The next day.
Pei Qingyan and Su Jinyang were transporting the imperial court's disaster relief grain to Liangzhou. Remembering Song Zhiyu's words, they couldn't help but be on high alert.
This batch of disaster relief grain is a matter of life and death for the people of Liangzhou, and there must be no mistakes.
Besides Su Jinyang, who was out in the open, the emperor also secretly sent people to escort him all the way. The scale of the escort was so great that no one dared to make any rash moves.
Li Wang also temporarily abandoned his idea of eliminating Pei Qingyan and planned to deal with him slowly.
Song Zhiyu stood in the crowd, watching them leave with a complicated expression, somewhat absent-minded.
Her right eyelid kept twitching, and she felt like something big was about to happen.
“Miss, there aren’t that many Star Grass herbs in the pharmacies in the capital.” Lu Bai leaned close to Song Zhiyu’s ear and whispered. Her mistress had suddenly asked her to collect such a large batch of Star Grass herbs. She had searched all over the capital and only found a little over half a box, which was far from meeting Song Zhiyu’s requirements.
Song Zhiyu snapped out of her daze and pondered for a moment, "Keep searching. If we can't find it in the capital, we'll try Yuncheng. We must gather all the Heavenly Star Grass within three days."
If the inevitable plague follows the floods in Liangzhou, she must prepare as soon as possible.
"yes."
Lu Bai nodded, turned around and was about to leave, but suddenly stopped. There was something she had forgotten to say, "Miss, our people have found traces of Nurse Chen."
Chen, the wet nurse, was someone who knew about the two children being switched back then. Song Zhiyu was determined to find her so that he could use her to expose Shen Feng's true colors and completely break away from the Marquis's mansion.
After waiting for so long, she finally caught him.
Song Zhiyu curled her lips into a smile, seemingly still a little worried, and added, "Make sure to bring the person back to the capital safely."
"This servant understands," Lu Bai replied repeatedly, her expression becoming serious.
Her mistress attached great importance to the matter of Nurse Chen, so she naturally couldn't slack off either.
*
The Marquis of Chengen's Residence.
As soon as Song Zhiyu arrived at the gate, he came face to face with Shen Jinshu, who was coming out of the mansion.
"Second sister, you've come back just in time. Aunt has returned to the manor and was just looking forward to seeing you." Shen Jinshu only paused for a moment before reacting very quickly, as if the discord between the two had never occurred, and greeted Song Zhiyu very naturally.
aunt?
Song Zhiyu looked somewhat surprised. She did know that Madam Shen had a younger daughter, but she had never heard anyone in the household mention this so-called aunt.
Its sudden appearance now seems rather suspicious.
Seeing this, Shen Jinshu chuckled, "Look at me, I'm so confused. Second sister has never been in the manor since she was little, so it's normal that she doesn't know about her aunt. By the time you returned to the manor, your aunt had already married and moved to Liangzhou."
Upon hearing the mention of Liangzhou, Song Zhiyu understood something. Liangzhou had suffered severe flooding, and the influx of displaced people had forced many to leave and seek refuge with relatives.
But Song Zhiyu had no interest in this aunt she had never met and had no intention of meeting her.
"I won't see you." Song Zhiyu said this without giving Shen Jinshu a chance to react, and walked over her shoulder.
"Oh, sister-in-law, look at this. This is the good daughter you raised, with absolutely no manners. As an elder, I had to come and invite her in person to see her. She's really putting on airs."
A sharp, sarcastic female voice slowly rose from behind her. When Song Zhiyu turned her head, she saw a plump woman with a slightly mean-spirited look shouting.
Shen Ru scrutinized Song Zhiyu with a critical gaze, nodding and then shaking her head.
This girl is indeed good-looking, but her personality is really unpleasant.
"My upbringing varies from person to person, and I become stronger when faced with a stronger opponent." Song Zhiyu wasn't angry, but she was somewhat disgusted by Shen Ru's blatant scrutiny, as if she were assessing her worth.
Shen Ru glared angrily. This brat dared to talk back! She was an elder, after all.
She inquired about Song Zhiyu quite a bit at the mansion and knew a little about her temper, but Shen Ru didn't take it seriously and thought that those people were exaggerating.
Even the most stubborn person will soften in her hands.
“Sister-in-law, look at what she’s saying! She’s a real country bumpkin with no manners whatsoever. If you ask me, you’ve spoiled her too much.”
Mother Shen looked embarrassed and ashamed. She tugged at Shen Ru's sleeve, trying to stop her from saying anything more, lest she suffer the consequences.
However, Shen Ru was still angry and felt that Song Zhiyu had offended her, so she had to teach her a lesson.
My brother is really something. Why bother bringing back a daughter who can't bring any benefit to the Marquis's mansion?
Since the decision was made to switch the two children, it should be done cleanly.
Song Zhiyu chuckled and kindly corrected her, "You're wrong about one thing. Madam Shen has never raised me."
She grew up in the countryside and relied on the charity of others to make a living. Even after returning to the Marquis's mansion, she never used a single ingot of silver from the mansion.
Shen Ru choked on her words, unsure how to respond.
But she didn't think she was wrong, and subconsciously complained to her mother, "Sister-in-law, they are both your daughters. Shu'er is gentle and generous, while Zhiyu is eccentric. The two are incomparable. You should really reflect on yourself and see where the problem lies."
Shen Ru showed no sign of the humility of someone living under someone else's roof; on the contrary, she arrogantly berated her mother, acting as if she were the master of the house.
"Zhiyu, quickly apologize to your aunt. She is an elder after all." Mother Shen didn't think there was anything wrong with Shen Ru's words, but she did disapprove of Song Zhiyu's actions.
Song Zhiyu wasn't going to put up with her. "If you like apologizing to others, don't drag me into it."
After saying that, ignoring Chen's mother's embarrassed expression, Song Zhiyu turned around and left, leaving the others standing there staring blankly.
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