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墨書 Inktalez
Sang Qingxiao voiced her doubts.
Huo Qi replied, "Perhaps it's due to burning. Farmers have always done this to enrich their fields."
"Is that so? Then why are the bark of the nearby saplings all gone? Did they burn that too?"
"Bark?"
Huo Qi lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked over. Upon closer inspection, it indeed seemed overly clean, especially with those few saplings whose bark near the roots was missing, exposing uneven, pitted light-colored branches.
"Could it be that there were no crops left for people to eat? In my time, when we were starving, we often resorted to eating tree bark."
After saying this, Huo Qi quickly countered himself, "No, that's not right. We're so close to the imperial city; if there were starving people here, it would be a disgrace to the royal family. Since it’s not humans..."
Qi Shuo, listening to their discussion, swiftly leaped down to grab a sapling.
Huo Qi took just one glance and had his answer: it was mice. "Look here; these marks are definitely from mouse teeth."
Upon hearing this, Qi Shuo hurriedly stopped the carriage and instructed his men to investigate the surroundings and inquire with local farmers.
Before long, they returned with news that there were signs of rodent damage on various plants in the area. However, in places where people lived, they reported never having seen any mice and claimed their grain was intact and unharmed.
These two reports were quite contradictory. When did mice become so benevolent as to prefer gnawing on straw and saplings outside rather than feasting on good grain from farmers?
Due to this conflicting information, the situation became tense. Seeing Sang Qingxiao deep in thought, Qi Shuo urged her, "Miss Sang, there's something unusual here. Should we send someone from The Office of Censors to investigate, or is the Royal Tomb more urgent?"
Sang Qingxiao nodded, and the carriage set off again.
As they drew closer to the Royal Tomb, signs of mice became increasingly evident. Yet when they asked local farmers along the way, there were still no reports of rodent invasions.
The officials from The Office of Censors kindly reminded everyone to prepare rat poison just in case. Everyone nodded in agreement, but their dismissive attitude suggested they didn't take it seriously and returned to their winter routines without concern.
Sang Qingxiao's expression grew worried as she advised, "We need to inform His Majesty... No, I should at least let Left Chancellor know."
"Don't worry, I've already instructed them," Qi Shuo pointed ahead at a small hill. "That is the Royal Tomb."
"Just that little hill?"
If not for the large number of soldiers stationed there, it would seem quite ordinary indeed.
"Didn't they say there were traces of the Crowd of Crows? Didn't these guards see anything?"
"No."
"Not even the large piles of droppings?" Qi Shuo replied. "They insisted there was nothing before, but as soon as the Dragon Guard showed up, suddenly there were signs."
"That's quite strange!"
After the carriage came to a stop, Qi Shuo took the emperor's order and approached to negotiate. The guards appeared reluctant to let them through, their eyes betraying a hint of hostility.
"Did you get into an argument?" Sang Qingxiao asked Qi Shuo.
"They believe that the Crowd of Crows incident is just the Dragon Guard and the Office of Censors trying to shift blame onto them. Furthermore, the Dragon Guard's previous heavy-handed tactics have escalated tensions significantly."
"Even though I have the emperor's order, they can't stop us, but they certainly won't help us either. Perhaps they'll even try to sabotage our efforts. We need to be cautious."
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