good season

Chapter 143 is complete (two chapters combined)

Meanwhile, inside the Baoqing Marquis's residence, Sun Lingzhi was doing needlework, making a little jacket for a boy.

The little jacket is very small, and it looks like it's for a baby who is only a few months old. In fact, the styles are almost the same for babies, regardless of gender, except for the color.

The garment that Sun Lingzhi sewed is clearly meant for a little boy; it was made for Aunt Lan's child.

At this moment, Sun Lingzhi was doing needlework while singing a little opera tune.

She was very talented in opera, and even the top female opera singer in the capital, Xiao Huangying, personally taught her. If she hadn't entered the Marquis's mansion, she might have already been able to perform on stage.

Actually, it wasn't easy for her to get close to Aunt Lan. Aunt Lan lived in the courtyard of Lady Ma, the wife of the Marquis. Lady Ma followed the instructions of Old Madam Wei and treated Aunt Lan like her own eyes, fearing that something might happen to her.

Most importantly, Madam Ma disliked Sun Lingzhi, and not only Madam Ma, but every woman in the mansion disliked Sun Lingzhi.

However, things often turn out the opposite when they reach an extreme. After hearing so much criticism of Sun Lingzhi, Aunt Lan became even more curious about her.

Moreover, although she didn't hear it with her own ears, she could guess that there were probably more people cursing her in the mansion than cursing Sun Lingzhi, after all, she was carrying the Marquis's child, and perhaps, the next heir.

Therefore, Aunt Lan would always meet with Sun Lingzhi secretly. The two would confide their grievances, shed tears, and then remain silent.

Aunt Lan felt that Sun Lingzhi was the only one in the mansion who treated her as an independent person.

She was only Alan in Sun Lingzhi's eyes; she was a person, not the Marquis's plaything, nor a walking belly.

Aunt Lan trusted Sun Lingzhi more and more, and whenever she received something good from the Marquis and Madam Ma, she would secretly share half of it with Sun Lingzhi.

As evening fell, a maid quietly came over and handed her a small garment: "This was sewn by my aunt. My aunt stayed up for two nights to sew this garment. My aunt said that this is a boy's garment. If you put this garment by your bedside, you will definitely give birth to a little prince."

Aunt Lan gently stroked the soft fabric, feeling deeply moved. Zhizhi had been so good to her.

Lord Zhu only cared about Consort Lan's pregnancy; he already had a new lover. Now that Consort Lan had entered the mansion, he felt relieved and simply spent every night with the two sisters, never touching Consort Lan again.

Aunt Lan, on the contrary, relaxed and focused on resting during her pregnancy, going to bed early every night.

She really liked the little dress that Sun Lingzhi had given her, and she would take it out to play with it before going to bed. Remembering what the little maid had said, she put the little dress on the head of her bed.

Three days later, Aunt Lan suffered a miscarriage!
Ma showed the midwife the bloody mess that Aunt Lan had left behind; it was a boy.

Aunt Lan lay on the bed with a blank stare, while Madam Ma cried her heart out as if she were the one who had miscarried.

Yes, this child was her hope, and the key to her future. But now, the child is gone, and her hopes have been dashed.

In Chunhui Hall, Zhu Yu heard about this and learned that Lady Ma, the wife of the Marquis, was so heartbroken that she fell ill and could not recover. He laughed heartily.

Her own flesh and blood has not yet recovered, but Madam Ma, the biological mother, does not care at all. Instead, she has ruined her health by crying for the bastard child of a concubine.

Stupid and despicable!

However, Sun Lingzhi was too clever; she did it without anyone noticing, and even the old lady didn't suspect anything, thinking that Aunt Lan was unlucky and unworthy of conceiving the grandson of the Marquis of Baoqing's family.

Jin Sun?

Hahaha!
He was already the grandson of the Marquis of Baoqing's family before he was even born, but now, the grandson has changed!
Fortunately, it wasn't replaced; that lump of flesh and blood was, after all, just a lump of flesh and blood.

Zhu Yu laughed even more freely. He suddenly loved this feeling, which gave him more satisfaction than strangling those little girls with his own hands.

While Zhu Yu was laughing, he didn't notice that an eagle had passed by outside the window.

Xiao Guai quite likes the Baoqing Marquis's Mansion because there are always lots of delicious foods there.

So even though Zhao Shiqing didn't assign it any tasks, it still often came over for a treat when it had nothing else to do.

Today, upon returning from outside, it eagerly told Zhao Shiqing about everything it had seen and heard at the Baoqing Marquis's residence.

Zhao Shiqing was increasingly surprised as she listened; she never expected that there would be more to the story of the Marquis of Baoqing's mansion.

Xiao Guai didn't have all the information it had. Zhao Shiqing could only deduce from its fragmented words that Aunt Lan's miscarriage was caused by Zhu Yu, but Xiao Guai didn't know how Zhu Yu did it.

