Lin Qingge paused, feeling something being pressed into her arms, and stopped her hand that was about to push the person away. Tang Wan'er continued in a low voice,
"My lord, my father said this item is related to the safety of the entire Great Xia Kingdom.
Unless the Great Xia Kingdom is in grave danger, you must never covet this item, nor let it fall into the hands of a third party.
Furthermore, someone is secretly inquiring about this item.
If this servant girl has guessed correctly, my father lost his life because of this item.
But you only need to know these things, my lord. Since that person dared to strike at my father, who was a Grand Master of Ceremonies, it indicates their immense influence.
Therefore, my lord, please do not investigate this matter, lest you draw fire upon yourself."
Having said this, Tang Wan'er voluntarily withdrew from Lin Qingge's embrace, then smiled charmingly, "My lord, this servant girl truly envies Madam Lin so much~"
No!
I envy you busty women more!
Lin Qingge looked down at her own flat chest, which blended seamlessly with her male attire, then subtly glanced at the ample curves opposite her, her lips nearly watering with envy.
Although she was indeed binding her chest, she knew exactly how much flesh she had there.
Alas—
Why is there such a big difference between women?
As Lin Qingge posed her existential question, Tang Wan'er, mistaking the former's slightly odd expression for regret, bit her lip and bravely said,
"My lord, if you truly cannot bear to part with this servant girl, will you take me into your service, to fetch your shoes and change your clothes for you?"
"No, no, no!"
Lin Qingge was startled and shook her head like a rattle drum.
"I never expected the dignified Scholar Tan Hua to be henpecked. Look at how frightened you are, my lord. I was merely playing a small joke on you~"
Tang Wan'er teased with a smile, but her lowered eyelids hid a fleeting look of disappointment and sadness.
"It's getting late, you should set off soon.
Master Hua has already asked someone to arrange accommodation for you over there. There are provisions and travel expenses in the carriage, and I have also sent someone to retrieve your belongings from the Chen residence."
At this point, Lin Qingge frowned slightly.
Because she had to keep the talkative Yan Tinghao in the dark, the task of stealthily retrieving the bank notes and some gold and silver from Tang Wan'er's room without alerting the Chen family's guards fell upon Ye Shenxiao, the highly skilled master thief.
Ye Shenxiao never expected that the smoke pipe he left for Leng Ningyue would be put to use so quickly.
When Ye Shenxiao arrived eagerly upon hearing the news, he didn't find his beloved in the room.
Instead, he was greeted by a familiar feather duster and the county magistrate holding the duster, with a rather ill-intentioned smile.
Although the two disliked each other, after hearing the reason for the task, Ye Shenxiao, who had decided to retire from his illicit trade and turn to righteousness, immediately agreed.
Having secured another useful laborer, Lin Qingge pulled her wandering thoughts back and continued,
"Also, if you have any other plans, you can tell the coachman directly.
However, to be safe, you should not contact any family or friends in Fengtian Prefecture for the time being."
Tang Wan'er nodded and bowed deeply again, "My lord's great kindness is something this servant girl will never forget.
Who knows when we will meet again after this parting. This servant girl will pray daily for your safety and well-being, to repay your life-saving grace."
Although she desperately wanted to say "No need," seeing Tang Wan'er's determined bright eyes, Lin Qingge had to swallow the words that had reached her lips.
Fine.
Tang Wan'er needed a reason to live right now. Since she had decided to spare her life, she couldn't extinguish her hope.
As Tang Wan'er and the other person walked towards the carriage, Lin Qingge suddenly spoke,
"Madam Liu, please stay."
As if surprised that the county magistrate had called her, Liu Jinhua looked puzzled and then said tremblingly,
"Wh-what does my lord want with this servant?"
"Alright, stop pretending."
Ignoring the surprised look cast her way, Lin Qingge continued,
"When my people investigated the news in your hometown, they also found out another piece of information.
