Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

"Dad, brother Tuesday."

Shen Chuning walked into Shen Qinghe's study with light steps. When she looked up, she unexpectedly found Zhou Lin there too.

"Aning is here. Come and sit down. Han Zhi wants to ask you something." Shen Qinghe said to her with a smile.

Shen Chuning obediently sat down slowly on an armchair.

Shen Qi considerately filled a cup of hot tea for her, then quietly left the room and closed the study door.

"Brother Zhou Er, what exactly do you want to ask me?" Shen Chuning asked softly with a slight smile on her lips and a curious glint in her eyes.

After a moment's thought, Zhou Lin spoke cautiously, "There's a woman named Ziyuan in Madam Shen's courtyard. I wonder if Miss Shen knows anything about her?"

Shen Chuning couldn't help but feel a little confused, not understanding why Zhou Lin suddenly mentioned this person, but she turned to look at her father Shen Qinghe, seeking his advice.

Shen Qinghe nodded slightly to her, indicating that he could answer the question.

Then, Shen Chuning spoke up, "That Ziyuan claimed to be a witch from Lingshan. She was brought back to the mansion by my third uncle to treat my third aunt."

Shen Chuning paused for a moment and continued, "Actually, strictly speaking, it can't be considered as something Third Uncle brought back personally. It was given to him by one of his colleagues. It's said that this colleague's wife had been infertile, and it was thanks to Ziyuan's diagnosis and treatment that she was cured. That's why Third Uncle asked for Ziyuan."

After hearing this, Zhou Lin couldn't help but ask curiously, "Do you know which colleague it is?"

However, Shen Chuning shook her head helplessly, indicating that she was not clear.

She explained that by the time she learned about this, a long time had passed, and she only got the information by chance from her third aunt.

Zhou Lin then asked, "Is there anything unusual about Ziyuan?"

Shen Chuning frowned, thought for a moment, and replied, "There are so many things wrong with that. She's very good at deceiving people and sowing discord. With just a few words, she can make others stand on her side. If you're not prepared beforehand, you can easily be deceived by her. Oh, and one more thing, she's also proficient in mixing medicines and spices. You could even say... a little bit uncanny..."

Hearing this, Zhou Lin couldn't help but feel puzzled and asked, "Something weird? What kind of weird method is it?"

Shen Chuning slowly spoke, "What happened is this. For a while, she was extremely short of money, so Third Uncle secretly took out Third Aunt's dowry and gave it to Aunt Xue. When I successfully got it back, she was very interested in it. It was almost written on her face that she wanted to take it for herself. But not long after, she suddenly became rich and didn't even care about the small gifts. Moreover, I later asked someone to look at the pills she prepared at that time. They were all made of precious Chinese medicinal herbs."

Zhou Lin frowned slightly and asked, "Could it be the silver given by Mrs. Shen San?"

Shen Chuning shook her head. "Not to mention that Third Aunt doesn't have that much money. Even if she did, she wouldn't be willing to buy such expensive herbs just to stop a cough. Besides, there are obviously cheaper and more effective prescriptions for stopping coughs."

Zhou Lin: "Maybe he got a reward from somewhere else."

Shen Chuning still shook her head. "During that time, I sent people to keep an eye on her, but I didn't see her come into contact with anyone."

Zhou Lin: "The people you sent out are probably just ordinary maids and servants. They are not good at keeping tabs on people. If they have a single line of communication with her or are passing messages to her at a fixed location without a contact person, it would be difficult for them to detect any abnormality."

Shen Chuning nodded, "This possibility cannot be ruled out."

Zhou Lin: "Anything else?"

Shen Chuning sighed and continued, "From Third Aunt's perspective, there's nothing wrong with what she does, but there's something off about it. So I sent her design to the Duke of Qing's Mansion."

Zhou Lin asked doubtfully, "If she had a purpose for staying with Third Madam Shen, why would she be willing to go to the Duke of Qing's Mansion?"

Shen Chuning shrugged helplessly and said, "That's what I'm wondering about. Although Third Aunt couldn't persuade the old lady of the Duke of Qing's Mansion, and she wanted to keep her there, Third Aunt didn't dare to ask her to come back. But Ziyuan is a free person. If she doesn't want to do anything, she can just leave. But just before I left Beijing, she was still staying well in the Duke of Qing's Mansion."

Zhou Lin then asked: "You just said that you were watching her all the time. When did you start to feel that something was wrong with her?"

Shen Chuning didn't know how to answer this question. She couldn't tell Zhou Lin that she found out because she was reborn.

So she stammered and replied, "It was... that time... because of the cat..."

Zhou Lin suddenly remembered that when they were at Fengming Mountain, Shen Chuning was so frightened just by seeing the white tiger being shot in the eye that she could hardly hold on.

If she were reminded of the cat's gouged eyes, it would only make her sadder.

So Zhou Lin quickly interrupted Shen Chuning and said, "Don't say anything, I don't have anything to ask."

When Shen Chuning heard Zhou Lin say this, she didn't think about it and just thought that this matter was not important to him.

Then, she continued, "Could Brother Zhou Er tell me why you're suddenly interested in Zi Yuan?"

After a moment of silence, Zhou Lin slowly said, "It's okay to tell you."

"When my grandfather was in the north, he had a subordinate named Ji Anbang. He followed my grandfather for many years and had made great military achievements. A few years ago, he returned to Beijing due to injury and, with my grandfather's recommendation, joined the camp outside the capital. We thought he would continue to serve the country, but he colluded with bandits and raped women."

When Zhou Lin spoke, his tone was a little heavy, and he seemed to be very disappointed and angry about this matter.

After hearing this, Shen Chuning frowned, "Could it be that he has always been this kind of person, but he just restrained himself when he was in the North?"

She feels that human nature is complex and it is difficult to say what a person's true nature is.

Zhou Lin shook his head. "It's unlikely. He's been under Grandfather's command for over twenty years. If he really was that kind of person, Grandfather would have noticed. Furthermore, when he was in the North, he was always Grandfather's capable general. He was upright and brave, and was deeply respected and loved by the soldiers."

Shen Chuning thought for a moment and then said, "There must be someone or something that made him change. Maybe he was stimulated by something, or was bewitched by someone."

She tried to analyze the problem from different angles.

Zhou Lin was silent for a while, then slowly said, "He also has a witch from Lingshan in his family."

Upon hearing this, Shen Chuning opened her mouth wide in surprise. "So, Lingshan has sent quite a few people to infiltrate the homes of court officials. Brother Zhou Er, are you coming to Shandong to investigate the Lingshan witch incident as well?"

Zhou Lin nodded, his eyes firm and deep.

Shen Chuning spread her hands helplessly. "Then I really can't help you. I didn't have anyone available before, and I couldn't find out who Ziyuan had contact with, so I could only send her away. There are no more clues."

"Actually, I did find some clues when I came to Shandong this time," Zhou Lin said.