Chapter 16: Can you protect him?

Facing the sharp blade in the official's hand, Lin Jiaojiao showed not a trace of fear. "Then, I ask you, does the Dali Temple have any explicit regulations stating that infants and young children cannot enter?" The official was quite honest, answering, "That, there is not."

Hearing the official say this, Lin Jiaojiao became even more emboldened. "That's it then. Since you suspect me of being a spy of a foreign race, then my son Pei Tiezhu could also be the offspring of a spy, shouldn't you investigate that thoroughly?"

The official felt his momentum wane, and instead felt that what Lin Jiaojiao said made sense, so he could only nod. "Yes, yes..."

Bai Zhi and Pei Zhaoyang, standing to the side, were dumbfounded. What kind of mother would drag her own child into a pit of fire!

Seeing Pei Zhaoyang about to dissuade her, Lin Jiaojiao spoke plainly to him. "Husband, I know you have always disliked the child Pei Tiezhu."

Pei Zhaoyang was exposed and felt somewhat guilty, defending himself weakly, "I don't..."

Lin Jiaojiao's tone was calm. "No need to defend yourself. Ask your own heart: every day you come to see me, have you looked at the child more than a few times? Even when I brought the child before you, there wasn't a trace of pity or love in your eyes for him."

Saying this, the slight good impression she had just formed of him vanished completely.

Even if he was a husband willing to protect her, he was not a good father, nor a good match. "The child may be a bit ugly, but he is your flesh and blood after all. A father shouldn't be like this. Even if his wife gave birth to a giant cockroach, a father should still praise his child for being excellent!"

As Lin Jiaojiao spoke, she remembered her father who had loved her boundlessly, and her eyes reddened. Her voice choked up, but her words became more forceful. "If I leave him in the mansion, can you protect him and keep him safe?"

Pei Zhaoyang was rendered speechless. It was true; compared to the chubby little son born to Wanqiu, he had let Lin Jiaojiao name Pei Tiezhu whatever she pleased. If he asked his own heart, he didn't even want to look at Pei Tiezhu, so how could he have considered how to keep him safe?

If not for Lin Jiaojiao's sake, he would have long since discarded this child with the strange appearance!

Lin Jiaojiao saw through Pei Zhaoyang's thoughts. "Therefore, I must protect the child's safety. Lord Song is impartial and incorruptible; he is a good man. I believe he will not frame an innocent child, nor will he use underhanded means against an infant."

The Dali Temple official, though not entirely agreeing with taking the child to the Dali Temple, agreed with Lin Jiaojiao's praise of Song Shijie. "Yes, Lord Song is impartial and incorruptible; he does not wrong the innocent, nor does he harm innocent children."

Seeing the official confirm Song Shijie's character, Lin Jiaojiao became even more determined to take Pei Tiezhu to the Dali Temple. "Bai Zhi, tell the wet nurse to bring the child over to me."

After Bai Zhi agreed, she went to call the wet nurse, Guo Shi, to bring the child over.

As soon as Guo Shi entered the room and saw Lin Jiaojiao, she remembered the ghost encounter from the previous night and felt a chill in her heart. She instinctively retreated two steps, but Lin Jiaojiao didn't allow for any argument, walking over to snatch the infant from her arms, then held her head high and said, "Let's go."

The official glanced at the child, his brows furrowing. He had truly never seen such an ugly infant; no wonder Pei Zhaoyang didn't want to look at the child.

"What is this—?" Guo Shi asked Bai Zhi in a low voice.

Bai Zhi explained the situation to Guo Shi in a whisper. Guo Shi immediately understood what had happened. No wonder Lin Jiaojiao had run to her room in the middle of the night; it was because she couldn't bear to part with the child!

She felt it was a pity to send such a small child to the Dali Temple, and having nursed him for these days, she could see that Tiezhu didn't cry or fuss and was a good baby. She actually gathered the courage to step forward. "Officer, I will go to the Dali Temple as well!"

The official truly found this strange. Usually, people avoided the Dali Temple like the plague, fearing any entanglement with it. But now, the concubine of the Pei Mansion wanted to take a child to the Dali Temple, and there was even a wet nurse who wasn't afraid of death wanting to follow!

"Do you really think the Dali Temple is some place you can just come and go as you please?"

"Even if we go to the Dali Temple, the concubine is still in her confinement period, and this child needs me to look after him," Guo Shi was a person of temperament, and she pointed at the Dali Temple men with her distinct village-woman voice. "Could it be that you group of men are going to look after the child?"

The official looked at the ugly baby with disgust. He was one hundred percent unwilling to look after this ugly doll!

In the end, he could only tacitly agree.

Bai Zhi hurriedly packed a bundle for the wet nurse to carry. Pei Zhaoyang saw them off to the main gate. Along the way, Lin Jiaojiao didn't even bother to pretend anymore. Several times, Pei Zhaoyang wanted to open his mouth to offer a few words of instruction, but one look from Lin Jiaojiao forced the words back down his throat.

When they reached the main gate, Song Shijie and his group from the Dali Temple were already waiting. Seeing his subordinates bringing not only Lin Jiaojiao but also an infant and a wet nurse, he didn't say much, just wore a sour face and ordered them to mount their horses and set off for the Dali Temple.

Having sent off the Dali Temple group and Lin Jiaojiao, Pei Zhaoyang felt empty inside. The words Lin Jiaojiao had just spoken still lingered in his ears, leaving him dazed: Was he truly not a good father?

He returned to the main hall in a state of dejection, only to find that the prepared meal had not been touched at all. It seemed the Dali Temple people truly looked down upon the Pei Mansion.

Pei Zhaoyang forced a bitter smile and drank alone. Just then, Li Guanjia came to report, "Master, the medicine from the Imperial Hospital has been delivered. Should we—"

Pei Zhaoyang was in a foul mood and waved his hand impatiently. "Leave the medicinal herbs for the house physician to handle!"

"Yes." Li Guanjia saw his master's poor complexion and retreated on his own to find the house physician, Liu Shouyi.

Liu Shouyi had just finished taking Su Wanqiu's pulse and had barely stepped out of the Jinxiu Garden when he was stopped by the steward. "Doctor Liu!" He answered and walked over. After listening to the steward's instructions, he prepared to get to work. As he turned, he glanced at the neighboring Jiaohua Garden; it was cold and desolate, with a gust of autumn wind sweeping through, causing yellow leaves to flutter down.

Liu Shouyi couldn't help but mutter in a low voice, "How quiet Concubine Lin is today."

Li Guanjia heard him mention the Jiaohua Garden and replied with a sour tone, "Can she be anything but quiet? She and the child, along with the wet nurse, have just been taken away by the Dali Temple. Now it's finally quiet, and we don't have to worry about ghosts anymore."

"What did you say?" Liu Shouyi opened his eyes wide in disbelief. "They were taken away by the Dali Temple?"