Chapter 26 Chapter 26 Taking advantage of the wife.

Xie Zhian returned home in the evening, and the rain had subsided somewhat.

The servants reported to him that Meng Min's old illness had flared up again today, and Xie Yushu had taken care of her all afternoon. She was feeling better now, and Meng Min invited her to stay for dinner.

He was surprised, thinking he had misheard. It was normal for Meng Min to have her old illness relapse, and it was also normal for Xie Yushu to take care of her. But Meng Min actually invited her to have dinner with them.

To his even greater surprise, the servants said that Meng Min had specially invited Xie Yushu over today.

Didn't Meng Min used to hate her the most? She didn't even invite her to dinner when she returned home for her wedding.

He changed his clothes and rushed to Meng Min's courtyard, only to find it completely silent, with only a dim lamp lit inside.

Zhenniang stopped him at the door and said, "Master, Madam is not feeling well today and has already retired for the night. Why don't you stay in the study tonight?"

Xie Zhian was stunned. He and Meng Min were very close. She rarely didn't wait for him to eat together, let alone send him to sleep in the study. Even when Meng Min was seriously ill and he didn't stay in her room, she would feel guilty and send someone to bring him ginseng soup and bird's nest.

He knew very well that Meng Min had always felt a sense of making amends to him over the years, to make up for the fact that she hadn't been able to give him a son, and also to make up for the fact that she didn't want him to take a concubine. So sometimes, even when she was sick, she would take care of him and rest together.

Today, however, he was unusually allowed to sleep in the study.

He asked with some doubt, "But is Madam seriously ill? I'd like to go in and see her."

“Master.” Zhenniang bowed and stopped him again, lowering her voice and saying, “Madam is a light sleeper. If you go in, she will definitely be woken up. Madam only managed to fall asleep after taking her medicine.”

Xie Zhian was stopped a second time, again because he was concerned about Meng Min. His face was inevitably stiff, but he couldn't get angry. He could only ask again without going in, "Did Yu Shu stay to take care of Madam?" In the past, Yu Shu would also stay up all night to take care of the sick.

Zhenniang replied, "Miss Yushu left after serving the madam the medicine; she just left the mansion."

"Just left the manor?" Xie Zhi'an frowned. "This daughter is becoming more and more unruly." Shouldn't she at least come to pay her respects to him before leaving the manor?

Zhenniang said, "Miss Yushu has been taking care of Madam all day and is very tired. Madam said that there is no need for her to visit you again and that she should go back and rest. I think Master will not blame Miss Yushu for such a small matter."

Xie Zhian's face turned cold as he was choked by the question, filled with suspicion. "Why are you getting so close to Yushu, Madam?"

Zhenniang maintained her composed demeanor and said, "People are made of flesh and blood. You can always sense who truly cares for you."

Yeah?

Xie Zhian was somewhat puzzled, but upon reflection, he realized that Yu Shu had indeed served Meng Min wholeheartedly over the years. Jia Ning had been gone for so long, and Meng Min should have moved on by now. It was good that she treated Yu Shu like a daughter, at least she wouldn't be crying all the time and needing him to comfort her repeatedly.

He guessed at the woman's thoughts and then turned and left.

When I got to the study, I found that the lights were off, and the bed was not made.

In the past, Meng Min would always instruct people to take care of these things for him in advance, but today, none of that was done.

Is she really so seriously ill that she can't get up?

Xie Zhi'an called his attendants to make his bed, but he couldn't help feeling uncomfortable. What kind of marquis was he? He wasn't allowed to take concubines, and he wasn't even allowed to have a maidservant to serve him. After Jia Ning left, the huge marquis's mansion was completely devoid of any liveliness.

Who doesn't want to have many children and grandchildren around them?

He also wanted to have more legitimate sons and daughters with Meng Min, but Meng Min's health was so poor, what could he do?

※

The carriage from the Yong'an Marquis's residence traveled through the damp streets towards the Pei residence.

Xie Yushu was dozing off in the carriage when he was suddenly startled awake by the system notification.

"Congratulations, host, you have gained 1 point of green hat value, from Pei Shilin."

Xie Yushu opened her eyes and immediately realized that Song Jie had come to the Pei residence to pick her up.

That's going to be quite a show!

