Xiao Shuo was sitting in the main hall in the front yard of the Anping Marquis's mansion. He arrived an incense stick earlier and did not dare to step into Rongfu Hall, so he asked Wu Ning to go and take a look on his behalf.

Wu Ning came back in a hurry and reported to him the situation in Rong Fu Hall.

Hearing that the lady's hand was injured, Xiao Shuo's pupils shrank, and the hand holding the teacup trembled slightly, and a few drops of tea splashed on the back of his hand.

Wu Ning was startled and rushed forward to see if there were any burns.

Xiao Shuo waved his hand, signaling him not to come over. His phoenix eyes seemed to contain a violent storm, which was intimidating, and there was a strong gloom around him.

Wu Ning couldn't help but shudder.

He has been following Xiao Shuo for ten years, and has followed Xiao Shuo step by step to where he is today.

Xiao Shuo looked quite gentle and had a good temper. He would never get angry with his subordinates for no reason. However, no one who could sit in this position was soft-hearted.

Over the years, many people have died at Xiao Shuo's hands, especially during the great purge two years ago, when half of the Twelve Inner Court Supervisors and the East Factory Supervisors were wiped out. The former East Factory Supervisor and West Factory Supervisor, the Eunuch in Charge of Seals and the Eunuch in Charge of Writing were all killed to pieces.

At that time, all those in the court who expressed dissent and disobeyed him had their property confiscated or their families exterminated, and no one survived.

It was at that time that Xiao Shuo and Zheng Zhongming became enemies. Zheng Zhongming's wife's family and mother's family all died at the hands of Dongchang.

Xiao Shuo used extremely bloody and violent means to completely control both the East and West factories in just one month.

Those who obey will live, those who disobey will die.

The whole capital city was terrified when they heard about Dongchang. They were frightened during that period. At that time, the whole capital was in a state of panic and the smell of blood in Caishikou lingered for a long time.

After that, Xiao Shuo's temper seemed to have improved a lot, but Wu Ning knew that it was just superficial.

"Master, calm down."

Wu Ning didn't understand why Xiao Shuo was so concerned about the lady of Anping Marquis's Mansion, but he didn't need to know so much. He just needed to be loyal to the governor.

Xiao Shuo asked, "How is the madam's injury?"

"I have examined the lady's wound. It is not serious. I have called the imperial physician." Wu Ning bowed and said, "Imperial Physician Fang lives nearby and will be here soon."

Of course, they didn't call the imperial physician on duty in the palace, as that was too far away. When Dongchang needed an imperial physician, they would go directly to the imperial physician's house and bring the person over.

Wu Ning added: "Li Fang's family has been captured."

Xiao Shuo tried his best to control the emotions in his eyes, and his voice was calm and without any fluctuation: "Drag him away for trial."

Wu Ning went straight down.

Xiao Shuo sat on the armchair with a cold look in his eyes. The atmosphere around him was also gloomy and depressing to the extreme. Shen Qianhu, who was standing beside him, didn't even dare to breathe.

Such a mistake happened here in Dongchang. Captain Shen blamed himself a lot. He only blamed himself for being too careless in investigating Li Fang's family. He originally thought that she was just an ordinary servant, but he didn't expect that she would actually cause the lady to be injured.

He is truly to blame for everything.

Xiao Shuo glanced over indifferently, and Shen Qianhu said quickly: "Master, I know I was wrong."

His back was bent very low, completely lacking the coolness he displayed in front of others.

Xiao Shuo said calmly: "After this mission, go and receive your punishment yourself."

Shen Qianhu's back was also covered in cold sweat, and he quickly said, "Thank you, Governor."

The methods used by Dongchang were not something that ordinary people could endure. Not long after, Li Fang's family confessed. Wu Ning came over and reported, "Supervisor, it was Xue Bei."

Xue Bei is the real name of Anping Hou.

Wu Ning reported everything in detail: "Xue Bei gave Li Fangjia a piece of silk paper and asked her to take it to the Madam to put her handprints on it and ask for a token of love. Li Fangjia was illiterate and she didn't know what was written on the silk paper. Xue Bei promised Li Fangjia that if she could do it, not only would their lives no longer be in danger, but he would also give Li Fangjia a thousand taels of gold as a reward and cancel their entire family's slavery. Only then did Li Fangjia take the risk."

"Where is the silk paper?" Xiao Shuo asked.

Wu Ning replied: "Let the lady swallow it."

Xiao Shuo lowered his eyes slightly and said, "Go on."

