Chapter 298: Return to the General's Manor, Prepare to Settle with Mother

Li Qingluo worried all day yesterday, not knowing why her master was delayed this long.

She feared her request would implicate Nan Gongdi.

"Master isn't hurt, is he? I'll go take a look."

Deng Mama: "Don't worry, Mr. Nangong is fine. However, he came back alone."

Didn't catch Zheng Wanxiu?

Or... Zheng Wanxiu escaped?

Or perhaps the Dharma Protector captured by the Lotus Sect is Zheng Wanxiu?

I heard another one was killed.

Li Qingluo suddenly felt a bit nervous.

If Zheng Wanxiu dies, Li Jingchuan probably won't wait for the Luo Shen Doctor to save him before he passes.

She walked outside.

Hearing Deng Mama say again: "I heard the Dharma Protector captured by the Lotus Sect will be hanged at the city gate tomorrow."

Li Qingluo: "That fast?"

Deng Mama: "It is said the Emperor himself passed the judgment."

Li Qingluo: "Is this to intimidate the deposed crown prince, or to lure out more Lotus Sect followers in the city...?"

Just don't know if those Lotus Sect followers will fall for it.

Moreover, this is indeed an excellent opportunity to deal a heavy blow to the Lotus Sect.

However, Prince Su personally handed over this opportunity to achieve great merit to the crown prince, obviously because he has his own deeper considerations.

Li Qingluo stopped thinking about it, and had already arrived outside Nan Gongdi's residence.

"By the way, what does East Yin Alley want grandmother to do?"

Li Qingluo really wasn't at ease: "Grandmother refused, right?"

Deng Mama: "The Old Lady... said she wants to go."

Li Qingluo halted her steps: "What? Grandmother... what does this mean?"

She still has to go back to the General's Manor!?

Could it be that, seeing Li Chao Jing's current state, she has softened again?

Li Qingluo felt a sudden headache, and Nan Gongdi's voice came from inside: "Luo'er, come in?"

Li Qingluo walked into the courtyard and saw Nan Gongdi with the upper half of his outer robe tied at his waist, his inner shirt completely drenched in sweat; it turned out he had just been practicing punches, his whole body so hot that even his hair strands were dripping with water.

"Luo'er greets Master."

After Li Qingluo performed the salute, she personally poured a cup of tea for Nan Gongdi.

"As long as Master returns safely, that's fine; Luo'er truly worried something might have happened to you."

Nan Gongdi took the teacup and smiled: "Afraid Master might die? Hahaha, rest assured, none of these people are a match for Master."

"I merely went to help Prince Su with a matter on the way."

"As for the matter you asked me to handle, I have already taken care of it."

"This person is being held in another small residence under your grandmother's name; I even brought the Luo Shen Doctor to examine that woman, and her injuries are not serious."

Only now did Li Qingluo truly confirm that the captured person was Zheng Lingzhou!

I heard the Lotus Sect has four Dharma Protectors; Zheng Lingzhou is one, Zheng Wanxiu is another, and last night in the chaos at Jingyun Shan Zhuang, it is said one protector was killed, one captured, and one fled.

The one who died was not Zheng Lingzhou; Li Qingluo had already inquired about this from Prince Su.

The one who fled is the Zheng Wanxiu that Master took away.

Another is the mysterious small boss of the gambling house that Qin Yu previously impersonated.

So, the remaining captured person can only be Zheng Lingzhou!

Li Qingluo inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief: "Luo'er thanks Master."

After bidding farewell to Nan Gongdi, Li Qingluo hurried over to Pei Lao Furen's place.

Just as she reached the gate of the courtyard, she bumped straight into Pei Lao Furen, who was about to go out.

"Grandmother, where are you going?"

Pei Lao Furen glared at Deng Mama behind Li Qingluo and said: "Old Deng, your heart is now solely for Luo'er? You've followed me all these years for nothing."

Deng Mama blushed: "Old Lady, I merely didn't want the young lady to find out about this afterward and then have to rush back to the General's Manor in a panic—what could be done?"

Pei Lao Furen snorted.

Pei Lao Furen looked at Li Qingluo with a bad complexion and said: "Rest assured, grandmother is not indecisive; she has already suffered enough from the Li family in earlier years and will not be foolish again."

Li Qingluo: "Then what will you do upon returning?"

Pei Lao Furen sighed and gestured toward Zhang Mama behind her.

Zhang Mama immediately presented a box; Li Qingluo opened it and found several letters inside.

Li Qingluo casually opened one letter, and its content and signature shocked her greatly.

"The Jiang family!? Grandmother, what do they intend to do?"

Seeing Li Qingluo's expression, Pei Lao Furen couldn't help but raise her eyebrows: "It seems you indeed already knew about this."

Li Qingluo slowly folded the paper, knelt, and admitted: "Grandmother, Luo'er indeed already knew about the Jiang family's matter."

"Luo'er kept it from grandmother because she didn't want grandmother to worry, and had already prepared herself for grandmother to blame her if she learned the truth."

Pei Lao Furen reached out and pulled her up.

"Silly child, how could grandmother blame you?"

"That day, your father, due to the Jiang family's threats, tacitly allowed the Qu family to poison me, even intending to drag to death his mother, my life; if it weren't for you bringing grandmother out to fight, grandmother wouldn't be alive today."

"Grandmother's return this time is to thoroughly clean up the dirty affairs within the household's inner quarters, and deal with that couple of wolf-hearted, dog-lunged scoundrels!"

Grandmother doesn't want you to know, and also doesn't want you to be implicated. After all, you are their legitimate eldest daughter; if the world finds out you're also involved, they will surely implicate you!

