Upon hearing this, Lu Baichuan narrowed his eyes, seemingly pondering the truth of her words.
Yan was breathing heavily, the pain in her body making her tremble uncontrollably, her back already soaked with sweat. She didn't know if she could win this gamble, but she had no way out.
After a while, Lu Baichuan chuckled and said, "So what? Do you think I'll believe you just because you say that? I find the Duke and his wife to be quite interesting. One of them claims to be my father-in-law, while the other claims that the person behind the scenes is my father-in-law. Why do they like to bring up my wife so much?"
Seeing that he didn't believe her, Madam Yan continued, "My Duke is not her biological father, at most he is her adoptive father, which is why he sent her away! She is even considered half a Dongting person. Haven't you been busy consolidating Dongting's power lately? If people find out, won't they say you're the thief crying 'stop thief'?"
Desperate to survive, Yan continued, "Once her identity is exposed, it will not only affect her, but also your Lu family. Given the current political climate in the court, even if the Crown Prince trusts you, can he really tolerate someone from Dongting being active under his nose every day?"
Lu Baichuan looked at her and asked, "So? What do you mean by saying this, Madam?"
"What I mean is, we're all on the same side, so why are you making such a fuss? Do you really have the heart to let He Jiu Niang become a rat that everyone wants to beat?"
"Tsk, you're making it sound so real."
Lu Baichuan clicked his tongue and said sarcastically, "My wife may have a bad background and suffered a lot when she was young, but that doesn't mean that just anyone can recognize her as their daughter. One minute you say she's a young lady from the Duke's mansion, and the next you say she's the daughter of someone from Dongting. Do you really think I'm easy to fool?"
He was already showing signs of anger, and even picked up a branding iron from the side, as if he could shove the branding iron into her mouth if Yan Shi kept nagging.
Startled by his actions, Madam Yan's mind raced, and she blurted out everything she knew: "It's true, it's true, she really is that man's daughter! I was the one who sent her away back then, and I had someone keep an eye on her. And, and she looks a lot like that man, you can tell they're father and daughter just by looking at their faces!"
Lu Baichuan narrowed his eyes again. Very good, he had gotten the key information out of him.
So, the evidence proving his wife's background is her appearance and the people secretly watching her.
Those people shouldn't be watching anymore, otherwise they would definitely have noticed, but he still needs to send someone to verify.
As for appearance, it seems the only way is to disfigure that person.
But...
He asked, "Who is that person?"
"Yes...yes..."
Yan looked at him timidly, deliberately delaying.
Lu Baichuan didn't say anything, but simply took the soldering iron and walked forward.
"I'll talk, I'll talk!"
Yan hurriedly spoke, her eyes filled with horror as she looked at the branding iron.
"But you must send someone to protect me, I don't want to die!"
Lu Baichuan refused outright: "You have no right to negotiate with me."
Yan bit her lip, knowing she had no way out, otherwise the branding iron would be pressed against her mouth.
"It's Xun Wang, the very Xun Wang who was exiled back then!"
This answer was both unexpected and expected.
He and his wife had suspected it before, but they weren't sure.
"How can the King be a person from the Eastern Court?"
Lu Baichuan raised an eyebrow, clearly disbelieving. Xun Wang's birth mother was not from Dongting, so how could he possibly have any connection with Dongting?
Isn't that utter nonsense?
"It's true! I don't know the specifics, but it's precisely because he's from Dongting that Dongting is willing to help him and let him build his own power."
Upon hearing this, Lu Baichuan recalled what the Third Prince of Dongting had said before: that half of his wife's blood was from Dongting.
Could it really be true?
What is the true identity of the King?
Besides, wasn't Xun Wang exiled? He should have been guarded by soldiers all these years. How did he manage to deceive everyone, cultivate so much power, and even establish connections with the Eastern Court?
It seems that there are really big loopholes in the defenses on the border.
Where is he?
Madam Yan shook her head: "I don't know. We haven't heard from him since he was exiled. It seems he's always been in contact with his subordinates."
How can I contact you?
“I really don’t know. It was all my master, the Duke, who made the contact. I’m just a woman, he wouldn’t let me know too much. The reason he let me know and let me live for so long is because I’ve hidden the evidence that he has this handle on me. If I die, his secret will be exposed, so he hasn’t dared to touch me all these years.”
After saying all that in one breath, Yan added, "That's all I know. I really don't know anything else. Please spare my life, I beg you!"
Do you think you can live if I let you go?
Lu Baichuan twitched the corner of his mouth, thinking she was just stupid.
Yan was stunned for a moment, then realized that the safest place now seemed to be this prison. As long as Lu Baichuan didn't make things difficult for her and no one outside could get in, she could live.
As for anything else, she couldn't care less about that anymore.
"Someone will bring you paper and pen in a moment, write down everything you just said, and then have you sign and put your fingerprint on it. I can guarantee that you will live a little longer."
After saying that, he threw the branding iron back into the charcoal fire and left.
After get off work, I'll bring some delicious food home for my wife!
As Yan watched him leave, she breathed a heavy sigh of relief, then burst into tears again. How could she be so unlucky? How much longer could she live? Even if she could live a little longer, she would only be locked up in this dark and gloomy prison cell. What would be the point of that?
She was heartbroken. How could that bastard Zhuo Wei die like that?! What was she going to do? Waaaaah…
Lu Baichuan brought some snacks back to He Jiuniang. He Jiuniang was still asleep, so Lu Baichuan put the snacks on the table, took off his armor to take a shower, changed into civilian clothes, and sat down to watch over her.
He Jiuniang woke up shortly afterward.
Yes, I was woken up by the fragrance.
She didn't even open her eyes, but strained her nose to sniff, muttering, "What delicious food is this? Let me try some!"
Lu Baichuan was charmed by her appearance and laughed, "I brought you some snacks on the way back. They're still warm. Shall I pick you up and let you eat them?"
"No, no, I can't! I smell the pan-fried buns! Quick, throw one in my mouth, I want to try it!"
She propped herself up with her hands, her eyes still closed, clearly very tired.
But this did not affect her craving for food. She had only a bowl of porridge and some side dishes in the morning and had been sleeping until now, so she was already very hungry.
Lu Baichuan picked one up with his chopsticks and put it in her mouth. He Jiuniang smacked her lips contentedly and made a satisfied humming sound: "Delicious, delicious, have another one!"
Lu Baichuan handed her another one and then said, "Wife, Yan has confessed."
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