Chapter 086
Shen Jin thought about it and nodded, and asked Madam Zhao to bring Steward Zhao, Chief Steward Wang and the cousin to the reception room. After she took care of Dongdong, she asked Anping to help her change her clothes. Shen Jin's current clothes were all newly made after she gave birth. When she had just given birth, she gained some weight because she took such good care of herself during the confinement period. Thanks to Madam Zhao's care, she recovered quickly. However, her waist became slimmer, but her breasts became fuller, and the original clothes were too tight at the chest.
An Ning prepared a dress made of cloud brocade for Shen Jin. It had some wrinkles at the waist, which made her waist look thinner and her legs longer. Because Shen Jin was accompanying Dong Dong, she only used a headband in her hair. Apart from the wooden bracelet that Chu Xiuming had made for her, she didn't even wear earrings.
After all, they were meeting a stranger at this time, so it would be inappropriate to be so simple. But there was no need to be too grand, after all, the cousin was not a guest they invited.
When Shen Jin arrived at the reception room, she saw a woman in a moon-white dress sitting on a chair near the door. She turned her head when she heard footsteps. Shen Jin thought that her second sister Shen Zi was a rare beauty, but compared with the woman in front of her, her second sister was too immature.
Her thin willow-shaped eyebrows were slightly furrowed, with a hint of melancholy and resentment, her lips were a little pale, her figure was slender, and when she sat slightly sideways, she looked a bit fragile, as if someone wanted to hold her in their arms and take good care of her.
But those eyes were full of affection and charm, which added a bit of elegance and charm to her.
Everyone loves beauty. Shen Jin admired the beauty. If this beauty was not here to cause trouble for them, Shen Jin felt that he could admire her for a while longer. Sitting in the main seat, Shen Jin said, "You changed your clothes very quickly."
The corner of the beautiful woman's eye twitched. Shen Jin didn't say this for no reason, because this cousin just arrived at the border town today. She had been on the road for a long time. After arriving, she was stopped by someone and was almost taken to jail for interrogation by Manager Zhao and others. How could she be so neatly dressed like she is now, with even her hair not messy at all and her shoes spotless.
Steward Wang smiled. The beauty bit her lip and said with some grievance and helplessness, "I want to see my cousin."
"Oh, he doesn't want to see you." Shen Jin said.
The beauty's eyes turned red, and she looked at Shen Jin with resentment, "I don't believe it, is it because you don't let my cousin see me? Otherwise, my cousin would never treat me like this."
"Well, yes." Shen Jin admitted without hesitation, "I don't want my husband to see you."
The beauty looked at Shen Jin in amazement. It was the first time she met such a woman. How could she be so shameless?
Shen Jin suddenly thought, "By the way, what is this cousin's name?"
"Who is your cousin?" The woman was obviously furious, but when she spoke like this, it sounded like she was complaining, and her ending tone was a little hoarse, which was particularly alluring.
Shen Jin looked at the woman helplessly, as if looking at an ignorant child, "Madam Zhao, what's her name?"
"This girl's surname is Xue and her given name is Qiao." Nanny Zhao said respectfully.
Shen Jin nodded and said, "Xue Qiao, if you have something to say, you can say it now."
"I want to see my cousin." Xue Qiao looked at Shen Jin and asked.
Shen Jin took a sip of Pu'er tea and said, "Oh, my husband is not here, you can tell me if you have something to say."
Xue Qiao stared at Shen Jin and said, "I don't believe you. You lied to me. You just don't want my cousin to see me."
"Yes, I am." Shen Jin said as a matter of course, "Think about it yourself and tell me if you have anything to say."
"Impossible." Xue Qiao refused to compromise. She had to meet Chu Xiuming, then the trump card in her hand would be useful.
Shen Jin glanced at her and ignored her. Instead, he looked at Manager Zhao and said, "What letter did the Prince of England write?"
"That's for my cousin." Xue Qiao said.
