The daily life of a cold and aloof general raising his wife

After walking a distance, Du Siyu patted her chest and said, "Luckily I ran fast." Then she asked her maid to find out what had happened.

When He Zhilin arrived at the government office, he was surprised to find Xie Huai'an there as well. He bowed and greeted him, "General Xie."

Xie Huai'an's official position is now higher than He Zhilin's.

Xie Huai'an remained silent with a cold expression.

The county magistrate was wiping his sweat from his brow; General Xie's imposing aura was simply too intimidating.

"Lord He."

The county magistrate bowed.

He Zhilin asked, "What happened?"

The magistrate glanced at Xie Huai'an cautiously and then recounted the whole story.

No matter how you look at it, it's all Lin Hongye's fault. He did indeed talk about Princess Yongning behind her back, and not only that, he also spoke rudely to her. Many people were present at the time and can attest to this.

Xie Huai'an not only sent the county magistrate to find He Zhilin, but he also sent someone to find the restaurant manager.

The shopkeeper arrived first; he was present when the incident occurred, and he recounted what happened.

He Zhilin's expression became much more serious after hearing this. He glanced at Xie Huai'an, who was sitting in the main seat, and said, "The magistrate should simply do as he says."

"Lin Hongye and his companions first spoke ill of Princess Yongning behind her back, and then, upon meeting her, they uttered arrogant and disrespectful words. They should be exiled for three years."

He Zhilin frowned. "Isn't the magistrate punishing you too severely?"

The magistrate subconsciously looked at Xie Huai'an, feeling somewhat resentful towards He Zhilin. "You're the one who told us to do things the right way, and now you're the one saying the punishment should be severe."

Xie Huai'an looked at He Zhilin and said, "How do you think he should be punished? Lord He, you were once a top scholar in the imperial examinations. Apart from the county magistrate, you are probably the only one here who knows the law best."

He Zhilin didn't say anything. Actually, exile for three years wasn't too much, but the Lin family only had one son. Lin Hongye's parents would definitely not want him to be exiled. Lin Ruoqing would probably be heartbroken if she found out, as she was currently pregnant.

"General, I'm willing to accept punishment with money, as long as I'm not exiled."

He Zhilin knew that as long as Xie Huai'an gave the green light, Lin Hongye would not have to be exiled.

Xie Huai'an sneered, "Pay compensation? How much does Lord He intend to pay us?"

He Zhilin frowned. "General Xie, name your price."

“Princess Yongning is priceless in my heart. Now that she has been wronged, how much do you think she should be compensated?”

The magistrate carefully wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

He Zhilin could tell that Xie Huai'an did not want to reconcile.

"General Xie cannot represent the princess. The princess I know is kind and generous; she would never act like this." He Zhilin's implication was that he wanted to resolve the matter with Jiang Shuwan.

“The princess is kind and generous, but that doesn’t mean anyone can bully her!” Xie Huai’an’s eyes were as cold as frost.

The surrounding air froze instantly, and the magistrate and his companions could feel a murderous aura.

Jiang Shuwan then came out.

When Xie Huai'an saw her get up and walk towards her, his fierce aura vanished instantly, and he asked gently, "Why are you here?"

Xie Huai'an at this moment was a completely different person from before.

The county magistrate felt as if he had seen a savior.

He Zhilin was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected her to appear here.

"I heard from the servants that you had come to the government office, so I came to check on you."

Jiang Shuwan looked at Xie Huai'an with eyes full of him. She had heard everything outside, and at that moment, she felt a surge of emotions she had never experienced before.

Xie Huai'an lowered his head slightly and looked at Jiang Shuwan intently, while Jiang Shuwan raised her head slightly and looked at him with a smile on her lips. Their bodies did not touch, but they only had eyes for each other.

He Zhilin felt a pang of sadness and unease as he watched this scene.

He stepped forward and bowed, "Princess."

Jiang Shuwan turned her gaze away and looked at He Zhilin.

"Lord He." Her voice was indifferent.

He Zhilin frowned slightly upon hearing the coldness in her tone.

"I'd like to talk about Lin Hongye."

"There's no need to talk about the lowly people anymore. My husband just made it very clear."

Although Lin Hongye came from an official family, he had no official rank in his twenties, so it was not an exaggeration for Jiang Shuwan to call him a lowly commoner.

"The county master..."

Xie Huai'an interrupted him, "I think Lord He is so young that he shouldn't be unable to hear what the princess is saying." After Xie Huai'an finished speaking, he said to the county magistrate beside him, "Magistrate Wang, we are very relieved to entrust this matter to you. It's getting late, so we won't disturb you from closing up the office." After saying that, Xie Huai'an helped Jiang Shuwan away.

He Zhilin and the county magistrate also vaguely heard Xie Huai'an speak softly.

"What are you doing out here in this cold weather? If you need anything, tell the servants. Don't get cold for someone who isn't worth it."

The magistrate secretly glanced at He Zhilin's expression.

He Zhilin's face turned dark at this moment.

"Lord He, look..."

Now that both the princess and General Xie have spoken, the magistrate has gained confidence.

He Zhilin wanted to say something but didn't know what to say, so he finally turned and left.

He Zhilin sat in the carriage with his eyes closed and his brows furrowed.

He didn't know why he kept seeing Jiang Shuwan and Xie Huai'an looking at each other, and why he felt inexplicably angry when he saw it!

He tried to forget these things, but the thought of facing Lin Ruoqing when he returned to the manor made his headache worse.

Ye Shi knew as soon as He Zhilin stepped into the mansion. She originally wanted to go see her second son, but she stopped at the door.

The maid said that the second prince looked unwell and had rushed to that little vixen's courtyard, which must mean something bad. So she sent the maid to find out what was going on.

Ever since the second son married Lin Ruoqing, their relationship has deteriorated. She still needs to rely on the second son in the future, so she can't let things get worse with him.

Actually, before He Zhilin returned home, the Lin family's people arrived at the Earl's Mansion first.

The people from the Lin family called Caihuan out and handed her a letter to Lin Ruoqing.

The letter said that Lin Hongye had not returned home for a day, and they had searched all the places he frequented but could not find him, so they wrote to He Zhilin to ask for his help in finding him.

Lin Ruoqing had a bad feeling after reading the letter.

"Young mistress, the second young master is back."

Caihuan came in to report.

Lin Ruoqing stood up and walked out anxiously.

The two bumped into each other as He Zhilin entered, but fortunately He Zhilin reacted quickly and caught her in time.

Caihuan, who was standing nearby, was startled when she saw this.

Why are you in such a hurry?

He Zhilin's voice was somewhat stern.

Lin Ruoqing felt a wave of fear wash over her, and then anxiously said, "Erlang, my brother is missing. Can you send someone to look for him?"

He Zhilin's face darkened. "No need to look anymore."

"Why? Did you see him?"

Lin Ruoqing was puzzled. Her brother was a spoiled brat, and he and He Zhilin were two completely different kinds of people who would never cross paths.

“He’s in jail right now.” He Zhilin’s voice was somewhat cold.

Lin Ruoqing's pupils dilated in surprise. "Why?" she asked.

He Zhilin then recounted the whole story.

Lin Ruoqing breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought it was something serious. It's just a small matter. Why did you scare me like that, Erlang?"

"Little things?"

He looked at her in disbelief.

"Everyone talks about others behind their backs. It's not a big deal. Is Princess Yongning being so aggressive that she won't let my brother go?"