Favoring a concubine and destroying the wife? I'll abandon my husband and children and wipe out

Zhao Ye was certain that someone had deliberately chosen this moment to gain fame. Even if it was true, it had to be made fake at this time!

"Someone come here, Qian Yidong!!"

Zhao Ye roared, "Go and check if someone is impersonating the original authors of those poems and articles. If it's true, take men there immediately and arrest that person! Daring to offend the Zhao family at this time, they're asking for trouble!"

Qian Yidong hurriedly accepted the order and left.

Cheng Nanzhi smiled slightly, stood up and said, "Then I'll go back first, without disturbing my mother-in-law and husband. Remember to find the 'Lonely River and a Thousand Cranes' painting as soon as possible and deliver it to Mr. Zhou. The sooner Mr. Zhou is willing to come back and teach Ze Ge'er, the sooner the rumors will be dispelled. Tomorrow at noon, my husband will also appear on the promotion list as he wishes."

Will it work out? Not a chance.

Zhao Ye was unaware that rumors were already flying everywhere. As soon as his men went to the Purple Bamboo Pavilion, the rumors would intensify by tomorrow morning. How could he possibly achieve his desired promotion in a short time?

Zhao Ye will just stay in this position for now!

From now on, she'll kick him off little by little!

Upon hearing this, Madam Zhao and Zhao Ye's faces stiffened, and they waved for her to leave, unwilling to see her again.

"What do we do now? That painting was pawned a long time ago, and we don't know where it is!" Old Madam Zhao said in a panic. "How about this, find any other valuable painting, add some money, and send it to Mr. Zhou. Then you can subtly threaten him with your official power to get him to agree, but don't tell Cheng Nanzhi!"

Zhao Ye disagreed: "No! We can do as you say for now and deal with the immediate situation later, but the 'Lonely River and a Thousand Cranes' painting must be found, no matter the cost!"

“But we have no idea where it is right now, how are we supposed to find it?” said Madam Zhao.

Zhao Ye said with a gloomy face, "We still have to find them!"

“That was a direct gift from the imperial family, unlike the Floating Light Brocade and the like. The imperial family will definitely, absolutely ask about it! We didn’t take it very secretly when we did it. There are many clues. If the imperial family finds out it’s gone and gets angry, they will order an investigation. How could they not find the traces of what we did?”

"If the imperial court finds out where I spent the money... then the entire Zhao family will be raided! The people in the household will be exiled at best, and executed at worst!"

Startled by these words, Old Madam Zhao slumped in her chair, trembling as she said, "Then quickly send someone to find the painting, quickly!"

Zhao Ye dared not grow up, and suddenly stood up, saying, "I will go to that pawnshop myself and ask where the painting is now. I hope it is still there." After saying that, he strode out.

Madam Zhao was so anxious that she paced back and forth, clasping her hands together and praying for God's blessing.

In the back courtyard, Ye Ruyue was also pacing anxiously, barely managing to eat a few bites of her dinner.

"What on earth is that fellow villager up to? Is he really trying to force me to show myself and put me at a disadvantage? Or is there really no such person?" Ye Ruyue's head was throbbing with worry as she tossed and turned in bed.

Just then, she suddenly heard a commotion outside.

Feeling guilty, Ye Ruyue sat up abruptly and called out, "What's going on outside?"

The spring rain that kept watch soon came in.

"Reporting to Miss, I have inquired and it is said that Qian Yidong, who serves the master, has ordered someone to go out of the manor to find someone."

Ye Ruyue was taken aback: "Who are you looking for?"

Chunyu lowered her eyes and said, "This servant doesn't know, but I heard the maids gossiping that the master found out that someone outside was impersonating the original owner of the young master's poem, and in a fit of anger, he ordered Qian Yidong to bring the person back for questioning."

"What?! You didn't hear that wrong, did you?"

Ye Ruyue's eyes widened.

Chunyu was slightly taken aback, and repeatedly assured him that she hadn't.

Ye Ruyue immediately threw off the covers and got up, telling Chunyu to quickly help her dress and do her hair before she went out.

As night fell, most of the Zhao residence was illuminated by lights.

There weren't many people left in Shou'an Hall; Zhao Ye, Qian Yidong, and the others were not there.

Ye Ruyue used silver to inquire and learned that Qian Yidong had already led his men out of the mansion in a hurry, but Zhao Ye had not yet. He was still in the study, and it was unclear what he was doing. He also seemed to be leaving the mansion soon.

In her haste, Ye Ruyue disregarded Chunyu's presence and led her directly to the study, where they bumped into Zhao Ye, who had just come out.

"Ye...cousin, I have something to tell you!" Ye Ruyue quickly changed her address before she could finish speaking.

Zhao Ye was in a hurry to leave, but when he saw that it was his beloved, he patiently stopped and asked the servants around him to keep their distance.

Seeing too many servants, Zhao Ye didn't let them all leave, lest rumors of a lone man and woman being alone spread and reach Cheng Nanzhi, who was monitoring the investigation of the thief within the mansion.

Ye Ruyue knew this, and also told Chunyu to stay away.

