When Duke Jingguo and his wife arrived at the small courtyard, the servant girl that Liu Lu sent to report had just left. The matriarch was currently suppressing a belly full of anger and didn't reveal a trace of a smile.
Duchess Jingguo opened her mouth and began to interrogate, "I say, old madam, Yu Pinyan is a bit too ungentlemanly. Qi 'er and Yu Xiang bickered and caused a ruckus, yet he actually had someone pour a basket of snakes on Qi' er's body. What is he trying to do? He's a dignified commander-in-chief, so how can he bicker with a brat? "
The matriarch closed her eyes and twirled her prayer beads. When she finished speaking, she was just about to speak when she saw Yu Pinyan walk in with his half-wet hair. He said in a heavy voice, "My younger sister was covered in caterpillars by him. Right now, she's covered in cuts and bruises, and the pain is unbearable. He doesn't have a single wound and was only frightened. I'm already being merciful. If you still don't know what's good for you, be careful that I don't peel off a layer of his skin! "
Everyone knew that a smiling Marquis Yongle was far more terrifying than an expressionless Marquis Yongle. His expression was as gentle as the spring wind and rain, but in reality, that smile contained a complete disregard for life.
Only then did Duke Jingguo vaguely remember that the person in front of him was no longer the destitute brat that could be bullied. Instead, he was the commander-in-chief personally appointed by the emperor. He could kill people above his rank, act first and report later. Of all the civil and military officials in the imperial court, only the emperor could control him. Inside and outside the imperial court, on the battlefield, countless souls died by his hands. If all of them fell into the nine depths of hell, perhaps even the palace of the King of Hell would collapse.
Only then did Duke Jingguo know that he was afraid, and his legs trembled.
Duchess Jingguo didn't understand the matters of the imperial court and thought that Yu Pinyan was the brat that she could bully. Unexpectedly, she assumed the posture of a mother-in-law and endlessly reprimanded him.
Yu Pinyan wasn't in the mood to listen to her finish and sneered, "How do you think he and Xiang'er got into a fight? It was Xiang'er who had exposed the matter of Chang Yafu exchanging tokens of love with Yu Pinhong at the Lantern Festival. The siblings had been so angry that they had attacked Xiang'er. Madam, you must be very clear about this matter. Didn't you make an agreement with Third Aunt in the future? Once Third Uncle inherits the title and Yu Pinhong becomes the Heir Apparent, you will come to me to break off the engagement? I've been waiting for you! It's a pity that the Heavens play tricks on people. Not long after, Third Uncle's family was sent to prison. This marriage didn't take place, so they thought of me again. What do you take me for, Yu Pinyan? A good-for-nothing who specializes in picking up used shoes? "
Duke Jing Guo and his wife suddenly opened their eyes wide, as if they had seen a ghost.
The old lady accidentally broke the prayer beads and asked anxiously, "There's such a thing? Exchanging tokens of love? Good, good, good, as expected of my good granddaughter-in-law. So shameless, so lewd! You still have the face to come here and denounce us? Someone, beat them out of here! Hurry up and fight! "
The old lady stood up and bellowed angrily. She knew that the Chang Family wanted to form a marriage alliance with the Third Branch, but she didn't know that Chang Yafu already had an affair with the Third Branch's legitimate son! The Chang Family actually wanted to shove a piece of trash into his Prefecture Yu's hands. What wishful thinking!
The servants loudly agreed and went out to look for sticks.
If they stayed any longer, they would be beaten and their reputations would be ruined. Duke Jing Guo and his wife buried their heads and covered their faces as they ran away.
The old lady had a belly full of anger, but she had nowhere to vent it. She slammed the table and asked sternly, "You already knew about this matter? Why didn't you tell me? If I had known that Chang Yafu was so unrestrained, I would have broken off the engagement when the old Duke Jing Guo hadn't died yet. How could I have tolerated him for so many years! This won't do. Wait until next month, when he's out of service, I'll go and break off the engagement. He's simply going too far! " When she thought about how she had almost been persuaded by Duke Jing Guo's wife to agree to this marriage, she suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.
