As soon as Qi Shuo entered, he saw Princess Consort Jing with a darkened expression.

“What’s wrong, Mother?”

Princess Consort Jing glanced at her son.

With his upright bearing and proper manners, he was an impeccable son-in-law candidate no matter how one looked at him, yet Minister Wen actually found him unsuitable!

Princess Consort Jing had already analyzed who was dissatisfied with this marriage match.

According to the person she had sent to sound out the Wen family’s intentions, when Madam Lin heard that Prince Jing’s Manor intended to seek her beloved daughter’s hand in marriage, joy immediately appeared on her face, her upturned lips unable to be suppressed. She had only said out of feminine modesty that she needed to discuss it properly with the master.

Yet what arrived was news of rejection.

Wasn’t it obvious then?

“It’s all the Wen family’s fault—a mere minor minister’s manor, yet they’re being so selective—”

“The Wen family has no intention of forming a marriage alliance?” Qi Shuo’s expression remained calm, though his eyes deepened somewhat.

Princess Consort Jing had initially been somewhat angry at her son for making her lose face, but hearing him ask this, she couldn’t help but feel distressed.

“Shuo’er, there are countless beautiful young ladies. Mother will definitely find you one even prettier than Second Miss Wen.”

Qi Shuo smiled. “Thank you for thinking of your son, Mother, but your son is in no hurry to take a wife.”

Not in a hurry again?

Princess Consort Jing looked at her son with a more contemplative gaze.

Qi Shuo smiled as if nothing was amiss. “It was originally a remedial measure out of concern that Second Miss Wen would be implicated by your son. It’s not that your son is eager to marry.”

“I see.” Princess Consort Jing took a light sip of tea. “Mother understands. Shuo’er, don’t dwell on this matter either.”

“As long as Mother isn’t unhappy about it.”

“How could I be? Is Mother the type to be troubled by such a trivial matter?”

When Prince Jing came over after noon, Princess Consort Jing mentioned that the Wen family had politely declined. “Setting aside family status, our Shuo’er is absolutely first-rate, yet a mere minor minister dares to be so proud and particular.”

“Princess Consort, you’re not angry, are you?”

“Not particularly angry—I just didn’t eat breakfast or lunch, that’s all.”

“How utterly unreasonable!” Seeing Princess Consort Jing raise her eyelids, Prince Jing hastily explained, “I mean that Wen Rugui is utterly unreasonable.”

“A person without discernment—best not to mention him.”

The next day after court was dismissed, Prince Jing squeezed through the crowd heading out and quietly approached behind Wen Rugui, then kicked him.

Wen Rugui stumbled and fell to the ground, landing right at the feet of Minister Zhang from the Ministry of Rites. In his panic, he grabbed onto the other man’s pant leg.

Minister Zhang’s expression stiffened. “Minister Wen, what are you doing?”

Having fallen flat on his face before众目睽睽 everyone’s eyes, the face-conscious Wen Rugui’s face flushed bright red. He scrambled up awkwardly and apologized, “My apologies, my foot slipped just now.”

As he spoke, he looked back to see several pairs of eyes watching the spectacle.

Wen Rugui’s expression grew even worse.

Someone had clearly kicked him just now, but in such circumstances, it wouldn’t do to shout about it. He could only swallow this bitter pill silently.

“Minister Wen, do take care of your health.” Minister Zhang had never thought much of Wen Rugui, and naturally wouldn’t pass up this rare opportunity to mock him when he made a fool of himself.

“Thank you for the reminder, Minister Zhang.” Wen Rugui dropped a perfunctory pleasantry and quickly strode toward the palace exit.

At this time, Emperor Tai’an had not yet departed, so he asked the attending eunuch, “What’s the commotion down there?”

The eunuch hurriedly replied, “Your Majesty, it seems Minister Wen took a fall.”

Emperor Tai’an shook his head and headed toward the inner palace.

When Wen Rugui left the office, his mood remained gloomy.

