Qiao Zhao hesitated slightly.

She was simply accustomed to controlling everything herself, but in truth there really was no need for her to personally go to the Zhang Family Noodle Shop.

Chen Guang persuaded her again: “Third Miss, you might not know this, but these past few days, there have been many people hanging around outside our Li Residence every day, all wanting to see you. If you step out the front gate, forget about going to the Zhang Family Noodle Shop—you’d be blocked by those people and unable to even return home.”

Hearing Chen Guang say this, Qiao Zhao abandoned the idea and instructed: “Keep an eye on A’Zhu’s sister-in-law. I’m afraid she’ll be too scared and give herself away when buying the tofu.”

Chen Guang patted her chest in assurance: “Third Miss, don’t worry. I can give her some ‘training.'”

“That would be troublesome then.”

After parting with Chen Guang, Qiao Zhao returned to her room and took out the string of agarwood prayer beads.

Prayer beads carved from the finest agarwood, each one round and smooth, clearly worn on someone’s person for a long time. Such a string of prayer beads would be worth more than a thousand gold pieces.

Initially, when Master Wumei gave her the prayer beads, she thought it was due to the affection developed during their time together. But later, the more she thought about it, the more wrong it seemed.

In terms of affection, how could she compare to Princess Zhenzhen? And Princess Zhenzhen had expressed her envy of Qiao Zhao receiving this string of prayer beads more than once.

“The Sparse Shadow Convent bloodshed… the lost prayer beads… the poisonous spiders unique to Lingnan…” Qiao Zhao murmured these key words, lowering her eyes to stare at the prayer beads.

If Master Wumei’s abduction was related to this string of prayer beads, then Master Wumei giving the prayer beads to her should have been to find a safe place for them.

In Master Wumei’s view, those who wanted to harm her probably wouldn’t think she would give the agarwood prayer beads to an unrelated young girl.

Thinking of this possibility, Qiao Zhao looked at the agarwood prayer beads and shook her head with a rueful smile.

This truly was a hot potato that had ended up in her hands.

So what secret did this string of prayer beads hold?

Qiao Zhao held up the prayer beads to examine them carefully, but even after staring until her eyes ached, she still couldn’t discern any clues. She had no choice but to temporarily store the prayer beads safely and wait for news from Chen Guang.

The next day arrived in a blink, and the sun gradually moved from the east to overhead. The waiting time seemed particularly long.

Qiao Zhao simply set up the chessboard and called A’Zhu to play chess.

Before long, looking at the black pieces in complete disarray, Qiao Zhao glanced at A’Zhu and tossed the crystal-clear white piece into the chess bowl with a sigh: “A’Zhu, your mind is disturbed.”

A’Zhu’s face flushed red as she said shamefully: “This servant is ashamed and has failed Miss’s teachings.”

A’Zhu was intelligent and reserved, with considerable talent for chess. Usually, the master and servant could engage in lengthy battles, but today’s game was not her usual standard.

“This is normal. Right now, your sister-in-law should be meeting with that person at the Zhang Family Noodle Shop. It’s human nature for you to worry about her safety.”

A’Zhu’s lips moved, but she ultimately remained silent.

After all these years, she had long grown cold toward her brother and sister-in-law. What she worried about was the safety of her mother and two nephews, but she was too ashamed to tell Miss this.

Since it was her sister-in-law who had caused this trouble, telling Miss would be like begging Miss to help protect her family. How could she bring herself to say such a thing?

Before long, Binglu came running over: “Miss, Chen Guang has returned.”

Qiao Zhao went to the pavilion located between the front courtyard and the inner residence to meet with Chen Guang.

“How did it go?” Seeing Chen Guang’s grave expression, Qiao Zhao felt a sense of foreboding.

“That person is dead!”

“Dead?” Qiao Zhao raised her eyebrows slightly.

With the other party dead, the thread of clues they had just obtained was cut off. Chen Guang knew this and looked ashamed: “Third Miss, I failed to handle the matter properly. After that person met with A’Zhu’s sister-in-law, I appeared to try to capture him. We fought, but I didn’t expect him to be so ruthless with himself—even when he wasn’t at his wits’ end, he committed suicide!”

Though Qiao Zhao also felt regretful, she showed nothing on her face and asked calmly: “Did he cut his own throat or…?”

“No, he bit down on a poison tooth and killed himself.”

“A death warrior?”

Chen Guang nodded: “Should be a death warrior.”

“This method of death is the same as those who abducted Master Wumei.” Qiao Zhao became more convinced her speculation was correct and asked instead: “Where’s the body?”

“After we fought, the commotion was quite loud. The constables arrived quickly, so I took the opportunity to escape. The body should have been taken away by those constables now. Third Miss, do you want to examine the body? If so, I could find someone to help—”

“No need.” Qiao Zhao refused Chen Guang’s suggestion. “Chen Guang, take some people and go guard A’Zhu’s sister-in-law’s house immediately.”

“You think they’ll go to A’Zhu’s sister-in-law’s house?”

Qiao Zhao smiled: “The other party is not just one person, but a force. Now that using A’Zhu’s sister-in-law to steal the prayer beads has failed, who knows what other schemes they might devise against me? But those people will kill A’Zhu’s sister-in-law to silence her and vent their anger.”

“Good, I’ll arrange it right away.”

“Chen Guang, be more careful this time. Make sure to bring back a live one for me.”

“Third Miss, don’t worry. If I mess up again this time, I’ll take off my head and give it to you as a ball to kick!”

Qiao Zhao gave Chen Guang an odd look and said lightly, “Using it as a ball to kick is fine, but if you want to use it as an embroidered ball to toss, you should consult your General’s opinion first.”

Chen Guang shrank her neck and quickly ran off.

A’Zhu suddenly knelt: “Thank you, Miss. This servant kowtows to you.”

Qiao Zhao looked down at A’Zhu and sighed: “A’Zhu, get up. Don’t keep kneeling at every turn.”

A’Zhu stood up as instructed and stood with her hands at her sides.

“Let me ask you—after this ordeal, how do you plan to arrange for your family?”

A’Zhu thought for a moment and said: “This servant wants to have the family leave the capital.”

“Leave the capital? Your hometown should be flooded, right? If they return, they’ll be homeless. And if I’m not mistaken, the power behind this incident likely extends into the south. If your family heads south, they might be even more vulnerable.”

“Miss, could you… Could you let them settle in the north?” A’Zhu said with determination.

With those people in the capital, her family definitely couldn’t stay here anymore, or they would be in mortal danger at any time.

Qiao Zhao hadn’t expected A’Zhu to make such a suggestion. After thinking it over, she nodded: “Although there are Tartar raids in the north, the current situation isn’t as complex as in the south. Going north to settle is a feasible idea. How about this—after this matter is resolved, I’ll arrange for someone to escort your family to Heyu County. That’s the Li family’s ancestral home, so your family will have a place to settle there.”

“Thank you, Miss.” A’Zhu wept tears of gratitude.

Qiao Zhao patted A’Zhu’s hand: “Don’t think too much about it. Just focus on your duties from now on.”

The sun moved west, and night soon fell.

Qiao Zhao was reading in her study. The candlelight flickered, causing her silhouette reflected on the gauze window to sway.

Binglu, who was standing guard nearby, couldn’t help but yawn. Just as she was becoming drowsy, she suddenly heard tapping on the window.