Yu Pinyan gently patted her back and gently said, "I'm telling you now, yet you're still so angry. If I told you back then, wouldn't you have been so angry that you'd be bedridden for a few more months? How could Grandson bear to do that? "
The old lady's heart ached like it was being twisted, but she also gnashed her teeth in hatred. She pulled on her grandson's hand and wiped away her tears. How much had this child suffered while she was unaware of it? She didn't dare to think too deeply about it! How could his grandfather arrange such a terrible marriage for him? When he went to the Yellow Springs, he would definitely find that old thing to settle this debt!
Yu Pinyan smiled slightly as he wiped the old lady's tears. When Xiang 'er found out about this, she was even more agitated than the old ancestor. She even took out the dagger he gave her and said that she was going to stab Chang Yafu. It was enough to have two people by his side who treated him wholeheartedly. He had also tempered himself for many years before he truly understood that what should be given up should be decisively given up, and what should be cherished must be firmly grasped.
The old lady and her grandson stayed in silence for a while before she felt much better. She saw that his hair was half wet and he had changed his clothes. Just as she was about to ask him why he was taking a bath in this cold weather, a Dragonscale Guard hastily rushed in and reported, "Commander, the crown prince requests your presence!"
The old lady immediately felt that something was amiss and hurriedly urged her grandson to leave.
-----
Meanwhile, the Crown Princess was in a good mood after receiving the dragon-phoenix lot that Yu Xiang had drawn. She was resting in a side room in the rear hall when she saw the spring rain outside. Several plum blossoms spat out bright red flower buds that looked especially adorable with water droplets. She ignored the palace maids' attempts to stop her and held up an oil-paper umbrella to look for the plum blossoms.
Strolling to the edge of the plum blossom forest, she saw a drooping flower gate that was wide open. Opposite was a courtyard where ordinary people lived. Although it didn't occupy a large area, there were at least seven or eight families squeezed together. It was now the end of spring and the weather was cold. It didn't feel cold when the sun was out, but when it rained, it was piercingly cold. In addition, the mountaintop was much colder than the flat ground. It was simply impossible to live without burning charcoal.
The Taoist children were afraid that the pilgrims would fall ill from the cold, so they piled up a lot of charcoal in a corner of the courtyard. They also burned a large pot of fire at the side. Anyone who wanted to start a stove would have to come and collect the sparks themselves.
A beautiful servant girl was currently adding sparks to the fire she had brought along while adding charcoal to the pot. This was to prevent the fire from being extinguished when others came.
The charcoal crackled as it entered the pot and emitted a large cloud of thick smoke, causing the servant girl to cough repeatedly.
The Crown Princess covered her nose and mouth. Just as she was about to turn around, she heard a female physician beside her shout, "Not good, there's something wrong with the smoke!"
Everyone panicked and didn't know how to react. They saw the Crown Princess suddenly stagger, clutching her abdomen as she softly cried, "Quickly help me back, my stomach hurts!"
She's having a miscarriage! Senior Servant Song hurriedly ordered people to lift the Crown Princess and quickly rushed back. As if remembering something, she shouted at the nearby Dragonscale Guard, "Quickly go and find His Highness the Crown Prince and Commandant Yu! Also, capture that girl! "
The Dragonscale Guard obeyed the order and left.
The head of the Baiyun Monastery was proficient in medicine. After making a diagnosis, he discovered that the Crown Princess was about to give birth prematurely. He hurriedly ordered people to prepare the delivery room and immediately knelt in the Lei Zu Hall to pray. The accompanying female physicians and midwives were on high alert, their hearts burning with anxiety. If anything happened to the Crown Princess or the fetus in her womb, not to mention them, even fifty to sixty percent of the pilgrims in the monastery wouldn't be able to escape Commandant Yu's butcher's knife.
The emperor was the eldest son of the first wife. Back then, he should've naturally inherited the throne, but he was almost killed by his brothers. From then on, he valued the children of the first wife and concubines even more. If the Crown Prince was incompetent, it would've been fine. However, the Crown Prince was both virtuous and talented. It was just that it was a bit difficult for him to produce an heir. Up until now, he had only produced a concubine son. This was the only area where the emperor was dissatisfied with the Crown Prince. The emperor had been eagerly waiting for this grandson of his for six years. It was no wonder that the Crown Princess was so nervous that she couldn't sleep at night.
Just as the melon was about to be ripe for the harvest, someone actually plotted against him. It was easy to imagine how furious the emperor was.
