Chapter 90◇

◎The Runaway Crown Prince's Wife◎

Duan Jingchuan didn't react for a moment. What did he have to do with the hundred taels of gold? But when he saw the two wanted criminals' portraits in Feng Ran's hand, he exclaimed in surprise, "Has Madam seen these two people before?"

Feng Ran smiled mysteriously, first helping Duan Jingchuan to his feet, then pressing the bewildered Duan Jingchuan directly into a chair, and then sticking herself close to him, saying, "You've met your husband before, think about it carefully again."

He'd seen them before? Duan Jingchuan frowned. These two were quite good-looking; if he'd seen them before, how could he not remember them?

He couldn't help but pick up the portrait and examine it carefully. Only then did he notice the problem and was immediately shocked: "It's that young master!"

There was a portrait of a man who looked remarkably like the young master, except that the man in the painting was the young master decades older.

Duan Jingchuan asked in bewilderment, "Even if we find the family of the person in the painting, it doesn't mean that Madam can get the hundred taels of gold."

At this point, Feng Ran started to gloat again, "Indeed, my husband is arrogant. You probably didn't see the detailed appearance of that young master helping that grandmother and grandson away."

This isn't how you use "arrogant and disdainful of others." Never mind, it's a minor matter.

To be honest, Duan Jingchuan didn't even look at those people's faces. It wasn't that he was heartless, but there were countless pitiful people, but those who were capable of saving themselves couldn't be considered truly pitiful. He had the kindness to save children, but he always politely declined to help those who had hands and feet but had to beg from others.

Upon hearing Feng Ran's words, Duan Jingchuan began to recall the details between the grandfather and grandson from earlier.

In a flash, he grasped at that faint glimmer of a clue, "Could it be that old woman?"

If we speculate in this direction, many things make sense. For example, why did that old woman have a rough, hoarse voice, and why was she much more robust than ordinary elderly people despite being a beggar?

Throughout history, fugitives have not necessarily used sophisticated methods to hide. Most of them have taken advantage of the fact that the darkness is in the shadows. The three were obviously a group, but a group of three would be too conspicuous. If one of them had rescued the two women, the suspect would have been cleared of most suspicion.

If Feng Ran hadn't been somewhat special in certain aspects, she probably wouldn't have been able to recognize at a glance that the pitiful old beggar was actually a young man from Tsinghua University.

As for the other young master, it was obvious that the authorities had not found out his true appearance, which was why he dared to openly show his true face.

On the long-quiet streets of Ningcheng, a peculiar scene suddenly appeared, prompting many of the onlookers to whisper among themselves.

"This young lady is far too temperamental. Could it be that her husband is still hung up on this woman, and that's why he's determined to cause her trouble?"

Everyone shook their heads, saying that Feng Ran was too petty, and pointed fingers at her.

Feng Ran's mood was not affected by the gossip. She grabbed the hair of the pitiful girl who had just been pretending to be weak and dying, and dragged her forward slowly step by step without letting go.

She originally wanted to pull the hair of the old woman or the young man, but her husband wouldn't allow it, so she had to settle for pulling the hair of the accomplice instead.

Anyway, all three of them are birds of a feather, so it doesn't matter which one you bring up.

That's right, Feng Ran plans to take matters into her own hands and drag these three people to the government office to exchange them for a hundred taels of gold.

As for the two men, she casually ordered two guards to lead them, gagged them, and made them walk behind her.

The three who had just settled down were confused. At first, they really thought that Feng Ran wanted to cause them trouble. They couldn't help but curse that slut in their hearts. Even when disaster was imminent, she still didn't forget to seduce the handsome young man.

The girl was also very regretful, but Feng Ran didn't give her a chance to explain at all. As soon as she saw the three of them, she gagged them and tied them up. What's even more infuriating is that she actually dragged her by the hair and paraded her through the streets!

No matter how much she struggled, she couldn't free her hair. She didn't know what she ate to grow up like that. She really had the strength of a shrew. The girl whose hair was being pulled felt a little embarrassed, but she didn't panic. When she couldn't free her hair, she followed the force.

Some, looking reluctant, were about to speak up, but upon seeing the two rows of guards standing beside Feng Ran, their faces heavy with the stench of blood, they immediately fell silent.

None of the three actually struggled too much. In fact, in order to avoid attracting attention, they not only cooperated well, but also covered their faces as much as possible, hoping that Feng Ran would release them peacefully after she had vented her anger.

However, to their utter surprise, Feng Ran led them all the way to the entrance of the county government office and started banging on the big drum.

Actually, Feng Ran didn't have to play the drum, but she wanted to try it out. She had already asked Duan Jingchuan before coming, and he said that playing it twice wouldn't hurt, and the local officials wouldn't blame her. So Feng Ran played the drum with even more confidence, each beat more spirited and imposing than the last.

The three of them were completely panicked. They realized that they had been exposed and kidnapped to collect the gold.

The two men were pinned down, and even the woman, who was only held by one hand, was helpless against Feng Ran's iron grip. She couldn't move an inch, and her wrist was almost crushed by her.

Where is Duan Jingchuan? Duan Jingchuan is having tea with the magistrate of Ningcheng County, waiting for Feng Ran to come and collect the gold.

His wife rarely had anything to be happy about, so he naturally wanted to protect her. If the magistrate turned out to be an incompetent or corrupt official who embezzled public funds and left his wife with a bad experience, that would be disastrous.

Therefore, Duan Jingchuan and Feng Ran split up into two groups. Feng Ran went to arrest the three people, while Duan Jingchuan, carrying his identity token, stormed into the county government office.

Magistrate Chen was in a terrible predicament. What kind of situation was this? The young master from the capital had come to his territory with his wife to arrest a suspect!

