The current emperor has only ever bestowed two Death-Exemption Golden Medals.
One was given to the illustrious Qin Wang, Shen Chengye—a young general renowned for his battlefield exploits, who has secured countless military achievements for the Great Jin Dynasty and is the people’s favored candidate for the next crown prince!
The other was granted to the head of the civil officials, Shen Huaiji—a brilliant scholar from humble origins who topped the imperial examinations six times in a row. After entering government service, he reclaimed lost territories and captured cities with extraordinary strategies, rising to become a grand councilor at a young age and wielding immense power throughout the court!
Both figures are exceptionally talented and far beyond the reach of ordinary officials like them. Moreover, how could they have obtained their tokens?!
In the presence of the Death-Exemption Golden Medal, it is as if one stands before the emperor himself. Regardless of status, everyone present immediately knelt in unison!
The crowd discreetly observed the young boy before them, sensing a vague familiarity in his features, though they couldn’t quite place whom he resembled.
Ji Wanwan was utterly shocked inside. She knew about the Death-Exemption Golden Medal—it could save one’s life!
This child!!
Was her savior!!
The ever-dramatic Ji Wanwan instantly slipped into character: “Thank you for picking this up for me, sister almost lost it!”
Shen Zhinan handed the token to her with a beaming smile, showing no trace of pretense.
After confirming Ji Wanwan was the owner of the token, the onlookers’ expressions varied—some disdainful, some reverent, some envious.
And… some filled with jealousy and resentment.
Before leaving, Ji Wanwan couldn’t resist twisting the knife for the jealous Lin Yourou: “Second Brother, what about Yourou? She was the one who taught me to do this. I hope I haven’t dragged her into trouble?”
Hearing this, Lin Yourou nearly gritted her teeth in fury. This damned Ji Wanwan could leave freely but chose to pull her down before going! Damn it, she would definitely…
The Duke’s steward immediately caught on: “Miss Lin, since Miss Ji is unavailable, we must trouble you to accompany us to the Duke’s residence!”
Lin Yourou’s face instantly turned ashen. Unlike Ji Wanwan, she didn’t have reliable family backing—her stepmother had long wished for her to get into trouble!
“Wan Wan, save me! I can’t go with them!” Lin Yourou pleaded with desperate eyes.
Even though she was seething with hatred, she still had to rely on Ji Wanwan to rescue her. Only this fool would wholeheartedly believe in her and protect her—she was her lifeline!
But the new-and-improved Ji Wanwan, now a far cry from her former self, remained unmoved. Instead, she feigned pitifulness: “Yourou, it was your idea that caused trouble for Young Master Rong. You should go check on him. If it’s serious, come find me, and I’ll have my father compensate him.”
After Ji Wanwan’s sly words, Lin Yourou was so enraged she nearly fainted!
The Ji family had long been impoverished by this fool Wanwan—how could they possibly afford to compensate Young Master Rong?!
This idiot was clearly toying with her!
However, without the Duke’s household blocking her way, Ji Wanwan entered the residence unimpeded, while the Duke’s men dragged Lin Yourou back to settle accounts.
With no one else from the Ji family at home, Ji Mingjing coldly escorted the two back to a room and ordered strict surveillance outside.
Inside, he began interrogating them: “Who exactly was responsible for today’s incident?”
Although the Duke’s household had spared Ji Wanwan out of respect for the Death-Exemption Golden Medal, neither of the Duke’s couple was easy to deal with. This matter likely wouldn’t end here, so they needed to quickly uncover the origin of this golden token.
Ji Wanwan immediately raised her hand—she knew the answer to this one: “It was Lin Yourou who taught me to do it! Although I was the one who smashed it, I wasn’t the mastermind!”
Shen Zhinan quickly chimed in, “Lin Yourou is a bad person! Sister is innocent!”
Ji Wanwan was quite satisfied with Shen Zhinan’s supportive response. Good, at such a young age, he already knew how to speak differently to different people—he was promising material!
Ji Mingjing, of course, knew.
Not just him—all the men in the Ji family knew Lin Yourou was no good.
It was just that Ji Wanwan only had this one friend, and they were as inseparable as glue every day. She wouldn’t allow anyone in the family to say a single bad word about Lin Yourou, and she had even threatened to go on a hunger strike before!
The Ji family had long wished for Ji Wanwan to see through Lin Yourou!
Ji Mingjing didn’t press for further details. The most urgent matter now was something else!
He turned to Ji Wanwan and asked, “Where did this token come from?”
Although the original host was foolish, she wasn’t completely senseless. She had fallen ill as a child, and her intelligence had stopped developing, but she could still communicate normally.
Now that she suddenly had such a valuable item, it really needed to be thoroughly questioned.
Ji Wanwan also turned and repeated the question to Shen Zhinan: “Right, where did this token come from?”
Ji Mingjing: “…”
She didn’t even know the person, yet she dared to falsely claim their Death-Exemption Golden Medal?
Did she borrow her audacity from the heavens?!
Shen Zhinan pointed at the token in her hand and said, “Father gave it to Nan Nan to save my life.”
Ji Wanwan raised an eyebrow, remembering how the child had called her “Mother” when they first met.
A bold guess suddenly formed in her mind…
Ji Mingjing was the first to ask, “Who is your father?”
He remembered that the two who possessed such golden medals were both unmarried—how could they suddenly have such a big child?
Shen Zhinan wanted to tell the truth, but seeing Ji Mingjing’s somewhat fierce expression, he hesitated.
Second Uncle was the Zhuangyuan of the Military Imperial Examination. If he mistakenly thought I was lying to him… better to wait until Second Uncle leaves and explain properly to Mother!
Ji Wanwan honestly explained to Ji Mingjing, “Second Brother, his name is Shen Zhinan, so his father must also be surnamed Shen. Can you guess who it is?”
“…”
Ji Mingjing was exasperated: “You’re asking me? Am I a fortune teller? The surname Shen is very common in the Great Jin Kingdom—from the Emperor, princes, and ministers down to prefects and commoners, there are plenty of people surnamed Shen!”
Ji Wanwan: “…”
Miscalculation—it’s a common surname!
How was she supposed to find his father in this vast sea of people?!
Seeing that he couldn’t get any answers, Ji Mingjing said coldly, “Keep a close eye on him in the mansion. Don’t let him run around. I’ll go find Father to investigate his origins.”
Ji Wanwan readily agreed, “Okay, okay.”
As soon as Ji Mingjing finished speaking, he remembered that his younger sister was a fool. His throat tightened. Never mind—she couldn’t even take care of herself.
He walked out and instructed the maid outside, “Xiao Tao, keep an eye on the Fourth Miss and that child. Don’t let them leave the mansion!”
“Yes, Second Young Master.” Xiao Tao closed the door from the outside.
As soon as Ji Mingjing left, before Ji Wanwan could even start asking questions, Shen Zhinan confessed on his own.
The little guy grinned and said, “Mother, let me formally introduce myself again. My name is Shen Zhinan, and I am your son. Although you don’t know me yet, I am very familiar with you~”
Shen Zhinan had been clever since childhood. After being here for a while and seeing one familiar face after another, all looking much younger, he had figured out why.
Mother had once told him stories about time travel, where a person could travel from one continent to another, or from the present to the past, just like he was doing now—returning to a time before he was born, when Father and Mother hadn’t even met yet.
Ji Wanwan opened her mouth. Though she already had a rough guess in her mind, having it pointed out so directly by the little one still came as a surprise. “I have a son from the future? How can you prove it?”