She immediately lifted the carriage curtain and looked outside. In the light drizzle, the coachman had just turned a corner. Not far ahead was the Pei residence. She could vaguely see a carriage parked outside the Pei residence, with a row of servants in black standing there.

Could it be Song Jie's carriage and his men? How dare he pick her up directly at the main gate! This is utterly disrespectful to the Pei family!

Unable to suppress the smile on his lips, Xie Yushu instructed the coachman, "Go around to the back gate of the Pei residence, I'll enter from the back gate."

Although the driver was puzzled, he immediately agreed, turned the horse around, and went around to the back gate.

The carriage had just stopped at the back gate when Xie Yushu heard Yinya's voice.

"Madam! You're finally back!" Yin Ya rushed to the carriage, holding an umbrella to help Xie Yushu down. She said anxiously, "You have no idea how chaotic things have been at the manor! Granny Xizhi told me and Jin Ye to go to the front and back gates to greet you separately. Luckily you came back from the back gate! Otherwise, you would have run into Prime Minister Song's men!"

"What's wrong? Tell me quickly," Xie Yushu asked impatiently as he walked into the house.

She imitated Pei Shilin's manner, frowning and speaking in a gruff voice: "I have handed over my brother Shibin's case to the government for trial. If he has really broken the law, then he will be punished. My Pei family will not need Prime Minister Song's troubles. Please, Prime Minister Song, do not harass my wife again in the future."

Xie Yushu was amused by her vivid description. Pei Shilin actually dared to say such things to Song Jie? Even a coward can get angry? Or did he think he could curry favor with the Yong'an Marquis's family after seeing how well she was treated today?

"Young Master Pei also said that if Prime Minister Song is shameless and lacks manners, he will make a big scene and let the whole of Bianjing know that the dignified Prime Minister is abusing another man's wife." Yin Ya said, "Cang Shu left, and we thought that was the end of it. Who knew that just now Prime Minister Song actually led a lot of people and barged into the Pei residence through the main gate! He said that since Young Master Pei said that he was abusing another man's wife, then he would show him!"

Is this exciting?

Xie Yushu became excited and quickened her pace to enter her small courtyard. She saw Granny Xizhi pacing anxiously, while Xiao Dao and Zhao Feng stood guard at the gate with cold faces, as if afraid that someone would break into the courtyard.

"Miss Yushu!" Granny Xizhi came over and grabbed her, saying, "You should go out and hide for a while, and go back to the Yong'an Marquis's residence!"

God knows how much she wanted to see the drama unfold.

"Don't be afraid, Granny. It's good that they're fighting." Xie Yushu couldn't hide her excitement. Without stopping, she helped Yinya towards the front yard and said to Xiaodao, "Go forward and find a place where you can watch the excitement without being discovered."

Xiao Dao paused for a moment, quite puzzled.

Granny Xizhi said anxiously, "How dare you go and join this kind of crazy commotion!" But she was still worried and followed behind her.

As Xie Yushu was helped to the best viewing spot by Xiao Dao, he heard Pei Shilin's angry roar: "Prime Minister Song, you've gone too far! You led your men into my Pei family, are you trying to force me to hand over my wife?"

Xie Yushu parted the leaves and looked towards the main courtyard.

Seven or eight of Song Jie's black-clad attendants stood in the brightly lit courtyard. Some of the Pei family's servants and attendants had been knocked to the ground, while others were trying to stop the black-clad attendants.

Song Jie sat upright on a chair in the courtyard, with the aloof Cang Shu standing beside him, holding an umbrella for him.

Opposite him stood Pei's mother, Li Huixian, who was crying in fear, and Pei Shilin, whose face was green with rage. He shielded his mother behind him and glared at Song Jie with uncontrollable fury: "Aren't you afraid I'll report this to the Emperor and let the whole world know that you, the dignified Prime Minister, are bullying men and women and forcibly taking other men's wives!"

Despite the furious roar, Song Jie, resting his chin on his hand, merely chuckled coldly and slowly said to Pei Shilin, "Pei Tanhua, your memory isn't very good. Have you forgotten that you yourself sent your wife to my residence?"

"That was a moment of confusion on my part!" Pei Shilin admitted stiffly, then retorted, "Now that I have reconciled with Yu Shu, why is Prime Minister Song still bothering her?"

Song Jie's face turned cold as he asked, "Have you reconciled? Has Xie Yushu forgiven you?"

