Chapter 145 Waiting only for the mother turtle to fall into the net

Ji Chen led Li Cheng to the backyard of the Zhang residence. When Madam Zhang the Second saw Li Cheng, she was also startled, "Young Master Li."

Li Cheng drank some wine, but didn't get drunk. Her face was flushed. It turned out that Ji Chen's mole was actually the second wife of the Zhang family. Zhang Yumo's own second aunt wanted to harm her. How ironic!

He couldn't care less about the Zhang family's affairs. "I heard the Zhang family is holding a wedding banquet. I've come to ask for a drink."

Madam Zhang knew exactly what Li Cheng was thinking, but she pretended not to. She exchanged a glance with Ji Chen and said, "We have many guests in the mansion, and we apologize for any shortcomings in our hospitality. Please forgive us, Young Master Li!" Madam Zhang had already discussed with Old Madam Su the possibility of marrying her daughter Yan Yan to General Su Xuan as his principal wife. In the future, her daughter would be the general's wife.

The two were brought into the Zhang residence openly by Madam Zhang. Since the Zhang residence was holding a wedding banquet that day, the servants did not stop them. The visitors were probably from Madam Zhang's family who came to the residence to attend the banquet, so the servants did not question them, and they easily entered the inner quarters.

As Qiuju walked to the back gate of the mansion, she suddenly approached Madam Zhang and said, "Madam Zhang, the old lady requests your presence."

Madam Zhang glanced at Qiuju, pulled her aside, and whispered, "Is everything settled?"

Qiu Ju's fingers clenched tightly in her sleeves. The Princess Consort's maid had poisoned her. If she didn't do as they said, she would die immediately. To save her life, she had no choice but to obey them. She became calm and nodded. "It's done. Miss Mo has had her tea and is waiting alone in her room."

The medicine in the tea was given to her by the Second Madam, but she didn't have a chance to give it to Miss Mo before Princess Heng discovered it.

Zhang Erfu curled his lips into a cold smile. That's good. That old hag wouldn't let her manage the household anymore and even gave Zhang Yumo a large dowry. Now a man has broken into her precious granddaughter's boudoir. She dared to cheat on her before getting married. Let's see how she can get married now.

That old hag only dotes on Zhang Yumo since she was a child, and she doesn't care about her daughter at all.

Madam Zhang's anger grew stronger, but she smiled and said, "The old lady has something to discuss with me. I'll have a maid take the two young masters to the banquet first."

Ji Chen said cautiously, "Please, Second Madam, lead us there first! We're afraid of getting lost and offending someone important." He only trusted Second Madam; he didn't trust anyone else. That's why he insisted that Second Madam lead them into the Zhang residence.

The second madam glanced at the maid, "What does the old madam want with me?"

"Just now, when I came out of Miss Mo's courtyard, the old lady asked me to invite you. She said that she wanted you to go to the front yard to greet the guests. There is a happy occasion in the mansion, and the third wife is not very familiar with the household affairs. She asked the second wife to help." Qiu Ju had already thought of an excuse.

Qiuju added, "Princess Heng also came to the mansion, but she spoke with Miss Mo for a while and then left for the front yard. The old lady should be greeting guests in the front yard right now."

Madam Zhang the Second frowned. See, she'll have to be the one to run the Zhang family. Madam Zhang the Third is a quiet, unresponsive woman; she'd never know how to entertain guests.

The Zhang family has been under her control for years, and this time she will take it back from the Third Madam.

Upon hearing the words "Princess Consort Heng," Ji Chen's mind started racing again, and he asked, "Did His Highness Prince Heng come along too?"

Qiuju replied, "No, only the Princess Consort. I think I heard her say that she was going to escort Miss Mo to the Jiang residence, so she arrived a little early."

Ji Chen pondered for a moment, then gestured for the Second Madam to step aside, "Second Madam, do you have a way to lure Princess Heng to the backyard?"

The second wife asked, "What are you going to do?" She dared not make a move on the Princess Consort of Heng.

Ji Chen smiled sinisterly, "I have some connections with the Princess Consort. I just invited her to catch up. Don't worry, I wouldn't dare do anything. We'll just have a chat."

"You? Chat with her? Do you think she'll chat with you?" The second madam clearly didn't believe it. She had seen clearly the attitude of the Princess Consort of Heng towards him last time.

"There's no need for the Second Madam to invite her. Just have a maid go and tell her that Miss Zhang has something to discuss with her. Bring her to the inner quarters, and you won't have anything to do with her anymore." Ji Chen added, "Your daughter's marriage to General Su is thanks to me speaking to Old Madam Su. From now on, our two families will be relatives."

Madam Zhang thought to herself: It was indeed Ji Chen who helped her and Old Madam Su to make the match. Old Madam Su also agreed to the marriage. After Zhang Yumo's wedding banquet, the Su family would come to propose marriage. Old Madam Su also gave them a token.

Having thought all this through, Madam Zhang gritted her teeth and instructed Qiuju to take them to the inner courtyard, while she herself went to the front yard. She wasn't afraid that Ji Chen would kill someone in the Zhang residence, and there was no deep-seated hatred between them, so he wouldn't be that stupid.

Qiuju stared blankly at the Second Madam's departing figure for a while, thinking to herself: The Princess Consort of Heng is too amazing. She deliberately asked her to go to the Zhang residence, and that really got the Second Madam away.

She was terrified, trembling all over. If she didn't do as Princess Heng said, she and her family wouldn't survive. Compared to the little favor the Second Madam had given her, she was more afraid of losing her life.

"Miss..." Ji Chen called out to Qiu Ju twice.

Qiuju realized what was happening and quickly said, "Young master, please come with me."

Seeing this, Li Cheng asked in a deep voice, "Where are you taking us?"

"Didn't the Second Madam ask me to take the young master to Miss Mo's courtyard? There's no one here right now, let's go quickly."

"Are you one of the Second Madam's people? Do you know why she sent you into the mansion with people?" Li Cheng asked again.

A glint of greed flashed in Qiuju's eyes as she said directly, "This servant is about to return to her hometown to get married. The Second Madam promised to return this servant's indenture after the matter is settled, and also gave this servant a considerable dowry. I could never earn this much money even if I worked as a maid my whole life. As for what the young master is going to do, this servant knows nothing. This servant is only responsible for leading the way. Miss has drunk tea and is currently unconscious. If we delay any longer, I am afraid that Miss will wake up."

Although Li Cheng had visited the Zhang residence before, he had never entered the inner quarters, as the inner quarters were where the women lived.

Although he was a little nervous, the thought of Zhang Yumo dressed up as a bride made him incredibly excited.

Ji Chen was thinking about Jiang Fenghua, imagining her stunning beauty and sharp wit, wondering what kind of expression she would have when she saw him at the Zhang residence.

They followed the maid into the inner courtyard. Just then, they heard the voices of several servants talking. Qiuju said anxiously, "We can't let anyone see the two young masters entering the inner courtyard."

She quickly pushed them into a room next door, saying, "Let's hide here for a while."

But the moment they entered the room, they felt dizzy and lightheaded, and after seeing a blurry image of a woman, they fainted.

Jiang Fenghua came out with a handkerchief covering her nose, gave Aoxue a thumbs up, and praised, "Your medicine is really effective."

Ao Xue asked, "What do we do now?"

“Naturally, we’ll wait for that female turtle to come,” Jiang Fenghua added. “Take off their clothes.”