Wu Ning said, "Li Fangjia told the Madam that she could take her to see Yao'er, hoping to coax her to avoid having other people put their fingerprints on the silk paper. Li Fangjia didn't know who Yao'er was, but she had heard the Madam mention him before, and whenever she mentioned him, she would always listen. This was the only time she suffered a loss." He recounted the whole story, and added, "Later, the Madam kept reminding her not to let anyone bully Yao'er and to protect him.

"Master, the lady must be referring to the only son of King Lingnan."

Yaoger is a person's name. Those of them who work in Dongchang know much more than others.

Wu Ning had read the files before. The only son of King Lingnan at that time was named Xue Yao, who was also the grandson of the lady dowager.

Xiao Shuo clenched his hands on the tea table into fists. He was used to suppressing his emotions, and within a few breaths he was completely calm.

Wu Ning lowered his head and said submissively, "Master, the imperial physician has just arrived. Madam's hand was only injured on the surface. The imperial physician picked out some small vase fragments from the wound and applied medicine. It will heal in a few days."

Xiao Shuo nodded slightly and said, "Send someone to the Zhenbei Palace to pass on a message, asking the Zhenbei King to come and pick up the Madam tomorrow."

Wu Ning quickly responded and said, "Master, do you want to see Xue Bei?"

Xiao Shuo thought for a moment and said, "Let someone else judge it."

As he spoke, he stood up, and Wu Ning followed him and helped him put on the cloak.

Xiao Shuo went directly to Rong Fu Hall. At that moment, the lights in Rong Fu Hall were still on.

Xiao Shuo stood in front of the main hall, not moving a step.

The night deepened. The cold and pale moonlight spread over the earth. The cold wind blew in the face, making Xiao Shuo's war tent rustle.

Dongchang knocked on the door of Zhenbei Palace in the middle of the night, so Chu Yuanchen picked up Sheng Xiyan early in the morning and went straight to Anping Marquis Mansion.

When the Dongchang guard who was guarding the door saw Sheng Xiyan coming, he opened the door and let the carriage in without asking any questions.

Wu Ning was waiting at the gatehouse. When he saw them, he said, "My Lord, Miss Shengda, the governor is waiting for you."

Chu Yuanchen jumped off the carriage and nodded, "Let's go."

Xiao Shuo was still in the main hall. He had hardly slept all night, but his face showed no sign of fatigue, as if he had long been accustomed to staying up all day and night.

Chu Yuanchen had known him for so many years and could tell at a glance that he was in a bad mood, and guessed it was because of the lady's matter.

He pretended not to know and said with a smile: "Brother, I'm here to pick up the Madam. Before I left, my mother beat me up. She was very ruthless and I almost died from the beating."

When the Anping Marquis's Mansion just arrived in Beijing, Jingle planned to come to visit the lady, but Chu Yuanchen stopped her again and again on the grounds that they had just arrived and had not yet settled in, so he and Sheng Xiyan would go on her behalf.

The most taboo thing is to be extremely happy or extremely sad.

Therefore, Chu Yuanchen would rather wait until everything is over before telling her.

The result was that Chu Yuanchen only revealed everything when the Anping Marquis' Mansion was raided, and was immediately scolded.

"Brother." Chu Yuanchen sat down below him carelessly and said, "But you asked me not to tell you for now. The next time my mother beats me up, I will betray you."

Xiao Shuo smiled gently, and the lines on his face softened visibly.

Wu Ning on the side breathed a sigh of relief: The Governor has been in a bad mood all night, fortunately this King Zhenbei is still of some use.

Wu Ning saw the opportunity and asked cautiously, "Master, do you want to have breakfast?"

Before Xiao Shuo could speak, Chu Yuanchen said, "What are you standing there for? Come on. Big brother, let me tell you, I was beaten by my mother and kicked out of the house. I haven't eaten anything yet."

Xiao Shuo laughed and nodded to Wu Ning, who quickly ordered the meal to be served.

There was porridge, side dishes and various snacks. Xiao Shuo didn't eat much. He put down his chopsticks after eating a bowl of porridge. After the meal, he told them what happened last night.

Chu Yuanchen put away his cynical smile, and a sharp light appeared in his eyes.

Xiao Shuo said, "Before the hour of Mao, Xue Bei could no longer bear the torture and confessed. He suspected that I was Xue Yao."

When mentioning this name, Xiao Shuo's tone remained unchanged, as if he was talking about someone else.

Chu Yuanchen's mind moved: "Could it be..." He wanted to ask Xue Bei if he had ever seen him before, but then he thought again and felt that it was unlikely.

It's been more than 20 years.

Twenty years is enough time for a child to grow into a young adult, and it is normal for appearance to change with age.

