Seeing that Su Linzhou had fallen asleep, Shen Chuyun called A-Qing over and sat beside the campfire to question him.
“What is your relationship with my brother? Why did you risk your life to save him?”
A-Qing answered honestly. “I’m a servant of the Marquis’s household. When Madam Shen was still alive, she once saved my mother. After Madam Shen passed away, the Madam replaced everyone who had any connection to her. My mother was one of those people.”
“My mother was sent to this farmstead. She often told me that Madam Shen had shown our family great kindness, and we must never forget that debt. If we ever had the chance, we had to repay her kindness.”
“Three years ago, Steward Luo selected me to serve the Heir Apparent. Once, I made a mistake, and the Madam wanted to sell me off. The Heir Apparent risked his life to protect me. Although I wasn’t sold, I could no longer remain by his side. Instead, I was sent back to this farmstead to work as a manure collector.”
“I thought I would never see the Heir Apparent again in this lifetime. Unexpectedly, half a month ago, he was sent to the farmstead.”
“The Heir Apparent had broken both his legs, yet the Marquis not only refused to have him treated but also sent him, gravely injured, to a wretched place like this.”
“The people at the farmstead treated the Heir Apparent terribly. They all said he was a discarded son and would die here.”
“The farmstead manager is Wu He, and his wife is Chen Er’ya. The couple are the Madam’s trusted subordinates. They often abused the Heir Apparent, refusing to give him food or water and never allowing him to wash. As a result, ever since he arrived here, he has been filthy and hungry every single day.”
“The day before yesterday, the couple claimed they had received orders from the Marquis. They said the Heir Apparent had sent people to assassinate Su Ming’an, committing the heinous crime of turning against his own brother. They said he had to be severely punished, so they forced him to kneel on broken stones for three hours.”
“The Heir Apparent’s legs were already injured, and the pain in his bones was unbearable. After they forced him to kneel for three hours, the flesh on both his legs was torn and bloody. And that wasn’t all. They even beat his legs with sticks.”
“I was afraid they would kill the Heir Apparent, so I took the risk of rescuing him tonight. I was lucky enough to run into you, Eldest Young Lady.”
“Eldest Young Lady, you have no idea how difficult these past years have been for the Heir Apparent. I only served by his side for three months, but I know that ever since your mother passed away, he hasn’t had a single peaceful day.”
“Eldest Young Lady, I can tell that you’re a very capable person. I beg you, please save the Heir Apparent and take him away from the Marquis’s household. Don’t let him return to that place where people devour one another!”
Overcome with emotion, A-Qing rose to his feet and suddenly dropped to his knees before Shen Chuyun, knocking his forehead hard against the ground.
Shen Chuyun stopped him. “Don’t do this. Get up first.”
After she helped him to his feet, A-Qing spoke in a choked voice. “I’m useless. I couldn’t protect the Heir Apparent, and there’s nothing I can do for him. Everyone says he’s a madman, but I know that although he occasionally loses control, most of the time, he’s perfectly normal.”
“Eldest Young Lady, you must believe me. The Heir Apparent really isn’t insane.”
Shen Chuyun comforted him. “I believe you. My brother isn’t insane.”
She asked A-Qing to sit down before continuing, “While treating my brother’s injuries just now, I discovered that there’s poison in his body. It’s a slow-acting poison. It won’t kill him, but it can leave him mentally disoriented, make his emotions difficult to control, and cause him to do things he can’t control.”
Hearing this, A-Qing said furiously, “It must have been the Madam! It has to be her! That hypocritical, vicious woman has always been plotting against the Heir Apparent. The Marquis abandoned him because she manipulated him, too. A mistress who rose from being a concubine outside the household to take her place inside, persecuting the legitimate son of the principal wife—she deserves to be cut into a thousand pieces!”
Shen Chuyun, however, did not share his certainty.
