Spring Courtyard Forbidden Pet

When Li Xuan was twelve years old, Ye Zhen had already stayed in the Ye Mansion for four years, following Ye Rong to all banquets in the capital. She couldn't say that she knew everything, but she could guarantee that no one else knew anything that she didn't know.

However, whether in the past life or this life, there is no memory of the robbery and murder that Sancho mentioned.

"After all, the Second Master is the youngest son favored by Marquis Dingyuan. I think the Marquis deliberately concealed the news, so no one outside heard the news."

Rong Fei's explanation makes sense.

Ye Zhen rubbed his brows, "Before the empire was settled, Marquis Dingyuan and Your Majesty were close friends. After the Great Zhou was stabilized, he followed Taoist Master Chen Buchu and traveled around the world. How could someone rob and kill their son?"

Rong Fei said in a deep voice, "It is said that the Second Master also started practicing Taoism at the age of twelve. I guess the Marquis is afraid that something might happen to him in the capital."

Ye Zhen wanted to investigate who had a grudge against the Dingyuan Marquis' Mansion, but then she changed her mind and realized that in her previous life, she had become a noble lady and had not found anyone the Marquis' Mansion had an irreconcilable feud with. Furthermore, when Ye Rong married into the Marquis' Mansion, Cui must have investigated more thoroughly.

Since he has no grudge against the Marquis' Mansion, then he has a grudge against Taoist He Chenbuchu?

How could a woman who practices Taoism, who does not care about trivial matters in the inner house, and does not care about the gains and losses of status, provoke others to want to kill her son? The most likely people are Li Chengge and his son, but Ye Zhen does not look down on them. Even if they are given a knife, they may not dare to kill Li Xu'an.

Who is that?

Ye Zhen couldn't figure it out and had no way to investigate, so she had no choice but to let the matter go.

From then on, in addition to taking care of the accounts sent by several shops every day, in his spare time he continued to prepare clothes and protective gear for Ye Jinglan that would be needed for the coming autumn, and urged Rong Fei to buy the necessary medicinal materials as soon as possible. There was nothing else that mattered.

In previous years, people would have been preparing to leave around the Dragon Boat Festival, but now they were free. Even if she dared to send them off, the ladies who had been on good terms with Cui would not dare to accept them.

In just a few days, the trade routes that the Cui family had dominated for many years had been encroached upon by other merchants, and Ye Zhen's shops had also been hit, especially the two most profitable jade shops, which were not making as much money as before. Fortunately, the winery was there to support them.

For many years, the income from several shops has been used to support the wine shop, and now a large amount of money depends on the wine shop. If I hadn't just exchanged three thousand taels of silver, I wouldn't be so tight on money now.

She was like this, let alone the shop she left for Ye Yunsheng.

The housekeeper came three times a day, asking for money in a roundabout way, but Ye Zhen was nowhere to be seen. Liuxia was furious, "You all know the current situation of the Ye family. What can the second lady do!"

"Mrs. Zhao needs to recuperate. She should go to the Marquis' Mansion to ask for help from Mrs. Xue."

After being scolded like that, the housekeeper stopped licking his face and continued.

Ye Zhen didn't go out for many days. She was always worried about Li Xuan'an warding off disasters and evil spirits for her. She forced herself to eat three meals a day and light calming incense at night to sleep well. Even so, she still couldn't sleep well.

On the second day of May, the palace celebrated the birthday of Concubine Xian, and with the return of General Dong Zhang to the capital, it was quite lively.

Such a big thing, I don't know if the imperial teacher has entered the palace, his body...

Ye Zhen forced herself to stop thinking about it. After checking the account book, she found that she had lost nearly a hundred taels of silver. She called the shopkeeper to ask about it and found out that the shop opposite had snatched away the customers.

"I can't understand it either. Their products are so inferior to ours. We sell bracelets of the same price much cheaper than those on the other side. But the customers just don't even look at them and go to the other side as if they had taken a drug."

The shopkeeper also looked miserable.

This man has followed Ye Zhen for many years, and there is no need to question his loyalty or strength.

Ye Zhen comforted him, "Uncle Fu, don't blame yourself. Let me think of a solution."

The shopkeeper also knew that such a big thing had happened to the Ye family, and it was difficult for her to support the whole mansion alone. "Second Miss, business is bound to have bad times, maybe it will be better in two days."

