Chapter 131 Aunt
Jiang Li felt relieved after guessing what Ji Shuran was going to do next.

The worst thing is to be in a passive situation, not knowing what you are going to face and being unprepared. But when you know what is going to happen, even if you know you are facing a difficult situation, you can always follow the clues to find a way out, so you are not helpless.

Jiang Li knew that after the Xue family case, Princess Yongning had set her sights on her. Not to mention how Shen Yurong would react, the domineering Princess Yongning would definitely find reasons to cause trouble for her in the future. Before this, if the Ji family mother and daughter were quiet, Jiang Li would not have the time to spend too much time on this. But Ji had not changed her bad habits, and Jiang Li felt that it was not a good idea to keep Ji family in the Jiang family.

She had to clear out the outsiders.

Zhao Ke had already left. Jiang Li sat on the couch, and a question came to her mind. Why did Ji Shi pursue her so relentlessly? Even if Ye Zhenzhen left a child behind, she should have been married off when she was old enough, so there was no need to kill her. Even if she wanted to snatch Zhou Yanbang's marriage, she didn't have to kill Jiang Li. Everyone knew that Jiang Li killed her mother and brother, and it was impossible to deny what was in public, but before that, it was heard that Jiang Li and Ji Shuran got along well.

There is no hatred without reason. Although it was later rumored that Jiang Li was quite scheming and pretended to be friendly with her stepmother, and pushed Ji Shuran to miscarry when her stepmother was pregnant, Jiang Li thought that Jiang Li was too young at the time and had been in such an environment since childhood. No one taught her methods and schemes, so how could she reach such a point that she could even scheme against Ji Shuran.

Jiang Li felt that this matter was a bit strange, but because it happened so long ago, many things were difficult to investigate. Now that Ji Shuran was pressing her, Jiang Li was determined to investigate the matter thoroughly. If there was any hidden secret, it could be used as a tool to deal with Ji Shuran.

No matter what, I will go to Zhao Ke to ask him tomorrow.

Thinking of this, Jiang Li fell asleep.

In Yaoguangzhu, Jiang Youyao was also sleepless tonight.

Today, her maid Jinhua was in the corridor of Jiang's house, following Jiang Li's maid Tong'er, when Tong'er dropped a note without noticing it. Jinhua picked up the note, opened it, and found that it was a note from Ningyuan Marquis's house to Jiang Li. She did not dare to delay and gave the note to Jiang Youyao.

Jiang Youyao couldn't sleep, and stroked the post repeatedly. The post was not from Zhou Yanbang, but from Jiang Yu'e. Thinking of Jiang Yu'e, Jiang Youyao gnashed her teeth in hatred. Zhou Yanbang was supposed to be Jiang Yu'e's brother-in-law, but now he has become Jiang Yu'e's husband. Her lover now sleeps peacefully with Jiang Yu'e in his arms every night. Although Jiang Yu'e was just a concubine, and Shen Ruyun was Zhou Yanbang's legal wife, Jiang Youyao wanted to tear Jiang Yu'e to pieces when she thought that the third daughter, whom she had never taken seriously and despised, had actually robbed her husband.

But now, Jiang Yu'e has been accepted into the Ningyuan Marquis's Mansion. It won't be long before Shen Ruyun and Zhou Yanbang's marriage is coming up. Jiang Youyao has no idea what to do. She wants to find Zhou Yanbang, but she doesn't know how to explain it to him. She doesn't believe that Zhou Yanbang has no affection for her at all. If it weren't for the conspiracy, they should have been a good couple.

"Jiang Li..." Jiang Youyao looked at the invitation in front of her. Jiang Yu'e and Jiang Li had never gotten along, and she had always stood by her side. Why did she invite Jiang Li to a small gathering after marrying into the Zhou family? Not to mention herself, Jiang Youyao had left a scar on Jiang Yu'e's forehead, and the two sisters were unwilling to maintain harmony for the sake of appearance, but Jiang Yu'e refused to see even her own sister Jiang Yuyan, and only invited Jiang Li, which was intriguing.

