Severing ties with family to marry the young marshal, his whole family chases me to the crematorium.

Shen Qingyao was surprised that Si Jingnian acted so quickly, having already investigated before she even brought it up.

At this moment, Shen Qingyao didn't know how to describe her feelings. Ever since she married Si Jingnian, although they were only husband and wife in name, he had always treated her very well.

He had always been a polite man, unlike those officials that day, who were cold, ruthless, and aloof.

His gentleness is all-pervasive, always touching my heart in the smallest details, like a feather brushing against it.

It would be a lie to say she had no feelings for a man like that, but she knew very well that her feelings for Si Jingnian were far from love.

Feeling somewhat agitated, Shen Qingyao forced herself to pull herself out of her emotions and looked up at Si Jingnian with a slight smile.

"Thank you!"

"Don't mention it, we're just helping each other out..."

Si Jingnian keenly noticed the subtle change in Shen Qingyao's attitude towards him, and felt a little disappointed.

Shen Qingyao ignored Si Jingnian and lowered her head to open the documents in her hand. Si Jingnian spoke gently beside her.

"Her name is Cui Jingru. More than 20 years ago, she was the top courtesan at Hualemen. Later, your father redeemed her and kept her as a concubine."

Shen Qingyao's face was gloomy. She had actually followed Shen Wenzhong for more than 20 years. It seemed that she knew a lot about the Shen family.

Has she ever had a child?

"You suspect she is Shen Yuanyuan's biological mother?"

Shen Qingyao nodded; this was the most likely possibility at present.

The most likely reason why Shen Yuanyuan and she are related by blood is that they share the same father.

She had been with Shen Wenzhong for over twenty years, so it was entirely possible that she had given birth to his child and then switched the babies.

Besides Liu Shuyi, the only one most likely to have a child with Shen Wenzhong is Cui Jingru.

“But my people interviewed Cui Jingru’s neighbors, and no one had heard of her being pregnant or giving birth. It’s also possible that your father had more than one concubine, Cui Jingru.”

Upon hearing Si Jingnian's guess, Shen Qingyao nodded thoughtfully, agreeing that it was indeed a possibility.

"How about we go find Cui Jingru now and see what the situation is?"

Si Jingnian's suggestion was immediately approved by Shen Qingyao, and the two walked out of the Young Marshal's Mansion gate as the sun set.

Dressed in plain clothes, Si Jingnian personally drove Shen Qingyao through a maze of turns to a street, where they stopped in front of a restaurant.

"What are we doing at the restaurant? Is Cui Jingru here?"

As Shen Qingyao followed Si Jingnian inside, she couldn't help but ask questions.

"She will come here."

Si Jingnian looked mysterious, and Shen Qingyao, seeing this, didn't bother to ask any more questions. The two of them found a place to sit down in the lobby.

Sure enough, not long after, Cui Jingru appeared at the restaurant entrance, alone.

"Madam, you're a bit late today. Is it the usual?"

The waiter immediately greeted Cui Jingru warmly upon seeing her.

"Yes, the same as always."

Cui Jingru clearly seemed to be a regular customer of this restaurant, quite familiar with the waiter. Shen Qingyao finally understood why Si Jingnian was so certain that Cui Jingru had come here.

Shen Qingyao and Si Jingnian exchanged a glance, a tacit understanding appearing in each other's eyes.

Shen Qingyao took out a silk scarf to cover her face, and her whole demeanor became cold and aloof.

"Master, you're incredibly accurate! You're even more accurate than the blind fortune teller in the box! You're amazing!"

Si Jingnian's demeanor instantly became mercenary and rude, and his loud voice made the people eating next to him frown.

Some people have a fiery temper, and when they were yelled at like that, they immediately slammed their fist on the table and stood up.

"This is a public place, don't you have any manners?"

After turning around, Si Jingnian had a somewhat wary expression on his face, and his words were somewhat ingratiating.

"Brother, I'm sorry, I apologize to everyone! It's just that this master's prediction was so accurate that I got too excited and spoke a little loudly."

Shen Qingyao was genuinely surprised by Si Jingnian's acting talent, and while she was shocked, she couldn't help but find it amusing.

She suppressed her laughter, feigning an inscrutable expression, and arrogantly swept her eyes over everyone in the Tang Dynasty.

"Accurate predictions? I've never believed in fortune tellers. It's all a scam. They either tell you nice things or scare you into spending money. They're all swindlers."

"Besides, she's such a young woman. What's she doing pretending to be a master? She should hurry home, find someone to marry, have a baby, and be a good wife and mother. Why learn to be a fraudster?"

The man spoke rudely, had a contemptuous attitude, and his yellow teeth made people frown.

Shen Qingyao slowly opened her eyes and looked at him. Her cool and distant gaze made the man feel a sense of fear.

"Your parents are both dead, you have no wife but have a son, an older brother and a sister-in-law. As for your offspring... I think I don't need to spell it out, do I?"

Shen Qingyao's words caused the man's expression to change drastically, and all his previous arrogance and contempt vanished.

These things were an absolute secret, not even his own older brother knew about them, and he never expected that a young girl would point them out today.

At this moment, he dared not underestimate the woman in front of him, but there were some things he could only stubbornly deny.

"What nonsense are you spouting? I... I won't stoop to your level!"

After saying those words, the man hurriedly left, his feet moving without pausing for even a moment.

But his reaction had already caught the attention of everyone present, and they all understood what was going on.

"Young lady, why don't you tell my fortune too, and tell me when I'll become rich?"

Someone in the lobby approached Shen Qingyao with a skeptical attitude, and the first thing they asked for was money.

"Brother, your wealth palace is very prosperous, is it really necessary for you to ask about your fortune?"

Shen Qingyao smiled helplessly, realizing that this person was deliberately testing her.

Although he said he wanted to have his fortune told, he was already a wealthy man.

The man looked surprised and couldn't help but nod in approval.

"It seems you really have some skill. Now, tell me how my luck with children is?"

The man straightened his expression, putting away his earlier disdain for Shen Qingyao, and his eyes revealed a hint of expectation.

"Of course, no problem. But in our line of work, we believe in keeping secrets of heaven. So, divination is also about fate. Therefore, we need to charge a certain fee for divining such unknown hexagrams. Is that acceptable to you?"

Shen Qingyao had a gentle smile on her face, but she gave off a somewhat distant feeling.

Their line of work has always had a rule of charging fees, with different fees charged to different people, which is equivalent to a transaction with the Heavenly Dao.

For the wealthy, the fees they charge are neither very high nor very low.

For the poor, the fees charged will be very small, or even replaced with something else.

However, a portion of the benefits they receive must be used for good deeds and to give back to heaven and earth.