Manager Zhao and Shen Jin pretended not to hear her and handed the letter directly to Shen Jin. Just as Xue Qiao was about to stand up, the maid behind her held her shoulders and she could not move.
Shen Jin opened it and took a look, frowning, then put the letter in Nanny Zhao's hand.
After Madam Zhao lowered her head and whispered a few words in Shen Jin's ear, she took the letter and walked to the backyard. Xue Qiao's eyes flashed, and she was even more certain in her heart that Chu Xiuming was in the general's mansion, but Shen Jin didn't want her to see him.
After reading the letter, Shen Jin asked, "Have you thought about it? Are you going to tell me?"
Xue Qiao snorted but didn't say anything. Shen Jin looked at her helplessly and said, "Manager Wang, lock her up in..." Shen Jin thought for a moment, "I remember there is a small Buddhist temple in the General's Mansion? Lock her up there and have someone guard her. Except for delivering food, don't go in to disturb her."
"Yes." Manager Wang, who had been sitting next to him, stood up and responded respectfully.
Xue Qiao's face changed drastically at this time and said, "I want to see my cousin. Don't you want to know about the child?"
"I don't really want to." Shen Jin said honestly, "It's not my husband's."
"Do you want to cut off Chu Xiuyao's incense?" Xue Qiao asked harshly.
Shen Jin looked at Xue Qiao calmly and said, "Anyway, there is only Chu Xiuyao's cenotaph here, and he had been dead for a long time before you came."
Xue Qiao couldn't believe that Shen Jin would actually say such a thing. Wasn't she afraid that Chu Xiuming would be angry if he knew about it? Could it be that there was something she didn't know?
Shen Jin glanced at Wang Zongguan, who then called Yue Wen to come over and repeated Shen Jin's words. Shen Jin added, "Give her some quilts. After all, it's a bit cold over there. Don't let her get frozen."
Yue Wen said respectfully, "Yes."
Then they grabbed Xue Qiao and took her away without giving her any preferential treatment because of her beauty. The people who accompanied Xue Qiao had already been locked up separately and had already started interrogation.
After everyone left, Shen Jin said, "Madam Zhao, please come out."
Just now, I asked Madam Zhao to go in with the letter, but it was just a decoy. In fact, Madam Zhao didn't go far at all. She came back in with the letter.
After Shen Jin signaled to Nanny Zhao to give the letter to Steward Zhao and Chief Steward Wang, he sent someone to invite Zhao Duan.
This letter mainly wrote about two things. One was to pass through central Fujian, and the other was to meet Chu Xiuming in Yucheng. The revenge for these two things was Chu Xiuyao's son.
Apart from that, what made Shen Jin frown was not these two things, but the fact that at the end of the letter it was written that the child had a half-moon-shaped birthmark on the left side of his waist.
"Does third brother also have such a birthmark?" Shen Jin asked.
If not, how could he have specifically pointed this out? Chu Xiuming does not have this birthmark on his body. The location of the left lower back is very hidden. If it is not a close person, no one would know about it. Chu Xiuming has not told Shen Jin about this matter.
Zhao Ma's face changed and she said, "The Third Young Master does have this birthmark. The old master also had it, and the Second Young Master and the Third Young Master also have it."
Shen Jin pursed her lips. This was the first time that Manager Zhao and Manager Wang knew about this. Manager Zhao asked, "Does anyone else know about this?"
In the final analysis, they didn't believe that Chu Xiuyao was the kind of person who would do such a thing.
Madam Zhao said, "Everyone in the Chu family knows about it. I also heard it from the old lady, so I'm not sure now, whether it was heard by Xue Qiao or..."
But under normal circumstances, Chu Xiuyao's mother would never talk to a girl about the birthmark on her son's hidden part.
Manager Zhao said, "The Third Young Master would never be such a person."
Steward Wang also nodded and said, "I also don't think it was the Third Young Master's. She is just relying on the fact that the Third Young Master is no longer around, so she is so unscrupulous."
