The two of them walked toward the carriage one after the other, and it wasn’t until they were there that Song Yuanbao said, "The mother and daughter ran away as soon as they heard they were heading to Doctor Li’s house."
Wen Wan’s gaze shifted to the bamboo cane thrown on the ground nearby, and she suddenly laughed, "Their legs are quite agile."
"If I hadn’t been quick-witted and dodged fast, I might have been taken along by them," Song Yuanbao snorted lightly.
Wen Wan furrowed her brows and asked Xie Zheng and Song Yuanbao to get on the carriage first, then she walked around to the Bluestone Alley on the side and called out into the empty space, "Wei Qian!"
Soon after she spoke, sure enough, a shadow appeared at the mouth of the alley.
This was the first ti Wen Wan called upon the hidden guard left to her by her foster parents. Seeing the other dressed in all black and with a resolute, cold expression, she couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy.
Wei Qian quickly walked up to Wen Wan, clasped his fists, and said, "Madam, what are your orders?"
Wen Wan swallowed her saliva, "You, you are Wei Qian?"
"I am indeed."
"You’ve really been following all along?"
Wen Wan was not unfamiliar with the term "hidden guard," but she had never encountered one before. She found it incredible that soone could be lurking in the shadows at all tis to protect her.
"Mr. Song has ordered to ensure Madam’s safety at all tis, and I dare not disobey," Wei Qian’s voice was strong and powerful, yet as cold as ice, devoid of any warmth or emotion.
Wen Wan shivered and quickly got to the point, "About those two people just now, can you help find them?"
Wei Qian nodded, "No need for Madam to instruct; soone is already following them. How to deal with them is entirely up to your command."
Hearing this, Wen Wan suddenly felt at a loss for words.
Frankly speaking, Wen Wan since young had premonitions and had often played pranks on people, but those were all petty tricks. This was the first ti she encountered such a grave situation where it seed like it wouldn’t end without hurting soone, sothing rarely seen in the countryside.
Coming up with a small prank to ss with soone was one thing, but dealing directly with an enemy was sothing she truly couldn’t think of a way to handle at the mont.
Seeing her hesitation, Wei Qian suggested, "In my opinion, in a situation like this, fighting fire with fire might be more effective."
"Fight fire with fire?"
"Yes, cut off one finger of each of the mother and daughter and deliver it secretly to the person behind the scenes. They’ll understand that you are not to be trifled with, and they won’t dare to plot against you so easily in the future."
Wen Wan was shocked and asked tremblingly, "Cutting off a finger, will it take their lives?"
"It won’t be life-threatening, but it will hurt."
"...If it’s not life-threatening, then do it! Send it to the Duke Mansion’s backyard, to Su Yu."
Despite being frightened and with her face as pale as a sheet, she still managed to give the command with feigned calmness.
The typically cold Wei Qian found it amusing for so reason; this lady, both in appearance and temperant, seed unfit for wrongdoing.
After Wei Qian left, Wen Wan found herself a bit weak in the legs.
She stood up straight, took a deep breath to calm herself, and then walked out of the alley.
By the ti she got on the carriage, Xie Zheng and Song Yuanbao were already seated inside.
Seeing that Xie Zheng still seed a bit bewildered, Wen Wan comforted him, "Don’t overthink it. I’ll go back and ask Third Son at the Hanlin Academy to see if he can help smooth things over for you."
Xie Zheng’s mind was still sowhat clouded. Hearing Wen Wan’s voice, he managed to regain so clarity, "Thank you, Third Sister-in-law, for helping out of trouble. If it weren’t for your appearance today, I might have really gotten into big trouble."
Song Yuanbao furrowed his brows, "Mother, do you know who wants to harm Uncle Xie?"
Wen Wan had no intention of involving Song Yuanbao, so she shook her head, "Children shouldn’t ask about adult matters."
Song Yuanbao pursed his lips, "I’m just wondering how such a low-key person like Uncle Xie could offend anyone?"
"I find it puzzling too."
If it weren’t for this incident, Xie Zheng wouldn’t have known he had already made enemies in the shadows.
"You all don’t need to worry about it," Wen Wan said, "After we return, Xie Zheng should just rest well to calm his nerves, and Yuanbao, don’t ntion this in front of your grandparents. It’s best not to let the elders know, or they’ll worry too much."
Yuanbao responded with an "Oh."
The carriage stopped at the gate of the Song family, and Xie Zheng lifted the curtain to get off.
Seeing his still frightened appearance, Wen Wan told him there was no need to go to the Song family and to go directly back to his own ho.
After Xie Zheng entered through the gate, Wen Wan and Yuanbao got off the carriage.
Once inside the courtyard, after Yuanbao greeted his grandparents briefly, he went to the study. Wen Wan took Jinbao from her mother-in-law’s hands and returned to the East Wing.
Closing the door, Wen Wan recounted to Song Wei what had happened earlier on the street.
Song Wei rarely showed a surprised expression, "So, my previous assumption was wrong?"
