Chapter 14
Chapter 14
“I’m fine, just a little tired. I’ll be better after a short rest.”
Jiang Sijin was busy serving porridge and didn’t pay further attention to Jiang Ruyun.
After leaving, Jiang Ruyun walked toward the back. She stopped after putting some distance between herself and the group.
“Miss?”
At that moment, Jiang Ruyun’s servant girl, Xi Er, hurried to her side. Seeing her, Jiang Ruyun quickly asked, “How is it? Did you find the person I asked you to?”
“I’ve found them.”
Xi Er spoke softly, glancing at the distant group.
Hearing her words, a smile appeared in Jiang Ruyun’s eyes. She was eager to see how Jiang Peihuan would handle the situation.
“Miss, serving porridge was approved by Grandma Jiang. If she finds out about this, I’m afraid…”
“Shut up”
Jiang Ruyun coldly glared at Xi Er, her eyes filled with anger. “Only you and I know about this. If you don’t say anything, no one will know it was me.”
“Or are you planning to betray me?”
As she uttered those words, Jiang Ruyun’s expression darkened. Xi Er quickly knelt down, “Miss, please don’t be angry. I would never dare.”
“Hmph, don’t forget that I am your master.”
Worried that Jiang Peihuan would discover her absence, Jiang Ruyun returned to the porridge distribution area.
By the carriage.
Although she already had a guess in her heart, seeing Xiao Nanye’s face made Jiang Peihuan feel doubtful.
It was said that King Cheng was hard to find, even the Emperor struggled to locate him. Why was he so free now?
“Greetings to King Cheng.”
Despite her many guesses, Jiang Peihuan respectfully greeted him in a low voice as she approached the carriage.
“Young Miss, please stand up.”
“I came today because I heard the Jiang family was serving porridge outside the city. In recent years, Qi Kingdom has been in constant war, and the people’s lives haven’t been easy. Serving porridge benefits the country and its citizens. I also want to contribute, so please don’t refuse.”
Jiang Peihuan knew she couldn’t decline the grain. After hearing his words, she bowed again. “In that case, I thank Your Highness on behalf of the city’s people.”
“If Your Highness has no other orders, I’ll take my leave now.”
Finishing her words, she didn’t wait for Xiao Nanye’s response and prepared to leave. However, as she took her first step, she saw Cui Er hurrying over.
“Miss, something has happened.”
“Calm down. What happened?” Jiang Peihuan said softly, noticing the concern on Cui Er’s face. Seeing the calmness in Jiang’s eyes, Cui Er’s heart gradually settled down.
“Someone has been poisoned.”
“Poisoned?”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Peihuan frowned. “Your Highness, I must excuse myself. I…”
“Poisoning is a serious matter. I’ll accompany you to find out the cause.”
Without waiting for Jiang Peihuan’s response, Xiao Nanye led Han Feng and walked ahead.
“Miss, this?”
Looking at King Cheng’s back, Cui Er’s eyes were filled with Surprise. ” Let’s go over there first. ”
After saying that, Jiang Peihuan strode forward.
“This porridge was prepared by our General’s Mansion. It couldn’t possibly be poisoned. Don’t make baseless accusations.”
Upon reaching the porridge distribution site, Jiang Peihuan saw chaos. A woman lay on the ground, blood at the corner of her mouth. A boy, about seven or eight, knelt beside her crying. A man nearby pointed at Jiang Sijin and yelled, “My wife was fine until she drank the porridge you provided.”
“If it’s not poison in your porridge, then what is it?”
“Fellow villagers, this porridge is poisoned. Do not drink it.”
After scolding Jiang Sijin, the man warned those around him. Hearing the word ‘poison,’ the queue quickly dispersed.
“I drank this porridge too. Could I be poisoned as well?”
” Don’t listen to his nonsense. If the porridge were truly poisonous, our General’s Mansion wouldn’t dare serve it to the people. Aren’t we afraid of the Emperor’s punishment?”
Jiang Sijin glared at the man, anger in her eyes, and then addressed the scattered crowd.
” That’s right. It’s not the first time General Mansion has distributed porridge. Could there be another reason?”
“Don’t worry. What happened?” Jiang Peihuan said softly, noticing the concern on Cui-er’s face. Seeing the calmness in Jiang’s eyes, Cui-er’s heart gradually settled down.
“Someone has been poisoned.”
“Poisoned?”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Peihuan frowned. “Your Highness, I must excuse myself. I…”
“Poisoning is a serious matter. I’ll accompany you to find out the cause.”
