"Dongfang Heng, do you know where Shen Minghui went?" Shen Lixue made conversation, trying to bring Dongfang Heng to his senses. People with heart problems need to be very careful, otherwise they could die in their sleep at any time.
"The Prime Minister's residence has been sealed off, and Shen Minghui has taken Concubine Jin, Concubine Zhao, and Concubine Li to the post station!" Dongfang Heng's men had been paying close attention to every move of the Prime Minister's residence, and he knew Shen Minghui's whereabouts perfectly well.
"The post station?" Shen Lixue was taken aback, then realized that Shen Caiyun was Qin Junhao's woman and also Shen Minghui's daughter, Aunt Jin. It was reasonable for them to seek refuge with her when they were in trouble.
Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow: "Did Shen Caiyun take them in?" From childhood to adulthood, Shen Minghui had never cared much about Shen Caiyun, and she didn't have much affection for him either. When he was in a prestigious and high position, he never gave her a second glance. When he was demoted and in trouble, he actually went to her for help. Given her pride, it was not easy for her to rely on him.
"I rented a courtyard house for them to live in in the suburbs!" Dongfang Heng said casually, holding Chen Lixue's arm tightly without realizing it.
"Shen Caiyun is very filial!" The post station was for receiving envoys from other countries, and Shen Minghui could not stay there. Given that her father had never cared for her, it was already quite good that Shen Caiyun was able to rent a house to take care of them.
“That courtyard was rented using Shen Caiyun’s dowry, and she gave one-third of her dowry to Shen Minghui so he could use it for his old age!” Dongfang Heng raised an eyebrow. Shen Caiyun’s filial piety was also within limits.
Shen Lixue raised the corners of her mouth: "You mean, Shen Caiyun gave them the money and then left them to fend for themselves!"
“That’s right!” Dongfang Heng nodded with his eyes closed.
Shen Lixue smiled. That was still better than her. She hadn't given Shen Minghui a single tael of silver, and she was even holding onto the thing he cared about most.
Shen Lixue took out the emerald green Shen family heirloom jade pendant from her sleeve, gently pinching the red silk thread. Shen Minghui had always wanted this jade pendant back. Lin Qingzhu's jewelry had all been moved into the Zhanwang Mansion, so she didn't care about this jade pendant. Should she send it to him?
Dongfang Heng frowned deeply, a look of intense pain appearing on his handsome face. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. His heart had been aching all along. Just now, when he was holding Shen Lixue, the pain was slowly subsiding. Why did it suddenly start hurting so quickly again?
He coughed lightly a few times, a trace of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. His slightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open, and the emerald green Shen family heirloom came into view. His eyes narrowed, and he reached out to take the jade pendant: "This is the Shen family heirloom jade?"
“Yes!” Shen Lixue nodded. “It’s no longer useful to me. Do you think I should return it to Shen Minghui?”
“Shen Minghui is penniless and desperately needs money. If you give it back to him, he’ll have to pawn it anyway!” Dongfang Heng stuffed the jade pendant into Shen Lixue’s hand, his eyes filled with increasing pain. He had thought there was something wrong with the Shen family’s heirloom jade, but when he got it in his hand, the heartache didn’t lessen at all. He was wrong. How could an ordinary jade pendant cure a heart ailment?
An invisible force suddenly surged into Dongfang Heng's body through Shen Lixue, instantly reducing the intense pain in his heart by half.
Dongfang Heng was taken aback and looked down. Shen Lixue was holding the jade pendant, examining it over and over.
He grabbed the red rope and pulled the jade pendant away from Shen Lixue. The invisible force quickly receded, and his heart began to ache intensely. The moment he placed the jade pendant in Shen Lixue's hand, the force reappeared, and the pain instantly halved.
Dongfang Heng's sharp eyes narrowed slightly. Sure enough, it was the jade pendant that was the problem. The jade pendant belonged to the Shen family and could only be effective if it was in the hands of a member of the Shen family. "Li Xue, what Shen Minghui needs most is money. Why don't you give him some money to buy this jade pendant? The jade is of very good quality; it's a rare find!"
Shen Lixue shook her head: "There seems to be some secret in this jade pendant. Shen Minghui values it highly and may not sell it!"
Dongfang Heng closed his eyes. The jade pendant that could cure serious illnesses was a rare treasure in the world, and Shen Minghui was naturally reluctant to sell it.
Shen Lixue's eyes flickered as she put the jade pendant into her sleeve. "Shen Minghui has money and is living a fairly good life. I won't join in the fun for now. I'll return the jade pendant when he runs out of money and food, starves for seventy or eighty days, and is on the verge of death!"
Shen Minghui has been poisoned by a Gu, and he needs a lot of expensive medicinal herbs every day. His silver will soon be used up, and the days of freezing and starving for him are not far away.
Back then, when Lin Qingzhu carried Shen Lixue away from the fire, she had nothing but this jade pendant. She was physically weak, but she relied on her own perseverance to support herself and her daughter by embroidering and painting to sell.
Now, Shen Minghui, like Lin Qingzhu, is seriously ill, penniless, and homeless. This is retribution; he will pay back all the suffering Lin Qingzhu endured back then.