At the palace banquet, Ji Shuran once said that the ones who wanted to plot were Jiang Li and Ye Shijie, but for some reason Zhou Yanbang and Jiang Yu'e were the ones who got into trouble. It must be Jiang Li who was behind this. Jiang Li and Jiang Yu'e probably reached some agreement. In this way, Jiang Yu'e would get what she wanted. Now the appearance of this post seems to have completely proved that Ji Shuran's guess was true.

Only if Jiang Li and Jiang Yu'e had a private friendship would they have ended up in the current situation.

Jiang Youyao did not tell Ji Shuran about the post. She accepted the post but did not plan to return it to Jiang Li. She decided to write a reply to Jiang Yu'e in the name of Jiang Li, at a different time and place, to see what Jiang Yu'e and Jiang Li were up to.

She must expose their true colors.

……

This night was spent in the Jiang Mansion in a few courtyards. When Jiang Li woke up, the sun came out for the first time in Yanjing's winter.

The snow in the yard had not melted yet. When you looked up and shone on the snow, it emitted a subtle warm glow, which also warmed people's hearts. As usual, Jiang Li planned to go to see Xue Huaiyuan after dinner. Emperor Hong Xiao said that he would recruit all the great doctors in the world to treat Xue Huaiyuan to see if there was a chance to awaken Xue Huaiyuan's mind.

These days, there was an endless stream of doctors coming to the Ye Mansion, including even the imperial physician sent by Emperor Hong Xiao. However, after seeing Xue Huaiyuan, they all shook their heads and said that they could not treat him.

Jiang Li was disappointed at first, but Ye Mingyu comforted her. In any case, it was a good thing that Xue Huaiyuan was still alive. As long as he was alive, there was hope. Moreover, Xue Huaiyuan didn't have to remember the terrible things he had spent in prison, nor did he have to know the tragic death of his children. Living like this might make him happier. When he regained his sanity and accepted the huge blow brought to him by fate, he would feel how precious these days were when he couldn't remember anything.

Jiang Li felt mixed emotions after hearing what Ye Mingyu said. On the one hand, she hoped her father would recover and that she could meet him again in this life. On the other hand, she felt that it was too cruel to let her father recall those injustices, and she couldn't treat a poor old man like this.

No matter what, I still have to visit Xue Huaiyuan every day.

Jiang Yuanbo watched her every move coldly. Jiang Li knew that her actions displeased Jiang Yuanbo, but she didn't care at the moment. She couldn't just leave her biological father alone.

On the way to Ye Mansion, Jiang Li met a strange woman in the corridor.

The woman was already quite old, but her features still showed the elegance of her youth. She was not dressed like a servant, but she was not dressed lavishly either. She was accompanied by only a maid. Her expression was very dull, as dull as a pool of stagnant water that had been silent for many years, without the slightest bit of color.

They bumped into each other in the corridor. The woman's maid called out "Second Young Lady" and bowed to Jiang Li. The woman then slowly looked at Jiang Li and called out softly, "Second Young Lady."

Jiang Li stared at her carefully. Her expression remained unchanged, as if she had lived without sadness or joy for thousands of years, and there was nothing in the world that could worry her. Jiang Li said, "Auntie Hu."

Aunt Hu is the only aunt in the main house of the Jiang family. Although the Jiang family is rich and powerful, the family is not as harmonious as it seems, but Jiang Li thinks there is one thing that is not bad. The sons of the Jiang family, Jiang Yuanbo, Jiang Yuanping and the illegitimate son Jiang Yuanxing, all have only legitimate sons born to the main house. Even if there are aunts, they all have no sons. It is said that Mr. Jiang favored his concubine and gave birth to Jiang Yuanxing, and he did many stupid things for this. Mrs. Jiang was disgusted with the concubine and disliked Jiang Yuanxing. Not only that, she also broke the family tradition and did not allow her sons to let the aunt give birth to children.

