I just got divorced, and this cold, ruthless, and powerful minister is begging for a third child eve

Lingxiang couldn't hold back any longer, so she grabbed a broom and rushed forward.

Upon seeing the broom, Song Linyuan felt nauseous and retreated from the courtyard gate.

Back in his study, Song Linyuan sat by the window for half an hour.

After the people from Shou'an Hall urged him three times, he frowned and took a deep breath.

He retrieved the land deed from the deepest part of the cabinet and handed it to the servant beside him.

"Send it to the Crown Princess and ask her to arrange for the medicine to be prepared as soon as possible."

Watching the servant leave, he slumped into the armchair behind the desk, as if all his strength had been drained.

After returning to the Marquis's mansion to acknowledge his relatives, he practically rose to the top overnight, living a life of high spirits and triumphs.

He had never been this tired before.

Suddenly I noticed the sachet on the corner of the table.

He reached out and picked up the sachet.

When Ayu gave it to him, she said it was embroidered stitch by stitch, with green bamboo on it, upright and unyielding, just like his character.

The fragrance wafted over, and his brows relaxed considerably.

My mother's words inexplicably echoed in my ears.

"You, you'd rather have the grass in the ground than the moon in the sky. You'll regret it sooner or later."

He pursed his lips.

What if I had listened to my mother and married Ayu?

Footsteps sounded.

The butler knocked on the door and placed a thick stack of books on Song Linyuan's desk.

"Your Highness, the records regarding the renovation of the Marquis's residence have been clarified, and they are all here."

Song Linyuan looked at the account book, somewhat hesitant to open it.

These past few days, watching Ming Shuang's schemes and methods, he felt very uneasy.

He didn't know how to face the evidence that Ming Shuang had betrayed the Marquis's trust.

Back then, he knelt for two days and two nights, begging everyone to accept Mingshuang into the family!

How could he face his mother, his elder sister, and Ayu?

After a long silence, when it was completely dark, he lit a lamp and opened the account book.

However, after reading a few pages, he suddenly stopped, pressed his fingertips on the account book, and looked up, his voice tense.

"Did she pay for all of this?"

He quickly flipped through a few more pages, his face darkening.

"That's impossible."

Suddenly standing up, Song Linyuan frowned and looked at the butler waiting beside him.

"You're showing me these account books? The Crown Princess must have altered them, right?"

The butler quickly said:

"Your Highness, when the Marquis's mansion was renovated, the Princess Consort reported every expense to the accountant for recording. This account book has been locked in the accountant's office for many years and no one has touched it."

Song Linyuan blurted out:

"But at that time, Mother was too ill to get out of bed, and the Crown Princess was in charge of all the affairs of the household. What if she had tampered with the accounts?"

The butler hesitated for a moment, feeling a pang of pity, and then spoke:

"At that time, the lady was too ill to get up during the day, but she would go to the accounting room to check the accounts every night. Only I know about this."

Looking at the butler's serious expression, Song Linyuan's face grew hotter and hotter.

"Are you saying my mother was faking illness back then?"

The butler quickly lowered his head.

"I wouldn't dare! I only informed the young master about the account books; I dare not comment on anything else!"

Song Linyuan stared at the butler, his fingers clenched tightly.

This was his father's most trusted steward, who had spent his entire life in the Song family. He had no reason to tell such a big lie for a new bride who had only been married for a year.

After sitting back down at his desk, Song Linyuan's gaze returned to the account books.

Turning the pages one by one was even more agonizing than looking at the account book of the Marquis's daily expenses in front of the three clan elders that day.

Every word and sentence in this book represents painstaking effort.

More than a dozen kinds of bricks and stones were used, some of which were transported from as far away as Jiangnan.

The money paid by the Marquis's official account was not even enough to cover the cost of bricks and stones; most of it was paid through private accounts.

Seeing Gu Mingshuang's private seal again and again, his fingers trembled slightly as he pressed them onto the account book. He looked up at the butler, his eyes slightly red.

"Only this much was paid for by the public funds; the rest was paid for by the Crown Princess. Why wasn't I told about this?"

The butler quickly said:

"At that time, the Crown Prince was focused on his studies and often traveled abroad. The Crown Princess said that he must not be allowed to worry about these things."

Song Linyuan's fingernails dug into his palm.

He remembered; that was the first time he had secretly taken Ayu out.

The delicate young girl was determined to become an apprentice, hoping to learn a skill to establish herself in Kyoto.

He softened his heart and secretly helped her travel to various cities, going to great lengths to get her to become his disciple.

During that period, he frequently withdrew money from the mansion and blamed Zhongming Shuang for helping the steward but delaying the payment.