After Su Lie returned to the Duke of Wen's mansion, he immediately ordered his men to thoroughly search Ruan Chuqing's courtyard, inside and out, top to bottom, again and again. When they still couldn't find the Cuifen flower, they expanded the search area to include the woodshed, kitchen, guest rooms, and the rooms of the concubines and mistresses, but they still couldn't find the Cuifen flower.
Ruan Chuqing sat under the shade of a tree in the courtyard, slowly sipping her tea. Looking at Su Lie's increasingly gloomy face, her eyes were filled with contempt: "Duke Wen, have you found any Emerald Pink flowers?"
Su Lie suddenly looked up at Ruan Chuqing, his gaze sharp and cold like an arrow: "Don't be so smug, I will definitely find it!"
"Then you'd better hurry up and search. Look, the sun is setting in the west, it will be dark soon. I'm also a little sleepy and want to have dinner early and rest early!"
Ruan Chuqing spoke slowly, with a lazy air about her, which Su Lie interpreted as a silent provocation.
"Ruan Chuqing, I'm poisoned and will die soon, yet you show no concern whatsoever. You're leisurely thinking about having dinner and getting some rest. In your eyes, I'm not your husband at all. We've been married for over a decade, and your heart has always been set on the War King..."
"Shut up!" Touched on a sore spot, Ruan Chuqing's expression changed, and she smashed the teacup in her hand at Su Lie.
Su Lie neither dodged nor avoided the teacup, raising his hand to take it. Looking at Ruan Chuqing's gloomy face, he knew he had hit a nerve. He smiled coldly and continued his mockery:
"Just hearing the words 'War King' makes you so unsettled. It seems you still harbor feelings for him. Unfortunately, in the War King's heart, you are not even worth a single finger of Lin Qingzhu. Even though Lin Qingzhu is dead, she was once the most talented and beautiful woman in the capital. As for you, you are second to none. You will only ever be an unknown nobody!"
"Shut up!" Ruan Chuqing's face was terribly gloomy. She struck Su Lie with a sharp palm strike. He already knew she knew martial arts, so she no longer needed to hide it.
Su Lie did not back down and met the palm strike head-on. With a loud "bang!", the two palms collided in mid-air, releasing a strong shockwave that forced the maids and nannies to retreat four or five steps before they could regain their footing. Their faces were ashen, and their bodies trembled slightly.
"Your martial arts are truly impressive, but unfortunately, no matter how well you practice, Dongfang Shuo won't even glance at you!" Su Lie raised an eyebrow at Ruan Chuqing, his tone both mocking and sarcastic, a sharp glint in his eyes.
"Su Lie, don't push your luck!" Ruan Chuqing gritted her teeth, two raging flames rising deep in her eyes.
"What? You want to murder your husband? You don't have that kind of ability." Su Lie looked at Ruan Chuqing provocatively, a cruel smile playing on his lips.
“My wife, Ruan Chuqing, was incompetent in managing the household, which led to me being poisoned and on the verge of death. I was confined to the family temple for twenty years to reflect on my mistakes and was not allowed to have any maids to serve me!”
She never had feelings for him, so why should he spend money to support her? The exquisite room, the noble status, the supreme power—he would take back everything he had given her in the first place, and see how arrogant she would still be.
"Su Lie, leave some room for maneuver, so you can meet again in the future. Do you have to be so ruthless?" Ruan Chuqing's face was terribly gloomy. Locking her up in the family temple was an attempt to take away her power as the head of the household, make her lose face, and leave her with no place in the Duke of Wen's household.
The family temple hadn't been cleaned in a long time, and it was covered in dust and cobwebs, making it incredibly filthy. He forbade her from bringing maids in, wanting her to do everything herself. She was a noble lady from a prestigious family, the wife of the Duke of Wen, and for her to do the menial work of a third-class maid was clearly an insult to her.
"Ruan Chuqing, when you poisoned me, did you show any mercy?" Su Lie asked through gritted teeth.
Ruan Chuqing raised an eyebrow: "Su Lie, you haven't found any evidence. If you insist on doubting me, I have nothing to say. Since we hate each other so much, let's separate and go our separate ways!"
"Divorce? Don't even think about it! You are my lawfully wedded wife, Su Lie. You are a member of the Su family in life and in death!" She wanted to get close to the War King and marry him legitimately, but he would not let her have her way. Even in death, he would bury her body in the Su family's cemetery and not let her have any connection with the War King.
"I want a divorce!" Ruan Chuqing wouldn't be so humiliated as to be divorced; she wanted a divorce and to take control of the situation.
Su Lie smiled coldly and said arrogantly, "You have made a grave mistake. I'm sorry, but even if we want to divorce, you'll only be eligible after you've been punished!"
"Guards, take Madam to the family temple to reflect on her mistakes, and keep her under strict guard!" Su Lie only made her reflect on her mistakes because he couldn't find any evidence. If he found Cui Fenhua, he would definitely tear her to pieces.
"Su Lie, don't go too far!" Ruan Chuqing was furious when she saw several guards actually come forward to arrest her. The moment she struck out with her palm, she withdrew it. Although she was skilled in martial arts, she was no match for Su Lie. If they fought head-on, he would definitely be able to take her down. In her anger, he would cripple her martial arts, and then she would have no one to rely on.