Rebirth and Reversal of Fortune

Chapter 248 Investigating the Spy and Uncovering the Traitor

Xiao Ling ordered a full investigation to find all the spies and eliminate any potential threats.

A tense and serious atmosphere immediately filled the Marquis's residence, with everyone's eyes revealing vigilance and unease. Xiao Ling personally directed the investigation, dividing the personnel of the Marquis's residence into several groups for examination one by one.

The team responsible for vetting the servants conducted a thorough investigation into each servant's background and daily behavior. They questioned the servants about their past experiences, examined their rooms and belongings, and left no stone unturned in their search for any suspicious clues.

The team responsible for reviewing the guards focused on examining their training records, duty performance, and communication with the outside world. Some guards appeared nervous and uneasy during the review, which aroused the suspicion of the reviewers.

Su Jinxiu then led a group to investigate the staff and advisors in the mansion. They examined a large number of documents and letters, analyzed everyone's words and opinions, and tried to find clues related to spies.

During the investigation, various conflicts and problems gradually surfaced. Some servants, due to past grudges, began to accuse each other, causing chaos in the investigation. Some guards, in order to prove their innocence, did not hesitate to clash with the investigators.

Xiao Ling had to spend a lot of energy dealing with these emergencies, ensuring the smooth progress of the investigation while avoiding excessive chaos within the Marquis's residence.

Just then, a servant suddenly disappeared, making the entire investigation more urgent and complicated. Xiao Ling judged that this servant was likely one of the spies and had already passed on important intelligence.

Su Jinxiu suggested expanding the scope of the investigation, not only examining the personnel within the Marquis's residence, but also investigating external personnel who have close ties with the Marquis's residence.

Xiao Ling adopted her suggestion and sent people to conduct a covert investigation into the Marquis's suppliers, partners, and frequent guests.

However, this move sparked discontent and skepticism from the outside world. Some suppliers felt that the Marquis's Mansion did not trust them and threatened to terminate their cooperation. Some partners, fearing damage to their relationship with the Marquis's Mansion, began to distance themselves from it.

The Marquis's mansion faced a predicament both internally and externally. However, Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu did not back down; they firmly believed that only by completely eliminating the traitors could the Marquis's mansion truly be safe.

After arduous efforts, some new clues were finally discovered. A staff member was found to have frequent contact with a mysterious figure outside, and further investigation revealed that he was also one of the spies.

As spies were exposed one by one, the crisis in the Marquis's mansion seemed to be gradually brought under control. But just then, news came from the court that the emperor had become suspicious of the investigation into the Marquis's mansion, believing that Xiao Ling was using this opportunity to eliminate dissidents and expand his own power.

Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu were caught in a dilemma. If they stopped the investigation, the spy might escape and leave a hidden danger; if they continued the investigation, they might further anger the emperor.

Just as they were hesitating, an urgent report came from the border: the enemy's attack was becoming increasingly fierce, and the situation was critical.

After a thorough investigation, the enemy spy hidden in the Marquis's mansion was successfully identified.

The moment the spy was exposed, everyone in the Marquis's mansion breathed a sigh of relief. However, Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu dared not let their guard down for a moment.

The spy's name was Zhao Liu, an ordinary servant in the Marquis's kitchen. No one would have guessed that such an inconspicuous person was actually an informant planted in the Marquis's mansion by an enemy.

Xiao Ling immediately interrogated Zhao Liu. At first, Zhao Liu tried to deny it, but faced with Xiao Ling's authority and irrefutable evidence, he finally had to confess to his crimes.

It turned out that Zhao Liu was being blackmailed by foreign enemies who threatened the lives of his family, forcing him to pass on intelligence to them. He had been infiltrating the Marquis's residence for nearly two years, during which time he had passed on a great deal of internal information about the Marquis's residence to the foreign enemies.

As Su Jinxiu listened to Zhao Liu's confession, she frowned: "It seems that the infiltration of our Marquis's Mansion by foreign enemies is much deeper than we imagined."

Xiao Ling nodded solemnly: "We must take this opportunity to thoroughly investigate the Marquis's residence and ensure that there are no more hidden dangers."

However, things weren't that simple. Shortly after Zhao Liu was exposed, a series of strange events occurred in the Marquis's residence. Some important documents disappeared, and supplies in the storeroom began to run out.

Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu suspected that there were other spies in the Marquis's mansion who had not yet been discovered. They launched another in-depth investigation, carefully searching every corner of the mansion.

During the investigation, they discovered that Li Fu, the steward of the Marquis's residence, was behaving strangely. Li Fu was a long-time resident of the Marquis's residence and had always been trusted by the family, but recently he had been frequently going out and his whereabouts were uncertain.

Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu became suspicious of Li Fu and began to secretly monitor his every move. After several days of observation, they discovered that Li Fu was in contact with a mysterious stranger.

One night, Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu decided to arrest Li Fu. When they stormed into Li Fu's room, he was preparing to destroy some important evidence.

After a struggle, Li Fu was subdued. During interrogation, Li Fu confessed that he was also a spy for the enemy and Zhao Liu's superior.

With Li Fu's capture, the network of spies within the Marquis's mansion gradually came to light. However, at the same time, the Marquis's mansion also suffered enormous losses due to the sabotage of these spies.

On one hand, Xiao Ling and Su Jinxiu had to reorganize the Marquis's mansion and restore normal order; on the other hand, they also had to deal with external pressure.

Some officials in the imperial court exaggerated the spy incident that occurred in the Marquis's residence, accusing Xiao Ling of mismanagement and demanding that the Marquis's residence be severely punished.

In the business world, some competitors took the opportunity to suppress the Hou family's businesses and try to seize market share.