WBSGVS Chapter 23 V2

Jiang Tingxue, waiting eagerly for her beloved to place the hairpin on her, was startled by the sound of it hitting the ground and shattering. Shocked, she turned to see the woman on horseback as well.

Her eyes stung with sudden pain, and her voice became sharp. “Husband!”

Zheng Yihan’s heart jolted, and he snapped back to reality, meeting Jiang Tingxue’s reddened eyes. His throat tightened. He bit the tip of his tongue to clear his mind and casually said, “The hairpin broke. Let’s get another one.”

Jiang Tingxue pursed her lips, watching him closely. Zheng Yihan, uninterested in dealing with her emotions, picked up the broken hairpin and paid the shopkeeper for it. He then asked for a new one, moving mechanically, as if his soul had left him.

Just one brief encounter and Ji Qingli could affect him so deeply?

Jiang Tingxue’s face turned pale with anger, but she couldn’t bring herself to confront him. Instead, she said coldly, “I don’t want it anymore.”

Zheng Yihan responded smoothly, “Shall we head back then?”

His nonchalance only made Jiang Tingxue more frustrated, her words caught in her throat. She bit her lip in anger and said, “I miss my father. Let’s go to Prince Yu’s mansion.”

There was a prince’s mansion in the capital. To keep Prince Yu in the city, the emperor had long prepared a residence for him.

Jiang Tingxue’s mention of her father wasn’t out of genuine affection. Despite being father and daughter, they had never spent much time together, and their bond wasn’t particularly deep.

It was a subtle reminder to Zheng Yihan that she was no longer an orphan at someone’s mercy—she had powerful backing as his wife and shouldn’t be treated lightly.

She expected resistance from Zheng Yihan, but instead, he seemed more alert and even smiled faintly. “Sure. Let’s bring some gifts for Father. The pastries from Wangyue Pavilion are delicious; shall we get some?”

Jiang Tingxue’s expression softened, and she nodded. “Alright.”

The two lingered in the shop for a while longer, buying a few more pieces of jewelry, before walking out one after the other.

However, Jiang Tingxue, still angry and walking ahead, didn’t notice the brooding and urgency on the face of the slender, handsome man behind her.

If this matter wasn’t resolved soon, Ah Li might truly never return.

Outside the city, Ji Qingli rode with a group of young women. She pressed her legs into her horse’s sides, urging it to a gallop, and it quickly sped ahead.

Ning Yitong, caught off guard, watched as Ji Qingli, who had just been riding alongside her, suddenly surged forward. She shrieked, “Ah! Wait for me!”

She whipped her horse and chased after her.

The other girls followed, laughing and chasing each other toward the countryside.

Ji Qingli, an expert rider with an exceptional horse, remained in the lead despite everyone else trying to catch up. Hearing Ning Yitong’s shouts, she mischievously turned her head and teased, “Too slow!”

Ning Yitong, frustrated, shouted back but didn’t dare push her horse too hard, glaring at Ji Qingli’s figure ahead.

Thankfully, Ji Qingli didn’t leave her too far behind. She slowed down just enough for the others to catch up before speeding off again, leaving Ning Yitong exasperated.

“I knew I shouldn’t have invited you! Before you came, I was the best rider among the ladies!” Ning Yitong complained.

She had invited Ji Qingli to her family’s countryside estate, where her orchids had bloomed early and beautifully, hoping to share them with her. After much convincing, Ji Qingli had finally agreed, and Ning Yitong had eagerly brought her friends along for a ride.

She had hoped to outshine Ji Qingli, who hadn’t ridden much in the five years since her marriage, but she still failed miserably.

Ji Qingli shook her head with a teasing click of her tongue. “Each generation gets worse.”

Ning Yitong: “…”

Ji Qingli laughed, amused by Ning Yitong’s pouting face.

Though Ning Yitong was only sixteen, four years younger than Ji Qingli, the two surprisingly got along well, sharing a playful bond.

Of course, it also helped that Ji Qingli’s former close friends were now too busy with their children and family duties to spend much time with her.

At least with Ning Yitong around, Ji Qingli’s time in the capital wasn’t entirely dull.

As they neared their destination, they slowed down, mindful of the nearby village. With people around, it would be unwise to risk an accident.

As they slowed, Ning Yitong sidled up to Ji Qingli, hesitantly asking, “Sister Ji, when we passed through the market on West Street earlier, did you see anything?”

Ji Qingli, puzzled, shook her head. “No, why?”

Ning Yitong sighed in relief and shook her head. “Nothing, nothing.”

Ji Qingli, smiling, raised a suspicious eyebrow. “You didn’t happen to see the Zheng couple, did you?”

Ning Yitong gasped and blurted, “How did you know?”

“I guessed,” Ji Qingli said with a laugh. “Your expression gave it away. Who else could it have been?”

Ning Yitong slumped her shoulders, sneaking a glance at Ji Qingli. Seeing no trace of sadness in her, she relaxed and whispered, “I only caught a glimpse, and it just hit me who I saw. I can’t believe Zheng Yihan is so fickle! The moment his wife became a prince’s daughter, his attitude changed entirely!”

Qing Li shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. We have nothing to do with each other anymore, so whether he’s good or bad is irrelevant.”

Ning Yitong couldn’t help but admire her. “You know how to let things go.”