Zhao Shiqing thought of Sun Lingzhi.

Sun Lingzhi is also pregnant. Could it be that no one in the Baoqing Marquis's mansion knows this yet?
That's very likely, because Sun Hongbin said that Sun Lingzhi had once miscarried.

The next day, Zhao Shiqing went to Su Ji Tea Shop again. Compared to the deserted Ruyi Fang, Zhao Shiqing preferred Su Ji Tea Shop, which had Su Datou, Sister Aping, and delicious tea snacks.

The Su Ji Tea Shop is no longer the deserted, haunted house it once was. Although business is neither good nor bad, it is no longer deserted. When Zhao Shiqing arrived, there were a few customers in the shop.

Sister Aping was entertaining the two old ladies. Her witty remarks made them very happy. When they left, their maids were carrying large and small bags. Sister Aping saw them off onto the mule cart, her smile still lingering.

Zhao Shiqing looked at her with a grin: "Sister Ping, you really know how to do business."

Sister Ping placed tea and snacks in front of Zhao Shiqing: "Miss Bao, please try some. These are new dishes that were just introduced yesterday."

Zhao Shiqing picked up a piece and tasted it: "It's crispy and crunchy, delicious!"

At this moment, the other two customers also left, and the shop became quiet. Zhao Shiqing asked, "Sister Ping, do you know someone named Si Xiaopang?"

Sister Ping laughed: "If Miss Bao had arrived an hour earlier, she might have met him. He loves to eat, and he bought a whole bag of these kinds of snacks."

At this point, Sister Ping seemed to remember something and lowered her voice to ask, "Miss Bao, are you looking for Si Xiaopang to inquire about something?" Zhao Shiqing raised her eyebrows. No way, where did Xiao Zhen find all these people? Even the shop assistants are so accommodating.

"Yes, I'm a complete stranger in Beijing. Besides Si Xiaopang, I don't know who else to ask for information."

Sister Ping hurriedly said, "Looking for me? The master instructed us that we can tell you whatever Miss Bao wants to know."

Zhao Shiqing: Uncle Xiao is such a good person!
"May I inquire about matters concerning the Ministry of Justice?"

Sister Ping chuckled, "You've come to the right person! I actually know a little about the Ministry of Justice."

Zhao Shiqing.
At this moment, Su Datou came out from behind and said with a smile, "Miss Bao, if you want to ask about things in the Ministry of Justice, just ask her. She works in the Ministry of Justice."

Zhao Shiqing was completely stunned. This Sister Aping actually worked in the Ministry of Justice!
Sister Ping was a little embarrassed: "What job do I have? I just help my mother-in-law. My mother-in-law is a midwife, but she doesn't deliver babies."

Zhao Shiqing understood: "An autopsy coroner? A female coroner?"

Sister Ping nodded, then suddenly remembered something and quickly said, "Don't worry, Miss Bao, I'm very careful. I wash my hands with scented soap more than ten times a day."

Zhao Shiqing laughed and said, "It's alright, I don't mind. Tell me quickly, has your Ministry of Justice caught any rats?"

Speaking of this, Sister Ping laughed before she even spoke: "You know what, they actually found a really big rat, but unfortunately they couldn't catch it. A group of people chased the rat out of the house into the yard with brooms, but the rat still managed to escape."

Zhao Shiqing laughed so hard she almost fell over. The big rat was very cunning, and she had guessed that the group of people wouldn't be able to catch it.

She then asked, "What about the case that Master Yan is handling? It's about those corpses that were dug up from the estate of the Marquis of Baoqing."

Sister Ping sighed and said, "The Marquis of Baoqing's mansion sent a scapegoat, a maidservant. Alas, everyone knows she's here to take the blame. She's still locked up in the Ministry of Justice. However, Master Yan has returned to investigate the case. They are investigating the identities of the corpses, but progress is slow. As of yesterday, they had only found one. The girl was only five years old at the time. That young master Zhu saw her on the street, took a liking to her at first sight, and bought her from her grandfather for fifty taels of silver. Her parents had no idea about this. That old man insisted that the child was lost. The child's parents have been searching for her for two years. Alas, what a tragedy!"

Hearing this, Zhao Shiqing felt very uncomfortable. She had come to inquire about the progress of the case, but now that she had actually found out, she wished she hadn't heard it at all.

Lingbo, standing to the side, already had tears in her eyes; she shared the same experience as the little girl.

The little girl was sold by her own grandfather, while she was sold by her own grandmother.

She met the Second Sister, who took her back to White Crane Mountain. She studied, learned to read, write, martial arts, and needlework with the Second Sister. She even learned a little about music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

But that little girl never had the chance to grow up.
At this moment, a waiter called out loudly, "Please come in, sir!"

