Chapter 22
When Ayao was brought back, she was so frightened that she couldn't speak.
She had been trembling the whole time, but she burst into tears when she saw Jiang Yunshu.
"Mother..."
Jiang Yunshu held the person tightly in her arms, and tears streamed down her face.
With her hair disheveled, A-Yao threw herself onto her and cried until she could hardly breathe before finally falling into a deep sleep.
After having someone escort A Yao back to her room, she went to Jiang Jinhong's study.
"Father, there is something that concerns the fate of our Jiang family, and I must tell you."
Jiang Jinhong's tightly furrowed brows relaxed for a moment because of her sudden arrival, and upon hearing her words, he shifted his gaze to her face.
"What is it, A-Yun?"
Jiang Yunshu took two steps back, closed the study door, and then closed the window.
He cautiously led the person to the inner side of the study and said in a low voice, "Father, Ayao was kidnapped by the Third Prince."
“I had a dream a few days ago. In the dream, the Third Prince killed my entire Jiang family. At that time, I was not divorced. A Yao was humiliated and mistreated in the Shen family. Later, the Third Prince used her and sent her to the beds of several high-ranking officials.”
She spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes filled with deep hatred, as if the scenes from her past life were still vivid in her mind.
Jiang Jinhong was taken aback by her words.
The Third Prince had just spoken with him, and his words clearly indicated an attempt to win him over; he had already made his decision.
"Father knows you're anxious. Now that Ayao is back, you should rest for a few days."
"father!"
Jiang Yunshu knew what kind of image she had in her father's heart: an uneducated person who only knew how to skip classes for fun.
Following Chu Shuangfeng around, he spends all his time teasing cats and dogs, never having a serious moment.
Moreover, her words were indeed too far-fetched.
She rephrased it as, "Father, we are supposed to be far removed from the imperial court, but the Jiang family is wealthy and powerful. Even if you don't believe me, you should be aware of the Jiang family's situation."
"There have been people who deliberately framed us before, and I don't think there will be any less in the future. Father, if we get involved in partisan strife, I don't know what will happen to others, but our Jiang family will only face death!"
Jiang Jinhong looked at her with sorrow and pity, and after a long while, he finally spoke.
"My son has grown up."
He let out a deep sigh, the melancholy in his eyes still lingering: "Before, all I knew was how to scale walls and hunt birds..."
Her mind went blank for a moment, and following her father's gaze, she seemed to see the person leaping up from the wall.
"I will make my own decision on this matter, so there is no need to worry too much. I will definitely protect the Jiang family."
Jiang Jinhong frowned as she spoke, then paused, "Father, how can you protect the Jiang family? With just a word from the Third Prince, the entire Jiang family could be executed."
"Brother Yunzheng is confused, are you confused too?"
Jiang Jinhong looked at her in surprise: "You knew about this too?"
The Third Prince's words had already revealed that Jiang Yunzheng was serving him, and it was precisely because of this that he was so conflicted.
What should Jiang Yunzheng do if he refuses outright and righteously?
Will Jiang Yunzheng sever ties with the Jiang family in the future?
Will Jiang Yunzheng be able to escape alive from the Third Prince's clutches?
She could tell what her father was thinking just by looking at his expression.
"The restaurant matter has also been resolved."
Jiang Jinhong lowered his voice and sighed helplessly.
What ability do they have to fight back now?
Jiang Yunshu dragged her tired body back to her room and didn't sleep well all night, her dreams constantly replaying A Yao's painful past life.
After waking up, she stayed by A Yao's bedside.
As he meticulously sketched A Yao's eyebrows and eyes, a strange sense of panic and helplessness welled up inside him, as if he were realizing for the first time how powerless he was.
Perhaps, she really shouldn't have gotten a divorce...
As dusk settled, the Third Prince arrived early with his entourage.
Despite her reluctance, Jiang Yunshu went to the front hall, only to hear Mo Yanzhou talking about wanting A Yao to enter the palace as a companion to his studies.
"I find A Yao to be truly adorable. I have a younger sister who is about the same age as A Yao, and my mother has recently been looking for two companions to study with."
Mo Yanzhou's gaze swept lightly over Jiang Jinhong and Ruan Qingshang, finally landing on Jiang Yunshu, who had arrived in a hurry.
"I think A Yao is quite nice, and my younger sister will definitely like her too."
As Jiang Jinhong was pondering what to say, Jiang Yunshu stepped into the front hall, bowed to the Third Prince, lowered her gaze, but spoke in a high-spirited voice: "My daughter is foolish and I fear she is not fit to accompany the princess."
Mo Yanzhou gave a soft, cold snort, then curled the corners of his lips into a smile.
"oh?"
He raised an eyebrow, his voice devoid of emotion: "I think A Yao is incredibly intelligent and adorable."
"My daughter is crude and vulgar; I would rather not offend the eyes of the princess and empress."
Mo Yanzhou chuckled, staring at her meaningfully. The smile in his eyes gradually faded, and the curve of his lips tightened inch by inch.
Jiang Jinhong hurriedly knelt down and said, "Ayao survived this time all because of the Third Prince. I should have agreed, but Ayao is really unruly. If I let her enter the palace to accompany the princess, I'm afraid it will displease her!"
Mo Yanzhou glanced down at Jiang Jinhong, his lips pressed even tighter.
"How dare you! Countless noble ladies in the capital would fight for such an honor, yet you have refused it time and time again!"
The people in the room all knelt down after a sharp shout from the person behind Mo Yanzhou, and their breathing became tense.
