The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 181 Should she... give him a chance?
When Zhiwan woke up, it was already the next morning.

She paused for a moment when she saw the round fan beside her pillow.

She had another dream last night, and she dreamt about that man again...

Recalling the scene in her dream before she fell asleep, where the man held this round fan and fanned her, she felt a mix of emotions.

Did that man really want to marry into her family, or was he just trying to appease her?
Should she... give him a chance?
The idea had barely crossed her mind when she shook her head and rejected it.

No.

That man's identity is extraordinary; would he really be willing to marry into the family?
Moreover, she simply couldn't control him.

When it comes to settling down, it's best to find someone honest and reliable, someone she can at least control.

With this in mind, she decided to find a suitable person as soon as possible and get married.

Once she gets married and has a husband, she'll probably stop dreaming about that man.

That way, the man couldn't do anything about her.

If, unfortunately, he were to find her in real life, but she were already married, he would probably have no choice but to give up.

Just after Zhiwan finished breakfast, Madam Wei arrived, personally applied the medicine to her, and watched her drink it.

"Aunt, my injury is much better now, so please don't worry," Zhiwan said, trying to comfort her as she noticed her brows were still furrowed.

Madam Wei sighed, "This time, I've dragged you into this mess."

"How could it be that Aunt was implicated? Aunt, please don't say that." Zhiwan frowned. If anyone is to blame, it's Lu Xuan. He's so ruthless at such a young age, carrying a dagger and trying to kill Aunt.

She saw what was happening and couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

She was also glad that she reacted quickly enough, otherwise Lu Xuan's dagger would have stabbed her aunt.

"Don't worry, I won't let that brat out," Madam Wei said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan hesitated, "But what about my uncle..."

Lu Xuan was, after all, his uncle's son. His aunt could keep the mother and son locked up for a few days, but it certainly wouldn't work in the long run.

Not to mention her uncle, even the old lady would absolutely not allow it.

She didn't want her aunt to be blamed by them because of her.

"He won't say anything; it was the fault of that mother and son," Madam Wei said coldly.

"Did Uncle... come looking for you?" Zhiwan asked.

Madam Wei nodded and didn't hide anything from her. "Yesterday, the old lady had someone bring your uncle back. However, your uncle was quite clear-headed in this matter. He didn't plead for the mother and son and said he would leave it to me to decide."

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Uncle still cares about you."

Even so, Madam Wei still had a hurdle in her heart and didn't want to talk about Lu Zhenbei anymore. She changed the subject and said, "You should rest well. As for the choice of a live-in husband, we'll go and take a look after you've recovered a bit."

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan's heart skipped a beat. "Does Aunt have other candidates in mind?"

Madam Wei nodded. "When you went to Yangzhou before, I asked many people to help you find someone. I thought you and Shen Longjin or Bai Yi would get together, but I didn't expect... Never mind, let's not talk about them. You should rest well. I'm going back now and I'll come to see you later."

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan became somewhat anxious, wanting to suggest arranging a matchmaking meeting today. However, fearing that her aunt might think she was being too hasty, she held back.

As soon as Madam Wei left, Dongxiang walked in with red eyes.

"Miss, my relationship with Young Master Bai is not what they think. I didn't..."

"Dongxiang, what do you think of Baiyi as a person?" Zhiwan interrupted her.

Dongxiang was taken aback, but still said truthfully, "Young Master Baiyi is a good person."

“Since he’s a good match, you don’t need to worry about what others say. Just live a good life with him. I heard from Shuang’er that he came to the manor today to ask your aunt for your hand in marriage. Your aunt has already given you your indenture, so you are now free. Whether you want to marry him or not is your business.” Zhiwan said, then asked Shuang’er to fetch some silver and handed it to Dongxiang. “Thank you for taking care of me all these years. This silver is my dowry for you.” Upon hearing this, Dongxiang burst into tears. “This servant wants to continue serving Miss Biao and doesn’t want to get married…”

"My cousin is kind-hearted and won't hold it against you. You should take what you can get and leave quickly." Shuang'er stuffed the silver into her arms in an annoyed tone.

With things having come to this, Dongxiang bit her lip and finally accepted the money.

Looking at the young lady sitting on the chair, she choked up and couldn't help but say, "Whether you believe me or not, I did not seduce Young Master Bai Yi at the theater yesterday. My leg was hit by something, and in pain, I lost my balance and fell into Young Master Bai Yi's arms."

"This servant is foolish and stupid, and I must thank Miss Biao for her tolerance over the years. This servant will take her leave now." After saying this, she kowtowed heavily to Zhiwan, and then left crying.

Upon seeing this, Zhiwan frowned.

Is what Dongxiang said true?
Something hit her leg?
She suddenly remembered the time when they were eating at a restaurant in Yangzhou, Zeng Jiayi suddenly tumbled down the stairs.

She knew that Jiang Shi had tampered with things that time.

What about this time?

The methods were so similar that she immediately thought of Chen Jiu.

In the area where the play was being watched yesterday, besides Bai Yi, only the Lu family members were present.

Of the group yesterday, besides Bai Yi, only Chen Jiu knew kung fu.

Bai Yi was just an ordinary junior officer in the army; he shouldn't have had the skill to hit Dong Xiang's leg so silently.

Therefore, it must be Chen Jiu!

Upon realizing this, Zhiwan was incredulous.

Why did Chen Jiu do that?

Dongxiang is usually quite well-behaved and hasn't done anything wrong.

She suppressed her doubts and said to Shuang'er, "Go and see Dongxiang off. She has been loyal to me all these years. Don't speak to her so harshly, lest you hurt her feelings."

Shuang'er felt a pang of guilt as she recalled Dongxiang's kindness over the years. "Then I'll go and see her."

"Mm." Zhiwan nodded.

Before long, Shuang'er ran back.

"Did Bai Yi come to pick up Dongxiang?" Zhiwan asked.

Shuang'er nodded and said very quickly, "They've come to pick her up. I saw her onto the carriage. But something happened at the manor?"

Zhiwan was surprised and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"

"Just now, a man claiming to be Consort Wang's lover came to the door, saying that Lu Xuan is his son." Shuang'er said this with a hint of excitement. "Now there's a commotion in the front yard, even the old lady has been alerted. Would you like to go and see, Miss?"

Zhiwan was quite surprised and quickly nodded, "Let's go, let's go take a look."

When the master and servant arrived at the front yard, Madam Wei, Old Madam Lu, Lu Zhenbei, and the people from the second branch of the family were already there.

A man of medium height and ordinary appearance was making a scene.

"This child is Wang Shuya's son, my son. How can he recognize someone else as his father? Wang Shuya, you have no conscience! You actually took my son and recognized someone else as his father! Duke, you have to give me an explanation!" After saying this, the man knelt down and cried with snot and tears streaming down his face.

When the man came to their door, Aunt Wang and her son had already been released. Hearing what the man said, Aunt Wang trembled with rage and roared furiously, "You're talking nonsense! How could Lu Xuan be your son? Don't you dare make false accusations!"

As Zhiwan was watching the commotion, Chen Jiu suddenly approached and said in a low voice, "Miss, the young master already knows about your injury. Don't worry, he won't let you suffer any injustice."

Zhiwan was taken aback, turned her head, and looked at him in surprise, "Cousin, you know?"

　Lu Zhan: Oh no, it looks like my cousin is about to find out!
　　(End of this chapter)