“Of course.” Pei Shilin, as if finally regaining face, deliberately said, “Not only did she understand my predicament, but she also vowed to live a good life with me and never see you again in this life, Prime Minister Song.”

Song Jie's eyes turned cold.

"Congratulations, host, you have gained 1 point of green hat value, from Song Jie."

Her good-for-nothing husband was quite effective at provoking Song Jie.

Song Jie chuckled sarcastically and said in a sarcastic tone, "You believe Xie Yushu's oath? She swore to me last night that she would only love me for the rest of her life, and that she would never leave me even if we had no official status."

What a cheesy and disgusting lie.

Xie Yushu felt a chill run down his spine. What was Song Jie imagining?

But then the system reported immediately: "The host has gained 1 point of green hat value, from Pei Shilin."

The lie was well-crafted.

Pei Shilin was disgusted and angrily denied it: "Do you think I would believe you? If Xie Yushu admired you, why would he ask you to pay a large sum of money every time he went to your residence?"

When Song Jie's lie was exposed, his face turned cold and dark, and he couldn't find any words to refute it.

Pei Shilin became even more smug and sneered, "I'm not afraid to tell Prime Minister Song that Yu Shu herself said she loathes you to the extreme, and if it weren't for me, she would rather die than take care of you."

Clearly, Song Jie was somewhat taken aback by what he was being said.

There wasn't a trace of a smile in his eyes; he stared at Pei Shilin like a venomous snake. He knew very well that what Pei Shilin said was most likely true. Xie Yushu had been forced to come to his side to take care of him, and if she had even a little bit of affection for him, he wouldn't have needed so much money to hire her.

She treated him even less well than she treated Cangshu.

But he couldn't tolerate Pei Shilin saying that to him. How could Xie Yushu forgive this good-for-nothing? He still wanted to live a good life with him? What did Pei Shilin have? No money, no power, and not even a shred of manly backbone.

How could he tolerate losing to such a coward?

The drizzle dampened his shoes, and the cold wind made him want to cough.

He twirled the sash beneath his sleeve in his palm, a smirk playing on his lips as he looked at Pei Shilin and said, "Is that so? You'd rather die than see me? What if I kill you?"

Pei Shilin was taken aback.

Song Jie sneered and waved his finger. Two servants in black stepped forward, grabbed Pei Shilin's arms, and forced him to kneel on the ground.

Pei Shilin's arm, which had just been reattached, seemed to be twisted again, and he fell to his knees, screaming in agony.

"Let go! Let go!" Li Huixian was terrified and knelt down with a thud, crying and begging Song Jie: "Prime Minister Song, please spare Shilin! He... he is the third-ranked scholar appointed by the Emperor and will soon enter the Hanlin Academy. If you really hurt him, the whole court will know! Then you and Xie Yushu's affair will also be exposed!"

“Indeed.” Song Jie looked at her as if she were a grasshopper, and said with a smile, “The whole court will know that Pei Shilin of the Yongyi Earl’s Mansion bribed me with his wife to save his murderer brother. I will lose face. I just don’t know if Pei Shilin will still be able to enter the Hanlin Academy then?”

Li Huixian's face turned deathly pale, and her lips trembled as she was unable to speak.

"No need to beg him!" Pei Shilin gritted his teeth and said angrily, "I really underestimated Prime Minister Song's infatuation with a fake. Prime Minister Song had better kill me today, otherwise we'll meet before the Emperor tomorrow! I'd rather risk my life than suffer such humiliation!"

"Fine." Song Jie leaned back in his chair and sneered, "Cang Shu, go to the inner courtyard and invite Xie Yushu out. I want to ask her in front of her whether what she said to Pei Shilin was true or false, and whether she would never see me again even if Pei Shilin were beaten to death."

Before Cang Shu could react, Pei Shilin roared, "She's currently at the Yong'an Marquis's residence. If you're so capable, Prime Minister Song, go to the Yong'an Marquis's residence and snatch her away!"

Li Huixian pleaded with Pei Shilin to stop talking, while crying, "Your Excellency, Xie Yushu did indeed go to the Marquis of Yong'an's residence today and hasn't returned yet! It's not that we don't want to hand her over; if she were at the residence, we would definitely make her come out to see you..."

"Mother!" Pei Shilin gritted his teeth and berated Lin Huixian, "Haven't I suffered enough humiliation for you and Shibin?"

