Later, unable to wait any longer, Cheng Xiran stepped aside. Unfortunately, the walls of the Wei Mansion were too high. Without Mu Li by her side, she couldn't fly over them in one go. After searching around fruitlessly, she found the walls airtight and couldn't think of any way to get in.
It seemed that a frontal assault was the only option.
Just then, someone came to deliver grain. The servants at the gate all came out to carry it. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Cheng Xiran rushed in.
"Quick, catch her! Someone has broken into the Wei Mansion without permission!"
Even though Cheng Xiran was extremely quick, she was just a young girl. Moreover, she was wearing a long trailing dress today, which made it inconvenient for her to run. Soon, she was caught by three servants.
"Come on, I'll take you to see Lord Wei!"
The servant, with a fierce look on his face, escorted Cheng Xiran towards the back courtyard.
From afar, she could hear laughter. It sounded like Lord Qian's.
"Lord Wei, this woman broke into the Wei Mansion without permission with ill intentions!"
The first thing she wanted to confirm was that Helian Duo was safe and sound. To her relief, he was even chatting and laughing with them.
"Isn't this Lady He?" Lord Qian was a bit puzzled.
Knowing that he was okay, Cheng Xiran felt relieved. Just as she let out a sigh of relief, she saw Helian Duo running out suddenly. He separated her from the servant and said, "Don't be rough with my wife!"
If it had been in the past, he would have flown out directly. But now, since his identity had changed in public, he couldn't use force casually to avoid arousing suspicion.
Lord Wei also stood up and scolded, "Why didn't you say earlier that she was Lady He! You offended our honored guest today. Apologize and make amends right away!"
But Helian Duo lifted Cheng Xiran's wrist. It was red and swollen from being pinched. At first, she was too worried about Helian Duo to notice the pain.
"My wife has never suffered such grievances. Even if you apologize, we won't accept it."
Although he was He Shu at the moment, there was a cold glint in his eyes when he said this, as if he had instantly become Helian Duo again.
So Lord Wei was a bit afraid. After all, Helian Duo was his guest, and he didn't dare to neglect him.
He quickly changed his tone and said, "Each of you go to the back and receive thirty blows with the bamboo board to learn your lesson. If you make such a低级 mistake again, you'll be in for it!"
Cheng Xiran was a bit flattered. Lord Wei walked straight towards her, looking apologetic, and said, "I'm very sorry, Lady He. They didn't explain the situation just now. I thought you were an ordinary woman. I sincerely apologize to you. I hope you'll forgive me."
Cheng Xiran forced a smile and nodded, saying, "You're too kind, Lord Wei."
"Have you had lunch yet? We're having a banquet today. Please join us."
Lord Wei invited her in. She didn't dare to refuse and was led by Helian Duo to sit at his table.
Only then did Cheng Xiran notice that today's banquet had not only invited Lord Qian and Helian Duo but also four or five other officials. She didn't recognize any of them, so she stopped paying attention and only had eyes and a heart for Helian Duo.
Taking advantage of the gap when they were chatting, Helian Duo turned his head curiously and looked at Cheng Xiran. "Why did you come?"
Cheng Xiran was about to reply. Thinking it was not appropriate to speak loudly here, she lowered her voice and said softly, "I was worried about you. You said you'd come back at noon but didn't. You don't know anyone here. I was afraid you'd be taken advantage of."
Helian Duo smiled gently and asked, "Do you think I'm that stupid?"
Cheng Xiran also laughed foolishly and scratched her head slightly. "It seems you're not stupid. It seems I didn't think this through. I just didn't think much at that time. I was just afraid something would happen to you, so I rushed here without thinking. Fortunately, you're okay."
It was truly the case that talking too much would lead to mistakes. This saying described Cheng Xiran perfectly at the moment.
Her words unconsciously revealed her feelings for Helian Duo. How could he not notice?
A servant added a set of tableware. Helian Duo picked a lot of dishes for her. "This spicy chicken tastes really good. I'm sure you'll like it."
Seeing this, Lord Wei, who was sitting at the main seat, couldn't help joking, "Although you two young couple have been married for two years, you still seem like newlyweds. It's rare to see such a loving couple these days."
Lord Qian immediately chimed in, "Indeed. I said the same thing when Young Master He came yesterday. Young Master He and Lady He are truly a perfect match, a talented man and a beautiful woman."
The hostility in Helian Duo's eyes gradually faded. His eyebrows curved slightly, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up. "You two lords are overpraising. I'll only have this one wife in my life, so I naturally have to think more about her. Otherwise, if she elopes with someone else one day, I'll surely regret it."
Cheng Xiran knew that he was good at socializing and she didn't need to worry about him too much. Even though she knew that seven - tenths of his words were false, she still enjoyed it.
The whole hall burst into laughter.
She sat with them for a while. They were talking about matters in the court, which didn't interest Cheng Xiran at all. Sitting beside Helian Duo, she kept dozing off. She accidentally leaned on him several times. Only then did she remember that she was at a banquet. She quickly tidied her clothes and sat upright.
"Do you want to go back?"
Helian Duo asked softly.
Cheng Xiran nodded first, then shook her head slightly and said, "Don't you still have something to talk about? I'll wait a while. It's okay."
"We've finished talking..." Helian Duo suddenly stood up and excused himself to them. "My lords, let's call it a day today. I'll definitely visit you in person tomorrow."
Lord Qian also stood up. "We've really been chatting for a long time. I promised to accompany Shiyue to the temple to pray this afternoon. It's getting late. I'll go back with Young Master He. Brother Wei, you can continue chatting slowly."
Lord Wei didn't try to persuade them to stay. He personally sent them to the mansion gate.
"Look at you all. You're all so loving to your wives. Your good relationship is really enviable!"
On the carriage back to the mansion, Lord Qian hardly said a word. Cheng Xiran also sensed something was wrong.
When they got back to the mansion, Lord Qian stopped Helian Duo at the gate. "There are some things that Young Master He wants to know, right? Come with me to the study. Let's find out together."
Helian Duo didn't refuse. He just turned to look at Cheng Xiran. "Go back to your room and rest first. I'll be back soon."
After saying that, he followed Lord Qian quickly to the study. Cheng Xiran didn't secretly follow them.
After they entered the study, Lord Qian closed the door tightly. This action made Helian Duo suspicious. "This is Lord Qian's mansion. Why do you seem a bit scared, Lord Qian?"
"This is the recent accounting ledger. Young Master He, take a look."
After Lord Qian handed the ledger to Helian Duo, he unconsciously walked to the window and peeked out a few times.
When he came back, he said cautiously, "I've always suspected that there's a spy in our mansion, but I haven't found any evidence yet."