Chapter 53 Chapter 53 Leaning on her grandfather's shoulder.

Exiting the front courtyard hall, Jasmine found an open area and asked Shancha, "Have they sent any letters?"

Shancha shook her head. "I'm afraid they'll be discovered if they just come to my house casually, so I asked the beggar who's meeting me to wait for me on the streets of Dongfu. Otherwise, I'll go out now, and Auntie will wait for me when I come back."

Shancha was about to leave when Jasmine grabbed her and said, "I'll go with you."

If something really happened to Madam Duan, it would take Shancha too long to go out and come back.

She wanted to come along so that they could come up with new ideas faster.

The sun had just been shining, but now two dark clouds had drifted across the sky. Jasmine told the old lady that it looked like it was going to rain, and she was worried and wanted to go and meet the Duke.

There was no need for the concubine to report to her if she wanted to leave the house. Now that the concubine politely told her, and it was for the Duke's sake, the old lady naturally agreed.

The old lady said lovingly, "Go ahead, and bring some snacks with you. We've been on the road looking for someone, and there's no guarantee Erlang won't even have a meal."

"I understand."

The doorman cleverly offered to help drive the horses. Jasmine refused. She wasn't used to being followed by a stranger, and it made her uncomfortable wherever she went. Shancha usually drove the horses.

This time she still didn't need a driver, which surprised no one.

On the streets of Dongfu Street.

Shancha saw the little beggar eagerly waiting for her. However, it was inconvenient for her to drive the carriage of the Duke's Mansion.

Shancha glanced at the little beggar and rode past. She parked the carriage in a narrow, deserted alley. Making sure no one was around, she quickly donned her veil and cloak, then glanced around before cautiously poking her head out.

Jasmine dressed as usual and got out of the carriage soon, pretending to go shopping and standing in front of a jewelry stall.

Behind her stood Shan Cha and the little beggar who were talking.

Shancha: "Is it done?"

Little beggar: "It's done."

Shan Cha was furious and gritted her teeth, "Liar! It's done, why hasn't he returned yet?"

The little beggar blinked innocently and said, "That's impossible. We really released that woman. And we did it in the middle of the night."

Shancha couldn't help but turn around and glance at her aunt, but unfortunately her aunt didn't look back.

Jasmine picked up a carved hairpin and said, "Boss, have you introduced this hairpin to others? It's so beautiful, why doesn't anyone buy it? What do customers say?"

Shancha asked the little beggar, "Did you talk to that person? Did the woman say anything?"

Little beggar: "We are being very cautious. Didn't you tell us not to talk too much? We didn't say anything. But..."

"But what?"

Little beggar: "The woman asked if the person who instigated us to kidnap her was a woman. She also wanted to ask what you look like. But don't worry, we didn't say a word."

The little beggar spread his hands, and his meaning was obvious: he was asking her for the remaining reward.

Shancha glanced at her aunt again.

Jasmine handed a piece of silver to the vendor and said, "Okay, I'll buy it then."

Shancha then took out the purse she had prepared earlier. The beggar wanted to take it, but Shancha asked, "Where's your purse?"

The little beggar muttered "stingy", then tightened his belt, unzipped his collar, and gestured for him to fall into her arms.

Shancha deftly shook the purse into the little beggar's arms, and the little beggar lowered his head and counted attentively.

Shan Cha stuffed the empty purse back into her sleeve and reminded her, "We're even now. Remind your companions to leave immediately. We agreed that if you get arrested, it has nothing to do with me."

The little beggar patted his chest and assured: "Don't worry, we will take the blame ourselves. What's wrong with being in prison? In prison, we can still be sheltered from the wind and rain and have enough food to eat."

The two returned to the carriage.

Shancha asked anxiously, "What should we do, Auntie? Those beggars shouldn't lie. They released the people in the middle of the night, so Madam Duan should have returned by now. Could it be that she was really robbed on the way back?"

It would be fine if the Duan family lady returned safely, but if the person continues to be missing, or if the person is really dead or disabled, the Shangshu Mansion will definitely investigate thoroughly.

People are equivalent to dying in their hands.

How could Camellia not be afraid?

"They haven't left the city yet. They're still inside Kyoto. How could the thieves have the guts to do that?" Jasmine had a guess. "Just now, the beggar said that Madam Duan asked them if it was a woman who kidnapped her? And what did the person who kidnapped her look like?"

"That's right."

"I guess Madam Duan has guessed that we were the ones who kidnapped her."