Shen Jin responded and said, "What about the child?"
As soon as these words came out, everyone fell silent. If they said they didn't want to meet this child and make sure that this child was really Chu Xiuyao, and let this child recognize his ancestors, that would be a pure lie. Now, the only people in the Chu family are Chu Xiuming and Dongdong, especially this child, who may be Chu Xiuyao's only bloodline.
"Let's write a letter to the general about this matter." said Chief Steward Wang.
Manager Zhao nodded, and Nanny Zhao agreed even more, because it was really difficult to let Shen Jin make a decision now. It was not that she did not trust Shen Jin, but no matter what choice Shen Jin made, even if it was the right one, he would inevitably be blamed in the future, and it would not be good if it affected the relationship between them.
Shen Jin nodded. This was actually her decision. Although it was not good to push such a difficult problem onto her husband and make him feel embarrassed, Shen Jin really didn't know what to do.
Zhao Duan also came over. Manager Wang showed the letter to Zhao Duan. Zhao Duan's face changed. Shen Jin said, "That child might be Third Brother's."
"This..." Zhao Duan sighed and said, "This is true. The prince of England is the same. Why would he capture someone else's child?"
Manager Zhao said, "We are going to write a letter to the general and let him decide."
"That's right." Zhao Duan thought for a moment and said, "If that child is really like that, then I can accept it."
No one spoke, and several people moved to the meeting room, where paper and pen were prepared. Manager Zhao used the code that had been agreed upon long ago to rewrite the letter from the Prince of England, and then wrote down the current situation in the border town.
Zhao Duan asked, "Who are you going to let deliver this letter?"
"I was thinking of letting Shen Xi and Zhao Jun go on this trip." said Manager Wang.
Zhao Duan nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go talk to Jun'er."
The reason why they chose Shen Xi and Zhao Jun was, firstly, to make use of Shen Xi's identity, and secondly, because the last time the news about the general reached Chu Yuan, they didn't know whether the general was still in the Zhao family in Chu Yuan, or had left and walked towards the border town. After all, Zhao Jun was a member of the Zhao family, and was more familiar with the routes in that area, so it was easier for him to get some information, thus making it easier to find Chu Xiuming and the others. If they really couldn't find them, they could just come back.
After everyone calmed down, their faces became a little heavy.
It is precisely because of this child that no matter whether the child is real or fake, what they plan to do is in the hands of the Prince of England. If he releases the news, Emperor Cheng will definitely be suspicious. What kind of deal will Chu Xiuming make with the Prince of England for the child? Then what will Emperor Cheng do?
Manager Zhao and Chief Steward Wang looked at Shen Jin and saw that Shen Jin was also frowning. They knew that according to Emperor Cheng's personality, he would rather kill someone by mistake, especially since he didn't trust Chu Xiuming in the first place.
Thinking about the incident with Prince Rui, could it be that Prince Ying got some inspiration from Prince Rui's incident? If this continues, I'm afraid that before Prince Ying leads his troops into the capital, Emperor Cheng will be in a mess because of Prince Ying's conspiracy and suspicion.
Didn't Emperor Cheng know that the Prince of Ying did it on purpose? No, he probably had his suspicions too, thinking it was a trap. For example, in the case of Prince Rui, Emperor Cheng knew Prince Rui's character, but he still had his suspicions, because he couldn't afford to take the risk, and would rather kill all possible dangers in the bud.
The most important point is that the means he used to become emperor was to take advantage of the prince's trust in his brothers. After he betrayed them, he would inevitably think that others would betray him in the same way.
So even if Emperor Cheng knew that it was a conspiracy trap set by the Prince of England, he would still jump into it.
The Crown Prince of England will probably find out this soon, and the matter of the King of Sweden is just a test for what will happen next.
So after Emperor Cheng knew that the Prince of England had the only remaining bloodline of Chu Xiuyao, what he would do was to start dealing with Chu Xiuming, and he would even feel that Chu Xiuming was more dangerous than the Prince of England.
