Chapter 73 Chapter 73 He suspected that she had harmed Wan Sui...

The world was spinning.

Jasmine wanted to stand up, but couldn't. After a long while, the treetops above her head stopped moving, and she was able to sit up with difficulty.

Touching her hands, feet, and then her face, Jasmine stood up happily.

After rolling for a long time, she was not hurt at all!

It's true, except for the scratches on the back of her hands and elbows caused by branches, she is fine.

Jasmine thought of something and looked around. She saw Wan Sui'er lying face down on the ground about two feet away.

Jasmine's heart skipped a beat.

Just as she was about to walk over, several figures passed by and rushed to Wan Sui'er's side.

Jasmine looked at the leading man and stopped.

"Madam Wan!"

The Duke knelt on the ground, first glanced at Lady Wan, then carefully protected Wan Sui'er's neck and turned her over.

After checking the pulse and confirming that the person was still alive, the Duke breathed a sigh of relief.

He picked the person up sideways and looked at his aunt in surprise.

When the Duke saw his aunt, he was stunned for a moment, then his face turned cold: "Why are you here?"

The Duke lowered his eyes to glance at Wan Sui'er, and when he looked up at his aunt again, his eyes were even more inquiring and cold.

How could Jasmine not understand what he meant? Was he suspecting that she had harmed Wan Sui'er?

Jasmine was about to explain to him when the Duke glanced away and quickly walked past her.

Jasmine couldn't accept this, so she chased after him and grabbed his arm with both hands: "It wasn't me."

Jasmine was not very angry when she said this. After all, she had indeed had the intention of harming others.

But it's true that this matter has nothing to do with her.

The Duke didn't say much, only said in a deep voice: "Let go."

"Master, don't you believe me?" Jasmine held on tightly, as if to say he couldn't leave until he explained clearly.

"Madam Wan is injured and must be taken to the hospital immediately. Let go!"

Jasmine's face was full of hurt. "In my heart, Miss Wan is more important than Qiang'er?"

Jasmine no longer had any scruples about what she hadn't dared to say before, ever since leaving the house. Now, she was so angry that her eyes were black, and she didn't care anymore.

"Please, Lord Duke, save my wife!" It was the maid of the Wan Mansion.

Hearing this, the Duke no longer looked at his concubine and strode forward.

Jasmine was also injured, and her legs were weak. She was thrown away, so how could she catch up?

But she still ran to catch up, but was arrogantly blocked by two maids from the Wan Mansion.

Jasmine glared back angrily. It was a pity Shancha wasn't there, so she was all alone. Jasmine knew the situation and didn't fight back.

"She was the one who dragged my wife down. Either of you let her get away."

"yes."

The maid of Wan Mansion said to the servant of Wan Mansion.

Jasmine hadn't expected them to actually suspect her, but she hadn't intended to run away either.

When the servant from the Wan Mansion tried to grab her arm, Jasmine fiercely rebuked him, "You're so audacious! I'm the Duke's concubine, how dare you touch me!"

The two servants were indeed frightened.

The two maids were also shocked and dared not do anything rash again.

Jasmine then stepped forward and saw Chunli standing not far away and the guards behind him.

Chunli was stunned.

Jasmine sneered, walked closer and asked, "Did the Duke ask you to watch me?"

Was he afraid she'd run away? Jasmine felt even more upset.

Chunli nodded without hesitation: "Yes."

Jasmine numbly raised her foot and stepped forward.

Chunli felt mixed emotions. He stood there for a moment and then quickly ran back to report.

...

Jasmine was escorted back to the Marquis of Changping's Mansion.

On the way back, Jasmine thought about the whole incident several times.

That Wan Niangzi must have done it on purpose! She pretended to reach out to save her, to appear kind and innocent. Who would have thought that she actually grabbed her hand and took her away.

Now that she knows that she is the Duke's concubine, how can Madam Wan let her go?

Who knows what he'll do to her later. He'll definitely frame her for trying to harm her. At the time, it was just the three of them, the Wan master and his servant, in the pavilion with her.

Jasmine felt that she was afraid that she would be unable to defend herself.

Her mind raced, thinking of a solution.

Oh, that monkey.

