Chapter 68 Accomplices
Who could have imagined that the white-bearded old man she was looking for was her accomplice?
He's said to be incredibly accurate at predicting marriages; all the marriages predicted for him have come true.
Zhang Sheng turned and walked into the front hall, sitting down in the armchair opposite Jiang Wan Ning.
Just then, a maidservant came in with tea. Zhang Sheng stretched out his arms and said, "Please have some tea, Miss."
Jiang Wan Ning nodded slightly, knowing that Zhang Sheng wanted to take this opportunity to see her face clearly, and didn't hesitate.
She removed her veil and said, "Thank you, young master."
The moment the veil was removed, Zhang Sheng froze, staring intently at Jiang Wan Ning.
Even though he was used to going to brothels and seeing many beautiful women, he was still taken aback.
After a while, Zhang Sheng came to his senses when he heard a sweet laugh. He looked at Shaoyao, who was covering her mouth and chuckling.
Zhang Sheng swallowed, his cheeks slightly flushed, and said, "Miss, you are truly a beauty of unparalleled grace, like a goddess."
"I never imagined that someone as beautiful as you would need to consult about marriage."
Jiang Wan Ning felt disgusted by Zhang Sheng's greasy gaze, but she endured the discomfort and said, "Young master is joking."
After saying that, he picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and as he put it down, he glanced at the peony with a slight sideways glance. The peony nodded almost imperceptibly.
Jiang Wanning casually remarked, "May I ask who is in your family, young master? It would be quite presumptuous of me to come here so abruptly."
Zhang Sheng was so captivated by Jiang Wan Ning's beauty that he couldn't think of anything else.
He said frankly, "Please rest assured, young lady. When I said that there was no other master in this house besides myself, I was not lying to you."
"Strange, doesn't Young Master Zhang live with his parents?" Peony feigned surprise.
Zhang Sheng had mostly sobered up by this point. Hearing this, he was slightly taken aback, and then said, "My parents are both doing business in other places."
Therefore, only Zhang is in this mansion.
"I see." Jiang Wan Ning nodded gently.
"May I ask your surname, young lady?" Zhang Sheng asked.
"My daughter's surname is Jiang."
“Jiang? Is it the Jiang family of the Ningyuan Marquis’s mansion?” Zhang Sheng suddenly straightened up.
"Young master, you misheard. It's Jiang, not Jiang."
Zhang Sheng breathed a sigh of relief. If it were the Jiang family, he would probably have to be more cautious.
"However, speaking of the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion, I have heard that the concubine of that mansion did not hesitate to borrow money at exorbitant interest rates in order to prepare a dowry for her daughter."
"Later, the Marquis found out and wanted to help her add the medicine, but for some reason, the concubine refused."
"And guess what happened in the end?"
"What's wrong?" Zhang Sheng asked anxiously.
"That concubine actually managed to raise tens of thousands of taels in just a few days."
"Don't say anything more." After Peony finished speaking, Jiang Wan Ning pretended to be angry, "Please don't be offended, Young Master Zhang."
"My maidservant usually likes to gossip about various households, but she can't be serious."
“Why not?” Peony continued, “Miss, you don’t know, but the personal maid of the eldest daughter of the Ningyuan Marquis’s mansion has a very good relationship with me.”
“We used to work in the same place. Later, I came to work for Miss, and she went to the Ningyuan Marquis’s mansion.”
"She told me herself."
She also said...
"What else is there to say?" Zhang Sheng asked, somewhat agitated.
"They also said that the concubine only had one daughter, and she arranged everything for her daughter, even having her daughter plot to get together with the Prince of Langya."
“If she marries into the Langya Prince’s Mansion, then naturally a generous dowry must be prepared.”
"Speaking of which, this concubine's daughter is really lucky to be born into a family like the Marquis of Ningyuan's mansion."
"She grew up in luxury, just like a legitimate child."
As she spoke, Peony kept glancing at Zhang Sheng's face.
His face twitched occasionally as he suppressed his anger.
"The Ningyuan Marquis's mansion has only one legitimate son and one illegitimate son. The Ningyuan Marquis treats them equally and has even used all his money to compensate that concubine. This is no secret."
"You maid, you really need to change your habit of gossiping behind people's backs," Jiang Wan Ning said, feigning reproach.
Zhang Sheng's face had turned from white to black.
"However, I have heard that even the nanny who serves that concubine lives a very luxurious life."
“Bullshit nanny! That’s clearly…” Zhang Sheng suddenly paused.
"What is it?" Jiang Wan Ning asked casually, "Does Young Master Zhang also know about the Ningyuan Marquis's residence?"
Zhang Sheng's eyes darted around, his fingers curling slightly. "No...no...I only heard about it."
Although Jiang Wan Ning felt regretful, she had achieved her goal for the day.
He glanced outside and thought, "It's getting late. If I go home too late, my family will worry."
Zhang Sheng quickly stood up. "Miss, why don't you wait a little longer? I'll go and urge that old man again."
Jiang Wan Ning frowned and hesitated, just as the servant who had been sent to fetch the old man came in to report.
"Young master, the lady suddenly has a stomachache and can't come."
Zhang Sheng sighed inwardly, thinking, "Why does it have to hurt now of all times?"
Looking at Jiang Wan Ning's face, he smiled and said, "What bad timing! How about you give me an address, miss?"
"Once he recovers, I'll send someone to inform the young lady, how about that?"
Jiang Wan Ning nodded, "Then thank you, Young Master Zhang."
After saying that, he gave a random address.
They left the Zhang residence.
Peony couldn't wait to say, "Miss, since that old man is in cahoots with Zhang Sheng, why not just get rid of him?"
"Have me make a special trip to give him laxatives."
Haitang had already inquired about it; the old man and Zhang Sheng had conspired to cheat many girls.
"If we kill someone, and the authorities get involved, it will be quite troublesome to handle."
"Notify the government directly."
"Yes," Peony replied, then asked, "And the one surnamed Zhang?"
"He's still useful if he stays."
Jiang Wan Ning's lips curled slightly, "I'm afraid he's already itching to question Aunt Liu."
really.
With Jiang Wan Ning and Shao Yao singing in unison, they left the mansion.
Zhang Sheng then sneaked out of the mansion.
Jiang Wan Ning followed him all the way to the entrance of a dilapidated temple, but Zhang Sheng had disappeared without a trace.
It seems the tunnel's exit is right here.
Now, apart from Granny Zhang, everyone in Bihe Courtyard is Jiang Wan Ning's person, so Aunt Liu naturally won't let Zhang Sheng enter through the tunnel.
However, they will definitely send out Granny Zhang.
All we need to do is wait here for the rabbit to run into our trap.
About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, creaking sounds came from inside the dilapidated temple.
Jiang Wan Ning hid on the roof, lifted the old, broken tiles, and looked down.
Following Zhang Sheng out was Granny Zhang.
There was an indescribable feeling in Zhang Mama's gaze towards Zhang Sheng.
Even in the dilapidated temple, the two spoke very softly.
Jiang Wan Ning could only see Zhang Sheng's angry expression and waving arms, while Zhang Mama was sometimes stern and sometimes comforting.
Before leaving, he patted Zhang Sheng on the shoulder.
Finally, Zhang Sheng turned and left angrily, while Zhang Mama still followed the tunnel back to the Marquis's mansion.
Another incense stick's time passed.
Jiang Wanning entered the dilapidated temple and then the underground passage.
Stopping at the last wooden wall, which looked like a wardrobe, this tunnel should lead to Aunt Liu's bedroom.
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