Song Jie, too lazy to listen to their nonsense, ordered again, "Cang Shu, go into the inner courtyard to look for someone. I want to see where Xie Yushu is..."

Before he could finish speaking, he heard Xie Yushu's voice.

"Good heavens, what's going on? Why are my mother-in-law and husband both kneeling on the ground?!"

Only Xie Yushu could utter that sarcastic tone!

Song Jie looked over and saw Xie Yushu, dressed in a begonia-red dress, supporting her little maid, accompanied by a lame old woman and a lame attendant, walking out from behind the courtyard gate. The surprised expression on her face was extremely fake.

It's nowhere near as good as when she played Jia Ning.

He looked at her and couldn't help but smile. She rarely wore such bright colors, but they looked especially good on her in the rainy night. Especially when she pretended to be angry and glared at him, the undisguised joy in her eyes made her look incredibly vivid.

"What does Prime Minister Song mean by this?" she questioned him.

Doesn't she know what he means? She was very shrewd and clear-headed when she accepted his deposit of ten thousand taels of gold last night.

Song Jie didn't want to expose her, so he smiled and said, "So Madam Pei was in the manor. It seems your husband is a complete liar. Then I'd like to ask you, is it true that you swore you would never see me again, even if I killed you?"

Xie Yushu looked at Pei Shilin on the ground; he was like a desperate dog eagerly awaiting her answer.

Looking at Song Jie, she seemed like a mad dog that would bite everyone to death if her answers were not satisfactory.

Then of course she would add fuel to the fire.

She gave a bitter smile under the umbrella, and replied as if forced to, "Yes, I did swear to my husband that I would never see you again, and that if I broke my vow, I would die a horrible death." She looked at Song Jie, her eyes filled with unbearable sorrow: "I am a married woman, and I should never have met with Song Jie in the first place."

Under the oil-paper umbrella, her eyes seemed to glisten with tears.

As Song Jie looked into her eyes, the lighthearted feeling of watching the spectacle gradually disappeared, and his heart sank heavily and felt cold. Was it Pei Shilin who forced her to make such a poisonous oath?

What talk of reconciliation? It was nothing more than Pei Shilin using his power as a husband to force her. Marriage is about obeying one's husband. No matter how clever or intelligent she was, wasn't she still forced by her husband to go to the Prime Minister's residence to serve him?

Now that Pei Shilin no longer needs to use her, he is certainly entitled to force her to uphold her virtues and make a solemn oath, since she is Pei Shilin's lawfully wedded wife.

Xie Yushu was afraid he would burst out laughing. Yes, it was going to rise like that.

"May he die a horrible death?" Song Jie repeated these four words, his gaze still fixed on her. It turned out that Pei Shilin was not only a coward, but also as vicious as a lowly beast. "I didn't expect Madam Pei to believe in oaths."

He slowly stood up, a cold wind making him cough. He lowered his face, covering his mouth and nose, and asked, "What if your husband forces you to break your vow?"

Before Pei Shilin could react, Song Jie's men had already dragged him to Song Jie's feet. He painfully looked up and met Song Jie's cold and vicious eyes, which were like those of a viper.

Song Jie smiled, but his eyes didn't reach his eyes, and said to him, "Pei Shilin, if your wife doesn't come with me tonight, my men will beat you to death."

"You dare!" Pei Shilin had barely uttered the words when he was kicked to the ground by a servant in black.

"Shilin!" Li Huixian screamed in fright. She saw two servants in black punching and kicking Pei Shilin in the rain. After a few blows, Pei Shilin vomited blood. "Stop! Stop it! If you keep hitting him, someone will really die! He is, after all, the descendant of the Marquis of Yongyi and the Prime Minister!"

She went to beg Song Jie while crying, but Cang Shu stopped her before she could get close.

Song Jie showed a look of disgust, covered his mouth and nose and coughed lightly twice, "If Marquis Pei Yongyi were still alive, he would be ashamed to see such a good-for-nothing grandson." Apart from Pei Heng, no one in the Pei family has been successful in this generation.

Pei Shilin was soaking wet and screaming in agony.

Li Huixian was truly at her wit's end. She knelt down in front of Xie Yushu, crying, and begged her, "Yushu, please save Shilin! I was wrong before, it was all my fault. I forced Shilin to send you to the Prime Minister's mansion. You have to blame me. Shilin loves you!"

