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

Chapter 236 is related to my cousin.

Yaoguang Pavilion.

Zhiwan had also heard about Lu Jinglan's disappearance and was discussing it with Shuang'er in the room when she suddenly heard a servant bowing outside the door, "Madam!"

The master and servant immediately stopped talking.

Zhiwan turned her head and saw her aunt rushing in in a great hurry.

"Wan'er!"

Zhiwan quickly stood up and said, "Aunt."

Madam Wei quickly stepped forward, took her hand, and examined her carefully. She asked anxiously, "Are you alright? Did the old lady and the others make things difficult for you?"

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan finally understood why her aunt was in such a hurry.

She shook her head and said obediently, "The old lady and Lu Jinglan came to Yaoguang Pavilion yesterday. They wanted to kick me out and even wanted the servants to beat me. However, I spent three hundred taels of silver to get the servants of Fushou Hall to turn against me and help me tie up Lu Jinglan. The old lady and Lu Jinglan did not get any advantage from me. On the contrary, Lu Jinglan was beaten up by Jiang Shi who came later."

Jiang Shi and the servants helped me; Aunt, please don't make things difficult for them.

She explained the events of the previous day in just a few words, but Madam Wei listened with trepidation.

Wan'er is just a young girl who has reached the age of marriage. Even if she is not as timid and weak as she usually appears, how can she possibly deal with the mean old lady and the scheming Lu Jinglan?

They must have been bullied to death yesterday.

"It's all my fault for being careless and leaving you alone in the mansion," Madam Wei said, filled with remorse and regret.

"Auntie, I'm really fine. Although Lu Jinglan slapped me, I slapped her back. And she was slapped ten times by Jiang Shi afterward, and her front teeth were knocked out." Seeing the tears in her eyes and the regret and self-blame on her face, Zhiwan hurriedly comforted her.

"What? Lu Jinglan dared to hit you?" Madam Wei was furious. "That beggar, how dare she?"

Zhiwan paused for a moment, then said truthfully, "She took advantage of the old lady's affection for her and slapped me as soon as she entered the courtyard, trying to intimidate me. But I am not afraid of her, and I have also bribed all the servants in Fushou Hall with money."

She had no intention of hiding what happened yesterday from her aunt. Since her aunt had asked, she naturally had to tell her everything in detail to avoid the old lady accusing her of wrongdoing.

"How dare she!" Wei was so angry at the thought of Wan'er being beaten that she wanted to chop Lu Jinglan up.

"It's alright, Aunt. I didn't suffer any loss either. Besides, Lu Jinglan seems to have disappeared, so it can be considered retribution," Zhiwan comforted her.

Madam Wei quickly lifted her face and examined her carefully.

Although a day had passed, Zhiwan's skin was fair and delicate, and because Lu Jinglan had deliberately hit her hard, the finger marks on Zhiwan's face could still be seen upon closer inspection.

Seeing the finger marks on her face, Madam Wei was truly tempted to kill Lu Jinglan.

However, it's also her fault for being stupid. This time, she was sent away by Madam Lou, which gave the old lady and Lu Jinglan the opportunity to bully Wan'er.

"Does it still hurt?" Madam Wei touched her face, her heart aching with concern.

"It doesn't hurt anymore," Zhiwan said with a smile. To prove she wasn't lying, she pressed her face hard. "You see, I don't feel any pain at all."

Madam Wei was both amused and annoyed. She quickly pulled down the girl's mischievous hand and scolded her, "You silly girl."

Zhiwan felt a warm feeling in her heart.

She knew that her aunt loved her and was on her side, which was why she had the confidence to stand up against Old Madam Lu and Lu Jinglan yesterday.

"It cost three hundred taels of silver all at once, and I feel a little heartache." To ease the atmosphere, Zhiwan deliberately put on a distressed expression.

"You little miser, it would be best if you could solve this with silver. Luckily, you're quick-witted," Madam Wei said with a smile, then added generously, "Your aunt will make up for the three hundred taels you lost."

