Chapter 78 Fortune Turns Around

It was late at night that day.

Inside an inconspicuous teahouse in a dimly lit alley in the West Market, Qi Jinling sat at a simple wooden table, looking at the newcomer with a gloomy face.

Shen Yao clenched his fists, which were hidden in his sleeves. He took a deep breath and suppressed the unease in his heart. "Ning'er has not been feeling well these past few days and has not gone out."

"Oh?" Qi Jinling glanced at him sideways. "Is that so?"

Previously, Shen Yao had told Qi Jinling all the places Shen Xiangning liked to go, but Qi Jinling had gone there every time she went in the past few days and found no one there.

That's why he's here tonight to confront Shen Yaoxing and demand an explanation.

He spoke in a low voice, appearing nonchalant, but Shen Yao knew he was a madman not to be trifled with.

On a cold winter night, sweat broke out on Shen Yao's forehead.

He could only nod and bow, "Yes, I dare not lie to you."

“Heh,” Qi Jinling chuckled very softly, “You are my future father-in-law, so of course I trust you.”

"Since my betrothed is unwell, let the royal physician treat her."

"If the local physicians can't cure it, then go to the doctors at Baicaotang."

"In short, she can't miss the birthday banquet in a few days."

“...Yes,” Shen Yao nodded, responding in a humble tone.

Qi Jinling glanced at him lightly, then put her hand on his shoulder and pressed down on him without making a sound. "You know, we're in this together now."

"You have no other choice but to help me achieve my great cause. When that happens, Chen Xiangning will be my empress, and you will be the emperor's father-in-law, second only to the emperor."

"Isn't this what you've always dreamed of?"

"What Qi Jincheng can't give you, I can give you."

Hahahahahaha.

Shen Yao still didn't look up, but the sweat on his forehead poured even more down. He could only grit his teeth and reply, "Thank you."

——

Two days later, in front of the palace gate.

It was just past mid-Shenshi (3-5 PM), and the sky was overcast with not a ray of sunshine.

The air was even colder, and the wide road was solemn and quiet.

The carriage bearing the insignia of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion came to a stop, and a tall man dressed in a deep blue brocade robe with wide sleeves and gold thread, with a dark cloak over it, stepped down from the carriage.

Upon seeing him, the guards at the gate immediately bowed and greeted, "Greetings, Duke Zhenguo."

Chu Xiao nodded slightly and was about to step into the palace when an urgent voice came from behind him.

"Lord!"

He turned around, and there was Cui Yang back.

The sound of hooves was abruptly stopped. Cui Yang was covered in dust, but his spirits were high.

Chu Xiao narrowed his dark eyes and immediately understood what he meant.

Since they were still outside the palace, Cui Yang didn't say anything unnecessary.

Chu Xiao said in a low voice, "You will come to the palace with me."

"yes."

With its red walls and gray tiles, towering palace walls, the two soon arrived at the main hall of the palace as they walked along the palace road.

Qi Jincheng sat at the head of the table. When he saw that Chu Xiao had brought Cui Yang with him, he knew that something must have been found out in Jiangnan.

He simply raised his hand to stop them from bowing and said, "Just tell me, what did you find out?"

Cui Yang's expression was grave as he said, "The 'Wen Tingyuan' currently at the Yong'an Marquis's residence is not the real Wen Tingyuan."

"As Your Majesty and the Lord suspected, this person is a remnant of Qi Wulin's faction in disguise."

Chu Xiao and Qi Jincheng looked up at the same time. They exchanged a glance and then heard Cui Yang say, "It's Qi Jinling."

"Qi Jinling..."

Chu Xiao's face was frighteningly grim. "It seems that the corpse from back then was just a scapegoat."

“Yes,” Cui Yang continued, “Back then at the border, the scapegoat who died was just a lowly soldier under Qi Jinling.”

