The Grand Secretary has no heir? His concubine gives birth to triplets.

Pei Yan wiped away non-existent wetness from his face with his fingertips, and paused slightly.

"Xiao San".

A dark figure silently appeared from the shadows, kneeling on one knee.

"Investigate. Find out which maid in the manor was punished or wronged tonight."

Xiao San accepted the order and disappeared into the night in a flash.

Pei Yan picked up his pen again, but hesitated to put it down.

The faint trembling in his chest was still there, intermittent, as if someone was clutching his heart through a layer of clothing.

However, each beat was weaker than the last.

Did you cry until you had no strength left?

He put down his pen and rubbed his temples with his thumb.

The scene of the plum blossom appreciation banquet on that day came to mind.

Thirty noble ladies from the capital touched the doll one by one. He sat behind the screen, his expression unchanged, not even his breathing faltering.

The moment his grandmother threw the doll out the window, he actually felt a sense of relief.

No male member of the Pei family will live past thirty.

He had long since resigned himself to his fate.

Unexpectedly, the destined woman that Grandma spoke of actually existed.

As the sky began to lighten with the first light of dawn, Xiao San finally returned.

His tone carried a rare hint of hesitation.

"Your subordinate led the secret guards and thoroughly investigated all the maids and servants in the mansion."

"Whether it's the inner or outer courtyard, each room or household, or even the kitchen where people tend the fire, nothing seems out of the ordinary."

Pei Yan slowly closed his hand, which was resting on his knee.

"impossible."

The voice was soft, yet undeniably firm.

"This woman is in the manor. Think again, is there anyone you've missed?"

Xiao San's forehead was beaded with sweat as he mentally reviewed everyone he had watched that night.

Suddenly, he froze.

"...There's only one."

He suddenly looked up, his pupils flashing.

"The one you personally ordered locked in the woodshed last night, Jiang Guo'er!"

Pei Yan placed his fingers on his knees, remaining motionless for a long time.

Jiang Guo'er?

The maid who was falsely accused and convicted by Cuiping at the birthday banquet.

I remember when she was dragged away, half of her hair was disheveled, sweat was on her face, and her lips were bitten until they turned white.

Her bright black eyes were bloodshot and glistening with tears, yet she stubbornly refused to back down.

It was her.

Pei Yan frowned and remained silent for a moment before slowly raising his hand.

Xiao San immediately leaned down and got closer.

Pei Yan's lips moved slightly as he lowered his voice and gave a few instructions.

Xiao San was clearly taken aback for a moment, but he didn't ask anything. He bowed his head, accepted the order, and left.

Jiang Guo'er was awakened by the cold.

Half of my body was completely numb, and the place where the old woman had twisted my shoulder was in excruciating pain, as if needles were stuck in the gaps between my bones.

The doll in her arms was still pressed against her chest; the temperature was slightly lower than at night, but it still felt warm.

It was still dark outside, so it was impossible to tell what time it was.

She tucked the doll closer to her chest and rubbed its face with her frozen fingers.

The thick eyebrows and large eyes she had embroidered herself were now somewhat distorted, dampened by last night's tears.

"...You mean you."

Her voice was hoarse and full of resentment.

"You're just a perfectly good rag doll; nobody would want you if you were thrown in the snow. I picked you up, and you're not even going to bless me?"

She sniffed and couldn't help but curse again.

"What kind of prime minister is he? Is he out of his mind? How can he solve cases like this?"

After uttering those words, she paused for a moment, then tugged at the corner of her mouth.

Waiting is a dead end.

Why not give it a shot!

Just before dawn, very light footsteps came from outside the door.

Jiang Guo'er's heart tightened, and she instinctively shrank behind the woodpile.

With a "click," the iron lock was pried open from the outside, and a faint light leaked in through the crack in the door.

"Guo'er! Guo'er, are you still alive?"

It is a lotus flower.

A hand reached in through the crack in the door, clutching a cold, hard cornbread.

Jiang Guo'er pounced over, grabbed it, and bit it.

