The Minister: Cold by Day, Hot by Night

Zhi Wan finally came back to her senses and said nonchalantly, "Let’s go inside. It’s still early, we can sleep a little longer."

Ouyang Zhenzhu suppressed a laugh. "The way you were just now, you looked just like a lonely wife pining for her husband."

Zhi Wan’s face flushed, and she snapped in exasperation, "Can you please stop talking nonsense? I’ve always respected my cousin as an older brother..."

"Cousin? I don’t think I said it was Mr. Lu, did I? Mr. Lu wasn’t the only one who left just now, you know. There were all those guards, too. How come you were so sure I meant Mr. Lu? Wanwan, you have a guilty conscience!" Ouyang Zhenzhu teased with a grin.

Zhi Wan, flustered and angry, started tickling her. "You and your mouth, you’re getting worse and worse."

"HAHAHA..." Ouyang Zhenzhu was ticklish and dodged left and right.

The front courtyard was now a hive of activity.

The servants were busy cleaning up.

But even though the bloodstains had been washed away, the smell of blood still lingered in the air.

The broken main gate hung precariously in its frame, and the steward was leading some men to repair it.

Seeing this, they both grew somber. Their playful mood vanished, and they walked hand-in-hand back to the rear courtyard.

"I can’t believe Liang Qixian was so brazen, openly leading his men here. If Mr. Lu hadn’t been so farsighted and secretly summoned soldiers from the Garrison, I’m afraid we would have met a terrible end."

Ouyang Zhenzhu remarked with a sigh after they lay down in bed.

"Yes, my cousin always makes thorough preparations for everything he does," Zhi Wan said.

Ouyang Zhenzhu nodded in agreement. Then, remembering something, she said, "That Liang Qixian is truly getting what he deserves. He killed so many common people, and he killed your parents. He’s going to be beheaded tomorrow. Do you want to go watch?"

"Yes." Zhi Wan nodded firmly.

She was afraid of seeing dead people, but Liang Qixian was the man who had murdered her parents. Ever since she learned the truth, she had wanted nothing more than to kill him and avenge them.

Now that her enemy was about to be executed, she naturally had to go and watch.

She had to see Liang Qixian’s head roll with her own eyes.

"I’ll go with you tomorrow!" Ouyang Zhenzhu said.

"Okay."

The two of them slept very soundly.

When they woke up, it was almost noon.

After eating, they had nothing to do, so they decided to go explore the nearby mountain forest.

During their lunch, they had a dish of stir-fried pork with mushrooms that was delicious. They asked a servant about it and learned that the mushrooms were freshly picked from the mountains.

Neither of them had ever picked mushrooms before, so they were very curious. Since they had nothing better to do, they decided they wanted to go pick mushrooms in the mountains, too.

The steward was worried and sent several people to accompany them.

Once in the forest, Ouyang Zhenzhu immediately spotted a cluster of mushrooms growing under a tree and rushed over excitedly. "Wanwan, come quick! There are mushrooms here."

Zhi Wan followed enthusiastically.

Just then, a servant suddenly threw cold water on their excitement. "Young ladies, those are poisonous mushrooms. You can’t eat them."

The two of them: "..."

After walking a little further, a servant suddenly called out, "Ladies, you’re stepping on mushrooms!"

The two looked down and saw that they were indeed both standing on mushrooms.

"These are probably poisonous too, right?" Ouyang Zhenzhu said nonchalantly.

"No, these ones are edible," the servant said immediately.

Hearing this, the two of them quickly stepped back.

But the mushrooms had already been crushed under their feet, and their hearts ached at the sight.

"You all walk in front, and we’ll follow behind. When you see edible mushrooms, call us over to pick them," Ouyang Zhenzhu said.

This method was, sure enough, much safer.

Soon, a servant found some mushrooms and called the two of them over to pick them.

Each with a basket on her arm, they squatted down and began picking enthusiastically.

When they came out of the forest that afternoon, both of their baskets were full.

"That was so much fun!" Ouyang Zhenzhu said, not having had her fill. "Wanwan, after we watch Liang Qixian’s execution tomorrow, let’s come back and stay at this villa for a while. I want to go mushroom picking in the forest every day."

"Mushrooms don’t just grow every day, do they? The way we’re picking them, they’ll probably all be gone in a few days," Zhi Wan said.

"Then let’s just pick for as many days as we can," Ouyang Zhenzhu compromised.

Chatting, the two of them arrived at the villa’s entrance.

Just then, a figure suddenly rushed out from the side and fell to her knees at Zhi Wan’s feet. "Miss Zhi Wan, I’m begging you, please plead with Mr. Lu on my behalf! My husband was framed! He didn’t take any bribes..."

Zhi Wan was startled.

The servants reacted quickly, pulling her and Ouyang Zhenzhu behind them and shouting, "Who are you?"

"Miss Zhi Wan, it’s me! I’m Lady Qiao, Zeng Gong’s wife! Please, I beg you to help us. My husband has already been thrown in jail..." the woman said, her voice choked with tears.

By then, Zhi Wan could see her face clearly.

The person before her was none other than Lady Qiao, the former Assistant Magistrate’s wife.

"You really are shameless. Last time we saw you, you wanted to have us beaten, and now you have the nerve to come here and beg Wanwan for help?" Ouyang Zhenzhu had also recognized her and sneered coldly.

Lady Qiao’s expression faltered, but she suppressed her feelings and kowtowed to Zhi Wan. "Miss Zhi Wan, I apologize to you. I’m so sorry. We were blind that day. Please, be the bigger person and don’t hold it against us."

Zhi Wan looked down at her. The arrogant, domineering noble lady from that day had, in a single turn of events, become this pathetic and humble.

She said faintly, "What’s past is past. You should go." With that, she took Ouyang Zhenzhu’s hand and started to enter the gate.

Seeing this, Lady Qiao scrambled to her feet and chased after them. "Miss Zhi Wan, please, have a heart and help us! My husband really didn’t take any bribes..."

"Whether he did or not isn’t for you to say. The Lord Imperial Envoy will make his own judgment," Zhi Wan cut her off coldly.

Lady Qiao froze, at a loss for what to do.

"Zhi Wan, you bitch! What are you so proud of?"

Just then, a figure emerged from around the corner of the villa, pointing at Zhi Wan and shouting insults.

Zhi Wan turned her head and saw it was Zeng Jiayi, which was no surprise.

"Well, look who it is. The former young miss of the Assistant Magistrate’s Mansion." Ouyang Zhenzhu folded her arms, an amused look on her face as she scanned Zeng Jiayi from head to toe. "You used to be so high and mighty. How did you end up so pathetic today, hiding around corners like a little thief?"

Zeng Jiayi’s expression changed.

Her status as the young miss of the Assistant Magistrate’s Mansion was her greatest source of pride.

Because of it, everything always went her way in Yangzhou City.

But in an instant, the sky had fallen. With her father thrown in jail and the Zeng family’s assets seized, she had fallen from the clouds into the mud.

Her face was a mixture of livid and pale. She yelled at Lady Qiao, "I told you not to come begging this bitch! Why did you insist on humiliating yourself?"

"Slap her!" Ouyang Zhenzhu’s face darkened as she ordered one of the villa’s servants.

A stout, burly old woman immediately rushed forward and slapped Zeng Jiayi hard across the face.

Zeng Jiayi was knocked to the ground by the slap.

"If any more filth comes out of that mouth, I’ll have you chopped up and fed to the dogs!" Ouyang Zhenzhu threatened viciously.