"Master Wang, please wait. Let me go in and inform Miss Wen." Not sure about Wen Qianyue's intentions, Su Ye quickly went back to report.
"Wang Xi?" Hearing this name again, Wen Qianyue only vaguely recalled a bruised face.
"Let him in."
Wang Xi was extremely nervous. He tiptoed into the room cautiously. When he was still quite far from Wen Qianyue, he didn't dare to step forward anymore.
Wen Qianyue didn't force him. "What's the matter?"
Wang Xi scratched his head awkwardly and smiled. "I... I want to apologize to Miss Wen for my rudeness before."
"The past is over. Let's not mention it."
"Actually, I came here just to tell you that Xie Yunxiao is not seriously ill. You don't need to worry too much." Wang Xi continued. "Really. I just came from his place. Maybe he's just feeling a bit down, but that's understandable."
Seeing that Wen Qianyue didn't say anything, Wang Xi felt even more uneasy.
Wen Qianyue felt a warmth in her heart. She knew this boy meant well and naturally appreciated his kindness.
"I see. Thank you."
Hearing this, the expression on Wang Xi's face instantly brightened up. He was like a child rewarded by an elder. He almost got lost on his way out.
Wen Qianyue couldn't help but shake her head with a smile.
---
In the yamen prison.
As soon as Li Tongpan walked in, he heard heart - rending cries of injustice inside. It almost deafened him.
"Bold! Li Tongpan is here. Don't be rude."
Madam Ji couldn't care less. One moment she was being flattered, and the next moment she was in the yamen.
"Why did you arrest us? My son is a scholar, the root of an official!"
Li Tongpan almost burst out laughing.
"No matter who you are or what your status is, as long as you've committed a crime, even the emperor can't help you here. Your family stole things from the prince's mansion. I have physical evidence. I'll submit a document to the court to deprive your son of his scholar status."
Hearing this, Mr. Ji glared fiercely at Madam Ji who was about to speak again. "Shut up, you ignorant woman."
Then he knelt in front of Li Tongpan and pleaded earnestly. "My lord, we're really wronged. Please investigate clearly."
It was a small matter if they lost the house, but their son's scholar status couldn't be taken away. The Ji family was counting on their son to bring glory to the family.
Li Tongpan's expression softened a bit.
"Alright. Let's talk after the investigation." With that, he flicked his sleeve and left.
Mr. Ji rummaged through his whole body and secretly handed the last silver note to the guard outside.
"My lord, we only beg you to deliver a letter for us. Please."
---
In the evening, Yue Heng came back.
Wen Qianyue was practicing calligraphy and didn't even look up.
"How's it going?"
"The government can't make a judgment so quickly. They're still collecting evidence."
Wen Qianyue finally finished writing the calligraphy. She put down the brush and picked up the hand warmer beside her.
"In that case, let's send them some evidence."
Yue Heng nodded and then thought of something. "The yamen sent a letter to our mansion today. I opened it and read it. It's from the Ji family to Meng Ruxue. Do you think we should..."
Wen Qianyue shook her head and thought for a while. "It's not good to push Xiao'er too hard. It might backfire. Let's take it slow. Before, he had nothing to do at home and was bored, so naturally he paid more attention to Meng Ruxue. Maybe it'll be better after he goes to the Yufeng Academy in a few days."
Speaking of this, Yue Heng began to worry. "Do you think the young prince can really stay there for three months?"
Wen Qianyue said, "I'm his mother. Naturally, I believe in him."
...
Early the next morning, Meng Ruxue knelt in front of the main courtyard gate.
The weather in Lingzhou was changeable, and it started to snow again.
As soon as Xie Yunxiao woke up, he heard the news. He didn't even have time to change his clothes. He put on his cloak and rushed out.
"Ruxue, what are you doing?"
Meng Ruxue raised her head weakly. There were still snowflakes on her eyelashes. Her face was pale from the cold, and her lips were a bit purple.
As soon as she saw the person coming, she immediately crawled forward on her knees.
"A Xiao, A Xiao, please help my uncle... I know I was wrong about this, but I was also forced... "
Meng Ruxue burst into tears. "... I've been raised by my uncle since I was a child. I lived in the prince's mansion. My aunt thought I was a disgrace to the family. Although she never said it explicitly, she scolded my uncle for being useless many times. I... I just couldn't bear it, so I did this. A Xiao, please forgive me."
After saying that, in her emotional state, she actually fainted.
Xie Yunxiao couldn't bear to see her cry. After all this, he couldn't even get angry. He quickly picked her up and carried her into the room.
He called for a doctor and servants. It was in a complete mess.
Wen Qianyue had just woken up when she got the news.
After dressing up, she directly asked someone to take Shu Huan and rushed to the main courtyard.
Seeing the servants in a complete mess inside, she frowned and raised her voice. Her aura instantly became stronger.
"I didn't know that the people in the prince's mansion were even worse than those in a merchant's family. Maybe the prince has been too kind to you!"
The people in the main courtyard all knew Miss Wen's reputation. They didn't dare to move at once, for fear of being beaten black and blue like the last unlucky one.
"Alright, go back to your own business. Disperse."
Wen Qianyue walked towards the room where Xie Yunxiao was. When she got there and saw Meng Ruxue's act, she sneered secretly.
The trick of feigning illness was really useful. It always worked on Xie Yunxiao.
Xie Yunxiao was a bit surprised to see Wen Qianyue's figure. At this time, shouldn't his mother still be resting?
Just then, the doctor hadn't come yet. Wen Qianyue motioned for Shu Huan to take a look at Meng Ruxue.
Shu Huan didn't even feel her pulse. He just looked at her face and said coldly, "It's nothing serious."
Xie Yunxiao was skeptical.
The person had fainted. How could she be okay?
But Wen Qianyue said, "This is a divine doctor. I invited him at a high price."
Xie Yunxiao didn't react much to the first sentence, but when he heard the second one, he suddenly remembered that he had something to ask his mother.
He pulled Wen Qianyue outside and asked in a low voice, "Mother, what exactly happened yesterday?"
He had wanted to ask this question yesterday, but he had been thinking about other things and hadn't had the chance.
Wen Qianyue said calmly, "It's nothing. I heard that you pawned all the valuable things in the mansion to prepare a birthday gift for Meng Ruxue's uncle. I thought they were the things of the prince's mansion, so I asked someone to redeem them."
"As for that house, King Ling had taken a fancy to it before. It was useless in my hands anyway, so I simply sold it to him as a favor."
The main reason was that Xie Yunxiao had no real power, and her identity couldn't be revealed for the time being. Neither the Ji family nor anyone in Lingzhou dared to offend King Ling, so she had to do this.
Hearing this, Xie Yunxiao looked a bit ashamed.
"It's the child's fault that I've made you worry."
Wen Qianyue patted his shoulder. "Alright. A child who knows to admit his mistake is a good child."
"Don't worry if you don't have money in the future. Mother will give you pocket money every month."