The mistress who remarried has returned.

Liu Shun was taken aback. His anger had indeed been provoked by Consort Su. Just moments ago, she had been kindly and generously allowing him to help her; how could she suddenly erupt in fury? Her sudden change in mood caught him completely off guard!

More or less, it had a strong implication of catching adulterers in the act.

Four years ago, we didn't catch them in the act, only after the fact, and it was too late. This time, we're trying to make up for the regret by catching them in the act and stopping it in advance.

"Liu Shun, you're too good at flattering yourself. Do you think people went through all sorts of trouble and suffered all sorts of grievances just to come here for your master?" Qin Huai looked at Liu Shun coldly. "It's fine if you misunderstand, but don't gossip about it to me!"

Qin Huai's face darkened; he finally understood why she had come today.

Liu Shun was taken aback. "What's wrong, sir? I... I didn't misunderstand. If she didn't come for you, who else would she come for? The Crown Prince has already woken up; she has nothing to ask of you."

"The Crown Prince is awake. But someone else is dying," Qin Huai said in a deep voice. "Where is Su Yunxi?"

Liu Shun stammered, unwilling to speak. If his master caught Consort Su, would she even have a chance of survival? He was truly heartbroken. He had just said that the two of them still had some feelings for each other, and that with the Crown Prince dead, there might still be a chance, but suddenly they were filled with hatred again. "I...I..."

Qin Huai's sharp eyes narrowed, and he said sarcastically, "You're Consort Shu's spy. I'm afraid you'll help Zhou Qiu cause the Qin family to be raided. I have no choice but to kill you first, and then I'll deal with her!"

"..."

Liu Shun was almost speechless. How could they put such a big accusation on him? The general was already twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old, and he had never seen him so flustered and pale in all these years. The last time he saw the general like this was when he cornered Liangdi in the Crown Prince's bed in the barracks.

After four long years of finally calming down and returning to normal, ever since the Crown Prince's palace was raided and Consort Su came back to see him, occasionally popping up in front of the General, the General's emotional control hasn't been very good...

Although Liu Shun owed Su Liangdi a favor, he couldn't risk his life, so he quickly said, "Su Liangdi and Lin Enxiao are talking by the third artificial hill in the back garden."

Xue Wenying had followed him all the way, genuinely worried that Qin Huai might make a mistake and be held accountable by the master of the mansion. His uncles' children were also eyeing his position covetously. She wondered what exactly had happened.

***

Su Yunxi arrived at the artificial hill in the backyard of Yingtian Pavilion. After walking past several artificial hills, she saw a young man standing in the shadows at the third artificial hill, waiting for someone.

He appeared to be an honest and upright young man.

"Excuse me, are you Lin Enxiao?" Su Yunxi asked politely.

Upon hearing this, Lin Enxiao, who had been waiting there for a long time, turned around and saw that it was Consort Su, whom he had only seen near the Crown Prince, coming over. It was like a dream that the woman of the male master, who was in such a high position, was actually in contact with him. His face suddenly flushed, and he hurriedly bowed and greeted her, "Greetings, Consort Su, I am Lin Enxiao."

Su Yunxi nodded. Judging from his appearance and demeanor, he was a very honest and shy young man. She was confident that she could handle him and get him to do things for her. "My father asked me to come find you. Your mother has already told you about our relationship, right?"

"Yes, my mother said she has already given your father one hundred taels of silver. It's also agreed to this with you." Lin Enxiao nodded and continued, "My mother told me to wait for you here, and then after you and your ex-husband return to Minglu, I will take you home to your bridal chamber."

Su Yunxi nodded. "That's right. We have the same information. That's indeed the case. Then we can go back and take care of things."

She paused for a moment, then said, "Let's hurry up and consummate our marriage."

"Well...we can't rush things like this. We need to talk things out." Mentioning the wedding night, Lin Enxiao's cheekbones flushed red. Her eagerness made him quite shy. He hesitated for a moment, then said tentatively, "But do you know about my family's situation?"

"I roughly know."

"Perhaps my mother didn't tell you the whole truth. You don't know the full story," Lin Enxiao said frankly. "My eldest brother has accumulated a lot of gambling debts. My second brother has also racked up considerable debts from eating and drinking on credit. My father, who is bedridden, often has to borrow money from here and there to pay for his medicine. I only have a small salary, but it's basically not enough to make ends meet. After giving away that hundred taels of silver you gave us, there's hardly anything left in the family. In fact, after you came to my house, you've had endless hardships, endless housework, and endless debts to pay off. Debt collectors often throw dog blood at our door, making life quite difficult."

"Oh." Su Yunxi responded softly. She didn't really intend to live with him. She didn't care about his family situation or whether he would be smeared with dog blood. "It doesn't matter, I don't mind."

Lin Enxiao was surprised that Liangdi was so sincere towards him. Was it because the Crown Prince had fallen and she truly needed a place to settle down? She looked so pitiful, it was indeed heartbreaking. And indeed, such a young woman without a man's love was truly pitiful. Nowadays, young girls all need a man's care and affection.

"My eldest and second eldest brothers are of bad character, and I am often away on official business in the palace. I'm afraid you'll suffer if you stay at home. If you don't want to come with me, go home. I'll have my mother get the money back, and then this matter between us will be over."

Su Yunxi thought he seemed like a decent person, and she felt bad about using him. However, Yan Yixiao was on the verge of death, Zhou Yuan looked very depressed, and Zhou Yu in the Eastern Palace barely had the will to live. They needed to ease their longing for their children and brothers as soon as possible. She couldn't accept four years of kindness and then not do her best to help them now that they were in trouble. So, she forced herself to speak.

"I'm willing. My family situation isn't good either. My stepmother can't tolerate me. I think you're a decent person, and if I move in with you, you'll be a caring person. It's just the two of us living together; other people's character doesn't matter. If it doesn't work out, we'll move out and separate from the family."

Upon hearing this, Lin Enxiao ultimately did not compromise, still harboring many concerns, and said, "But..."

"You must be worried that if you give away a hundred taels of silver, your family will go hungry. You're the only one with a salary, so your parents won't separate from you and let you live a good life, right?" Su Yunxi pondered for a moment. "When I was still in the Eastern Palace, I had a very good relationship with Princess Zhou Yuan. I bought a gold bracelet for her. Now she's with your mistress, Consort Shu. You can ask your mother to pass on a message to Zhou Yuan and ask her to come here for a visit. I've always been very close to her. I'll get the bracelet back, and we can sell it. We won't be rich, but we'll be better off than most and not worse off either. We'll live a comfortable life."