Minhu told Xu Lanyin a few words about how well Minjia had behaved in the past two days, and then smiled at Xu Lanting and said, "Take Jiajia and Xiaoxingxing to play in the yard."
Xu Lanting knew that Brother Min wanted to have a private conversation with his sister, so he took one of them by the hand and walked out.
Xu Lanyin also saw that Minhu had something to say, and she happened to have something to say to him as well. She winked at the chess master, who also left the room, leaving Qingfeng alone to serve him.
Minhu's face darkened and he whispered, "I also want to thank Miss Xu for reminding me that Guifu was really from Tangmoshan. He followed me when I was in Jiaodong, and I brought him here with me, but he actually betrayed me!" He felt frustrated again.
Xu Lanyin's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? I just said something just in case. I didn't expect him to be a spy."
She secretly felt lucky that Gui Fu was Min Hu's confidant and had been involved in many of his secret affairs. In the book, Min Hu and Qin Che died tragically, most likely because Gui Fu had informed on them and they were assassinated at a critical moment.
Minhu nodded and said, "Miss Xu and Zhao Wu are both my lucky stars. Because of you, I was able to solve the major case at the Longxing Inn. This case also helped me identify two thieves who are connected to another, even bigger case." He added, "I will be away on business for a while tomorrow, so I'll have to trouble Miss Xu to take care of Jia'er. I can only feel at ease if I leave her with you..."
Xu Lanyin smiled and said, "Master Min is too polite. Jiaer is very well behaved and our whole family likes her very much."
Seeing Xu Lanyin's gentle smile, Minhu felt helpless and sad.
He had thought he'd tell her his true feelings right after the Lunar New Year. She was turning seventeen this year, and if she didn't tell her in-laws first, it would be difficult to handle. However, the news of Shishi being framed had just surfaced, and thinking of that poor woman, he couldn't immediately turn his heart to another woman...
Xu Lanyin noticed that Min Hu looked at her with a hint of tenderness and sadness. She probably guessed what he was thinking and quickly said, "There is something I have always wanted to tell Lord Min. If Lord Min is busy with official business, we can do this later."
"What's the matter? It's okay. There are some things I don't have time to do, so I'll ask someone else to help you." Min Hu said. He thought it was Xu Lanyin's personal matter, and he was very happy that she had something to ask of him.
At this moment, Zhao Xingchen's loud laughter sounded outside the window at the right time.
Xu Lanyin said, "It's about Xiao Xingxing's life story. I hypnotized him and heard some rumors about the Princess Nanyang's Mansion..."
When Minhu heard what Xu Lanyin said, his eyes widened and he said in surprise, "His name is also Chai Zixiao, the same name and surname as the great-grandson of Princess Nanyang who drowned. Moreover, one drowned and the other appeared in Jingchang Mansion, and the time difference was only a few days..." He thought about it carefully and said, "Xiao Xingxing and Chai Jun are really similar. I have been in contact with Xiao Xingxing so many times, but I didn't notice it." He felt frustrated again.
Xu Lanyin added, "If it's the same person, I still can't understand why the Nanyang Princess's Mansion mistook the child in the river for his own child."
According to the Fujian residents, Princess Nanyang had only one great-grandson, named Chai Zixiao, who was born in May. He was the apple of the eye of the princess and her husband, and died when he was less than three years old.
In mid-February last year, Chai Zixiao was on his way home from burning incense in Xishan with his father Chai Jun. He saw a monkey trainer performing and clamored to get off the car to watch.
Chai Jun had no choice but to take him out of the car.
Chai Jun happened to run into a few acquaintances and went to chat with them, leaving his servants to watch the monkeys with him. Suddenly, they encountered a startled horse, causing a panic. After the commotion subsided, Chai Zixiao disappeared. Servants from the Princess's residence, the Five Cities Military Commission, Jingzhao Prefecture officials, and the Imperial Guards searched for him for two days and two nights but were unable to find him.
On the third day, a child's body was found in the Baima River outside Beijing. The body was white and swollen from being soaked in water, its face and body were bitten beyond recognition, and its clothes were washed away. However, a red gold bracelet was still on the left wrist, and this bracelet was exactly what Chai Zixiao had always worn. Perhaps because the bracelet was relatively small, it was not washed away by the water...
Minhu frowned, puzzled, "That wet nurse must have been involved in kidnapping the child, but why didn't they actually get rid of the child, but instead took him to Jingchang Mansion?"
Xu Lanyin said, "Yes, they kidnapped the child, but didn't kill him. They even found a fake corpse... I guess something went wrong somewhere along the way, and the child escaped, so they had to make a fake one. It's also possible that the person who actually did the work didn't kill the child for some reason, but took him to Jingchang, and the child escaped again during the chaos..."
Min Hu said, "The child suffered so much. Fortunately, Zhao Wu destroyed the inn, otherwise he would not be able to grow up. In any case, I will talk to Chai Jun privately after returning to the capital. Although Chai Jun has some arrogance of a royal family member, he is generally a good person. He is very much loved by the emperor and has a good reputation. It is best not to let the child go back before the mastermind is caught." After thinking for a while, he said, "This matter is related to Zhao Wu. That matter is more serious than anything else, so let's wait until Zhao Wu comes back to talk about it..."
The two talked for a while, and then Xu Lanyin got up and went to the kitchen.
Xu Lanyin had been gone for a long time, and Minhu was still digesting the fact that Zhao Xingchen was Chai Zixiao. It was incredible, so unexpected, such a coincidence...
Qingfeng also whispered, "Master, I never thought that Princess Nanyang's sweetheart would be Xiao Xingxing."
Minhu was speechless. There were so many unexpected things, including what happened to him...
Minhu gave Qingfeng a wink, and Qingfeng went to the yard to call in a few children.
Minhu pulled Zhao Xingchen toward him, caressing his familiar features and pinching his plump, white cheeks. He recalled the first time he'd seen him in the beggars' den, covered in wounds, his head wider than his shoulders. This child was even more unfortunate than Jiaer. Fortunately, they'd both met Miss Xu, who had changed their unfortunate fates and was now living happily again.
Zhao Xingchen asked in confusion, "Uncle Min, is my face dirty?"
Min Hu smiled and said to Xu Lanting and Min Jia, "Xiao Xingxing is young, you must take good care of him."
Xu Lanting and Min Jia both gave him a look that said, "You don't even need to say that."
"We've always loved and protected him."
"I like it, little star."
Xu Lanyin arrived in the kitchen. The chicken and mutton soup were already cooked, and the dishes were ready. The meat dishes included mutton rolls, pork belly rolls, chicken meatballs, fish meatballs, shrimp meatballs, and cuttlefish. The vegetarian dishes included pickled matsutake mushrooms, bean sprouts, wood ear mushrooms, radish, tofu, tofu skin, pickled daylily, and cabbage.
The frozen shrimp, frozen cuttlefish and dried matsutake mushrooms were delivered by Minfu today.
Xu Lanyin made several dipping sauces.
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