And Aunt Hu was the only concubine in the entire Jiang family who gave birth to a child.

At first, Aunt Hu was a maidservant of Old Lady Jiang. Old Lady Jiang was the master and gave Jiang Yuanbo a face. Later, Ye Zhenzhen married and had no children for three years, but the maidservant got pregnant first. Originally, Old Lady Jiang wanted to give the maidservant a bowl of medicine to prevent her from giving birth. But Ye Zhenzhen was soft-hearted and took the initiative to plead for mercy, so she let the child be born.

The girl was born, the eldest daughter of the Jiang family. Soon after, Jiang Li was born. The maidservant became a concubine. It was said that Hu concubine was not competitive, kind, and got along well with Ye Zhenzhen. Ye Zhenzhen died soon after giving birth to Jiang Li, and Hu concubine was very depressed for a while.

Later, Ji Shuran came into the family. When Jiang Li was two years old, the eldest daughter of the Jiang family fell down from the rockery while playing in the garden and died. From then on, Aunt Hu was sad day and night and almost had hysteria. She stayed in the yard all day, hugging her pillow and singing lullabies. She rarely appeared in front of others. The old lady was grateful for the years of master-servant relationship and still asked the maid to serve her. Anyway, the Jiang family didn't need this little money, so it was just an extra pair of chopsticks for eating, which didn't matter.

Aunt Hu looked at Jiang Li and lowered her head slightly.

Jiang Li had a flash of doubt in her heart. Everyone said that Aunt Hu had a mild hysteria. Jiang Li had only seen her from a distance once at a family dinner. Now, when she looked closer, although Aunt Hu had a calm expression, her eyes were not cloudy like those of a crazy person. This was different from Xue Huaiyuan. She was just erratic, but sober.

Jiang Li thought about it for a while, and suddenly said: "The sun is shining brightly today, and it seems that this place is very close to Aunt Hu's yard. Aunt Hu, I'll go to your place and sit for a while. You won't refuse, right?"

Several people were stunned.

Bai Xue and Tong'er were puzzled. Jiang Li and Aunt Hu had no contact at all, and Aunt Hu was like a transparent person in the mansion. Why should Jiang Li take the initiative to make friends with Aunt Hu?

The maids around Aunt Hu were also surprised. They were probably used to living alone in the Jiang Mansion. Except for the old lady, no one seemed to remember them. Maybe even Jiang Yuanbai had forgotten that he had such an aunt, but Jiang Li's attitude was friendly and the smile on her lips made it hard to refuse.

Jiang Li just smiled and looked at Aunt Hu.

After a while, Aunt Hu said softly, "Okay."

Aunt Hu's courtyard was even more remote than Jiang Li's "Fangfei Garden". At least after some things happened, Ji Shuran did not dare to treat Fangfei Garden harshly. But as for Aunt Hu's courtyard, Jiang Li could only say that if she did not know Aunt Hu, she would probably doubt whether this courtyard was for an aunt or a servant to live in.

In other words, the maidservants around Ji Shuran and Jiang Youyao lived in a more comfortable place than Aunt Hu. The yard was small, but it didn't affect the feeling of being deserted at all. There was no place for decoration. In the room, a bed, a table, and a few chairs were all the belongings.

Aunt Hu's maid went to pour tea for Jiang Li. Jiang Li saw that there were only two teacups in the room, and the teapot was missing a mouth. As for the snacks on the table, there were none.

The maid was a little embarrassed, but Aunt Hu was very natural, as if she didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Her eyebrows were calm and indifferent, and Jiang Li thought that she looked more like a nun in the nunnery of Qingcheng Mountain, without desires or requests, as if she would ride the wind back home in the next moment.

"It's really quiet here, Aunt Hu." Jiang Li said, "How come there's not even a charcoal fire in the winter?"

