Shen Yun saw Su Xiaoqi’s worries, her thoughts were still on the matter between the Grand Princess and the Prince Consort.
He said, "The Prince Consort's concubine matter was not smooth back then; it caused quite a stir in the capital."
Su Xiaoqi looked at Shen Yun in surprise, somewhat taken aback that he would know such gossip.
Seeing Su Xiaoqi’s expression, Shen Yun, uncharacteristically, felt a little awkward and explained:
"Prince Consort Liu sided with the Crown Prince and did many things for him, so my investigation into him was a bit more in-depth."
Shen Yun’s words were somewhat cryptic, giving Su Xiaoqi the impression that he had many more secrets yet to be uncovered.
"Husband, what else do you know?" Su Xiaoqi narrowed her eyes and pressed him.
Shen Yun’s expression stiffened for a moment before he quickly said, "It's better that you don't know."
If Xiaoqi knew about those sordid affairs, she would surely start overthinking again.
Shen Yun knew that his little wife was very fastidious when it came to matters of the heart.
She appeared magnanimous on the surface, but there were certain things she couldn’t tolerate.
"Hey, aren't you just teasing me?" Su Xiaoqi pressed down on Shen Yun’s shoulders and shook him twice forcefully, unwilling to let it go.
It would have been fine if he hadn't spoken at all, but since he had opened a crack, he was only a step away from revealing the whole story. What was there to hide?
Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and she turned her head, huffing petulantly and refusing to speak to him.
"Wife..." Shen Yun, seeing that his wife was genuinely angry, quickly stepped forward to embrace her.
He thought about how to explain this matter tactfully.
Just as he was pondering and about to speak, he heard a series of respectful greetings at the doorway:
"Greetings, Old Madam."
"Is Xiaoqi inside?" The commoner’s kind and gentle voice could be heard.
Su Xiaoqi heard the commotion, put away her expression, and greeted them with a faint smile.
"Xiaoqi... I need to return immediately." The Old Madam’s tone was somewhat urgent.
Su Xiaoqi quickly asked what was so urgent.
"Auntie, it’s Auntie who had an accident," Du Yiyi replied, supporting the Old Madam as she came.
Su Xiaoqi’s heart leaped, and she immediately realized that the "madam" here referred to Madam Wen.
"Where did Auntie have the accident?" Madam Wen had gone to Jiangning Prefecture, her maternal home.
Nothing untoward should have happened there.
So Su Xiaoqi instinctively thought it was on the way.
After all, it was a long journey with many different places.
Poor, remote areas were prone to troublesome people.
Madam Wen’s entourage clearly marked her as a wealthy target, making it difficult to say whether she might have been noticed.
"In Jiangning Prefecture," the Old Madam said, and then prepared to leave.
Only then did Su Xiaoqi notice that her maids and servants had already packed her belongings.
As she came out of the courtyard, she happened to pass by the courtyard where she was staying, so she personally came over to say goodbye, to avoid wasting time with a separate trip.
The matter was urgent, and Su Xiaoqi repeatedly said that she would also return to the capital with them.
Du Yiyi felt the same way, having a premonition that this matter would require Xiaoqi’s help.
The Old Madam was anxious and could no longer afford to be too particular; she thought that having an extra person to talk to and make decisions with on the journey would be good.
As Su Xiaoqi spoke, Zhang Yu and Guo’er had already understood and brought out her luggage.
Su Xiaoqi selected Zhang Yu, Guo’er, and Zicao to accompany her back, while the others were to stay and tidy up her and Shen Yun’s belongings, and would catch up later.
In the carriage, Su Xiaoqi and Shen Yun accompanied the Old Madam.
This was Su Xiaoqi’s idea; she privately felt that Shen Yun might have some understanding of such matters.
After all, he was not as simple as he appeared on the surface.
As soon as the carriage set off, she heard his gentle and steady voice:
"Old Madam, what exactly happened to the Duke’s wife?"
"She's missing." The Old Madam felt a throbbing headache, so intense it felt like it would explode.
Su Xiaoqi quickly gave her a pill and reminded her not to get agitated.
The Old Madam was simply worried; she had lived so long, she was not an impulsive person.
It was just that upon hearing the news, she hadn’t had time to process her emotions.
After Su Xiaoqi’s comfort, she quickly regained her composure, and a thoughtful expression appeared on her wrinkled face:
"Something happened in Jiangning Prefecture. This child is foolish; she should have avoided it from afar once she saw it.
Instead, she got involved and got herself into trouble."
The Old Madam’s anxiety lessened slightly, but her inner frustration was destined to remain unresolved.
Madam Wen’s disappearance was a fact; no amount of comfort from Su Xiaoqi and Shen Yun could change that.
Shen Yun could only say gently, "This cannot be rushed. I will have someone investigate immediately."
Shen Yun was not just saying it. He leaned out, Zhang Lei rode over, Shen Yun whispered a few words in his ear, Zhang Lei nodded and quickly rode away.
Upon reaching the Duke of Yu's manor, Su Xiaoqi helped the Old Madam alight from the carriage.
Zhang Lei had already returned.
Shen Yun and he exchanged words privately for about a quarter of an hour.
They were soon invited to the Old Madam’s Songzhu Courtyard.
He then shared with them what Zhang Lei had gathered.
"The Prefect of Jiangning conspired with others, using the method of buying low and selling high.
They procured exquisite silk from the Wen family at a low price to replace the goods of the Huang family’s weaving.
The head of the Wen family learned of this and went to reason with the Prefect of Jiangning. Nothing happened at the time, but the next day, when he went out, he was beaten and robbed of his belongings.
When he reported it to the prefectural office, it was claimed he was robbed by passing bandits. The Duke’s wife discovered this conspiracy on this trip and went to seek justice from Prefect Huang. Something happened on her way back to the Wen family."
"Well done, Huang family, bullying people too much." The Old Madam had not had a comprehensive understanding of the matter before.
She only knew that Madam Wen had an accident.
As for the reason and the place where it happened, she did not know.
After all, the one who rushed back to report the news was only a young maidservant skilled in martial arts whom Madam Wen kept by her side.
Her knowledge was too limited.
"How long ago did the incident happen?" Su Xiaoqi calculated with her fingers; Madam Wen had gone to Jiangning Prefecture at the end of March.
It had been about a month since then.
Even if there were ten days of travel delay, more than half the time had passed.
So, when exactly did Madam Wen have the accident?
"The Duke’s wife had an accident ten days ago," Shen Yun said.
In essence, Madam Wen had an accident shortly after learning the truth upon arriving in Jiangning Prefecture.
However, the distance between the two places was too great, and some people from the Wen family had also written letters to the capital during this period.
But all of them were intercepted.
Only the clever young maidservant by Madam Wen's side managed to escape secretly when her mistress had an accident, without notifying anyone, and rushed back to report.
But the distance between the two places was thousands of miles, which was really too far.
Even if the Old Madam had the intention to do something, she was unable to act immediately.
"Husband, what should we do about this?" Su Xiaoqi naturally looked to Shen Yun.
Shen Yun stepped forward, took her hand, and turned to the Old Madam, saying with a serious expression, "Old Madam, please do not worry. Leave this matter to me."
"Leave it to you?" The Old Madam was slightly surprised.
No matter how smart Shen Yun was, his current official position was only that of a minor compiler in the Hanlin Academy.
What could he do?