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

Chapter 228 The word "husband" made her heart flutter like a deer.

"What do you know?" Zhiye clenched his fists, his face full of gloom and resentment. "Speaking of heinous crimes, how much cleaner is that dog of an emperor than me? He's the kind of person who would even slaughter his own brothers for the throne."

"So, you think it's perfectly justified to point your sword at the common people?" Lu Zhan's tone was icy. "For your own selfish desires, you condoned your subordinates' robbing and killing of people on passing ships to amass wealth. Your actions are even more despicable!"

Zhiye frowned slightly but remained silent.

Lu Zhan coldly said, "You disregard the lives of the people. Even if you gain the throne, it will not be a blessing for the people! I don't care what personal grudges you have with the Emperor, but you have harmed the people, so you are a criminal! You should be brought to justice!"

Upon hearing this, Zhi Ye laughed maniacally, his handsome face contorting in a grotesque manner. "It's easy for you to say that when you're not in my position! If you were in my shoes, you might do something even more outrageous."

"I won't!" Lu Zhan shook his head firmly, threw the branding iron back into the furnace, and took a sharp blade from the wall.

Seeing the gleaming steel knife in his hand, Zhiye's pupils contracted. "You want to kill me?"

"I am a servant of the emperor, and I must serve him faithfully. I have offended you!" Lu Zhan said calmly, placing a knife against his neck.

"If you kill me, do you think my little niece will still be able to marry you without any distractions?" Zhi Ye narrowed his eyes.

A chilling glint appeared in Lu Zhan's eyes. "You take yourself too seriously. So what if you're her uncle? Where have you been all these years? You never showed your face when she needed family the most. At best, you're just a relative she's met twice. She won't take you seriously!"

Zhi Ye choked, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes.

"You think I can't do anything just because you refuse to hand over your henchmen?" Lu Zhan scoffed.

"What do you want to do?" Zhiye asked warily.

“It’s simple, I’ll use you as bait!” Lu Zhan said slowly.

Zhiye was startled. "What?"

……

Zhiwan was unaware of what was happening in Yangzhou.

She fell ill due to excessive worry.

"...Why did you suddenly get sick?"

Looking at the pale-faced little girl on the bed, Madam Wei was extremely worried and scolded Shuang'er, "How can you take care of someone like this?"

Shuang'er felt very guilty, "It was my negligence."

“It’s not Shuang’er’s fault…” Zhiwan shook her head weakly. “Aunt, don’t worry, I’m fine. I’ll be alright after a couple of days of rest…”

How could the Wei family not be worried?
She sighed inwardly and told Jiang Shi to find a doctor to bring back.

When the ship reached the next dock for resupply, Jiang Shi immediately disembarked to find a doctor.

He finally found the doctor before the ship set sail.

According to the doctor's diagnosis, Zhiwan fell ill due to excessive worry and catching a cold.

"...It's not a serious illness. Take three doses of this medicine and you'll be fine." After leaving the medicine, the doctor disembarked.

Madam Wei hurriedly ordered someone to take the medicine and decoct it.

She sat by the bed, fed Zhiwan some warm water, and then asked, "What's wrong, child? You've gotten sick from worrying so much."

"I...I was just worried about my cousin..." Zhiwan didn't dare to tell the truth and lowered her eyes guiltily.

The aunt had no idea that she had an uncle, who was also a notorious bandit leader...

Upon hearing this, Madam Wei couldn't help but laugh and teased, "So you're worried about Zhan? What a silly girl! Your cousin is tough and thick-skinned, what's there to worry about?"
But if your cousin knew that his wife had fallen ill because she was worried about him, would he be happy or angry?

The words "little wife" made Zhiwan blush deeply.

After thinking for a moment, she grabbed her aunt's sleeve and pleaded, "I...I'm so embarrassed, Aunt, please don't tell my cousin."

"Silly girl, what's so shameful about this? It's only natural for a wife to worry about her husband," Madam Wei said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan's face turned so red it was almost bleeding. The word "husband" made her heart flutter like a deer.

When she met her aunt's teasing gaze, she was so embarrassed that she buried her head under the covers.

Her action made Madam Wei burst into laughter. Her Wan'er was truly easily amused.

"Alright, alright, your aunt won't tease you anymore. Come out quickly, you're still weak, don't make yourself sick by staying cooped up." Madam Wei stopped laughing, pulled the blanket off Zhiwan's head, and said with a smile.

Zhiwan's face turned bright red.

But after all that, her energy and spirits actually improved.

Later that evening, the medicine was ready, and Madam Wei personally fed it to her and then let her take a nap.

When she woke up again, her body didn't feel so heavy.

Zhiwan stopped thinking about her uncle.

Because she was powerless to change it.

After all, his uncle had committed a capital offense.

She believed that even if her father were alive, he would not exonerate her uncle for his crimes.

Thinking about it this way, she felt much more relaxed.

But there was still some melancholy.

A few days later, the ship finally arrived in the capital.

When they returned to the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, Zhiwan was in good spirits, but Wei, who did not know how to ride a boat, suffered a great calamity, her face pale and she looked very haggard.

Upon returning to the manor, Zhiwan first escorted Wei back to the Orchid Courtyard to rest.

After settling Wei Shi in, she planned to return to Yaoguang Pavilion.

Unexpectedly, they ran into Lu Jinglan and Lu Lan as soon as they came out of Lan Academy.

Upon seeing Zhiwan, the two looked astonished.

"Sister Zhiwan, didn't you... elope with someone?" Lu Lan blurted out, then seemed to realize her mistake and covered her mouth in annoyance. "I'm sorry, Sister Zhiwan, I misspoke. Please don't take it to heart."

Zhiwan was not surprised at all upon hearing this.

After all, Chen Jiu had already told her about eloping.

She looked at Lu Lan with a scrutinizing gaze. "I was wondering who spread the rumors. Now it seems, could it have been you, Lu Lan?"

Lu Lan was startled, her fingers clenched tightly under her sleeve, and she forced a smile, saying, "Why would Sister Zhiwan think that way?"

Lu Jinglan, who had been silent until now, spoke up: "Wan'er, why do you say such things about Lanlan? There is a saying that a clear conscience fears no accusation. If you really didn't do such a thing, there shouldn't be such rumors in the manor."

Zhiwan frowned, about to say something, but Lu Jinglan interrupted her with a smile, "Alright, it's good that you're back. Go back and rest for a while. Remember to pay your respects to the old lady later. She was very worried about you when you suddenly left without saying goodbye."

Zhiwan glanced at her and said indifferently, "I know. But Aunt Jinglan, you are an elder, so you can't just jump to conclusions and label people randomly."

Otherwise, if someone falsely accuses you of adultery someday, shouldn't we also say, "An innocent person has nothing to fear; if your aunt didn't do it, no one would falsely accuse you?"

Lu Jinglan's smile froze.

Zhiwan ignored the two of them and left with Shuang'er.

Watching her walk away, Lu Jinglan clenched her handkerchief tightly.

Since you left, why come back?

"Sister Zhiwan suddenly caused such a scene, which made my elder brother and aunt pay even more attention to her. During the time that Sister Zhiwan was away, she must have been with my elder brother, right?" Lu Lan said as if talking to herself.

Upon hearing this, Lu Jinglan could barely contain her jealousy and hatred.

Zhiwan really has some clever tricks up her sleeve!

She really underestimated this orphan!

(End of this chapter)