"Alright, if there's nothing else, I'll be heading back," Su Yunmo said, standing up to leave.
Han Jitong also rose to his feet.
"No need to see me out, I know the way," Su Yunmo waved her hand and stepped out the door.
Linlang was leaning against the carriage, resting with her eyes closed.
When Su Yunmo approached, Linlang heard the movement and opened her eyes. "Is Master returning to the manor?"
"No, to the imperial palace. I want to visit Consort Liang today."
Linlang acknowledged with a 'yes', carried her into the carriage, and they headed for the imperial palace.
Su Yunmo hadn't visited since Consort Liang was poisoned last time.
Two maids had been assigned to the cold palace, Yi Zuo and Yi You. These two were twins and possessed some martial skills.
Consort Liang's poison had been completely neutralized, but she had been sleeping ever since that day and had not woken up.
Su Yunmo checked her pulse; it was normal.
Consort Liang already had the Soul Devouring Soup poison in her body. When the two poisons clashed, her bodily functions weakened, and she would naturally wake up after a period of sleep.
With Ye Jingyu absent and Consort Liang still asleep, Su Yunmo found herself bored and wandered through the imperial gardens.
A pebble fell from the sky and hit her.
Su Yunmo stopped in her tracks and turned to see Ye Jingkun on the rockery. "It's you? Did you need something?"
Ye Jingkun nodded, descended from the rockery, and walked over to her. "I have my own manor now."
Hearing this, Su Yunmo suddenly remembered that he was older than Ye Jingyu, but for some reason, he had always lived in the palace and hadn't been granted his own estate.
"Then congratulations. Having your own manor makes you a true prince. You can also enter the court and participate in state affairs, achieve merits, and so on."
Ye Jingkun pursed his lips and gazed at her. "Can you come tomorrow?"
Su Yunmo thought for a moment. She had nothing planned for tomorrow. "Of course, I'll come first thing in the morning."
A flicker of joy quickly crossed Ye Jingkun's eyes. He instinctively clenched his fingers, a rare hint of nervousness on his face. "I'll wait for you."
He paused, then extended his hand again, looking expectant. "A gift."
"Aren't you supposed to visit tomorrow? How about I bring you a gift then?" Su Yunmo asked, feeling a bit helpless.
It seemed that every time they met, he either gave her something or asked her for something.
"No, give it now," Ye Jingkun insisted.
Su Yunmo rubbed her temples, a headache forming. "What do you want, then?"
Ye Jingkun stared into her eyes.
In the sunlight, those large, blinking eyes were shining, brighter than the moon in the dark night.
Almost instinctively, he reached out, his sharp fingernails extending slowly.
"I'm a good cook. Even the picky Ye Jingyu can't find fault with my dishes. How about I cook a couple for you to try?" Su Yunmo suggested with a raised eyebrow.
Ye Jingkun's hand stopped, and he pursed his lips. "Third brother... has eaten them?"
Su Yunmo, not noticing his subtle reaction, replied, "Of course, he has. And he ate quite a lot."
Ye Jingkun retracted his hand. "Mm, I want to eat."
Outsiders were not allowed into the imperial kitchens, but fortunately, the cold palace had a small, private kitchen.
Su Yunmo took him to the cold palace and cooked a few dishes in the small kitchen.
Although Ye Jingkun didn't talk much, his appetite was much better than Ye Jingyu's. He enjoyed every dish Su Yunmo made.
Seeing him eat happily, Su Yunmo, for once, felt a surge of enthusiasm and cooked many more dishes. She even let him take some with him when he left.
They spent the entire day busy in the kitchen, making quite a few pastries as well.
By the time Su Yunmo left the imperial palace, it was already dark.
Linlang had been anxiously waiting outside the palace gates. Seeing her emerge just before the gates closed, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Master, it's so late. We must hurry back. If Madam finds out, she'll be angry."
"I know, hurry, hurry," Su Yunmo said, getting into the carriage with a bag full of pastries.
Linlang quickly urged the carriage back to the manor.
As soon as they entered the manor gates, they saw servants bustling about, looking flustered.
Su Yunmo strained her ears, catching snippets of conversation about a young master who hadn't returned yet.
Su Qingtian's angry voice could be heard from inside: "He's getting worse and worse. I think he's asking for a beating again!"
Su Yunmo swallowed hard, silently mourning for her third brother, and quickly led Linlang past the servants to sneak back to her room.
As soon as she entered her room, she immediately took off her shoes, got into bed, and pretended to have been asleep for a long time.
The manor servants were busy searching for the missing person all night, until dawn broke the next day.
Su Yunmo slept through it all and woke up to the commotion still going on outside.
Feeling a bit curious, she ate breakfast and then asked Linlang to inquire about the situation.
Linlang returned quickly. "Young Mistress, something has happened to your second brother. He didn't return all night, and this morning, many people came to the manor demanding payment."
"Demanding payment?" Su Yunmo was taken aback. "Are you sure you heard correctly? Second brother? Not third brother?"
Although her second brother was rather fond of money, with his shrewdness, he wouldn't get into trouble in this area, let alone owe money.
"It is indeed the Second Young Master. I heard that Second Young Master has been detained, and those people are now making a scene in the main hall with IOUs. The General hit two people, and they are shouting about reporting him to the authorities."
Su Yunmo frowned deeply and suddenly remembered something. "Go to the second branch's side residence now and tie up Su Chenghai for me. Hurry!"
Linlang took the order and left quickly.
Su Yunmo also dropped her chopsticks and strode towards the front hall.
The front hall was still in an uproar. There was blood on the ground, and two people were being bandaged.
"It's clearly written in black and white. In short, if you don't repay the money, we will never let him go!"
Su Qingtian's face was grim as he raised his fist, about to strike.
The men instinctively recoiled in fear, but they still spoke defiantly. "Don't think we're afraid just because you're a first-rank official. We have no money to live on, and the barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes!"
Su Qingtian gnashed his teeth in anger.
Just a few days ago, someone had said the same thing to him.
"Brother Yi, please go to the back room. I'll handle things here," Zhou Wanyou said in a deep voice, trying to persuade him.
"No!" Su Qingtian flatly refused.
How could he, a man of seven feet, hide behind and push his wife out to take the blows when outsiders were causing trouble in his manor?
What kind of man would that make him?
"Brother Yi~" Zhou Wanyou said, sounding a little helpless, but knowing she couldn't persuade him, she conceded. "Then just sit here and don't get agitated. Wait until I've finished asking questions."
Su Qingtian wanted to say more.
Acai stepped forward and whispered, "General, the Second Young Master's situation hasn't been clarified yet. Please remain calm."
Su Qingtian opened his mouth, then gritted his teeth and swallowed his words, sitting down sulkily to the side, glaring at the men.
His gaze was oppressive.
The crowd felt uneasy under his stare.
Zhou Wanyou clasped her hands in front of her and spoke in a calm, steady tone. "Everyone can see that my husband has a bad temper. I know why you are all here."
"Since it's about money, we should sit down and talk properly. If you lose your lives before getting the money, it will be a loss."
The leader of the men scoffed. "Don't try to scare us. It's only right to repay debts. Are you going to kill people in broad daylight just because we've come to collect?"