Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

Lin Wantang pursed her lips nervously, and her palms, which were holding the embroidered handkerchief, were damp with a thin layer of sweat.

"Actually, I... am suspicious and wary of you."

She took a deep breath before finally uttering a complete sentence, but then averted her gaze as if to avoid looking at Wei Wujiu's expression: "This matter is of utmost importance, so it is natural for me to be overthinking it. But the Commander-in-Chief need not listen to my arguments, and I have no intention of doing anything detrimental to the Commander-in-Chief in private."

But in her heart, from the moment Lin Rucong recounted her mother's life story that night, Lin Wantang felt a sense of panic and blamed herself for being foolish and not sending Wei Wujiu away beforehand.

But once you make a mistake, there's no going back.

So that night she insisted on going to pay her respects to her mother formally, and then went to the ancestral hall with Wei Wujiu. The words she spoke while kneeling in front of Lin Yasong's memorial tablet came from the bottom of her heart and were sincere, but they were also... all subtle attempts to test him.

What did she say that night? In short, she wanted to carry on her mother's wish and avenge her mother and the more than one hundred innocent people in her maternal grandfather's family who had died unjustly.

But who is the enemy? It is a member of the imperial family, and the current emperor!

Wei Wujiu silently listened to such treasonous words and even comforted her afterwards, advising her to stop crying.

Is this the behavior expected of a loyal subject who is devoted to his ruler and the country?

He devoted himself to the cause until his dying breath. To whom was Wei Wujiu truly loyal? He was not a treacherous minister. He made outstanding contributions to the country and the people, leading many campaigns and facing death on the battlefield without fear of losing his life.

But does he still truly care about the current emperor? Or is he deliberately creating a false impression, testing her with a calculated move?

These days, Lin Wantang couldn't figure these things out, and couldn't tell anyone, so she could only keep them to herself. Now that Wei Wujiu had brought them up, she carefully considered her words and hit the nail on the head: "Commander, are you carrying some secret matter?"

Otherwise, none of this makes sense.

But Lin Wantang preferred to believe that his so-called secret was just him being wary of her and that he still had doubts.

Otherwise, one secret about Lin Yasong was already enough to make her anxious and fearful; she really couldn't, and didn't want to, accept another one...

"Yes, there is."

Wei Wujiu, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up at this moment.

His tone remained indifferent and nonchalant, but he turned to the side, grasped Lin Wantang's shoulders, and helped her lift her head. When their eyes met, his gaze was as deep as an icy pool: "One secret for another."

"Even if we still have reservations and don't want to open up and trust each other, the secrets we exchange can become the best weapon to control each other."

This is why Wei Wujiu brought up Lin Yasong's matter again.

He wasn't exactly suspicious, but he had never truly opened his heart to anyone. Even his temperament and hobbies, as seen by others, were far from the real him.

Concealing one's sharpness and tempering one's talents had long been ingrained in Wei Wujiu's very being throughout his more than twenty years of living a life of constant anxiety and uncertainty.

Lin Wantang's breathing tightened, and her incredulous eyes trembled: "Commander, are you... serious?"

"Of course." Wei Wujiu's deep eyes softened slightly, and he gave a faint, ambiguous smile. "What I'm about to tell you is known only to two people in this world besides me, and you will be the third. This matter is..."

boom!

A sudden loud noise outside interrupted Wei Wujiu's words.

His eyes darkened, and he said, "Don't panic, wait for me here, don't go out." Then he got up and strode out.

"Report!"

A servant rushed over and knelt on one knee: "Governor, a coachman got drunk and accidentally crashed his cart full of millstones into the city gate. The cart is a mangled mess, the horses are dead, and the city gate is badly damaged."

Wei Wujiu frowned: "Were there any casualties?"

"Reporting to you, sir, we don't have any of our men, but the coachman was killed in the accident, and someone recognized him—it was... Chen De."

Wei Wujiu took a deep breath, his furrowed brows deepening, but he didn't say much. He then led his servants and attendants to take a look outside the city wall.

"My lord, I have personally examined the body and confirmed that it is indeed Chen De."

Li Jinzhi had already ordered the mess at the scene to be cleaned up. He then leaped over the group of people who had come to pay their respects, walked to Wei Wujiu's side, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and whispered solemnly, "The Sixth Prince's men are probably after you, sir."

The sixth prince was young and had not yet been granted a title. His mother also had no rank, so his situation in the palace was already precarious. Unlike other princes who owned fertile land and estates, he only had an estate in a remote and desolate area on the outskirts of the city.

But a child who is only a few years old would not know how to manage a good estate, so the emperor had long ago entrusted the management of that estate to Wei Wujiu, since he was also the tutor of the sixth prince.

Chen De was the person in charge of that estate.

On the surface, it seemed that Chen De had made a momentary blunder, accidentally driving his carriage while drunk and crashing into the Eastern Depot. But even if ordinary people had the guts of a bear and the courage of a leopard, they would only dare to stay far away from the Eastern Depot. Moreover, although Chen De was nominally the Sixth Prince's man, in reality, no one would suspect or impeach the Sixth Prince. Instead, they would all point their swords at Wei Wujiu.

Whether the emperor would use this as an excuse to make trouble is another matter. The mere accusation of "lax management of subordinates" is enough to punish the sixth prince. Making an example of him is something Wei Wujiu cannot help but think about.

"This matter is too suspicious. We should thoroughly investigate Chen De first." Wei Wujiu sorted out his thoughts, his handsome face becoming even colder. "We will discuss this further after we enter the palace to meet the Emperor."

Li Jinzhi nodded in agreement.

Wei Wujiu went upstairs again and briefly recounted what had happened. Lin Wantang immediately returned to the palace with him.

Upon entering the palace, the two parted ways. Wei Wujiu went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and sent someone to inform the Sixth Prince that it would be best for the master and disciple to reach a tacit understanding and minimize this turmoil. Lin Wantang, on the other hand, did not get involved in these matters and went directly to Chenting Pavilion.

But after they parted ways, Lin Wantang and her entourage walked down the corridor and inadvertently caught sight of a black cat.

A palace maid was squatting nearby, carefully feeding the cat dried fish.

The beautiful scene made Lin Wantang pause slightly, and the palace maid also noticed her, hurriedly rising to bow: "This servant has been disrespectful to my mistress, this servant deserves to die..."

"It's nothing."

Lin Wantang wouldn't blame her. After uttering those two soft words, she looked away and prepared to leave. Unexpectedly, the palace maid dared to pick up the cat and try to get closer to Lin Wantang. She was stopped by the guards, and she said in a panic, "This servant saw that Your Highness seemed to like this cat, and wanted to hold it closer so Your Highness could see it..."

That's nothing to worry about. No matter how cautious Lin Wantang is, she wouldn't be so timid as to be overly hesitant.

She gestured to the guards that it was alright, took a few steps, and reached out to touch the black cat in the maid's arms. While teasing it, she inadvertently heard the maid whisper something. The moment she heard it clearly, her blood froze.

"Lin Yasong".

The palace maid kept her head down and spoke so softly that no one around her noticed. She then said, "Tonight at 7 PM, at Qingxu Palace."