Even if Xue Bei had really seen "Xue Yao" before, he would not be able to identify him as the one.

There are too many similar people in this world.

Chu Yuanchen lowered his eyes slightly, and heard Xiao Shuo simply say: "Xue Bei wrote a letter of identification from the Madam on a piece of silk paper, identifying me as Xue Yao, and the Madam swallowed the silk paper."

Xiao Shuo chuckled, as if he was saying something extremely absurd.

Sheng Xiyan: “…”

How despicable.

Xue Bei's sinister intentions are obvious.

He probably couldn't be completely sure of Xiao Shuo's identity, so he wanted to start with the lady.

The lady is Xue Yao's biological grandmother. If she signs this letter of accreditation, it will become a handle in Xue Bei's hand.

Whether he trades it with Xiao Shuo or with others, it can at least save his life.

There are dangers at every step and traps everywhere. It is really not easy for these two people to get to this point.

If I had paid more attention to government affairs in my previous life, maybe I could have helped them. Sheng Xiyan was a little upset that she was so disheartened in her previous life. She just wanted to get rid of this world as soon as possible, but she didn't think about how to change the status quo.

Xiao Shuo picked up the teacup and took a few sips, feeling calm and at ease.

He smiled faintly and said, "Recently, quite a few people have been concerned about my identity."

Chu Yuanchen asked with some interest: "Who else?"

Xiao Shuo said calmly, "Zheng Zhongming. Zheng Zhongming returned to his hometown on the pretext of not getting along with the emperor, but he actually went to find evidence against me."

Chu Yuanchen: “…”

Chu Yuanchen was not familiar with Zheng Zhongming and they had never had much contact.

He had been in the northern border for many years, and when he returned to Beijing, Zheng Zhongming was no longer in the capital.

However, Chu Yuanchen knew that twenty years ago, Zheng Zhongming was the emperor's deputy general and they went to Lingnan together.

After the fire was set in Zhan Ancient City, the emperor, who was still the crown prince at the time, was afraid of the locusts and the charred corpses all over the ground in Zhan Ancient City, so he let Zheng Zhongming be in charge of "cleaning up" and waited for the army of King Lingnan to return for support after hearing the news, and then launched a large-scale encirclement and suppression.

There were many swamps and miasma in Lingnan. The King of Lingnan was anxious to return to Zhan Ancient City as soon as possible, so he led his army to take a detour through the swamps. Zheng Zhongming repeated his old trick and set a fire in the swamps. The poisonous gas and smoke almost wiped out the 100,000-strong army of Lingnan.

They either died at the hands of foreign enemies or were killed by their own people.

Zheng Zhongming was also praised by the late emperor for this campaign, and after the emperor ascended the throne, he was naturally promoted to the governor-general of the Beijing camp.

Chu Yuanchen pondered for a moment and asked, "What did he know?"

"It's not about what he knows, but what I want him to know."

Xiao Shuo smiled with a meaningful look in his eyes.

The two of them had a great tacit understanding. As soon as he said it, he understood it and they smiled at each other.

Sheng Xiyan listened in silence.

After they drank the digestive tea and they had almost finished talking, Sheng Xiyan stood up and said, "I'm going to go find the lady."

Chu Yuanchen said, "I'll go with you."

"You talk to brother." Sheng Xiyan winked at him.

Xiao Shuo is obviously in a bad mood because of the lady's matter, so don't leave him here alone.

After Sheng Xiyan finished speaking, she asked, "Eunuch Wu, can you ask someone to prepare a shoulder strap?"

"Yes, I'll go right away."

Sheng Xiyan went ahead. She had been here several times and was very familiar with the terrain of Anping Marquis Mansion. She arrived at Rongfu Hall with ease.

Mammy Ma and Mammy Xu were waiting in the main hall. They greeted her respectfully, "Young lady."

The lady was sitting on the Luohan bed, her silvery hair neatly tied into a bun with a jade hairpin inserted in it, and she was wearing a headband that was embroidered by Sheng Xiyan herself. There were four dishes and a soup on the small table, and it was obvious that she had just had breakfast.

Mammy Ma said, "Lady Tai went to bed late last night, so she got up late, too."

This hour is already considered brunch.

"You did a good job." Sheng Xiyan praised without hesitation.

Sheng Xiyan sent them both here, not only to let them torture Lou Shi and let her suffer, but also to prevent the current situation.

Although Xiao Shuo is in Dongchang and there is nothing to worry about, the Dongchang staff are all men, and when it comes to taking care of people, they are definitely not as meticulous and skilled as the maids who are used to working in the palace. The lady is also old and cannot tolerate being neglected.

