Hearing this, Helian Duo was momentarily stunned. "Why do you say so, Lord Qian?"
"I noticed that things in my study have been tampered with..." Lord Qian deliberately lowered his voice and unconsciously pointed at the ledger in Helian Duo's hand. "Especially this ledger."
While flipping through the pages, Helian Duo asked seriously, "The Qian Mansion doesn't seem like a place where just anyone can enter at will. I assume the culprit must be someone from your household, or perhaps you already have a suspect in mind?"
Lord Qian replied warily, "I'm not sure yet, but if I catch the person in the act, I'll definitely inform you."
Seeing that Lord Qian seemed to be hiding something, Helian Duo didn't press further. When he turned to the latest large - scale transaction, his face darkened. "The second appropriation from the court should have been 100,000 taels. Why does it say only 50,000 here?"
Lord Qian was surprised and retorted, "Wasn't it 50,000?"
From his subtle facial expressions, it seemed that he wasn't pretending but genuinely unaware of this.
"Master He came all the way from the capital for this very matter. Although the disaster situation in Qizhou has somewhat improved, there is still a shortage of disaster - relief funds. This batch of disaster - relief funds was issued by the current Left Prime Minister. I'm also quite puzzled why there are only 50,000 taels. The Emperor clearly knows about the famine. He couldn't have only allocated such a small amount."
Prime Minister Cheng... So this matter is really related to Prime Minister Cheng?
Helian Duo was skeptical, both about what Lord Qian said and about the man himself.
Nothing could be trusted, and he couldn't jump to conclusions easily. So he remained neutral and feigned shock. "If that's the case, then where did this sum of money go..."
Lord Qian continued on his own, "I must be honest with you, Master He. I've only recently assumed the position of provincial governor here, and I'm not very familiar with the local affairs. So even though I'm confident about investigating this case, I don't know where to start."
Helian Duo didn't show his usual calmness, as his identity didn't allow it.
"I'll immediately send a message back to the capital by carrier pigeon to see what the prince has to say. As for here, we might as well start by investigating the previous provincial governor. Additionally, regarding the spy in the mansion, I think we should wait for the right opportunity. Since he has made a move once, there will surely be further actions."
After leaving the study, Helian Duo felt exhausted. He was suspicious of everything and didn't know whom to trust. Most importantly, there was no clue about anything at present. Without a clue, it was impossible to proceed with this matter.
When he returned to his chamber, he saw Cheng Xiran embroidering by the window.
He gave a light cough, and a soft grunt came from that side. Cheng Xiran had pricked her finger again.
"I haven't done this for a long time, so I'm a bit rusty..." Cheng Xiran almost instinctively withdrew her hand.
Helian Duo's thin lips curved slightly. He sat down opposite her, poured himself a cup of tea, took a sip, and then said with a relaxed expression, "No matter how ugly it is, as long as it's embroidered by you, I can accept it."
Cheng Xiran smacked her lips. After putting down her embroidery, she started chatting with him. "I couldn't get anything useful from Lady Qian. Did you find out anything?"
Helian Duo told Cheng Xiran exactly what Lord Qian had said to him, but he didn't mention Prime Minister Cheng. Even though Prime Minister Cheng and Cheng Xiran were already estranged, she was still a member of the Cheng family. If this matter was closely related to Prime Minister Cheng, then it would be like a nest collapsing with the eggs broken, and a tree falling with the monkeys scattering.
Fortunately, he managed to cover it up, and Cheng Xiran didn't suspect anything. She just analyzed seriously, "So you suspect that it was the Empress Dowager's people who tampered with the disaster - relief funds?"
Helian Duo readily admitted, "Fenzhou is the Empress Dowager's hometown. I don't believe she didn't interfere."
"This is really troublesome..."
Cheng Xiran propped her chin with both hands. Seeing Helian Duo frowning again, she patiently persuaded him, "Come on, you might as well take a nap now. Maybe you'll get some ideas when you wake up."
Unexpectedly, Helian Duo suddenly turned his head and smiled at her. "Will you accompany me?"
Cheng Xiran shook her head vigorously. "I don't want to. I heard that the kitchen is going to make Chinese yam cakes and red bean soup this afternoon. I'm going to have a look."
Helian Duo didn't say anything else but just reminded her, "Be careful. If you're in danger, just run here. I'll always be here."
Cheng Xiran liked to savor words. She really liked this latter part of the sentence.
Immediately, she left happily.
She spent nearly two hours in the kitchen helping the old ladies. They finally made several plates of Chinese yam cakes and water chestnut cakes and boiled several bowls of red bean soup. During this time, Cheng Xiran also heard a lot of their conversations, but they were all trivial matters that had no impact on the case.
She didn't know whether it was because the servants were tight - lipped or the Qian Mansion was truly innocent.
"The lady should be awake by now. You go and take this to her."
An old servant prepared a portion separately and sent a maid to deliver it, but Cheng Xiran intercepted her. "Hey, why don't I go? I just have something to say to Lady Qian."
The old servant naturally refused. "Miss, this isn't appropriate. You're our honored guest. How can we let you do this? If the lady finds out, she'll surely scold us."
It took Cheng Xiran quite a while to persuade her.
Carrying the steaming red bean soup and water chestnut cakes, Cheng Xiran followed her memory to the courtyard where Lady Qian lived.
From afar, she could hear the noisy voices coming from inside.
"I've been as kind as I could be to him. What else do you want me to do? Do you want me to give him my life?"
It was Lord Qian's voice. He was no longer as amiable as usual, which surprised Cheng Xiran. She stopped to listen, but still kept a relatively safe distance to avoid being caught off - guard if they suddenly came out.
"But it wasn't his fault. It was that woman who seduced him. What does this have to do with him?"
Lady Qian's hysterical words made Cheng Xiran very curious. Who on earth was that "he"?
"Shiyue, what on earth do I have to do for you to believe that I'm truly doing this for his and your own good? Why don't you understand and keep trampling on my kindness? Don't you know that people can get disappointed?"
Immediately afterwards, there was the sound of a teacup shattering on the ground.
"I know. You just think I can't bear a child. But I've already told you to take concubines. It's your own choice not to! Yes, I can't bear a child. I'm the problem. I deserve to be humble all my life, right?"
"Why do you always bring up this issue whenever you're angry? If I didn't love you, why would I have stayed with you until now? Don't you understand what kind of person I am and what my feelings for you are?"
Just as Cheng Xiran was listening intently, she heard footsteps behind her. She immediately turned around. It was Xiaolian, Lady Qian's personal maid.