The Duke’s Mansion
In her previous life, Lin Suisui only found out during the confiscation of the Duke’s Mansion that her name was not even on the family’s official register.
She was terrified.
Tears filled her eyes, and her whole body trembled with fear.
She looked toward the group of people not far away.
Her grandmother was there, along with her father, uncles, aunts, brothers, and sisters.
When she looked at them, it was as if they had all agreed beforehand. Every one of them remained silent.
When Wang Qingwan saw her, she clearly wanted to say something.
But Lin Zhengbei, who was standing beside her, quickly sealed her speech by pressing an acupoint.
Even though she could no longer speak, she still tried to run forward and identify Lin Suisui.
Lin Yue’er reacted quickly and dragged Wang Qingwan back into the crowd.
At the same time, Lin Suisui’s Second Aunt and Third Aunt stepped in front of her, preventing Wang Qingwan from coming out again.
It was obvious that all of them had recognized Lin Suisui.
And they had all chosen to protect her.
At that time, although her grandmother looked exhausted, the concern in her eyes was impossible to miss.
Especially when Nanny Qian stepped forward and made up a new identity for her and Nanny Qing, Lin Suisui finally understood everything.
“My name is Suisui, and this is my younger sister, Nanny Qing.”
Lin Suisui was very clever.
She forced herself to stay calm, held Nanny Qing’s hand, and knelt before Shi Yue.
The two girls were thin and poorly fed. Their clothes were old and covered with patches.
No matter how experienced Shi Yue was, he could never imagine that one of these poor girls was actually a daughter of the Duke’s Mansion.
“Please, Commander, spare these two poor children. They are not from this household. I was the one who let them stay here. I am the one who caused them trouble.”
Nanny Qian cried bitterly as she repeatedly kowtowed before Shi Yue.
“Please let us go…”
Lin Suisui and Nanny Qing knelt beside Nanny Qian and kowtowed as well.
“Let the two of them leave.”
In the end, Shi Yue’s heart softened.
When he came to confiscate the Duke’s Mansion, the emperor had ordered him that not even a fly was allowed to escape.
But was the Duke really guilty?
A secret letter to the enemy was conveniently found in his study.
An enemy princess was hidden inside the mansion.
How foolish would the Duke have to be to do something so obvious?
It was clearly a trap.
Anyone with common sense could tell that the man sitting on the throne simply wanted to destroy the Duke’s Mansion.
But by making the plot so obvious, wasn’t the emperor afraid that the generals who defended the country would lose faith in him?
For generations, the Dukes of Yong had defended the northern border.
They had always been regarded as legendary heroes throughout the Great Yong Dynasty.
Perhaps because their reputation was too great…
The emperor feared them and wanted to eliminate the entire family once and for all.
Although an imperial order could not be disobeyed…
Shi Yue believed he still had the authority to let two innocent girls go.
“Thank you, Commander… Thank you…”
Nanny Qian quickly led Lin Suisui and Nanny Qing in kowtowing again.
Perhaps because she was old…
When she tried to stand up, she failed several times.
Lin Suisui and Nanny Qing had to help her to her feet.
At that moment, Nanny Qian secretly slipped a rolled bundle into Lin Suisui’s hand.
Only after leaving the Duke’s Mansion did she discover that it was a roll of banknotes.
Her grandmother had prepared it so she could escape and survive.
As she walked out through the gates of the Duke’s Mansion, she turned back for one last look at her family.
Their faces all showed relief.
They were happy that she had survived.
At that moment, Lin Suisui secretly swore that she would find a way to save her family.
“Grandmother, after I escaped in my previous life… I wanted to save all of you.”
“But before I could think of a way… some of you died, and the rest were sent into exile…”
Lin Suisui’s voice choked with emotion.
“In this life, I only realized about a month ago that I had returned to the past.”
“Perhaps Heaven pitied our family after such a tragic end… That’s why I was given another chance to come back and warn all of you.”
Lin Suisui truly believed that.
Otherwise, what would be the meaning of being reborn?
“My good child, this time, with your warning, we will never repeat the fate of our previous lives.”
The Old Madam walked over and gently embraced Lin Suisui.
The little girl in her arms was frighteningly thin.
Just imagining how terrified she must have been on the day the mansion was confiscated in her previous life made the Old Madam’s heart ache.
“Damn it…”
Lin Zhengbei cursed under his breath.
Lin Zhengnan and Lin Zhengchen also looked grim.
Everything Lin Suisui had just told them filled them with anger.
“Grandmother, make the preparations. Tomorrow I’ll go with you to Cuiping Nunnery.”
Lin Suisui sniffled and shyly lifted her head from the Old Madam’s embrace.
“Cuiping Nunnery?”
Everyone in the capital knew that Cuiping Nunnery was the largest and most famous Buddhist nunnery near the city.
“Before the New Year, the Empress Dowager was pushed aside. In anger, she left the palace for Cuiping Nunnery and didn’t even return to celebrate the New Year.”
Because she had lived through it once…
Lin Suisui knew far more than the others.
“The emperor’s birth mother, Consort Dowager Shen, could not tolerate the Empress Dowager. She constantly caused trouble and provoked her. Unable to bear it any longer, the Empress Dowager withdrew to Cuiping Nunnery.”
“How could this happen? Yan’er… has had such a hard life.”
The Old Madam and the Empress Dowager had grown up together.
They had been close friends since they were young.
Even after the Empress Dowager entered the palace, she often invited the Old Madam to visit and chat.
Only in recent years, to avoid suspicion because of their age and status, had the Old Madam stopped entering the palace so often.
“I remember clearly. In my previous life, shortly before the Lantern Festival, the Empress Dowager suddenly fell unconscious at Cuiping Nunnery. She never woke up before she died.”
“Are you saying… Yan’er’s sudden illness wasn’t an accident?”
Hearing that her old friend was in danger, the Old Madam became anxious.
She understood the hidden meaning behind Lin Suisui’s words.
“I suspect that someone close to her poisoned her.”
Lin Suisui could not be completely certain.
It was only her suspicion.
“If the Empress Dowager had still been healthy in my previous life, she would never have stood by and watched the Duke’s Mansion be framed.”
“You’re right. Even for my sake, Yan’er would never have ignored us.”
The Old Madam’s eyes turned red with anger.
“If that’s true… then Yan’er was also dragged into this because of us.”
Lin Suisui believed that this was most likely the truth.
“Grandmother, going to Cuiping Nunnery isn’t only to save the Empress Dowager. It’s also to give our family another layer of protection.”
With the Empress Dowager…
The Crown Prince…
And Chancellor Li…
If even these people could not save the Duke’s Mansion, then perhaps it really would be fate.
“The Empress Dowager had no children of her own. The emperor was raised by her, and she personally helped him ascend the throne.”
Lin Zhengbei laughed quietly.
“Heh… Our emperor values filial piety above all else.”
“If the Empress Dowager personally pleads for us, then no matter how unwilling he is, he will have to show her respect in public.”
“Father is right. These people are our strongest supporters.”
Lin Suisui’s eyes filled with determination.
“I refuse to believe that this time, if we all work together, we still can’t change the fate that doomed us before.”
The Old Madam was also inspired by her resolve.
“Suisui is right. This time, let’s see what the emperor will do when his scheme fails and he can no longer frame the Duke’s Mansion.”