Chapter 37: Unruly
Song Tangning was amused by what Princess Cheng and Xiao Yan said. With a dimple-shaped smile, she said, "If my grandfather saw my aunt like this, he would be furious."
Nanny Jiang couldn't help but add, "Even if the eldest lady saw this, she would have to beat the princess."
Princess Cheng: "..."
Nunu said, "My sister and father are not here, otherwise how could the Song family have such courage?"
Upon hearing this, Nanny Jiang paused, then her face became a little gloomy. Yes, the Grand Tutor and the Madam are both gone. If there were someone else in the Rong family, as long as there was a young man, how could the people from the Song family dare to bully a girl like this.
As the weather gets warmer, the charcoal basin in the house has been removed.
Tang Ning was wearing a padded jacket. Seeing that the atmosphere suddenly became depressing and Princess Cheng was a little unhappy, she reached out and put her arm around Princess Cheng, avoiding the wound.
"Mother is not here, but I still have my aunt. With my aunt protecting me, Tang Ning is not afraid."
The little girl's voice was so soft and sweet that Princess Cheng, who was still immersed in the melancholy of the departure of her loved ones, suddenly felt as if she had drunk honey.
She pulled herself together, the previous joking expression gone as she spoke seriously, "Of course I will protect you. Although Governor Xiao taught the Song family a lesson for you this time, this matter cannot end like this. It's a pity that there is still no news from your uncle, otherwise we would have been at loggerheads."
"Hasn't Uncle found out yet?"
"No, the people sent to Anzhou haven't returned yet. I think it will take some time to investigate."
Xiao Yan sat aside, watching the aunt and nephew talking. "The princess said that Prince Cheng went to Anzhou because of the matter of the Song family's concubine?"
Princess Cheng nodded and said, "Yes, I suspect there is something wrong with her identity."
She no longer had any good feelings towards the Song family, especially after the old hag from the Song family took action today. The few remaining concerns she had were all gone. Regardless of whether the Song family had done something to Song Shulan's background, she would never let Tang Ning go back to that den of tigers and wolves. As for the reputation of the Song family and the concubine, she had no need to cover up for them.
She would only feel happy if the Song family was embarrassed.
Xiao Yan frowned slightly. "If you suspect there's something fishy about her identity, you should go to Anzhou and investigate thoroughly. However, the trip will take at least half a month. If you can't wait for news from there, you can go to the government office in Beijing and retrieve the travel permit she needs to enter the capital."
"That concubine's daughter isn't from the capital, she's lived there for a long time, and she's the second daughter of the Song family. There should be records of that at the government office."
Princess Cheng was stunned for a moment: "Yes, how could I forget this."
The capital city is different from other places. There are patrols in the city from time to time. If you are just doing business or staying for a few days occasionally, it is fine, but if you want to live in the prosperous area of the city for a long time, you must first "settle down", otherwise you will be sued if you are found out.
How could a family like the Song family, who pride themselves on being noble and dignified, give themselves room for criticism over such matters?
"I'm going to Jingzhao Prefecture right now. I want to see what kind of person Song Shulan is."
Princess Cheng got up and left in a hurry, and Nanny Jiang didn't have time to stop her.
Seeing Nanny Jiang's anxious expression, Tang Ning was afraid that Princess Cheng would get into trouble by going to the government office out of impulsiveness. She said, "Nanny Jiang, please go with your aunt. Don't let anyone offend her."
"But the girl..."
"I still have Hua Wu here, and the governor is here too."
Nanny Jiang thought about it and realized it was right, so she quickly said, "Then I'll go first."
The master and the servant left one after another, and the originally lively house instantly became quiet.
Hua Wu brought in freshly brewed tea and stepped aside. On the table were fragrant roasted chestnuts sent from the kitchen, but Tang Ning's fingers were wrapped in a ball and it was difficult to put them in his mouth.
She glanced at the table greedily, then looked at Xiao Yan curiously and asked, "Brother, why did you send my aunt away to Jingzhao Prefecture?"
