Chapter 80 Xiao Ji Eavesdrops

The next day, before the morning mist had dissipated, Shanshan's carriage was already bumping on the official road out of the city.

She stroked the bag filled with newly made clothes, and looked at the boxes of various snacks beside her. These items filled the carriage, but they could not weigh down her increasingly heavy heart.

When they got off the carriage at the palace, Shanshan looked at the palace gate with its mottled and peeling vermilion paint. She felt even more sorry for Qingwu. It took her a long while before she asked the maid to knock on the door.

Xiao Ji was reading in the morning sunlight, holding in his palm a book that was not allowed to be read in the palace. This book was brought to him by Qingwu Fugui from the bookstore in the town market. He was not interested in it at first, but he finally began to appreciate it in the past two days.

At this moment, Zhao Tong came around from behind, bringing in a few wisps of damp green grass fragrance. He laughed loudly from a distance, "Master, the mistress is already busy in the backyard. The vegetable seeds have arrived. Would you like to go and take a look?"

Xiao Ji immediately closed the book in his hand, placed it on his lap, and said with a gentle look, "Of course, push me over to take a look."

Zhao Tong hurried over to push the wheelchair, and suddenly heard a knock on the door in the front yard.

The two looked at each other, and Xiao Ji raised his eyebrows. Who would dare to come to his door now?

"Go and have a look."

"yes."

When Zhao Tong arrived at the gate and opened it, he saw a simple carriage parked in front of the gate, and a young girl and two maids standing in front of the gate.

With Zhao Tong's keen eyesight, he could tell Shanshan's family background at a glance and asked in confusion, "Who are you?"

Zhao Tong was once the most important eunuch in the Eastern Palace. Although he is no longer arrogant, Shanshan is still a little scared and immediately explained:

"Please tell me I'm a good friend of Madam Song's. I've come here to bring her some clothes for the new season. Madam Song always remembers the hardship she endures in the palace, so these new clothes are tailored to her figure. I've also included some fashionable snacks from the capital, which she'd like to try."

This was the line of speech that Shanshan had discussed at home. It was both appropriate and not abrupt.

After Shanshan said this, Zhao Tong remembered that the second wife of the Xi family's husband's surname was indeed Song. A few days ago, he was still wondering why the twin sisters didn't come to see him, but he didn't expect them to come as soon as they said. A polite smile immediately appeared on his face.

"please."

Although he didn't come in person, it was good to ask a friend to come, which was much better than those fence-sitters. Zhao Tong didn't doubt him and personally led Shanshan in.

Shanshan nodded. Although she looked calm, as she followed Zhao Tong around the screen wall and looked at the tall main hall in front of her, cold sweat broke out on her palms. She hoped not to run into the deposed prince.

Although she felt sorry that the young man who was so heroic at that time was now in a state of decline with a broken leg, and she could not see him up close, she did not dare to face Xiao Ji directly. The most important thing was that Xiao Ji had seen her before, and she was afraid that Xiao Ji would recognize her.

Who knows what you think will come true.

She thought that if she made an excuse not to enter the main hall she would not meet Xiao Ji. However, Xiao Ji had never stayed in the hall except when it rained these days. Seeing the eye-catching figure in the corridor from a distance, Shanshan's heartbeat made her eardrums hurt.

But now she had no choice but to follow Zhao Tong to the corridor and face the former crown prince.

Shanshan thought she would see a decadent handsome boy, but what she saw was a man with a clear expression. Although he was sitting in a wheelchair, his back was still straight. His cheeks were inevitably a little thinner, but not as pale as she had imagined.

The most important thing was that he looked calm. If it weren't for the clothes made of material that was obviously worth a lot of money, Shanshan would have thought he was the boy next door.

At this moment, she had completely forgotten her previous fear and looked straight at Xiao Ji until their eyes met and she saw the alienation under his gentle appearance. Then Shanshan came back to her senses, immediately lowered her head, nodded, and heard Zhao Tong's voice in her ears.

"This is a good friend of the Second Lady of the Xi family. He has come to visit Madam with gifts on her behalf."

Just one sentence made Xiao Ji raise his eyebrows slightly. After taking a closer look, he remembered that the girl in front of him was the one who stood side by side with his wife in the attic of the horse farm that day.

This further confirmed that the lady was the second wife of the Xi family. Xiao Ji was delighted, but he only raised the corners of his lips and politely poured tea for Shanshan, "Madam, please take a seat." He then said to Zhao Tongdao, "Go to the backyard and invite the lady to come over to meet the guests."

Zhao Tong left immediately, leaving Shanshan sitting there on pins and needles. Even if Xiao Ji pushed the tea in front of her, Shanshan would only lower her head and hold it. How could she dare to drink the tea poured by the former crown prince?