Seeing the Duke emerge, Jasmine, who was standing in the courtyard of the Marquis of Changping's residence, hurried forward to explain, "There are monkeys in the hills behind the Wupeng Pavilion. The pavilion might be their territory, and we occupied it, so they attacked me. It was Miss Wan who came to pull me down, and we accidentally fell in together. If you don't believe me, you can have someone wait for me. It's a white-lipped, short-haired monkey. If they see the monkey, it means I'm not lying. Miss Wan really fell in carelessly, and it has nothing to do with me."

"Madam Wan didn't say it was you."

The Duke's words silenced Jasmine instantly.

The Duke looked at her with dark eyes. "The first thing she did when she woke up was to ask how you were. She made it clear that it had nothing to do with you and that she saved you willingly. Since you don't want to thank me, then leave."

Jasmine was caught off guard and stared at him blankly.

The Duke turned his back on her and walked into the corridor without paying any more attention to her.

"The master has left." Chunli stuck his head out to take a look and reported to the Duke.

The Duke remained silent.

After hearing what their daughter said, the Marquis of Changping and his wife let the Duke make the decision because she was his former concubine.

The Duke walked into the guest hall and expressed his gratitude to the Marquis of Changping and his wife.

Chunli and Zuo He stood outside the corridor. Chunli was confused and whispered, "Auntie seems to have changed into a different person. You haven't seen how fierce she is."

Zuo He didn't react much, and said coldly: "I saw it a long time ago, but you guys didn't believe it."

Chunli nodded: "You are right. Because of a concubine, the master has become more silent recently, and I don't know when he will get better."

Zuo He: "Don't worry, she's just a woman. And an unpleasant one at that. As long as the concubine doesn't show up, it will only last for a month or two at most."

He hadn't believed him last time. This time, Chunli stood by him without hesitation: "I believe you."

Zuo He: "The most urgent thing right now is to prevent that woman from appearing again."

Chunli nodded.

"Yan thanks the Marquis and the Marquis's wife for being so magnanimous."

The Marquis of Changping and his wife quickly bowed in return. "Your Excellency is very polite. Fortunately, Sui'er is fine. This was her own choice. Your Excellency need not worry about it."

The Duke bowed again.

The Marquis's wife smiled and said, "Sui'er has always been kind-hearted. She once saw a cold kitten on the road and insisted on taking it home. I think it's really just as Sui'er said, a misunderstanding. I just don't know why my aunt appeared in the mountains behind Fahua Temple."

How could the Duke not know? Since the Marquis's wife asked, he did not hide it: "This girl followed me here."

The couple was shocked.

The Marquis's wife: "I heard that the Duke and my aunt have no relationship anymore. My aunt... could it be that you regret it?"

Everyone present understood what Mrs. He said.

Jasmine asked to leave the Duke's Mansion and move to He Chenshi's Mansion. It was no longer a secret that she was engaged to He Chenshi.

The reason the Marquis's wife knew this so well was that after His Majesty granted the marriage, she had thoroughly investigated everything about the Duke's Mansion. Of course, the Marquis's wife knew everything about the Duke's only concubine, Jasmine.

What could the concubine regret? Of course, she regretted leaving the Duke's Mansion and wanted to reconcile with the Duke.

The Marquis's wife was a little worried that the Duke would agree to the concubine's request. Normally, no man would turn back to such a fickle and ungrateful woman. But just now, the Duke actually came to thank them for the concubine's request.

This is unusual.

The Duke didn't really want to say anything more, but he still spoke: "Don't worry about her. Even if she really wants to come back, the Duke's Mansion won't tolerate her."

The Marquis's wife finally put her worries to rest. With a smile on her face, she asked the Duke to stay for dinner before leaving.

The Duke politely declined on the grounds that he had important matters to attend to.

When I walked out of the Marquis of Changping's Mansion, the rain was still heavy.

Chunli handed over the umbrella.

The Duke looked up at the sky for a while, pushed open the umbrella handle, jumped on his horse, and rode away.

Behind him, guards such as Zuo Hechunli followed.

...

Jasmine hired a carriage to go out, but when she came back, she took the carriage of the Marquis' Mansion. Now she had to walk back.

Fortunately, the back alley of Nanfu Street is not far away. If I walk faster, maybe I can get home before dark.

Jasmine was hurrying forward, her head in her hands. When she heard the sound of horse hooves, hope lit up her face. Turning around, she saw the Duke and his men approaching from afar.

"Master..."

Jasmine had just uttered a word when her head and face were splashed with mud and water from the horse's hooves.