The two of them really took good care of her, and the lady's complexion seemed to be much better.

The two maids were overjoyed and relieved at the same time.

After greeting the lady, Sheng Xiyan sat on the edge of the Luohan bed. She untied the white cloth wrapped around the lady's hand and carefully examined the wound. The wound was indeed not deep and no blood was oozing from it, so it should not be serious.

She tied the white cloth again with skillful movements and said, "The emperor has asked the Zhenbei Palace to take care of the lady, and the prince and I are going to take the lady away now." She paused and said, "What are your plans, are you two going to stay with me or go back to the palace?"

"If you want to return to the palace, I can give you some ideas."

The two maids looked at each other and said in unison: "Miss, we want to stay."

If they don't do this job well, even if they return to the palace, they won't get any good results, and they may not be sent anywhere. It's better for them to stay outside.

Miss Shengda is easy to serve, has a good temper and a gentle personality, and will not torment them easily.

Ma Ma was the first to speak: "Young lady, please let us keep it. If we go back now, the Queen Mother will definitely send someone else." She smiled flatteringly, "It's better to use the familiar than the new, you say."

Sheng Xiyan nodded: "That's true, then you should just go back to Sheng Mansion first."

The two maids were relieved, thinking that she would not take them to the Zhenbei Palace, and agreed immediately.

After a while, a waiter came to the door to announce that the guard had arrived. Sheng Xiyan said in a gentle voice, "Madam, I'll take you somewhere, okay?"

The lady remained silent, and when Sheng Xiyan extended her hand, she gently placed her hand on it.

Sheng Xiyan smiled, then helped her walk out.

The shoulder pole was parked outside. When the two maids saw that it was carried by the Dongchang men, they shuddered and said in panic: "Ms. Shengda is indeed the one with the most face. Who else would dare to let the Dongchang men carry the shoulder pole?! They simply dared not even think about it!"

The two maids lowered their heads and helped the old lady onto the shoulder bag, then protected her on the left and right to prevent her from falling. Such meticulousness and consideration were obviously trained in the palace.

Sheng Xiyan smiled and said, "Please sit down."

She made a gesture, and the guards lifted their bags and walked out.

Chu Yuanchen was already waiting for her at the ceremonial gate, and together with her he helped the lady onto the carriage. The two maids did not follow them and went back to the Sheng Mansion on their own.

After getting on the carriage, Chu Yuanchen stared at the lady sitting opposite him. He was born late and had never seen the lady, but he had heard his mother mention that the lady was very beautiful, very kind, and had a tenacious character that would rather die than bend.

Chu Yuanchen said in a gentle voice: "Madam. I am Achen."

He paused, lowered his voice, and said, "Brother Yao asked me to take care of you."

Sheng Xiyan calmly started the carriage.

"Brother Yao..."

The lady muttered to herself, and a faint light appeared in her hollow eyes, like a firefly in the dark.

In an instant, she seemed to realize something, and suddenly rushed to the car window and pulled open the curtain.

Sheng Xiyan's mind moved, and she looked over there, and saw a figure wearing a bright red Qilin robe standing far away under a plum tree, looking over here.

He seemed not to have expected that the lady would suddenly open the curtain. His body stiffened noticeably, and then he immediately left without looking back.

The lady stared blankly outside, muttering to herself: "...I seemed to see Yao'er, was it a dream?"

Sheng Xi's face was full of joy.

In the past few days, she has been giving acupuncture to the lady every other day, and it seems to be having some effect.

Originally, Sheng Xiyan thought that the old lady was old and the blood clots had accumulated in her brain for more than ten years, so it would be difficult for her to recover. However, she did not expect that the old lady's willpower would be so strong.

Too.

Being able to deceive the Marquis of Anping for so many years and hide that crucial private letter, the lady is no ordinary person.

The lady's pupils were still a little dilated. It was not easy for her to utter such a complete sentence.

Sheng Xiyan glanced at Chu Yuanchen, and Chu Yuanchen shook his head slightly, meaning that brother would not come.

Madam Tai: "Brother Yao..."

Sheng Xiyan gently held her hand: "Don't worry." She let the lady lean on her shoulder, closed the curtains, and said softly, "Everyone is fine, including Brother Yao."

There was a soothing power in her voice, and the lady gradually calmed down.

The carriage drove out of the door and soon arrived at the Zhenbei Palace. Princess Jingle was already there, holding Jiaoyang's hand and looking forward to it.

Seeing the carriage approaching, Jingle said directly: "Don't stop here, drive to the inner courtyard. After all, it's your own home, there's no need to break so many rules."

Even if you have a shoulder strap, there is no need to go up and down randomly.

