The sickly son died young? After the marriage exchange, I will bring prosperity to his entire clan f

Du Mingxian grasped the key point: "Could it be the heir of the Prince of Ming?"

Hongtao shook her head. "It shouldn't be. Prince Ming is engaged. Before the marriage, Princess Ming will definitely not allow a son born out of wedlock to be born. Even if my sister has something going on with Prince Ming, she would definitely be discovered immediately in Princess Ming's courtyard and given a contraceptive medicine."

“There are only a few men who can enter Princess Ming’s courtyard. If none of them are possible, then we have to investigate,” Du Mingxian suggested. “You’ve met your sister. Do you know if she has any close female friends in the Prince Ming’s residence?”

Hongtao nodded, "Yes, my sister was a good person and had good relationships with the servants in the mansion, but... now that my sister is gone, I don't know if those people are still willing to get involved in this mess."

"Anything is possible, but we have to try to know. There's still one thing that's most puzzling: your sister is in the prefectural city, but her body was found in the county's mass grave."

Hongtao was quite surprised, and immediately shook her head, "No way, my sister is a maid in the princess's courtyard, how could she go to the county?"

"That's the key point we need to investigate."

Seeing that Du Mingxian was not an ordinary person in any way, Hongtao became somewhat wary. "I'll think about it carefully tonight and see if I can find any useful information."

"it is good."

Dinner was cooked by Madam Dong. After finishing the meal, Madam Dong helped Du Mingxian wash up before going back to her room.

Hongtao witnessed all of this. When Dongshi entered the room, she held Dongshi's hand tightly and deliberately lowered her voice, "Mother, is this person really alright? Why is she so good to you?"

"Silly girl." Madam Dong reached out and gently rubbed her head. "For someone with no relatives or friends to be willing to help so much, there must be something they want. I am just a woman and have nothing to offer, but you are different. You are a maid in the Prefect's mansion."

Hongtao looked as if she had known all along, and asked, "What does Mother think?"

"It's up to you. If you're willing, I'll help. If you're not, I won't force you. I want to take Chengbao with me to serve as her servant in the future."

“Mother, you…” Hongtao felt heartbroken, shocked, and distressed, a mix of emotions swirling within her. She had never imagined her mother would be like this. Even in the most difficult times, her mother had never considered selling herself.

Madam Dong recounted how she had deliberately stopped Du Mingxian's carriage, then told them to come to her house for a meal, and that someone had brought the body back shortly afterward, and so on.

“I could tell that she pitied me, which is why she was willing to send me to the prefectural city. She paid for all my food and everything else along the way. The little stuff I brought with me was robbed in a county town.”

“Chengbao was in such a state, and had a fever on the way. If it weren’t for her, Chengbao probably wouldn’t be here.”

"This is something Mother owes her, Mother is willing to do, and she's very easy to talk to."

Seeing her mother like this, Hongtao's heart gradually turned towards her. Looking at the white hair on her mother's head, she naturally sided with her mother even more. "Alright, if I can do it, I'm willing to do it for her."

"Mother would tell her that no matter what she does, she must not endanger her life."

"mother."

The mother and daughter talked for a long time. Du Mingxian had already gone into her spatial dimension to sleep. She hadn't eavesdropped, knowing that Dong was a smart person.

The next morning, Du Mingxian got up early. While Dong was cooking, Hongtao brought her water to wash up. "I want to talk to you."

"it is good."

After washing up, Du Mingxian sat down at the table, and Hongtao sat down as well.

"I am grateful for your help to my mother. If you want me to do anything for you, you can tell me. I am willing to risk my life for you. But please take good care of my mother and nephew."

"No need. If you become one of my people, I will ask you to do things, but I won't let you lose your life."

"What do you need me to do?"

"I haven't decided yet. I'll come to you when I need to."

“Okay.” Hongtao agreed. “My sister works in the Ming Princess’s courtyard, but she is closest to Bizhu, the maid in the Prince’s courtyard.”

"Can you tell me how your sister, who lives far away in the village, got into the Ming Prince's mansion?"

"Perhaps it was good luck. After my mother and sister agreed to sell themselves, when my mother took my sister to the county, they happened to meet the steward of the Ming Prince's Mansion who was selecting servants. After my mother inquired and found out it was the Ming Prince's Mansion, she specially asked the broker for a discount and asked the broker to help her. That's how my sister entered the Ming Prince's Mansion."

Du Mingxian found it strange. The Ming Prince's Mansion was in the prefectural city. Why would they need to go to such a far-away county to buy a maid?

"By the way, the Ming Prince's Mansion has an estate over there. My sister was on the estate when she first went there. Later, the Ming Prince's Consort went there for a short stay. Seeing that my sister was clever, she brought her back to the manor city."

This is a bit strange.

“My sister and Bizhu are close because Bizhu did not initially serve in the Prince’s courtyard. My sister was brought in by the Princess Consort, so she directly became a lowly maid in the Princess Consort’s courtyard.”

“Bizhu entered the Prince’s mansion at a young age. My sister encountered her once and helped her out. Over time, the two became close. It was my sister’s help that enabled Bizhu to enter the Prince’s residence.”

"The young master didn't like studying and preferred to play outside. Once, he ran out and the maids didn't follow, so he disappeared. Princess Ming was a little anxious. When she found the person who had disappeared, she became furious and beat up all the maids in the young master's courtyard before selling them off."

“When there was a vacancy, Bizhu came to my sister, wanting her to help her. She wanted to serve in the Prince’s courtyard. My sister was in the Princess’s courtyard. Although she was only a low-ranking maid, she still had some influence in the mansion.”

“My sister told the steward, and the steward took Bizhu into the prince’s courtyard. Bizhu was chosen to stay and serve the prince.”

"How come your sister is able to appear in Ancheng County? Does she have any connections or influence with any royal family there?"

Red Peach shook her head. "I only know these things because my sister told me. And I only have a vague understanding of them. If my sister hadn't told me, I wouldn't know anything at all."

Has anything happened in the prefectural city recently?

Red Peach shook her head again, "Everything is normal, I haven't heard anything about anything happening."

"What is the family background of the young master's fiancée?"

"I do know that. She's the daughter of a schoolteacher. She doesn't have any special status, but because of her engagement to the prince, she's quite arrogant in the city."

"How so arrogant?"

"The magistrate's daughter was beaten, and it was only after she came out to apologize that the matter was resolved."

Du Mingxian sensed something amiss. "The daughter of the prefectural governor was beaten by the daughter of a schoolteacher, and in the end, it was the prefectural governor's family who came out to apologize? Was it the daughter of the prefectural governor's family's fault?"

"I don't know exactly whose fault it was, but this matter has caused quite a stir. Everyone says that the young master loves his fiancée too much and forced the daughter of the prefect's family to apologize."

"His goal was to keep his fiancée from getting angry."