Chapter 382 Confirming Identity
Gu Yining was puzzled for a moment and then ordered: "Lu An, follow quickly."
Xiao Yanxu reacted, "Ayi is really hiding something from us. He doesn't want to ride in the palace's magnificent carriage with agate canopy, but rides in a humble carriage to hide his whereabouts! We must catch him red-handed today!"
"Not only that, but the clothes he wore weren't his favorite bright colors. He dressed like a traveling merchant, and he even packed up Liao Ji's food. Who was he sending it to?"
Xiao Yanxu's face darkened. "Could it be that this kid is not learning his lesson and has a mistress outside?"
Gu Yining's expression changed. "It seems that because we weren't around and no one cared about him, he grew crooked on his own!"
"Ning'er, we're not leaving this time. We'll take good care of our little great-grandson."
"Originally, we weren't going to leave this time. If we go out again, we might die in a foreign land!"
Zhu Qian drove his carriage to the intersection where the east and south parts of the city met.
There were many passers-by at this time, so the carriage had to slow down until it stopped.
Lu Chao also had to stop the carriage.
As soon as Xiao Yanxu stuck his head out, Zhu Qian drove back.
Seeing this, Lu An got out of the car and walked quickly towards the roasted nuts stall. "Boss, how much are the sugar-roasted chestnuts?"
"Thirty-five coins a pound."
Lu An directly packed a large bag of sugar-roasted chestnuts and asked, "Come and see how many pounds are there?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Qian drove his carriage slowly past behind him.
Lu An quickly paid the bill, stuffed the sugar-roasted chestnuts into Xiao Yanxu's hands, and drove the carriage to follow.
Gu Yining: "Have we been discovered? Why did Ayi go back the same way?"
Xiao Yanxu said, "That shouldn't be the case. We are far away from each other, and there isn't only one carriage on the street. Perhaps Ayi needs to go somewhere else temporarily."
Zhu Qian drove the carriage all the way back to Prince Rong's Mansion.
Xiao Hongyi entered the house from the back door, changed his clothes first, and then went to Lin Yutang's yard with a food box.
"Tangtang, Liao Ji has released new dishes, come and try them."
Seeing that they were all his favorite dishes, Lin Yutang said, "Your Highness, we are really in sync. I was just craving Liao Ji's clay pot chicken, and I didn't expect Your Highness to buy it for me."
Xiao Hongyi smiled indulgently, "Now you can believe that your husband doesn't have a mistress outside, right?"
"How could the prince keep a concubine when he loves me so much? Come and eat with us. By the way, didn't you say you had to go out on business today and wouldn't be back until tonight?"
"The Emperor asked someone else to do it. I came back because I had nothing else to do."
Xiao Hongyi accompanied Lin Yutang back to the study after dinner.
Zhu Qian hurried forward and said, "Your Highness, they should have received the news by now."
Xiao Hongyi asked, "Will the old lady be unhappy if I change my schedule at the last minute?"
Zhu Qian didn't dare to respond for a moment, "The old lady has always put the prince first. This matter involves Song Mingen, so it would be more appropriate to meet in the evening."
Liao Ji's private room on the second floor.
"Ayi must have discovered us, otherwise he wouldn't have turned back!"
Xiao Yanxu couldn't refute it, "Don't worry, we'll always catch him if we keep watching him from the dark. Let's eat the stone pot chicken first. It won't taste the same if it gets cold."
Cheng Mansion
"Why is it so bland? No salt added?"
Mrs. Cheng's taste has suddenly become heavier these past two days, and everything she eats seems bland.
Niu Ma Ma: "Salt has been added. I even went to the kitchen to supervise it myself."
"Try it yourself!" Old Madam Cheng's face darkened and her tone was rather harsh.
Aunt Niu quickly picked up a dish with her serving chopsticks and took a bite. "This dish really can't be too salty!"
Madam Cheng asked other people to taste a few more bites, and they all had the same reaction as Nanny Niu.
"Go call Meng Guangde over. Is there something wrong with my sense of taste?"
Meng Guangde came over and examined her carefully. "Madam, your sense of smell is fine. You haven't slept well these past two nights, and you're tired. You must not eat too much salt. It can cause a stroke."
Madam Cheng's heart was in turmoil, and she spoke very aggressively, "Besides getting a good rest, is there no other way for me to have a full meal now?"
"have."
Meng Guangde disinfected the silver needles and inserted a few needles into Mrs. Cheng's mouth, nose, and related acupuncture points. "Old lady, try it again."
Madam Cheng took a bite of the fish, put it in her mouth, and then spat it out. "This is so salty!"
