69. Chapter 69 Secret
Zhao Jin quickly explained Xiaoxiao's identity. "I've already sent people to Zhangjia Village to investigate. She's not Zhang Li's sister. She bears a striking resemblance to Xue Ji, with almost identical features. I suspect she's Xue Ji's child; their ages are just right."
Xue Ji was extremely beautiful, and it was impossible for just any girl to look like her. Zhang Xiaoxiao was most likely Xue Ji's child. Mo Chuan could hardly believe his ears.
"Where is Zhangjia Village?"
Zhao Jin quickly said, "Qiyuan Town, Mr. Zhang's hometown."
Hearing this, Mo Chuan's eyes couldn't help but fill with ecstasy, and the veins on his hands bulged. Last time, Qin Dian found out the place where Xue Ji jumped off the cliff, which was only dozens of kilometers away from Qiyuan Town. It was very likely that Xue Ji hid the child in Qiyuan Town.
After seeing his expression.
A hint of joy also crossed Zhao Jin's face. "So, her child isn't dead? Zhang Xiaoxiao is most likely my uncle's child?"
Mo Chuan didn't answer, but his eyes turned red unconsciously. When he spoke again, his voice was a little hoarse, "Take me to Zhang's house."
Zhao Jin felt a little excited. This was the first time his fifth uncle asked him for help, so he quickly pushed him out of the cabin.
Over the past decade, Mo Chuan has rarely left the cabin, and every time he did, he would cause unrest in the mansion. Last time at the baby's full-month banquet, he suddenly caused such a scene, and now the whole capital is watching the joke of the Duke of Anguo's Mansion.
Upon learning that he was out again, the old lady's heart trembled. She picked up her cane and pounded the ground fiercely, "This rebellious son! What is he doing out again? Isn't he being laughed at enough by outsiders? He won't be satisfied until everyone is in turmoil!"
Back then, the nanny she sent to frame Xue Ji died at the hands of Mo Chuan. The old lady always believed that the nanny had successfully killed Xue Ji, so Mo Chuan hated her. Over the years, the old lady had regretted it when she thought of the innocent child who died at her hands.
These regrets were gradually consumed by Mo Chuan's repeated madness. When she thought of the looks from everyone after Mo Chuan said those words at her great-granddaughter's full moon party, she felt extremely ashamed.
The wife of the Duke of Anguo happened to be in Mingyue Hall. Upon hearing this, she patted the old lady's back and said, "Don't be upset, mother. I will ask someone to find out what he is going to do. I will ask the servant to invite the Duke back and ask him to persuade him as well."
The old lady knocked the ground hard and closed her eyes. "What a sin!"
When the old lady was young, she had been to the battlefield and was a brave woman who was no less brave than any man. She usually looked kind, but every time she got angry, her expression was extremely cold and stern, and the servants were a little scared of her. After seeing her being persuaded by the Duke's wife, the servants' fear gradually dissipated.
He then quickly reported, "Fifth Master didn't come out alone this time. It was Young Master Biao who pushed him out."
When he said this, not only did a hint of surprise flash across the old lady's face, but the Duke's wife's face was also full of surprise.
The wife of the Duke of Anguo hurriedly said, "Keep the watchful eye on him. If he tries to break into Mingyue Hall, have the servants stop him for now. Don't let him in until the Duke returns home."
Last time, the old lady fainted because of him. The Duke didn't say anything on the surface, but he felt a little bit resentful of her for not handling the matter properly. The Duke's wife naturally didn't want the old lady to get into trouble again, otherwise she would be the one who would be in trouble.
Soon another servant came to report that they had left the mansion. Upon hearing this, Lady Anguo did not really relax and hurriedly instructed, "Send someone to follow them and see where they went."
The old lady was also a little confused.
Zhao Jin was humorous, sweet-spoken, and good at making people happy. The old lady always liked him, but when she saw that he was involved with Mo Chuan, this evil creature, her brows were tightly furrowed.
Soon the servant returned to the mansion again and said that Mo Chuan had gone to Zhang's mansion. The old lady was even more confused now and didn't know what he was going to do.
At this time, Mo Chuan had indeed arrived at Zhang's house.
Seeing that he was looking for Xiaoxiao for something, the guard went in and announced, "Miss, the Fifth Master of the Duke of Anguo's Mansion wants to see you."
Mu Xi hadn't left yet. When he learned that this evil star wanted to see Xiao Xiao, his delicate brows suddenly knitted together, "Why is he here?"
Xiaoxiao wasn't sure either. Although she had only met Mo Chuan three times, she always felt that beneath his fierce exterior, there was an indescribable madness and fragility. She said, "Let him in."
Xiaoxiao met him in the hall in the front yard. Not only Muxi and Luzhu followed him, but Xiaoxing also came.