Jiang Yunshu wanted to say something, but she knew that if she spoke again now, there would be no turning back.
"The Third Prince has come to visit, but I have been late. It is truly my fault."
Jiang Yunzheng walked in at this moment. Today he was wearing a black brocade robe with cloud patterns, and his hair was tied up high, giving him a rather spirited look.
He entered and first lifted his robe to give a deep bow.
Mo Yanzhou's cold eyes hadn't yet lost their icy edge. He narrowed his eyes, as if he had thought of something, and smiled with a smirk: "Oh, it's the eldest son of the Jiang family. Get up."
He then turned his gaze to the person behind him: "This was merely a joke of mine. You dog slave, how dare you presume to make decisions for me?"
The person behind him immediately lowered his head and admitted his mistake.
Mo Yanzhou snorted coldly, ignoring the people behind him, and said to everyone with a smile, "I only did this because I find A Yao adorable. Since you don't want to send A Yao away, then so be it."
"Get up, there's no need for that."
Jiang Yunshu felt a weight lifted from her heart, but she also had a nagging feeling that Mo Yanzhou wouldn't let them off so easily.
She soon understood what Mo Yanzhou meant.
“I recently heard about an old incident. Several months ago, a number of murders occurred here, which were even more vicious than this poisoning. Moreover, the perpetrator has not yet been caught.”
Mo Yanzhou clicked his tongue twice, his brow furrowed, looking worried: "I am uneasy leaving this trouble in Jiangnan!"
She had never heard of this before, but it was clear that he was telling the truth, and neither Jiang Yunzheng nor Jiang Jinhong looked very pleased.
“Yes, that person was absolutely vicious. He killed young women and even…” Jiang Yunzheng paused and didn’t finish his sentence.
"Sigh..." Jiang Jinhong sighed, "Your Uncle Yuan's daughter was dismembered into seven or eight pieces by that thief and scattered in several different places. If it weren't for the large number of people in the Yuan family, even the government soldiers probably wouldn't have been able to find them all..."
She was shocked when she heard this; could such a thing really exist?
"Yes, such a vicious criminal must be brought to justice. How can we allow him to continue harming others?"
Mo Yanzhou sighed, picked up the teacup on the table, looked at the pattern on the teacup, turned it around gently, and then took a sip.
"Speaking of which, Miss Jiang must also hate this person extremely, right?"
Jiang Yunshu was inexplicably struck by Mo Yanzhou's words, her heart skipped a beat, and she looked at him.
"If this person hadn't written such outrageous words on a stone next to the corpse, would Miss Jiang still be sitting peacefully in the Shen Mansion right now?"
Mo Yanzhou looked at her meaningfully, his teacup still in his hand, half-covering his lips, revealing only his sharp and cold eyes.
She suddenly felt a cold sweat break out on her back.
She didn't utter a word for a long time, only feeling a chill running through her body, and her heart filled with increasing fear and terror.
She didn't know what else Mo Yanzhou said after that; her mind was only on Ling Jingchu.
She ruined Ling Jingchu's life.
In her previous life, the Third Prince only noticed Ling Jingchu after he joined the Crown Prince's faction. It was she who recklessly brought Ling Jingchu to Mo Yanzhou's side.
The flowers in the yard had already begun to wither after a summer.
She sat in the courtyard watching the withered flowers, their leaves swirling in the wind, falling onto the water's surface. The fish below, unaware of the danger, opened their mouths and nudged the leaves back and forth.
The fish food in his hand was thrown out, but it landed with a heavy thud.
'Thump!'
Startled, she realized that Qing Shuang had already stood protectively in front of her, her brows furrowed.
Qing Shuang took two steps forward, carefully pushed open the door, and firmly imprisoned her behind her.
She peeked out and looked around, but didn't see anyone. She drew her short sword from her sleeve and became even more focused.
He glanced at the ground casually and paused, stunned.
"……Miss"
Qing Shuang looked at the person on the ground with some disbelief and said, "This person seems to be dead."
Qing Shuang stepped forward and poked the person, who indeed remained motionless. She was speechless as she looked at the stiff corpse.
Is this person friend or foe?
Just as she was wondering whether she should just throw the person out, Qing Shuang tore off the person's veil and was surprised again: "Miss, this is a woman."
After Qing Shuang removed the person's veil, Jiang Yunshu found the person somewhat familiar.
It couldn't be someone she knows.
It seemed more like someone she had seen during a soul journey in her past life; perhaps not important, so she didn't pay much attention.
"……Miss?"
She sighed softly, "To save lives."
There weren't many people in the courtyard, just Qing Shuang and a few maids serving outside, while the servants stood guard outside.
This also made things convenient for them.
Although Qing Shuang has only recently recovered, she is still very strong.
She picked the person up by the waist and carried them away. There was a small couch in the room, so Qing Shuang placed the person on the couch.
After a careful inspection, there were no bluish-black knife wounds on his body.
During this period, Doctor Li came over frequently, and the two servants had a lot of leftover ointment, which Qing Shuang then applied haphazardly to people.
I checked the person's breath again, and it was very weak.
"Miss, this person probably wouldn't have survived without Doctor Li."
She glanced at the person on the small couch and instinctively felt that this person was a dangerous individual. Perhaps he had been chased and had fled here in a panic.
If we rashly invite Dr. Li...
"Miss, shouldn't Ayao's dressing be changed?"
Her eyes lit up, and she was about to praise Qing Shuang when a cool longsword was pressed against her neck.
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