They actually caught him after only one day. How could he possibly save face?

Cold sweat dripped down his back. Fortunately, Duan Jingchuan didn't blame him, otherwise he would have ruined his reputation.

Hearing the deafening drumbeats, Magistrate Chen felt as if he had been saved. Never before had he found the drumbeats so pleasing to the ear. He quickly asked in a low voice, "Young Master, what do you think?"

Duan Jingchuan smiled enigmatically, “This is Magistrate Chen’s duty, and I cannot interfere. Just follow the law.”

Magistrate Chen's brow twitched, thinking to himself, "With you sitting in my back room, how dare I not perform my duties properly?"

He might have dared to try to negotiate with an ordinary young master and offer some bribes, but this was the young master of the Marquis of Dingbei's mansion. Putting aside everything else, which of the nearby cities didn't feel grateful for the Marquis of Dingbei's kindness?

If he were to offend the heir of the Marquis of Dingbei's household today, he would rather hang himself than wait for the Marquis of Dingbei to come and chop him down with his sword.

Duan Jingchuan leisurely sipped his tea in the backyard, listening to the commotion in the front yard. He thought to himself that his wife must be in high spirits, talking at length about how she had spotted the criminal with her keen eye, and maybe even gesturing wildly as she spoke.

Thinking of this, a smile as bright as melting snow bloomed in his eyes.

Before the smile in his eyes could fade, the image of his wife vividly flashed before his eyes.

"Hi, my husband, it's been a long time." Feng Ran skipped and jumped, and in a few moments she was in front of Duan Jingchuan.

Duan Jingchuan nearly choked on his tea after taking a sip. He calmly steadied himself and asked, puzzled, "Why has Madam come over?"

Feng Ran snatched Duan Jingchuan's cup, chugped a refill of her tea, and gulped it down. After wiping her mouth, she said, "I just wanted to experience the fun of being paraded through the streets to file a complaint. Once I've experienced it, I'll naturally come over. I'm not interested in how the trial goes afterward."

Well, Duan Jingchuan understood; his wife's preferences had always been different from others.

Of course, although Feng Ran didn't care about the aftermath of the case, she still got the hundred taels of gold she was owed.

Duan Jingchuan originally thought that his wife's greedy nature would lead her to take it for herself.

"You're going to donate it all?" Duan Jingchuan frowned, thinking that Feng Ran was worried about disaster relief. He added, "There's no need to worry about disaster relief. The money we earn from our businesses is enough. This hundred taels of gold was earned by Madam herself, so we can keep it as a private stash."

While casually playing with Duan Jingchuan's fingers, Feng Ran said nonchalantly, "I used to save up my private money to become a runaway prince's wife, but now that's no longer necessary. It would be more meaningful to donate this money."

The runaway princess? Duan Jingchuan's alarm bells rang. He straightened up and said righteously, "Madam, doing good deeds requires wholehearted dedication. Give us all your private savings so we can do more good deeds."

Feng Ran nodded seriously, "Okay, I'll give you all my little silver chests when we get back. Actually, those were all given to me by you."

Duan Jingchuan nodded in satisfaction. "From now on, we won't save any money on our own. What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours." The unspoken message was: "Without any secret savings, you can forget about becoming the runaway princess."

Duan Jingchuan stayed in Ningcheng for seven days, busy coming and going every day. Occasionally, he would take Feng Ran out for a stroll. Feng Ran felt sorry for Duan Jingchuan being too tired, so she rarely bothered him. She took Huang Que around and proved to herself that she didn't need his company.

In just a few days, Feng Ran had already become friends with Huang Que and the other children around her, almost becoming their leader.

Huang Que rarely had friends of the same age. With Feng Ran's help, he quickly integrated into the group. Relying on Feng Ran's support, he openly asked Fang Yuan for holidays and spent his days playing wildly.

After playing with the children for a few days, Feng Ran got bored again. After asking Huang Que for his opinion, she left him to play alone among the children. She was going to play the role of a virtuous wife and loving mother and cook for her husband.

This idea came from the children's chatter. Feng Ran usually had the most contact with Duan Jingchuan and hadn't really seen how a normal couple interacted. Her feelings for Duan Jingchuan were entirely based on her emotions. In reality, she hadn't done anything for him, not even given him a single gift.

Hearing the children comparing whose parents had the best relationship, Feng Ran was shocked to realize that she seemed to have always been the one who got what she wanted. Her husband took care of everything for her, from food and clothing to shelter and transportation. She was the one who wanted to come to Ancheng and do good deeds, but her husband made all of these things happen for her. He even thought that he would become an official so that she could hold her head high in the inner quarters.

One by one, things that had never been connected flashed before her eyes in a fast-paced manner, and the more Feng Ran thought about it, the more guilty she felt.

What did her husband like to do? She didn't know.

To err is human, to forgive divine. Feng Ran is very polite and believes in improving what she has done wrong. Everyone says that the best gifts are those made with care, but Feng Ran is confused.

She has no practical skills, only destructive ones. Embroidering handkerchiefs and making clothes are probably things she'll never be able to do in her life. The only thing she might be good at is cooking.

I don't know where I heard it, but the female lead always blows up the kitchen when she cooks. Feng Ran cheered herself up. Her stupid brain couldn't remember the recipe for the bomb. It definitely wasn't her who blew up the kitchen, and it definitely wasn't her who made her husband's stomach upset.

Hmph, let's see how she, the big boss Ran, makes a name for herself in the kitchen. She's determined to let her husband feel her sincere heart and deep love.

A note from the author:

My heroine could never play by the rules; she doesn't even subvert the tropes!

To find out what happens next, please stay tuned for the next episode.