The fake daughter of a fallen ghost is reborn

Two days later, late at night.

Huo Wuyou brought a piece of news: "We guessed correctly, Dingfeng Grain Store's grain does have another source."

In Xue Zhiyi's bedroom, she had already become accustomed to Huo Wuyou's intrusion.

It was late at night, her hair was loose and her face was bare. With only the candlelight between them, she met the eyes of Huo Wuyou, who was wearing a nightgown and returning from a journey.

Huo Wuyou said, "I had someone keep an eye on the Dingfeng Grain Store and discovered that over the past two days, every night, there would be several carriages heading to the western suburbs at different times, and in the second half of the night, they would return to the grain store fully loaded with goods."

As he spoke, he sighed slowly, "Later, I went to investigate myself and found that there was an ancient road in the western suburbs that was not affected by the flood. It had long been deserted, but it led to the outside. They secretly brought in not only expensive grains, but also vegetables and medicinal herbs, all of which could be sold at a high price during the flood."

At this point, Xue Zhiyi was delighted: "So, the urgent problem of food shortage in Jiangzhou can be solved?"

In a flash, she seemed to think of something else: "No, even if the ancient road has been abandoned for many years, it is not possible that the Fu family is the only one in Jiangzhou who knows about it, unless someone helps to conceal it, for example... in the government's records, the place where the ancient road is located is also designated as a disaster-stricken area."

With a slight smile, Huo Wuyou said: "So, someone in the government is colluding with the Fu family, planning to take advantage of this opportunity to make a fortune."

Xue Zhiyi chuckled: "So, if we want to resolve this matter, I'm afraid it will take some time."

Her slender fingers gently touched the lines on the table, and she looked up at Huo Wuyou: "But, you still doubt the Tang family, right? After all, the Tang family and the Fu family are both Gu Shichong's people."

Huo Wuyou spread his hands and said, "Indeed, but there is no evidence yet."

There was indeed no evidence, so the next day, while Huo Wuyou continued to investigate the ancient road, Xue Zhiyi thought about testing the waters in the Tang Mansion first.

So the next afternoon, after some struggle, she decided to go visit Xue Ruoyu.

If it were in the past, she would not need to inform Xue Ruoyu when entering her yard, and Su Xin would just follow her and ask her to run slower and be careful with her steps.

However, times have changed, things have changed, and Xue Ruoyu no longer likes her. As soon as she arrived outside Xue Ruoyu's courtyard, she saw Su Xin standing in front of her with a cold face.

When she heard that Xue Zhiyi intended to visit her, she went in to report it, but it took a full hour, leaving Xue Zhiyi there until a drizzle started to fall from the sky again.

Xue Zhiyi was only thinking that if the rain got heavier, the water level that had finally dropped today would rise again.

She looked around and saw that no one was staring at her. She wanted to find a place to hide from the rain, but she saw Su Xin coming out. She bowed reluctantly: "Miss Xue, our young lady wants to see you."

Under Su Xin's guidance, Xue Zhiyi was brought to a hall.

In the hall, one could only hear a few women laughing and babies playing. It was a warm and lively place.

Xue Zhiyi rubbed her crossed hands in front of her body under her sleeves. It had just rained, and the weather was getting cold and damp towards evening. The thin clothes she wore at the end of summer could not hide the moisture, and her hands felt a little cold. Only when she walked into the hall did she feel a little better.

In the room, the Chai family's mother and daughter were also there, playing with Xue Ruoyu and the child.

Seeing her come in, the Chai mother and daughter looked a little subtle.

She was also curious. These two people seemed to be full of malice towards her from the very beginning. Were they born bitches, or was there some other reason?

Xue Ruoyu still looked unhappy. She just glanced at her indifferently, pretending she saw nothing, and continued to tease Tang Zhining.

Seeing this, Madam Chai pretended to be surprised and asked, "I wonder what this Miss Xue wants to talk about?"

Xue Zhiyi just bowed to Xue Ruoyu and said, "Zhiyi is staying at your house temporarily. I am sorry for disturbing you. I feel uneasy. I should thank you in person. I am sorry for disturbing you. Please..."

