"I don't know why he said Xie Yunzhou was my son."

But the fact that he could get all the guests in his mansion to help him capture me shows that he doesn't care about his reputation at all, so what is there that he wouldn't do?

Xie Tingzhou and Ye Zhen were also accomplices; your Marquis's mansion is not innocent.

Afterwards, he thought about it carefully and realized that it was a trap set for him, which showed that Xie Bang had already discovered his affair with Liu.

Therefore, a trap was set.

Since he was aware of the situation, he couldn't have been unprepared. They must have already seen through the old lady's scheme to use Cui Yihuan.

Therefore, the old lady lost, and he ended up in such a miserable state.

Fortunately, Madam Liu was sensible and took all the blame herself, except for his leg...

The thought that he would never be able to stand up again filled Fu Jiang with hatred. "He was incompetent and couldn't keep his wife. Now, I've lost both my legs. What more do you want?"

After reminding the old lady, he then probed the attitude of the Marquis of Zhongyong.

The old lady continued to reveal information, "Castration, and then apologizing to my son in public."

Fu Jiang clenched his fist.

What a Xie Bang! He still dares to relentlessly pursue us.

He absolutely cannot lose his manly dignity again, and a public apology is out of the question; only the Grand Princess can help him.

However, he didn't know much about the Grand Princess's daughter.

I only learned about the Grand Princess's jade pendant by chance, and I had seen the jade pendant at the old lady's place. So I subtly asked the old lady for some information and vaguely learned some details.

Now that he has revealed the jade pendant and claimed the false identity, there is no turning back.

It wasn't easy for the old lady to enter the palace, so he had to find out the details about that person.

He seemed to beg for mercy, grabbing the old lady's hand, "Aunt Chen, you can't be so ruthless. I've already paid the price. If you do what you ask, I will have no hope for the rest of my life and I will die."

But my mother went through so much hardship to give birth to me, I can't just die like this. Please, for my mother's sake, spare me this time.

The old lady knew he was faking it, but she was still heartbroken.

She murmured silently, "My child, you've suffered so much, but your mother will help you."

Although no sound was made, it still startled Fu Jiang. He quickly pinched the old lady hard to remind her that this was the palace and there might be spies everywhere.

The old lady quickly composed herself and said angrily, "You still dare to mention Nianxi? Do you know that when she was pregnant with you, she hoped that you would grow up to be as outstanding as your uncle Yiyuan, knowledgeable, polite, upright, and righteous..."

The old lady used the excuse of cursing to reveal all the information she could.

Finally, looking angry and disappointed, he staggered out of Fu Jiang's room, though he was actually reluctant to leave.

Behind the window, Ye Zhen and Xie Tingzhou exchanged a glance and then left.

Back in Xie Tingzhou's usual office room, when there were only the two of them inside, Ye Zhen asked, "Was she just talking about my son?"

She wasn't very good at lip reading and was worried she might have misread it.

Xie Tingzhou nodded, "Yes."

To an uninformed person, their conversation would appear as if the old lady of the Marquis's mansion had come to confront Fu Jiang, but the old lady was kind-hearted and lacked any real authority.

Ye Zhen and Xie Tingzhou both knew that Xie Yunzhou was Fu Jiang's child, and that Fu Jiang and Liu Shi had long been in cahoots. The old lady knew all this, which is why her conversation with Fu Jiang was full of flaws.

The purpose of their dialogue was to exchange intelligence and information.

Ye Zhen said, "We must tell Father."

The old lady already knew that it was his scheme that day, and the father had to come up with a response.

Xie Tingzhou nodded.

He also needs to know the true relationship between the old lady and Fu Jiang.

Just as Xing Ze was about to invite Marquis Zhongyong, Marquis Zhongyong himself came over.

After finishing the morning court session, he learned that the old lady had entered the palace, so he lingered in the emperor's study.

He originally intended to eavesdrop himself, but upon hearing that Xie Tingzhou had gone, he decided to play chess with the emperor instead.

"Well, did they say anything?"

As soon as he entered the house, he asked.

Xie Tingzhou looked at him, "Didn't the Empress inform His Majesty?"

The queen's men were also present when they eavesdropped.

Otherwise, why would the Emperor and Empress allow her to meet Fu Jiang after they knew the old lady's true colors?

The Emperor and Empress also wanted to know more about the inside story, as the Grand Princess's power was always a threat to them.

Marquis Zhongyong glared at him.

The Empress did go to the Imperial Study, but how could he possibly get in the way of a husband and wife having a conversation?

Besides, the Emperor and Empress have their own thoughts, and they are not as free as he is to ask Xie Tingzhou.

He pointed at Ye Zhen, "Fu Guang, you speak."

Although Ye Zhen could imitate Fu Guang's words in a low voice, he would inevitably reveal his flaws if he spoke too much, and his throat would probably hurt if he kept speaking in a low voice for a long time.

Xie Tingzhou had no choice but to tell Zhongyong Hou everything he had heard, word for word.

After hearing this, Marquis Zhongyong forgot his curiosity about why Xie Tingzhou was so enthusiastic today.

He was lost in his own thoughts.

If Fu Jiang is the old lady's son, then who is he?

It's impossible that the old lady gave birth to twins back then, and he and Fu Jiang were twins.

What reason would the old lady have to lose a son?

After thinking for a while, he finally came to a conclusion: it was highly likely that he was the child from the Grand Princess's family.

So, was his biological father really the butcher the old woman was talking about?

impossible.

Because he resembled the old Marquis, he was the old Marquis's son.

Marquis Zhongyong closed his eyes.

If he was born to Nianxi and the old Marquis, and the story told by the old lady has a basis in reality.

So the one who truly imprisoned Nianxi was the old Marquis...

Marquis Zhongyong found it hard to accept that his father, such an honest and upright man, would bully a girl who had not yet reached marriageable age.

She was forced to undergo a self-inflicted cesarean section, resulting in her death during childbirth.

This terrifying speculation sent chills down the spine of the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor.

So much so that when a palace servant came looking for him, saying that the Grand Princess had arrived and asking him to come and see her, he was still unable to recover from the chill.

"Thank you, Lord Marquis."

The Grand Princess spoke up, "I have already met Fu Jiang, and he is very likely my grandson."

I am aware of his entanglement with your household. The reason I invited Lord Xie here today is to ask you how I can make amends so that you will let him go.

Marquis Zhongyong took a deep breath. "Based solely on the jade pendant and his one-sided statement, is the princess willing to take responsibility for him?"

"Your Excellency may not understand, but a mother's obsession with finding her son for decades is something I am willing to believe as long as there is even the slightest possibility."

Her legs were already old and she had been using a sedan chair for the past few years. As she spoke, she reached out to the maid beside her.

With the help of his maid, he stood up unsteadily, walked towards the Marquis of Zhongyong, and stopped.

“What he did is unacceptable under the law, but he did not receive proper upbringing from a young age, which is my fault.”

I have no regrets towards anyone in my life, except for my two children. Therefore, I ask Lord Xie to forgive my selfishness as their maternal grandmother.

I apologize to the Marquis on his behalf for what he did.

After saying this, she bent down to pay her respects to the Marquis of Zhongyong.