BHBF Chapter 88.3

Boss, He’s Becoming a Father (Arc 4) Chapter 88.3: Playful Son (69)

Shao Yu said, “I just came back from Lingnan, and Madam is half Lingnan. Isn’t this a coincidence?”

Madam Yun was very sensitive about Lingnan’s past and didn’t want to take up the subject at all.

Shao Yu continued, “I heard that the Lingnan Yun family controls Yunxi Mountain, and that there is a poisonous plant called Yunxi grass growing on Yunxi Mountain. Madam, do you know about it?”

Madam Yun’s heart skipped a beat when she heard this, but she still said, “I’m just a woman, how could I understand these things?”

“The poison made from Yunxi grass won’t cause any serious consequences if taken once or twice, but if taken for a long time, it will gradually weaken the body and eventually lead to death. Madam, do you know about this?”

Madam Yun’s face turned grim as she said, “How can I tell what’s poisonous or not?”

Jing Shang, who was standing aside, kept carefully observing Madam Yun’s expression.

Shao Yu had almost finished his words when he stopped. He said goodbye to Jing Shang again and said, “Don’t worry, my lord. I will come to see you for a follow-up consultation in ten days.”

Jing Shang hurriedly asked the housekeeper to see the guest off and presented the medical fee that had been prepared long ago.The medical fee was placed in a wooden box with one hundred taels of silver inside. Shao Yu did not refuse and let Shao Jiashan take the money.

After returning home, Shao Yu directly gave the money to Xiao Han and said, “Use it to start the academy. My children and I sponsored it.”

Xiao Han needed money to run a school, so she did not refuse.

Meanwhile, in the Duke of Pei’s mansion, Madam Yun casually said to him, “Brother-in-law, Shang’er invited a quack doctor to the mansion today to treat Shuhui. The doctor simply prescribed a random medicine, and before he left, Shang’er gave him a hundred taels of silver as a consultation fee.”

The Duke of Pei only frowned when he heard this and said, “I have heard it.”

It seemed that he had no intention of pursuing his son’s case at all.

Seeing him like this, Madam Yun felt anxious and said, “Shang’er is getting older and still hasn’t found a marriage. This mansion also needs a wife for the Crown Prince.”

After hearing this, the Duke of Pei said again, “I understand.”

Madam Yun continued, “Speaking of which, the quack doctor today wasn’t very capable, but he had an extremely beautiful daughter, about the same age as my daughter Xian’er.”

Duke of Pei: “I understand.”

Madam Yun was worried when she saw that the Duke of Pei seemed to only have this one sentence to say, and had no intention of mentioning the marriage of their children. However, she continued patiently, “Shang’er seems to like that girl very much. Brother-in-law, do you think you should take that girl into the mansion and make her his concubine?”

The Duke of Pei frowned and said, “The Jing family’s precepts state that a man can take a concubine only if he is over forty and childless. Don’t mention this matter again.”

Madam Yun continued, “My brother-in-law’s family is upright and honest, so naturally they wouldn’t tolerate such a thing as taking a concubine. But I see that Shang’er seems to be particularly different to that girl.”

The Duke of Pei said, “Shang’er is grown up now. He knows what he is doing.”

Seeing that the Duke of Pei didn’t respond, Madam Yun could only steel her resolve and said, “Come to think of it, when my sister was alive, she was very fond of my daughter Xian’er and wanted her to marry Shang’er…”

Before she could finish her words, she was interrupted by the Duke of Pei, who said, “Don’t worry, Xian’er has been in the mansion for so many years, she is like my own daughter. I will definitely find a good marriage for her.”

“Brother-in-law…” Madam Yun called out in a tender voice.

The Duke of Pei said, “I have official business to attend to, so I won’t chat with you, Fifth Sister.”

After the Duke of Pei finished speaking, he ignored her.

Seeing that the old man was not moved at all, Madam Yun could only stomp her feet hard, turn around and walk out.

When Madam Yun returned to her courtyard, she heard the maids chatting. She didn’t listen to the whole thing, but only heard one sentence “It’s not right after all”. She was immediately furious and rushed in hurriedly, twisting the ears of the two maids, one in each hand.

“What are you talking about? If you have something to say, just say it out loud. You’re not doing anything in broad daylight, but chatting here. Do you want to die?” Madam Yun scolded.

She could still maintain her composure outside, but once she was in her own yard, Madam Yun had no intention of hiding anything.

The two girls were so frightened that they couldn’t speak.

Madam Yun didn’t want to hear their explanation at all. She said directly, “Let them kneel at the door for two hours and reflect on their mistakes!”

After hearing this, the two maids turned pale. They wanted to struggle a bit, but the nanny beside Madam Yun had already stepped forward, covered their mouths, and dragged them out.

“Kneel down and don’t get up before two hours!” The nanny said viciously, and then slammed the door of the yard shut.

“I…what did we do wrong? We have clearly finished the work.” A girl asked crying.

“No, I don’t know… I will never gossip about my family again.” Another maid said. She didn’t understand why her gossip could make Madam Yun so angry.

The butler who was not far away watched this scene and silently took note of the two girls.

By the evening, the two maids received the top-quality medicine sent by the butler.

