It was already afternoon when they returned. Upon hearing that Chunliu was still a virgin, the young marquis laughed in anger: "What did she say?"
"Not a word."
"Where are they now?"
Luoquan said, "I have found an inn nearby and am waiting for your instructions."
"Go alone and bring the man back for questioning."
Luoquan was about to leave when Qingdai arrived. She saluted the Marquis and said, "My Lord, our wife said that if you want to ask someone back for questioning, it's not necessary."
Jiang Heng's anger suddenly seemed to dissipate, and he said to Luo Quan, "Did you hear what your wife said? Go ahead and let them go."
In the young marquis's opinion, if Wang Lingyi didn't mind this matter, he would let it go.
He turned around and said to Qingdai, "Let's go see your wife."
Wang Lingyi, on the other hand, was wondering: Who exactly is Chunliu? What is the young marquis hiding?
Chunliu's hypothesis of pregnancy might have been a wrong idea.
Thirty strokes of the cane could have meant death, but the young marquis, for her sake, rejected my mother's words and even went to the study to secure her safety. She was either afraid of being beaten to death or pretending to be pregnant, hoping to hold on until the young marquis could take care of her.
Or maybe she saw the young marquis's constant protection and thought Jiang Heng had feelings for her, too. Could it be that she thought her proposal for a concubine or a maid was a trap for me, so she lied about being pregnant? In her opinion, Jiang Heng doted on her, and the court doctor was on her side. If her mother-in-law had spoken directly, that would have been even better. Otherwise, once the Lanting Garden was closed, as long as the marquis protected her, she could get away with this lie.
But now it seems Jiang Heng has no interest in her. They may have had a long-standing bond as master and servant, but he hasn't considered taking her in. So why does he protect her so thoroughly, preventing her from being killed or sold, even giving her access to his century-old ginseng and even giving her two vacancies at the Nine Gates? The old marquis's compensation was because I wouldn't live past thirty, but the young marquis' concession was to protect Chunliu. But he didn't want to take her in, so why?
Wang Lingyi told the young marquis not to call the man back for questioning. She had a vague feeling that every step of this was as Chunliu had anticipated. She just had no reason to feel that way, so she decided to disrupt one of her expectations.
Wang Lingyi thought: Since Chunliu is a family child, I should start investigating her parents. There will definitely be clues. I'm afraid I won't be able to get any information from the young marquis. If he was willing to tell the truth, he would have told me from the beginning. His silence has caused such a huge misunderstanding. Let Bicui investigate here.
Chi Zhu sent the decoction for detoxification, and Wang Lingyi drank it, but she also thought about making money. While finding the Ghost Valley Doctor wasn't always possible, it was always better to make money first. Since she could no longer live a carefree and carefree life as a daughter, she would do her best to live a good life.
The silver note left in her mother's small box was for eight thousand taels, and the title deed was to a suburban hot spring farm. The shop her mother-in-law had given her was a calligraphy and painting studio, and the two sets of headgear were probably worth six or seven thousand taels. Wang Lingyi's dowry originally included five shops and two farms, with a bottom-line of ten thousand taels of silver. The rest consisted of jewelry, headgear, clothing, ornaments, calligraphy and paintings, and so on. Among the ornaments were a jade screen, a jade cabbage, and a coral tree—all large and in excellent condition, probably worth ten or twenty thousand taels of silver. So this was her capital.
Bi Cui came over and told Wang Lingyi, "There's no indenture for Chunliu in the Marquis' Mansion. Everyone says Chunliu was born into a family, and her parents are Mr. and Mrs. Zhu Zhuangtou. But the indentures for Mr. and Mrs. Zhu Zhuangtou and their three children's birth certificates are all in the Marquis' Mansion, and Chunliu's name isn't on them."
Wang Lingyi said, "Start from the household account book of the Marquis' Mansion eighteen years ago, and check from the back to the front." Fortunately, she was already the housekeeper, so it was very convenient for her to do so.
This time, Bi Cui found a record in the Marquis's household register from fifteen years ago: Yu Chunliu, female, three years old, commoner, and orphan in foster care.
Three dynasties passed, and wars of varying sizes continued. It was only about a decade ago that things gradually subsided. Back then, adopting an orphan was common, but raising one required the approval of the master of the mansion. Was it the mother-in-law? Or the old marquis? Orphan, orphan...
As Wang Lingyi was thinking, Jiang Heng came in with a swift step, pulling aside the curtain, holding a box in his arms. When the curtain fell, Qingdai could be seen in the distance, unable to keep up.
Wang Lingyi stood up and saluted: "My Lord..." Jiang Heng supported her and said: "Why are we going through all this formalities in our own courtyard?" He took her in his arms, sat on the couch, and held her on his lap.
Wang Lingyi saw that he had returned to his old ways after hearing the message, as if he had completely forgotten that she had been poisoned and would not live past thirty. She quickly pushed him away and sat across from her. But after all, he was her husband, and she couldn't continue to be so cold. She took the initiative and asked, "What is this box?"
Jiang Heng felt lost and empty for a moment, but when he saw that she was finally able to speak to him in a kind way, he was delighted again: "This is my private vault. Xia Mo sorted out the list, as well as the banknotes, land deeds, keys and so on. I'll give them all to Madam to take care of."
This Xia Mo is different.
Seeing that she was no longer as cold as she had been a few days ago, Jiang Heng could no longer hold back. He stretched out his long arm and pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly. Wang Lingyi struggled a few times, but he held her even tighter. Then he heard him say aggrievedly, "Lingyi, don't ignore me. I've been feeling sad these past few days... I've made up my mind. If I can't heal you, I'll kill Chunliu before you die. Then I'll go with you. That way, neither of us will be alone. I thought the same thing when you were in a coma and couldn't wake up."
"I've made up my mind, but I didn't consider whether you're willing or not. It's all my husband's fault. There's a reason I can't talk about Chunliu. Lingyi, please don't be angry anymore, okay?" The person in his arms, who was stiff and straight like a kitten, her little paws pressed against his chest, trying her best to prevent him from getting close, suddenly softened and fell completely into his arms.
Wang Lingyi's younger sister, Wang Xipei, has been feeling restless these past few days. Her father has suggested that the Fourth Prince might be interested in her. The day before yesterday, after court, the Fourth Prince exchanged some ambiguous words with her. Her father's message to her is that she can't leave home for the time being and must stay home. If the final decree doesn't choose her, she can leave if she wants, and as always, her family will arrange another marriage for her. But if the Fourth Prince truly has his eye on her and has already given him his blessing, and he's still letting her out in public, wouldn't it anger the Fourth Prince if something happened, even a rumor, and that would displease him?
But what really troubled Wang Xipei was not the Fourth Prince's unresolved affection for her, but her chance encounter with the Emperor at the Spring Banquet. Worst of all, one of her embroidered shoes might still be in the possession of Emperor Mingzheng. Should she tell her father about this?
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