Chapter 30 Moving into Yansheng Hall
A short stay to recuperate?
Shen You subconsciously looked up at him and saw that the man's brows were deep and his eyes were filled with an unyielding expression as he looked at Shen Yao.
"The Duke is going to the Marquis's residence to recuperate?" Shen Yao asked in surprise, then realized what he meant and smiled, "The Duke was injured while saving my daughter, and the entire Marquis's residence is extremely grateful."
"It is our good fortune that you do not look down on our humble dwelling."
After he finished speaking, he turned to look at Shen You and gestured for her to speak.
Shen You pursed her lips and said, "My family and I are grateful for the Duke's help. If the Duke has any needs, we will do our best to help."
Chu Xiao had been waiting for her to say those words.
He said casually, "Since the Shen family is so kind as to refuse, then I, Chu, will stop by the Marquis of Chengde's residence to recuperate for a while."
Shen You: ? ? ?
"you..."
How did it become that she was the one inviting him?
But Chu Xiao seemed not to see her expression and instructed Mu Geng beside him to move everything needed to the Shen residence.
Finally, he looked at Shen Yao and said in a very serious tone, "I'm sorry to have bothered you, Lord Marquis."
"No need to bother me, no need to bother me," Shen Yao waved his hand cheerfully.
Chu Xiao is the Duke of Zhenguo, and he is as close as a brother to the Emperor. If the Shen family could get closer to him, it would only bring them benefits and no harm.
Therefore, Shen Yao was more than happy to let Chu Xiao recuperate at the Shen residence.
"Father..."
Shen You frowned slightly, about to say something, when she saw the man in the wheelchair suddenly clutch the injured area on his leg.
His sword-like eyebrows furrowed slightly.
Shen Yao quickly asked with concern, "Lord Duke, has your wound reopened?"
Chu Xiao waved his hand, "It's nothing, it's probably just the bumpy ride, it's not good for the wound."
He spoke casually, but he didn't let go of the hand resting on his leg.
Shen Youxiu's eyebrows furrowed even more tightly.
This man, who used to never utter a sound when injured while hunting, is clearly in great pain now.
The worry that flashed in the girl's eyes did not escape Chu Xiao's notice. He looked up at her and said, "Miss Shen knows Dr. Lin's medical orders best. Would you please help me get the medicine?"
Mu Geng was busy moving things into the Shen residence, as she was indeed the only one who truly understood the medication for Chu Xiao's injuries.
His injury was caused by himself, and since the matter of him staying at the Shen residence to recuperate had been decided, Shen You did not refuse. He softly replied "okay" and instructed the servants to push Chu Xiao, who was sitting in a wheelchair, into the residence.
She followed him into the mansion.
As Chen Xiangning was about to take a step, her wrist was grabbed by Chen Qiurong.
Chen Qiurong said in a low voice, "When did the eldest young lady and that Duke become so familiar with each other?"
Not only did the Duke of Zhenguo injure his back and leg while saving Shen You, but now he actually has to move to the Marquis's residence to recuperate.
This is simply unheard of.
In the years since Shen You returned to the Marquis's mansion in the capital, he first served the ailing Madam Shen and then observed mourning for her.
Over the course of more than four years, he rarely even left the Marquis's residence.
Moreover, it has only been about half a year since the Duke of Zhenguo returned to the capital to receive his title. Even if Shen You has been going out frequently recently, there is no reason for them to get so close all of a sudden.
Hearing her words, Chen Xiang glanced at her coldly, "Mother, the Duke of Zhenguo came to our Shen family to recuperate at Father's invitation."
The implication was that it was best not to spread rumors about the relationship between Shen You and Chu Xiao.
Chu Xiao rescued you out of kindness, and now that he is injured, it is only natural for the Shen family to repay the debt of gratitude.
Chen Qiurong was speechless, and seeing her nonchalant attitude, she was somewhat exasperated. "What do you know?"
"Mother is doing this for your own good."
"The Duke holds a high position and wields great power. If you can catch his eye, countless people in the capital will have to defer to you in the future."
With Chen Xiangning's marriage still undecided, her mother naturally had her own plans and needed to make arrangements for her daughter's future.
But Chen Xiangning did not respond to her words, and coldly said, "Daughter has a word of advice for mother."
"Since you know that the Duke of Zhenguo holds a high position and wields great power, then it's best not to waste your energy on unnecessary schemes."
"Otherwise, if you offend the Duke of Zhenguo, even your father will find it difficult to speak well of you."
Chen Xiangning was usually very quiet, even when talking to Chen Qiurong.
She rarely spoke so much, but it was all advice to her mother not to try to be clever.
Otherwise, one wrong step could lead to total defeat.
She lowered her voice, but her tone was very serious.
Chen Qiurong's heart skipped a beat at her words, feeling embarrassed as if she had been exposed by her own daughter.
She could only turn her head away and purse her lips, "Okay, okay."
What an ingrate!
Isn't all this scheming for her sake?
Chen Xiangning ignored her and followed Shen You up the stone steps.
However, as soon as they entered the mansion, they heard Steward Liu's hurried voice.
"My lord, something terrible has happened!"
"Something terrible has happened!"
Shen Yao's expression hardened. He glanced at Chu Xiao and coldly rebuked Butler Liu, "What's the matter with this panic?"
Steward Liu had been handling the matter in the courtyard without leaving the house, and was unaware that the Duke of Zhenguo was coming to stay at the mansion for a while.
Seeing the man sitting in a wheelchair with such imposing presence, she felt a lump in her throat and even forgot to reply.