"Don't stay in the house. Today the princess is giving out free porridge and has invited a royal doctor to provide free medical treatment to the poor. It's very lively outside. Go out and get some sun. You'll feel refreshed."

Ye Zhen was stunned. Did she look listless?

In the afternoon, Ye Zhen had no intention of going out, but Xiaonian came over and said that he saw Zhiyan on the street.

After Cui's death, all the maids who followed her were dismissed. Zhiyan has a younger brother at home. Ye Zhen returned her indenture contract to her and also gave her travel expenses. Why is she still in the capital?

Ye Zhen felt uneasy for no reason.

"Second Miss, the house that Zhiyan enters and leaves was once owned by Liu An, the son of the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple."

Ye Zhen's eyelids jumped, "Is she still in there?"

Xiaonian nodded.

When did Zhiyan and the Liu family have an affair? Liu An and his son offended Prince Yu and resigned from their posts and left Beijing more than a month ago.

The more Ye Zhen thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong, so she just asked Xiaonian to keep a close eye on the person.

However, Xiaonian did not come back until the afternoon. Yuanbao was about to go out to buy some snacks for Ye Jinglan. Ye Zhen thought that Meng Qianru was giving out porridge in the city today and no one should cause trouble, so she asked Yuanbao to go back to take care of Ye Jinglan and went out with a few people.

At the city gate, many people were lined up under a tent with the word "Meng" reflected on it. Guards were maintaining order at a distance, which was comparable to the scene at Baiyun Temple that day.

Meng Qianru had been standing for the whole morning. Yinxiang helped her back to the carriage to rest. When they passed by a few beggars who were well fed and satisfied, they prostrated themselves on the ground and thanked her profusely.

A beggar of seven or eight years old saw a pair of shoes embroidered with crabapple flowers in silver thread, which looked beautiful and thought they looked like the ones worn by the goddess Guanyin in the temple. He couldn't help but reached out to touch them.

Meng Qianru retracted her toes and said, "Go and rest under the tree. No need to thank me."

As she got on the carriage, her smile froze, and her flower-like eyes looked as if they were splashed with black ink, frighteningly gloomy.

Yinxiang was worried and quickly changed her into a clean coat. She saw her kick off her shoes and looked at the mark on the edge of her shoes with a hint of anger in her eyes. "Throw it away!"

"Yes."

Yinxiang quickly took the shoes out and told the guards, "Evacuate all the beggars. The princess said there is no need to thank her."

When the incense was half burned, the stench of those untouchables was no longer on Meng Qianru's body. She took out a box of perfume and wiped her hands carefully.

Yin Xiang came in and whispered something in her ear. Meng Qianru curled her lips coldly, "How could such a dirty woman like her ride in the same car with the Second Master!"

The Second Master wants her to go back home!

The disgust on Meng Qianru's face was greater than anger. "Second Master is kind and dedicated to accumulating blessings for the Marquis's Mansion, but who is Ye Zhen? What else can she do except bring endless troubles and disputes to Second Master?"

"I don't understand why Second Master always has to protect her."

Thinking of the cold faces Li Xuan had given her recently, Meng Qianru couldn't help but feel heartbroken. The Second Master had never treated her like this before.

Yinxiang also complained, "That's right! Look at that vixen, she must have seduced others in private. First it was the Second Master's brother, then the Second Master, and later a fool came to cause trouble. I think she can't live without a man."

Meng Qianru's eyes were filled with anger. "Let someone bring Liu An here."

"Now that Prince Yu has gone to his fiefdom, no one will bother them anymore. I spared their lives. Now it's time for Liu An to repay me."

She whispered a few words into Yinxiang's ear, and the anger in her eyes gradually turned into a sinister smile.

Yinxiang nodded repeatedly, "I'll do it right away."

Meng Qianru's mood improved again. She smelled the delicate balm on her hands and fantasized that one day Li Xuan would hold her hand.

"The Second Master is the cleanest being on the top of the snow mountain. How can he let a woman like her tarnish his reputation? You are a banished immortal from the Ninth Heaven, you have compassion for the world, but some people are born dirty and are not worthy of you bending over backwards."

"Anyone can touch a dirty woman like Ye Zhen, how can she be worthy of your care?"