I'm already dressed like a fool, what's wrong with taking the regent into the bridal chamb

When she woke up the next day, the room was empty except her. She called out to Chunyu several times but no one answered.

She got up, put on her clothes, and looked at the red charcoal fire. She knew that Chunyu must have been there all night and had left not long ago.

"It's so cold..."

She went over and put on her cloak before walking out.

When I opened the door, I saw the yard filled with snow as thick as my calves. The area around the door had been shoveled, leaving a small path.

She walked towards the clinic, and when she entered the room she noticed it was cold, so she asked, "Isn't it cold?"

Chang Baicao, who was reading, heard her voice and immediately looked up from his book and called out "Master." Jiang Yao saw her coming and immediately stood up, smiling and saying, "It's not cold."

"aunt."

When Little Stone saw her, he immediately laughed and called out.

Wen Qingzhi responded: "How do you feel today?"

"Little Stone is fine~"

Little Stone smiled sweetly and shook the retention needle on the back of his hand. "Look, Auntie, Little Stone is very brave!"

"Yeah, very brave."

Wen Qingzhi came over and touched his head. "When Xiao Shitou gets better, Auntie will take you out to play."

"really?"

Little Shitou was obviously in much better spirits today. His bright eyes were full of longing for the outside world.

Aren’t children of this age just playful?

"of course."

Wen Qingzhi affirmed: "When has my aunt ever lied to you?"

"Auntie is the best!"

Little Stone cheered and looked at Jiang Yao, but then he suddenly became dispirited. He asked timidly, "Mom, can I go out and play with Auntie?"

In the past, Jiang Yao rarely let him go out.

The reason was simple. She was afraid that he would be discovered by others, and then she and her son would be discovered by the Jiang family, which would cause a big mistake.

"can."

Jiang Yao felt sorry for him, "Little Stone, if you want to go, go ahead. Mom will be with you."

Now, they, mother and son, don’t have to worry about being discovered and arrested. Why can’t they take their son out to play openly?

Wen Qingzhi's words touched her deeply. She was right. If she continued to be weak, Xiao Shitou would also be a coward in the future.

His father is a young general who is famous in Beiming. How can he be a coward?

Jiang Yao didn't know how to change, but she believed in Wen Qingzhi.

Therefore, she decided that she would do whatever Wen Qingzhi said in the future!

After learning that he could go out and play, Xiao Shitou was extremely happy, unlike his previous sickly look. Jiang Yao was also happy to see this.

"It'll be back again in the next few days, and the weather is getting cold, so keep warm. Not many people live here, so it's a bit chilly. Have someone prepare some charcoal stoves later so that Little Stone doesn't get frozen."

"Don't worry, he won't be cold. But you will."

Jiang Yao began to worry about her. "Your face isn't even healed yet, and you're already worrying about so many things. Is that okay?"

"It has to be okay even if it doesn't work."

Wen Qingzhi stood up and looked at the snowflakes still falling outside the window. "These snowfalls have been getting heavier and longer. Sister Li and the others said that this is the first time they've seen anything like it in their lifetime."

"Are you worried about...the snowstorm?"

Jiang Yao walked to her side and looked outside with her.

Outside the house was covered in snow. The cake-like snow had bent the branches of the pine trees. Suddenly, a kitten appeared on the wall, swayed left and right on the top of the wall a few times, and then fell into the snow pile with a "plop".

Jiang Yao burst out laughing. "What is it doing? How dare it jump into such thick snow?"

The kitten meowed twice and saw the snow flying everywhere. It jumped out and tried to run, but could only jump from one snow pit into another.

After struggling for a long time, he didn't run very far.

cat……

She thought of her cat. There was no trace of it in the house and she didn't know where it had gone.

Wen Qingzhi walked over as if possessed, looked at the pear blossom ball huddled in the snow, and fell into deep thought.

Will there be cats in this season?

She wasn't very clear about the cat's breeding season, and since the cat in front of her was not very big, she didn't know the exact months.

It stared at Wen Qingzhi with its eyes wide open, the cat in its body stood up, its tail tucked between its legs, looking...pretending to be ferocious.

"Follow me, or freeze to death. Your choice."

"Meow..."

The kitten meowed again, and Wen Qingzhi asked again, "Come with me, or freeze to death?"

The kitten looked at her, not understanding what she meant, and took two steps back.