He had some impression of the Anguo Mansion. He remembered his mother once saying that his aunt loved the eldest son of the Anguo Mansion, and his sister was his child. Unfortunately, he died young.
Seeing this Fifth Master coming, Xiaoxing couldn't help but lower his eyelashes, and a vague guess came into his mind.
When Mo Chuan heard the footsteps, he couldn't help but tighten the armrests of his wheelchair.
Zhao Jin was also a little excited, thinking that she might be his uncle's only blood relative. He looked towards the door expectantly. He had only seen Xiaoxiao once at a palace banquet. He remembered that the girl had bright eyes and white teeth and was extremely beautiful.
Xiaoxiao was wearing a light purple skirt and a snow-white shawl on her shoulders. She had a graceful figure and delicate features. As she walked slowly, she was extremely beautiful.
Zhao Jin looked at her carefully, feeling a little regretful that he couldn't see his uncle. Mo Chuan also looked in Xiaoxiao's direction. Even though he couldn't see clearly, his eyes, which always looked sinister, revealed a hint of tenderness.
The next moment, he heard the girl's soft and sweet voice, "Fifth Master, what do you want to talk to me about?"
The voice sounded vaguely familiar, and Mo Chuan felt as if he had heard it before. He had a good memory and quickly recalled the incident of the girl breaking into the cabin.
Not only had he been mean to her, he had also never given her directions, but she had been so kind as to help him fix his wheelchair.
Mo Chuan's eyes were full of self-blame. It turned out that he had met her as early as that time.
Mo Chuan's throat rolled a few times, and he couldn't say anything for a while. His eyes were fixed on Xiaoxiao.
He was actually very handsome, with long eyebrows slanting into his temples, a straight and handsome nose, and every part of his face seemed to be carefully crafted by the Creator. If he were not blind and lame, with his appearance and background, he would definitely be able to charm many girls.
Seeing his strange look, Mu Xi's eyes flashed with vigilance. She pulled Xiao Xiao behind her and said coldly, "Hey, you blind man, what are you looking at? If you look again, I'll dig out your eyes."
Mo Chuan also recognized her voice. The girl's voice was crisp and clear, as fierce as ever. Thinking of what she had done in the past, Mo Chuan's eyes turned extremely cold. His slightly cold gaze fell accurately in the direction of Mu Xi.
Zhao Jin also knew Mu Xi. His sisters had mentioned her to him more than once, and he knew she was not someone to be trifled with. Zhao Jin quickly said, "Miss Mu, we mean no harm. We came here today to recognize our kin."
Mu Xi's style of doing things has always been "if you respect me one foot, I will respect you ten feet". Seeing Zhao Jin's good attitude, Mu Xi just glared at Mo Chuan and didn't say anything else. She pulled Xiao Xiao to sit down and was a little curious about the recognition of relatives mentioned by Zhao Jin.
Xiaoxiao couldn't help but glance at Mo Chuan once more before saying to Zhao Jin, "Sir, please sit down."
After Zhao Jin thanked him and took his seat, he said, "We suspect Miss Zhang is a descendant of the Anguo Mansion who has been lost."
Zhao Jin explained briefly. He did not mention the fact that his grandmother did not allow Xue Ji to enter the house. He only said that she and Xue Ji were almost cut from the same mold and were very likely the bloodline of his uncle.
After hearing this, Xiaoxiao's eyes were filled with shock.
Mu Xi was also a little surprised. She couldn't help but look at Mo Chuan. Mo Chuan remained silent. His usually sinister eyes were filled with an unspeakable sorrow. He swallowed back the words "You said she is Xue Ji's child, so she is her child?"
She coughed and then said, "You said she looks a lot like Xue Ji. What's the proof?"
Mo Chuan came out in a hurry and didn't bring the portrait with him. He then looked in Zhao Jin's direction and said, "Go to my room and get the portrait. It's on the second shelf of the bookshelf."
Zhao Jin responded and hurried back.
He had just returned to the Anguo Mansion when he heard from the servant that the old lady wanted to see him. Zhao Jin didn't have time to say more, and only said to the servant: "Tell my grandmother that my fifth uncle and I have found my eldest uncle's child. Now I have something urgent to do, so I will go see her later."
He hurriedly said this and went to the cabin to get the portrait. When the old lady heard the servant's report, she was stunned and murmured, "How is it possible? Isn't the child dead?"
The wife of Duke Anguo also felt nervous.
After Zhao Jin left, the atmosphere in the hall became a little awkward. Xiaoxiao and Muxi both thought of what Mo Chuan said at the baby's full-month party.
If she is really the child of the Duke of Anguo, does it mean that Old Madam An has harmed her?
Xiaoxiao actually didn’t quite believe that she could find her relatives, and she couldn’t imagine what her parents would be like.
