The men in black immediately followed.
"Ji Wushang, we will meet again." Yiyun Shangcheng murmured, while Maria behind him was already bending down, as if she had something to say.
Ji Wushang felt he needed to get back to the manor quickly. Madam Bei, who was in the carriage, was very pale, with the gauze on her forehead still in place, and she was unconscious. Ji Wushang took care of her while looking outside, hoping to get back to the manor soon.
Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui barely slept and waited for dawn.
The rooster had crowed, and Ji Dingbei stood up and said, "Tian Kui, take fifty elite soldiers, all disguised as ordinary civilians. Come with me to search."
"Father, I'm going too!" Ji Tiankui looked at Ji Dingbei. "Father, you still have to go to court."
"It's alright." Ji Dingbei looked at Ji Tiankui. "If the Right Chancellor can plead illness, why can't your father?" After saying that, he left the courtyard.
After the troop mobilization was completed, Ji Dingbei gave instructions on some matters concerning the manor and then sent Ji Tiankui and the others out.
After getting dressed, Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan went to pay their respects to Madam Yuan.
The matriarch had just gotten up, washed, and was having breakfast. Seeing Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan arrive, dressed in plain clothes and wearing white flowers in their hair, she stared at them in surprise for a long time before finally saying, "You, what are you dressed like!" The matriarch was unaware that Ji Wushang and Madam Bei hadn't returned to the manor yesterday, so she knew nothing of these matters.
Aunt Bai stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Greetings to Madam Yuan." As she finished speaking, tears streamed down her face. Ji Meiyuan was also crying and unable to speak. She stepped forward and bowed to Madam Yuan as well, saying, "Meiyuan greets Grandmother."
"Get up, get up! What's going on?" The old lady looked at their extremely plain attire and felt uneasy, fearing that something had happened in the manor.
Aunt Bai said, "It's all my fault. If I hadn't failed to stop Madam and Miss from leaving the manor, this would not have happened!" As she spoke, she started crying again, wiping her tears with her handkerchief, but more tears fell.
The old lady couldn't sit up straight for a moment, but was fortunately supported by Granny Guo who was beside her. "Old Madam, be careful!" Granny Guo said kindly, and then said to Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan, "The old lady is not in good health. How can you come to pay your respects in such plain clothes? Go and change quickly!"
Aunt Bai looked at Granny Guo, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in her eyes, but it was quickly concealed by her pitiful appearance. "I didn't want this either, but such a big thing happened in the manor, so I had no choice but to... Alas..." Another sigh escaped her lips.
"Tell me everything!" the old lady said angrily. Why was she making her anxious when they wouldn't even tell her what was going on?
"Grandmother, Grandmother! My mother and eldest sister, they're probably... probably gone!" Ji Meiyuan cried out. "Didn't they go to the Right Prime Minister's residence with that Zhang Mama yesterday? Then they disappeared on their way back! They haven't come back yet! They must have encountered some villains on the way... been... been..."
Upon hearing this, the old lady felt dizzy and as if a knife had been plunged into her heart. Granny Guo exclaimed, "Oh no! Someone come quick!" The maids Xiao You and Xiao Min rushed in. Seeing the old lady struggling to breathe, Xiao You immediately brought a cup of tea. "Granny, let the old lady drink this!"
Xiao Min immediately rushed off to summon the doctor.
The matriarch took a sip of tea, looking as if she had aged half a century, then waved her hand, "No rush, no rush. My old bones can still hold up!"
Meanwhile, Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan were also scrambling around as if they were terrified. The old lady looked on and said, "You may all leave! Let the master and the eldest young master come to see me!"
"Yes." Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan bowed and responded, their smiles filled with joy. Just as they wanted, it would be best if they could infuriate the Old Madam!
Granny Guo immediately had the servants outside call Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui, and then helped the old lady into the inner room to rest.
Aunt Nangong and Ji Yinxue were just about to pay their respects when, before they even stepped into Jingyuan, they saw Ji Wuxia and Aunt Bai supporting each other as they came out, their faces still wet with tears. Aunt Nangong immediately asked in surprise, "What's wrong? Why do you look like you've been crying?"
Looking at the well-maintained figure, jade-like skin, and beauty resembling Xi Shi, Aunt Bai said, "Isn't it all because of Madam Bei and the eldest young lady? Alas, I'm afraid Madam Bei and the eldest young lady are gone."