Xiao Yan said, "Prince Cheng went there a few days ago."
Tang Ning was stunned for a moment before realizing what he meant.
"Although Jingzhao Prefecture couldn't confirm whether Song Shulan was Song Hong's daughter, they could find out whether she was from Anzhou. If Song Qin and the others really wanted to conceal Song Shulan's background, they would definitely be on guard against anyone going to Anzhou. Prince Cheng also thought of this, so he went to Jingzhao Prefecture and secretly took away Song Shulan's registration books."
As Xiao Yan spoke, he reached out and picked up a chestnut, squeezed it between his fingers, and the chestnut shell cracked open.
"After your grandmother was carried back today, Song Hong also hurried to Jingzhao Prefecture. He must have sensed that you were suspicious of the Song family and wanted to prevent you from using me to investigate Song Shulan. However, he discovered that Prince Cheng had taken the books before him."
Song Hong was so scared that his face turned pale and he almost fainted.
Tang Ning was silent for a long time after hearing this: "So Song Shulan is really not from Anzhou?"
Xiao Yan hummed, "Her origin is in Yanghua in the south, and the name registered in Jingzhao Prefecture is also from the Xu family of Suyun Town in Yanghua."
May……
Song Tangning lowered his eyes. Song Hong and the others had previously said that Song Shulan's biological mother's surname was Li, and Song Shulan changed her surname after returning to the Song family.
If it was said that Song Hong and the others were deliberately scheming, they even forgot to help Song Shulan change the registration book. But if it was said that they were just fooling around, they remembered to lie to her about even such a small thing.
Tang Ning pursed her lips and whispered, "So Prince Cheng knew she wasn't from Anzhou, but he still lied to my aunt and said he sent someone to Anzhou?"
"Sending people is true, and coaxing is also true."
Xiao Yan said calmly that Princess Cheng was not stupid. She lived with Prince Cheng day and night, and there were many things that Prince Cheng could not hide from her. If he did not send someone to Anzhou to stage this drama, Princess Cheng would easily find out.
"Speaking of which, the way Prince Cheng treats your aunt is quite strange. He claims to not care, yet he's incredibly considerate. He'd rather send someone to Anzhou for nothing than to let her notice his neglect and feel displeased. But if you say he cares, he's even willing to lie about something as big as the Song family."
"He knew full well that your aunt hated evil and was extremely protective of you, yet he helped the Song family cover up the fraud. Isn't he afraid that Princess Cheng would turn against him after learning about this?"
Song Tangning pursed her lips even tighter when she heard that. Not only did Xiao Yan not understand, even if she lived again, she would not understand.
Tang Ning had something on his mind, so he kept his eyelashes drooped and said nothing.
Xiao Yan was not a talkative person. He would say a few more words when Tang Ning was talking, but once Tang Ning became quiet, he would not take the initiative to speak.
The room was extremely quiet for a moment. The two sat facing each other. Tang Ning unconsciously tugged at the white cloth wrapped around his hands, his eyes unfocused, while Xiao Yan leaned on the table and peeled chestnuts with a distracted look.
The round chestnut kernels were thrown into the empty teacup, and after a while they popped out.
Xiao Yan bent his hand and pushed the teacup across the table to the other side, waking up Tang Ning who was a little distracted.
Tang Ning looked down at the cup that should have been empty, now filled with bright yellow chestnut kernels. He looked up in surprise, "Brother?"
"I saw you were almost drooling just now."
Xiao Yan clapped his hands and looked at the little girl opposite him.
"Not everything in this world is logical, and not everyone is truly what they appear to be. Prince Cheng and his princess have been married for many years, and have always appeared affectionate to the public. If his true feelings were false, what would have allowed him to pretend for over a decade? How could you have easily detected that?"
Song Tangning almost knocked over the chestnut in front of him when he heard this.
"Brother, you..."
How did he know?
She clearly didn't say anything.
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