Zhao Jin came back soon. After he came in, he handed the scroll to Xiaoxiao. Xiaoxiao's fair little hands trembled unconsciously, and she couldn't unfold the scroll for a while.
Noticing that she was a little nervous, Mu Xi reached out to take the scroll and helped her unfold it. As the scroll unfolded, the man and woman on it were gradually revealed.
The woman had a smile on her face, her hands stroking her slightly bulging belly, and she leaned against the man with a happy look on her face.
Her face was exactly the same as Xiaoxiao's, not the 70% or 80% similarity as Zhao Jin said. Whether it was the black watery eyes, the straight and small nose, or the delicate and tempting lips, they were all exactly the same. If this portrait had not been painted more than ten years ago, Xiaoxiao would have suspected that it was painted based on her.
The reason why Feng Zichen felt that Xiaoxiao and Xue Ji were only 70% to 80% similar was simply because he was only in his teens when he saw this portrait, and his memory of Xue Ji was a little vague.
Mu Xi was also a little surprised. He never expected that Xiaoxiao looked exactly like the woman in the painting.
Xiaoxiao's fingertips unconsciously touched the girl's slightly bulging belly. When she saw the happy and gentle expression on her face, a very strange feeling surged in Xiaoxiao's heart.
Xiaoxing also saw Xue Ji's portrait. She looked very similar to his mother, so Xiaoxiao is really his sister, right?
Zhao Jin also came over curiously and said in surprise, "They are exactly the same!"
Xiaoxiao pursed her lips and said, "Even if we look exactly alike, I'm not necessarily her child. There are always people who look alike in the world."
Although Xiaoxiao was denying it, there was an inexplicable voice in her heart telling her that the person in the portrait was her mother. She didn't know if it was because of their blood relationship, but she felt very strange when she saw her for the first time.
Mo Chuan said, "Some time ago, I had someone investigate your mother. When you were about to be born, your mother was very close to Qiyuan Town. Even the place where she had the accident was very close to Qiyuan Town. There is no such coincidence in the world."
Mo Chuan had never said such a long sentence before. In the past, he would have lost his patience, but at this moment, he was full of patience.
He continued, "Your mother's appearance is rare across the entire continent. She's from the Li tribe, and the Li people are full of beauties. Your mother is not only the most beautiful woman in the Li tribe, but also the most beautiful woman in the entire Jin Dynasty. The only person in the world who resembles her is her sister Xue Li. According to my research, Xue Li has only given birth to one child in all these years, and it was a boy. You can only be Xue Ji's child."
Xiaoxiao's heart was in a mess.
Mo Chuan couldn't help but hold on to the armrest of the wheelchair and whispered, "My brother has been looking forward to your birth every day. He gave you a nickname early on. In order to be with your mother, he went to the battlefield without hesitation, and he wanted to marry her after returning... Who would have thought..."
Mo Chuan's voice was a little dry and his eyes were a little red. He couldn't continue speaking. After a while, he said, "Before he left, he handed you and your son to me. It was because I failed to protect your mother that she fell off the cliff at such a young age."
Xiaoxiao's heart tightened, and her eyes widened unconsciously, "She, she left too?"
Mo Chuan's voice was hoarse, and after a while he whispered, "Silly child, she is the person who loves you the most in this world. If she were still alive, how could she be willing to abandon you?"
Xiaoxiao's nose felt inexplicably sour. In the scroll, Xue Ji's hand was always stroking her abdomen. Her expression was so gentle, as if the child in her palm was her beloved.
It turned out that she was also a child that her parents were looking forward to.
Xiaoxiao always thought that her parents abandoned her because they didn't want her. When she was young, she found that all the children in the village had parents, and she was curious about what her parents looked like. After learning that she was picked up by her grandmother, Xiaoxiao never imagined what they looked like again.
Her eyes were sore and she couldn't take her eyes off the scroll for a while. Mu Xi couldn't help but put his arm around her shoulders. After holding her in his arms, Mu Xi looked at Mo Chuan and Zhao Jin.
"Even if Xiaoxiao looks like the woman in the painting, it only means she's related to the woman in the painting, not that she's the child of the Duke of Anguo. If I remember correctly, the old lady didn't agree to their marriage at all back then. She even harmed her unborn child. Xiaoxiao is living a good life now, and she will never go back to the Duke of Anguo's Mansion with you. Go back the way you came."
Mo Chuan pursed his lips, and when he looked at Mu Xi, his eyes couldn't help but turn cold. "Before Xue Ji became pregnant, she always stayed with my brother. Xiaoxiao will only be my brother's child."
Mu Xi had originally felt a bit sorry for him, but after seeing his expression, she felt a bit displeased and couldn't help but sneer, "What's that look in your eyes? You say it is, is it true? What evidence do you have? Don't act like you care about her so much. If you really cared about her, would you have let her suffer for more than ten years? Now that the hardship has ended and happiness has come, you are here again. How can such a good thing happen in this world!"