Because of his humble origins, he had paid particular attention to his bearing since entering officialdom, fearing people would mock him as uncouth. He never expected to make such a spectacle of himself today.

The spring chill lingered, yet the carriage felt stuffy, and the monotonous sound of the wheels turning was irritating.

Wen Rugui lifted the carriage curtain and instructed the driver, “Go to Yuelai Teahouse.”

The driver acknowledged and flicked the whip.

Before long, the carriage stopped. Wen Rugui exited the carriage and walked toward the nearby teahouse.

In an elegant room of the restaurant across from Yuelai Teahouse, a person dressed as a servant exclaimed softly, “Miss, that looks like the master!”

Wen Chan steadied herself against the window, her expression instantly changing.

The third household in Mahua Alley at Ruyi Lane—the occupants were a lady with her two children, a son named Chang Hui and a daughter named Chang Qing.

The information she had gathered these past few days matched everything her younger sister had said, but without personally witnessing Father entering and leaving this place, she ultimately didn’t want to believe it.

“Xiao He, follow him immediately and see which household the master enters.”

Xiao He responded affirmatively and quickly left the restaurant.

Wen Chan picked up her teacup and gulped down a mouthful.

The tea had long gone cold, chilling her heart even more.

She stood up, paced back and forth several steps, then sat down again, her hand holding the teacup trembling slightly.

That mother and her two children were truly Father’s—

Who knows how long passed before Xiao He finally returned.

“Which household did the master enter?” Wen Chan stood up and asked.

“The master went to the third household.”

Wen Chan collapsed back into her chair, her face ashen.

“Miss—” Xiao He looked worried.

Wen Chan supported herself on the table to stand, forcing out two words with difficulty: “Return to the manor.”

The master and servant dressed in men’s clothing left the restaurant, changed back into women’s attire, and returned to Wen Manor, heading directly to Luoying Residence.

Seeing Wen Chan’s expression, Wen Hao understood. She signaled for Baozhu to guard the entrance and said softly, “Elder Sister saw, didn’t she?”

Wen Chan’s hand grasping Wen Hao’s was ice-cold. “It’s Elder Sister’s fault. I should have discovered this earlier…”

She could hardly imagine how difficult this must have been for her younger sister, who couldn’t even speak until recently, when facing all this.

“Father—” When she uttered these two words again, Wen Chan actually felt them somewhat strange. “Father won’t leave that mother and her two children outside forever.”

Having personally seen Chang Hui, who was even older than herself, she wouldn’t naively believe Father held the respect for Mother that he appeared to show.

If he truly respected her, those three people wouldn’t exist.

And since his respect was diluted, how could Father bear not to have his only son recognized and brought into the family?

“Second Sister, we cannot tell Mother about this yet.”

Wen Hao nodded. “I know. Does Elder Sister have any thoughts?”

“Chang Hui and Chang Qing are already so grown—trying to prevent them from entering Wen Manor’s gates is unlikely. As for Chang Shi, as daughters we have no grounds to obstruct her either. Mother has a quick temper. If she confronts Father head-on, it might not end well. We should find an appropriate opportunity to tell Grandmother. As an elder, Grandmother can pressure Father into sending Chang Shi far away. At least that’s one fewer person to upset Mother.”

Wen Hao listened silently, sighing inwardly.

What people valued most was the continuation of their bloodline. If they didn’t allow Chang Hui to be recognized and brought into the family, Father would likely gain much sympathy. Even Elder Sister believed it would be good enough to send Chang Shi away.

Unfortunately, Elder Sister couldn’t imagine Father’s cruelty.

What he wanted was far more than just having Chang Hui recognized and brought into the family. He also wanted to give his beloved woman the position of legal wife, give his only son legitimate status, and claim the Lin family’s vast fortune!

“I’ll follow Elder Sister’s lead. Once my foot heals, let’s go tell Grandmother together.”

There was still some time before the incident erupted. At this point, Father might not have instructed those two witnesses yet. If they suddenly exposed everything and caught Father off guard, how could they make him reveal his truly ugly and evil face?