happened outside? Why is there no one in the courtyard since early in the morning?”

Chang Tianhua took a sip of the tea, pondered for a moment, and spoke with a low voice.

“You know that they always try to keep things from me. I’m as good as a blind man here. However, something serious happened light night. It seemed that some evil men entered the pharmacy last night to mess up everything. The disciples guarding the place had yet to catch the culprit but claimed that the intruders were injured. At this moment, those old men were investigating into the matter.”

They listened intently and Lin Mengya nodded, not betraying any emotions.

“I see. Sigh, even the scholars have been corrupted. Thank goodness that last night, the three of us did not step out of here at all. The disciples who are our watchmen can vouch for us. This will help clear people’s suspicion of us.”

Lin Mengya said these words in hope that Chang Tianhua would feel reassured.

Given what a vigilant person Long Tianyu was, he discovered that Chang Tianhua had sent someone to check on the three of them early this morning.

Nevertheless, when they saw that even Yu An was still sleeping soundly and no one standing guard over them, they remained behind to be their watchman.

These men had conveniently become their alibi.

As for the disciples who had been sent away with an excuse knew that they were at fault in the first place.

They would definitely be punished if they were to tell the truth. They decided it would be wiser to insist that they had not left their post.

In this way, even if the elders were suspicious of Lin Mengya and her company, they have no proof to use to make accusations against them.

Elder Chang had personally made the trip likely because he wanted to make sure that they were not the ones who stirred up the commotion in the pharmacy the night before.

Although they had formed an ally out of common interest, seeing how much effort Elder Chang was making, Lin Mengya’s trust in him rose to a new level.

“That’s great. I’m just worried that you’ll be wrongly accused. It’s getting late and I should get going. Oh yes, you have to be careful these few days. Sigh, the Pavilion of Herbs was no longer the same as the time when Mister Shen Xie was around.”

Lin Mengya could not help but empathized with Chang Tianhua when he became emotional.

After Lin Mengya sent Chang Tianhua away, she began pondering over this ‘Shen Xie’, the name he mentioned.

When they arrived back in the conference room, Zuo Qiuyu had gone to settle the place of rest for the bodies of the Chief Elder and Master Yuan.

At this moment, there was only Long Tianyu in the room. However, it appeared that he, too, was in deep thoughts.

He looked up slowly when he heard Lin Mengya’s footsteps. As he looked at her, he gave her a warm smile, as it was his habit nowadays.

“What are you thinking about?”

As Lin Mengya sat beside Long Tianyu, she had a feeling that this episode would soon be over.

Although she had not spent much time with Zuo Qiuchen, she knew very well that he was a decisive person.

In fact, she just had a sudden realization. Zuo Qiuchen had come here secretly because he was carrying out something secretly.

They were merely acting as a cover in the open.

Indeed, they had been used by Zuo Qiuchen.

Moreover, Qian Yuming did not know to retrain himself, so Zuo Qiuchen ought to have collected a considerable amount of evidence.

He was merely waiting for an opportunity to act and take everyone by surprise.

She could tell that this opportunity was approaching.

Once they settled this, they would have to return to Dajin.

This time, she had been away for too long. Even she was beginning to be homesick.

“It’s nothing. I just felt that there are just so many burdens for the royal family to shoulder.”

Lin Mengya was taken aback by his words, but she quickly took the opportunity to speak up.

“Why don’t you stay by me and be a rich commoner in the Nation of Lintian? I’m sure my cousin would welcome you with open arms.”

Long Tianyu instantly shook his head and said, “No way. I can’t leave behind my father, the emperor, and my mother, the queen. Moreover, if the Crown Prince were to ascend the throne, Dajin will be destroyed by him. At that time, everyone in Dajin would suffer. This is not what I want.”

Lin Mengya looked down at the teacup in her hand. Long Tianyu could not see the expression on her face clearly as her features were hidden.

“What if I want you to remain here? Will you stay on?”

She sounded as if she was testing him.

Hesitating for a moment, Long Tianyu slowly said, “If this is your wish, you may wait for me here first. Once I’ve settled everything, I’ll come over to keep you company. However, you’ve once said that Dajin is our home, so I hope you will go back with me.”