Shancha's teeth chattered in fear at her aunt's words. Then she heard her aunt say, "You drive the carriage, let's go to the east of the city."

Shancha didn't dare to question it, so she moved out and hurriedly swung the reins to drive the carriage out.

Jasmine leaned behind the car curtain and continued to talk to Shancha about her guesses.

"Auntie, do you suspect Madam Duan did this on purpose, just to get revenge on us?" Shancha asked before Auntie could finish her sentence. "So, are we going to go find the person now? But if we find them, we won't be able to explain ourselves. Or do you want to silence them?"

Thinking of "silencing the witness", Shancha quickly pulled the reins and wanted to get into the carriage to have a good chat with her aunt.

Jasmine bumped into Shancha's back and was thrown back into the carriage. She got up and said, "It's not what you think. Let's get on with the train first."

Jasmine knew she wasn't a good person. But she wasn't a vicious bandit. She hadn't had enough of the good life she was living, so why would she seek death?

Kidnapping Madam Duan was a deliberate decision, made sure she wouldn't be caught, that Madam Duan would be safe, and that she could keep the peace. Murder was a different matter.

"If Madam Duan had really been hiding, she would have been found, not returned on her own. She would have carried this stigma for the rest of her life. And she knew it was us. Even if she had no evidence and couldn't say it directly, she would definitely try to direct suspicion towards us. This would be disastrous."

"So what do we do after we find the person?"

"We were only out to greet the Duke, but we happened to run into Madam Duan and rescue her. We are her saviors, so how could Madam Duan slander us?"

Shancha's eyes lit up, then immediately dimmed as she thought of something: "What if we can't find it?"

"We have to find it. So we have to hurry."

...

No matter how clever Madam Duan was, she was still just a young lady in the boudoir. Furthermore, she was waiting to be discovered, so she couldn't hide too deeply.

Jasmine first looked for an inn near Yuanguang Temple, then walked around Yuanguang Temple. There was no one there.

"Did the beggar tell me where they hid the person yesterday?"

Shancha: "He didn't specify the exact location, only that it was in a shabby house near Yuanguang Temple that no one could find."

"A broken house?" Jasmine ran out of Yuanguang Temple in one breath and looked around.

There is no possibility of any dilapidated house in Yuanguang Temple. Yuanguang Temple has a huge flow of visitors, which has attracted various well-arranged stalls and shops around it, and there are also many nobles living nearby.

Where are the dilapidated houses around here?

Jasmine asked an old lady who was selling incense at a stall in front of Yuanguang Temple. The incense sold by the old lady was cheap, and there was a constant stream of pilgrims queuing up to buy incense.

When it was Jasmine's turn, she didn't buy any incense, but just asked around. The old woman ignored her. Jasmine had no choice but to buy a bunch of incense, and the old woman finally pointed her in the direction.

There really is a dilapidated house!

There was a row of dilapidated houses under the bridge pier. The entire front of the house, including the threshold, was covered with moss, as if it had been flooded.

And this place is under the bridge. Unless you stand on the bridge and look down, no one would know that there is such a place.

Jasmine and Camellia supported each other as they stepped onto the moss. They could vaguely see figures of people in several houses. Judging from their attire, they were undoubtedly homeless beggars.

Seeing footprints in front of the door, Jasmine went in and looked around carefully.

Jasmine was searching the room, identifying each one, afraid of missing one, when she heard an unusual noise.

Jasmine quickly stepped back, stepped out of the threshold, and the sound disappeared again. It should be next door to this room.

Jasmine looked around, picked up half a tile leaning against the wall, and then walked over lightly and quickly.

Shancha also followed her aunt's example and picked up a piece that suited her.

Jasmine raised the tile in her hand and threw it heavily to the ground, screaming, "Ah, it's the soldiers! The soldiers are here to arrest people!"

After a while, two men ran out of the door in a panic, slipped on the moss, and fell on their backs.

Jasmine and the others ran away, covering their buttocks, before they slipped into the house.

There was a female beggar squatting on the ground, but the fingers on her knees were extremely slender and white. Even though there was mud on her hands, it could not cover up an inch of their brilliance.

"Are you Madam Duan?"

Duan Zhi heard the voice and slowly looked up. Seeing that it was Jasmine, she was not surprised at all: "It's you."

Jasmine also thought to herself: She guessed it right.

How could she possibly admit this? Jasmine feigned bewilderment, "What did Madam Duan say? I saw it was raining outside and wanted to hide. I never expected to run into Madam Duan."

