Why? Was he afraid she would take her anger out on Jiang Yuan霜 because of the humiliation she had suffered?
Self-righteous fellow! She merely wanted to ask about the whereabouts of the other members of the Jiang family!
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Ning refrained from making things difficult for Chuntao any longer.
“I’ll go myself.”
For the past three days, Jiang Ning had been recuperating from her injuries. Her hands and body were covered in puncture wounds, scrapes, and bruises, and the staff blow had actually fractured the bone in her lower leg. If not for Jiang Cheng’s extraordinary medical skills, she might not even have been able to get out of bed today.
Chuntao hurried over to support Jiang Ning, urging, “Concubine Jiang, you should properly rest your body first. There’s no need to rush.”
It wouldn’t be too late even after Young Miss Wenya returned. The only person in this estate who genuinely protected Concubine Jiang was her.
From rising to getting out of bed, beads of sweat had already popped up on Jiang Ning’s forehead from the pain, but she curved her lips into a slight smile to comfort Chuntao. “It’s fine. I’m just going to ask a few questions.”
Knowing she couldn’t stop her, Chuntao had no choice but to support Jiang Ning out the door.
Upon reaching the East Courtyard, they were met with the exact same dismissal: “Miss Jiang has not yet awakened and is receiving no guests.” With that, Jiang Ning was brushed aside.
Yet Jiang Ning clearly heard the sound of Jiang Yuan’s laughter drifting from inside the courtyard.
Furious, Jiang Ning tried to force her way inside, shouting, “Jiang Yuan, I know you’re in there and you’re already awake! I am Jiang Ning. I have things to ask you, come out right now!”
The sound of laughter inside the courtyard abruptly stopped. She had definitely heard her voice, yet the place remained dead silent, without a shred of response.
“Concubine Jiang, if you force your way in any further, this subordinate will have to use force!”
In the end, Jiang Ning was blocked outside the gates by the guards, unable to cross that threshold.
Heartbroken, Chuntao urged, “Concubine Jiang, let’s go back.”
The sweat beads on Jiang Ning’s forehead multiplied, and her complexion turned deathly pale. She shook her head. “Today, I am going to get to the bottom of this.”
Jiang Ning stationed herself right outside the East Courtyard’s gates, refusing to go anywhere.
Unable to dissuade her, Chuntao fetched a long wooden bench for Jiang Ning to sit on. By keeping her injured leg elevated and avoiding prolonged standing, the pain finally found a slight respite.
Until evening, Jiang Ning ate her three meals right in front of the guards, continuing her wait immediately afterward.
The guards were utterly dumbfounded. They had never witnessed a woman so devoid of decorum, capable of sitting by the roadside to eat with relish, making it so appetizing that it even stirred the cravings in their own bellies.
Yet throughout all this time, Jiang Yuan霜 remained cooped up inside the East Courtyard, refusing to show her face—who knew what she was feeling so guilty about?
Gu Jianshen returned from outside and spotted Jiang Ning sitting by the entrance.
Having not seen her for three days, Jiang Ning looked even more haggard and slender, her brow seemingly etched with an unsolvable sorrow.
Frowning, he spoke up, “Why aren’t you resting in your own room? What are you making a scene out here for?”
“A scene?” Jiang Ning let out a cold snort, her tone sharp. “I haven’t even said anything yet; I was just sitting here quietly, and you immediately conclude I’m making a scene. Lord Gu, what a mighty official’s prestige you wield!”
Stubbornly lifting her chin, Jiang Ning had exhausted her patience and good temper after waiting the entire day.
The guards’ gazes instantly turned sharp; anyone showing disrespect to the Master was their enemy.
Trying desperately to salvage the situation, a terrified Chuntao pleaded, “Master, Concubine Jiang is truly worried sick about her family, which is why she disregarded her injuries to come seek an explanation. She has no other intentions.”
A hidden displeasure brewed in Gu Jianshen’s heart. No woman had ever dared to talk back to him like this; it was a blatant act of insubordination. However, upon seeing Jiang Ning’s bandage-wrapped palms and the wooden splints binding her lower leg, he ultimately swallowed down his anger.