Jasmine wiped her face and when she turned around to look again, the person had already passed by and ran away, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Jasmine was in tears.

When she was almost at the door, Shan Cha saw her from afar and rushed over with an umbrella: "My dear, how did you become like this?"

Knowing that she didn't approve, Jasmine went to the back mountain of Fahua Temple without telling her. Jasmine didn't want to cry, but Shancha hugged her.

"It's okay. Shancha is with my wife."

Jasmine suddenly lost all her strength and leaned on her shoulder.

...

After listening to his wife's story about the hardships along the way, Shancha curled her lips, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Seeing his wife looking so pitiful, Shan Cha couldn't bear to say anything to her, so he turned to talk about the wife of the Wan family.

"It's obvious that he did it on purpose. Otherwise, why would the Duke ignore me today? What a brilliant move! I'm afraid I'm no match for him."

Jasmine had thought so from the beginning, but after all, Wan Sui'er was implicated by her and almost lost her life, so she didn't blame her in the end.

Jasmine spoke up for Wan Sui'er: "I don't think so."

Shancha was heartbroken and said, "When did my wife become so easy to fool?"

"Don't worry, my lady, I won't give up that easily."

Shancha felt even more desperate when she heard this: "Why, my lady, you still want to compete with Wan for a man? My lady, don't forget, you are currently the He family's unmarried daughter-in-law."

Jasmine: "In two days, I will go and cancel the engagement myself."

Shan Cha couldn't understand her: "My lady, have you really made up your mind? Would you rather return to the Duke's Mansion as a concubine than be Mr. He's wife?"

Jasmine didn't say anything.

Shancha sighed and said, "Alright, Madam He is so difficult to get along with. It's hard for us to live under her rule. If you want to return to the Duke's Mansion, then go ahead. But have you decided how to do it?"

Jasmine was delighted that she had quickly taken her side. She hugged her and said, "Good Camellia!"

After hugging him until he was furious, Jasmine finally spoke: "I plan to let Wan Sui'er taste the taste of being a bad girl. If it succeeds, maybe this marriage will be cancelled. If it fails, at worst I can let her marry, and if the Duke finds pity on me, I can go back."

"I'm afraid it's a bit difficult, right? Madam, you know that you are the bad woman right now. Who would believe that?"

Jasmine said confidently, "As long as the Duke believes it, it will be fine."

Shancha still felt unreliable. Wan Sui'er was a noble lady, while my wife's reputation was utterly awful. Unless the Duke had lost his memory due to a knock on his head, there was no way he could trust my wife again.

But since my wife is not giving up, it’s okay to let her try.

...

The Duke arranged for Lady Wan to meet him for the second time at a teahouse. Perhaps to avoid his aunt, he didn't choose the most prestigious Dongshun Teahouse, but went to the Xishun Teahouse, which was a bit far from the imperial city.

The first person to notice the aunt was Chunli. He thought he was seeing things, but when the aunt tied the horse reins and turned around and approached, he confirmed that it was the aunt and quickly called out to Zuo He.

Zuo He and Zuo He stepped forward one on the left and one on the right to block the man.

Jasmine saluted: "Greetings, Generals."

Zuo He held up the scabbard and said expressionlessly, "Please respect yourself, Auntie."

Chunli bumped into him, and Zuo He realized that the aunt in front of him was no longer an aunt!

But the words were out, and there was no taking them back. Zuo He could only try to scare his aunt off by making himself look even more cold-blooded and ruthless.

Chunli then said coldly, "This is not the place for my lady. Please go back."

Jasmine, having finally found this place, certainly couldn't leave. She stood still and said, "Is the teahouse reserved by the Duke?"

Of course, the teahouse was not booked. It wasn't that they couldn't afford it, but that such a powerful and wealthy behavior was not something their masters could do.

Neither of them spoke.

Jasmine smiled and said, "Since there's no package, why can't I just go in and have a cup of tea?"

The two of them still stood there without moving.

Zuo He: "Madam, you know exactly why you are here. Please don't make things difficult for us."

Jasmine had no choice but to speak sincerely, "I just wanted to thank Madam Wan. I didn't have time that day, and I was afraid Madam Wan wouldn't want to see me at the Marquis' Mansion. I hope the two generals will be accommodating. I'll leave after I thank you."

The two of them seemed not to hear. Jasmine looked at Chunli and said, "Shancha asked me to tell General Han that she is not worthy. Please don't be sad."

