Chapter 125 Chapter 125 is the only genuine version...

Ji Nan Ke lowered her eyes, and the red corners of her eyes looked pitiful.

Xie Jing cherished her. From the moment they first met, he'd thought about her day and night, unable to take his eyes off her. Seeing her about to cry but not yet, Xie Jing secretly wondered if his tone had been too harsh. But if he didn't speak more forcefully, Ke'er would still act recklessly next time.

Ke'er is lucky and everything goes smoothly for her, so she is a little unscrupulous and doesn't even consider the consequences.

Xie Jing was sure that even in this matter, she had never thought about what would happen after failure.

"Ke'er."

Xie Jing released his hands from the armchair and stood up. He wanted to think of a solution with her, perhaps asking Master Qingping for a win-win solution.

Pop.

Before she could finish her words, Ji Nan Ke threw the papers onto the Eight Immortals Table and said with a stern face, "Don't worry, Your Highness the Third Prince. I will take care of it. I won't implicate you." After that, she pushed him away with force.

Xie Jing was caught off guard and stumbled. It was too late for him to reach out and pull her.

She flung open the door of the private room and rushed out.

Xie Jing was both angry and annoyed. He punched the eight-immortals table and waved his arms in frustration, sweeping all the plates and dishes off the table.

Hearing the crackling sound behind him, Ji Nanke frowned slightly.

What attracted her to Xie Jing was his dignity and elegance, but now it seemed that this was all a facade. He was just a hot-tempered madman.

"Why can't Zhang Lang be loyal——"

The actress covered her face with her sleeves and cried on the stage.

Ji Nan Ke had been looking forward to this play for a long time, but now she was not so eager to watch it anymore.

She looked back at the corridor and saw that Xie Jing had not followed her out.

Never mind, she'll figure it out herself.

Ji Nan Ke bit her lower lip and ran down the stairs with her skirt lifted up.

After leaving the theater, she first went to where Blind Chen set up his stall on Maoer Street.

"Blind Chen hasn't been here for quite some time." The young woman selling herbal tea handed her a silver ingot and said enthusiastically, "I heard he's getting married. Not long ago, someone came to give him a wedding gift, a full silver ingot."

Ji Nan Ke found out where Blind Chen lived. An idea struck him. He looked towards the teahouse that was being built and asked, "I heard that a scholar was killed here."

"Right, right," the young lady said angrily, "Mr. Zhang is such a jerk. I don't know how he managed to trick a girl from a good family into wanting to marry him. Not long ago..." She calculated the time, "It seems like it's been about half a month. The girl finally came to her senses and didn't want to elope with him. Mr. Zhang was still trying to pester her, but he ended up getting smashed to death in the teahouse. He deserved it."

"I figured it out"? Does that mean the marriage talisman is no longer effective?

Will the marriage talisman become ineffective?

Why didn't the old blind man tell her? He took three handfuls of golden melon seeds from her and even concealed such an important matter from her.

Ji Nanke's heart was beating like a drum and his face was terribly gloomy.

She went straight to Yanziwei Lane and found out the residence of Blind Chen. Before she could knock on the door, it suddenly opened and a thin figure with a pointed chin and monkey cheeks jumped out and almost bumped into her head-on.

"Blind Chen?"

Blind Chen jumped up in shock, and then recognized that Ji Nan Ke was the one who came to him to buy the marriage talisman.

"Is it you?"

Blind Chen's face was haggard, sickly and exhausted, tense and ready to explode at any moment. He was completely different from the energetic appearance he had shown when Ji Nan Ke last saw him.

Blind Chen ignored Ji Nan Ke, leaned against the wall, and moved back tremblingly, as if he was avoiding some ferocious monster.

Ji Nanke stopped him and asked, "Will the marriage talisman you gave me become ineffective?"

"Marriage, marriage talisman."

Blind Chen was extremely afraid of these three words. When he heard them, his whole body began to tremble and his legs couldn't stop shaking.

"Hurry up and tell me!"

“Yes, yes…”

Ji Nanke's heart sank, and he said angrily, "Why didn't you say it?"