So the carriage drove directly into the inner courtyard and stopped in front of the gate of Wuhe Hall. Jingle got on the carriage and helped the lady down. She said softly, "Madam, this is the courtyard where my grandmother lived. You can live here."

There is always a courtyard where the old lady lives in the mansion of nobles, and Wuhe Hall is one of them.

Wuhetang was laid out completely according to the specifications of the prince's wife. Even though no one lived there, someone would come to clean it from time to time. After hearing the news from Dongchang yesterday, Jingle even opened the warehouse and arranged it thoroughly.

As soon as you enter Wuhe Hall, you will see a large open space with bluestone slabs. Unlike the courtyard where the old lady lived in Xunchang Mansion, there are no pine and cypress bonsai here, but instead there are two weapon racks.

Jingle smiled and said, "Madam, do you remember that when my grandmother was young, she loved to wield swords and guns? You even had a duel with her. At that time, you said that if you became an old lady in the future, you would put the weapon rack in the yard, so I moved them here."

The lady looked at him for a while, then walked forward slowly, and Jingle supported her.

Jiuyang, who was lying behind, pulled Sheng Xiyan's sleeve and asked in a low voice: "Sister, Master said I can choose a weapon now. What do you think I should choose?"

Sheng Xiyan asked: "What do you want to learn?"

Jiaoyang couldn't think of anything, she had so many things she wanted to learn.

Seeing this, Sheng Xiyan suggested, "Do you want to learn sword?"

Jiuyang's eyes lit up.

Sheng Xiyan said longingly: "I like swords. If I learn martial arts, I will definitely learn swords." The heroines who enjoy themselves in the martial arts world in those novels use swords.

“Okay, okay!”

Jiaoyang nodded vigorously: "I will listen to my sister and go learn sword."

Chu Yuanchen matched Sheng Xiyan's steps, walked beside her, and watched the two of them, one big and one small, with interest.

Jiuyang said, "Sister, can you come and watch me practice sword?"

Sheng Xiyan: “Okay!”

Jiaoyang was even happier: "I will practice hard, and when my sister gets married, I will teach her!"

Sheng Xiyan: “…”

Chu Yuanchen couldn't help but chuckle, and his joyful laughter could hardly be concealed.

Sheng Xiyan glared at him, and in return he winked frivolously. Sheng Xiyan could no longer keep a straight face and started laughing.

Jiaoyang didn't know what they were laughing at, but he laughed along anyway.

Hearing the laughter, Jingle turned around and looked at them. Yes, there was nothing to be sad about. The hardest time had already passed, and things would get better and better in the future.

Jingle helped the lady into the main room.

The charcoal stove in the main room had been burning for a while, and the room was warm. Luohan's bed was also covered with a soft cushion made of thick fur, which was very warm just by looking at it.

The old lady remained silent, but Sheng Xiyan noticed that her expression had obviously relaxed.

She is sensitive to who is good to her.

After Princess Jingle arranged for the Madam to sit down, she asked, "Sister Yan, how is the Madam's illness?"

"We need to keep using silver needles to see if we can get rid of the blood clots in her brain." Sheng Xiyan had not been idle these past few days. She read a lot of medical books and wrote a prescription. "Then, we should take the medicine first. Try taking a few doses."

Sheng Xiyan continued, "Princess, the Madam is injured. I asked Madam Ma and Madam Xu to apply medicine to her. Remember to have them change the medicine every day so that she can get better quickly."

"Injured?" Jingle was slightly startled, and simply couldn't believe her ears.

Chu Yuanchen said in a cold voice: "Xue Bei and Lou have confessed. Lou was the one who beat me most of the time. Xue Bei also beat me. Sometimes he pinched me, and sometimes he used a cane. There was no reason. He just beat me to vent his anger."

"I have taken care of them. I have also arranged for them to take care of their meals and to serve them well with rattan sticks."

Jiuyang said distressedly while holding the lady's hand, "Were you also beaten by the bad guys? Don't be afraid, I am here, I will protect us."

Jiuyang thought back to her days at the Jiang family and felt that the lady was as pitiful as herself.

She leaned towards the lady and said, "Jiaoyang will accompany you."

The lady did not move for a long time, and when they thought she would not react, she reached out her hand and gently patted Jiaoyang on the back.

Her hands and feet were weak, so she patted twice very lightly, then slid down slowly again, just like coaxing a child, whispering softly, "Yao'er..."

"My name is Jiuyang." Jiuyang told her his name, "Jiao, Yang."

Madam Tai: "Jiaoyang..."

Jiuyang smiled and said, "You are right, my name is Jiuyang."