The tea shop was open for business, welcoming and seeing off customers, but Zhao Shiqing paid no attention until she heard a familiar voice: "Excuse me, is Miss Zhao Er here?"

Zhao Shiqing perked up her ears; this silly boy had really found his way here!
"Who's looking for Miss Zhao the Second?" Zhao Shiqing asked gruffly.

Young Master Cui, no, Shen Wangxing turned around curiously and saw Zhao Shiqing and Ling Bo smiling at him!
"Second Miss, you really didn't lie to me, you're really here!"

Shen Wangxing was so overjoyed that she cried tears of joy, and she actually shed tears.

Zhao Shiqing, your emotions are just too abundant!

"Where is your mother? Did she come to the capital with you, or did she go back to her parents' home?"

Zhao Shiqing still remembers that the Cui family's property was confiscated, and all males over the age of thirteen were exiled. Although the female relatives were not implicated, their property was confiscated, and they lived a difficult life. Shen Wangxing went back for the sake of Cui's third wife.

Mentioning this incident, Shen Wangxing stopped crying. He gritted his teeth and said, "I almost didn't make it back. You probably don't believe it, but when my mother found out I was still alive, she actually cried and begged me to let me be exiled along with the men in the family. Hahaha, isn't that ridiculous? Isn't that absurd?"

Zhao Shiqing was stunned. That Third Madam Cui had been tricked by Cui Rong her whole life. Not only did she raise Cui Rong's illegitimate son, but she also almost lost her own son. Now that Cui Rong had been brought to justice and the Cui family had been exiled, Shen Wangxing was worried and wanted to take her out of the Cui family. But she actually wanted to hand Shen Wangxing over. Had she been kicked in the head by a donkey?
Shen Wangxing smiled bitterly: "Guess why? Because Cui Rong got into trouble, and the Cui family was implicated. Those aunts and grandmas beat and scolded her, and her life in the Cui family was not easy. Now that she knows I am not dead and I am still alive, in order to please those aunts and grandmas, she wants to hand me over so that others will know that she has not kept anything. If the sons of those aunts and grandmas are exiled, her son will go too. Moreover, she firmly believes that as long as she hands me over, she can live a peaceful life in the Cui family from now on."

I wanted to take her away, but she said she was born a member of the Cui family and would die a member of the Cui family; she wouldn't go anywhere else but the Cui family.

She locked me up and sent someone to report me to the authorities. She cried and said it was for my own good, that as long as I went to be exiled with the Cui family, I would still be a member of the Cui family. What a joke! What's so good about the Cui family? I don't even have the surname Cui anymore, why should I go to be exiled with them?
Fortunately, I learned some martial arts from you, which allowed me to escape. I will never go back, not in this lifetime. As for my mother, she can stay with the Cui family; I won't worry about her anymore.

As Shen Wangxing spoke, he started crying again, and he simply lay down on the table and cried his heart out.

Zhao Shiqing apologized to Su Datou, saying, "I'm sorry, I've affected your business."

Su Datou: "It's okay, it's okay. If I were this guy, I'd cry too!"

Fortunately, Shen Wangxing stopped crying after a while and left Su's Tea Shop with Zhao Shiqing.

When he returned home, everyone was happy to see him, but they soon learned about his ordeal. They had gone through a lot from Wu to Liang, and Shen Wangxing had long regarded them as good friends, so he did not hide anything and repeated what he had told Zhao Shiqing, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

I was already shocked to learn that the Cui family killed their legitimate son and promoted their illegitimate son. Now, to hear that Madam Cui the Third was willing to sacrifice her own son to curry favor with the Cui family, and that she was doing it for his own good, is truly speechless.

Everyone comforted Shen Wangxing, one after another. Even Da Pang and Xiao Yao rubbed against him a few times, making him feel flattered.

To comfort him, Zhen Wuduo specially ordered the cook to prepare a large and exquisite banquet.

These days, Shen Wangxing has been living a life of hardship, becoming dark and thin, almost like a mudfish. Looking at this large table of delicious food, he was so moved that he almost cried again.

After eating all the food off the plates, Shen Wangxing finally came back to life.

He patted his chest and said to everyone, "From now on, I am Shen Wangxing, no one else, I am just Shen Wangxing!"

Then, his eyes reddened again, and he clasped his hands in a respectful bow to everyone: "From now on, you are all my family. You are all my family. I only have you all to rely on. Please don't abandon me. I have nothing left but you! Waaah~"

Everyone
He cried again, and everyone had to keep comforting him. Mudfish did somersaults, Xiuxiu performed magic tricks, Lingbo sang two little songs, and even Jiang Han performed a set of boxing moves. Zhen Wuduo gave everyone a big red envelope, with Zhao Shiqing receiving the biggest one!
The transition in this chapter was somewhat bland.