"You didn't ask."

This is clearly an attempt to shirk responsibility! Ji Nanke gritted her teeth. If she had known it would fail, she would have planned it more carefully.

She continued to ask: "What will be the consequences if it fails?"

Blind Chen carefully looked around the yard, wanting to get rid of her quickly. He spoke very quickly: "The affection brought by the marriage talisman will also disappear."

If it weren't for this thought, Blind Chen wouldn't be able to survive a single day and would rather die early.

Blind Chen wanted to leave, but she stopped him again. Ji Nanke asked, "Will he die?"

"No." Blind Chen shook his head.

Master Changfeng only said that it has a time limit, but did not say that using the marriage talisman will cause death.

He said as a matter of course: "The marriage talisman is for the marriage of men and women, how can it die?"

Blind Chen's pupils habitually rolled upwards, revealing a large patch of white when he looked at people. Looking at him for too long made one feel uneasy. Ji Nan Ke looked away and was about to ask another question when a pretentious voice suddenly rang out, startling Blind Chen so much that he shuddered and shrank into the corner.

Ji Nanke dodged and hid immediately. Soon, Liu Ling came out of the small courtyard. He looked around frantically and found Blind Chen. He grabbed his clothes and called out affectionately, "Chen Lang, let's go back."

"Let me go, let go, let go."

Blind Liu's panicked voice gradually faded away.

After standing for a while, Ji Nanke slowly walked back.

She didn't expect that Patriarch Ji had also come to the capital and went to beat the drum to report the incident, pushing her aunt and cousin in front of everyone in the most direct and brutal way.

Now Blind Chen said that the marriage talisman would become ineffective. Once it became ineffective, the emperor would probably kill his aunt in order to stabilize the court. In this way, all her efforts would be ruined.

Ji Nanke was a little confused.

Xie Jing was right about one thing: if even he could find out, it certainly couldn't be kept secret for long.

She had to make a decision early.

ah.

Ji Nan Ke was in a daze and didn't pay much attention to the road. She bumped into a wooden door with a half-drawn floral curtain. Her hand was pulled by the hook on the curtain, and a drop of blood oozed out of her fingertips. Against her fair skin, the drop of blood looked like a cinnabar mole, so beautiful and tempting.

She held the drop of blood between her lips, and a gleam of light flashed in her eyes.

There's nothing to worry about.

She didn't need the emperor to live forever. As long as he died in time, the matter would not be exposed, and her aunt would always be the emperor's favorite.

Ji Nan Ke closed her eyes and walked away in a hurry. She first queued up on Zhuque Street to buy freshly baked Hongyansu, and then brought the steaming hot Hongyansu into the palace.

Ji gave her a token that allowed her to enter and leave the palace at will.

By the time Ji Nan Ke returned to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, it was already past noon, and Li Deshun was with her.

Li Deshun came here to ask for Ji's letter of release from his concubine.

He faced the lady, curled the corners of his mouth, and smiled uglier than crying.

"Madam, the Emperor has issued an order."

It was already the third day after Clan Leader Ji sounded the drum to report the incident. The old lady didn't like to go out much, as she didn't care about what was happening outside. It was Gu Zhizhuo who told her everything after returning home.

While saying this, Gu Zhizhuo pulled her wrist to take her pulse and even placed a silver needle at hand. Gu Baibai and Gu Liaoliao were both there, fearing that something might go wrong and providing immediate first aid.

There were some thrilling moments in it, but the whole story was finally explained clearly.

The lady-in-waiting was extremely angry but she kept saying that if the emperor had any shame, he would not come to ask for a letter to release his concubine. Unexpectedly, haha, he actually came.

A letter to release a concubine actually requires an imperial edict.

The lady was dressed in full formal attire and sat on the armchair in the main hall with an expressionless face.

During the several years of Daqi, she served as a super-first-rank imperial lady, and she looked very dignified.

Gu Baibai and Gu Liaoliao were also there.

Gu Zhizhuo and Gu Yican stood on the left and right of the lady. Gu Zhizhuo lowered his eyes, and his long eyelashes cast a light shadow under his eyes, perfectly concealing the emotions in his eyes.