Duan Zhi curled her lips and said, "It's hard for Auntie to find this place to hide from the rain. I'm the only one here, so Auntie, there's no need to be so hypocritical."

Jasmine said with an embarrassed look on her face, "My lady, you really misunderstood me. But now is not the time to talk about this. My lady, are you okay? I will help you up."

When she approached, Duan Zhi waved her away: "No need for you."

Just as Jasmine was about to persuade her again, a chaotic sound of footsteps came closer.

When the three turned around in surprise, they saw four men blocking the door, two of whom had returned from the previous trip.

Duan Zhi looked at Jasmine and said, "Is he my aunt's man? Why would my aunt make such a fuss just to deal with me?"

Jasmine accidentally ran out of the few people, after hearing what Madam Duan said, still had time to reply to her: "Madam, you really misunderstood. It was I who found the person. I would not have saved you just now."

Duan Zhi also seemed to have just realized that this was indeed the truth.

Before the two men could figure out what was going on, the four men rushed over to arrest them.

Of course, the one who was arrested was Duan Zhi.

Jasmine and Shancha were ignored. Even though Duan Zhi was smart and calm, she panicked. "What do you want to do? Who sent you?"

None of the four spoke. It was obvious they had been told what to do.

If Duan Zhi was taken away like this, if something happened, they would definitely find her. But she and Shancha were no match for four people.

Jasmine was so anxious she didn't know what to do. She was just about to wait for them to leave, secretly following them and asking Shancha to find someone else.

One of them had already packed up Duan Zhi and was carrying her on his shoulders. The other three turned around and stared at them fiercely.

"Is it her maid? Take her away together."

As they spoke, the three of them surrounded Jasmine and the others.

Jasmine quickly said, "Since you have tied up my wife, I will definitely follow you. You don't have to tie her up, we will follow you obediently."

The four of them, perhaps finding it troublesome, actually agreed. They stepped aside and let them walk ahead.

Jasmine felt something pressing against her lower back, and a sinister voice echoed behind her ears: "If you dare to scream, I'll stab you to death."

"I dare not, I dare not. Please spare my life, sir." Jasmine begged for mercy.

The three of them were thrown into a carriage. Two men drove the carriage, while the other two got in directly, staring at them with eager eyes.

Duan Zhi had her mouth gagged and her hands and feet tied, leaving only her eyes able to see.

Jasmine and Camellia sat by the window.

Jasmine thought for a moment and asked the two men, "Excuse me, gentlemen, why did you kidnap our wife? If it's for money, just ask. Our wife is the legitimate daughter of the Minister of Revenue. She has plenty of money and will definitely not treat you unfairly."

The two men snorted and turned their heads away, ignoring him.

Jasmine asked again, "Those two gentlemen outside seemed to want to insult my wife earlier. Why do you want to take my wife away now? Are you no longer seeking a happy ending? Or do you want to find another place to slowly enjoy your happiness?"

That's what I said.

The two men looked at Jasmine in shock, as if they had not expected to hear such explicit words from a girl.

Duan Zhi's face flushed red as she stared at Jasmine.

Jasmine persisted and asked, "Why isn't Master talking?"

"She's not very good-looking, but her voice is quite alluring."

One of the eagle eyes seemed to be interested in Jasmine and looked at her openly.

Jasmine, not wanting to be outdone, looked back.

The man raised his lips again: "Don't worry, don't rush, let's take it slowly. Originally, the mission I received was only the Duan family's wife, but I like you, girl, so I will let you be the first in line later."

"What are you doing at the front of the line?"

This is clearly playing with fire!

The two men breathed rapidly and looked at the woman in front of them. They lost their patience and pounced on her.

The fat man pounced on Duan Zhi, and Hawkeye of course pounced on Jasmine.

Shancha huddled in the corner and screamed.

The two drivers outside heard the noise, lifted the curtain, and peeked in. They spat and cursed, "Damn it! I'm driving in the pouring rain, and you're having a great time!"

"Brother, why don't we just stay here? This place is remote enough, no one will come here."

"Alright."

After saying that, the two of them stopped the carriage and climbed into it.

However, the carriage was so cramped that there was no room to squat, let alone do anything.

Soon the two men retreated again. They also ordered the two people inside: "I'm not moving, if anyone moves, I'll chop you into pieces!"

As he spoke, the carriage started moving again, but instead of moving forward, it turned around and headed back.

