Chapter 511 - 302: Eldest Sister, What About Chen Yu?
Chapter 511: Chapter 302: Eldest Sister, What About Chen Yu?
Chen Yi would inevitably have to ask a few routine questions.
After washing up, he changed into a brand-new profound-colored brocade robe, fastened a jade belt around his waist, and hung a sachet from it. He checked his reflection in the copper mirror. Although he couldn’t exactly be called a breathtakingly handsome man, his looks were certainly above average. Coupled with his unhurried and elegant demeanor, describing him as "handsome" wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Smoothing down the hair at his temples, Chen Yi revealed a gentle smile. "Madam, it has been a long time. Your husband—cough, cough..."
He had almost forgotten. With Xiao Jinghong’s Upper Three Grades cultivation, her hearing could probably cover the entire Dingyuan Marquis’s Mansion.
Outside the door, Xiaodie heard the noise. "Mr. Chen, are you ready?"
"I’m ready."
Chen Yi pushed the door open and stepped out. As he led her toward Jiaxing Garden, he checked today’s intelligence. Upon seeing the contents, his steps faltered.
[Daily Intelligence · Profound-rank Top Grade: At a quarter past noon, at the Governor’s Office, Duke Dingyuan Xiao Yuan will show up to demand an explanation from Liu Hong, the Left Governor of Shu State. A minor opportunity can be obtained.]
Demand an explanation? After a brief moment of thought, Chen Yi understood.
The fact that Xiao Jinghong hadn’t accompanied the Old Master to see Liu Hong meant that the Xiao family was not yet ready to take Liu Hong down. For the Old Master to go in person this time, it was likely to stabilize the grain prices in the Shu State Prefecture City.
"It seems the Old Master still knows how to prioritize," he thought. "Taking care of the Ji State Trading Company first is currently the best course of action."
Originally, Chen Yi had planned to find another opportunity to remind the Old Master to reassure the people of Shu State. He hadn’t expected the Old Master to be completely unaffected by Xiao Wan’er’s kidnapping yesterday and instead head straight to the Governor’s Office.
In that case, Chen Yi needed to speed things up as well.
At the very least, he first had to confirm whether Lin Zhenghong and the others had resold the grain to Cui Qingwu. He also had to notify Zhang Dabao as soon as possible to toss out the merchants who had been knocked out by the Immortal Drunk. And Liu Lang...
With this in mind, Chen Yi quickened his pace and hurried to Jiaxing Garden. Before he even stepped into the wooden building’s parlor, he heard Xiao Jinghong’s voice coming from inside.
"Wan’er, what do you think of this ’Chen Yu’?"
Chen Yi’s heart skipped a beat, and his raised foot nearly missed the step. He wondered why his wife was asking about that. She... she couldn’t be thinking what he thought she was, could she? Wasn’t the Old Master enough? Now even Xiao Jinghong was stepping in to persuade Xiao Wan’er to marry "Chen Yu"?
No, no, no.
Without overthinking or waiting for Xiao Wan’er to reply, Chen Yi stepped around the privacy screen, swept his gaze over the people inside, and bowed with a smile. "Forgive me. I went to bed a bit late yesterday, so I slept in this morning."
As he spoke, his gaze drifted past Xiao Wan’er and landed on Xiao Jinghong. He greeted her with a smile, "Madam, when did you get back?"
Xiao Wan’er breathed a sigh of relief. Not waiting for Xiao Jinghong to speak, she raised a hand to motion for Chen Yi to sit down. "Jinghong returned last night."
"Husband, I came back last night," Xiao Jinghong echoed.
She was not wearing her half-armor mask at the moment. Even bare-faced, her beauty rivaled that of Xiao Wan’er. She had slender eyes that tilted slightly upward at the corners, a delicate nose, full lips, and skin as flawless and radiant as white jade. She was absolutely breathtaking, radiating a faint air of valiant heroism.
"Oh," Chen Yi replied. He took a seat beside her and asked familiarly, "How many days will you be staying this time, Madam?"
Chen Yu this, Chen Yu that—he dared not steer the conversation back toward that fabricated persona.
Xiao Jinghong paused, a trace of apology appearing on her face. "Please forgive me, Husband. I came back this time for Wan’er’s sake.
"But now that I see she is safe and sound, I need to hurry back to the Wu Mountain Mutual Market. It will still take a few more days to complete the construction there."
"So soon?"
Chen Yi frowned inwardly, sensing that something was slightly off. He knew full well that the Old Master had recalled Xiao Jinghong not just to rescue Xiao Wan’er, but for the even more important matter concerning Liu Hong. Even if the Old Master could handle the situation alone, Xiao Jinghong shouldn’t be leaving the Prefecture City this early. At the very least, she ought to stay and investigate.
Unless... it was a ruse to slip away unnoticed? That was highly likely.
With these thoughts in mind, Chen Yi smiled and said, "You have a lot on your plate, Madam. It’s only right that you attend to your duties first."
Noticing from the corner of his eye that Xiao Wan’er looked slightly nervous, he continued, "Let’s talk while we eat. I’m getting a little hungry."
Xiao Jinghong naturally had no objections. In fact, she felt his relaxed, unreserved manner was exactly how he should act.
Hearing this, Xiao Wan’er breathed a sigh of relief and invited them to begin their breakfast. "Jinghong, I didn’t know you were coming back, so I didn’t tell the kitchen to prepare your favorite cold-sliced mutton."
"It’s fine. This is more than enough."
Chen Yi also let out a breath of relief. Picking up a steamed bun from the table and taking a bite, he began chatting about recent events. After guiding Xiao Jinghong to comfort Xiao Wan’er, he smoothly shifted the topic to the grain prices in Shu State and matters concerning Guiyun Academy.
"The Annual Examination begins in ten days. If my results are poor, I hope you won’t laugh at me, Madam," Chen Yi said.
"I wouldn’t dare."
Xiao Jinghong didn’t say she ’wouldn’t,’ but rather ’wouldn’t dare.’ Her tone carried absolutely no hint of treating Chen Yi as merely a live-in son-in-law of the Xiao family. Instead, her demeanor was simply that of a proper, legally wedded wife. "Furthermore, with your talent and knowledge, Husband, passing the Annual Examination won’t be a problem at all."
Xiao Wan’er nodded in agreement. "Jinghong is right. Chen Yi has been studying very hard lately.
"Not only has he read through all the historical classics, but he also specifically asked for past Annual Examination papers to study diligently."
"Is that so?" A trace of amusement flashed in Xiao Jinghong’s beautiful eyes as she turned her head to look at Chen Yi. "Since you are working so hard, Husband, the Annual Examination will be even less of an issue."
Meeting her gaze, Chen Yi smiled and nodded. "Thank you for the vote of confidence, Madam."
Exchanging a glance, the two of them tacitly focused on eating their steamed buns.
Taking in their expressions, Xiao Wan’er felt an inexplicable wave of complex emotions well up inside her. Bitterness, guilt, apprehension, and nervousness mingled together, prompting her to silently lower her head.
Taking small, absentminded bites of her breakfast, her thoughts drifted far away, to the point where she completely tuned out the sounds around her.