Chapter 152: Marquis Wei’s Clever Scheme

**Chapter 152: Marquis Wei’s Cunning Plot**

As soon as Marquis Xiao left, Zhou Yan finally relaxed.

But Yue Niang still looked lost in thought.

Zhou Yan tightened his grip on her hand, comforted by her warmth.

“Help me grind ink?”

He didn’t ask Yue Niang whether she would leave with him if she truly was Xiao Ce’s daughter.

Zhou Yan didn’t dare ask—he couldn’t risk it.

He had only just come to terms with his feelings. Losing her now would be too cruel.

His fingers pressed slightly harder. Yue Niang sensed his unease and squeezed back. “Alright.”

In the study, the two leaned against each other as the red candle burned through the night.

......

Summer dawn came early. By the time court adjourned, the sun was already high in the sky.

Officials filed out of the grand hall, and Zhou Yan called out to the man ahead.

“Marquis Wei, wait a moment!”

Wei Xun turned. His red robes highlighted his sharp features—though in Zhou Yan’s eyes, they only made him look more cunning.

“You’ve got quite the scheme, Marquis Wei. Even the private affairs of my Zhou household are an open book to you. Is there anything in this capital you don’t know?”

His voice carried far enough for nearby officials to catch.

Wei Xun, as Vice Governor of the Capital Prefecture, was responsible for keeping the capital safe.

That was one thing—but prying into officials’ personal lives crossed a line.

The surrounding ministers frowned, halting their steps, clearly demanding answers from Wei Xun.

Wei Xun chuckled. “Censor Zhou, you’ve got a sharp tongue. With just a few words, you’ve condemned me already.”

He remained calm, unbothered by their glares.

“If you’re referring to Lady Xiao, I’ve known Marquis Xiao for years. He asked me long ago to keep an eye out for his daughter. Naturally, I knew her distinguishing features. Not just me—Lady Xie and her maid knew them too. And as it happens, my guard is married to Lady Xie’s maid.”

So Yue Niang’s identity wasn’t something he actively uncovered—it was simply a coincidence.

His explanation sounded reasonable. Had Zhou Yan not known about his cold relationship with A Yuan, he might have believed it.

“I’m no match for you!” Zhou Yan scoffed.

“You flatter me,” Wei Xun replied. “I was only trying to honor a father’s love. Unless… you plan to keep father and daughter apart?”

When Wei Xun played his games, no one could outwit him.

Zhou Yan’s face darkened with anger, veins bulging on his clenched fist. In the end, he let go. “I’ll remember this.”

Wei Xun said nothing. Once the crowd dispersed, he turned to Chang Yuan. “Any news from Marquis Xiao?”

"Someone was sent to Shu early this morning, likely to fetch Madam Xiao."

"Hmm."

Wei Xun's expression relaxed. Though Yue Niang resisted Marquis Xiao now, she might change her mind once she met Madam Xiao.

Zhou Yan's attitude had already offended Marquis Xiao—winning her over would be tough!

"My lord, should we head to the General’s Manor? Mistress Xie vomited again last night."

The marquis’ hidden guards were stationed in A Yuan's courtyard. Every detail—how many times she vomited, what she ate, her mood—was meticulously reported to Wei Xun.

Worry flashed in his eyes, and he no longer cared to scheme against Zhou Yan. He set off for the General’s Manor. "Let's go!"

......

At the General’s Manor, A Yuan and Hui Gu had already learned of yesterday's events.

"Who’d have guessed it’d be such a coincidence—Yue Niang truly is Marquis Xiao's daughter."

A Yuan sighed, thinking of how Madam Xiao had looked three years ago. She felt a surge of happiness for that kind woman.

"You know them?"

Hui Gu was still stunned by the news of Yue Niang's identity. Judging by A Yuan's tone, it seemed she had known them long before.

"Actually, I almost ended up as their daughter back then..."

A Yuan told Hui Gu about the deal between Marquis Xiao and Wei Xun. "He had no idea I recalled my childhood. He wanted Marquis Xiao and his wife to adopt me as their daughter so I could marry into the Marquis of Anning’s household with the status of a noble daughter."

Hui Gu sighed. "If he’d done this earlier, things wouldn’t have turned out this way."

Wei Xun was principled and treated A Yuan well, but his earlier obsession with status and propriety had driven her to despair.

A Yuan gave a soft laugh. "Enough about him. Now that Marquis Xiao’s tracked her down, Yue Niang will eventually return home. What will happen to Brother Yan then?"

It was clear Zhou Yan was smitten with Yue Niang, but Marquis Xiao and his wife doted on their daughter deeply—they likely wouldn’t approve of Zhou Yan’s actions.

Hui Gu scowled, her concern for her son plain despite her refusal to admit it.

"I told him ages ago to skip the concubines. If he really liked her, he should’ve married her properly. But he wouldn’t budge! Now her father has come, and even if Yue Niang leaves, it’s his own fault!"

......

Marquis Xiao dropped by the Zhou house every day, but Yue Niang only agreed to see him twice out of ten attempts.

Unlike his disheveled appearance during their first meeting, Marquis Xiao had dressed carefully today. The indigo robe gave him a polished, scholarly look.

He held out a gold locket, his face hopeful. "This was made by a master craftsman the year you were born, engraved with your zodiac sign—the monkey."

"Honestly, you were a little troublemaker back then, always tagging along with the guards to fish or climb trees, driving your mother crazy every day."

Talking about her younger days, a faint smile touched Marquis Xiao’s eyes, and Yue Niang gradually became engrossed.

Even without memories, his words painted a vivid picture of a lively, playful little girl.

"Then... how'd a kid manage to disappear?"

Xiao Ce was the Valiant Marquis—his estate must have been heavily guarded. How could a little girl slip away?

"I failed her."

Xiao Ce’s eyes filled with remorse. "A maid took you to the lantern festival, but a fire broke out, and you were lost. By the time we arrived, the maid had perished in the flames, and you were gone. Your mother and I searched for over a decade. Whenever someone resembling you appeared, I went to see them myself. Thank the heavens, we finally got you back."

Marquis Xiao had spent half his life on the battlefield and did not believe in gods or spirits, yet in his search for his daughter, he had visited every temple in Great Zhou.

"Did you not have any other children?"

Losing a daughter was just losing a daughter—she had seen many families that disliked daughters. For a noble house like the marquis’s, surely there would be no shortage of children.

Yet Xiao Ce’s next words pierced her heart: "No. We lost you, and no matter how long it took, we would find you. No other child could replace you—nor would they want to."

"Replace…"

Yue Niang’s eyes welled up suddenly.

She’d always thought her parents had abandoned her because they didn’t want her. But now, her father had found her and told her that he and her mother had been searching all along, waiting for her to come home—that she was not a discarded child.

The walls Yue Niang had built around her heart crumbled then. Though she hadn’t said it out loud yet, she had already accepted Xiao Ce as her father in her heart.

"Your mother is already on her way. All these years, she has longed to bring you home. Dan Yang, we’ve missed you so much."

Xiao Ce placed the golden pendant into Yue Niang’s hand, and this time, she did not refuse.