boyutpedia Chapter 72 I never imagined I would go to this extent for her.
Chapter 72 I never imagined I would go to this extent for her.
Jiang Man recognized the voice as Wen Yin's.
When did Wen Yin recognize Xiao Hengzhi?
Could it be the banquet the Wen family hosted last time?
She asked directly, "When did Miss Biao San and Xiao Hengzhi become acquainted?"
Wen Yin stretched out her finger, lifted the sedan curtain, glanced at her disdainfully, and said, "Miss Jiang, last time you kicked open my door, I only let it go because of him. Today I'm here to see him, why are you making such a fuss with me?"
Jiang Wan smiled and said softly, "It's just a pity that Xiao Hengzhi is not at home recently."
"Not here?" Wen Yin frowned slightly. "Then when will he return?"
"I don't know."
Wen Yin waved her hand impatiently, and handed over a letter with a hint of disappointment: "Never mind, since he's not here, just give this to him for me."
Jiang Mian took the letter, her gaze falling on the three large characters on the envelope—"Letter to You".
Her hand paused; this was a letter from a woman to her beloved.
Is Wen Yin interested in Xiao Hengzhi? But isn't she engaged to the Empress Dowager's grandson?
Noticing Jiang Wan's hesitation, Wen Yin chuckled, with a hint of teasing, "Are you sure you can trust Miss Jiang with this letter? Don't let it end up not reaching him in the end."
Jiang Mian forced a smile and replied, "How could that be? Since it's someone else's letter, I'm bound to give it to them."
She turned around and said, "Yuemei, put this letter in Xiao Hengzhi's room."
Yuemei took the letter inside. Jiang Mian wanted to ask a few more questions, but when she looked up, she saw that Wen Yin's carriage had already started moving. She quickly grabbed the maid behind her and asked, "Isn't Miss Yuemei engaged to the Empress Dowager's grandson? Isn't it presumptuous of her to meet with an outsider like this?"
The maid replied, "Miss Jiang, you may not know, but some time ago, the Third Miss was serving the Empress Dowager every day. Perhaps the Empress Dowager saw that she was all alone and couldn't bear it, so she canceled the marriage."
"Then why did you come to see Xiao Hengzhi so soon? And why this little gesture to express your feelings?"
The maid covered her mouth and chuckled, whispering, "He took the initiative to show goodwill to the Third Miss. He even said he was willing to wait for my young lady."
After the maid finished speaking, she quickly followed the carriage.
Jiang Mian stood there in astonishment, hardly believing her ears.
Xiao Heng was handsome, and many women had expressed their feelings for him in the past, but he never responded in the slightest, not even sparing a glance.
I never expected him to be so proactive with Wen Yin...
Stepping into the backyard, she inadvertently caught a glimpse of Xiao Hengzhi's bedroom. The door was open, as simple and solemn as ever. Only the letter on the table stood out like a nail.
Jiang Mian stopped in her tracks, her gaze falling on the letter, and she couldn't help but wonder: What would be written in the letter?
Was it Wen Yin expressing her feelings, or had the two secretly exchanged love letters?
She felt her mind churning, and her feet moved slowly toward the door as if out of control.
Just as I was about to step inside, the white cat darted under the cabinet, its fur bristling as if it had seen something terrifying, arching its back and emitting a low warning growl.
Jiang Mian hurried into the house, and the white cat jumped into her arms, burying its head in her arms and trembling.
She looked around. The room was quiet and still, with nothing in sight. The letter was placed neatly on the table.
Jiang Mian gently stroked the white cat to soothe it, but her gaze was drawn to the letter on the table. She hesitated before walking over and placing her finger on the envelope.
She still found it hard to believe. Xiao Hengzhi actually liked Wen Yin; did he want to become the Wen family's son-in-law?
Or did she climb up to the Wen family after being kicked out by her?
She always felt he wasn't that kind of person, but her mind wouldn't stop racing. She felt as if her heart was being squeezed tightly, and even her breathing became shallow and labored.
Open it, or not?
She struggled with the decision for a long time before finally taking a deep breath and putting the letter back. Now that he had left the Jiang residence, what he did next was no longer her concern.
"It's no longer any of my business..."
As if convincing herself, she hugged the white cat, turned around, and left the room.
The next day, Jiang Mian went out for a stroll as usual.
As winter approaches in the capital, the streets are filled with the aroma of delicious food, with vendors selling roasted sweet potatoes and chestnuts.
Jiang Mian strolled along, feeling a pang of emotion. Ever since Xiao Hengzhi left, time had seemed to pass by incredibly slowly.
She had previously investigated Zuiyin Tower on her own, but to no avail. After Zuiyin Tower reopened, not only were the owners and servants completely replaced, but the rules had also become increasingly strict. She tried several times, but was turned away at the door each time.
The court seemed particularly busy. Ning Zhi had sent several letters to greet her, saying he would visit her when he had time. For the Crown Prince to send her letters about his daily life was quite unusual.