"Whether it was your guess of mutual affection or not, in the end, Xie Zheng compromised and agreed to take her in as a concubine out of fear of ruining his reputation. The result is that he was preparing to take a concubine anyway, so there’s no difference."
Recalling the situation at that ti, Wen Wan couldn’t help but sigh, "Luckily, I happened to pass by and had a premonition. Otherwise, Xie Zheng would have been involved in a lawsuit today."
Song Wei pondered, "The thods of those behind the scenes are not particularly clever, but once successful, the impact is most direct. Xie Zheng is at a critical juncture now; even the slightest blemish might not only an he won’t be given important tasks in the future but also question whether he can stay in the Capital."
While Song Wei was speaking, Wen Wan kept her head down.
Noticing sothing was off with her today, Song Wei asked, "What’s wrong?"
"I, I think I’ve made Wei Qian do sothing unscrupulous," Wen Wan admitted sheepishly.
"Unscrupulous?" Song Wei slightly raised his eyebrows, evidently curious about her wording.
"Well... those two people, I had Wei Qian and others chase after them, and when he asked what to do, I, I finally told him to cut off one finger from each of the mother and daughter and send it to the Duke Jing Mansion."
"You gave the order?"
Song Wei’s tone was filled with surprise at his usually gentle wife.
Soone as gentle as her could actually be this ruthless?
"...Yes, it was ." Wen Wan pursed her lips, her hands placed on her legs gradually tightened, "I just felt that the Su Family is too malicious. Today it’s this, tomorrow it’s that, everyone wants to put my husband to death. Unable to match you directly, they resort to underhanded tactics towards your close ones.
Today it’s Xie Zheng, who knows who it will be tomorrow! So, I just wanted to teach them a lesson, to let the Su Family know that we’re not easy targets, not to be trifled with."
It was the first ti Wen Wan had done sothing like cutting off fingers, and she couldn’t help feeling anxious. After confessing, she didn’t dare to look at Song Wei, fearing a severe scolding.
Song Wei saw that his little wife was afraid of him, and he laughed, "If you’ve already sent Wei Qian to handle it, then those fingers are likely already at the Su Family. Even if I bla you, those fingers can’t be put back."
Did that an he wasn’t blaming her for making decisions on her own?
Wen Wan looked up, eting the man’s eyes with a slight smile.
She sniffed, "Don’t you think I’m cruel?"
"As long as no one loses their life, giving a lesson is what they deserve."
——
Duke Jing Mansion.
It was already dinner ti. Hao Yun, who had resud his duties at the Ministry of Justice, had not been back long after coming from the Lower Court when a maid brought a food box for the couple.
The weather was hot, and Su Yu had little appetite, leaning lazily against the chair, looking indifferent.
The maid placed the food box on the table and was about to take out the plates inside when she saw what was in them and scread.
Su Yu, disturbed, furrowed his brows and glared at the maid, "What’s wrong with you, making such a fuss?"
The maid turned pale, stepped back a few steps, and pointed tremblingly at the food box, stamring, "In there, in there..."
Su Yu wasn’t in the mood to listen to her hints. He stood up and saw two bloody fingers in the white porcelain plate, imdiately getting so scared that his legs gave out, and he fell to the ground along with the stool he was sitting on.
Hao Yun, who had just washed his hands and entered, happened to see this scene and asked what had happened.
Su Yu, shaking, couldn’t answer, slowly crawled up from the ground, suddenly scread, and ran frantically towards Aunt Qiu’s courtyard.
Aunt Qiu had just set the table and was about to eat when she saw Su Yu rushing in. Her action of picking up food paused, and she looked at the newcor, "Yuyu, what’s wrong with you?"
Su Yu was still weak all over, hearing the voice, she instantly collapsed at Aunt Qiu’s feet, suddenly grabbing her arm, "Mother, I don’t want to stay here anymore. Let’s leave the Su Family, okay?"
Aunt Qiu placed her chopsticks back on the table, reaching out to pat Su Yu’s back gently, "Yuyu, did sothing unpleasant happen again?"
"Soone is trying to harm ." Su Yu said with a pale face, "Just now, I was about to eat, but when the food box was opened, there were two bloody fingers inside. I don’t know whose bad prank it is, but it scared to death."
Having said that, she hugged Aunt Qiu, "Mother, why did you co to recognize relatives at the Su Family?"
If she hadn’t co to the Su Family, she wouldn’t have t Song Wei, wouldn’t have been captivated by him at first sight, wouldn’t have been heartbroken on the day she tossed the embroidered ball, wouldn’t have gone to the tavern to drink in her heartbroken state, and wouldn’t have been defiled by that scumbag Hao Yun.
She ca to the Pri Minister’s Mansion to reunite with relatives for a good life, not to look at people’s faces and suffer grievances!
"You child," Aunt Qiu said helplessly, "didn’t I tell you? You are of the Su Family’s blood; you should recognize your ancestry."
"But we’re not living well here," Su Yu said with a bitter face, "The Lord doesn’t care about you, why do you leave your own life behind to co to such a big house and beco an unvalued concubine?"
Aunt Qiu smiled faintly, "You don’t understand."
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