Although Mo Chuan looked cold, he didn't say anything unpleasant in front of Xiaoxiao. He had already left a bad impression on Xiaoxiao when they first met, and this time, he just wanted to salvage his image a little.
He hadn't originally intended to bring her back to the Anguo Mansion. If possible, he didn't want to go back. He looked at Xiaoxiao again, his voice a little gentler than usual, "I'll come see you another day."
After he finished speaking, he pushed the wheelchair away and left.
Zhao Jin hurriedly followed him. After walking out of the front hall, Zhao Jin remembered the portrait, "Fifth Uncle, the portrait has fallen."
Mo Chuan whispered, "Give it to her."
After they left, Xiaoxiao couldn't help but look at the scroll again. Perhaps because they were related by blood, she felt very familiar looking at the two people in the painting. She couldn't help but look at Mu Xi, "Sister Xi, can you tell me their story?"
"Do you really think they are your parents?"
Xiaoxiao couldn't explain her feelings, and nodded after a while, "I think Mo Chuan is right. There wouldn't be such a coincidence in the world. It's almost right."
After learning that they were all gone, Xiaoxiao felt a sadness that was hard to describe in words. If they were not related by blood, it would be difficult for her to explain how she felt at the moment.
Mu Xi noticed her sadness, so she didn't ask any more questions and touched Xiaoxiao's head soothingly. In fact, she also felt that there couldn't be many people as beautiful as Xiaoxiao, and Xiaoxiao must be their child.
As for Xue Ji's story, Mu Xi knew only a little more than Xiao Xiao. She briefly summarized it, saying, "The man in the portrait was originally the Crown Prince of the Anguo Mansion. He must have loved her very much. When the old lady refused to let her in, he left the Anguo Mansion directly, even at the cost of giving up his position as Crown Prince."
When Mu Xi first heard about this, he admired his courage. "I heard that he had a falling out with his family over a woman from the Great Jin Dynasty. Everyone was confused, but he resolutely left the capital, apparently taking her to the manor. It wasn't until the old lady gave in that he went to the battlefield. He was very powerful back then, not only talented but also handsome, very popular with young girls. But she was the only one in his heart..."
As she narrated, these scenes seemed to emerge in Xiaoxiao's mind, and Xiaoxing listened very carefully.
That night, Xiaoxiao couldn't fall asleep. The night outside gradually deepened, and the sky was dark, as if it had been splashed with ink. Xiaoxing couldn't fall asleep either. At three o'clock in the morning, he heard the cry of a cat. The sound was not loud, and if you didn't listen carefully, you wouldn't hear it at all.
Xiaoxing listened carefully, opened the door and walked out. Sure enough, there was a black figure standing in the shadows of the yard.
He was wearing a nightgown that blended in with the black, and if you didn't look carefully, you couldn't tell that there was a person standing there.
Seeing him, Xiao Xing's eyes moved slightly. He walked towards the man and asked in a low voice, "Why are you here?"
The man chuckled softly, grabbed his collar tightly, and pressed him against the wall. "Boy, if I hadn't come, would you have forgotten your mission long ago? Pei Jing has come twice, and you've entered the palace once. We've met three times, but you haven't taken action yet. What are you waiting for? Are you worried that your mother has lived too long? Or have you grown too independent? Have you developed other thoughts?"
Seeing him mention his mother, Xiao Xing couldn't help but clench his fists. He suppressed the hatred in his heart and said in a deep voice: "It's not that I don't want to take action. I didn't see him when I entered the palace. The two times he came here, he was always accompanied by others. I couldn't find a suitable opportunity."
The man sneered, "Whether you have the right opportunity or not, if you don't want your mother to die, act quickly. I'll give you another month, otherwise..."
He smiled coldly and put his fingers around Xiaoxing's neck. He didn't use much force to avoid bruises. He leaned close to Xiaoxing's ear and said in a low voice, "Just wait to collect your mother's body."
After he finished speaking, he let go of his hand, and with a few jumps, his figure disappeared in the palace.
Xiaoxing stood there for a long time, until his legs felt sore, then he turned around and went back to the house.
He took out the medicine bag from his arms again and stared at it for a long time. The candlelight shone on his face, making his delicate little face inexplicably reveal a sense of sadness.
He put the medicine bag back into his arms, looking a little dazed for a moment. He had not taken action yet because he was afraid of implicating Xiaoxiao. If he took action, his identity would be exposed sooner or later, and then Xiaoxiao and Zhang Li would definitely not have a good ending.
Xiao Xing's eyes were a little dark. It took him a long while to extinguish the candle and lie down on the bed. He curled up unconsciously, with his light brown eyes still open. When dawn came, he still maintained this posture.
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