Jasmine felt the carriage turn around, and she breathed a sigh of relief. If they left the city, her grandfather would have a hard time finding them.

Only in the city can they be rescued faster.

The inn was simple. When the innkeeper saw four men with three women, one of whom was tied up and carried on his shoulders, he knew something was wrong.

But the shopkeeper and the two customers who were having dinner in the restaurant pretended not to see anything.

Jasmine was pushed upstairs. As she stepped on a staircase, she turned back and said, "Master, I'm hungry. How about we eat first and then go upstairs?"

The rain was getting heavier outside, and the only two guests in the inn were scared away by their ferocity.

Jasmine continued: "Master, I can't walk anymore." As she said that, her knees went weak and she sat down on the stairs.

Shancha also imitated her aunt and sat on the ground, wailing: "I'm starving to death..."

"Stop screaming!" The fat man kicked Shancha impatiently, and Shancha immediately fell silent.

Hawkeye helped Jasmine up and said, "Okay, let's eat first."

The narrow-eyed man carrying Duan Zhi cursed, "What time is it now? Don't you want to live? Have someone bring food upstairs, and we'll leave as soon as we're done."

Hawkeye grinned, "Why would it take so long?"

Jasmine agreed in a sweet voice, "That's right. It's so cold after getting caught in the rain, but drinking some wine will warm you up instantly. I'm sure they'll be happier when we go upstairs later."

...

For a whole day and night, the Duke, the Chancellery, and His Majesty's guards divided into three groups to search for the man.

The Imperial Guards searched the entire city, and the Chancellery searched the East City. The Duke originally wanted to search the East City together with the Chancellery, but the Chancellery stayed behind to search the second time, and the Duke said he would go out of the city to look for someone.

But after leaving the city, he found no clues at all. After a quick search outside the city without success, the Duke returned to the city.

A heavy rain poured down, and the Duke returned with the elite soldiers of the Duke's Mansion on horseback.

Passing by a simple inn, the Duke signaled to stop.

Zuo He thought the Duke was going to rest here, so he said, "Master, we can still hold on."

The Duke said nothing, dismounted, walked to the gate of the courtyard, and took off a handkerchief from the door handle.

The Duke unfolded his handkerchief.

Chunli was surprised: "It looks like a sock!"

I thought the Duke would throw it away immediately after hearing this, but he didn't. Instead, he came closer and sniffed it.

The elite soldiers were too embarrassed to watch. They were thinking, was this a special hobby of the Duke, left over from not having touched a woman for over twenty years?

The Duke didn't take it seriously and said solemnly, "This sock is very similar to my aunt's."

"Auntie?" Chun Li was puzzled. "Auntie is in the mansion right now. The one in trouble right now is Madam Duan."

Zuo He: "Could this be the Duan family's wife?"

The three of them looked inside the inn.

At this time, two dark blue-clothed secret guards appeared out of nowhere.

Chunli and Zuo He drew their swords at the same time, but the Duke held them back: "They are our own people."

The secret guard knelt and reported, "It was my incompetence that allowed the concubine to be kidnapped. We have been guarding the inn the whole time, intending to wait until the bandits were off guard before rescuing the concubine."

Another secret guard said: "My Lord, Madam Duan and Madam are together."

Inside the inn, there was a table full of people, both men and women.

With her back to the door was a woman with a messy bun, and she was feeding the man beside her with wine.

"Master, this servant offers you a toast, so you must drink it."

The back figure was very familiar, and the voice was even more familiar, so familiar that it seemed strange to him.

How could this be my aunt? How could my aunt speak in such an inappropriate tone and say such inappropriate words?

The Duke felt that he must have made a mistake, that this was definitely not the concubine. But with the secret guards present, he had no choice but to believe it.

The man on the other side teased, "Why do you only respect him and not me? How am I any worse than him?"

The woman then poured another glass of wine and handed it to the man on the other side: "Please drink, sir."

The woman turned around, and the Duke wiped the rain off his face and saw half of her face clearly. It was exactly the same as his concubine's face!

"I don't want to drink now. I just want to watch you drink."

"But I can't handle the alcohol."

Jasmine said this weakly, and the next moment the fat man snatched the wine glass and tried to stuff it into Jasmine's mouth.

But before the wine glass could even reach Jasmine's lips, the fat man was slammed onto the table by a force from behind.

The fat man's head slammed into the plate on the table with a thud, and the broken porcelain covered his face. Blood immediately flowed across the table.

When the other three people noticed the noise and tried to stand up, they were simultaneously put to knives at their necks.