Little did he know that the young man opposite him had already seen Shanshan's forced calm expression through the tea.

Seeing this, Xiao Ji guessed that the girl in front of him was so nervous, and she must have figured out the twin sister swap. However, he still needed to confirm it. With a turn of his eyes, he curled his lips and said tentatively, "On behalf of my wife, I thank Madam Xi for her concern."

After a pause, he reached out and gently stroked the broken leg on his knee, his tone filled with self-mockery, "Now that I have fallen to this point, my wife has never left me. She is my only wife."

"Second Lady Xi saved me before, and I haven't repaid her yet. Since both of us are doing well, please allow me to ask about her recent situation."

As soon as he finished speaking, as expected, the girl's expression suddenly changed. When she hesitated to speak, Xiao Ji confirmed his guess.

"Ah... Madam Xi is doing well. Her husband just won the third place in the imperial examination... Life is going very smoothly..."

Shanshan is so kind that even if she was lying, she couldn't help but empathize with others. When she thought that all these had been taken over by Xi Qingtong, a trace of anger involuntarily appeared on her face.

Xiao Ji captured this emotion accurately, and felt at ease. No matter how many mistakes and omissions Shanshan's answer was, he just pretended not to hear it and nodded.

Just as she was about to ask more, Shanshan had already picked up the teacup and took a swig, hoping to stop Xiao Ji from asking any more questions. After a while, the atmosphere became awkward, so she managed to find a conversation, "This tea tastes great..."

Xiao Ji said lightly, "Brought him out from the palace."

Shanshan's expression froze... She wanted to slap herself and scold herself for talking nonsense.

When Zhao Tong hurried over, Qingwu was watering a row of newly planted vegetable seedlings by the vegetable patch. He bowed and said, "Madam, your twin sister, Madam Song's friend, is here."

The water in the wooden barrel rippled, reflecting Qingwu's suddenly frozen face.

Qingwu's fingers clenched the melon bowl instantly. The man in the Song Mansion was now using her status, so why would Xi Qingtong take the initiative to send someone to the palace?

"What does the person look like?" Qingwu's voice trembled unconsciously. When Zhao Tong described the large, grape-like eyes, Qingwu's heartbeat quickened, and he immediately dropped the watering can and ran forward.

She already had a guess in her mind. Although she didn't know why Shanshan came, since she came, she must know something, so she must not reveal her identity.

Finally, when Shanshan was about to give up, a beautiful figure came out from the hanging flower gate, and Qingwu came quickly with her skirt covered with mud.

Qingwu took a few steps up the stairs holding her dress. She glanced around and saw that the girl with her back to her was Shan Shanhou. Her pupils suddenly shrank. Although she had expected it, it was still a surprise. Shanshan had only been with her twice in total, how could she do so much for her?

When Shanshan saw the girl in front of him clearly, he stood up instantly and almost knocked over the teacup on the table. The clinking sound of the celadon teapot startled the swallows flying from the beams.

It’s really Qingwu!

The two stood frozen three steps apart. Shanshan blurted out the word "Qing" but it got stuck in her throat. At Qingwu's frantic blinking, she abruptly changed her tone: "Qingtong..."

With just one glance, Shanshan could confirm that the girl in front of her was the one she knew. She was dressed simply and had a friendly demeanor. She could confirm it without even asking the two of them to stand together.

Fortunately, I remembered the names of Qingwu's twin sisters when I asked.

"Hey... Shan... may I ask who you are?"

The two people who obviously knew each other tacitly pretended not to know each other at this moment, but their acting skills were so poor that anyone with a discerning eye could see that something was wrong. Zhao Tong stood aside, his eyes wandering between the two of them.

"Oh, my name is Lin Shanshan, I'm Qingwu's friend. She asked me to come and see you on her behalf. This is what I brought..."

Shanshan turned around, and the maid immediately brought things and opened them one by one on the simple wooden table. Looking at the piles of clothes and the sweet and fragrant snacks inside, Qingwu felt a pang in his heart.

She was forced to stay in the palace, and none of her relatives came to visit her. Instead, Shanshan, a friend she had just met, came. How ironic!

"Thank you for your trouble, ma'am."

"No need to thank me, this is what I should do..."

Seeing Qingwu's eyes flushed, Shanshan subconsciously stepped forward to hug her, but after taking half a step, she remembered that they were not familiar with each other now, so she stopped abruptly.

The two's clumsy cover-up was completely seen by the young man standing by. His eyes moved between the two of them, and he almost couldn't suppress the smile on his lips. He was afraid that if he saw the two of them pretending like this any longer, he would not be able to hold back his laughter.

Thinking of this, Xiao Ji put down the teacup and cleared his throat: "You girls are chatting at home, I won't disturb you. Zhao Tong pushed me to the backyard."

