“When I was making this pastry today, Zhang Ting managed to get me out of the house. I think that’s when she might have made her move,” Xu Yuehuai said, her face unusually grim.
Jiang Qianqian had suffered so much injustice since she was a child, and now that she was finally able to live a peaceful life, she had to deal with this kind of trouble. It was heartbreaking for her. However, Zhang Ting's identity was special, so even if they were unhappy, they couldn't drive her away.
Xu Yuehuai couldn't help but sigh: "How is Qianqian now?"
"She's taken her medicine and is already asleep," Zhou Wan quickly replied. "But it's not a good idea for Zhang Ting to stay here any longer, Yue. We need to think of a solution quickly."
Xu Yuehua nodded upon hearing this.
But ideas don't come so easily.
Meanwhile, the Xu family members took advantage of the darkness and immediately went to the Ningyuan Marquis's residence.
No one knows what they said to the gatekeeper, but the gatekeeper just let them in.
Marquis Ningyuan looked the family up and down, his mockery evident in his eyes: "Have you done everything I asked you to do?"
"It's all done, all done. The Duke of Zhenguo did indeed come to us, and we told him the truth as the Marquis instructed. We just don't know about my child's imperial examination..." Xu Jingui rubbed his hands together.
It turns out that the Marquis of Ningyuan had already found the Xu family two days earlier.
By this time, the Xu family had already squandered all the dowry they had given for selling their daughter. They could only make a living by gambling. Fortunately, Xu Jingui was lucky. Although he couldn't become rich, he could at least feed his family.
With the imperial examinations approaching, the Xu family thought of sending their son to take the exams, hoping that if he passed, his future would be bright.
Marquis Ningyuan's lips curled into a cold smile: "It's just the imperial examination, what's so difficult about it? Don't worry, I will definitely make arrangements with the chief examiner. However, I have another matter I want you to do right now."
The Xu couple exchanged a glance.
"Xu Yuehuai has opened Tianxiang Tower in the capital and is doing very well. You are her parents, so asking for some money shouldn't be difficult. However, if you can acquire the entire Tianxiang Tower, not only will your son be on the list of successful candidates, but he could even top the list." Marquis Ningyuan understood these people's minds best. As long as there was profit to be made, they would do anything.
Upon hearing this, Xu Jingui immediately agreed: "Don't worry, my lord, we will definitely get the money back."
...
The fact that Xu Yuehuai had been recognized as the daughter by the Duke and his wife was already common knowledge. Qi Guze felt that there was something wrong with it, so he came to their door early in the morning.
Xu Yuehuai, worried about Jiang Qianqian's condition, didn't sleep all night and now has to show his face with panda eyes.
Qi Guze frowned: "A-Yue, what's wrong with you?"
“Your Highness, Zhang Ting’s purpose in coming to Chang’an is indeed not simple.” Xu Yuehuai shook his head and quickly told others about Jiang Qianqian’s allergy. “Right now, she’s probably already targeting me and making things difficult for me. Your Highness, although I don’t want to cause you trouble, I really have no other choice.”
Qi Guze's mood became even heavier.
He originally thought that as long as he ignored Zhang Ting, she would stop causing trouble, but he didn't expect her to dare to take such action.
“Ah Yue, I always felt that her coming to the capital wasn’t because Maimaiti was chasing her. How could a weak woman with no strength to even kill a chicken possibly come to Chang’an alone? I’m afraid there’s something fishy going on.” He didn’t consider Zhang Ting’s whereabouts, but instead analyzed the situation with Xu Yuehuai first.
Maimaiti? Mingyue Kingdom? Aqi? Marquis of Ningyuan?
Xu Yuehuai always felt that these things were connected.
She slapped her forehead, a sudden inspiration striking her: "If the person who instructed Zhang Ting is Marquis Ningyuan, wouldn't everything become clear?"
"However, even if we kick Zhang Ting out of Tianxiang Tower, we won't be able to live in peace." Thinking of this, she shook her head. It seemed that if they wanted to continue living peacefully, they would have to deal with this ticking time bomb first.
Just as Xu Yuehuai was pondering her next move, Aunt Meng suddenly came downstairs.
Qi Guze stared at her warily, forcing Aunt Meng to find a way to get away as soon as possible.
She smiled and said, "Manager Xu, Your Highness, why are you standing here so early in the morning? It's not spring yet, and the wind is strong at the door. Please don't catch a cold."
"Thank you for your concern, Aunt Meng. I just don't know how your search for relatives is going. Do you know if your family has any distinguishing features? Perhaps we can help you out." Xu Yuehuai originally had no suspicions about Aunt Meng, but after spending some time with her, she couldn't help but start to have doubts.
Now that Aunt Meng has been separated from her family, she should naturally try to find them as soon as possible after arriving in Chang'an.
But she didn't seem to be in a hurry at all.
Aunt Meng's face immediately darkened, but she quickly recovered and hurriedly said, "Manager Xu, I've already caused you a lot of trouble by staying at Tianxiang Restaurant. How can I continue to cause you trouble? I'll keep looking, and I'll come to you again when I've really run out of options."
"Okay." Xu Yuehua nodded.
Just as Aunt Meng was about to head to Tianxiang Tower to pretend to be a lady, she unexpectedly witnessed a good show at the entrance.
Xu Jingui sat down at the entrance of Tianxiang Restaurant and slapped the ground, crying bitterly: "Oh dear, there's no way out for me now—fellow villagers, come and see! This Manager Xu of Tianxiang Restaurant has become rich and doesn't care about her own parents anymore. She's really climbed the social ladder and doesn't know who she is anymore."
His tearful appearance immediately attracted a large crowd of onlookers, and even Xu Yuehuai couldn't help but come out to see what was going on.
She frowned as she looked at Xu Jingui kneeling on the ground.
She recognized this man; he was the original owner's biological father. He had said he was marrying off his daughter, but in reality, he was selling her. Once he had sold her, he took his wife and son and ran away.
"What are you doing here?" Xu Yuehuai couldn't stand having such a heartless father, so she asked coldly.
When Xu Jingui saw the fabric she was wearing, his eyes lit up with envy. He stared at it, thinking that the fabric alone would be enough to feed his whole family for a long time.
He couldn't help but examine the signboard of Tianxianglou closely. If he could really get his hands on it, he wouldn't have to worry about the money for his son's wedding.
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