"What?" Aunt Nangong was shocked, and Ji Yinxue's eyes widened in disbelief. "Aunt, what's going on?"
"Of course you wouldn't know since you weren't there yesterday," Aunt Bai said, feigning to wipe away tears. "You had just left when someone from the Right Prime Minister's residence arrived, saying that the Right Prime Minister of the North was very ill and begged Madam Bei and the eldest young lady to return to the Right Prime Minister's residence to visit him and make...final arrangements!" Aunt Bai deliberately exaggerated the seriousness of the matter. "Then I heard that on their way back, Madam Bei and the eldest young lady were robbed by bandits! Master and the eldest young master have been searching everywhere but haven't been able to find them; their bodies are probably gone too! Alas! Poor people!"
Ji Meiyuan listened, tears streaming down her face. "Oh, how pitiful!"
Aunt Nangong's face was stern. She turned to look at Ji Yinxue, then at Aunt Bai, "What are you all dressed like? Are you going to pay your respects to the Old Madam dressed like this? Aren't you afraid of upsetting the Old Madam?"
"It's good that you're angry!" Aunt Bai thought bitterly, but her face was full of sorrow. "The old lady has sent us away. Sigh, I think you don't need to go and pay your respects." After saying that, she pulled Ji Meiyuan and walked back.
Aunt Nangong and Ji Yinxue looked at each other, puzzled. Finally, Aunt Nangong said, "Let's go back to the courtyard first. We need to confirm this matter in a few days before we talk about it again!" After saying that, she turned around and left.
Ji Yinxue stood there blankly. Was her eldest sister really gone? No way! She was still planning to spend time with her at the Autumn Chrysanthemum Feast in two days!
"What are you still standing there for? Get out of here right now!" Aunt Nangong said with a grim expression when she saw her standing there in a daze.
Ji Yinxue could only walk slowly with heavy steps.
Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui hurried towards the road, trying to pay attention to their surroundings for any clues. But strangely, they couldn't find any tracks from General Ji's carriage on the official road.
Just as the two were in a dilemma, they suddenly heard a soldier come over and say, "Master, young master, look!"
Upon hearing this, Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui immediately looked in the direction the soldier was pointing. They saw two farmers pulling an old horse and a dilapidated cart, swaying and staggering towards the official road. They exchanged a questioning glance, and Ji Tiankui said, "Father, the letter from last night!"
Ji Dingbei remained silent, only staring at the carriage.
The farmer saw a large group of people stop in the distance and immediately asked, "What should we do? Who are those people?"
"Calm down, go over there and take the young lady and madam to their residence first!" the woman said calmly.
Hearing their conversation, Ji Wushang immediately became worried. Could these be another assassination attempt? They failed yesterday, and now they're back again? She secretly lifted the curtain to peek outside. Only when they got closer did she realize that they were people from General Ji's residence! And she also saw Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui!
"These are my father and my elder brother!" Ji Wushang said to the two men, "Let me down, they are my father's men!"
The two men naturally didn't know which family the young lady in the carriage belonged to. They were still somewhat intimidated by the large group of people in front of them. But after hearing what Ji Wushang said, they immediately understood. The woman immediately said, "Whoa!" and tightened the reins on the horse. Then she opened the curtain and stretched out a hand, "Miss, please get off the carriage."
Ji Wushang nodded and was helped down from the carriage by the woman. Ji Tiankui, with his sharp eyes, immediately recognized Ji Wushang and exclaimed excitedly, "Father! It's Wushang!"
"Let's go!" Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui immediately stepped forward to greet Ji Wushang.
Upon seeing Ji Dingbei, tears welled up in Ji Wushang's eyes, and she bowed respectfully, "Father!"
"Get up quickly!" Ji Dingbei helped him up immediately. "What happened? What happened? Are you hurt? Where is your mother? Where is she?"
"Mother is in the carriage." Ji Wushang pointed, but found that the two peasant women and men had disappeared.
Ji Dingbei immediately narrowed his eyes. Based on his experience on the battlefield, he felt that these two so-called farmers were definitely not simple!
"Guards, immediately take Madam and Miss back to the manor to heal their wounds!" Ji Dingbei turned to look at Ji Wushang, "Whatever happened, you must tell your father! Your father will take care of everything for you."