He deliberately gave them space. His wife finally had good friends visiting, so how could he let them feel so uncomfortable?

Although Madam doesn't pretend to be serious every day, it's time for her to be herself and relax.

Zhao Tong suppressed his doubts and pushed his master towards the backyard. After turning around the hanging flower gate, he expressed his doubts, "Master, don't you think the feeling between Madam and this Lady Lin is a little strange?"

Lin Shanshan's visit made Xiao Ji more certain that his wife was Niang Xi Er Niang. He was secretly happy in his heart, but when he heard Zhao Tong's questioning, the boy who had felt strange when he asked Zhao Tong before, now began to cover for Qing Wu.

"There's nothing strange about it. Don't think too much about it. Madam is just too surprised."

Zhao Tong touched his head and swallowed the doubts that were about to come to his mind.

Since the master thinks it’s nothing, then it should be nothing, right...?

However, just as he said that, Xiao Ji suddenly said, "Stop!"

Zhao Tong paused in response, "What's wrong?"

"Carry me to the window at the back of the main hall."

Zhao Tong:?

"Master, didn't you feel anything was wrong? Why did you continue to eavesdrop..."

The unfinished words were swallowed by Xiao Ji's glare.

"After you carry me over, you must leave immediately. Come back when I call you."

Although Zhao Tong was secretly complaining, his movements were decisive. He knelt on one knee, firmly wrapped his arms around Xiao Ji's knees and back, lifted him up, and swiftly turned towards the side corridor of the main hall.

Although he has been the chief eunuch for many years and his skills are not as good as they used to be, he can still pick up his master and walk a few steps silently. He is no pushover.

When they reached the side hall, Zhao Tong retreated away, and Xiao Ji carefully moved to the window by himself, holding on to the pillar with one leg.

The window frame was half open, and faint human voices could be heard from it.

Few people know that Xiao Ji has naturally sensitive ears and can hear sounds that others cannot hear clearly.

He had no intention of eavesdropping at first, but then he thought that when the lady met with Mrs. Lin, she would definitely explain the situation, and this would be a good opportunity for him to know the truth.

*

"You two wait outside."

Shanshan ordered her personal maid to stand guard outside the door, and then she followed Qingwu inside. Once they entered the inner hall, she couldn't suppress her worry. She grabbed Qingwu's hand and asked, "What's going on with you? Why are you here?"

The side window of the hall was half open, and the light from the sky that leaked in made the pair of eyes filled with worry even more sparkling.

Since Shanshan has discovered it, hiding it from her might cause trouble, so she decided to tell her the truth. However, she didn't realize that two ears were quietly perking up by the window.

Fortunately, Nanny Xia had already been there, and Qingwu already had experience. She first calmed Shanshan's emotions before telling her the whole cause and effect.

The woman's voice spoke calmly with a hint of sadness. After listening to it, even though Xiao Ji had already guessed what was going on, he couldn't help but clench his fists tightly. He had a thousand words in his heart that he wanted to say to his wife, but he was eavesdropping outside the window. Fortunately, Shanshan in the hall spoke his mind for him.

The kindhearted Shanshan burst into tears. She held Qingwu's hand and felt sad for her. "How could they do this? How could they do this?"

Seeing Qingwu's face still calm and composed, I couldn't help but feel even more distressed. He must be completely desperate about his family to remain calm, right?

It was indeed so. When Qingwu told Nanny Xia about it for the first time, he felt a little emotional. But when he told Shanshan about it for the second time, the emotion was almost gone.

Qing Wu wiped Shan Shan's tears with a handkerchief and jokingly said, "Is it better for me to stay at the Song family?"

Before Shanshan could react, the young man outside the window had already raised his eyebrows. How could this be acceptable?

Shanshan, who was inside the room, once again acted as Xiao Ji's mouthpiece: "How could that be? I thought Song Yunhe was a good man, but who would have thought he'd been coveting your sister and even married you!"

Seeing Qingwu's bitter smile in front of her, Shanshan couldn't help but recall what she said when she first met Qingwu. At that time, she heard Qingwu say that her husband Song Yunhe was handsome, so she thought he was also good in both character and appearance. However, Qingwu advised her not to judge a person by appearance. Now, she saw that he was indeed hypocritical.

Shan Shan was furious and couldn't help but blurt out: "Isn't this taking you as a substitute?!"

Xiao Ji pressed himself against the window frame, breathing softly, afraid to miss a single word from inside. When Shan Shan angrily uttered these words, his heart sank like an ice cellar. He longed to rush in and hug his wife, wondering how heartbroken she must be...

But the next second, the lady's gentle but firm voice came: "Yes, but it's all in the past. I don't regret changing my husband."

"I'm doing well now."