Jiang Xingyan narrowed her eyes.
Little Ya, held in her arms, also narrowed her eyes.
Yuan Chunfeng and Huo Ci simultaneously felt their hearts sink.
Oh no!
They were about to be found out!
Yuan Chunfeng even found a spare moment to感慨: Little Ya was the spitting image of the young mistress when she was a child.
Huo Ci racked his brains but couldn’t come up with an excuse.
Suddenly, a figure swayed before them. When they looked closely, Yuan Chunfeng was pale as a ghost and had fainted, collapsing to the ground.
Huo Ci: “…”
Since when did he have such a convenient illness?
Jiang Xingyan was stunned for a moment, concern quickly replacing her suspicion. “State Preceptor, you—”
“It’s nothing, General Huo. This humble one merely performed a divination to ascertain the cause of the hauntings in the main residence,” Yuan Chunfeng said weakly, managing to sit up slightly. “I also temporarily sealed the vengeful spirit away. It simply consumed a bit too much of my cultivation energy, leaving me somewhat frail. A night’s rest will suffice for recovery.”
Huo Ci: ?
Since when did you do all that?
Weren’t you the one who said you didn’t understand exorcism?
Hah?
You just make things up as you go along, how utterly presumptuous of you!
Seeing Brother Yun’s weak state, Jiang Xingyan’s heart ached with pity. He was one of the very few relatives she had left in this world.
“Then let me help the State Preceptor back to his room to rest.”
Yuan Chunfeng shook his head, stubbornly pushing himself up from the ground unaided. He clutched his chest and coughed twice. “Thank you for your concern, General, but this humble one can manage. I wouldn’t wish to trouble you. You rushed here in haste, surely deeply worried about Lady Huo. Your filial piety is truly rare in this world. I dare not delay you any further; I shall take my leave.”
Huo Ci: Wonderful, just wonderful. Even as you leave, you still have to set me up, is that it?
Just aim straight for my weak spots, why don’t you? No one’s better at that than you.
Yuan Chunfeng gave a slight nod, bypassed Jiang Xingyan, and leaning on the corridor pillars for support, he staggered, step by unsteady step, towards the subsidiary courtyard. Several times along the way, he seemed on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, startling Jiang Xingyan into taking a few hurried steps forward. But each time, seeing him grasp a pillar and stubbornly right himself, she stopped.
She watched his figure until he disappeared around the corner of the corridor, only then turning to face Huo Ci, her expression instantly turning frosty.
Huo Ci: It’s over.
Suddenly, Yuan Chunfeng peeked his head out from the opposite corridor, offering Huo Ci a faint smile that clearly said, ‘Enjoy the show.’
Just as Huo Ci thought about pointing him out to Jiang Xingyan, Yuan Chunvanished again in an instant.
Huo Ci: Fine, brother, you really hold a grudge.
Is it just because A’Yan said a few more words to me? Was it necessary to land me in such a dire situation?
Jiang Xingyan had pretty much figured it out by now.
In the first few days after the soul swap, her mind had been completely occupied with how to escape her mother-in-law’s clutches with her four maids, Chun, Xia, Qiu, and Dong, and how to reclaim her shops. She had let herself be fooled by Yuan Chunfeng and Huo Ci working together.
Brother Yun was six years older than her. When she traveled north from Jiangnan, she was twelve. If she could recognize Brother Yun, how could he possibly not recognize her?
And as for Huo Ci, while he might be foolishly loyal and filial, his character was decent. Even towards the most detestable eunuchs, he never openly broke relations, so why would he proactively antagonize the esteemed State Preceptor? It must have been Brother Yun picking fights with him because he found him disagreeable, forcing Huo Ci to retaliate.
Considering Xin Zhui’s behavior, it was clear the two of them were at odds like fire and water. How could they possibly work together as calmly as they had these past two days?
Therefore, from the day Yuan Chunfeng gave her those military strategy books, he had already known that the person inside Huo Ci’s body had changed.
Thinking back now, all of Yuan Chunfeng’s praises for Huo Ci had been deliberately backhanded compliments, while his comments towards her showed a deeper appreciation for her inner qualities.
How could Jiang Xingyan not understand now?
“You… you’ve been in cahoots all along?”
Huo Ci, who knew all about deception in warfare, couldn’t tell a single lie to Jiang Xingyan. He hung his head, the tips of his ears red, using silence to confirm her question.