Chun Li's concentration was immediately interrupted, he lowered his scabbard and asked anxiously, "Why...?"

Zuo He glared at Chun Li: "She lied to you. Like master, like maid."

Chunli was about to be disappointed.

Jasmine continued, "Believe it or not. What I said is true. Shancha knows you've been drinking to drown your sorrows for many days, so I didn't dare to come to you, so I had to ask me for help."

Chunli suddenly perked up. His face was filled with emotion. He was so excited that he muttered to himself, "She has me in her heart. Not only my aunt, but me too. I was wrong about her, wrong about her."

Jasmine seized the opportunity and slipped past Chunli.

Zuo He glared again and tried to chase after him, but was stopped by Chun Li.

"what you do?"

Chunli: "She just wanted to say thank you, and I didn't say to stop her, so forget it."

Zuo He pointed at him viciously: "You are not worthy to stay by my side!"

Chun Li coaxed him in a friendly way: "Yes, I am not worthy, only you are worthy, okay?"

On the second floor of the teahouse, in a private room with bright lights on both sides, the Duke and Lady Wan were sitting opposite each other drinking tea.

As a military commander, the Duke certainly didn't have the patience to drink tea just for the sake of drinking tea, but the current situation was different. He wanted to cultivate a relationship with Wan Niangzi, so he had no choice but to follow Wan Niangzi's lead.

The two were quietly sipping tea. Wan Sui'er was just about to ask the Duke if he liked the tea when suddenly a person appeared in front of the box door.

"Mrs. Jasmine?"

The Duke's eyes grew colder, and he stood up and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Jasmine's heart ached, and she said with a look of grievance, "I came here to thank Miss Wan. Last time, Jian'er was scared by me and forgot to thank me, so I came here now."

The Duke's expression eased slightly. "In that case, come forward."

Jasmine smiled at him and walked forward.

The fleeting dimples on the concubine's face made the Duke dazed for a moment, as if he had just had a nightmare recently, and now he woke up to see the sweet concubine still by his side.

Jasmine was not ambiguous at all. She stepped forward and bowed to Madam Wan. "Thank you so much for saving me that day, Madam Wan. It was Jasmine who nearly caused Madam Wan's life. Jasmine is very sorry. Jasmine kowtows to you."

Just kowtow when you say so.

Jasmine fell to her knees, "dong dong dong", her movements were quick and decisive.

Wan Sui'er was still confused when the Duke of Guo picked her up and said, "That's enough."

Jasmine couldn't help but curl her lips as she lowered her head. When she raised her face, she looked at the Duke with an expression as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. "Jian'er is fine. But you feel sorry for Jian'er, and Jian'er is very happy."

The Duke didn't know what to say. Did he feel sorry for her? The Duke asked himself.

It seems so.

In the past, whenever she was bullied and had to kneel down, the Duke would always feel angry.

What the Duke didn't understand was that it was clearly the concubine who was at fault today and she deserved it, but he still didn't want to see her suffer any injustice.

The Duke was condemning himself in his heart when he heard his concubine speak again.

"Please don't worry, Madam Wan. The Duke is just kind-hearted. Once you enter the Duke's Mansion, I'm sure I'll love you even more."

Wan Sui'er stood there awkwardly, her face a bit nervous and pale. She said nothing, but the maid behind her said, "How dare you speak foul language in front of my wife!"

Jasmine stepped back in fear, and happened to fall into the Duke's arms, leaning her shoulders against his chest.

Subconsciously, the Duke put his arm around the concubine's thin shoulders. The next moment, the Duke's hand froze.

She was no longer his concubine. But looking down at her, the Duke couldn't bear to push her away.

She has always been timid, and it is true that she suffers from palpitations.

These days, she was probably too scared living alone in the courtyard, so she wanted him to accompany her. But not only did he not understand, he also scolded her.

"Stubborn, I'm sorry."

The Duke thought of apologizing and immediately spoke.

Jasmine asked doubtfully, "Are you apologizing because you rejected Qiang'er that day?"

Without waiting for her father to speak, she hurriedly shook her head: "It's my fault for not thinking things through. It has nothing to do with you."

The two of them were in love with each other without paying any attention to the others. Lady Wan's face turned even paler. The two maids were extremely anxious, but they did not dare to offend the Duke.

Jasmine smiled slightly and looked at Madam Wan: "Today, Jasmine wants to thank you. Now that I have done my business, I will take my leave."