Without waiting for Jiang Peihuan’s response, Xiao Nanye led Han Feng and walked ahead.
“Miss, what is this?”
Cui-er stared at King Cheng’s retreating back, her eyes wide with surprise. “Let’s go and see.”
With that, Jiang Peihuan strode forward.
“This porridge was prepared by our General’s Estate. It couldn’t possibly be poisoned. Don’t make baseless accusations.”
Upon reaching the porridge distribution site, Jiang Peihuan saw chaos. A woman lay on the ground, blood at the corner of her mouth. A boy, about seven or eight, knelt beside her, tears streaming down his face. A man nearby pointed at Jiang Sijin and yelled, “My wife was fine until she drank the porridge you provided.”
“If it’s not poison in your porridge, then what is it?”
“Fellow villagers, this porridge is poisoned. Do not drink it.”
After berating Jiang Sijin, the man warned those around him. Hearing the word ‘poison,’ the queue quickly dispersed.
“I drank this porridge too. Could I be poisoned as well?”
“Don’t listen to his nonsense. If the porridge were truly poisonous, our General’s Manor wouldn’t dare serve it to the people. Aren’t we afraid of the Emperor’s punishment?”
Jiang Sijin glared at the man, anger in her eyes, and then addressed the scattered crowd.
“Indeed, it’s not the first time our General’s Manor has distributed porridge. Could there be another reason?”
“I recognize him. He’s Wang Qiang from Wang Family Village. His wife was married later, and he doesn’t treat her well…”
The crowd murmured, their voices overlapping. The entire porridge distribution area resembled a bustling marketplace.
Seeing that things weren’t going his way, Wang Qiang’s expression darkened. He shouted at Sijin, “I don’t care. It was your General’s Mansion’s porridge that poisoned my wife. I’m reporting this to the authorities.”
“Big Sister, you had this porridge prepared. Could there really be a problem?”
While Jiang Sijin was being scolded by everyone, Jiang Ruyun had been hiding on the sidelines. When she saw Jiang Peihuan appear, she quickly spoke up.
At this moment, Wang Qiang also understood the reason behind this. He pointed at Jiang Peihuan and shouted, “How can a woman like you, who disregards her morals, be kind enough to serve porridge? You’re obviously…”
“How dare you insult my elder sister? I swear I’ll tear your mouth apart.”
Jiang Sijin hadn’t been very angry when she was scolded, but when she heard Wang Qiang’s insult toward Jiang Peihuan, she immediately pulled out the purple whip from her waist and raised her hand to strike Wang Qiang.
“Sijin, stop!”
Seeing Jiang Sijin’s actions, Jiang Peihuan took out a long black whip from her waist. She casually swung it and wrapped it around Jiang Sijin’s whip.
“Elder Sister, didn’t you hear him insult you?”
Jiang Sijin wasn’t angry when she herself was scolded, but when she heard Jiang Peihuan being insulted, her eyes reddened with anger.
Seeing Jiang Sijin’s furious expression, Jiang Peihuan felt touched. She released the whip and whispered, “It’s all baseless accusations. Why let them bother you?”
After calming Jiang Sijin down, Jiang Peihuan shot a cold glance at Jiang Ruyun. Seeing Jiang Peihuan’s expression, Jiang Ruyun’s heart trembled.
She didn’t dare to say anything more and decided to let others speak. She looked at Wang Qiang without revealing any emotion.
Receiving Jiang Ruyun’s gaze, Wang Qiang glared at Jiang Peihuan, his eyes filled with rage, “I don’t care. My wife is poisoned. If she dies, you’ll be the murderer. You must kneel down and…”
“If this king hears you say another word, I’ll have you sliced up and fed to the dogs.”
Xiao Nanye had been standing quietly beside Jiang Peihuan. However, when he heard Wang Qiang’s insults towards her, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He stared at Wang Qiang with hostility in his eyes.
Upon hearing the words ‘this king,’ Wang Qiang immediately fell to his knees.
He suddenly felt a wave of regret, but it was too late now.
Hearing Xiao Nanye’s words, Wang Qiang quickly cried, “Your Highness, please stand up for me! The eldest daughter of the Jiang family poisoned my wife.”
“Your wife isn’t dead yet.”
At Xiao Nanye’s signal, Ye Xiao approached Jiang Peihuan and said, “Eldest Miss, this woman ate the arsenic poison.”