Jiang Xingyan let out a cold laugh. “Good… very good. Everyone keeping things from me. Just keep hiding things, that’s just fine.”
Huo Ci grew frantic, explaining incoherently, “N-no, it’s not like that, A’Yan, I—”
“Enough, what is there to say? It’s not like I had any expectations of you anyway. You always side with others, that’s all there is to it.”
Huo Ci felt like crying. That one sentence made him acutely aware of the difference between his and Yuan Chunfeng’s places in Jiang Xingyan’s heart. She had high expectations of Yuan Chunfeng; she subconsciously believed he would side with her. With him, it was the exact opposite.
Huo Ci had no way to defend himself.
He had made his bed, and now he must lie in it.
He was finally experiencing the profound truth of that saying.
“A’niang, don’t be angry. Little Ya won’t lie to you.”
Jiang Xingyan’s heart instantly melted.
“That’s right, Mother still has Little Ya.” She nuzzled Little Ya’s nose, held her close, and walked towards the main residence.
Huo Ci, streaming tears: You’re really your father’s good daughter, aren’t you? Absolutely unparalleled in tripping your father up!
Little Ya, clinging to Jiang Xingyan’s neck, snorted at Huo Ci and stuck out her tongue, making a face.
Bad Father! Serves you right!
Arriving at the main residence, Jiang Xingyan saw the scene was largely undisturbed, still guarded by the servants. The bloody handprint on the main room’s window frame was particularly striking.
Jiang Xingyan wondered to herself: Could it really be Jinzhu who’s back?
Should I notify Yinzhu to come over and face her doom too?
With these thoughts, she stepped into the main room and immediately spotted a figure bundled up in quilts on the bed.
Baozhu started trembling the moment she saw ‘Huo Ci,’ but she didn’t forget the Old Madam’s instructions. Steeling herself, she stepped forward, knelt with a thud, and respectfully presented a golden nanmu wood box to ‘Huo Ci.’
“Young General, the Old Madam instructed this servant to give this to you.”
Hearing that ‘Huo Ci’ had come, Old Madam Huo quickly poked her head out from under the covers. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes filled with panic, several bloodshot veins starkly visible.
“Ci’er, you’ve finally come to see your mother.”
The Old Madam, who usually carried herself with the elegance of a noble old matron, was nowhere to be seen in this disheveled state.
Jiang Xingyan instinctively curled the corner of her mouth upwards, then quickly covered it with a lightly clenched fist, disguising her smile.
“Honored Mother, no matter what, you have the immense grace of giving birth to and raising this son. How could this son possibly neglect you?”
Huo Ci, who had just caught up, heard this and nearly choked.
A’Yan imitated him so well, it made his position incredibly difficult.
Old Madam Huo forced out two old tears with great effort. “My son, Mother knew you were filial. These past few days, someone must have been whispering nonsense to you, trying to drive a wedge between us, mother and child.”
Jiang Xingyan’s face immediately fell.
You old hag, why don’t you just name names directly?
Huo Ci felt numb.
Everyone was pushing him towards a dead end!
“Mother, what is it that Nanny Baozhu has given to this son?”
Old Madam Huo wiped the remaining tears from the corner of her eye. “Ci’er, your mother was a bit impatient the other day and said many things I shouldn’t have. Those weren’t my true intentions, Ci’er, you mustn’t take them to heart. Mother thought it over and still believes that the Huo residence should be managed by a member of the Huo family. There’s no war now, Ci’er, you should oversee the household more. With the servants in the residence being replaced, it’s a time when funds are needed. This is your mother’s savings; take them and use them. Your mother only asks that you hire a highly skilled master adept at exorcising ghosts and evil spirits to disperse the soul of that vengeful spirit, so it can no longer stir up trouble and plague the living. In this way, it would be like eliminating a scourge for the people, and your mother could then rest easy.”
With every sentence the Old Madam spoke, Huo Ci’s head drooped lower, and Jiang Xingyan’s lips curled further in disdain.
Clearly, she’s just terrified the vengeful ghost will come for her life, yet she dresses it up in such high-sounding words, really knows how to make herself look good.
Jiang Xingyan opened the box. Inside lay a thick stack of banknotes, each one denominated at ten thousand taels. By a rough estimate, there were several hundred of them.
Well now, looks like there’s an unexpected windfall.