Chapter 54 Your Highness won't suspect that we slept together, will he?

It seems that Pei Yuan invited him to stay for dinner to buy time.

She put down her teacup, stood up, and asked, "Your Highness, may I leave now?"

Pei Yuan did not answer, but instead looked at He Zhengxiang.

"This prince would like to have a private conversation with Lord Shen. Please excuse me, Lord He."

He Zhengxiang reluctantly put down his chopsticks.

He hadn't even eaten a few bites of the sauerkraut fish yet.

As fellow censors, what could the Sixth Prince and Xiao Shen possibly have that he couldn't hear?

Lord He rose with deep resentment, the force with which he slammed the door open to express his dissatisfaction.

Shen Chu's lips twitched slightly as she looked at Pei Yuan with a smile, "I wonder what Your Highness would like to discuss with me alone?"

Pei Yuan crossed his arms and charged straight in.

"I heard that on the day he went to Jingguo Temple to worship Buddha, Lord Shen was also drugged with aphrodisiacs?"

Chen Chu's heart skipped a beat. "Yes, what does Your Highness wish to ask?"

Pei Yuan stared intently at her. "You were drugged and entered the same room as me? Could it be that you and I...?"

Chen Chu's hand trembled, and the water in the cup spilled out.

She shook her hand, feigning surprise as she interrupted Pei Yuan.

"You don't actually think we slept together that night, do you?"

"Good heavens, Your Highness, you...you actually think you're gay?"

Pei Yuan's face visibly turned green.

He exuded a chilling aura, and he practically spat out a sentence through clenched teeth.

"I meant to ask you, you didn't share a woman with me, did you? You...."

Shen Chu secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then shook her head, feigning anger.

"Your humble servant has no such peculiar hobby."

"Ha, you better be right. Who helped you get rid of the love potion?"

Shen Chu paused slightly, "She was my maid. I mistakenly entered Your Highness's room early in the morning to avoid my stepmother's investigation."

Pei Yuan narrowed his peach blossom eyes slightly, as if assessing the truthfulness of her words.

Chen Chu tried his best to appear calm and composed.

After a long pause, Pei Yuan snorted softly, "Chen Chu, you'd better not lie to me."

"If Your Highness does not believe me, please investigate."

Pei Yuan remained silent.

After waiting for a moment, Shen Chu cupped his hands in greeting and said, "If Your Highness has nothing else, this humble subject will take his leave."

Pei Yuan snorted.

Chen Chu felt relieved and left, feigning composure.

Sun Yan entered and whispered, "What did Your Highness find out?"

Pei Yuan shook his head, "The wound on Shen Chu's arm was not inflicted by my jade bone fan."

"I went to the Jingzhao Prefecture to inquire, and it is true that the Shen family's servants went to the Jingzhao Prefecture to report to the authorities last night."

"It's said an assassin broke into the Shen residence. So, the person who broke in last night probably wasn't Lord Shen."

Pei Yuan remained noncommittal.

Perhaps he was wrong, but a similar scent is not enough to prove anything.

"Has the woman from Jingguo Temple that night still not been found?"

Sun Yan shook his head, "There were quite a few female relatives who went that day, and they also brought a lot of maids. I am checking them one by one."

He looked at the dark circles under Pei Yuan's eyes and asked, "Your Highness, even the medicine that Miss Xie prepared according to the same formula didn't work?"

Pei Yuan rubbed his temples and shook his head.

"Perhaps it wasn't the herbs inside that helped me fall asleep, but the scent on the sachet. It's just that the scent on the sachet has faded to almost nothing now, so I can't sleep again."

"Your Highness, why don't you go back to Qingfeng Tower and have Miss Xie play the zither to help you fall asleep?"

Pei Yuan frowned slightly, then instructed Sun Yan, "Go to the Five Cities Garrison to allocate manpower and strengthen patrols around the Marquis of Changning's residence tonight."

The Changning Marquis's residence is located in Juxianfang in the east of the city. This area is mostly inhabited by noble families and high-ranking officials of the first and second ranks.

Hongxiu came in from outside, closed the door and said, "Young master, why are there so many people from the Five Cities Garrison patrolling outside for no reason?"

"I've never seen them patrol this frequently before?"

Shen Chu was changing her dressing when she heard this and paused. "Pei Yuan probably suspects us now."

Hongxiu was taken aback. "We've made such thorough arrangements, how could he suspect us?"

This was something that Shen Chu couldn't understand at all.

"Young master, what should we do next?"