That is, you were not sold to Chen Chong by your family, but you voluntarily went with Chen Chong.
Although the result was that the Liu family used your selling money to get your brother a wife, the cause and effect are different, and the actual meaning varies greatly."
Upon hearing this, Liu Jinhua was not too surprised, and the meek expression on her face was replaced by a cunning smile.
"As expected, I couldn't hide anything from you, my lord~"
"Chen Rao was also deliberately seduced by you, specifically to frame him for the murder of Chen Chong!"
This was something Lin Qingge had thought of after hearing Hua Jinrong's words on the carriage.
As Hua Jinrong had said, if she hadn't intervened, this case would likely have been closed upon discovering the affair between Chen Rao and Liu Jinhua.
At that time, Liu Jinhua, as a witness at the crime scene, only had to insist that Chen Rao had instructed her to add something to the wine to poison his brother Chen Chong.
Then Chen Chong would truly be unable to defend himself.
However, Tang Wan'er considered Liu Jinhua her savior, so she would not allow Liu Jinhua to do this, or rather, she disdained such framing.
After all, from Tang Wan'er's contemptuous tone when discussing Chen Rao, it was evident.
It wasn't Tang Wan'er who told Liu Jinhua to do it.
Therefore, it must have been Liu Jinhua who actively sought out Chen Rao.
Although it was also possible that Chen Rao was tempted by her beauty and forced Liu Jinhua to comply, based on the information gathered from the Liu family, she leaned more towards the former.
"However, what I don't understand is why you went to such lengths to approach Chen Chong.
Could it be simply to save Tang Wan'er, whom you had known for only a short time, from a pit of misery?"
Hearing this, Liu Jinhua suddenly smiled, "My lord, this servant girl is no living bodhisattva. This servant girl was already mired in the mud, so what right do I have to save others?"
As she spoke, Liu Jinhua's eyes became increasingly dim and unclear as if thinking of something.
"My lord, if poverty is a disease, then my maternal family, the Liu family, was already terminally ill.
After this servant girl, out of a moment of pity, let Miss Tang go, they beat me half to death and then turned their attention to me.
I am their own daughter, their own sister!
How dare they?!
To escape that hellhole, I stole a flower skirt from the girl next door and ran to the busiest street in the county town.
Unexpectedly, I was indeed spotted by a master from a wealthy family.
This servant girl initially thought that using her beauty to serve a man in exchange for food and clothing was not a bad deal.
At least it was better than constantly working at home, toiling tirelessly and being bullied by those worse than pigs and dogs.
Little did I know that I had only escaped from one hell to another.
At first, this servant girl accepted her fate. After all, my life was cheap, so what if it ended?
Until one day, this servant girl accidentally learned the name of Chen Chong's wife from him.
This servant girl deliberately stood at the gate of the Chen residence for a whole day. After confirming that Chen Chong's wife was indeed the Miss Tang whom I had let go, this servant girl found ways to make Miss Tang notice my existence.
Unexpectedly, Miss Tang also harbored deep resentment towards that Chen Chong.
Before long, we had planned the entire scheme.
Actually, Tang Wan'er wanted to be the bait at first, but the torment Chen Chong inflicted was too unbearable.
Unlike the reserved and delicate Tang Wan'er, I am just a village woman from the mountains.
So, I snatched the task of seducing Chen Chong.
Fortunately, Chen Chong's body was severely depleted. After only three times, he died."
At the end, Liu Jinhua raised her eyebrows and said,
"Well, my lord, are you going to arrest this servant girl and send her back to prison now?"
Lin Qingge pondered for a moment, then waved her hand, "Forget it. You are also a pitiable person. Do not harm others from now on, and live your life well."
After seeing Tang Wan'er and Liu Jinhua off,
Lin Qingge returned to her room and could not sleep for a long time.
At this moment, far away, Chen Shu, the eldest son of the Chen family, was also unable to sleep.