"Father, let's go back to the manor first." Ji Wushang felt a little worried, wondering what might happen in the manor. With Ji Dingbei and Ji Tiankui both out, there was no one in the household who could manage things. Who knew what kind of outrageous thing that Aunt Bai might do!
"Alright." Ji Dingbei nodded, and two or three servants withdrew and returned to the mansion.
Before even entering the manor, a sound of crying could be heard coming from inside. Ji Wushang got off the carriage and immediately went into the manor. Upon hearing the crying, his face turned very displeased, and he frowned and asked, "What's going on? Who's crying!"
When the guard saw that it was Ji Wushang, he was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground, crying out, "M-Miss!" as if he had seen a ghost, his face filled with extreme terror!
Ji Dingbei walked in and, upon seeing the scene, immediately flew into a rage. "What happened?" Had they all ignored what he had said before he left? He strode over the threshold and went inside. The room was filled with the sounds of weeping, making it seem like some kind of funeral had taken place!
Ji Dingbei was furious. Following behind him were Ji Tiankui and Ji Wushang, both worried but also enraged. Ji Wushang guessed two possibilities: First, the mansion was weeping because they thought he and his mother were dead, but it seemed Ji Dingbei hadn't sent any information about their disappearance or death… Second, something had truly happened to the mansion…
With a sense of unease, he followed Ji Tiankui and Ji Dingbei into the house.
Madam Bei had already instructed Ji Dingbei to have someone help her to the North Garden to recuperate properly, and ordered a doctor to come and treat her.
Ji Dingbei and his entourage headed towards the main hall. Wherever Ji Wushang went, the maids and servants who had been weeping were all astonished.
"What, what's going on? Didn't Aunt Bai say that the eldest young lady and the madam... are gone?" Ji Wushang overheard a bold maid speaking in a low voice as he passed by.
Ji Wushang immediately stopped in his tracks. Aunt Bai! She seems to thrive on chaos! Does she want the manor to be in complete disarray? The person hasn't even been found, and she's already saying they're gone? Just how black-hearted is she!
"Wu Shang." Ji Tiankui called out immediately when he saw that she hadn't followed. Ji Wu Shang didn't speak, but coldly glanced at the maids and servants around her before following.
As Ji Dingbei walked, he ordered everyone to come to the front hall.
Sure enough, upon arriving at the front hall, several concubines and young masters were present, including Concubine Bai, Concubine Nangong, the heavily pregnant Concubine Qin Fu, Concubine Xie Tiantian, Ji Yinxue, Ji Meiyuan, Ji Wuxia, and Ji Wusi. Everyone was sitting in the hall, weeping.
"What's going on!" Ji Dingbei was furious when he saw that everyone was there.
"Master, we can't find Madam and Miss. I guess, I guess they're gone!" Aunt Bai waved her handkerchief and stepped forward, crying.
Hearing this, Ji Dingbei suppressed his anger and said to Aunt Bai, "Who made all the servants cry? Was it you?"
Aunt Bai didn't answer directly, but cried as she said, "I was just telling the truth. I asked Tianxiang to get me some camellias. Tianxiang asked me why I was crying so sadly, and I told her that the Madam and the eldest daughter might have passed away. Meiyuan also found out, and gradually the servants around all knew, and they were just waiting for the definite news... the funeral."
Ji Dingbei clenched his fist, about to strike Aunt Bai, when Ji Meiyuan immediately stepped forward to stop him, "Father! Why are you hitting Aunt Bai!"
Aunt Bai was also quite surprised. Wasn't the person missing? They must have been killed! News came in the early morning that the scene had been dealt with. That meant the person was already dead! They just informed the servants beforehand!
☆、057 Concubine Bai falls out of favor and is confined to her quarters for three months! (Zai Wen!)
What's wrong with that? Could it be that the people... aren't dead? Aunt Bai stared at Ji Dingbei in astonishment. Ji Dingbei's anger hadn't subsided as he looked at Aunt Bai and said, "Who told you to say they were gone? Hmm?"
“Master, Master, I…I, I just…” Aunt Bai looked at Ji Dingbei, unable to speak.
At this moment, Ji Wushang walked in from outside. "Auntie, are you disappointed that we didn't die?"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan were all astonished to see Ji Wushang completely unharmed. Aunt Bai's legs went weak, and she knelt down before Ji Dingbei, crying, "Master, I didn't!"