Taking advantage of the chaos of the fire, Qi Jinling grabbed a soldier to shield herself from the flames, and eventually escaped the fire zone.

He then placed all the jade pendants and other tokens of his identity on the soldier who was already burned beyond recognition, and then faked the scene of him trying to escape but being burned to death.

Afterwards, Qi Jinling fled to Wenxia Kingdom, where she was rescued by an old man with secret arts in the mountains. After waking up, she pretended to have amnesia and followed the old man to learn secret arts.

Until a year ago, the old man fell seriously ill. Qi Jinling, having received his kindness, should have stayed by his bedside to care for him. However, he never expected that the old man would smother him to death in a heartless manner. Afterwards, he crossed the border mountains and forests and secretly entered the territory of Daqi.

He was determined to kill Qi Jincheng and Chu Xiao, and used secret techniques to change his appearance and travel all the way from the border to the outskirts of Lin'an.

But given his current status, let alone getting close to Qi Jincheng and Chu Xiao, it would be difficult for him to even enter the city gate. So he set his sights on Wen Tingyuan and his group, who were also taking a short rest outside the city before entering.

Wen Tingyuan was sickly from a young age. He was only five or six years old when he left the capital to recuperate in Jiangnan. Now, more than ten years have passed, and the Wen family in the capital must not be familiar with him. He is simply the perfect replacement in Qi Jinling's eyes.

Therefore, while Wen Tingyuan and his party were resting at an inn in the suburbs, he drugged them, kidnapped Wen Tingyuan, and killed him with a single blow in the woods. After killing Wen Tingyuan, he stripped off his clothes and removed his face.

Using the secret technique he learned in Wenxia, ​​he made a mask out of his face and eventually impersonated Wen Tingyuan to return to the group heading to the capital.

Over the years, Wen Tingyuan had developed a lawless, domineering, and tyrannical personality at his maternal grandparents' home in Jiangnan. Although the servants noticed some differences in his lifestyle, they dared not say anything.

They assumed the young master was returning to the capital, which explained the change in his personality.

Qi Jincheng asked, "What's the story behind those rumors circulating about Wen Tingyuan?"

Chu Xiao could answer this question: "The rumors that Wen Tingyuan was a playboy and an incompetent fool already existed more than a month ago, when the Wen family announced their intention to bring Wen Tingyuan back."

These rumors likely refer to the real Wen Tingyuan.

Qi Jinling probably didn't expect that Wen Tingyuan had a bad reputation in Lin'an City. In order to salvage his image and to get closer to Chu Xiao and Qi Jincheng in the future, he insisted on forcibly marrying Chen Xiangning.

In this way, he became Shen You's brother-in-law.

He can use this relationship to achieve his own goals.

Chu Xiao had already connected all the events, and a sharp, cold glint flashed in his slightly lowered dark eyes.

If Qi Jinling is using Shen Xiangning's marriage, then as an accomplice in forcing Shen Xiangning to marry Qi Jinling, does Shen Yao also know Qi Jinling's true identity?

"Your Majesty, we need to send someone to the Marquis of Chengde's residence as soon as possible."

Qi Jincheng had obviously thought of this as well, and he called out to the imperial guards to come inside, ordering them to secretly go to the Shen residence and take Shen Yao into custody.

Cui Yang continued, "When I was investigating Qi Jinling's whereabouts, I discovered that he had lingered at Yuhua Mountain..."

As he said this, he subconsciously glanced at Chu Xiao's expression.

Sure enough, the next moment they saw their lord's eyes suddenly turn sinister.

He quickly added the second half of the sentence, "But whether Qi Jinling is related to the incident of Miss Shen's carriage going out of control needs to be further investigated before we can find out."

When Shen You's carriage went out of control, Chu Xiao and Qi Jincheng realized that things were not as simple as they seemed on the surface.

However, the person behind the scenes was extremely cunning. The tricks they made on the carriage were all done following the traces left by Li Cheng. In addition, the heavy rain that day washed away too many valuable clues, which caused the matter to remain unresolved.

