Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

Chapter 563: Executing the Mission

"Don't worry, Senior Sister, I will definitely come back safely!" Lin Ping turned around abruptly, revealing a big smile, a promise to Jiang Yunying.

"That's right, please rest assured, Senior Sister, I will definitely protect Junior Brother well," Guo Zhixi replied with a smile.

Jiang Yunying's smiling face suddenly turned somewhat somber.

"Then I'll trouble you to take good care of my junior brother, junior sister." Even though she was a hundred times unwilling, she had no choice but to hand Lin Ping over to Guo Zhixi.

"Protecting my junior brother is my responsibility, senior sister, there's no need for thanks." After saying this, Guo Zhixi quickly left with Lin Ping.

"Can't you women die if you don't fight over men?" Lin Ping asked unhappily.

Jiang Yunying was already heartbroken from going out on the mission with her, and now she's blocking their final farewell. It's really annoying.

“I can die!” Guo Zhixi answered without hesitation.

Lin Ping was speechless and tried his best to keep his distance from Guo Zhixi, avoiding speaking as much as possible.

He believed his resolute heart would not waver, but he was afraid that Guo Zhixi would use underhanded methods, so he had to be on guard.

Even your daily diet needs to be carefully monitored, in case you accidentally get a frightening drug in it.

After leaving Lotus Palace, the two headed northeast along Tianmu Mountain.

Guangde Prefecture is only two hundred li away from Ningcheng. If you ride at full speed, you can get there before dark.

However, Guo Zhixi chose to walk, and judging from her relaxed expression, she didn't care about the mission at all.

It was more like a vacation with Lin Ping, a honeymoon after their marriage.

"Is your knowledge of this mission, sir?" Guo Zhixi asked, trying to break the awkward silence.

"I don't want to know." Lin Ping turned his head and said sullenly. He wished he could sprout wings and appear in Guangde Prefecture immediately, instead of strolling leisurely through the mountains and forests like this.

"Don't you want to know about matters of life and death? If you are unfortunately killed, you will never see your senior sister again."

"Aren't you highly skilled in martial arts? Aren't you supposed to protect me?" Lin Ping said irritably.

“This matter is of great importance, and even I am not entirely confident of victory.” Guo Zhixi’s expression turned serious. “If you wish to live, sir, you would have better listen to this.”

"Describe it in the simplest terms possible, without adding your own opinions. I will make my own judgment." Lin Ping tried to speak to her as little as possible.

“A wealthy merchant from Guangde Prefecture claimed that his daughter had been murdered by a prince of the Daye Dynasty. He reported the case to the authorities, but they did not respond for a long time. So he spent a lot of money to ask the Lotus Palace for help,” Guo Zhiqian explained succinctly.

"What? Is that really true?" Lin Ping exclaimed, his mind racing.

"I also find this matter interesting, so I accepted the task. Sir, why don't you share your thoughts?" Guo Zhixi said meaningfully.

Judging from Guo Zhixi's tone and expression, it was clear that she had done in-depth research on this matter, so Lin Ping didn't need to hide his thoughts.

“In recent years, the Wu Kingdom and the Daye Dynasty have always kept to themselves. This time, the murderer is from the Daye Dynasty, so the government naturally dares not act rashly, because it would affect the relationship between the two countries, and it may even be on the orders of the Yingtian Prefecture. It would be best to settle things peacefully.”

"The Lotus Palace isn't stupid; they must have figured out the trickery involved. The reason they accepted the mission was to use it as an opportunity to break the peace between the two countries. Ideally, they would fight each other and then reap the benefits."

Lin Ping analyzed methodically, "Therefore, this is not simply a murder case, but also a trigger for the turmoil of the times."

"My lord's analysis is absolutely correct. My master's intention is to kill that young master, make as much of a commotion as possible, and ultimately pin the blame on the imperial court," Guo Zhixi said without any concealment.

"Aren't you afraid I'll stop you?" It's really unpleasant to be treated like I don't exist.

As the Grand General of the Wu Kingdom, he must be concerned about the safety of the Wu Kingdom, so why would he risk killing that young master?

"That's why I keep the adults with me, so you won't even have a chance to tip them off." Guo Zhixi smiled smugly; she loved seeing Lin Ping's angry expression.

"If that's the case, why slow down?" Lin Ping continued to ask.

"Because this matter needs to continue to ferment, so that the people of Guangde Prefecture will lose faith in the government and be grateful to the Lotus Palace."

The man who killed his daughter was a wealthy merchant from Guangde Prefecture. He must have some connections, and once he learned that the government wanted to settle the matter peacefully, he would definitely cause some trouble.

At that time, the people of Guangde Prefecture will feel that the government is not upholding justice for them, and thus become disheartened.

If Lotus Palace were to suddenly help a wealthy merchant take revenge, the merchant would be eternally grateful, and even the common people would feel that Lotus Palace was acting in their best interests.

Once a war breaks out between Lotus Palace and the imperial court, even if the common people dare not directly help Lotus Palace, they will never give the imperial court any favors.

Guangde Prefecture is just a microcosm. Lin Ping has every reason to believe that Lotus Palace is aggressively winning over people's hearts and minds.

"Aren't you afraid of failing the mission?" Lin Ping asked.

Given the critical importance of this mission, there must be someone watching in the shadows, which multiplies their danger.

"With your intelligence and my martial arts skills, there's probably no task we can't accomplish," Guo Zhixi said with a smile.

"What if I don't help?"

"My lord, you won't, because you still want to see your senior sister again, and you won't gamble with your life," Guo Zhixi said firmly.

"Between my wife and the interests of the nation, I might not choose my wife," Lin Ping replied against his will.

If he didn't put Jiang Yunying first, why would he risk his life to become a great general?

“I know exactly what you’re thinking, sir,” Guo Zhixi said, looking like she had Lin Ping completely under her thumb.

"Don't think you understand me." Lin Ping hated the feeling of being seen through, but he had to admit it was true.

Guo Zhixi really understands him.

The answer to the question doesn't need to be investigated in depth. Lin Ping's every move is being interpreted. He even drew the nearby terrain on the sand and deduced every possibility.

"Give me that person's information, the more detailed the better," Lin Ping said with a stern smile.

Guo Zhixi stared intently at Lin Ping. She had to admit that handsome men are even more handsome when they are serious.

"Oh...it's all here." Guo Zhixi looked somewhat dazed, frantically pulling out a slip of paper with only one line of small print on it:

Han Bofan was a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examinations) from Huzhou Prefecture.

A few simple words revealed much about the other party's identity.

There weren't many successful candidates in Huzhou Prefecture, so finding the other party wasn't difficult, making the whole task much simpler.

"Why would a perfectly good scholar kill someone?" Lin Ping wondered, feeling that this mission was going to be even more difficult.

"Is there any other information?" Lin Ping continued to ask.

"Why don't I just put the other person's head right in front of you, sir?" Guo Zhixi said irritably.

If she has any other information, what use is Lin Ping to her?