The man with thin eyes tried to resist and was stabbed in the stomach. Seeing this, the other two dared not move.

Jasmine looked at her grandfather with bright eyes.

"Master, have you seen my socks?"

The Duke threw the fat man to Zuo He, lowered his eyes to glance at his sleeve that was grabbed by his aunt, raised his head to look at his aunt's happy face, and while holding the thing in his hand, he couldn't smile.

"you……"

"My lord!"

The Duke was about to speak, but then stopped and looked at Madam Duan who called him.

Madam Duan was tied up. Surrounded by men, Chunli, Zuohe and the others did not dare to untie her.

The Duke stepped forward.

Jasmine watched the sleeve slip from her hand. After a moment of hesitation, she quickly caught up with her master and said, "Master, I'll help Madam Duan."

As she spoke, the aunt quickly untied the rope for Madam Duan.

Duan Zhi looked at the Duke, held back her tears for a moment, and finally the tears slid down her face.

Jasmine was annoyed. She should have cried just now, and she should have cried before the girl from the Duan family!

Jasmine raised her sleeve to wipe Madam Duan's tears: "Okay, stop crying. It's okay."

Duan Zhi pushed her away.

Jasmine stepped forward with a shy smile: "I know that my lady blames me, but I didn't do it on purpose. I took the risk because I was afraid that we would be in greater danger if we left the city. Please forgive me..."

"Bang!"

Duan Zhi slapped her across the face. The sheer force of her fury was palpable. Several bright red fingerprints instantly appeared on Jasmine's face, and drops of blood oozed from the scratches.

Jasmine covered her face, lowered her eyes, and leaned on her grandfather's shoulder.

She was so tired. Turns out manipulating and harming people was so exhausting. But as soon as she leaned on her grandfather's shoulder for a while, she instantly came alive again.

The Duke looked at his concubine's head with mixed emotions. After a moment, he finally raised his hand and patted her shoulder to comfort her. Then he looked at Madam Duan with a serious expression: "What are you doing?"

Duan Zhi didn't hide the disgust on her face at all. She looked up at the Duke and asked bluntly, "If I say that all the disasters I suffered today were caused by my aunt, would you believe me, Duke?"

"I don't believe it." The Duke replied without hesitation.

Duan Zhi smiled and said, "I know that the Duke will not believe me, but I will make him believe me. I advise the Duke not to be deceived by the concubine's false appearance."

Anger flashed across the Duke's face. "You hit her, refused to apologize, and are still making a scene. Is this the etiquette of the Shangshu Mansion?"

Duan Zhi didn't want to conflict with the Duke, but she was not wrong. Since she was not wrong, she should argue with him.

"My Lord, you don't believe me, but how do you know that my daughter is just making a fuss? And isn't she telling the truth? Just because my concubine is your woman, does that mean you have to protect her?"

"How insolent of you." The Duke's face turned cold. "My lady, if you have evidence, you can speak with it. If you don't, please shut up. If you damage my reputation, don't blame me for being rude."

Duan Zhi didn't say anything else. She wasn't stupid; she could tell he was genuinely angry.

She had just been bullied by a villain, and when she saw the Duke, she couldn't help but feel sad. But now, she had calmed down.

She bit her tongue, trying to hold back the tears. She absolutely couldn't let herself be laughed at at this moment.

Duan Zhi told herself in her heart that this man was just blinded by her aunt. Her grandfather said that he was a fair and strict person.

As long as he knew that his aunt was a bad-hearted person, he would definitely know that she was not lying and that she was a good person.

On the way back, the four prisoners were led by the Duke behind the horse, while Jasmine and the others of course rode in the same carriage as before.

Jasmine did not get on the carriage. After watching Madam Duan get on the carriage, she slipped out from under Shancha's umbrella, ran to the Duke's horse, and stretched out her hand to him.

The Duke had experienced the concubine's stubborn temper, so he didn't say anything and dragged the concubine onto the horse.

"Hold tight."

Jasmine wanted to sit in his arms, not behind him.

"Master, if I sit in the back, I'm afraid I'll fall."

The Duke: "Then let's take a carriage."

Jasmine felt that her master didn't understand her meaning, so she just said, "Can I sit in the front?"

The Duke: "The wind is strong and the rain is heavy."

"I'm not afraid."

The Duke didn't want to pay any more attention to his concubine, so he kicked his horse's belly and galloped forward.

Jasmine was so frightened that she quickly hugged her grandfather's waist.