The lady said coldly, "No."

"Madam." Li Deshun smiled flatteringly, "The Emperor..."

Li Deshun hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided not to make a grand announcement. The Zhenguogong Mansion was unlucky enough, yet they were forced to kneel down to receive the decree and thank the Lord for His grace. Even he felt a little guilty about it.

Li Deshun wanted to say something but stopped himself. Gu Zhizhuo raised his hand and the servants went down one after another.

"You all should go down as well. Let's go persuade Madam Gu." Most of the eunuchs Li Deshun brought with him were his trusted aides and godsons. After they left, Li Deshun said helplessly, "Madam, please accept the order."

"Alas, the Emperor wanted to make Ji the Imperial Noble Consort. The Empress and all the other concubines took off their hairpins and knelt in Fengluan Palace, begging for an imperial decree to revoke the order. The Emperor was furious and confined the Empress to Fengluan Palace. The other concubines were either confined or demoted. Concubine Rong was banished to the cold palace for mocking Ji's appearance. Even Concubine Rong's father and brother were demoted."

Li Deshun meant that the emperor was determined, and if the lady insisted on not accepting the order, the emperor would definitely vent his anger on her.

"Madam, please don't act on impulse."

Li Deshun pulled the corners of his mouth, forced a smile and said, "The emperor seems to have been bewitched..." He said in a very low voice, and quickly said two words, "Witchcraft."

Gu Zhizhuo's eyelashes trembled slightly. The emperor's uncharacteristic behavior would inevitably arouse suspicion. The world did not know about the Zhuyin curse, but everyone knew about witchcraft.

It is sheer wishful thinking for Ji Nan Ke to think that she can influence the ruler of a country by relying on a marriage talisman.

Not to mention the emperor, even the Zhou family suspected Zhou Jinnuo of being possessed by evil spirits and ran to Taiqing Temple to seek help from their senior brother because Zhou Jinnuo insisted on eloping with the sour scholar. How could the emperor's close ministers not notice the clues?

Therefore, Gu Zhizhuo took the initiative to speak out in front of Xie Jing and ignited the final fire.

"Madam, please accept the imperial edict first." Li Deshun held the imperial edict and said in a gentle voice, "...After this matter is over, the emperor will definitely return justice to the Gu family."

He even felt a little guilty about saying this. Gu Yan's existence was enough to prove that the emperor and the Ji family had a long-standing relationship, and it was definitely not something that could be covered up by witchcraft alone.

"Father-in-law."

Gu Zhizhuo bowed, thanked him for his frankness, and asked, "Has Ji Nanke just entered the palace?"

Ji Nanke was standing outside, looking in. ——When she and Li Deshun came together, Gu Zhizhuo had kicked her out on the grounds that the imperial edict was for the Gu family, as she was not a member of the Gu family.

"Yes." Li Deshun said everything he shouldn't have said. There was nothing to hide. "Miss Ji went to the palace to pay her respects to the Ji family. Not long after, the emperor issued this imperial decree."

Gu Zhizhuo didn't ask any more questions. She looked at Gu Baibai, and he nodded at her, meaning that it was up to her to decide.

Gu Yican secretly hooked his sister's finger.

"Father-in-law." Gu Zhizhuo said gently, "The Gu family will not make things difficult for you. Release my letter, and the Gu family will be willing to go."

The lady stared back at her disapprovingly. "The emperor had done something like this, and he still wanted to release her as a concubine? Don't even think about it. This adulterous couple will be tortured to death! Without the release of the concubine, they will always be an "unmediated adultery."

Gu Zhizhuo's profile was reflected in the Madam's pupils. He was calm and composed, his eyes shining brightly. Okay, okay, this girl has her own ideas. We'll listen to her.

The old lady kept a stern face and maintained a stern attitude. Her silence represented her support for Gu Zhizhuo. A shrewd man like Li Deshun could see at a glance that the Gu family was now ruled by this eldest daughter.

He hurriedly said, "Miss Gu, if you have any requests, please feel free to ask."