The maid seemed to have finally found someone who could make the decision and was willing to speak for them. She was so aggrieved that she almost cried, and said, "The servants went to the kitchen to get some charcoal. The charcoal they gave us was all damp. Even if it was dried and heated in the house, it was still the lowest quality charcoal, and the smoke made people cough... If the second young lady has pity on our aunt, please go to the kitchen and tell her that our aunt has been frostbitten several times this winter, and her knees are all old injuries."

Jiang Li said: "Why don't you go find mother? The power of the family is in mother's hands. Mother will make the decision for you on this little matter."

The maidservant stopped talking immediately. Aunt Hu said, "Nothing, I'm used to it. I'm not cold."

She spoke so softly that if you didn't listen carefully, you could hardly hear her. Jiang Li looked at her. This woman was definitely not a hysterical person. She had no intention of hiding her sobriety in front of him. The person she wanted to hide was not herself, but herself.

For what?
Jiang Li smiled and said, "I heard that when my mother gave birth to me, Aunt Hu often held me in her arms. So many years have passed, and I don't remember many things clearly. I feel a lot more unfamiliar when I see Aunt Hu, but I also feel that she is actually very kind."

Of course, this was just a lie by Jiang Li, she was not the real Second Miss Jiang. But even if she was the real Second Miss Jiang, she would definitely not remember these things, after all, Jiang Li was too young at the time.

But these words seemed to bring back distant memories for Aunt Hu. Her gaze became somewhat distant, and she said slowly, "Yes, back then..."

She said no more.

Jiang Li asked, "That year, when my elder sister fell off the rockery, what happened?"

The sudden words stunned everyone in the room.

Bai Xue and Tong'er were so shocked that they were speechless. Although Aunt Hu seemed to be a good person at the moment, what would they do if they talked about past pains in front of a mother? What if Aunt Hu collapsed and had hysteria again?

Aunt Hu's maidservant was trembling slightly, as if she had received some terrible news.

Aunt Hu looked at Jiang Li, as if something flashed by quickly. She asked, "What do you mean?" "I just want to ask, is there any hidden story behind the death of my elder sister? For example, was she murdered by someone?"

She spoke boldly and without reservation, one blow after another, and the maids didn't know what expression they should use. But Jiang Li looked calm, as if she was asking about something very ordinary.

But Aunt Hu's calm expression was broken.

She said, "Second Miss, please be careful with your words. There are things that cannot be said in this mansion."

"That's why you, aunt, have to pretend to be hysterical, pretending not to know the hidden truth, and playing deaf and dumb, so that you can survive by chance. But you suffer from the pain in your heart every day, and you can't get over your daughter's death." She glanced at the things on the table in the room.

The eldest daughter of the Jiang family died young and was not allowed to enter the Jiang family ancestral hall. Aunt Hu placed the tablet of the eldest daughter of the Jiang family in the house and worshipped her every day. The smell of incense and candles lingered in the house all year round. There were also some children's toys on the table, such as rattles, which showed that Aunt Hu still couldn't let go of her.

After so many years, she should have let it go. She was so upset and couldn't let it go. She was sad and couldn't let it go. Was it because her daughter's death was unjust and there was something behind it? She was unwilling to accept it, but she had no choice but to live in this way with resentment and hatred.

But I dare not forget it for a moment.

Jiang Li looked at her and spoke gently, "Aunt Hu, if the elder sister were still alive, she would have been married this year. She is older than me and should have been very beautiful."

Aunt Hu closed her eyes slightly, and Jiang Li saw her hands on the table, slowly clenched, and then loosened. She looked at Jiang Li and said, "Second Miss, I don't know anything."

Jiang Li looked at her quietly for a while before saying, "Really? That's a pity." She stood up, patted her clothes casually, and said, "I thought that if there was really something hidden in this, maybe I could still help. It's not that I want to help Aunt Hu, I just feel sorry for Big Sister."