"Although we have temporarily appeased Pei Yuan and prevented him from obtaining any concrete evidence, we cannot get involved in the following matters."

Pei Yuan was far too perceptive.

But her purse was of utmost importance to her, and she had to get it back.

Chen Chu stroked her chin, a smile appearing on her face.

"Looks like we need to start Plan Two, Hongxiu, you're like this..."

After hearing this, Hongxiu patted her chest and assured him, "Don't worry, young master, leave this to me. I guarantee I'll handle it perfectly."

At this moment, Aunt Qiao's maid arrived.

"Young Master, the Old Madam and the Concubine are arguing outside. You should go and see."

Hongxiu said, "The Madam and the Marquis have both been ill these past two days. I heard that the Madam has returned the power of managing the household to the Old Madam. I guess the Old Madam wants to force the concubine to take out more money."

Shen Chu raised an eyebrow.

Zhao Yufang staged a suicide attempt at the entrance of the Marquis's mansion, forcing Chen Shi and the Marquis of Changning to sign the marriage contract with Shen Jue.

Chen turned around and was so angry that she vomited blood.

This time, he's really sick.

Because of the affair between Marquis Changning and that servant, Aunt Qiao has been depressed and has not left the house for the past few days.

The power to manage the household can only be given to Old Madam Shen.

"Go and prepare the things I asked you to prepare earlier. We're going to meet the old lady."

When Shen Chu arrived, Old Madam Shen was pointing at Aunt Qiao and cursing her.

"Tell me, did you secretly sell all those farms and fields? Those are all my property! You shameless bastard, how dare you sell them off to me so easily?"

Aunt Qiao looked bewildered. "Madam, you've really wronged me. I haven't sold any farmland or land. I haven't even left the house these past few days."

"Pah! Don't play dumb with me. The people at the yamen said it was sold by the owner, and your name is on the deed, so you must have sold it."

Good heavens! Have you ever seen a concubine so arrogant that she dares to secretly sell even the old lady's belongings?

"You dare to be so arrogant only because you're relying on this wretched child's power. Today I'll go to the palace and report Shen Chu for his disobedience and filial impiety, and I'll have His Majesty dismiss him from his post and imprison him."

She pointed to her official robes and said, "See? I'm all dressed in my official robes. If you dare say a word against it, I'll immediately send my nameplate to the palace."

Aunt Qiao's expression changed slightly. "No."

Seeing the panic on Aunt Qiao's face, Madam Shen revealed a smug look.

"That wretched child thought that the Marquis's mansion would be able to shine because of him, so he was arrogant and domineering, and repeatedly disobeyed his elders."

"Bah! A noble family like ours doesn't need a bastard's son to bring glory to our ancestors. Yan'er will be a hundred times better than him when he enters officialdom."

After saying that, Madam Shen pushed Aunt Qiao aside and walked out.

Aunt Qiao panicked a little, "How can the old lady avoid going to the palace to accuse Shen Chu?"

Madam Shen raised her chin slightly, "I can refuse to go to the palace, but you must compensate me double for my estate and land, and then hand over the profits from the shops to the public treasury as before."

Aunt Qiao looked conflicted. She had promised Ah Chu that she wouldn't contribute any money to the public fund this month.

"What? You disagree? Then you can just wait for that wretched child to be dismissed from office and imprisoned."

Old Madam Shen shook off Aunt Qiao, leaned on her cane, and walked briskly.

She looked up and saw a figure in front of her, which startled her so much that she stumbled and almost fell to the ground.

"You wretched child, when did you arrive? Why didn't you make a sound?"

Shen Chu smiled and said, "When Grandmother was shouting that she was going to the palace to sue me, wasn't Grandmother afraid that Father would be angry?"

Madam Shen's face darkened, and her gaze toward Chen Chu was filled with hatred.

“If the benefits you gain from being an official cannot be enjoyed by the Marquis’s household, then you are of no use to us.”

Your father will understand this. I want to see how you explain your disobedience and filial impiety before His Majesty.

Looking at the stubborn and unyielding Madam Shen, Shen Chu felt a slight heaviness in her heart.

She and the people from the Marquis of Changning's mansion were constantly competing to see who could go all out.

She wasn't afraid of Old Madam Shen going to the palace to complain, but after yesterday's grand court assembly, she knew that His Majesty was not someone who cared about the truth.

If Madam Shen were to actually go to the palace to file a complaint, it would indeed bring her considerable trouble.

She still has important things to do at the Inspectorate.