Chapter 154: Who Is Shen Qingyun

Seeing the old matriarch's agitated state, Nanny Liu wore a worried look. "Old Matriarch, what are you saying? Whose letter is this?"

The old matriarch looked at Nanny Liu. Having accompanied her for the greater part of her life, Nanny Liu was perhaps the only person in this estate who genuinely cared about her.

Therefore, the old matriarch recounted the whole sequence of events to Nanny Liu.

Nanny Liu found it somewhat hard to believe. Having lived for so long, this was the first time she had ever heard of such a bizarre tale: the Lord of the State Duke was not dead, but the one who died was a fake; the child in Aunt Wang's belly belonged to the fake Duke; and now, a genuine Duke had returned from the outside, bringing along his biological child.

With truths and falsehoods intertwined, Nanny Liu was left entirely bewildered.

"Old Matriarch, how can you be certain that the person who arrived now isn't a fraud? Besides, this..."

Nanny Liu recalled the previous State Duke. Could there truly be two men in this world who looked so remarkably alike?

Yet the old matriarch appeared utterly certain. "Handwriting can be forged, but what is written in this letter is known only to my son, Shen Zhifeng. It could never be fabricated by someone else. That wretch Aunt Wang—since she could pull off such a treasonous act of passing off the fake as the real, everything she said before must have been a lie."

"This... then, Old Matriarch, what should we do now?"

Nanny Liu still struggled to digest these matters. In her view, everyone else, like her, had long assumed Shen Zhifeng was dead; for him to suddenly reappear now felt genuinely terrifying.

"Go to the back door and quietly invite the man in," the old matriarch said after a moment of thought.

"Very well, this servant will go right away." Nanny Liu sighed inwardly, but turned to prepare to leave.

"Wait, not yet."

The old matriarch suddenly called Nanny Liu back. "With the entire estate currently swarming with Wang Qingrui's informants, bringing someone in like that is far too dangerous. Take a detour to avoid the people in the estate, go quietly to the back door, and arrange a time and place to meet with the messenger."

Nanny Liu nodded. Taking a trustworthy little maid with her, she took a detour to the back door, had the maid draw away the gatekeeper, and went out herself to meet Shi Shaohua.

Shi Shaohua had been waiting anxiously outside, not daring to leave, when he suddenly saw an old nanny emerge from the back door, peering around stealthily as if searching for someone.

"Is the nanny from the Yansong Hall?" Shi Shaohua walked over slowly and asked in a soft voice.

Nanny Liu looked Shi Shaohua up and down. Although the young master before her was dressed plainly, his posture was very upright and his features were refined; he did not look like a swindler.

"Are you the one who brought the message?" Nanny Liu probed.

***

"It's me, it's me." A smile finally appeared on Shi Shaohua's face. "Can Nanny take me in to see the Old Matriarch? I have important matters to discuss."

Nanny Liu shook her head. "There are many inconveniences within the residence. Let us find another suitable place to meet."

Shi Shaohua thought about it and agreed that entering the estate was indeed unsafe. It would spell trouble if Shen Qingyun were to find out.

Thus, the two of them carefully deliberated and agreed to meet the next day at a temple. That way, it would be easier for the old matriarch to find an excuse to leave the house without arousing suspicion.

Nanny Liu even handed Shi Shaohua some silver, urging him to keep it safe.

Shi Shaohua brought the news and the silver back to Shen Zhifeng, who finally set his mind at ease. "Shaohua, I truly thank you this time. Just wait—once my child is acknowledged and welcomed back into the State Duke's Manor, I will richly reward you in the future."

Watching Shen Zhifeng hold the child with utmost agitation, Shi Shaohua's gaze flickered, and a smile surfaced on his face.

The old matriarch was equally excited on her end. She contemplated summoning Aunt Wang to announce that she wished to go to the temple to offer prayers, but after some thought, she decided to act first and report later, instructing Nanny Liu only to arrange the carriage so they could set off directly the next day.

Wang Qingrui was tending to her pregnancy within the estate. She had already noticed the commotion around Yansong Hall, given that the gatekeepers were now all her people.

She originally intended to discuss the matter with Shen Qingyun, but she waited until evening without Shen Qingyun returning. When she sent someone to Jianjia Courtyard to check, she discovered that Zhenzhu had been sent back by Prince Li's men, and only then did she learn that Shen Qingyun had met with an accident at the racecourse and gone missing.

Xiaoqiu was extremely worried. "Aunt, could the eldest miss... If something has truly happened to her, what will become of the old matriarch?"

Wang Qingrui gritted her teeth. "Don't speak nonsense. The eldest miss is blessed with great fortune and will naturally avert disaster. Besides, as for that old hag, I refuse to believe I cannot best her."

Xiaoqiu sighed and sent someone to keep watch for news, instructing them to report back the moment the eldest miss returned to the estate.

In her heart, she prayed that the eldest miss would return safely.

At that exact moment, Shen Qingyun was only just regaining consciousness. Feeling a sharp, aching soreness all over her body, she tried to move her hand, only to discover that her hands were bound.

Turning her head to the side, she saw County Princess Zhenyang lying nearby, also bound and still unconscious.

As the carriage jolted along the road, swaying back and forth, Shen Qingyun realized she was inside an unfamiliar carriage.

She recalled the scene before the incident: Wusun Ya had taken a commanding lead, and with their line of sight blocked by a wooded area, she had quickly vanished from view. A group of men in black had descended from the sky, scattering sleeping powder. One of them had thrust a sword at her horse, which she had narrowly managed to dodge.

A horse had bolted in terror, throwing the noble lady riding it to the ground. Sensing danger, Shen Qingyun had tried to flee and call for help, but she was ultimately overpowered and knocked unconscious.

***

She remembered clearly that those men were targeting her—so why had County Princess Zhenyang been bound and brought along as well?

At the time, County Princess Zhenyang had been right beside her, clinging to her clothes and hiding behind her out of terror. Could that be the reason?

Not daring to make too much noise, Shen Qingyun strived to steady her body, pushed aside a corner of the curtain on the carriage window with her head, and quietly observed the situation outside.

However, night had already fallen. She could only tell that they had reached the outskirts of the capital city, though the exact location remained indiscernible.

She quietly lay back down, pretending to still be fast asleep. Crying out for help at this moment would be nothing short of seeking her own death; she decided to remain still and adapt to the changing circumstances.

After a long while, the carriage came to a halt, and faint voices could be heard from outside.

"Why did you take so long to arrive?"

"We had no choice. Prince Li's men were pursuing us too closely. We had to find a place to hide and only managed to get out just as the city gates were closing."

"Fine, then. I thought something had gone awry."

"It went smoothly enough. The person is inside the carriage."

With those words, someone pushed open the carriage door to inspect, followed by an exclamation of surprise: "Why are there two women?"

"That one claimed to be a county princess, so we grabbed her along with the other."

"This... then which one is Shen Qingyun?"

The men in black cast their gazes upon the two figures. Because night had fallen and they dared not light torches that were too bright, they could only rely on the dim candlelight to make out that one inside was dressed in blue, while the other wore light cyan.

A man in black spoke in a deep voice: "The one in blue."