Suppressing his anger, Shen Yao said, "Don't lose your manners in front of the Duke of Zhenguo."
Steward Liu quickly bowed and then lowered his head to reply, "My lord, the manor has been burglarized..."
"What?!"
Shen Yao was shocked. "What exactly happened?"
Shen You and Chu Xiao, who were standing to the side, also had their own doubts.
"Hearing that the summer retreat procession was returning to the capital today, this old servant instructed the servants in each courtyard to thoroughly clean," Steward Liu said, head bowed, feeling guilty for not having looked after the house properly. "But just now..."
"The servants who were sent to clean the courtyards of the eldest and second young ladies returned and said that a lot of jewelry was missing from the dressing cases in the two young ladies' rooms."
"But it was perfectly fine when I cleaned it yesterday..."
"What?"
Shen Yao gritted his teeth instantly, "Were there any other thefts?"
Butler Liu shook his head. "No."
He had just carefully investigated the matter in the mansion and found that apart from the two young ladies' valuable jewelry, nothing else was missing.
Shen Yao's face was extremely ugly. "This thief actually dared to steal from my Chengde Marquis's residence. He's tired of living."
He was furious, but then he heard Shen You calmly ask, "Besides the theft, is there anything else unusual about the mansion?"
"For example, are there any signs of forced entry on the doors or windows? Or did you hear any noises around midnight last night?"
Butler Liu immediately replied, "No."
"Upon learning that the two young ladies' rooms had been burglarized, this old servant immediately led people to check the doors and windows, which were all intact."
"A sound in the middle of the night..." He lowered his head, thinking carefully, and after a moment he said firmly, "No, there wasn't one."
Since the Shen family had all gone to Yuhua Mountain with the Emperor these past few days, the affairs of the mansion were basically handled by Steward Liu.
With the master away, Steward Liu became even more meticulous in his work, fearing that something might go wrong during this time.
Everything was fine for the past few days, but when I was cleaning today, I discovered that something had been stolen.
It would be a lie to say that Steward Liu didn't feel guilty.
He was an old man in the household, honest and reliable, and was treated differently by Shen Yao, so he was naturally loyal to the Shen family.
He is undoubtedly to blame for what happened.
But now is not the time to hold Steward Liu accountable.
"Report to the authorities!" Shen Yao glared and repeated, "Report to the authorities!"
However, as soon as the words left his mouth, Shen You's voice followed closely behind.
“Father, in my opinion, perhaps we should first question all the servants in the mansion. If we get no results, then it’s not too late to report to the authorities.”
There were no signs of forced entry on the doors and windows, and the servants in the mansion did not hear any unusual activity, so the possibility of a thief within the household could not be ruled out.
“Eldest sister is right,” Chen Xiangning stepped over the ground and stood beside Shen You, echoing her words.
After a moment's thought, Shen Yao nodded, looked at Chu Xiao, and said respectfully, "Today's events were sudden, and I apologize for the misunderstanding, Your Excellency. I will prepare a banquet later and then inform Your Excellency."
“Everything in Yansheng Hall in the manor is ready,” he said, glancing at Shen You. “Youyou, take the Duke to Yansheng Hall.”
He then instructed Steward Liu, "Send two clever maids to Yansheng Hall."
But before he could finish speaking, Chu Xiao said, "I am not used to using maids. Lord Shen can send two servants."
“Okay,” Shen Yao was taken aback, thinking to himself that the rumors outside were indeed true.
The Duke of Zhenguo was indeed averse to women.
Shen You planned to send Chu Xiao to Yansheng Hall first, and then go to the side hall in the front yard to see how to interrogate about the theft. Therefore, he had no objection to Shen Yao's arrangement.
"Yes, Father."
She pushed her wheelchair toward Yansheng Hall, behind her the sound of Steward Liu calling for all the servants to gather in the side hall.
It was the height of summer, and the sun was setting behind the western mountains.
The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the world in a warm orange light, enveloping the flowers, plants, and trees in the courtyard.
The servants had all gone to the side hall, making the corridor particularly quiet.
They walked through corridors and pavilions without exchanging a word.
Shen You lowered his eyes, his mind filled with thoughts of the theft in the mansion.
Until we turned through the moon gate and entered the Goose Sound Hall.
Chu Xiao's deep voice rang out, "Regarding the theft at the Marquis's residence, does Youyou have other thoughts in mind?"
His call of "Youyou" sounded remarkably natural, but Shen You was taken aback and turned his face away somewhat awkwardly. "What insightful opinion does the Duke have?"
"Tell me your thoughts first," Chu Xiao said, staring intently at her. Even in a wheelchair, his imposing presence remained undiminished.
Perhaps because he happened to be there during a theft case, the sharpness in his eyes was undisguised.
Following his words, Shen You expressed her own thoughts: "The thief should not be a servant in the manor."
This was something she had come up with on her way here.
The doors and windows in her and Shen Xiangning's courtyard were not damaged, and the servants did not hear any unusual noises last night, which means that this person knows the Marquis's residence very well.
This was the reason she initially had Shen Yao interrogate the servants in the mansion.
But upon closer reflection, given that they had been at Yuhua Mountain for so many days, if she were the servant who wanted to steal the jewelry, she would not have chosen to act only last night, given all the opportunities they had had before.
This timing is terrible.
Hearing her words, Chu Xiao's eyes brightened slightly, and he praised, "Youyou is intelligent."
Shen You's ears turned red.
This seemed to be the first time the two of them had such a serious discussion.
This was something that hadn't happened in Qingxi Town in those two years.
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