The Qin family.
"Miss Qin, the Qin family's affairs have been mostly resolved, and it's time for you to prepare to depart." Ling Ku appeared before Qin Ke'er with a smile, and Qin Ke'er knew this was a signal that she was about to leave.
"I understand. I will set off in three days."
After Qin Ke'er finished speaking, she glared at Ling Ku fiercely, then got up and left. Seeing this, Ling Ku reached out and touched the tip of his nose. How could she take her anger out on him?
A month's timeframe—wasn't that something Qin Ke'er herself agreed upon with the Emperor and the Empress Dowager?
Ling Ku was inexplicably glared at twice, so he was naturally in a bad mood. Therefore, when he encountered Master Qin, who had returned drunk, he mustered all his strength and stomped on Master Qin's foot.
"ah--"
A pig-like scream rang out, instantly sobering up Master Qin considerably. He curled up, hugging his feet, and shouted, "Who dares to step on me?"
"Still calling yourself 'Master' in front of this general?" Ling Ku curled the corner of his mouth, then went up and slapped him a few more times. A few breaths later, Qin Erye's face was covered in bruises. This time, Qin Erye was completely sober and saw who had attacked him.
"A person from Chongqing?"
"It is indeed this general." Ling Ku crossed his arms, making Second Master Qin appear particularly disheveled.
"You, a general of Dayu, what right do you have to hit me on my territory?" Master Qin staggered to his feet. "Men, arrest this brute."
No matter how much Master Qin shouted, no one came over.
"Stop shouting. More than half of the Qin family's servants have been sent away, leaving only a few personal attendants and some guards."
Ling Ku looked at Master Qin and said, "I thought you were a scion of a prominent family, at least you had some knowledge, but who knew you would be completely fooled by a spy and even harm your own elder brother."
"You're talking nonsense, Mei'er wouldn't lie to me... Mei'er wouldn't lie to me."
"Self-deception." Ling Ku sneered. "That Mei'er has already confessed. If you had any backbone left, you should have dealt with her yourself and then turned over a new leaf and lived a peaceful life."
"Well, some people are only capable of this much."
After venting his anger, Ling Ku felt much better and swaggered away, leaving Qin Erye panting heavily. Then, he clenched his fists and headed towards the place where Mei'er was being held.
Three days later, as Madam Qin watched Qin Ke'er about to leave, tears streamed down her face.
"Don't worry, Mother, my elder brother and I will come back to see you in a while."
Madam Qin nodded quickly upon hearing this, "You and your eldest brother can just stay in Dayu without worry. You've taken care of everything here. Your second uncle has also seen the light, so don't worry about me."
"Mother..."
"Listen to me, learn from the Empress Dowager, and don't be willful."
Too many things to say at this moment, Madam Qin personally pushed Qin Ke'er into the carriage, and then waved as she watched Qin Ke'er leave.
"Madam, why not let Miss stay a few more days?"
“She’s doing very well in Dayu. The Empress Dowager Ke’er respects her greatly. It’s much better for her to stay in Dayu than here.” Madam Qin wiped her eyes with a handkerchief. “I will protect the Qin family for them.”
......
Pei Zhi arrived in the capital of Dayu earlier than Qin Ke'er.
At the city gate, Pei Zhi boarded a carriage that had been prepared in advance. The unconscious Ahao was taken to another carriage. Seeing that Pei Zhi refused to get in, the nanny next to her said softly, "Miss Pei, Miss Ahao needs medical treatment. Don't worry, she will go to your place of lodging in advance."
Pei Zhi nodded blankly and got into the carriage to enter the palace.
Zhaoning Palace.
"Your Majesty, Miss Pei has arrived."
Jiang Yu is now almost eight months pregnant. Gu Lin cherishes Jiang Yu like the apple of his eye, and except for necessary activities, he hardly lets Jiang Yu do anything strenuous herself.
"Please let her in."
Jiang Yu sighed almost imperceptibly. Pei Zhi... now that I think about it, she was a child with a tragic fate.
She had also misunderstood Pei Zhi because of the Pei family.
Pei Zhi followed Wan Ji in as if she had lost her soul. The moment she saw Jiang Yu, for some reason, Pei Zhi grinned and burst into tears.
This was the first time Pei Zhi had cried since she learned the truth about the assassination.
"What's wrong? Don't cry." Jiang Yu was at a loss. Perhaps because of the child in her belly, Jiang Yu had an indescribable tenderness about her. When Jiang Yu's hand touched Pei Zhi's hand, Pei Zhi could no longer control herself.
Gu Lin, standing behind her, kept a close eye on Pei Zhi, fearing that she might harm Jiang Yu.
"He wanted to kill me." Pei Zhi was extremely aggrieved, sobbing as she repeated this sentence over and over.
"I heard you even tried to kill yourself on the way, Miss Pei. A young lady should cherish herself and live her life well." Jiang Yu tidied Pei Zhi's hair and put a hairpin in it. "If you give up on yourself, no one will cherish you."
"But why did he want to kill me?"
Pei Zhi seems to be trapped in some kind of vicious cycle, unable to break free no matter what she does.
“Because you can no longer bring him value.” Gu Lin couldn’t help but say, “Ayu, you should lie down, otherwise your back will start hurting again.”
Seeing this, Jiang Yu nodded and let Gu Lin help her into the inner room.
“Pei Zhi…” Jiang Yu asked, somewhat worried.
"Don't worry, leave it to me." Gu Lin took off Jiang Yu's shoes and socks. "Your most important thing right now is to protect yourself and the baby."
......
"There's something I need your help with."
Without Jiang Yu, the atmosphere in the room instantly turned cold, and Gu Lin looked at Pei Zhi with an indifferent expression.
Seeing that Pei Zhi did not respond, Gu Lin was not in a hurry and continued, "After returning from the Yun family, A Yu's physical weakness suddenly disappeared overnight."
"That deficiency syndrome is not so easy to cure; at least, it is not something that can be cured by ordinary people."
“The deficiency won’t disappear into thin air.” Pei Zhi finally relented. “She…”
"We suspect that Pei Jian poisoned them."
Gu Lin's words sent a chill down Pei Zhi's spine, causing her pupils to dilate.
“We found out that he was keeping an eye on when Ayu would give birth, and we also found out that he pretended to be seriously ill to trick us into giving him the Jiang family’s blood. We searched through ancient medical books and found that there was no poison that could only be cured by the Jiang family’s blood. He fooled all of us back then.”
Upon hearing this, Pei Zhi's vision blurred. "Poisoning...postpartum poisoning..."
When these words were put together, her whole body trembled.
"But we still can't figure it out. When Ayu was at the Yun family, she never saw any of your Pei family members. How did Pei Jian give Ayu this poison? And how exactly is this poison countered? We haven't found a way to counteract it."
"puff--"
She coughed up a mouthful of blood, her face turned deathly pale, and she collapsed to the ground.
In the Yun family... the Empress Dowager had met a member of the Pei family.
It's her.
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