He thought Ming Shuang was just putting on airs as the Crown Princess, but he didn't know how much difficulty she was facing at that time.

He took a deep breath and realized that after only flipping through half of the book, he had already spent a full three thousand taels of silver on Ming Shuang's money.

Song Linyuan couldn't bear to watch any longer and closed the account book.

"You can leave now. Don't tell anyone about this."

The butler quickly acknowledged and withdrew.

After sitting alone for a long time, Song Linyuan suddenly got up and started looking for the jade pendant on the table from yesterday.

But after searching the entire desk, the jade pendant was nowhere to be found!

His face grew anxious, and he searched the entire desk inside and out.

Still no!

They asked the servants, but no one had seen the jade pendant.

Song Linyuan stared blankly at the corner of the table.

He lost what she cared about most right now!

He already owes her so much!

In the past few days, her disappointed, angry, and then calm and undisturbed appearance has repeatedly appeared in his mind.

A dull ache settled in my chest, followed by a sharp pain.

Why did he do such a thing with Ayu on the day of the lotus viewing banquet, breaking her heart?

A woman's light footsteps approached.

"Cousin! Why do you look so pale?"

Xie Lanyu rushed forward in a panic and helped Song Linyuan, who was swaying precariously by the table.

Seeing that Song Linyuan remained silent, she bit her lip and said with reddened eyes:

"Cousin, are you and your wife still angry? I should go. I feel terrible about what you've done..."

Song Linyuan abruptly raised his hand to interrupt her, blurting out:

"Why did you insist on drinking that cup of tea at the Duke of Anguo's mansion that day!"

Xie Lanyu's face turned pale, and she stumbled and bumped into the corner of the table. The pain immediately brought tears to her eyes, and she gasped for breath.

"cousin……"

She bit her lip, suppressing a cry of pain, turned her face away, closed her eyes, and said:

"It's my fault. I didn't see through Young Master Chen's intentions. I don't know why I was so stupid to be schemed against by him."

Her voice was different from her usual cool and aloof tone; it was very soft, yet carried a hint of stubbornness.

"He may have escaped, but if I report him to the authorities, we might be able to catch him. Cousin, please don't just marry me off randomly; send me to a nunnery instead..."

Looking into her clear, moon-like eyes, Song Linyuan saw her looking aggrieved yet trying to remain calm. He couldn't hold back any longer and reached out to support her.

"I'm sorry, Ayu, I don't know how I could have said such awful things just now."

"You still have unfulfilled ambitions; your amazing talent shouldn't be buried. I'll do anything to protect you!"

The girl's slender figure was stretched long by the candlelight, intertwining with his shadow on the wall.

Song Linyuan reluctantly looked away from the wall, but his Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

"Ayu, don't worry, Mother's medicine will arrive soon. Once Grandmother returns and takes care of the household affairs, everything will be back to normal."

Xie Lanyu looked up, her eyes reflecting the candlelight.

"Cousin, things will never be the same as before. This is no longer Ayu's home."

Song Linyuan stared at her intently.

"As long as I am here, this is your home."

Xie Lanyu lowered her eyes.

"Cousin, but your wife will be unhappy. She's your wife. Are you really willing to let her leave?"

Song Linyuan felt as if his heart was being gripped tightly by two hands.

He pursed his lips, remained silent for a long time, and then spoke:

"I will keep her and do everything I can to make it up to her."

Stepping out of the study, Xie Lanyu carried a lamp and slowly walked around the path, stopping beside the artificial hill.

A figure flashed and appeared beside her.

"Haven't seen you for a few days, have you missed me?"

Xie Lanyu glanced at him coldly and said sharply:

"Let's get down to business."

Chen Shuo held a withered branch in his hand and whispered:

"There's been news about the wet nurse you asked me to find."

Xie Lanyu did not turn around, her voice returning to its usual cold and clear tone.

Where are they?

Chen Shuo tossed aside the withered branch in his hand.

"He's completely dead; the grass on his grave is as tall as a person."

He paused for a moment as he spoke.

"However, there's still someone investigating the other matter you asked me to look into, regarding the switch back then."

Xie Lanyu frowned as she looked at him.

"Who?"

Chen Shuo crossed his arms and stepped forward.

"That person is elusive, like someone from the underworld. We haven't found out anything about him yet."

Xie Lanyu lowered her eyes.

"It's alright, Fan is dead, no one can investigate this matter anymore."

She continued walking forward, carrying the lantern. Chen Shuo followed, hesitatingly speaking:

"That box of blueprints has been hidden for a year. What do you plan to do with it?"

Xie Lanyu did not stop walking.

"Just do my job well, and don't ask any other questions."