"We're not dead, but Auntie said we were, making everyone think I came back from the dead!" Ji Wushang walked up to Auntie Bai, blinking at her. "Auntie, are you very disappointed?"
"No. Don't talk nonsense! What concubine would want her own family member to die?" Aunt Bai looked at Ji Wushang, who was completely unharmed, and felt resentful towards those who had given her the wrong information. These people were all causing her endless trouble! Inside General Ji's mansion, she couldn't reveal her identity until her mission was complete!
"Is that so?" Ji Wushang turned to look at Ji Meiyuan, whose tears were still wet on her face. Looking at Ji Wushang now, she felt surprise, but even more so, resentment. Why, why was she still alive and back! Her aunt had clearly said that she was doomed! What a bunch of useless people they sent!
"Wu Shang, tell us what happened in front of everyone." Ji Dingbei sat in the main seat, looking at everyone. His imposing aura made everyone stand in their respective positions.
Ji Wushang nodded and said, "My mother and I originally intended to return to the manor, but for some reason, we were both too tired and fell asleep. Unexpectedly, we were awakened by shouts of killing. We were carried to a mountain! There were cliffs on both sides, which surprised us greatly! The coachman had already been killed, and almost all the servants and attendants we brought were killed by a group of bandits who suddenly rushed out!" Ji Wushang sighed, "It's a pity for those servants and attendants; none of them met a good end!"
Afterwards, I rode my horse, intending to break through the encirclement, but in this desolate wilderness, not a single person came to my rescue! In my panic, I ran headlong into a forest. The carriage wrecked, and my mother was injured while saving me. I hid her with her and waited until everyone had dispersed before choosing a path to follow. Finally, I found a farmhouse, but it was already dark. My mother needed medical treatment, so I could only return today.
Ji Wushang finished recounting the whole story in one breath, then looked at Aunt Bai's uncertain expression, "If it weren't for the protection of Heaven, my mother and I would probably be in grave danger!"
"Then why is the messenger a flying eagle?" Ji Tiankui asked, a question that Ji Dingbei also wanted to ask. Aunt Bai and Ji Meiyuan were immediately surprised. What flying eagle?
“That farmer happened to be raising an eagle, and I dared not ask too many questions. After all, it was thanks to their pity that my mother and I were able to return.” Ji Wushang knelt at Ji Dingbei’s feet. “Please, Father, investigate this matter thoroughly.”
"Definitely." Ji Dingbei frowned.
“Father, I found this while I was escaping.” Ji Wushang said, and then took out a token.
Ji Dingbei was immediately shocked. He stepped down and took the token from Ji Wushang's hand, staring at it in disbelief. Aunt Bai broke out in a cold sweat.
That's a Crescent Moon Sect token.
Ji Dingbei realized the seriousness of the matter, but he didn't understand why he had provoked the Crescent Moon Sect. The Crescent Moon Sect was rumored to be ruthless and murderous, and he didn't know who led them. Moreover, they had only ever been active along the southeast coast. How did they end up in the capital of the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty?
"Let's put this matter aside for now. I will investigate it personally." Ji Dingbei put away the token and looked at Ji Wushang. "Wushang, thank you for your hard work."
"Father. What I want is justice." Ji Wushang frowned. Couldn't he find the murderer?
"You're still young, you don't understand." Ji Dingbei sighed. Although he was a Grand General, he was in charge of the northwest, not the southeast coast! He still needed to report to the Emperor about the southeast coast.
Looking at his face, Ji Wushang concluded that the token must be something special, so he didn't dwell on it. He turned his head and saw that Aunt Bai's face was pale, as if she had done something wrong.
Just then, a servant ran in from outside, knelt in the hall, and said, "Master! Madam Yuan is calling for you, the eldest young master, and the eldest young lady to come over!" He looked up and saw Ji Wushang, and his face turned deathly pale with fright. "Ah!"
Ji Wushang stepped forward. "Does Grandmother know that I'm gone?"
"...Yes!" The servant looked on and immediately crawled backward. His terrified appearance made Ji Dingbei exclaim, "What's wrong with Mother?"
"Yes, sir, the matriarch of the Yuan family... she's talking nonsense after being frightened!"
Ji Dingbei kicked the servant boy, yelling, "Get out!" He turned to Aunt Bai, "It was you! You went to Jingyuan and told Mother what happened, wasn't it?!"