The maid who was sent to deliver the medicine was a close confidant of the head steward. She said casually, “You are the maids of our house. You must remember who your master is.”

Although the two maids were not valued by Madam Yun, they had stayed in this courtyard for a long time and knew some of Madam Yun’s shameful things.

The housekeeper had not expected that Madam Yun would be so bold that she would go out to meet people secretly every month under the pretext of burning incense.

After he informed Jing Shang of the news, Jing Shang’s brows twitched as he heard it. He said, “Who is she meeting secretly with? What does it have to do with me? Doesn’t she have any connection with Lingnan?”

“The man she was secretly meeting was called Yun Jie. He was the illegitimate son of the Lingnan Yun family. It was said that he escaped from the Yun family and took many valuable items from the Yun family when he ran away. The Yun family has been looking for him for years.”

Jing Shang immediately sat up straight.

He asked the old housekeeper to investigate Madam Yun privately, in order to find out whether Madam Yun was related to his mother’s death.

The old butler continued, “Yun Jie spends most of his time doing business outside the city. Many of his competitors died in mysterious circumstances, seemingly from poisoning.”

“Where are my mother’s former servants?” Jing Shang asked.

The old housekeeper said, “Sir, I have also found the servants who used to serve Madam. According to their recollections, when Madam was pregnant, Madam Yun served her very attentively, doing everything herself and not relying on others.”

“Besides that, they still remember that when Madam was not feeling well, she would always smell a strange fragrance that only Madam Yun could smell.”

After hearing this, Jing Shang was almost certain in his heart.

The old housekeeper said, “Sir, relying solely on these, I’m afraid it’s impossible to prove that Madam’s death is related to Madam Yun.”

All Jing Shang wanted was more clues to support his evidence. Now that he had obtained these evidences, he could proceed to the next step.

“Find a way to capture the two old maids around her. Don’t alert the enemy when you capture them. I will interrogate them personally.” Jing Shang said.

Shao Yu had no idea of the turmoil in the Duke’s Mansion at the moment. In order to calm the Seventh Prince down, Shao Yu directly asked for ten days of sick leave for his daughter.

On the third day of the sick leave, the Seventh Prince came to visit.

When he saw Shao Yu, the Seventh Prince openly told him the purpose of his visit.

“Your Highness is so kind, I shouldn’t have refused. However, firstly, there is no proper etiquette between men and women, and secondly, my daughter has caught a cold. Your Highness is a precious physique, and if you become ill, it will be my fault.”

Shao Yu spoke respectfully, but his expression was cold and hard. Even when facing the prince, he did not look happy at all.

Seeing his firm attitude, the Seventh Prince could only ask the attendants around him to take out the prepared gifts.

Shao Yu did not answer, but said: “Your Highness is kind, but I cannot bear it.”

The Seventh Prince immediately said, “I’m not afraid of this, but Your Excellency thinks the gift I prepared is too simple?”

Shao Yu hurriedly said that he didn’t dare, but still had no intention of accepting it, and the situation became deadlocked for a while.

“Sir, this is just a little gadget I got by chance. If it can make a beautiful woman smile, it will be a blessing.” said the seventh prince.

Shao Yu still didn’t answer.

Seeing this, the Seventh Prince could only pretend to be sad and said, “My Lord, I know that among all my brothers, my mother’s family is the poorest. Do you look down on me for this?”

Shao Yu said, “Your Highness, you are joking. Even if your mother’s family is poor, you still have a father’s family that is the best in the world. If His Majesty knew that you were so self-deprecating, I’m afraid he would be heartbroken.”

The Seventh Prince choked upon hearing this, and actually believed what others had said about Shao Yu: he was like a stone in a toilet, smelly and hard.

“Since you don’t look down on me, my Lord, why don’t you accept my gift? My Lord, I am deeply in love with your daughter, and I hope you will grant my wish.” said the Seventh Prince.

Shao Yu looked at him and said, “In love? For a prince, love is the least important thing.”

Seventh Prince:?

He didn’t know why Shao Yu suddenly said this.

Shao Yu continued, “You are a prince. Don’t be foolish. Be ambitious.”

The Seventh Prince: “Ambition?”

The confusion on his face almost solidified into reality.

Shao Yu didn’t give him much time to react and asked directly, “The Yellow River has been diverted. What do you think of this, Your Highness?”

“I…” The Seventh Prince knew little about the Yellow River and was stuck for a moment.

Shao Yu continued, “The Yellow River has undergone several major and minor changes in its course throughout history.

Your Highness, are you aware of this?”

“I……”

“What impact will the diversion have on the people living on both sides of the Yellow River? Will this impact be beneficial or detrimental? Your Highness, have you considered this?”

“I……”

“How many years does a severe drought occur in Guanzhong? Your Highness, can you calculate it?”

“…”

“How do we deal with droughts? How do we deal with floods? How do we deal with famines? Your Highness, are you clear on all of this?”

“Your Highness, do you know that hundreds of disaster victims are starving to death every day in the northwest?”

The Seventh Prince was so confused by the questions that he kept his mouth open but didn’t know what to say.

After asking the man dumbfounded, Shao Yu concluded: “Your Highness knows nothing. You only care about yourself.”