Moreover, if the Jiang affair is reported to the emperor, Dong Yin Alley will likely not escape having the whole household confiscated and exterminated... How could we grandmother and grandchild possibly escape safely?

Pei Lao Furen shook her head and sighed.

Two days ago, after learning the sordid truth about the Jiang family and Li Chao Jing, Pei Lao Furen even vomited a mouthful of blood from anger.

This matter was also ordered to keep the entire household, both high and low, concealed from Li Qingluo.

She never imagined that her beast-like son would obtain his military merits and the position of General through such disgraceful means!

Not to mention his Li family, even she, the still-living illustrious General, feels ashamed!

Seeing Pei Lao Furen so distressed, Li Qingluo couldn't help but redden her eyes.

"Grandmother, I am unfilial, causing you to worry about me in everything. However, this matter..."

Li Qingluo was about to advise her grandmother to endure a few more days when news came from the front courtyard that someone had been sent by the master of Guiyuan to help.

Li Qingluo: "People from Guiyuan?"

Isn't that just someone sent by Prince Su?

Li Qingluo had the person hurry in; the visitor was an unfamiliar middle-aged man who, upon seeing her, immediately stepped forward to pay his respects: "I am Dong Siyuan, I have paid my respects to Pei Lao Furen and to Miss Li."

Li Qingluo: "Please rise, sir; I don't know who you are..."

Dong Siyuan: "I am acting under the Prince's order to come treat a young lady in your manor. I heard this young lady has been poisoned? Coincidentally, I come from MiaoJiang and am quite knowledgeable about MiaoJiang medical arts."

"If the young lady trusts me, perhaps I can go take a look."

Li Qingluo's heart instantly filled with delight.

I knew Duan Rongshi would certainly not stand by and do nothing about this; sure enough, he still hides such a capable aide under his command.

Li Qingluo personally led Dong Siyuan to the Hudie courtyard.

She also dragged Pei Lao Furen along.

After all, Hudie and Pei Lao Furen share a relatively close blood relation; Hudie can be considered Pei Lao Furen's maternal niece, though not born of the main line, but the blood tie is indeed not insignificant.

After examining Hudie, Dong Siyuan sighed: "This young lady's body has indeed been poisoned. Moreover, I estimate that the poison has been present for quite some time."

"This time it erupted after accumulating due to internal injury. Although this poison is indeed vicious, I can try."

"Please, young lady, give me some time."

Li Qingluo: "Sir, rest assured, we will provide everything you need from the Xiuli Jiangjun Fu to the best of our ability."

Dong Siyuan clasped his hands in salute, and only then did Li Qingluo bring Pei Lao Furen out.

Seeing Hudie unconscious, pitiable, and constantly delirious, Pei Lao Furen let out a heavy sigh.

"My brother has been a confused fool for half his life; though he deserves death a thousand times, how innocent and pitiful Hudie is! Truly a sin!"

"Qingluo, if Hudie can survive this life-and-death ordeal, let me, grandmother, personally take her."

"Teach her from scratch, learn from scratch, and she will surely be able to live like a true person."

Li Qingluo smiled faintly: "All right, grandmother."

"However, Qingluo, you should now accompany me back to Dong Yin Alley."

"Li Qingluo had originally been worried about Hudie's matter, so she temporarily lacked the energy to tidy up Dong Yin Alley."

"But now Hudie's matter can be entrusted to Dong Siyuan with peace of mind, so this time she must personally accompany her grandmother back."

"Moreover, the accounts with the Qu family also need to be settled thoroughly!"

Li Qingluo summoned Zheng Mama and Deng Mama: "You two, hurry and each go help me with a matter..."

Li Qingluo also summoned Que'er: "There is one more thing; I only trust you to do it—go to Qingzhu Garden for me..."

After giving instructions to Que'er, Li Qingluo accompanied Pei Lao Furen out the door and boarded the carriage heading back to the Jiangjun Fu.

Dong Yin Alley.

The once bustling, guest-filled manor of the Piaojiang Great General, only a few months since last year's Mid-Autumn, has already undergone a complete transformation.

Now at the gate of the Jiangjun Fu, sparrows can be seen at the door, the courtyard is desolate, even the plaque is covered with a thin layer of dust; unnoticed, it has utterly declined into desolation.

It is said that Li Chao Jing's loss of sanity has already reached the court.

Moreover, people from the imperial palace have already come to scout the situation of the Jiangjun Fu; with Qu Shi's clumsy methods, they cannot possibly conceal the truth.

It is expected that the imperial edict stripping him of his office will soon be issued.

Perhaps before long, the plaque of this Jiangjun Fu will be thoroughly replaced.

"It's the Old Lady, the Eldest Miss has returned—Madam, it's the Old Lady and the Miss returning!"

The dozing servant at the gate heard the carriage's sound, opened his eyes and saw Li Qingluo and her grandmother; he immediately rushed inside happily, stumbling as he ran inward while shouting.

Li Qingluo supported her grandmother as they stood at the gate; shortly after, not only Qu Shi but also the people from the second and third branches hurried out to greet them.

Qu Shi's eyes brimmed with tears as she led the entire household to kneel: "Welcome back the Old Lady to the manor——"

Li Qingluo: "Look. Everyone in this manor, each one, looks upon the grandmother with such reverence and filial piety?"

In truth, not a single person's belly lacks foul water.

And this very mistress, full of stupidity and wickedness, has caused the deaths of who knows how many children in this manor, even plotting to poison her mother-in-law!

Li Qingluo's gaze fell coldly upon her.

Qu Shi lifted her head, yet her eyes were brimming with tears as she looked at her: "Qingluo…… you, you have finally returned."

"Mother misses you so much..."