"Madam." Mei Dai entered the room excitedly. "There's a reaction. The old lady's taste has become heavier and her temper has worsened. But after Meng Guangde gave her a few injections, her taste has returned to normal. I'm really worried about Meng Guangde's diagnosis. Should we continue?"
Jiang Yunshu: "Go on, he's a quack. Apart from gynecology, everything else is half-baked. He can only temporarily relieve my mother-in-law. Let's set the table."
A moment later, Yanzhi brought in the food with three second-class maids.
Jiang Yunshu glanced at the maid in the green dress, picked up the chopsticks and started eating slowly.
Jiang Yunshu quickly determined that the dish that had been tampered with was the braised lion's head.
"Hongyu, crush the lion's head into powder for me."
"Okay, madam." The maid in green was Hongyu. It took her less than a moment to smash the lion's head as big as a fist into pieces.
"Madam, I have finished it."
Jiang Yunshu swallowed the shrimp in his mouth, took it, scooped a large spoonful and put it into his mouth.
"Hongyu!" Meidai patted her gently. Hongyu tilted her head to look, "What's wrong, Sister Meidai?"
"There's some flour on your outer shoulder, and it's still wet and can't be wiped off. Change it quickly. You have to be clean when serving the lady."
"Oh, okay." Hongyu turned around and saw Jiang Yunshu had already eaten the entire lion's head.
"Yanzhi, Meidai, you two should sit down and accompany me. Hongyu, you guys should also go and have your meal. You don't need to wait on me."
Hongyu and the other two left the room. Jiang Yunshu took out the small bamboo tube from his sleeve and said, "Meidai, my mother-in-law is still giving me drugs. She is not soft-hearted, so I naturally cannot be soft-hearted. Take it and dispose of it."
At night, Xiao Hongyi coaxed Lin Yutang to sleep early, disguised himself from head to toe as a servant, and left the house with the housekeeper.
When Lu An saw that it was Butler Hu who was leading the servant out of the house, he hesitated for a moment and followed him while avoiding the secret guards stationed nearby.
When Lu An saw Butler Hu return to the Hu residence, he turned around and went back to Prince Rong's mansion to continue following him.
Xiao Hongyi entered from the main gate of Hu's house and exited from the back door, got on a shabby carriage that had been prepared long ago and went to the east of the city.
"Madam, the eldest son is here and is waiting in the next courtyard."
"Where are the others in the mansion?"
"I have already arranged for people to monitor each courtyard, so you can go ahead without worry, Madam."
Xiao Hongyi waited for a quarter of an hour before Zhuang Liyue arrived.
"What do you want to see me about?"
Zhuang Liyue sat down and said, "Sit down."
As soon as Xiao Hongyi sat down, he noticed that she looked a little pale. "Why do you look so pale? Have you taken any medicine to treat it?"
Zhuang Liyue felt relieved to see that he cared about her. "It's okay, I just didn't sleep well last night. I had Doctor Yuan come to my house today to take my pulse and prescribe a health-preserving prescription. I'll be fine in a few days. You changed your schedule at the last minute, but what did you find out?"
Xiao Hongyi: "I just thought it would be safer to come over at night. What do you want from me?"
Zhuang Liyue: "There's a high possibility that Song Mingen is the child. When Chen Chao went to the Song Mansion to invite the old lady of the Song family over, he discovered that he was being followed halfway..."
Zhuang Liyue discussed the situation with him. "Jiang Yunwan and Song Yu have seen Song Mingen's true appearance. Your father and mother will definitely need to meet them when they return to discuss the marriage."
"I can't see you!"
Xiao Hongyi originally thought that Song Mingen would no longer be a threat after his death, but he never expected that there were still so many unsafe factors.
"Mother and daughter must die!"
"Killing them is easy, but have you considered the consequences? Song Mingen died of illness, and Jiang Yunwan and Song Yu were also killed one after another. The Jiang family must investigate thoroughly, and the emperor will be furious! This person can't withstand investigation! Starting with the Gu family, do you think we can find out something?"
A trace of fear flashed in Xiao Hongyi's eyes. "If I don't touch them, are you going to attack my father and my mother?"
"That's right! As long as the two of them are dead, your identity will be firmly established."
"This..." Xiao Hongyi was somewhat resistant. "Can you think of another way? They can't die yet. It's not the time to start a rebellion yet."
Zhuang Liyue: "There's no better way. The last time I asked you about their whereabouts, they fell ill after returning to Beijing. Now their whereabouts are unknown, we have to prepare for both scenarios..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
