Making Inquiries

Zhu Qing couldn't sleep well all night, and the next morning she ran to Lin Yunwan's place to pay her respects.

She also told Lin Yunwan, "Young Madam, I... I heard that Nanny Yan went to the estate last night, the one where Concubine Ge lives!"

"Have I done something wrong?"

Because of her pregnancy, she became increasingly prone to overthinking, and her face showed great anxiety.

"Please sit down."

Lin Yunwan spoke calmly. Zhu Qing sat on the Embroidery Stool, touching her belly.

Don't overthink it.

Now that she could tell Zhu Qing the truth, Lin Yunwan said, "The Concubine Ge that Aunt Ge had the Matron Jade Pendant to Di Daughter. It's said that this Di Daughter went missing when she was a child, and the Jade Pendant was lost with her."

"This..."

Zhu Qing was stunned, and after thinking for a long time, she said, "So you mean Concubine Ge is that missing Di Daughter?"

This is too unbelievable! She can't believe it!

However, thinking back, she was even more worried that she had ruined things, and said regretfully, "Young Madam, if I had known that Jade Pendant was so important, I would have brought it back to you sooner, and perhaps..."

Lin Yunwan shook her head and smiled faintly, "This Jade Pendant is not something you or I can recognize."

The Duke Xingguo's Residence, one of the Three Dukes, and the Wuding Marquis Residence, have declined in recent years and don't even know which way the Chen family's door opens!

She said, "Even after Aunt Ge was abducted, she kept this jade pendant on her body. After she got together with Master, wouldn't Master have helped her find out more about her?"

Zhu Qing immediately replied, "The old man must have already inquired about it."

Lin Yunwan nodded. "If you're not a family familiar with the Duke Xingguo's Residence, trying to find out who owns the Jade Pendant across the entire country is like looking for a needle in a haystack."

Of course, it's also possible that Lu Zhengliu simply didn't care.

Zhu Qing and Lin Yunwan exchanged a glance; both of them had considered this possibility.

Zhu Qing smiled disappointedly and said, "That's just how the old man is."

When someone is in love, it seems intense and passionate, like a blazing fire; in reality, it's a kind of affection that you can see but can't touch.

Lin Yunwan's gaze was indifferent.

Men can achieve great things, pass the imperial examinations, and soar to great heights, looking down on women from the clouds, while women can only ever look up to their husbands.

So-called pampering is ultimately fragile.

"Young Madam, how did you recognize this Jade Pendant?"

Zhu Qing was very curious, as she had already said that information about this Jade Pendant was not so easy to find out.

Lin Yunwan only said, "... It was just a coincidence."

Zhu Qing wisely refrained from asking further questions.

She knew that her Young Madam would definitely use this Jade Pendant to leave the Lu family, so she said worriedly, "Young Madam, what if this Jade Pendant doesn't belong to Concubine Ge, but was just something she found, or..."

It's not surprising that someone like Concubine Ge would use any means to obtain something.

"Then what will you do?"

There was no other way out.

Lin Yunwan wasn't worried about that. She sneered, "At this point, would she really say she isn't?"

Too.

Zhu Qing twisted her handkerchief. Concubine Ge was doomed on the estate; grasping at this straw, wouldn't she desperately try to escape?

"Zhu Qing, go back and rest during your pregnancy. Your child is the foundation of your life in this world; make sure you give birth to this child safely."

Zhu Qing understood this principle.

Even having a daughter is better than having no children at all. If the mistress really passes away, she will be even more determined to raise her children well.

"This concubine takes her leave."

After Zhu Qing left, Tong Liu came over to help her.

"Well."

Tong Liu asked, "Concubine, why are you sighing?" She glanced at Zhu Qing's belly and joked with her Concubine, "Are you worried that you'll give birth to a mischievous boy?"

Zhu Qing shook her head; even if she told the maid, she probably wouldn't believe her.

She wasn't worried about the child or her own future; what she truly missed Lin Yunwan.

Concubine is doing well or not depends entirely on the mistress.

She really liked her current mistress.

"Nanny Yan has brought Concubine Ge back."

Upon hearing that the people from the Second Gate had carried the person back to Hall of Longevity, Ping Ye immediately came to report.

"Young Madam, Concubine Ge seems to be very ill."