Xu Yuru certainly had a motive for poisoning her brother. After all, he was the Heir Apparent and the Marquis’s legitimate eldest son. Once he was ruined, Su Ming’an could take his place and become the new Heir Apparent, eventually inheriting everything belonging to the Marquis’s household.
However, Shen Chuyun felt that Xu Yuru might not necessarily be responsible. Su Zhen could also have done it.
That man was the most cold-blooded and heartless person she had ever known.
She would get to the bottom of this matter.
“Eldest Young Lady, can the poison in the Heir Apparent’s body be cured?” A-Qing asked anxiously.
Suppressing the hatred in her heart, Shen Chuyun replied, “Yes. While treating my brother’s legs, I’ll remove the poison as well.”
A-Qing asked another question. “Then… can the Heir Apparent’s legs be healed? Everyone says his legs are permanently crippled and that even the imperial physicians can’t cure him.”
Shen Chuyun added more firewood to the campfire. The flames illuminated her delicate little face.
“They can be healed.”
A-Qing breathed a sigh of relief. “I believe you, Eldest Young Lady.”
Shen Chuyun looked at him with a smile. “You’re quite loyal. My brother has fallen into such a miserable state, and everyone has distanced themselves from him. Yet you’re the only one who continues to treat him well, risking your life to save him. A-Qing, what is your full name? And what happened to your mother?”
A-Qing lowered his eyes. “My full name is Zhou Ziqing. Madam Shen gave me that name. My mother passed away three years ago from overwork. I was an only child, and my father was gone before I was even born. My mother was my only family. After she died, I was all alone.”
“Later, when I went to serve the Heir Apparent, I finally found someone I could depend on. I thought I could follow him for the rest of my life, but I never imagined that after only three months, I would be forced to leave his side.”
Shen Chuyun gently patted his shoulder. “Zhou Ziqing, that’s a good name. From now on, I’ll call you Brother Ziqing.”
“I wouldn’t dare, Eldest Young Lady. I’m only a servant. I’m not worthy of being called your brother,” A-Qing said anxiously.
Shen Chuyun replied earnestly, “You are worthy. Brother Ziqing, from now on, stay by my brother’s side. I need you to help me take care of him.”
“What about you, Eldest Young Lady?” Zhou Ziqing asked nervously. “Are you going to leave?”
Shen Chuyun gazed at the flames, her eyes gradually turning cold.
“My brother’s leg injuries are severe. They can’t be healed in a short time, so we need to find somewhere for him to recuperate. In the meantime, I’ll return to the Marquis’s household and continue playing the role of its Eldest Young Lady.”
“The Marquis’s household owes my brother, owes my mother, and owes me. All the harm they’ve inflicted on us, everything they’ve taken from our hands—I’ll make them repay it a hundredfold. I’ll take back every last thing that belongs to us.”
At daybreak, Shen Chuyun led Zhou Ziqing and Su Linzhou out of the mountains. They found a small teahouse outside the city.
There were several customers inside. Shen Chuyun asked Zhou Ziqing to stay outside with the white wolf and Su Linzhou, then entered the teahouse and addressed the proprietor.
“Shopkeeper, I’d like a pot of Clear Breeze Tea.”
The shopkeeper, who had been working his abacus, suddenly looked up in surprise. When he saw Shen Chuyun’s delicate little face, he smiled warmly and asked, “We have two kinds of Clear Breeze Tea, premium and ordinary. Which would you like, honored guest?”
“Of course I want the premium tea. Hurry up and bring it out,” Shen Chuyun replied.
The shopkeeper came around from behind the counter. “The premium tea must be enjoyed in our private room. Please follow me.”
Shen Chuyun followed him into the inner room.
Once the door closed, cutting them off from the eyes of those outside, Shen Chuyun took out a golden token and handed it to the shopkeeper for inspection.
After examining it carefully, the shopkeeper bowed deeply to her.
“Bao Butong pays his respects to Seventh Young Lady.”
Shen Chuyun looked at him and said, “I need Sixth Senior Brother’s help. Where is he?”