Unbeknownst to her, Chunyu looked at her and Zhao Ye with eyes filled with shock, as if some suspicion had been confirmed.

"Ye Lang, you can't go out of the manor to see that person!" Ye Ruyue said in a low voice when she saw that no one was around.

Zhao Ye assumed that Ye Ruyue had learned what he was going to do from Old Madam Zhao, and frowned, saying, "No, I have to go see her. And I have to make this trip myself and find out her whereabouts as soon as possible."

Ye Ruyue: "?!!"

How much does Zhao Ye know?!

Has he already become suspicious of both his fellow villager and her?

No, she couldn't let Zhao Ye's perfect image of her be ruined, nor could she let Zhao Ye know that she had impersonated him in those poems!

If he meets someone from his hometown and learns even a little bit about things that don't exist in this era, she will lose her advantage and won't be able to do what she wants!

"You really can't go, this...this is a scam! He's a fraud, he won't give you the answers you want, you'll just waste your time!"

Zhao Ye said in a deep voice, "I know, but for the sake of the future, I can't worry about that now. If he knows but doesn't tell the truth, that's fine too. I'll use my methods to make him tell the truth."

A ruthless glint flashed in Zhao Ye's eyes.

Ye Ruyue panicked: "No, you can't go! I... I know you're still worried about Ze Ge'er, I'll think of other solutions for you, I'm sure I can, you don't have to go!"

Zhao Ye looked at her gently, "I know you'll find a way, unlike Cheng Nanzhi, who only makes things difficult for me. Alright, Yue'er, you go back and think of a solution first, I really have to go."

"Ye Lang!" Seeing this, Ye Ruyue decided to throw a tantrum and drag him back, intending to explain later.

To everyone's surprise, Zhao Ye insisted on leaving, and after several attempts to stop her, she eventually became somewhat impatient and puzzled.

Fearing he might overthink things he shouldn't know, Ye Ruyue had no choice but to stop and watch Zhao Ye leave, disappearing from sight.

"This is terrible. If Zhao Ye meets someone from my hometown, my secret will be exposed. What if Zhao Ye thinks I'm a demon..."

Ye Ruyue returned to her residence with a troubled mind.

Exposing her secret is a small matter; what if Zhao Ye thinks she's a demon and captures her, tortures her, and kills her?

She dared not gamble on whether Zhao Ye truly cared for her or would be willing to let her die.

No, she can't just sit here and wait to die!

“Miss…” Chunyu was a little intimidated by Ye Ruyue’s pacing back and forth, so she forced herself to speak, “If you have any worries, you can tell me, and I will help you.”

Ye Ruyue immediately looked up and stared at her.

Chunyu took a step back: "Miss Cousin..."

Ye Ruyue grabbed her hand.

"Chunyu, actually I trust you the most. There are some things I don't know if you would be willing to help me with."

This is something Sanmei shouldn't do. Sanmei's injury hasn't healed yet, and doing this would only worsen it, making her mobility difficult and easily giving herself away and being discovered.

Chunyu was taken aback, then a strong light flashed in her eyes: "If you say so, this servant will certainly do it without hesitation!"

"Think of a way to bribe one of Qian Yidong's servants. You must succeed! Then keep an eye out for who he brings back when he leaves the manor."

"But no matter who you bring back, find someone you've bribed—"

Ye Ruyue made a waving motion, her hand trembling slightly.

Chunyu was startled: "Are you sure?"

“…I’m sure.” Ye Ruyue gritted her teeth.

She didn't want to kill anyone, but she couldn't tolerate even the slightest possibility that might lead to her being killed or losing her current life and suffering!

Fortunately, she didn't get her hands dirty with blood.

Chunyu trembled slightly, but memories of the past few days flooded her mind. Finally, she steeled herself and nodded, "Yes, this servant will do my utmost!"

"Remember, make sure it's done very cleanly," Ye Ruyue said.

If she's not clean, don't blame her for abandoning her!

A hint of ruthlessness flickered in Ye Ruyue's eyes.

In Guantang Courtyard, Cheng Nanzhi listened to Qingdai and Jianlan's report and asked with great interest, "Did she really go to find Zhao Ye and try to stop him from leaving the manor?"

The two nodded: "It's absolutely true. Many servants saw it, but they were too far away to know what they were saying."

"It must be about the Purple Bamboo Pavilion." Jianlan was very confident. "She only heard that Qian Yidong went out of the mansion to arrest people, and she doesn't know what happened at Shou'an Hall. She didn't talk much with the master. If the master had told her that she was going to retrieve the painting, she wouldn't have stopped him."

Cheng Nanzhi smiled, "My deduction was correct again."

Zhao Ye was unaware that the poems and articles Ye Ruyue had given him belonged to someone else, and assumed that Ye Ruyue herself had written them.

Very good, now she only needs to focus her efforts on finding people through Ye Ruyue.

However, after all this commotion, Ye Ruyue will definitely lose her temper and will probably take action on her own.

For now, she just needs to keep an eye on Ye Ruyue and remain calm and collected; that should be enough to get results. If not, then we'll see.