Chapter 129: Exchanging Lives
With a smile on his face, Shao Chengrui said happily, "Yes, Mother specifically mentioned in her letter that I should thank you in person. Ah Wu, thank you so much. Without you, our family would never be living the life we have today."
As soon as he finished speaking, he bowed deeply.
"Hey!" Jingwu was taken aback for a moment, then immediately helped the man up: "Cousin, we're family, you're being too polite."
Shao Chengrui's eyes were unusually red at the corners, it was hard to tell whether it was from happiness or emotion.
He pursed his lips, looked at the person in front of him earnestly, and said, "If it weren't for you, our family would still be farming in Green Bamboo Village, my father and mother wouldn't be busy in the shop, my second and third brothers wouldn't have learned martial arts, and as for me, I wouldn't be where I am today. It's all thanks to you, A-Wu."
Hearing this, Jingwu smiled, his ears turning slightly red: "Cousin, it's getting too formal if you keep saying that. Since Aunt is pregnant, let Wenhui and the others take care of things at the shop. If necessary, we can hire a couple more helpers. Just don't overwork yourself."
Upon hearing this, Shao Chengrui immediately nodded in agreement, then seemed to remember something: "By the way, Awu, General Chen has invited me to his residence for a chat tomorrow. Do you think I can go?"
He was really unsure of what to do. After all, he was just a candidate who hadn't even taken the imperial examination. He couldn't understand why General Chen would suddenly invite him to his residence.
Fearing both fraud and missing an opportunity, he took advantage of Ah Liang's letter-sending time to come and ask Ah Wu.
Upon hearing the name Chen, Jingwu frowned slightly: "Chen? He has a son named Chen Changshun?"
Shao Chengrui nodded immediately: "Yes, it's him, you know A-Wu?"
Jingwu's heart sank upon hearing this.
General Chen is a member of Prince Hui's faction. He invited his cousin to his residence either to win him over or because he had ulterior motives. In any case, his purpose was impure, and this banquet was likely a trap.
She rolled her eyes and looked at the person in front of her, saying, "Cousin, my advice is not to go."
“Okay.” Shao Chengrui agreed without hesitation. He would definitely listen to his sister: “Then I’ll find a way to refuse him.”
Jingwu smiled and nodded. The brother and sister exchanged a few more words before Shao Chengrui turned and left.
As she watched the boy's departing figure, her gaze darkened, and she immediately performed a divination using her fingers.
When he saw the calculated result, his face immediately turned cold.
The next day, before Jingwu even got out of bed, he heard a great commotion outside.
She wrapped herself in a cloak, got out of bed, and planned to go out and check.
As soon as the door opened, a maidservant came in carrying a hand warmer.
"Young lady, you're awake. You're dressed so lightly; I'm worried you'll catch a cold." She handed the hand warmer to the person in front of her, smiling as she said, "Please warm yourself up first."
"It's nothing. What happened outside?" Jingwu looked outside.
"Young Master Shao suddenly developed a high fever this morning, and Young Master Yan is extremely worried. He is currently calling for a doctor."
Jingwu was taken aback when he heard this: "How come you suddenly developed a fever?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately thought of what she had said last night, and then chuckled softly.
My cousin is really clever; he pretended to be sick and couldn't get out of bed, so he didn't have to go to the General's Mansion's trap.
Thinking of this, Jingwu smiled, turned around, washed up, and returned to the table to eat the breakfast that the maid had brought in.
At this time, the Hongmen Banquet had already been set up at General Chen's mansion, just waiting for Shao Chengrui to enter.
But at this moment, the butler rushed over and, looking at the old lady sitting in the chair, said cautiously.
"Madam, news came from the other courtyard that Young Master Shao caught a cold last night and developed a high fever this morning. He is unable to get out of bed and has specially sent a servant to apologize, saying that he cannot come today."
Upon hearing this, the old lady frowned and slammed her teacup heavily onto the table: "How could you suddenly develop a high fever?"
"This... the person who came said that he got up in the middle of the night and caught a cold, which led to his high fever."
Upon hearing this, a hint of suspicion flashed in the old lady's shrewd eyes: "Just such a coincidence?"
The butler immediately lowered his head and dared not speak.
After a long silence, Madam Chen waved her hand, signaling him to leave.
As soon as the butler disappeared, Madam Chen immediately knelt on the ground, crying softly.
"Mother, you must save Changshun! This child has such a hard life. He only forced a few maids to their deaths, and now he's suffering from a high fever. You watched him grow up; you can't just stand by and watch those maids take his life!"
Madam Chen glanced at the person in front of her, a hint of impatience flashing in her eyes.
This daughter-in-law is really useless. All she does is cry and make a scene when something happens. If it weren't for the fact that she's useful to her family, her son would have divorced her long ago.
Madam Chen closed her eyes and waved for the person in front of her to stand up.
"Stop crying. If you had been stricter with him, would he have accumulated so much negative karma? All you do when something happens is cry. What can you, as his mother, do?"
“Mother, I do want to discipline him, but you say he was born on an auspicious day and is the reincarnation of the God of Literature. If I am even slightly strict with him, you scold me and forbid me from disciplining him. How can you blame me for this?”
Madam Chen took out her handkerchief and immediately covered her face with tears: "Now, the master said that if we find someone with a similar birth date, we can exchange lives and transfer Changshun's karma to him. But Shao Chengrui isn't coming today, so what should I do?"
Old Madam Chen's head was spinning from crying. She slammed her hand on the table and roared, "Enough! You, as his mother, haven't disciplined him properly, and you're blaming me for it. If you discipline him behind my back, do you think I'll punish you?"
Hearing these words, Madam Chen felt extremely wronged, but seeing that the old lady was in a fit of anger, she dared not utter a sound and could only lower her head to wipe her tears.
If she says anything harsh to her youngest son, her husband and mother will take turns scolding her to appease him, and the more she spoils him, the less disciplined he becomes.
The reason this child turned out this way can only be attributed to the husband and mother spoiling him too much.
After a while, the old lady calmed down and waved her hand, saying, "Since we can't get him by being gentle, we'll have to use force. He'll have to go to the academy eventually, so we can just kidnap him on the way. After all, he's just a farmer's son."
Upon hearing this, Madam Chen's eyes flickered, and she immediately agreed.
Just as I was about to say goodbye, I heard the old lady speak again.
“Changshun is your son. He is seriously ill now. Even if you are biased towards your eldest son, you should stay by his bedside and take care of him as his mother.”
Madam Chen opened her mouth: "Mother, I didn't..."
"That's enough." The old lady didn't even glance at her again, and waved her hand: "You may leave."
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