Chapter 62 Finally, Someone Who Understands How I Feel

In the front hall of the Prince Ding's Mansion, Xiao Huaizheng found Xiao Huaicain and asked, "Cousin, is there any progress on the matter I asked you to look into?"

Xiao Huaicain replied irritably, "You still remember that I'm doing you a favor, yet you just publicly humiliated me in the main room."

Xiao Huaizheng frowned and said with displeasure, "Matters between us brothers are one thing; since you are helping me now, I will naturally help you in the future. But your suspicions regarding me and Imperial Aunt are an entirely different matter."

"Can you please cure this suspicious habit of yours? First it was my Imperial Father, and now it's me—any normal person would want nothing to do with you!"

Xiao Huaicain argued, "I did no such thing."

Xiao Huaizheng let out a light sneer. "Your expression and tone both betrayed you. What is the use of saying this now?"

"Are you truly ignorant, or are you just pretending to be?"

Xiao Huaicain asked in confusion, "Ignorant of what?"

Xiao Huaizheng said, "Imperial Aunt is a good person. We all like her because she is helpful and cares for us like family, unlike you, who merely drops by to offer a routine greeting when you have spare time and calls that concern."

"Do you know why I left the palace?"

"It is because I discovered that my birth mother's death might have been the work of murderers, and Imperial Aunt promised to help me find out the truth—that is why I came. Yet all you could see was me by Imperial Aunt's side, completely blind to everything else. How pathetic."

Xiao Huaicain was somewhat shocked, but unwilling to admit his misunderstanding, he retorted, "I was merely asking out of curiosity. You two are the ones overreacting."

Xiao Huaizheng laughed in exasperation and said, "Cousin, do you even have any friends?"

Xiao Huaicain thought about it carefully and realized he truly had none. Curious, he asked, "Why do you say that?"

Xiao Huaizheng replied, "They probably were all driven away by your temper, weren't they?"

"Tsk, tsk!"

Xiao Huaicain: "..."

Perhaps wanting to change his ways, Xiao Huaicain quickly shifted the topic. "The person you asked me to check on is a pair of siblings whose household registration is still in Duyun Prefecture, unchanged."

"They came to the capital to find relatives and were adopted by an elderly eunuch. Coincidentally, that elderly eunuch used to serve your birth mother."

"However, back then, because of your birth mother's death, his legs were broken and he was cast out of the imperial palace."

Xiao Huaizheng asked, "Where is he?"

Xiao Huaicain said, "Didn't you say your birth mother's family is also looking into this? It would be best to inform her as well. I'll take you both to have a look."

Xiao Huaizheng thought for a moment and deemed it acceptable, figuring he might be able to overhear some useful inner thoughts along the way. "Very well, I will go call Imperial Aunt."

Soon enough, Xiao Huaizheng fetched Lin Yue, and the three of them prepared to head out together.

Su Yingyue received the news and rushed over, waiting under the hanging flower gate. Catching sight of Xiao Huaicain finally emerging, she immediately stepped forward and asked, "Husband, where are you all going?"

Xiao Huaicain replied, "To help Fourth Brother with some matters. We will be right back."

Su Yingyue looked at Lin Yue with hesitation, her words trailing off, before she asked in a soft voice, "Can you take me with you?"

Xiao Huaicain didn't even think before answering, "What would you go for?"

"You can't be of any help anyway. Stay properly at home; we will be back shortly."

Su Yingyue looked deeply aggrieved and asked, "How do you know I can't be of any help?"

Xiao Huaicain said with displeasure, "I said you can't, so you can't. Hurry back inside!"

With that, he looked as though he found Su Yingyue's nagging bothersome, showing clear impatience.

Lin Yue could no longer watch and interjected, "Just give the address to Huaizheng and me. We'll go take a look ourselves—just a covert observation, we won't alert the enemy for now."

Xiao Huaizheng also added, "Indeed, Cousin, why don't you stay home and accompany Cousin-in-law?"

A glimmer of hope surfaced in Su Yingyue's eyes as she looked expectantly at Xiao Huaicain.

However, Xiao Huaicain simply stated, "There's no need, there are plenty of servants at home!"

Without caring whether Su Yingyue was still standing there, he walked straight ahead.

Su Yingyue watched him leave as tears welled up in her eyes, yet she waited in vain for him to turn back.

