Jiang Zhaorong stared at her coldly, a fierce look suddenly appearing between his brows. He gritted his teeth and said, "Do you really think the Jinyiwei are just here to eat and do nothing?!"

The old lady didn't agree in her heart. She was afraid before, but now the second prince who had become a monk has returned, and the monks have started to move around. Didn't the emperor say anything?

Besides, there is only one monk staying in the mansion now, and I haven’t seen those Jinyiwei coming over!

The old lady lowered her eyes. She was more worried about Jiang Zhiyu, who was currently possessed by a demon, than the Jinyiwei.

"Haven't you heard recently? It's said outside that Zhiyu, despite her young age, possesses excellent medical skills and can cure any disease. She's also skilled in martial arts!"

The old lady looked at him with deep sorrow and anguish. "It would be fine for others, but we have watched Zhiyu grow up. Don't we know her character like a mirror?"

Jiang Zhaorong's eyes moved and he pretended to be stupid.

Seeing that he didn't say anything, the old lady thought he was moved by her persuasion, so she got out of bed, sat on a stool across from him, picked up the teacup and took a sip.

"Son, I don't mean to say anything, but the third girl has been acting so unusually lately that I'm suspicious..."

She stopped, her eyes mysterious, and whispered: "Mother is suspicious, the third girl is possessed by a demon!"

Jiang Zhaorong clenched his hands under his sleeves and glanced at the people serving in the room. The maids all lowered their heads. After being shocked for a while, Jiang Zhaorong withdrew his gaze.

The old lady was completely unaware and continued, "Look, have we had a peaceful day in the Prime Minister's Mansion these days? Your second brother is in prison, and Brother Heng has been sent away."

She was overwhelmed with grief and shed a few tears, which she wiped away with her hand: "Forget it, let's not talk about this. Mother also knows that you have resentment in your heart, so I will let Jian Jin stay in that prison for a while. But this monster must be eliminated!"

Jiang Zhaorong suddenly realized that the old lady thought that Jiang Jianjin was not dead yet because he was soft-hearted and saved him, but he didn't know that the real reason was that Gao's adulterer had not been found yet.

She was still thinking about taking Jiang Jianjin back from prison after she calmed down.

Jiang Zhaorong just felt it was ridiculous.

She is just the blood of her adulterer, what qualifications does she have to be her brother?!

And there are monsters...

Jiang Zhaorong frowned slightly. "Zhiyu is not a demon! She is the first female official of the Tianqi era, appointed by the emperor himself: the Imperial Academy Secretary. If anyone makes irresponsible remarks about the imperial officials, they will be punished by caning."

The old lady was not intimidated by Jiang Zhaorong's tough tone. Even though Jiang Zhaorong's respect for her was not as great as before, the old lady still believed that he was a filial son who would do whatever she said, even if he had complaints.

So she took a sip of tea and no longer used the tone of negotiation as before, but a tone similar to commanding: "He's just a monk. Now that the Second Prince has returned, there are so many monks on the street, isn't it okay? The evildoer is in the mansion, and the Jiang family will be destroyed by her sooner or later. Think about it yourself!"

She put down the teacup heavily with an ugly look on her face.

Jiang Zhaorong took a deep breath and his expression relaxed slightly.

The old lady was delighted and was about to speak when she heard him scold her: "How dare you! How dare you serve me!"

The maids knelt down quickly, and the old lady was also confused.

Jiang Zhaorong's face was thick with anger. "It's all because I've spoiled you so much that you don't even know your own identities. You even dare to bring up the stories of gods and ghosts in front of the old lady to stir up trouble! You're trying to sow discord between the grandparents and the grandchildren. I think it's best to sell off all these evil servants!"

The maids begged for mercy.

It took the old lady a long time to react after he pointed the finger at someone else: "What did you say they did? It was me..."

Jiang Zhaorong didn't give her a chance to speak, but interrupted: "From now on, no one in the Prime Minister's Mansion is allowed to mention the word 'monster'!"

The old lady was still in a state of surprise and confusion when she heard a gentle voice from outside: "What evildoer?"

Along with the sound of footsteps, Yiqiao lifted the bead curtain and Xu Youran slowly walked in.

The old lady's brows suddenly darkened.

The veins on Jiang Zhaorong's forehead were still throbbing. Seeing Xu Youran, he forced a smile and asked, "Why is Madam here?"

Ever since Mrs. Du entered the mansion, Xu Youran has never come to Shouxi Hall to pay her respects to the old lady again.

As the saying goes, one never visits a temple for no reason. When the old lady saw the account book held by the maid behind her, her heart skipped a beat.

Xu Youran glanced at Jiang Zhaorong, her eyes settling on the old lady. "I've been checking the accounts these past few days, and there are a few items that I can't reconcile. There's no record of their whereabouts in the account book, so I thought I'd ask the old lady if she knows anything."

The old lady snorted coldly and did not respond.

Jiang Zhaorong coughed dryly: "What account, how much silver?"

Xu Youran glanced at him again, but didn't answer. Instead, she asked, "I just heard you guys mention some monster from a distance. What's going on?"

Jiang Zhaorong stepped forward and reached out to embrace her, but Xu Youran dodged. Jiang Zhaorong chuckled, "It's nothing. Mother has been worried sick these past few days, having nightmares and being instigated by these shameless people. That's why she's just talking nonsense."

Xu Youran looked at him suspiciously. "Really? How come I heard Zhiyu's name?"

Jiang Zhaorong's smile froze, and the old lady's body tensed up.

"We didn't talk about Zhiyu. You heard wrong." Jiang Zhaorong laughed dryly and brought the subject back to the topic: "How much is the deviation in the account?"

Even though Xu Youran's family is in decline, it should not be underestimated. If she heard that the old lady suspected that Zhiyu was a monster and even asked monks to catch the monster, who knows what she would do.

Fortunately, I saw it just now and quickly covered it up.

The old lady was also very relieved. She was a person who bullied the weak and feared the strong. She dared to yell in front of Jiang Zhaorong because she was sure that he would not do anything to her and would go along with her.

In the past, even though Xu Youran was not weak and could not be bullied, she was always respectful in front of her. But since she saw Xu Youran's other side last time, she felt a fear of Xu Youran in her heart.

Xu Youran's eyes were filled with suspicion and scrutiny. She winked at Yi Qiao before taking the account book from the maid behind her. She chuckled and said, "There's still three hundred taels of silver in this farm. Who did you give it to?"

The old lady's eyes shifted, and she pretended to be calm, not showing any guilt at all.

Jiang Zhaorong took the account book, took a look at it, and frowned.

Previously, the account books were all in the old lady's hands. Jiang Zhaorong said softly, "Old lady..."

"How should I know?" she said loudly and quickly. Seeing the looks from Jiang Zhaorong and Xu Youran, she swallowed and slowed down her voice. "I can't read the account books. Normally, I ask Jianjin to help me."

Jiang Zhaorong gritted his teeth and said, "Even if he didn't understand, he should have mentioned it to you."