Qing Li smiled back at her. At that moment, they had arrived at the entrance of the estate. Just as they dismounted, they saw a young man and a middle-aged man walking out one after the other.

The older man had been talking to the younger one, but when he noticed the commotion, he quickly apologized and hurried over, taking long strides to greet them. “Miss, you’ve arrived! Welcome, ladies.”

Ning Yitong nodded and said, “Uncle Zhang, I brought my friends over to see the orchids. Are they still in good condition?”

Uncle Zhang smiled. “They’re doing well.” He led the group toward the estate, handing the horses to the young attendants the ladies had brought along. “It rained yesterday, and we collected some fresh mushrooms this morning. Why don’t you all stay for lunch? The mushrooms are very fresh.”

“That sounds great!” Ning Yitong’s eyes lit up. Mushrooms were delicious but delicate, especially the tastier ones, which didn’t keep for long. Since it was still early spring and the cold hadn’t fully faded, mushrooms were even rarer.

Uncle Zhang beamed at her approval, but then his gaze shifted to the young man who had yet to leave. He introduced him with a slight bow. “Miss, this is Lord Wei Pingyuan from the Hanlin Academy. A few children from nearby villages have gone missing, and he came by to investigate and ask some questions. He found the produce from our estate to be quite good and wanted to purchase some. I took the liberty of gifting him a few things.”

Wei Pingyuan, who had kept his distance from the group of ladies, politely nodded at the introduction. He held a basket of vegetables in his hands, with some plump, fresh mushrooms on top. It was rare to see a man handling such things in this era, but he carried them confidently. He respectfully said, “Thank you, Miss, for the generosity of your household. I will gratefully accept the gift.”

As he finished speaking and lifted his head, his polite smile froze for a moment. His face turned a shade of red as his eyes landed on one particular woman among the group.

It was her… again?

His gaze briefly lingered on her loose, flowing hair before he quickly averted his eyes, his heart racing.

Ning Yitong, uninterested in him, gave a perfunctory nod. “No need for formalities.” She then turned to the others. “Shall we head in?”

Li Shuyue, who loved flowers and plants, could hardly wait. “Let’s go!”

Qing Li, however, didn’t immediately follow. She glanced curiously at the young man and smiled before taking a few steps toward him. “Aren’t you from the Hanlin Academy? I thought your academy didn’t handle investigations like these?”

Local disputes or minor cases were usually managed by the magistrate’s office, while more serious ones, especially involving officials, fell under the jurisdiction of the Court of Judicial Review.

Wei Pingyuan, feeling the heat in his cheeks, stood rooted to the spot under her gaze. He awkwardly explained, “A colleague from the Court of Judicial Review had other matters to attend to, so he asked me to assist with the inquiries.”

Qing Li raised an eyebrow, amused by his bashfulness. So, this guy was a softie?

She remembered the last time they met at the Li family estate, where he’d also seemed to be on the receiving end of some playful bullying, but had brushed it off as mere teasing from colleagues.

Qing Li noticed that he didn’t seem too upset, so she didn’t press the matter. “How’s the investigation going?” she asked instead.

Wei Pingyuan’s expression brightened, gaining a bit of confidence. “We’ve found some leads. I believe once we conduct a few more interrogations, we should be able to close the case.”

Qing Li nodded, making a mental note. “Good luck with that.”

Wei Pingyuan smiled. “Thank you, Miss.”

Due to the brief conversation with Wei Pingyuan, by the time Qing Li entered the estate, Ning Yitong and the others had already chosen their orchids.

The joy of the girls was simple and contagious. They laughed and chatted as they admired their flowers, their excitement further heightened when a delicious meal of fresh, wild mushrooms was served for lunch. The rare and flavorful mushrooms were a hit, and everyone agreed that the trip was well worth it.

After lunch, they rested for an hour before heading back on horseback.

The next two days were quiet for Qing Li. Although horse riding was exhilarating, it was also quite exhausting.

During this time, she asked Ji Shuxin about the child abduction cases handled by the Court of Judicial Review. Soon, she received an update. “The case was closed just yesterday. It turns out it wasn’t just one person involved, but a whole group.”

Qing Li wasn’t surprised. “With so many children disappearing, it had to be a gang.”

Ji Shuxin nodded, his expression a mix of shock and disgust. “Exactly. You’re sharp, sister. These people are despicable! They specifically targeted good-looking children, using familiar faces to lure them away before transferring them to others. Once they had enough, they’d transport them together. Fortunately, Officer Zhou found some clues while investigating in Yunshui Village, and after a thorough interrogation, they managed to crack the case.”

Qing Li raised an eyebrow. “Officer Zhou?”

“Yes,” Ji Shuxin replied, smiling. “He’s the legitimate son of the Zhou family. He passed the imperial exams two years ago, and with the help of his family’s connections, he got assigned to the Court of Judicial Review. Turns out he’s quite capable. He’ll likely be promoted once there’s an opening.”

Qing Li chuckled, shaking her head. “Of course he’s capable—he took credit for someone else’s work.”

Ji Shuxin’s smile faltered. “What? He stole the credit? From whom?”

“From a soft-hearted guy,” Qing Li explained, recounting her encounter with Wei Pingyuan. She laughed wryly. “Since he didn’t spill the beans about my past, do me a favor and let the Deputy Minister of Judicial Review know not to overlook a talented person.”