Xue Zhiyi paused as the words came to his lips: "Please forgive me, Madam."

"If you know you're bothering me, why bother adding to my troubles?"

Miss Chai's malicious intent was even more undisguised than her mother's. She only looked at Xue Zhiyi with disdain: "Maybe some people have done something sinful, repaying kindness with enmity, and that's why they feel uneasy?"

Hearing this, Xue Ruoyu, who had been silent all this time, tightened her fingers slightly.

Madam Chai pretended to be angry and scolded: "Why are you saying these things in front of your cousin's wife? She is already sad enough, and you are bringing up this sad thing for no reason. If there is anything wrong with your cousin's wife, you are the only one who will be held responsible!"

Miss Chai showed no fear at all. Instead, she said unhappily, "Mother, am I the one who made my cousin angry? It was obviously Xue Zhiyi. Coming here like this is simply a provocation, or he has some bad intentions. In my opinion, my cousin shouldn't have let her in. She should have kicked her out!"

Seeing her trying so hard to provoke Xue Ruoyu, Xue Zhiyi did not get angry but laughed: "This is the Tang Mansion, the young lady has her own way of making decisions, and there is no need for others to teach her."

After that, she just smiled slightly and looked into Miss Chai's eyes: "Right, Chai Yue."

Hearing this address, Miss Chai's pupils suddenly trembled: "You..."

That day, after hearing the name of this Miss Chai, Xue Zhiyi asked about her maiden name, Chai Yue.

How could two sisters from the same family be given such indistinguishable names for no reason? From then on, a guess began to grow in her mind.

Madam Chai reacted faster. She scolded, "Xue Zhiyi, how can you call Yue'er by her name?"

Xue Zhiyi said calmly, "Zhiyi originally thought that neither Miss Chai nor I had any imperial decree, nor was there any difference between host and guest, so just calling her by her name should not be considered offensive."

But in a flash, she seemed to remember something and said, "Speaking of which, Madam and Miss, it would be inappropriate to call Zhiyi by his full name, as it would lead to gossip. It is better to address him by his title. You two should know this title, right?"

As soon as they finished speaking, the mother and daughter of the Chai family almost showed fear at the same time, but Mrs. Chai pretended to be stupid and said, "I don't know what nonsense you are talking about."

Xue Zhiyi's guess went a step further: she did not leave the palace in the name of the empress dowager, and she did not reveal her identity after arriving in Jiangzhou, but the mother and daughter must have investigated her and knew her identity, so they naturally knew that she knew Chai Yue in the palace, which was why she showed such a guilty look.

She finally determined the source of the malice between the mother and daughter.

Suddenly, Xue Ruoyu asked coldly: "What do you want to do?"

Xue Zhiyi looked at Xue Ruoyu, only to see impatience on her haggard face: "You came here today and were rude to my aunt and the others. Do you want to show off and let me see that you are still free and easy after harming the Xue family?"

Xue Zhiyi was silent for a moment, as if she had returned to her childhood when she made a mistake and was lectured by her elder sister.

But she quickly recovered from the cold gaze and said seriously, "Zhiyi came here just to express her gratitude. Thank you for the Tang Mansion's hospitality, which allowed Zhiyi to eat such precious food as fine grains and fresh vegetables at this time of year."

After that, he tentatively said, "Fine grains are fine, but it's not easy to supply fresh vegetables."

"Although it is difficult to get supplies, it is not completely impossible. Although the official road is closed, it does not mean that there are no other ways to get in and out. You did not take the official road, but you still had to travel through mountains and rivers to enter Jiangzhou?" Xue Ruoyu's attitude was still cold: "Do you think the Tang family is doing something illegal in secret?"

"I didn't mean that." Xue Zhiyi said.

But Chai Yue chuckled: "Cousin, please don't be so polite to her. She is a person who repays kindness with enmity. The better you treat her, the more she will try to harm you. I wonder what crime she is secretly fabricating now."