Lin Yunwan said calmly, "That's not something I'm worried about. The Old Madam won't let her die."

The Old Madam really didn't dare let Ge Bao'er die.

Upon returning home, they immediately stopped Ge Bao'er's medication and quickly summoned Physician.

After taking his pulse, the Physician simply said, "You didn't recover well from the Wind-Cold you caught last time, which is why you've been sick for so long. You must take good care of yourself this winter, otherwise it will become a chronic condition that will be difficult to treat later."

Nanny Yan asked nervously, "Nothing else?"

The Physician shook his head. "Nothing else—oh, you haven't been eating well. You can gradually make up for it once you've fully recovered."

He went out to write a prescription.

Nanny Yan left a literate maidservant outside to keep watch while she went to speak with Old Madam Lu: "... The Physician can't identify the poison."

Old Madam Lu said in a low voice, "It's a medicine that's meant to be inconspicuous. Since it can't be detected, it means the poisoning isn't severe yet."

"Never mind that for now! Let's get her Wind-Cold treated first. She keeps coughing, it's really unpleasant to hear."

Nanny Yan glanced at the Side Room and asked softly, "Should we leave the person here, or send them to the Rain Apricot Pavilion?"

At this point, Ge Bao'er certainly couldn't take her eyes off her.

Old Madam Lu, "Just say she's sick and can't move around easily, so she can stay with me for now. Once she's feeling better, go and call Qing over so they can see each other."

"Yes."

Old Madam Lu then instructed, "Send someone to the Duke Xingguo's Residence again today to find out what's going on there. Don't tell them it's someone from the Wuding Marquis Residence!"

She was also afraid that Lin Yunwan was just saying things to fool people in order to get a divorce.

What a coincidence that the Di Daughter went missing from the Duke's Residence just happens to be Concubine in the Lu family!

Nanny Yan nodded and said, "This servant will have my son and daughter-in-law go and ask them."

The commotion at the Wuding Marquis Residence lasted until night, Old Madam Lu couldn't sleep all night.

The Side Room coughed all night; it was so noisy.

When Qing heard that his birth mother had returned to the mansion, he insisted on coming to see her. However, Ge Bao'er was still not well enough to be seen, so the Old Madam forbade him to come today. He cried and made a scene in the Front Courtyard.

Lu Zhengliu's nose is still bruised and swollen, and he refuses to come to the inner quarters to see anyone, not even the Old Madam.

Nothing is ever easy for me!

Old Madam Lu went to the Small Buddhist Shrine to offer incense to Buddha, praying for Buddha's blessing so that the Lu family could overcome the difficulties.

"Young Madam, you should go to sleep too."

After seeing Lu Chang'gong off, Ping Ye helped Lin Yunwan to bed.

Lin Yunwan was a little tired, so she washed up and went to bed.

The two maids, Ping Ye and Tao Ye, were somewhat uneasy.

Before lowering the bed curtains, Lin Yunwan asked Ping Ye, "What's wrong?"

Ping Ye sat down and said, "Young Madam, what if the Old Madam secretly brings her Concubine directly to the gate of the Duke Xingguo's Residence, and the two sides become related, but she doesn't give you Divorce Deed?"

Lin Yunwan smiled and said, "It's been twenty years, and countless people have come to claim kinship with us."

Even if Concubine Ge and the Duke Xingguo and his wife looked exactly alike, they might not dare to recognize her.

"Unless there is a token."

Twenty years have passed. Can it be clearly stated whether the Duke Xingguo's Residence values kinship or an obsession with finding their daughter? If it's just an obsession, they would doubt the daughter even if she didn't conform to their expectations, let alone if there were no tokens.

Lin Yunwan closed her eyes, and Ping Ye and Tao Ye went to trim the candle wick.

The next day, Nanny Yan entered the inner courtyard early in the morning, looking rather unwell, just as Lin Yunwan had suspected.

"Old Madam, the people from the Duke Xingguo's Residence are so arrogant they've got eyes on their eyebrows!"

Indeed, there have been too many people impersonating others at the door over the years. The servants guarding the gate of the Duke Xingguo's Residence can't be bothered to pay any attention to anything related to the missing young lady.

Old Madam Lu curled into a slight smile.