A moment later.
An older granny walked in.
“Granny Xu, why did Consort Li send you?” Lu Ze’an quickly stepped forward and said with an excellent attitude. Consort Li was his full-blooded elder sister.
“Marquis, Her Ladyship says you must quickly resolve the matters in the estate. Do not let the idle gossip outside affect the reputation of the Marquis Wenxin Estate, or even affect the Fifth Prince.” Granny Xu relayed her master’s words with a cold expression.
Lu Ze’an had actually guessed her purpose and promptly said, “Granny Xu, please tell Consort Li that I will resolve this matter as soon as possible.”
Granny Xu looked at Madam Yao and said authoritatively, “You step out first. Consort Li has words to speak privately with the Marquis.”
Madam Yao took a deep breath. Why was she being told to leave?
Lu Ze’an signaled with his eyes for her to go.
Madam Yao had no choice but to leave.
However, she did not go far, instead standing in the courtyard. Since the door was closed, she could not hear what the two were saying, but before long, Granny Xu came out. As she passed by, she did not even glance at her.
Seeing her haughty demeanor, Madam Yao was furious in her heart, but since she was a granny by Consort Li’s side, she dared not say anything.
“My lord, what did Consort Li say?” When she saw Lu Ze’an come out, she quickly went up to meet him.
“She told me to end this matter quickly,” Lu Ze’an said.
“What do you plan to do?”
“Kill Jiang Yunxi.”
Madam Yao’s face lit up with joy, and she said excitedly, “My lord, she truly deserves to die. All of this was caused by her. Once she’s dead, naturally no one will pay attention to this matter anymore.”
Lu Ze’an nodded. If Jiang Yunxi did not die, this matter would continue to escalate.
…
The next day.
Jiang Yunxi and Zhan Beiyuan took the children to Yingguo Gongfu, planning to leave the children there while they continued to search for the remaining Dry Wells. Since the Marquis Wenxin Estate had taken no action the previous night, she knew that the Xie family’s soul and spirit were not in the Dry Well they were looking for.
Otherwise, Lu Ze’an would definitely have been anxious to take action.
But she still decided to check all the remaining Dry Wells.
“Grandfather!”
Seeing Jiang Jing’an, Momo and Mianmian called out in soft voices. The two were not at all shy, acting as if they were already familiar with him.
Jiang Jing’an took a liking to the two little ones at first glance. No wonder Yunxi brought the children to his door, and His Highness Prince Han acknowledged them. Momo was exactly like him when he was young—practically identical. Although Mianmian did not resemble him much, her eyebrows and eyes bore some similarity to his mother.
If he did not acknowledge the children, probably all the commoners in the capital would call him a heartless scoundrel!
“Good children, take these. This is a red envelope from your grandfather.” As he spoke, Jiang Jing’an took two large red envelopes from his left and right sleeves and handed them over. Inside were all banknotes.
He did not know what to buy for them, so he simply gave them money, allowing them to buy whatever they wanted.
“Thank you, Grandfather.” Momo and Mianmian accepted them simultaneously, their faces filled with delight.
Ever since their mother brought them to the capital to find their father, they had received many things—from the Emperor Grandfather, their father, their great-grandmother, their second uncle, and the Crown Prince.
“Momo, Mianmian, this is from your eldest uncle.” Jiang Jinghuai took out the prepared red envelopes. These two children were truly endearing at first sight.
“Thank you, Eldest Uncle.” Momo and Mianmian accepted them with smiling eyes.
Jiang Jing’an looked at Zhan Beiyuan and said, “Prince Han, why not let the two children stay at Yingguo Gongfu for a few days?”
“For the next few days, I will stay at Yingguo Gongfu with the children and bring them back to the residence in a few days.” Jiang Yunxi also wanted to stay at Yingguo Gongfu to investigate what tricks the other party had played here.
