The summer sun was a bit fierce, and Su Xiaoqi sat in the shade of a tree, still sweating profusely.
She didn't wipe it away, just stared blankly at the distant mountains.
Her mind was cleared of chaotic thoughts, and her heart suddenly became calm.
When the heart is calm, one naturally feels cool. She was no longer afraid of the heat, and felt much more refreshed.
Until a hand touched her face, carefully wiping away sweat beads that were almost dried by the wind with a handkerchief.
"My wife, do you have something on your mind?" Shen Yun had been standing not far away, watching Su Xiaoqi for a long time.
He had wanted to come over several times, but seeing her seated under the tree, as if detached from the world,
He dared not disturb her lightly, for fear of disturbing her, and she would disappear into the bright light.
He hesitated, his eyes wide open, staring at her intently.
Hoping that he could attract her attention and make her come out.
However, nearly half an hour had passed, and she hadn't.
Her eyes were hollow, and her whole being seemed vacant.
Shen Yun became anxious, and only then did he carefully approach, using the excuse of wiping sweat to get closer to her.
Su Xiaoqi's dark eyes flickered slightly, and she looked at Shen Yun, who was very close to her, "Why are you here?"
Wasn't he injured and lying in bed recuperating?
"My wife, you haven't been back for a long time, I was worried about you." Shen Yun's heart trembled slightly.
He hadn't seen Su Xiaoqi since he woke up.
He heard that she had gone to the central courtyard to handle matters related to the hot spring estate, so he waited for her in the room.
Thinking that after she finished, she would always return to the room.
However, she did not return.
He kept waiting, waiting for Su Xiaoqi for a whole morning.
He had someone bring Zhang Feng in for questioning and learned that the simple-minded fellow had actually brought Mei Xin, whom he had repeatedly instructed not to bring, to the estate.
And he had directly presented her to his wife.
No wonder his wife didn't come back.
She was probably angry.
Upon realizing this, Shen Yun felt both happy and a little apprehensive.
He was happy because if his wife was unhappy due to Mei Xin's arrival, it might mean she was jealous.
If she was jealous for him, it meant she had feelings for him.
This realization made Shen Yun happy.
But he also worried that his wife's temper might be too strong, and she might truly stop talking to him because of it.
With this complicated feeling, Shen Yun came to find her.
Seeing Su Xiaoqi sitting there, her soul wandering, his heart immediately clenched.
All thoughts of testing or happiness vanished.
He just wanted to hold her in his arms and tell her seriously how deep his feelings for her were.
But after disturbing her, he didn't see her cold face; she asked him casually why he had come.
"To see you," Shen Yun said.
"You're injured, don't move around. The weather is hot, be careful not to let your wound worsen."
Su Xiaoqi had learned to hide her emotions from Shen Yun.
"My wife, I'm fine. Your medicine has always been effective. Do you, have anything you want to ask me?" Shen Yun did not want Su Xiaoqi to misunderstand, and wanted to tell her about his affairs with Mei Xin immediately.
Su Xiaoqi thought seriously and asked:
"Your return like this, does it mean that the matters in Jiangning Prefecture have been handled.
And the Duchess, have you found her?"
Su Xiaoqi had wanted to ask about Madam Wen for a long time, but Shen Yun was injured previously, so she didn't have the chance.
She knew that Du Yiyi and the Old Madam missed her dearly.
"She was rescued," Shen Yun said calmly.
Upon hearing that there had been danger, Su Xiaoqi's eyes widened, "What happened to my aunt?"
"A minor incident, it has been resolved. She is returning with Censor Wang." Shen Yun explained the events in Jiangning Prefecture to Su Xiaoqi.
Wen Rulan, Madam Wen's sister, was inspecting the shops with her maid when she accidentally discovered that the government officials were colluding with their competitor, the Jia family, to pass off the Jiang family's high-quality Kesi silk and satin as Jia family products and supply them to the imperial palace's weaving bureau at a high price.
However, the price they were given was only the ordinary wholesale price.
The difference was threefold.
When Mrs. Liu went to investigate with her maid, she was discovered by the Jia family. Mrs. Liu then wanted to confront the Jia family directly.
Unexpectedly, the other party gave them no chance and, to prevent any leaks, directly killed her and dumped her body in the wilderness.
Madam Wen, who went there to investigate, was captured by the Jia family after discovering the matter.
However, because Madam Wen's knowledge was limited, she was temporarily held and did not lose her life.
"Heavens, the Jia family, how dare they." At first, it was just speculation and business.
Making a profit from the price difference, though morally questionable, was not a grave offense.
But they could kill for it.
Ultimately, they had escalated the matter too much.
"Madam Jiang was just... to kill someone for this?" Su Xiaoqi was greatly shocked.
"If Madam Jiang had revealed the matter back to the Jiang family, the Jiang family would definitely have stopped cooperating with the Jia family.
The Jia family would not have received any Jiang family silk or satin this year.
The transaction of hundreds of thousands of pieces of cloth with the palace this year would not have been completed."
"That's greed driving them."
If it weren't for money, they wouldn't have done such a thing.
"However, how could the Jia family have done such a thing on their own?" Su Xiaoqi immediately saw the problem.
"The prefect of Jiangning Prefecture is also involved," Shen Yun said softly. "Actually, the palace has always wanted the Jiang family's fabrics from Jiangning Prefecture.
But Liu Liangsheng interfered and forced the cooperation onto the Jia family."
Therefore, the imperial textile department would only recognize the Jiang family's products and not the Jia family's.
The disclosure of this matter was the most crucial.
That's why the prefect of Jiangning and the head of the Jia family were desperate to keep this matter completely hidden.
"This kind of thing is simply absurd, are they treating the Jiang family like fools?" Su Xiaoqi had always believed that a gentleman loves wealth and obtains it rightfully.
How could they use such means?
They even killed for it.
"Then what about the Jia family and Liu Liangsheng now?"
"Censor Wang has apprehended them based on the evidence and is currently escorting them to the capital to face punishment."
Shen Yun had ridden back quickly to sort out all the evidence of this matter and submit it to the palace, so that Emperor Xingzhao could review it early.
Once Wang Enze escorted the people to the capital, they could immediately hand them over to the Dali Temple for investigation.
Su Xiaoqi nodded in understanding.
Shen Yun noticed that although her words were not wrong, she was much more silent than before.
She only spoke a few words when there was something to discuss, and otherwise, she would curl up on a rock with her knees hugged.
Shen Yun had tried to start a topic several times, but he was discouraged by her indifferent demeanor.
For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
Mei Xin absolutely could not be mentioned. He feared that Su Xiaoqi, who might have had no strong feelings, would become even unhappier if he mentioned Mei Xin.
Shen Yun silently sat with her. For a while, neither of them spoke, and the surroundings were quiet.
Only the sound of cicadas chirping could be heard, dragging their long notes, calling tirelessly in their ears.
The husband and wife sat on a large rock under the tree, one lost in thought, the other looking at the other with serious and affectionate eyes.
Mei Xin saw such a harmonious and beautiful scene when she walked over.