"The Criminal Law says: Anyone who commits adultery with a married man shall be beaten with 90 sticks, and the adulterous woman shall be married off and sold along with her husband." Gu Zhizhuo paused deliberately after he finished speaking.

As the eunuch in front of the emperor, Li Deshun was quite familiar with the "Da Qi Lu". The students sitting in silence in the Wumen Square were now reciting and writing them every day. Articles were flying into the palace every day, so even those who were not familiar with it originally would become familiar with it.

Gu Zhizhuo smiled and said, "Daqi has a 'ransom' method. One hundred gold coins are worth one cane, and ninety canes are worth nine thousand gold coins. Isn't that too much?"

Li Deshun shook his head: "Not an exaggeration."

When he left the palace, the emperor said that if the Gu family wanted any compensation, he would agree to it.

Gu Zhizhuo smiled slightly and continued, "Adult women are sold along with their husbands. Ji has been in the Gu family for so many years, I was thinking of leaving her here. But since the emperor wants her, I dare not go against his wishes no matter how difficult it is, so let's sell her."

She treated Ji with contempt, treating her like a lowly concubine or servant who could be sold off by her master. Li Deshun chuckled and asked, "I wonder how much Miss Gu wants?"

"Don't worry, sir. We're honest business people. We won't quote you an exorbitant price and then let you bargain."

Li Deshun couldn't help laughing out loud, but quickly stopped himself.

Gu Zhizhuo rang the copper bell on the coffee table. The chief steward, Chen Jin, walked in, holding a thick account book. Gu Zhizhuo gestured, "Give it to Eunuch Li."

"yes."

Chen Jin handed the account book to Li Deshun, who took it with a puzzled look and asked, "Miss Gu, what does this mean?"

"Ji has been in my house for eight years. The silver she embezzled and the properties she sold are all listed here, including two iron mines. She gave all this silver and properties to Prince Rong personally."

The old lady's pupils suddenly shrank. She only knew that Ji family enriched themselves and subsidized her natal family. Did he actually embezzle the money of Gu family to subsidize the emperor?

Li Deshun opened his mouth.

Gu Zhizhuo could not say that the emperor took the Gu family's money, as this was taboo, so she mentioned "Prince Rong", indicating that it happened before the emperor ascended the throne.

"The Emperor is willing to spend money to redeem the Ji family, so the Gu family can't just raise the price. Just double the price." Gu Zhizhuo raised two fingers and shook them, then generously said, "There's no need to double the price for the iron ore. Just return it in its original form."

"Eunuch, these two iron mines were personally promised to the Gu family by Emperor Taizu, and according to the Emperor Taizu's imperial decree, they are definitely not privately held by the Gu family."

Gu Zhizhuo covered his mouth and smiled shyly, looking like he was doing business seriously.

Li Deshun smiled bitterly, the account book in his hand felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.

Oh, this is not an easy job.

"besides……"

And... Li Deshun wanted to cry in front of her.

"Eunuch Li, please don't worry." Gu Zhizhuo's attitude was extremely good. "After releasing my concubine, the Gu family and Ji family will no longer have any relationship, right? Then, Ji's niece should no longer stay in the Gu family."

That's true. Li Deshun nodded. Ji Nanke and the Gu family had no blood relationship, and no emotional connection, so he couldn't deny it.

He replied, "Our family will send someone to help Miss Ji move."

"Why don't you let Miss Ji stay in the palace to accompany Ji Shi? What do you think?"

This was a very small condition, and Li Deshun readily responded, "Ji loves his niece and must want to keep her by his side."

"Don't bother two masters with one thing. Your Majesty, please also pay back the money Miss Ji owes."

Gu Zhizhuo took out an IOU from his sleeve pocket and handed it to Li Deshun personally.

Xie Jing is a pauper. It would be better to sell her together with Ji Shi than to expect Xie Jing to pay her back.

Li Deshun took it and looked at it. He was disappointed to see the signature of the third prince on the IOU.

"The Gu family has only this request. Please ask Eunuch Li to return to the palace and report this. If the emperor is willing to buy her, the Gu family will release her as a concubine today."