"Thank you, Aunt." This time, Zhiwan did not refuse.

My aunt already felt guilty and remorseful about what happened yesterday, and if she refused again, she would feel even worse.

Wei affectionately patted her head and brought up another matter, "Now it seems that Lu Jinglan is not really missing. I think she is clearly hiding."

Zhiwan was taken aback. "Hidden?" Madam Wei nodded. "She suffered a loss here yesterday and must be unwilling to accept it, so she came up with this plan to force the old lady to seek justice for her."

Not wanting Wan'er to worry or be frightened, she did not tell her about the old lady's threat to kidnap Wan'er at Fushou Hall.

After hearing what she said, Zhiwan also felt that it made sense.

"So, she might really be hiding."

If her aunt had returned yesterday, she might have thought that her aunt had sent someone to kidnap Lu Jinglan. However, her aunt knew nothing about what happened yesterday and only returned today. Therefore, Lu Jinglan's disappearance was definitely not the work of her aunt.

But among the entire Lu family, she couldn't understand who Lu Jinglan had grudges against that would want to kidnap her from the Lu family.

“Since she’s hiding, then she should never come back,” Madam Wei suddenly said.

"Aunt, what...are you going to do?" Zhiwan couldn't help but ask.

Madam Wei patted her hand. "It's alright. I'll handle this. You should rest well. This afternoon, the embroiderers from the Brocade Pavilion will come to take your measurements and make your wedding dress. Also, I'll take you somewhere else tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan did not press the matter further, but she vaguely guessed what her aunt was planning to do.

Auntie is trying to take this opportunity to prevent Lu Jinglan from returning to the Lu family, isn't she?

This method is quite good.

In this way, the old lady could not blame anyone.

After all, it was Lu Jinglan who hid it herself, and perhaps something unexpected happened on the way.

After Wei left, Shuang'er asked in surprise, "Did Lu Jinglan really hide herself away?"

Zhiwan shook her head. "I don't know either, but she suddenly disappeared. Besides hiding herself, could it really be that thieves broke into the mansion and kidnapped her?"
The mansion was heavily guarded, making it impossible for ordinary thieves to enter, let alone kidnap people silently.

But if she ran away and hid herself, then everything makes sense.

Shuang'er nodded, "That's true..." She paused, then leaned close to Zhiwan's ear and whispered, "This servant thought it was the young master who ordered it."

Zhiwan was taken aback. Cousin?

She had considered her cousin as a possible culprit, but he was in Yangzhou, and even if Jiang Shi had reported the situation to him, it wouldn't be possible for him to act so quickly...

But she quickly thought of sending messages by carrier pigeon.

Last time she wrote to her cousin, he replied very quickly...

Thinking of this, Zhiwan instructed, "Don't tell anyone about this, lest it cause trouble for my cousin."

"This servant understands." Shuang'er nodded, then said with a hint of schadenfreude, "But Lu Jinglan's sudden disappearance is truly satisfying."

"Mmm." Zhi Wanyi smiled happily.

Lu Jinglan is obsessed with her cousin and constantly tries to get close to him, which is quite annoying.

Now that's settled, she's disappeared directly from the Lu family. If nothing unexpected happens, she probably won't see her again.

To be honest, it was quite satisfying!

After leaving Yaoguang Pavilion, Wei went to Fushou Hall.

"Madam, if you are not satisfied with Jinzhi marrying Wan'er, you can go directly to your grandson. Why bother Wan'er and make things difficult for a young girl?"

Thankfully, she's alright, otherwise you'd be branded as someone who mistreats their granddaughter-in-law.

Old Madam Lu was extremely anxious about Lu Jinglan's disappearance. When she saw her enter the door and start making sarcastic remarks, she immediately turned her face down and angrily rebuked her, "The girl you raised is quite something. Jinglan and I both suffered at her hands. What could possibly happen to her? On the contrary, my Jinglan was tormented beyond recognition by her. Now that she's disappeared, it must have been that wretched girl Zhiwan who did it!"

(End of this chapter)