Wen Qingzhi's principle in life is that things never happen more than three times.

Since it doesn't want to follow me, forget it.

After saying that, she turned and went back to the house.

The surprised little face disappeared from sight, and the kitten became anxious.

It jumped vigorously a few times, stumbling and crawling after Wen Qingzhi.

Wen Qingzhi stopped when she heard the noise behind her, turned around, and saw the pitiful kitten fluttering towards her.

She reached out and lifted the kitten up by the scruff of its neck, but the kitten didn't move and was shaking like a sieve.

She checked carefully and found that the kitten had no fleas or ear mites before she held it in her arms.

The kitten sensed the warmth and immediately snuggled into her arms, its little head arched, nestling in her arms. It meowed, feeling aggrieved.

Wen Qingzhi thought of her cat again. It also liked to nestle in her arms.

Its belly is flat and its ribs are straight and prickly to the touch.

Back in the house, Jiang Yao quickly asked her to take off her cloak and put on her own.

"You're still going out in this heavy snow. What if you get frozen?"

Wen Qingzhi smiled lightly, "It's okay."

She held the kitten up for Jiang Yao to see. "He's quite the darling little creature."

Jiang Yao saw a rare hint of fondness in her eyes and said, "If you like it, keep it. It's winter now, and it won't survive outside."

"Ah."

Wen Qingzhi rubbed its little head and said, "I'll ask Uncle Wang to make a cage for it later. It won't be an ownerless cat anymore."

"What if it's someone else's?"

"He's as skinny as a rib. Even if someone raised him, I'm afraid he wasn't well cared for. If she wants him, I'll buy him with money."

Seeing that Wen Qingzhi was in high spirits, Jiang Yao didn't say anything to spoil the fun.

I’m afraid people won’t sell it.

Wen Qingzhi called Chunyu to take the kitten downstairs and send it to her room. She played a little game with Xiao Shitou for a while, then went back.

Just as I entered the house, thinking of playing with the kitten, before I even sat down, I heard someone outside report: "Miss, Lord Fang Qingbai from the Supervisory Office has arrived and is waiting in the front hall."

Fang Qingbai arrived much sooner than she expected. It was not easy for him to go out on such a snowy day.

She stood up, put the cat down, and walked out. "Take good care of Lord Fang's carriage."

Zhang An stood at the door and said, "Lord Fang came here on foot. From what I can see...his shoes and socks must be soaked. He must have been to many places before coming to our house."

Wen Qingzhi said, "Oh," and said, "Prepare new shoes and socks for him."

"Yes."

The snow on the small path in the mansion was swept aside and piled up, and the road was wet. When Wen Qingzhi walked past, the mud and water stained the edge of her skirt, making her frown.

She doesn't like the wet/damp feeling, especially in winter when clothes are not easy to dry and will get their clothes dirty.

When I arrived at the front yard reception room, Fang Qingbai was sitting inside, holding a cup of hot tea to keep warm.

"Master Fang."

Hearing the sound, Fang Qingbai, who was warming himself with hot tea in the house, immediately put down the teacup, stood up and looked over.

"Miss Wen."

Fang Qingbai took a step forward, his eyes sweeping over Wen Qingzhi, finally landing on her red and swollen cheeks. "I'm sorry to bother you by coming here today without a letter."

"Master Fang, what are you talking about? What brings you here today?"

"I came here today because of what Miss Wen said in the palace that day. Do you have any clues about the survival of Marquis Wen's subordinates?"

Wen Qingzhi pretended to be embarrassed and shook her head.

"I, I don't know what Lord Fang is talking about."

"Miss Wen,"

Fang Qingbai stepped forward and said, "Don't be afraid. I have been in charge of the Supervisory Council for decades and have always been fair. There are indeed many suspicious points in the incident involving Marquis Wen, but I have no evidence in the army and cannot confirm it."

"It's different now!"

With an anxious look in his eyes, he approached Wen Qingzhi in small steps, "If we can find the people who survived back then, we can find the real reason for Marquis Wen's defeat!"

Fang Qingbai was a fervent fan of Marquis Wen. The Wen family's defeat, resulting in heavy casualties, shocked the entire capital. Ultimately, the entire Wen family, save for his daughter who remained in the capital, perished in that battle.

Even if someone doesn't believe it, there's nothing we can do about it.

No one could prove they were still alive.