He said, “What do you want?”
Jiang Ning replied, “I want to know the condition of my family. Jiang Yuan is someone who knows the truth, and I have both the necessity and the qualification to question her.”
Gu Jianshen cast his gaze toward the entrance of the East Courtyard, a trace of complexity flashing in his eyes.
“Come in.”
With Gu Jianshen issuing the permission, he strode ahead through the main gates.
Supported by Chuntao, Jiang Ning finally crossed the threshold of the East Courtyard as she had wished. Looking around, she saw no sign of Jiang Yuan in the courtyard—she must have gone into hiding somewhere.
“Over here.”
Gu Jianshen’s voice served as a reminder.
Following the sound, Jiang Ning saw Gu Jianshen standing at the doorway of the study and walked over.
Jiang Yuan wasn’t here either.
Seated in a rattan chair behind the desk, Gu Jianshen motioned for Jiang Ning to take a seat on the wooden chair before him. “Whatever you wish to ask, you can ask me. Do not disturb her.”
What blatant favoritism! It was precisely as the estate rumors claimed: Gu Jianshen doted on her to the marrow of his bones.
Curling her lips in self-deprecating irony, Jiang Ning let out a cold snort. “She and I are sisters by blood; I never knew the Master understood her even better than her own husband.”
Gu Jianshen’s anger flared instantly, his voice carrying an extra layer of chill. “If you cannot speak properly, then leave this instant.”
He had no time to listen to a resentful woman’s whining.
To deliberately remind him that Jiang Yuan was already a married woman—did he think he didn’t know? Whether it was from the intelligence reports he had gathered or the message previously left by the fairy:
—I hope my husband treats me a little better and leaves me with a dog’s life.
Every piece of evidence proved that the fairy was married, and her husband didn’t treat her like a human being, but abused her like a beast of burden.
This matter remained a sharp thorn buried deep in Gu Jianshen’s heart. He hated himself for not being able to find her sooner, leaving her to suffer so much needless torment.
Tugging at Jiang Ning’s sleeve, Chuntao whispered, “Concubine Jiang, the Master has never had any patience for irrelevant people and matters.”
Biting her lower lip, Jiang Ning took several deep breaths to regulate her state of mind.
Closing her eyes and slowly opening them once more, she forced all the superfluous emotions deep down into her heart, leaving behind only her deep concern for her family.
She slowly parted her lips: “I want to ask her about what happened when my family was kidnapped. Since she lived in the same village, she must know something.”
Frowning, Gu Jianshen asked, “Did you not know? She was also one of the people who got kidnapped.”
Startled, Jiang Ning raised her head to look at Gu Jianshen in utter disbelief. “How is that possible? She was already mar…” Married.
Jiang Ning hurriedly clamped her mouth shut and changed her phrasing, saying, “We didn’t even live together—one family at the head of the village and the other at the tail. Why on earth would they bother kidnapping her too?”
Seeing Jiang Ning’s reaction didn’t look feigned—she genuinely seemed unaware—Gu Jianshen explained, “According to the intelligence reports, she happened to be visiting back home that day and was accidentally abducted.”
So Jiang Yuan霜’s ordeal had been entirely a disaster of unprovoked misfortune?
Why had Handong never mentioned to her that Jiang Yuan霜 had been abducted as well?
With Handong dead, she had no one left to ask.
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Ning pressed further: “Since she was abducted alongside them, and she now appears in the Minister’s mansion, are the others together as well? Where are they right now?”
Gu Jianshen replied, “During transit, they were separated. The other three are currently being searched for. Once I receive any news, I will notify you.”
The fact that Gu Jianshen was also searching for them was undoubtedly good news for Jiang Ning. She had previously intended to draw blueprints in an attempt to persuade Gu Jianshen to help search for them.
Now, even before submitting the blueprints, her objective had been achieved.
And Gu Jianshen was doing this for Jiang Yuan’s sake.
Regardless of the motive, the ending was good; how the process played out didn’t matter.
Gu Jianshen added, “From now on, stay put in Qingxiang Residence and go nowhere else. She has already been tormented miserably enough because of you. Do not come disturb her, and do not provoke her again.”