Not only were the palace servants and the monastery head bitterly disappointed, but even the Crown Prince's heart was bitterly disappointed. He was afraid that losing his eldest son would cause his imperial father to dislike him. When he saw Yu Pinyan striding in, he suppressed his anger and coldly said, "Yi Feng, investigate this for Us! This Us is usually too benevolent and unexpectedly caused them to harbor thoughts that they shouldn't have! If we find the mastermind behind this, this Us will definitely report this to Imperial Father and have him grind his bones to dust! "
"This humble one will definitely not disappoint Your Highness." Yu Pinyan didn't waste any words. He cupped his hands and headed to the prison to interrogate the suspect.
The Dragonscale Guard had borrowed the cellar of the Baiyun Monastery to build a torture chamber and was currently torturing the maidservant who added charcoal.
The maidservant was truly unyielding. Her body was covered in whip scars, but she didn't relent. She insisted that she had just come to the capital from Da Yu City with her master's family and had rushed to the ceremony to join in the fun. She had nothing to do with the various powers in the capital and was wrongly accused.
The Dragonscale Guard's style of doing things had always been ruthless. They didn't care if you were guilty or not, they would torture you first. The two people executing the punishment didn't argue with her. They took a splint and were about to use it.
After two splints, the maidservant couldn't take it anymore and screamed miserably, "I'm innocent, I didn't do anything! I, I'm not a maidservant, I'm the legitimate daughter of the Marquis Household! How dare you treat me like this! If my family finds you, they will definitely tear you to pieces! "
"The Marquis Household? Which Marquis Household? "One of them laughed contemptuously. Tear them to pieces? Ordinary Dragonscale Guard didn't even dare to touch a first-rank official. In this world, other than the emperor, only Commandant Yu could tear them to pieces. Not to mention that this maidservant was full of nonsense, even if she really came from a wealthy family, what could she do to them?
The maidservant shook her head repeatedly and screamed, "I don't know which Marquis Household it is. I only know that 14 years ago, I was mistaken for someone else and my father died under a bandit's knife. You can ask around, I guarantee that you'll know! I'm the legitimate daughter of the Marquis Household, I'm the legitimate daughter of the Marquis Household! " Suddenly, she felt that her threat just now was really inappropriate, so she hurriedly tried to remedy it, "As long as the two of you are willing to help me find my family, my family will definitely repay the two of you handsomely. Today's harsh treatment will also be written off! I still have the swaddling clothes that my family left for me in my room. The cloth is a tribute from the palace, I can show it to you! "
The more she spoke, the more bizarre it became. The two Dragonscale Guards shook their heads and sneered, their hands gradually becoming heavier.
As soon as Yu Pinyan stepped over the threshold, he heard the maidservant's threats and bribes. His stern expression didn't change, but his heart was slightly moved. He quickly walked over and waved his two subordinates away. He pinched the maidservant's chin and lifted her face to carefully examine it.
The maidservant was already in tears. Feeling the cold temperature on her chin, she couldn't help but tremble. She forced herself to open her eyes and immediately gritted her teeth and growled, "It's you again! Isn't it enough that you harmed me once? You want to harm me a second time? What kind of enmity do you have with me? "
This question was really inexplicable. Since when did the grand Marquis Yongle have any interaction with a lowly maidservant? The two Dragonscale Guards increasingly felt that there was something wrong with this person's head.
Yu Pinyan didn't answer. Seeing that her appearance was seventy to eighty percent similar to that of the Lin Clan, he felt a little more confident. He opened her sleeve and saw that there was indeed an orchid-shaped red birthmark on her wrist.
The sister that he couldn't find for four years was actually met in prison. One was an interrogator, and the other was a prisoner in a cage. He didn't know what the heavens had arranged. Yu Pinyan took two steps back and said indifferently, "There's no need to torture her. First, take her to the prison to await trial."
The two Dragonscale Guards agreed in a low voice and didn't dare to ask any more questions.
Yu Pinyan walked out of the prison. He didn't feel happy or relieved, and he didn't feel the excitement of finding his family. The only thought in his mind was — why did she appear here and get involved in this matter? Was it a trap set by someone with ulterior motives?
All kinds of doubts were accumulated in his heart. He couldn't help but frown and decided to investigate the case first.