Based on Jiang Wan's understanding of Ning Zhi, he had already extended his hand to her, waiting only for her response. However, with the Empress protecting Chi Yu, if she went to Ning Zhi's side now, she could at most become a concubine.
She had to find an opportunity to force Ning Zhi to choose her over Chi Yu.
But Jiang Mian knew that the court had been extremely busy lately. She heard from her father that the Grand Tutor had thoroughly investigated the Third Prince's affairs, and the Emperor, in a fit of rage, had begun to purge the court officials, thoroughly investigating all of the Third Prince's subordinates, implicating countless people.
She doesn't know how long she'll have to wait to see Ning Zhi again.
As she was pondering this, Jiang Wan suddenly saw a familiar face—
A woman dressed simply, slightly overweight, but whose face looked very familiar, brushed past me.
Jiang Mian turned around and softly called, "A-Yun?"
The woman in front stopped and turned to look at her: "Did you call me?"
Jiang Wan's eyes lit up with joy as she stepped forward: "It really is you!"
"Who is the girl?"
"You forgot that I was kidnapped on that ship before?"
A-Yun pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized, "So it was you! You're from the capital?"
Jiang Wan nodded, then looked at A Yun's waist, which had become much thicker, and she was no longer the young girl she had seen a few months ago.
She asked again, "How did you get here? Did Zuiyin Tower let you out?"
Ah Yun chuckled and said, "Once the work is finished, it will naturally come out."
Jiang Wan was a little puzzled and asked tentatively, "Work? You said that everyone on the ship went voluntarily. What are they going to do?"
Ah Yun hesitated for a moment, then shook her head: "It's a long story, but anyway, it's just working inside, and you get paid... You're not still investigating, are you?"
Jiang Mian gave a soft "hmm": "It was very strange that I was kidnapped in the first place. If it was my enemy who kidnapped me, then they have not laid a hand on me since then. But if it wasn't my enemy, then when I went to investigate Zuiyin Tower, a fire broke out inexplicably."
“Ah Yun, if you can tell me, please tell me a thing or two.”
She looked at her earnestly, and after a moment, A-Yun took a deep breath and said with great difficulty, "Actually, I don't know the specifics either, but I heard that it is related to the royal family, and it seems to be... a prince."
Jiang Mian frowned: "A prince? But I have no grudge against any of the princes in the court, so why are you binding me?"
A-Yun smiled and casually said, "Didn't you say you were a daughter of an official? Maybe they want to kidnap you and then frame someone else? Isn't that how it is in the stories about princes fighting each other?"
Jiang Mian pondered her words, remaining silent for a long time.
There were four princes in the court. The fourth prince was still young and being raised in the inner palace, the second prince was bedridden and usually resided in Huangchuan. That left only Ning Zhi and the third prince.
If what A-Yun said is true, the most likely scenario is that the Third Prince secretly attacked her in order to prevent Ning Zhi from winning over the Jiang family, intending to frame Ning Zhi.
But even though Ning Zhi thoroughly investigated the Third Prince in his previous life, he never found Zuiyin Tower.
Ah Yun's words seemed to be deliberately leading her to think that way.
She had a vague feeling that something was wrong.
Did A-Yun really hear it, or was she instructed by someone to deliberately frame the Third Prince?
Seeing that she remained silent, A-Yun spoke again: "I don't understand politics, so don't take it too seriously."
Jiang Mian snapped out of her thoughts and smiled, "It's alright. Anyway, I can't get into Zuiyin Tower, so if I can't find out, I won't bother."
After they finished speaking, they said goodbye with smiles.
A-Yun watched her gradually disappear into the street, then quickly returned to Zuiyin Tower.
In the hall on the third floor, A-Yun entered with her head bowed: "Your Highness, I have conveyed your message to Miss Jiang as you instructed. Judging from her appearance, she should not pursue the matter any further."
"Well, back off."
"Yes." A-Yun stepped back quietly.
The person at the window took a sip of tea and casually asked, "Lu Fang, do you think she believes it?"
"Your Highness, I believe Miss Jiang is intelligent enough that she might not believe..."
Ning Zhi chuckled and said, "I know she won't believe me, so what I need to do now is to make her believe me."
"Your Highness, I do not understand what you mean."
"This Drunken Sound Pavilion has been around for quite a while, and I'm getting a bit tired of it. Pass the word down, there's no need to change owners next month."
Lu Fang looked up, his face showing surprise, and said, "Your Highness, are you going to close down Zuiyin Tower? Just to stop Miss Jiang from investigating further?"
Ning Zhi did not answer, but only smiled self-deprecatingly and shook his head slightly.
He admitted that he was not a pure-hearted person and had used many people to get closer to power. He had never truly cared about human relationships or family ties.
He never imagined he would go to such lengths for a woman.
But with Jiang Wan, he wanted to do exactly that, and he didn't want her to see his dark side.