Then, she shifted her gaze toward Lin Yue and Xiao Huaizheng, her eyes brimming with a bone-chilling coldness before she turned and left in a huff.

Xiao Huaizheng was utterly baffled. "What is Cousin-in-law doing?"

Lin Yue laughed aloud. "Ha, you thought she would blame your cousin, but who would have guessed that you became the scapegoat instead?"

[Finally, someone understands my feelings. How is it? Refreshing, isn't it?]

[It's not that I have a bias against those two, but they genuinely have mental issues!]

Xiao Huaizheng: "..." Though he hated to admit it, that seemed to be the case.

"Why doesn't Imperial Aunt seem bothered?"

Lin Yue gave a light hum. "I've shouldered the blame far more times than you, so naturally, I've grown calm about it."

"She believes we bewitched Xiao Huaicain, which is why she lost face."

"Yet she never considered that if she truly had any hold over Xiao Huaicain, would there even be a place for us?"

Xiao Huaizheng agreed, "Exactly."

Lin Yue said, "Let's go. It may be true in reality, but in their eyes, none of it is."

[Keep your distance from people who cannot communicate, otherwise you'll be the scapegoat again next time.]

Xiao Huaicain waited outside, having prepared a horse for Xiao Huaizheng and a carriage for Lin Yue.

However, Xiao Huaizheng complained that the sun was too harsh and wanted to ride in the carriage. Lin Yue refused, so he threw a tantrum and insisted on acting as the driver, to which Lin Yue eventually relented.

Seeing this, Xiao Huaicain felt a fire burning in his eyes. He whipped his horse forward, rapidly putting distance between them until they were completely out of sight.

Lin Yue lifted the carriage curtain and asked Xiao Huaizheng, "What problems have you discovered?"

Xiao Huaizheng sighed, "Do your own work; people helping you is a favor, while not helping is their duty. If they help halfway and then try to control you, you deserve it!"

Lin Yue burst into laughter, patting Xiao Huaizheng's shoulder. "Good boy, I like you more and more."

Xiao Huaizheng wryly smiled, "I like Imperial Aunt too, but the word 'like' must never be mentioned in front of Cousin."

"Otherwise, I worry he might not figure things out in the middle of the night and come after me with a saber."

Lin Yue chuckled. "You live in the palace, you have nothing to fear."

Xiao Huaizheng said, "Imperial Aunt should move into the palace as well. Since my birth mother's affair hasn't been investigated yet, I am already deeply worried about you, Imperial Aunt."

A chill ran down Lin Yue's spine, and she quickly urged, "Stop right there, say no more."

[Why does this sudden chill feel so ominous in broad daylight?]

[The original host apparently really did die in the inner courtyard of the Prince's Mansion, and she was poisoned, tsk tsk.]

Upon hearing this, Xiao Huaizheng decisively turned the carriage around. He had no wish for any harm to come to Imperial Aunt, especially remembering Su Yingyue's gaze from earlier, which still made him feel deeply unsettled.

"We are heading straight back to the palace."

Lin Yue asked, "Are we not going to look for those two people?"

Xiao Huaizheng replied, "We already have the crucial information. Just how many elderly eunuchs with broken legs could there be in the capital?"

"Imperial Aunt, just wait. Tonight, I will bring the person over for interrogation."

Meanwhile, Xiao Huaicain could no longer see the carriage trailing behind him and had no choice but to stop and wait.

When waiting yielded no results, he indignantly turned back to look for them, only to find no trace of anyone.

He began to worry whether they had taken the wrong route, feeling annoyed at how utterly foolish these people were for not even knowing which direction he had taken.

He was forced to ask along the street, only to learn that the carriage had turned back.

Xiao Huaicain was filled with anger and frustration, accompanied by an inexplicable surge of irritation and vexation. This peaked when he returned to the Prince's Mansion and learned that Lin Yue had not returned at all, but had instead gone into the palace with Xiao Huaizheng.

Xiao Huaicain could no longer contain himself. Burning with rage, he followed them into the palace.

This Lin Yue was becoming increasingly lawless! Today, he would make her understand that even if she were the Princess Consort of Ding, she could not simply do as she pleased!

Especially in broad daylight, behaving so intimately with his own nephew—she was utterly shameless!!