Chapter 467: Two Misses Shen

Chapter 467: Two Misses Shen

Just before arriving at the Holy City, Zhe Jing returned.

Su Youyue appeared calm, but the fingers hidden in her sleeves were unconsciously tensing in nervousness.

"My lady, I have already gone to Princess Pingyang's residence. The residence is heavily guarded, and the third young master of Princess Pingyang's residence rarely makes public appearances. I waited for three days before finally managing to see him at a palace banquet."

Zhe Jing's voice was heavy.

"The third young master of Princess Pingyang's residence, named Helian Lin, bears a striking resemblance to Lord Xie."

Su Youyue clenched her fingers tightly to prevent herself from losing control. "Resemblance?"

Zhe Jing's eyes showed self-reproach. "Helian Lin wears a mask that covers his full face, claiming to have been disfigured by an injury and unable to show his face. He has many guards around him, and I had no opportunity to see his true face. However, his voice is completely different from the two voices Lord Xie used to use, and his martial arts techniques do not resemble Lord Xie's at all. I found it difficult to determine if he is Lord Xie."

Su Youyue felt her heart sink.

Was she just overthinking?

Zhe Jing, who had been closely following Xie Yuan for years, felt that if even he couldn't tell, then they must have no similarities.

But the similarity in build...

Zhe Jing had already learned from Zhe Ying's message that Su Youyue was pregnant. Noticing her pale face, he quickly shifted the topic. "My lady, if you wish to confirm whether this person is Lord Xie, as long as he gets a chance to be alone, I will definitely approach him for inquiry. I believe we will have results in a few days. This time, I also gathered some information about the Shen family."

Since it was impossible to confirm whether Helian Lin was Xie Yuan at the moment, Su Youyue had no choice but to rub her temples and let Zhe Jing start with the Shen family's situation.

"The Shen family... actually has two Misses Shen," Zhe Jing said slowly. "The Miss Shen you are replacing is the daughter of Shen Ming, a military officer of the Dong Rong dynasty, and his first wife. The other Miss Shen is the daughter of his second wife, Lady Fang."

Some of the information Zhe Jing provided had already been told to Su Youyue by Qingluo and the two old women over the past few days, as she couldn't arrive there completely ignorant, not even knowing who was in the family.

However, the original Shen Nannan knew almost nothing about the Shen family either. Before she was born, her mother was expelled from the Shen residence on charges of adultery, and even she had been suspected of being an illegitimate child. Thus, she had never been given the identity of Miss Shen for sixteen years. The title of Miss Shen previously belonged to the eldest daughter of the second wife, Shen Zhuyu.

Shen Zhuyu was betrothed by the Dong Rong emperor to Meng Ziyu, the heir of the Ding’an Houfu. Originally, it was considered a high marriage, but since Shen Zhuyu had a lover who was the fourth prince of the Dong Rong royal family, she naturally didn't want to marry the heir of the Houfu.

The Shen family spoiled this eldest daughter, and if she could marry the fifth prince, it would indeed bring more benefit to the family than marrying the heir of the Houfu. Therefore, they came up with a plan for a substitute marriage.

The Ding’an Houfu was also a high-ranking family, and since this marriage was an imperial decree, they couldn't just send a maid to fool them. Thus, they thought of Shen Nannan, who was far away on the border.

Shen Nannan was also a daughter of the Shen family. Being half a year older than Shen Zhuyu, if brought back, she would be the legitimate Miss Shen. The Shen family had not disclosed the reason for the first wife's expulsion, only stating that she had committed a filial piety crime and left of her own accord.

The imperial decree only specified that a Shen family daughter should be married to Meng Ziyu, without naming a specific individual. The Shen family found a loophole.

"Hmm, what about the Ding’an Houfu?" Su Youyue, pondering Shen Nannan's situation, finally diverted her attention and asked.

Zhe Jing replied, "The Ding’an Houfu has a clean reputation compared to the Shen family. Although they have ancestral blessings, they have produced many talents over the years, and their family's moral integrity is highly praised in the Holy City. The heir of the Ding’an Houfu, Master Meng, is both scholarly and martial, and his virtues are widely praised."

Su Youyue nodded, just taking it in.

On this trip, once she confirmed Helian Lin's identity and avenged Shen Nannan, she would leave. She certainly wouldn't really marry into the Ding’an Houfu, not even a fake marriage. She had only exchanged vows with Xie Yuan in her life.

However, the better the reputation of the Ding’an Houfu, the fewer troubles she would encounter after entering the Holy City.

"Thank you for your hard work, Zhe Jing. Fortunately, we are about to reach the Holy City. This time, you will secretly accompany us. Take today to rest well." Su Youyue replied.

Having only Zhe Ying with her wouldn't attract too much attention.

Zhe Jing agreed and left, only to bump into Jin'er, who was sitting on a stone bench waiting for him.

"Zhe Jing!"

Jinger’s lips curled into a smile, and she ran over. But as she approached, she hesitated, reminded of his previous coldness. She stopped a few steps away, hesitating before asking, "Did Miss give you any instructions?"

Zhe Jing, seeing her hesitant movements, stepped forward. "Let’s rest for a day."

Jinger, seeing him come closer and no longer as cold as before, immediately smiled. "Good, then you should rest well... By the way, Miss said something about the princess’s son..."

"It's still not confirmed," Zhe Jing replied.

"Oh… I really don’t think it’s him," Jinger muttered. "If it were him, how could he not come to find my lady? He’s always been so kind to her."

Zhe Jing couldn’t answer this question immediately. He was equally puzzled, so he remained silent for a moment before looking at Jinger. "Jinger, is there anything my lady would like to eat? I’ll go buy some."

As expected, Jinger immediately shifted her attention. "Oh, thank you, Zhe Jing. But I don’t know what’s good to eat here. We just eat whatever is available. Buy whatever you think is best."

I guess I was wrong about Zhe Jing before. He’s just the same as he always was.

Jinger thought, absentmindedly scratching her neck.

Zhe Jing, watching her, naturally saw the jade pendant hanging from her neck.

His eyes softened, and he responded, "Mm, okay."

Half an hour later, Zhe Ying returned with a large food box that Zhe Jing had bought and brought it over to Su Youyue.

"My lady, I bought some dishes from Great Shen to help with the homesickness."

Su Youyue had indeed been lacking an appetite these past few days, but for the sake of her baby, she forced herself to eat.

Hearing about the Great Shen dishes, she nodded eagerly.

When the food box was opened, most of the dishes were to her liking.

Except for the bottom layer, which was packed with all of Jinger’s favorite dishes and snacks.

Su Youyue’s eyes paused, and a small smile appeared on her lips.

"The bottom layer is clearly for our little glutton, Jinger."