“Alright.” Zhan Beiyuan did not refuse. She had just returned to the capital to reunite with her family, so he had no reason to stop her from staying at Yingguo Gongfu.
“If you have matters to attend to, go ahead. Leave the children at Yingguo Gongfu,” Grandmother said with a beaming smile.
After giving some instructions, Jiang Yunxi left with Zhan Beiyuan.
Once they were gone, Madam Mu looked indifferently at Momo and Mianmian, feeling no joy in her heart. Perhaps because she disliked Jiang Yunxi, she naturally could not bring herself to like them either.
…
After leaving, Jiang Yunxi and Zhan Beiyuan went directly to inspect the dry wells.
“Marquis Wenxin Estate made no move last night. Could it be that the soul and spirit are not in any of these dry wells we are searching?” Zhan Beiyuan asked.
“You are right.”
“Then why are you still searching today?”
“This is a diversion. Just wait—within three days, Marquis Wenxin Estate will face great misfortune.” Jiang Yunxi’s stunningly beautiful face wore a meaningful expression. Searching the dry wells was merely a tactic to confuse Marquis Wenxin.
Zhan Beiyuan: “Do you have another plan? What is it?”
“A person,” Jiang Yunxi said with a faint, enigmatic smile.
“Who?”
“Give me your hand, and I will read your palm.”
Zhan Beiyuan’s handsome face darkened with coldness as he refused sharply, “In three days, I will find out on my own.”
In other words, don’t even think about touching my hand!
Jiang Yunxi: “…”
In the afternoon, the two inspected all the dry wells but found no signs of a sealed soul and spirit.
“You go attend to your matters. I am going to set up a stall for fortune-telling,” Jiang Yunxi said to Zhan Beiyuan. The dry wells his men had recorded were accurate, but it was possible that some people had secretly dug wells at home, which they could not account for.
“Are you that short on money?” Zhan Beiyuan asked.
Jiang Yunxi shook her head. “No, fortune-telling is an act of kindness for me.”
Zhan Beiyuan: “…”
“Prince Han,” a gentle female voice suddenly called out.
Jiang Yunxi turned toward the voice and saw Lin Weiwei, the daughter of the Vice Minister of War. If she had not brought the children to his doorstep that day, Lin Weiwei would likely have become Han Wangfei.
“Does Miss Lin have business?” Zhan Beiyuan’s expression was cold and indifferent. He felt no guilt about canceling the wedding that day, as it had been an agreed-upon transaction from the start.
Lin Weiwei’s eyes stung with tears as she forced a light laugh. “I saw Your Highness and thought I should come over to greet you.”
After he had someone escort her back to her estate that night, she had cried bitterly in pain. For the next few days, she lay sickly in bed, uninterested in anything. The mere thought of Zhan Beiyuan’s handsome yet cold face made her want to cry.
She had come so close to becoming his Wangfei.
Even if it were in name only, she would have been willing to spend her entire life confined within Hanwang Residence.
“There is no need to greet me in the future,” Zhan Beiyuan said coldly.
Lin Weiwei looked stunned, then bit her red lips. “Your Highness, must we be so distant? That night, we almost performed the wedding ceremony.”
Zhan Beiyuan raised an eyebrow, his gaze deep and cold. “We were never close to begin with.”
Their wedding that day would have merely meant the residence supporting one more woman, with no further interaction afterward—this had been agreed upon from the start.
Lin Weiwei’s beautiful eyes widened, her face etched with hurt. Tears nearly fell, giving her a fragile, broken appearance.
Not wanting to watch any longer, Jiang Yunxi said, “You two continue your conversation. I will take my leave first.”
“This prince will go with you,” Zhan Beiyuan said coldly.
“I’m going to set up a stall; it’s not on the way,” Jiang Yunxi refused. If he went with her, Lin Weiwei would surely see her as even more of a thorn in her side—though she already was.
“This prince says it’s on the way, so it’s on the way,” Zhan Beiyuan declared imperiously.