According to Chu Xiuming and his men, they wanted to lie low for a while longer and did not want Chu Xiuyuan to push him out so quickly. After all, a real grandson of the crown prince would make Emperor Cheng and the Prince of Ying even more wary. If both of them decided to deal with the border town first, it would be difficult to deal with.
It’s not that Emperor Cheng and the Prince of England have joined forces, but when both sides have the same goal, it is inevitable that there will be more cooperation. In addition, the barbarians are eyeing them covetously, which means that although Chu Xiuming has more troops than any of them, he cannot use all of them because most of them have to guard the border.
In fact, the best situation is to wait until Emperor Cheng and the Prince of England have fought more, and after they have defeated the barbarians so that they are unable to invade the borders of Tianqi within a few years, they can cooperate with those in the capital to take down Emperor Cheng in one fell swoop. With Chu Xiuyuan's identity, it would be easy for people to accept him. After all, to be honest, Chu Xiuyuan is more legitimate than Emperor Cheng.
Especially for the things that Emperor Cheng did, Prince Ying actually helped a lot. He has already aroused everyone's suspicion about the 37th year of Yongjia. If Chu Xiuyuan comes out to confirm it, then Emperor Cheng...
The most important point is that the imperial seal that Emperor Cheng is using now is a fake, and the real imperial seal was hidden by someone at the beginning, but where it was hidden is a mystery. However, we only know that the Crown Princess had some tricks involved.
The problem now is that they don't know where the real imperial seal is. They can only be sure that it is in the imperial palace. They don't know whether the general went there this time and whether he found it.
Moreover, in the current situation, they are in a dilemma. Although the two moves made by the Prince of England are disgusting, they are very useful. "In fact, if it is true, it would not be bad to agree to the Prince of England." Shen Jin's expression relaxed a lot and he spoke.
In fact, they had thought of this, but no one said it out loud.
Because no matter whether it is true or false, no matter what decision Chu Xiuming makes, Emperor Cheng will begin to doubt.
Everyone in the meeting room felt as if they had eaten a fly. Now they couldn't tell whether the child was real or fake.
Shen Jin said, "Wait for news from your husband. I don't think the Prince of England would believe your husband just by reading a letter, right?"
Manager Zhao and the others nodded and said nothing more. In fact, it's not that they don't have a solution, they are just being cautious now.
When Shen Jin and Nanny Zhao arrived at the backyard, they asked, "What kind of person is Third Brother?"
Zhao Ma also expected Shen Jin to ask, and said, "He is completely different from the general. In fact, to be honest, the general is more like the old lady, and the third young master is more like the great master."
Shen Jin looked at Madam Zhao with some doubts. Madam Zhao nodded and said, "According to what the master said at the beginning, if the general is a Confucian general, then the third young master is a tiger general."
"He is brave but lacks wisdom," explained Madam Zhao.
Shen Jin understood. In the final analysis, Chu Xiuyao was suitable for charging, while Chu Xiuming was suitable for commanding. So although Nanny Zhao and the others trusted Chu Xiuyao's character, they were a little distrustful of him... It was also possible that Chu Xiuyao was really being plotted against.
"Then how did he die?" Shen Jin asked.
Madam Zhao was silent for a moment before she said, "It's to replace the general."
Shen Jin listened to what Nanny Zhao said. Actually, it should have been Chu Xiuming who went that time. At that time, there were only two brothers left in the Chu family. If Chu Xiuming had gone, there would still be a chance of survival, but if Chu Xiuyao had gone, there would not even be that chance. It was just that Chu Xiuyao had plotted against Chu Xiuming once in his life and succeeded. The price was that he died on the battlefield and his body was never found.
That day, Chu Xiuyao led his soldiers away with a big laugh. It didn't look like he was going to die, but more like he was proud of a successful prank.
"Does he look like my husband?" Shen Jin asked.