Li Cheng is still imprisoned in the Criminal Investigation Department's jail to this day.

Because of this incident, after returning to the capital, Chu Xiao sent secret guards to watch over Shen You.

Whether or not it has anything to do with Qi Jinling will be known after a thorough interrogation once the person is apprehended.

Cui Yang took off the small bundle he always carried with him; inside was a small wooden box.

He presented it with both hands, saying, "These are the records and statements I made for Wen Tingyuan at his maternal grandfather's house in Jiangnan. They are all signed and sealed by the confessors."

"Wen Tingyuan has a brown birthmark on the inside of his right thigh, and an old scar about three inches long on the inside of his left thigh. He was scratched by a tree branch when he first arrived in Jiangnan because he was playing and climbing a tree."

Qi Jinling peeled off Wen Tingyuan's face, leaving no way to verify his facial features. However, Wen Tingyuan's body was still intact, and due to the cold weather, it was currently well-preserved.

Chu Xiao did indeed see the two places Cui Yang mentioned when he examined the body that day.

The scar appeared after she went to Jiangnan, but the birthmark was something she had from her mother's womb, so Lady Yong'an could not possibly mistake it.

Thinking of this, Chu Xiao said, "Your Majesty, tomorrow is Lady Wen's birthday. The Yong'an Marquis's Mansion should take this opportunity to announce Wen Tingyuan's return to everyone."

"That will be the best time to arrest him."

“Hmm,” Qi Jincheng nodded slowly, “I will do as you say.”

"Just send as many people as you need from me."

"yes."

——

The next day.

The weather was clear and sunny, a rare winter day with no clouds in the sky, and the frost seemed less biting.

Inside the Yong'an Marquis's mansion, winding streams, small bridges, pavilions, and waterside terraces are filled with various transplanted flowers that can bloom even in winter. Today, they are all in full bloom, their vibrant colors creating a unique charm in the cool breeze.

Faint singing could be heard coming from the courtyard of the Earl's mansion, a lively and cheerful sound.

Lady Yong'an, dressed in an elegant dark green dress adorned with jewels and possessing a rosy complexion, sat gracefully in the central pavilion, listening to music and chatting with the noblewoman beside her.

After a moment, she looked up and around, but still couldn't find Shen You and Shen Xiangning. Her smile froze for a second.

It's true what they say, fortunes really do change.

Back when the Yong'an Marquis's mansion held a flower-viewing banquet, Madam Wen still looked down on Shen You because of his divorced status, though she didn't show it on her face.

Unexpectedly, Shen You's ex-husband turned out to be the current Duke Zhenguo, Chu Xiao.

She could clearly see Chu Xiao's protectiveness towards Shen You at the flower-viewing banquet.

Now, almost a year has passed, and everyone in Lin'an knows that Duke Chu Xiao follows Miss Shen around every day, hoping to gain her special treatment.

Some curious gambling dens have already started placing bets.

At first, they bet on when Miss Shen would agree to the Duke's proposal, but seeing that her life was as unpredictable as before and there was no sign of her agreeing, they started a new bet.

They were gambling on whether Shen You would agree to the Duke's request.

The women of the Shen family are beautiful, not only Shen You, but also Shen Xiangning.

Chen Xiangning rarely interacted with other young ladies in the capital, and Madam Wen had never previously associated her with her son.

Unexpectedly, when her son returned home more than ten years later, the first request he made of her was to marry Chen Xiangning.

Since Shen You was now of great importance, Madam Wen agreed to her son's request.

The marriage is now arranged, and all that's left is to send the engagement letter after the New Year.

Logically speaking, Shen You and Shen Xiangning should have been present at today's birthday banquet, but for some reason, they haven't been seen yet.

Thinking this, Madam Wen was about to whisper to the nanny to go to the front yard to check when she suddenly heard a loud shout from outside.