Chapter 347: Song Que Appears

Chapter 347: Song Que Appears

"There are different accounts. Some say they were mistreated to death by Jia Guojiu."

"But what is more believable is that they probably died at the hands of the young masters and the heads of the inner quarters at Jia Guojiu's residence." Qin Xiaoyao said.

Xiangyang was shaken once again.

"I don’t expect you to take sides between Liu Ling and your uncle," Qin Xiaoyao continued.

"In the future, I only hope you can treat Liu Ling with fairness. After all, he is my guest."

"Can you do that?" Qin Xiaoyao asked.

It was normal for people to have varying degrees of closeness. In her eyes, Jia Guojiu was certainly not a good person, but to Xiangyang, he might indeed be a caring elder.

Xiangyang felt a mix of emotions welling up inside her.

"Hmm," she finally nodded after a moment.

Still, she couldn’t help feeling a bit resentful and made up her mind to investigate the matter herself.

Qin Xiaoyao, however, paid no attention and went back to her room.

For the next few days, Qin Xiaoyao kept visiting Yunxiang Fang regularly.

Yun Niang had indeed been a great help, introducing her to a trustworthy broker.

She also helped Qin Xiaoyao buy a small courtyard on a street in front of the marquis's residence to use as a workshop.

Liu Ling was not idle either. Upon learning of Qin Xiaoyao's plan, he proactively offered to help.

He went to the brokerage house and selected seven or eight people who had signed lifetime contracts for Qin Xiaoyao, sending them to the workshop to prepare for work.

Impressed by Liu Ling’s competence and literacy, Qin Xiaoyao began to consider giving him more responsibility.

After some hesitation, and since Liu Ling had offered his services, Qin Xiaoyao decided to put him in charge of the workshop temporarily.

His main tasks were to arrange some preliminary preparations, manage the workers, and ensure they were well taken care of.

The tasks were somewhat complicated but not extremely urgent.

After the workshop began operating, Qin Xiaoyao took Xiangyang to check on the progress several times.

Seeing that everything was in order and that the workshop was producing more preserved eggs each day than she had specified, Qin Xiaoyao was pleased.

Her respect for Liu Ling grew as well.

Xiangyang's attitude towards Liu Ling also changed significantly.

Initially, due to her feelings about Jia Guojiu, Xiangyang didn’t like Liu Ling much. But as her investigation yielded results, she began to feel apologetic towards him.

She began to seek him out more often, eager to talk to him or lend a hand.

At first, Liu Ling was fearful and evasive, but after realizing that Xiangyang meant no harm, he gradually became more familiar with her.

The two guests, as Qin Xiaoyao had hoped, achieved harmonious coexistence in the marquis's residence.

After wrapping up her official duties, Qin Xiaoyao headed to the military camp to meet the King of Huaiyini.

It had been half a month since she arrived in the capital, and she had settled into the marquis's residence, even opening a workshop.

Yet, the biggest concern in her heart remained unresolved. Her husband’s whereabouts were still unknown.

When Qin Xiaoyao explained her reason for coming, the King of Huaiyin’s expression grew complicated.

That complicated look stirred a glimmer of hope in Qin Xiaoyao’s heart.

"Has the person been found? Your Highness, where is my husband?!" she demanded, her voice filled with anxiety.

The King of Huaiyin looked at her and sighed.

"Why are you so set on finding him? Have you thought about what might happen if you do?"

Qin Xiaoyao’s heart sank.

"What do you mean by that, Your Highness? Has something happened to my husband?!" Her expression darkened immediately.

Anyone who dared harm her husband would pay dearly.

Seeing her reaction, the King of Huaiyin couldn’t help but feel envious of Song Que.

"He’s fine," the King of Huaiyin replied.

Qin Xiaoyao breathed a sigh of relief.

"So, what’s going on?" she pressed.

The King of Huaiyin gave her a complex look.

"I have indeed found him. But—"

"But what?!" Qin Xiaoyao demanded, her voice sharp.

The King of Huaiyin didn’t seem to mind her tone, his expression conflicted.

Finally, before Qin Xiaoyao could ask again, he continued.

"He’s currently a guest at Minister Shen’s residence and has been getting close to Minister Shen’s daughter."

"There are rumors that Minister Shen wants him to marry into the family as a son-in-law."

Qin Xiaoyao staggered, her body trembling with shock.

But she quickly steadied herself and composed her mind.

"It’s just a rumor," she said.

Minister Shen, Empress Jia’s brother-in-law, was one of her key allies in the court.

Her husband had a grudge against Empress Jia; why would he help her enemy?

Maybe the person the King of Huaiyin found wasn’t her husband at all.

Even if he really is her husband, there must be a reason for this.

That must be the case.

King of Huaiyin gave Qin Xiaoyao a complex look.

"He has now received a recommendation from Minister Shen and is helping the Ministry of Rituals handle the peace negotiations with the Liao Kingdom."

"If you want to see him, you can come with me to the Ministry of Rituals tomorrow," King of Huaiyin added.

Qin Xiaoyao's heart skipped a beat.

"Alright!" she agreed.

After that, Qin Xiaoyao wasn't sure how she managed to leave King of Huaiyin's camp.

When she finally came to her senses, she found herself back at the marquis's residence.

The young princess kept chatting, but noticing Qin Xiaoyao's distracted state, she grew a bit frustrated with the short, half-hearted responses.

"Hey, Master, are you even paying attention?"

"Your in-laws are arriving in the capital tomorrow. Should we go out of the city to greet them?!" the young princess added.

Qin Xiaoyao finally snapped back to reality.

"My mother and the others are arriving in the capital..." she murmured.

Yes, she had sent them a letter some time ago.

If they had received the letter and left promptly, they should have arrived by now.

"What time are they expected to arrive?" Suppressing her emotions, Qin Xiaoyao immediately asked.

"Early tomorrow morning," was the reply.

"We should go out of the city to meet them so they don't have to wait in line to get in."

"Many people enter the city through the south gate every day. If they have to wait for inspection, it could take a while."

Qin Xiaoyao nodded.

"Alright. We'll go and meet them early tomorrow," she agreed.

Since King of Huaiyin has confirmed that her husband is at the Ministry of Rituals, it's fine to delay seeing him for a day.

Settling her mother and the others should come first.

Besides, she needed to organize her thoughts.

Think about how to ask her husband about Minister Shen's situation when they met.

"Yes!" the young princess immediately responded.

At the same time, she began to look forward to meeting her master's family.

Hehe, her master was such a great person—her family must be amazing too! And with how cute she was, they were bound to love her.

The next morning, Xiangyang burst in early to get Qin Xiaoyao out of bed.

Qin Xiaoyao hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before and was woken up by Xiangyang.

After washing up and getting herself together, Qin Xiaoyao headed out of the mansion with Xiangyang.

They made their way out of the city and waited just outside the gate, where two carriages soon pulled up.

“San Ya!”

“Xiaoyao!”

From a distance, Qin Xiaoyao heard two familiar voices calling out.

Following the voices, she spotted her big brother and father emerging from the dust cloud kicked up by the carriages.