HLnovel Chapter 170 In the Capital
Chapter 170 In the Capital
"Is this why you do so many bad things?"
"Aren't you the prefect of Shanzhou? The prefect is the most powerful official in the land!"
"You have status and money."
"Could it be that someone's presence threatens you?"
Mingyue's three consecutive questions caught Gao Tianba off guard. "I, I don't... I didn't..." His voice became smaller and smaller.
The stalemate lasted for half a minute. Just when Mingyue thought he would stop talking, he spoke. "Oh, I'm just greedy. My heart is black from birth. A rotten person like me shouldn't have been born. I shouldn't, I shouldn't!"
He began to pound his head frantically, making a clanging sound, attracting a group of guards. "Little Princess, it's time to get out."
Seeing Mingyue still indifferent, the head guard remembered the young prince's instructions and, risking punishment, spoke up to persuade him, "The prisoner is not very emotionally stable. We should leave."
Mingyue nodded. She didn't want to make things difficult for them. But before leaving, she pulled out the handkerchief from her sleeve, turned her back, and handed it to Gao Tianba, "Uncle, you're bleeding."
Gao Tianba was obviously a bad guy, but for some reason, she couldn't bear it when she saw those eyes.
After saying that, she didn't care whether he took it or not. She turned around, suppressed the urge to faint, and walked out with gritted teeth.
"Sister, why do you look so bad? Did Gao Tianba say something?"
Before Mingyue could reply, she heard Xiao Huan'er's instructions to the guards, "What did the prisoner say and do just now?"
Mingyue screamed in her heart, Oh no! This kid, he won't cause trouble for anyone, will he? She quickly pulled his hand, "No, Brother Huan, I'm a little hungry, my head hurts, really! I'm going to make you four!"
"I ate too little this morning. I want to eat the Cantonese food at Jin Man Lou! Brother Huan, please treat me~"
Huan Ge'er finally smiled when he heard this. "Okay, I'll treat you to some good food! We'll order everything! Let's eat as much as we want!"
Huan Ge'er: Sister is willing to spend my money! Happy!
...
Sitting in the carriage on the way back to the palace, Mingyue suddenly realized she was a little panicked. "What should I do? My uncle told me not to go to the Dali Temple! He, he won't scold me, will he?"
"Sister, don't worry. The moment we left the palace, the emperor knew about it."
Mingyue, who was preparing herself mentally, was suddenly overwhelmed by these words. She rubbed her stomach and leaned against the wall of the car. No matter, at least she was full and could die of fullness.
Surprisingly, after returning, Jiang Hetang just glanced up and down at the two of them without saying a word.
Mingyue ran happily outside the imperial study.
Jiang Hetang lowered his head and looked at the wet homework hidden under the table. He then secretly glanced at the small figure at the door staring at Mingyue and breathed a sigh of relief.
Forget it, you hit me, I hit you, we're even now, don't blame me, your dad, anymore.
Jiang Hetang, why do you feel so secretly?
As for Gao Tianba, since Mingyue left, he was locked back in the original small dark room.
He seemed to have gotten used to the darkness. He just felt a pang of bitterness in his heart as he touched the soft handkerchief in his hand. A wry smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. "Such a good thing, does it belong to me?"
Wen Xun has been busy with this case these days. It is really strange that a key figure in the case disappeared out of thin air.
"I heard that behind Gao Tianba, there is a Zhuge Liang. In the past, all the brilliant plans were proposed by him; and later, many methods of enriching oneself and committing crimes were also proposed by him." Wen Xun and others were discussing the person behind the scenes at the Dali Temple.
"If such a person were to escape, wouldn't it be a disaster?"
"That year, an important bridge in Shanzhou collapsed. It was Mr. Gao, oh no, Gao Tianba, who repaired it in time, so there were no major casualties."
"Also, ten years ago, there was an earthquake in Shanzhou, and five years ago, there was a heavy rain in Shanzhou..."
"Could these be the suggestions that Zhuge Liang gave him?"
"If he can be used by us..." The man was just saying this when his colleague said, "Hey, what are you talking about? I was just kidding. He's a criminal! How can he work with us?"
"The key now is how to find him. After all, he probably still has a lot of evidence in his hands."
"Tsk, it's really a bit difficult."
"How can someone disappear without a trace?" Wen Xun tapped the tabletop with his fingertips, once, twice, three times. Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he stood up. "Have you found out about the investigation of Gao Tianba's ancestral origin?"
The only response he got was silent. The adults all lowered their heads, pretending to be busy and refusing to look him in the eye.
Suddenly, a powerful sound of footsteps was heard, "Sir! Sir! Found it! Found it!"
"In the capital! Gao Tianba is from the capital!"
Lu Jingchen rushed in with a stack of information and accidentally knocked down two adults.
They didn't dare to complain and stood up, supporting their old waists.
Wen Xun took it and read through it page by page. It contained confessions from villagers and information about the village.
By piecing together various pieces, we have come up with the first half of Gao Tianba's life.
Gao Tianba, a native of Beijing, was born in Gao Village of Beijing in a certain year. After his mother remarried, he lived with his stepfather, a traveling merchant, in Shanzhou, and settled down there.
Once he passed the imperial examination, he was sent to Shanzhou as an official, and worked his way up to the position of prefect. During this period, he had both merits and faults, but the faults far outweighed the merits.
Wen Xun recalled that when he was first interrogated, his answer was "Gao Chuan, a native of the capital."
It seems that he did not lie completely.
But why did a name suddenly appear, "Gaochuan"?
Is he talking nonsense, or is he serious?
And where is the so-called "Zhuge"?
And if he had escaped, why didn't he run farther away? Why did he come to the capital instead of hiding his identity and causing such a big fuss?
This series of questions troubled Wen Xun all the time. He had never encountered such troubles in his life.
Since Mingyue left, no matter who came to interrogate Gao Tianba, he always refused to cooperate. Even when tortured, he remained silent and just looked into the distance with empty eyes.
Since the little prince had ordered that no unrelated people should be allowed to approach the cell, no one else knew what Mingyue talked about with him.
Rather than asking the young prince and his guards, it would be better to go directly to Mingyue, the person involved. So Wen Xun rarely came to Mingyue's bedroom, keeping a low profile, just wanting to know the content of their conversation.
Mingyue: You deserve this day! Don’t you always annoy me?