Aunt Hu moved her lips but didn't say anything. Jiang Li asked Tong'er and Bai Xue to go out, saying as she walked, "I have something else to do today, so I won't stay here for long. Aunt Hu, there is no charcoal fire here, it's too cold. If you have anything to tell me, you can come to Fangfei Garden to find me. Fangfei Garden has enough charcoal fire, and it's not cold. I think you should come to Fangfei Garden more often. After all... my mother used to be very good to you."

After saying this, she didn't look back and walked out the door.

Aunt Hu didn't look at her anymore, just focused on the tea in her cup. The tea was rough and low quality, and the maid carefully stored it, waiting to take it out and drink it when there were guests, but there were no guests in this courtyard all year round. The tea had been stored for a long time, and the room was damp, so it had changed its taste.

The maid said: "Auntie..."

Aunt Hu sighed softly and said, "The Second Miss has grown up."

The maid said nothing.

"If my daughter were still alive..." She murmured, "She would have grown up by then."

"Auntie, what should we do now?" The maid asked in a low voice: "The second young lady has come to visit us, and it is inevitable that the lady will find out."

"The fight between the Second Miss and Madam will never end." Aunt Hu lowered her eyes calmly and said, "Now is the time."

After leaving Aunt Hu's yard, Bai Xue and Tong'er seemed to come to their senses.

"I didn't expect that Aunt Hu looked fine and didn't have any hysteria." Tong'er said, "At first, I heard people in the mansion say that Aunt Hu didn't recognize anyone. When I saw her today, it was very clear."

"I find it strange too," Bai Xue interrupted, "Madam Hu and I have completely different ideas."

"What's the difference?" Jiang Li asked with a smile.

"I can't really put it into words. I always feel that the Concubine Hu that others talk about is not the same as this Concubine Hu." Seeing that there was no one around, Bai Xue leaned closer to Jiang Li and asked quietly, "The young lady said at first that there was a hidden story behind the eldest lady's death. What does that mean? Could it be that the eldest lady was murdered by someone?"

Tong'er also looked at Jiang Li nervously.

They had heard about these things in the rich and powerful families, but the Jiang family was relatively simple in population. No one had ever thought about this kind of thing for a while. But when Jiang Li and Aunt Hu talked just now, the meaning revealed in it was horrifying when they recalled it now.

"I'm not sure yet, don't talk nonsense." Jiang Li said, "Don't let anyone else know about this. Let's wait and see about the rest."

Bai Xue and Tong'er immediately fell silent.

Jiang Li already had a rough guess in her mind. Since Aunt Hu did not deny it, it meant that Miss Jiang's death was indeed not an accident. Aunt Hu's reminder seemed to prove that the reason she did not say it was because she was concerned about someone.

Let's not talk about the fact that the third wife of the Jiang family is a bastard, and the second wife of the Jiang family has no need to deal with the concubine of the first wife. Only the first wife... Miss Jiang got into trouble after Ji Shuran entered the house. With Jiang Li's understanding of Ji Shuran now, she is not surprised by anything Ji Shuran does.

However, if Ji Shuran was really related to the cause of Miss Jiang's death, then Jiang Li would have to look at this concubine Hu with a new eye. She could endure the blood feud of life and death, but she did not rely on Ji Shuran and lived in poverty. This was definitely not a lingering death, but waiting for an opportunity. Once there was an opportunity, she would come out for revenge, just like herself.

Now, all we have to do is find out.

After leaving Jiang's house, Jiang Li went to Ye's house to visit Xue Huaiyuan as usual. But because she was thinking about Aunt Hu, Jiang Li was a little absent-minded when she was at Ye's house.

Seeing her like this, Ye Shijie thought Jiang Li was worried that the Xue family case involved Princess Yongning, and Jiang Li was worried about offending King Cheng, so he said, "King Cheng has been busy with his own affairs recently. His Majesty is determined to reduce King Cheng's power, and King Cheng has no time to take care of the Xue family case. You don't have to worry," he paused, and then said, "On the contrary, I am worried about Princess Yongning. I heard that this princess seems to be reckless. Bring more guards when you go out these days. If possible, you don't have to go to the Ye Mansion every day. My uncle and I will take good care of Lord Xue."