The steamed bun was so cold it hurt her teeth; she swallowed it dry before she could even chew it properly, choking until her eyes rolled back in her head.

"Hey, slow down!" Lotus gasped anxiously from outside, "What if you choke to death!"

Jiang Guo'er didn't even have time to reply.

He stuffed the whole cornbread into his mouth in a few bites, wolfing it down without even bothering to brush off the crumbs that fell onto his clothes.

Catching his breath, he immediately grabbed Lotus's wrist with his other hand.

"Lotus, do me a favor!"

"Let go first, my bones are going to break—"

"Go to the Minister's residence for me!"

Lotus was stunned when she heard this.

"Are you crazy?! The Minister's residence? What right do I, a mere concubine, have to enter the Minister's residence? The gatekeeper wouldn't even acknowledge me!"

"Just say you've been asked to see Miss Xue Lingyi of the Xue family!"

Jiang Guo'er lowered her voice and spoke very quickly.

"It is said that there is a maid in the Pei family who used to serve Miss Xue's cousin-in-law in Jiangnan. Now she has fallen into trouble and begs for your mercy."

Lotus stared at her blankly, as if listening to some fantastical tale.

"Why should the eldest daughter of the Xue family see me? And why should she care whether you live or die?"

"She will see you." Jiang Guo'er's lips were white from the cold, and her voice trembled.

"You just need to recite a line of poetry, and after she informs Miss Xue, she will definitely let you in."

"What poem?"

"Rain falls like silk threads outside the green gauze window..."

Lotus read the sentence aloud, her face still blank.

"After you go in, tell her the last three sentences."

Jiang Guo'er read it out word by word.

"Sitting alone at dusk, who knows my sorrow? In my next life, I wish to be a lotus root in a pond, so that even if the root is broken, the threads will still connect us."

Lotus's expression was somewhat complicated after hearing this.

"These last two lines...aren't they so clichéd? Who wrote them?"

"Never mind who wrote it, just remember it!"

"Alright, alright, lotus roots in the pond, inseparable..." Lotus murmured twice more, somewhat hesitant, "What if I get nervous and forget?"

"Then don't expect me to teach you the Hu family acupuncture technique."

Upon hearing this, Lotus's eyes darted around, and she immediately repeated it three more times in silence.

"Okay, I got it! You just have to hang in there!"

The footsteps faded into the distance.

Jiang Guo'er released her grip, leaned back against the corner of the wall, and let out a long breath.

That poem was written when she was thirteen years old, during a poem-writing contest with Xue Lingyi.

The first two lines were started by Lingyi, elegant and dignified; the last two lines were to be continued by her.

She had a bellyful of fine poems, but she chose not to use them, deliberately adding two lines that were so cheesy they'd make your teeth ache.

Upon receiving the reply, Xue Lingyi was so angry that her handwriting became crooked, and she picked up her pen to scold her:

Despite being full of brilliant ideas, he insists on writing such awful lyrics that even the women washing clothes by the pond would find cheesy!

If Lingyi still remembers.

If Lingyi is willing to come.

You will definitely recognize this poem.

Jiang Guo'er hugged the doll in her arms tighter, looked down at the small face, and spoke softly as if she were comforting herself.

"Bless me."

The warm pavilion of the Ministry of Revenue's residence.

Xue Lingyi had just finished breakfast and was sitting by the window sorting out the medicinal herbs she had brought back from Jiangnan.

Angelica sinensis, white peony root, and chuanxiong rhizome were all neatly arranged.

Holding a small silver scissor, she slowly and deliberately cut the large pieces of medicinal herbs into smaller pieces.

The personal maid, Lüyi, lifted the curtain and entered, her face showing some hesitation.

"Miss, someone has come outside. They claim to be a maid from the Pei household and have been asked by someone to see you."

A cold sneer escaped Xue Lingyi's lips.

"The Pei residence? After what happened at yesterday's birthday banquet, all you get today is a maid? I won't see her."