Princess, she is the one who facilitated the extradition.

Marquis Cheng'an was so frightened he wet himself.

This act of urinating also woke him up.

He was panting heavily, frantically lit the lamp, glanced at himself with a look of fear, and then scanned the room.

There was no scary female ghost, no long fingernails piercing the chest; it was all just a dream.

But the warmth and dampness on my body were real. "Why would I have such a dream?"

A look of bewilderment crossed Cheng Anhou's face. Then, as if remembering something, he cupped his hands and bowed to the surroundings.

"I, Tong, have never abandoned my wife. The immortal must have misunderstood. My current wife is my first wife."

"I do not know the name the immortal is looking for, but I, Tong, am willing to help the immortal, only asking that the immortal spare me..."

He rambled on and on, saying that the dream he had just had was so terrifying that he felt like he had died several times in the dream, and he never dared to have such a dream again.

Gui Yao turned her gaze away from the window.

The Marquis of Cheng'an's bewilderment did not seem fake. If he was not Aye's father, then why did Tong Lao Er resemble Aye?

Could it be that Lady Hou did this behind Marquis Cheng'an's back?

Lady Cheng'an was from Jiangnan. She married into the capital from Jiangnan, and there is a strong possibility that she was impersonated on her way to the wedding.

However, the spirit of the deceased was trapped in the village after she became pregnant with her husband's child.

Gui Yao looked at the departed soul, "Was A-Ye conceived after your marriage?"

Or before marriage?

Or perhaps the murderer hired someone to defile her?

The deceased was very certain, "I remember the wedding night, the room was full of splendor, and someone called me young mistress."

When the earrings were stolen, the woman said that her children would be the legitimate eldest grandsons, enjoying endless wealth and glory, while my little bastard would only be a country bumpkin.

If this memory is correct, then the pregnancy occurred after the deceased's soul married into her husband's family.

If a woman is replaced after marriage, both her husband's family and outsiders can find out. Even if her husband's family helps to cover it up, outsiders are unlikely to cooperate.

Unless the other party looks exactly like a ghost.

If we follow this line of reasoning, and considering the reaction of the Marquis of Cheng'an, then it was not the Marquis of Cheng'an's wife who stole the soul's life.

But what about that set of jewelry?

Gui Yao went to the Lady of the Marquis's room again.

Following the same pattern, Lady Hou had just experienced a sensual dream when she entered a nightmare about being haunted by a female ghost.

Terrified, she closed her eyes and begged for mercy repeatedly.

Gui Yao asked, "Is the Second Young Master the Marquis's child?"

If Marquis Cheng'an is not Aye's father, is it possible that he is not Tong Lao Er's biological father either?

Lady Hou had another lover outside the marriage, and that lover was the husband of the deceased.

However, Lady Hou angrily replied, "I only have one husband, and the second son is naturally of the Marquis's blood."

Apart from the woman in green at Fengyi Palace, no one has lied under Gui Yao's spiritual power so far.

The woman in green was on guard, but the Tong family was unaware that she had her eye on them.

Gui Yao had no choice but to use her spiritual power again, making the Lady Hou see the set of jewelry in her dream. "These are yours, where did they come from?"

Lady Hou nodded, "The Marquis bought it from a pawnshop, and then gave it to those two greedy people."

Gui Yao then asked which year and which pawnshop.

Madam Hou said it was given to Tong Er the year he was born, and the pawnshop closed down twenty years ago.

Gui Yao didn't go back to ask about the Cheng'an Marquis's pawnshop. It had been closed for more than ten years, and even if he remembered it, it would be too much trouble to check.

She ransacked the Tong family's storeroom and then returned to Xuanji Tower with the spirits of the dead.

As they were about to enter, the ghost said, "May I take a look at Ono? If that mouth didn't have a beard, it seems to look a lot like Ono's."

She wasn't sure; she had to go check it out.

A moment later, they arrived at A-Ye's room. A-Ye was already asleep. Gui-Yao waved her sleeve, causing him to fall into a deep sleep.

Then she grabbed some of his hair and laid it under his chin. "Is this how it is?"

The ghost shook its head. "It also has one on the upper lip, turned to the sides, and a small tuft in the center of the chin, with its curve adjusted..."

She gestured a semicircle with her hand, "It's been repaired like this, a rounded arc, clean and neat."

Gui Yao vaguely knew what it was like. Many young military generals in the Dasheng Dynasty would grow short beards to show their masculinity and killing spirit.

She took out a calligraphy brush and, following her instructions, began to draw directly on A-Ye's face.

"so?"

The ghost took two steps closer and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, that's it. Ono has a beard, and his mouth shape is exactly the same as that person's."

"How's the skin? Is it firm or loose?"

"He's about the same as Ah Ye now."

Gui Yao put away the brush and used her spiritual power to cleanse A Ye's face.

"Then the person in your memory is either your brother or A-Ye's biological father. Your father inherited their mouth shape."

