Reborn Princess

Zhou Cechen looked at Shen Lilan, and Shen Lilan gave him a reassuring look.

"Old lady, do you still recognize me?" Shen Lilan asked.

The old woman looked at Shen Yanlan and said, "If it weren't for the benefactor, my grandson would have died soon. A few days ago, I used the money the benefactor gave me to buy medicine and see a doctor, and that's how he was saved."

"I would recognize my benefactor even if he turned into ashes! But now I have no way to repay him." The old woman wiped her palms on her clothes awkwardly.

Shen Lilan said to her: "It's just a small favor, you don't have to worry about it."

"It's just that... you still have to tell us what you know."

The old woman stopped and looked at the two of them. After a moment of silence, she finally said, "Come with me."

Zhou Cechen and Shen Lilan followed the old woman into the house. There were only two rooms inside, and a little boy was lying on the bed in one of the rooms.

The old woman followed their gazes and when she saw the person lying in the room, she quickly lowered the curtains and said, "My grandson is still sick. I hope he won't pass the illness on to you. Come with me."

Shen Lilan felt sad when he saw the young child lying on the bed. The child should be running and playing outside, but he was lying on the bed looking at the small sky.

"Where are his parents?"

"He has no parents."

Shen Lilan was surprised. The old woman said, "I picked up this child. How could I bear to leave such a small child abandoned on the roadside in the snow and ice?"

"If it weren't for you, he would have already..." After saying that, the old woman closed her eyes and sighed, "Well, now we have overcome the difficulties."

After hearing her words, Shen Lilan suddenly had a thought. In her previous life, she went to the capital alone. Could it be that this child is no longer around and she has nothing to worry about?

In the room, the old woman opened a locked cabinet at the head of the bed and took out a box that was slightly dusty.

After the box was opened, a fine agate diamond-patterned bracelet was revealed.

"This is a bracelet of my mother's. She gave it to me before she died."

Shen Xilan looked at the bracelet, one of which was worth nearly a hundred taels of silver, but she had not sold it and kept it intact.

Zhou Cechen looked at the bracelet without saying anything.

"The queen was poisoned to death. The Yang family openly made her drink the poison while she was still alive."

After hearing what the old woman said, Shen Xilan was stunned for a moment. She looked at Zhou Cechen and saw that his expression had not changed, but she could still feel the anger in him.

After hearing the words "force it into his mouth alive", Zhou Cechen clenched his fists, and as his veins bulged, he held his fist with one hand.

Zhou Cechen's fingers trembled when he felt the warmth of Shen Lilan's palm.

"She is the emperor's concubine, how can she be so bold?"

"If a chess piece is out of control, he will naturally discard it and another chess piece will take its place."

Zhou Cechen's cold voice fell, and Shen Lilan tightened his grip on his hand.

"Old woman, did you see this with your own eyes?"

The old woman nodded and said, "Yes, the queen was locked in the room at that time, and the servants were all sent out. I felt something was wrong, so I secretly went back halfway and saw it from the window."

"Luckily I went back secretly, otherwise I would have died. The maids who served the ladies were all killed, and I crawled out from the pile of dead bodies."

Shen Xilan was so angry that she almost trembled when she heard these words. She gripped Zhou Cechen's hand with gradually increasing strength. Zhou Cechen glanced at Shen Xilan, then he pulled out his hand and covered her hand instead.

All these little actions were seen by the old woman. She handed the small box to Zhou Cechen and said, "This is the last thing of the queen. Your Highness, please keep it safe."

Zhou Cechen took the box and looked at the old woman: "Aunt Suyun, if I need you to be a witness, would you be willing?"

The old woman glanced at the room opposite, which was separated from everything by a single curtain.

"I have one condition. You must take good care of my grandson."

Shen Lilan followed her gaze and said, "Okay, don't worry, we will do our best to protect both you and your grandson."

The old woman has a hunched back. She will never be able to straighten it up in this lifetime. If she can still be of some use in her lifetime, then let her go.

……

In the county government office, Yang Wanli listened to the reports from his subordinates. He paced around the room anxiously. How could a healthy person just disappear out of thin air?

"It's been so long, and the person hasn't been found yet?"

"Not yet."

"Go, go, go, what are you still standing here for? Go find him quickly. That's Prince Ding'an. If he's gone, how can I compensate him? How can I explain to the Emperor?"

Several yamen runners retreated but were stopped by Yang Wanli, "Don't let the news leak out, don't let the people in the capital know, you hear me, we have to look for the person secretly."

"Yes."

After the bailiffs left, Yang Wanli was so angry that his face turned red. He calmed himself down. If anything happened to anyone in his Yangzhou, his life would be over!

This was a yamen runner who came in. Yang Wanli saw that there was another person coming in, so he got furious and shouted, "Didn't I tell you to go out and find someone? Why are you back again?"

"Manager Yan wants to see you." The bailiff whispered.

Hearing Manager Yan's words, Yang Wanli closed his eyes and swallowed his anger, then said, "Hurry up and let someone in!"

"Yes."

"No need, I'm already in." Yanci said standing at the door.

"I wonder what Manager Yan is here for?" Yang Wanli said to Yanci with a smile.

It was not until Yanci took out a bill that he was shocked, "This, this, this..."

"County Magistrate Yang seems to be very fond of keeping accounts." Yanci spread out the account book and flipped through the pages one by one.

"In the second year of Yongzhen, Yangzhou suffered a flood, and the price was 100,000 taels."

"In the third year of Yongzhen, Yangzhou suffered a flood, and the price was 150,000 taels."

"In the fifth year of Yongzhen, Yangzhou suffered from an epidemic, two hundred thousand taels."

"The sixth year of Yongzhen..."

"No, no, no, don't read anymore, Manager Yan, what do you mean?" Yang Wanli looked at Yanci and asked.

"Since the national treasury was not able to allocate enough funds, Lord Yang paid for every transaction himself. He is truly an example to me of a businessman."

"Thank you so much..." Yang Wanli said while stroking his beard, but found that he had shaved it a few days ago, so he had to touch his chin.

"I just don't know where Lord Yang got so much silver from?"

As soon as the stone in Yang Wanli's heart fell, another big stone came.

"I didn't know which county magistrate's salary was so high."

Yang Wanli frowned and looked at Yanci, "You used all means to stay in my house just for this account book?"

Yanci smiled and said, "Master Yang, has no one ever told you that things that cannot be seen in the light should be placed in the dark? Are you putting it directly among the books so that I can find it?"

How could Yang Wanli know that someone would really look for something in a pile of books? The most dangerous place is the safest place, so he put it in the pile of books on the desk.