Upon hearing this, Aunt Zhao nodded and said, "They look alike, and because they are of similar age, especially when they were young, many people couldn't tell them apart when they stood together without talking. But as they grew older, their temperaments became more and more different, so they are rarely mistaken."
Shen Jin moved his lips and said, "Is there a possibility that the person Xue Qiao wanted to plot against was my husband? But does Third Brother know that he was being plotted against?"
Madam Zhao frowned upon hearing this, thought for a moment and said, "If it was dark, it might be impossible to tell, but why? Although it was not clearly determined at that time, the old lady did mention that the general should marry Xue Qiao before she died. However, because of the discovery, it was not decided."
Shen Jin frowned and said nothing. Upon hearing this, Nanny Zhao said, "Madam, the general and Xue Qiao were not close at the beginning."
"Actually, I don't care about these things." Shen Jin said truthfully, "After all, my husband is mine now and will be mine in the future, so the past is all in the past. I just can't figure out why Xue Qiao did this and betrayed my husband and the others. By the way, did Xue Qiao disappear before or after my third brother?"
"It was later." Nanny Zhao said in a deep voice, "It was because of Xue Qiao that the incident was so dangerous and caused the death of the Third Young Master."
Shen Jin thought for a while but still didn't understand, and said, "I can only wait for my husband to come back."
Nanny Zhao responded, and Shen Jin reminded her, "Have someone watch over her, don't let Xue Qiao commit suicide."
"I understand, old servant." Madam Zhao said respectfully.
Shen Jin nodded and said nothing more.
"Brother Yuan will be back soon, right?" Shen Jin said after calculating the days.
Madam Zhao thought for a moment and nodded, "If everything goes well, he should be back early next month."
Shen Jin responded, and after thinking for a long time, he said, "I think the third brother must be a good brother who loves his younger brother."
Aunt Zhao didn't know why Shen Jin suddenly brought up this matter. Shen Jin walked towards Dongdong's room and said, "If that child is really the third brother's child, then he must be a good brother who loves his younger brother."
For some reason, when she heard this, Nanny Zhao's eyes turned red. Although she was close to the Crown Princess, she had been in the Chu family for so many years, how could she not be loyal to Chu Xiuming?
Chu Xiuming, whom Shen Jin had been thinking about, was on his way back to the border town with Concubine Chen and others, while Prince Rui and Princess Rui had returned to Beijing a few days ago. Because Prince Rui had no plans to come back this time, all the antiques, calligraphy and paintings, gold, silver and jewelry in Prince Rui's mansion had been taken out. However, he traveled light this time and left all those things behind, only giving 60% to his two legitimate sons, the remaining 40% to Shen Jin and 10% to the two illegitimate sons, and the last 10% to his granddaughter.
Moreover, except for Shen Jin, all the belongings of the other three children were given to Concubine Chen for safekeeping before they reached adulthood, and a large amount of money was left to Concubine Chen for raising the children.
Although Prince Rui did not say it, he was indeed dividing the family property, as if he was making plans for his funeral. Before leaving, he went to find Zhao Ru and Zhao Qi and asked Zhao Qi to promise that if Princess Rui returned to her parents' home in the future, he would treat her well. It made people feel sad and a little amused when they heard it.
Although Concubine Chen knew that it would be hard to take care of three children, she was inevitably happier when she thought that she would be able to live with her daughter soon. Shen Hao sat in silence in the carriage, while Shen Qing and the child named Baozhu by Shen Qi were lying together playing. Concubine Chen looked at Shen Hao and asked softly, "Brother Hao, do you need anything?"
Ever since Prince Rui and Princess Rui left, Brother Hao hasn't eaten well. At noon, they used dry food in the wild, but Brother Hao only ate a little and then stopped.
Shen Hao shook his head and fell silent. He felt abandoned by everyone, first his mother, then his father and sister.
Concubine Chen didn't know how to persuade him, so she just said, "Brother Hao, do you want to play with Brother Qing and Baozhu for a while?"
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