They were most likely military officers, young military officers from thirty years ago.

"But I have no idea what my name is, where I live, or where my husband's family lives."

The ghost suddenly felt discouraged, "Just thinking about making mouth shapes is useless."

Gui Yao escorted her back to Xuanji Tower and comforted her, saying, "Every clue has its use. Go back to Xuanji Tower and stay there for a while; you might remember more."

The deceased was simple-minded; if Gui Yao said it was effective, she believed it was, and was quickly persuaded to be well.

A smile returned to his face. "Ono looks good with a beard too."

"Go in."

Gui Yao smiled; a mother who loves her child always thinks her child is the best, no matter what.

Seeing her standing motionless at the door, the ghost asked curiously, "Aren't you going home?"

Gui Yao's eyes softened slightly. "Yes, I'm going back to my other home."

Someone was waiting for her at that home.

Xiao Huaijin not only waited for her, but also prepared a lot of food for her.

Gui Yao rubbed her stomach. "I wasn't hungry at first, but seeing all this makes me hungry again."

"Then let's eat some."

Xiao Huaijin served her some dishes, all of which were meat dishes that Gui Yao liked.

When asked about Gui Yao's situation, he inquired, "How did things go?"

While eating, Gui Yao recounted the events of the evening: "Although we didn't have any concrete clues, we managed to eliminate the Cheng'an Marquis and his wife, and we also gained some money."

It wasn't a wasted trip.

It's really not easy to find someone just by looking at their lips. It's also not easy to find out who pawned the jewelry more than 20 years ago.

Xiao Huaijin said, "I just received some news that the decline of the Cheng'an Marquis's family was caused by human factors."

The specific perpetrator is currently unknown, but it is known to be a force in the capital, and the timeframe is roughly around the time of Tong Lao Er's birth.

He also has connections in Jiangnan.

When Gui Yao suspected that the Lady of Cheng'an was an imposter and that the decline in Jiangnan was her doing, he sent a message to Jiangnan by carrier pigeon.

"Although Lady Hou has been temporarily ruled out, someone is secretly trying to ruin her family, and that set of jewelry just happens to be in her possession."

Furthermore, Qingwu and Aye's mother look alike, and Tong Lao Er resembles Aye; there aren't that many coincidences in the world.

Xiao Huaijin served Gui Yao another half bowl of soup.

"I think your previous line of reasoning was correct; Tong Lao Er and A Ye should be related."

Gui Yao took the drink and drank a sip. "But Lady Hou said he is the child of Marquis Cheng'an."

"Whether it's possible or not, even Lady Cheng'an herself doesn't know?"

Xiao Huaijin said, "As far as I know, Marquis Cheng'an is very distant from Tong Er. His attitude changed after Tong Qingyuan got into trouble and the Marquis's mansion became increasingly decadent."

Marquis Cheng'an was extremely adept at currying favor. It is said that he once offered his concubine to a high-ranking official to be played with in order to curry favor with him...

Gui Yao paused in her soup-drinking motion. "You suspect he shared his wife with someone else as well?"

And as a result, she became pregnant with the second son of the Tong family, though the Lady Hou was unaware of this.

She suddenly remembered the look of disgust on Marquis Cheng'an's face when he turned away.

"If that's the case, then as long as we find out who Tong Er's biological father is, we can find the real culprit who murdered A Ye's mother."

Xiao Huaijin nodded. "I have already sent secret guards to follow Tong Er and Marquis Cheng'an."

If Tong Er was not the son of Marquis Cheng'an, the fact that Marquis Cheng'an raised him means that his biological father was still in a high position.

"You've robbed the Tong family again tonight. Marquis Cheng'an is at his wit's end and might seek help from Tong Er's biological father, after all, he not only gave up his wife but also raised the man's son."

There really are such disgusting men in the world.

Gui Yao took a big bite of the meat and chewed it vigorously.

After swallowing her food, she became curious. "How do you know so much about the Cheng'an Marquis's residence in just one day?"

He definitely didn't know at first, otherwise he would have told her long ago.

Xiao Huaijin laughed, "During the day I went to see the Prince of Shu. He was holding back his anger and wanted to avenge Zhao Mingyue. He had already been secretly investigating the Marquis of Cheng'an's mansion."

"How could I have forgotten him? I'm so forgetful."

Gui Yao slapped himself on the forehead with a crisp sound.

"You're so busy all the time, it's normal that you don't remember."

She had no rest during those days, and she also had to endure the pain of being hurt by her birth mother and being unable to recognize her birth father.

Xiao Huaijin tenderly massaged her skin, saying, "Why are you using so much force? It's all red."

Gui Yao chuckled, "It's okay, it doesn't hurt."

The two talked for a while longer, then fell into a deep sleep in each other's arms, while the Crown Prince tossed and turned in the Eastern Palace, unable to sleep.

The next day, after the morning court session, he left the palace and went to Xuanji Tower.