Jiang Li came back to her senses and looked at Ye Shijie. Thinking back to the first time she met Ye Shijie, Ye Shijie was on edge with her, but now he is sincerely thinking about her. The fate between people is so wonderful, and it is touching to think about it. She smiled and said, "I'm fine, at least I still have the Jiang family to rely on. But you, you are tied to me, if Yongning and King Cheng want to deal with me, they may vent their anger on you. It will be more difficult for you in the officialdom, be careful in everything, and if possible, put aside your principles temporarily. If it is too different from your principles, you can ask my father for help. My father values ​​interests the most. Now you are the Deputy Director of the Ministry of Revenue. If you get promoted and it is beneficial to him, he will help you."

Ye Shijie felt it was a bit strange. Jiang Li talked about Jiang Yuanbo as if she was not evaluating her father, but a stranger. However, Ye Shijie knew that Jiang Li was right. Although Jiang Li was younger than him, Jiang Li seemed to be more experienced in the world than him.

I really don't know how he developed such a personality.

Ye Shijie didn't say anything more. Jiang Li turned back to visit Xue Huaiyuan for a while, talked with Ye Mingyu for a while, and then returned to the Jiang Mansion.

Even she couldn't guess what Princess Yongning could do, so it was better to be safe than sorry. These days, she'd better not go anywhere else except the Ye family to avoid any accidents.

When they returned to Jiang's house at night, Jiang Li stood in front of the window and blew the whistle with the peony flower painted on it again.

This time, Zhao Ke appeared very quickly. Although he tried his best to appear calm, Jiang Li could still see the helplessness in his expression.

"Miss Jiang, what do you want me to do?" Zhao Ke asked.

Jiang Li said: "Zhao Ke, you came to the Jiang family seven years ago. At that time, I had already gone to Qingcheng Mountain. Although you were not in the Jiang family before that, I think your master should have asked you to investigate what happened in the Jiang family before."

Zhao Ke was a little puzzled: "I don't understand."

"I think maybe you know some secrets of the Jiang Mansion, things that others don't know, things that I didn't know in the past. Since you know it, why don't you share it with me so that I can understand it too?"

She said it lightly, but Zhao Ke was stunned. After a moment, his face seemed to be a little pale, as if he was a little bit indescribable about Jiang Li. He said: "I...I am not a person who pries into other people's secrets."

He is not one of those gossipy women who like to gossip on the streets and alleys. He likes to inquire about family gossip on weekdays. Jiang Li's words clearly regarded him as a servant, and she said it so confidently!

"You don't have to worry about small matters," Jiang Li said, "but you must know about the big matters involving human life. For example, the eldest daughter of the Jiang family, my father's first concubine daughter, fell from the rockery while playing in the garden many years ago and died. But today I heard some rumors that the death of the eldest daughter of the Jiang family was not entirely an accident. Zhao Ke, do you know any hidden story behind this?"

……

In the Duke's Mansion, the lights in the study were still brightly lit.

Guard Wen Ji stood in the study, bowed his head and said to the person in front of him: "Miss Jiang blew the whistle again tonight."

The young man in red sat at the desk, his robe spread softly on the floor. In winter, the floor was covered with thick carpet. The red robe on top seemed to have a bright luster like a gem.

"Oh?" Ji Heng asked, "Why?"

"Find out why Miss Jiang died many years ago."

"Puff!" Lu Ji, who was drinking tea, almost spit out a mouthful of tea. He said, "Second Miss Jiang actually asked Zhao Ke about this kind of thing?"

That was Zhao Ke, one of the best martial artists in the Duke's Mansion. Yet, he was treated as a spy to get secrets and gossip. How could he be used so casually?
Ji Heng said to blow the whistle when there is something important, but Jiang Li blew the whistle too frequently. This is not an important matter, right?

"She's quite rude," Ji Heng laughed, not looking angry, and said, "She really doesn't treat herself as an outsider."

(End of this chapter)