Chapter 144 Xue Chen Discovers
When grandma was out, Qingwu and others were not idle either. Most of the thirty acres of land around the palace had been handed over to Shanshan.
In order to develop better quality rice seeds, Shanshan has been studying agricultural books hard these days and has gained a lot of inspiration. The 30 acres of land are divided into many planting methods and whether to supply fertilizer. Some are directly sown with rice seeds without transplanting seedlings, some are planted with transplanted seedlings, some are mixed with three kinds of rice, and some are separated to prevent the seeds from interacting with each other.
At first, it was just for the obsession in her heart, for the fame and fortune that benefited the people. Later, she gradually developed a love for it, and a faint belief in her heart. For this reason, she sometimes even lived in Qingwu's palace without having time to return home.
This matter was also reported to the emperor and the princes by spies. When the princess learned about it, she couldn't help but laugh at Shanshan, saying that the wife of the top scholar could do such a vulgar thing. They laughed and talked about it, and the news gradually spread throughout the capital, even Song Yunhe and Xi Qingtong knew about it.
Xi Qingtong twisted the handkerchief tightly in her hand, her eyebrows raised. "Cousin, listen to what's being said outside! Madam Xu is acting this way. If I continue to associate with her, my reputation will be ruined by her."
Song Yunhe flipped through the book in his hand slowly and without raising his head, "Qingtong, just bear with it."
"Hold on?" Xi Qingtong's voice shrieked with anger. "Do you know that at the flower viewing banquet yesterday, Madam Li specifically asked me if I had learned how to plant rice after spending all day at the Xu residence and socializing with Madam Xu? All the ladies in the room burst into laughter!"
After Song Yunhe was treated the same as the top scholar, many families paid more attention to her. As the wife of the third place scholar, some ladies gradually invited her to attend banquets.
This used to be Xi Qingtong's favorite thing. Now that she was going there under the identity of Xi Qingwu, she wanted to slowly show her talents and let everyone gradually change their impression of her. However, before she was ridiculed for her Qingwu background, she was ridiculed for her kindness.
But this relationship was not her own will, and she was extremely depressed.
"I don't want to go to the Xu Mansion anymore."
After hearing this, Song Yunhe put down the book, looked at Xi Qingtong and said, "Xu Zhuangyuan invited me to Zuixianlou for a drink yesterday, and during the meal he mentioned a way to make money."
He tapped the table with his fingertips. "He was born into a wealthy family in Jiangnan. You should know what this means."
"You've seen our family's treasury. You squandered a lot recently. If you continue like this, I'm afraid we won't be able to make ends meet in the future."
Xi Qingtong was stunned and felt a little guilty for a moment. She remembered the set of head jewelry and the expensive rouge and powder that she had specially ordered the day before in order to show off at the flower-viewing banquet.
"But..." Xi Qingtong still grumbled unwillingly, "Won't this affect my cousin's reputation?"
Affecting his reputation... Song Yunhe chuckled, "Xu Zhuangyuan doesn't care, so why should I? His Majesty didn't reprimand me, so it's fair. What's more, His Majesty is still farming himself, and Madam Xu is doing practical work. Whoever wants to discuss it can do so. I have a clear conscience."
"Also..." Song Yunhe paused and revealed a little of what Xu Huaiyu said, "Xu Zhuangyuan said that the Xu family has a batch of old cloth from last year in the south. It's not popular in Jiangnan anymore, but the material is good. They said the store there is too busy selling new cloth, and they don't know what to do with it..."
"If this fabric were brought to the Song family's shop in the capital, I'm afraid it would make a profit of over a thousand taels."
In the past, Xi Qingtong looked down on these thousands of taels, but now she has gradually faced the reality. If she wants to maintain her current life, she must have money.
Xi Qingtong's eyes lit up, but then she frowned again: "Then... then I still have to go to the Xu Mansion?"
"Qingtong," Song Yunhe suddenly held her hand, his voice gentle but undeniable, "Just bear with it for a while. If you're on good terms with Xu Zhuangyuan, we'll definitely benefit. I want to get promoted and make a fortune, and if you want wealth and glory, you have to flatter me."
Cicadas chirped outside the window. Xi Qingtong looked at Song Yunhe for a long time, and finally gritted her teeth and nodded.
"This is my good wife, my good lady."
This made Xi Qingtong miserable. She wanted to cry but had no tears. Every time she went to Xu's house, she had to do some work and would always feel sore when she came back. "Then I'm going to rest well tonight and go to Xu's house tomorrow..."
Song Yunhe smiled and nodded, "Okay, then I'll sleep in the study tonight and not disturb Tong'er."
But late at night, there was another person in the study.
Whenever Song Yunhe stayed in the study, Dong Ning would always come over, and Song Yunhe would always agree once out of three times.
Dong Ning knew that if she was discovered like this, Xi Qingtong would beat her to death, but the arrow had been shot and there was no turning back. All she could do now was to get pregnant as soon as possible. Even if she couldn't become Song Yunhe's concubine, she could ask him to rent a house for her so that she could live outside.
However, how could Song Yunhe not pay attention to this? After that time, even if he could not openly give Dong Ning the contraceptive soup, he would not let his stuff stay in Dong Ning's body.
However, he didn't know that this method would not be foolproof.
Xue Chen was so excited that he returned to the capital, but halfway there, he felt that this matter was strange. He had always been at odds with Shen Yushan, and he would usually keep silent during court sessions. Today, even though he was mocking him, Xue Chen felt that something was wrong.
When they reached the city gate, Xue Chen ordered his guards, "Ride your horses and help me go to the mausoleum to see if what Shen Yushan said is true or not. Pay attention to the details!"
"yes."
The guards received the order and immediately rode away. Xue Chen returned to his residence to await the results. Within half an hour, the guards hurried back, kneeling on one knee to report, "My Lord, the road in front of the mausoleum is indeed a bit muddy, but it's far from difficult to walk on."
It’s not that difficult, so why did Shen Yushan lie to him?
Xue Chen's heart slowly lifted up, and he tapped on the table with his fingers, "What else did you see?"
The guard was a member of the army, and his reconnaissance skills were very sharp. He continued, "There are flowers and wine in front of the mausoleum, and there are two cups, both of which are filled with wine."
There was wine in both cups. Did Shen Yushan drink with others in front of the tomb?
"There are two more footprints. One is a man, who should be Lord Shen's. The other is a woman."
"woman?"
Xue Chen thought about the women who would go to Zhen'er's tomb to pay homage, "Grand Princess Anyang?"
"No, Anyang always goes to pay respects on the anniversary of her death, and she is old and won't go alone, so..."
Who was this woman? Or was it someone Shen Yushan didn't want him to meet?
Xue Chen's pupils dilated instantly - an astonishing guess flashed into his mind like lightning.
"Is...Your Highness back?" His voice trembled, and he almost squeezed out these words from between his teeth.
The guards were confused, but they saw Xue Chen suddenly turn around and said, "Prepare your horses immediately! I want to go there myself!"
He strode out, but suddenly stopped and calmed down. The guards did not see anyone, so the prince had already left.
Thinking about who had stopped him from seeing His Highness, Xue Chen couldn't help but grit his teeth and ordered sternly: "Keep an eye on Shen Yushan, I want to know his whereabouts!"
If it is really His Highness who has returned to the capital... Shen Yushan will have to wait and see!
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