Jasmine then said to the Duke, "Jiang'er, please take your leave."

"How come you have two names?"

Wan Sui'er didn't want to ask, but she was really curious.

Jasmine glanced at the Duke, lowered her head and said nothing.

Wan Sui'er was even more confused and looked back and forth at the two of them.

The Duke said, "This girl is very stubborn. The word 'stubborn' suits her very well."

Wan Sui'er knew it. It turned out to be the nickname given by the Duke to his concubine.

When a man gives his concubine a nickname, it always means he dotes on her.

Jasmine stepped back and walked away. When she reached the door frame, it suddenly started to wobble. Fortunately, she grabbed hold of the door frame in time and did not fall.

Seeing this, the Duke stepped forward quickly and took the man in his arms: "What's going on?"

If it were the Third or Fourth Master, they would have thought it was a trick played by the concubine. Pretending to faint is such an old-fashioned trick!

Which man would be fooled these days? But the Duke is an exception.

Jasmine wasn't pretending. After all, the effect just now was already maximized. She didn't need to do it again and again.

She was really dizzy.

Jasmine herself was confused, so when the Duke asked, she shook her head.

"But you got sick from the rain that day?"

The day that the Duke was talking about was the day of the outing, the day when Jasmine was brought back to the Marquis of Changping's Mansion and returned alone in the rain.

After Jasmine returned home, she drank ginger tea and took a bath. She didn't get sick, especially since several days had passed.

Jasmine shook her head again: "Jian'er is fine."

The Duke didn't say anything, but he was deeply upset. He felt that his concubine must have caught a cold that day and hadn't fully recovered.

He had left her in the rain that day, nearing dusk, and thinking of her walking back home in the rain, injured, the Duke had regretted it ever since.

"I will make an appointment with Miss Wan another day. I will go ahead today."

After saying this, the Duke whispered to Jasmine, "Can you still walk?"

Jasmine was stunned. He was leaving Wan Sui'er here alone to have tea for her?

Seeing that she was silent, the Duke picked her up by the waist, strode out of the corridor and went downstairs.

"How can this be possible!"

The two maids were furious. They looked at their wife nervously, but saw her standing there with a pale face.

"She's just a lowly maid, don't be angry, ma'am."

Wan Sui'er didn't want them to worry, so she forced a smile and nodded in agreement. "Let's go back too. We mustn't tell our parents about this, or they won't worry."

"But my lady..."

"The marriage is granted by the Emperor. No one can change it. It will only cause my parents to worry. Besides, I trust the Duke's character."

The two maids looked at each other and answered "yes" sadly.

The Duke sent Jasmine back to the back alley of Nanfu Street. He didn't say a word along the way because he didn't know what to do with his concubine.

It wasn't until he sent the man back to the alley that he spoke: "I ordered someone to call a doctor to see you."

"No need." Jasmine refused.

The concubine's refusal was resolute, but with a hint of guilt, and the Duke suddenly realized something was amiss. Across the courtyard gate, he sized her up, frowning and asking, "Are you pretending?"

Jasmine was stunned for a moment, then quickly shook her head: "No! I'm really dizzy!"

The Duke was clearly suspicious, so how could he trust her? "Then why don't you want a doctor to come?"

"I'm just... afraid to see a doctor."

The Duke was certain that his concubine was pretending.

If he had known she was this kind of person, he would have been fooled again and again.

The Duke realized belatedly that she had appeared in Xishun Teahouse today, saying that she wanted to thank Miss Wan, but in fact she had another plan.

Those words she said were probably meant to upset Miss Wan.

After thinking it through, the Duke said nothing more, waved his sleeves, jumped on his horse, and rode away.

Jasmine leaned against the gate, feeling very upset.

After a moment, he turned around.

She seemed to be hungry. As she walked in, she called out, "Biyue Xiyue, is there anything to eat? Forget it, let's light the stove and cook more..."

In a flash, I saw someone standing in the corridor.

Jasmine asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"

He Congde looked unhappy: "Let's go inside and talk."

Jasmine followed him into the living room.

He Congde stared at her: "Why are you still associating with him?"

Jasmine thought about just talking to him clearly today.

No, no, no. You just agreed, and now you regret it. This is too inhuman!

It would be better to wait until you find him one of the most beautiful and talented girls in Kyoto before bringing it up.