She cried, her face covered in tears and rain.

Xie Yushu looked down at her, her heart unmoved. Li Huixian was a stupid and wicked person who bullied the weak and feared the strong. How much the supporting character Yushu had tried to please this mother-in-law, but Li Huixian never intended to let her go.

"If Prime Minister Song wants to kill him, what can I do?" Xie Yushu asked coldly, "How does your mother-in-law want me to save her?"

Without hesitation, Li Huixian said, "Go with Prime Minister Song. He just wants you to accompany him to the Prime Minister's residence, right? As long as you go, he will let Shilin go!"

"What are you saying, Mother-in-law?" Xie Yushu immediately straightened her face: "I swore to my husband that I would never see Prime Minister Song again. Breaking my vow will result in a terrible death."

"I wish I would die a horrible death! May the retribution fall upon me!" Li Huixian cried, trying to tug at Xie Yushu's sleeve, but Yinya pushed her hand away. She could only continue to plead, "It was our Pei family that begged you to go, that oath doesn't count! Yushu, please, for the sake of your past relationship with Shilin, go with the Prime Minister! You can't just watch Shilin get beaten to death!"

Xie Yushu just stood there, coldly watching Pei Shilin being beaten, and said: "Your Pei family is really ridiculous. This morning my husband asked me to be a virtuous wife, and tonight my mother-in-law begged me to go and accompany other men. You have neither backbone nor courage."

Her sarcasm was clearly visible on her face. "I'm going to live a good life with my husband and uphold the virtues of womanhood. Don't harm me, mother-in-law."

Li Huixian was so humiliated that she couldn't speak. She raised her hand and slapped herself, crying, "It's all my fault. I looked down on your status as a concubine's daughter and persuaded Shilin to give you to Prime Minister Song, thinking that I could use you and then divorce you... Yushu, it's me, the Pei family, who have wronged you..."

Xie Yushu lowered his eyes to look at her and heard the system's voice.

Pei Shilin was beaten so badly that he could not speak.

Xie Yushu said calmly, "I truly feel ashamed for the late Old Master Pei. He was bestowed the title of 'Brave and Resolute' back then, and he probably never dreamed that you would smash it all away so completely..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Dao grabbed his arm and pulled him behind him, shouting, "Watch out!"

Xie Yushu only heard the sound of the wind breaking through the rain and mist and Cang Shu's shout: "Protect the Prime Minister!"

She didn't see what happened at all. When she steadied herself by gripping the knife's arm and looked over, she saw Cang Shu holding a crossbow bolt in his hand, protecting Song Jie. But Song Jie had still fallen back into the chair, with another crossbow bolt stuck in his shoulder.

The black-clad attendants immediately moved to his side, while another group rushed toward the direction of the crossbow bolts.

Xie Yushu looked out in surprise. Her first thought was that the person who shot the crossbow was the same person who had attacked her earlier and the shadowy figure who had injured Xiaodao.

Because on that occasion, it was she who was dealing with Pei Shilin and his mother when the shadowy figure outside the courtyard wall injured her people and saved Pei Shilin and his mother.

This time, they directly used crossbows to shoot and kill Song Jie, who had bullied Pei Shilin and his mother. The purpose of both times was the same: to save Pei Shilin and his mother.

Who exactly is it?

Who else in the world could save Pei Shilin and his mother besides him?

But Pei Heng shouldn't have come back at this time. In the original drama, he found the female lead Xie Jianing and brought her back with a secret mission.

She felt a sudden chill. If the shadowy figure was indeed Pei Heng, then had he been secretly observing the Pei family and her all along? Wouldn't she be nothing more than a rebellious and wicked woman in Pei Heng's eyes?

Although she didn't care what men thought of her, Pei Heng in the original drama won a great victory and returned to the capital. He was appointed General of the Cavalry by the emperor. Later, he eliminated the treacherous minister Song Jie and assisted Xiao Zhen in ascending the throne. He was promoted all the way to the rank of a king of a different surname, and his power was immense.

Hasn't she just created a formidable rival in the late game?

Without a second thought, Cang Shu shielded the injured Song Jie and approached her, calling out, "Madam, the Prime Minister needs to remove the arrow immediately. May we use your room?"

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Author's Note: I'm trying my best to update 6,000 words today, so please give me some praise! [shy]