After Rebirth, She Becomes the Revenge Queen-Chapter 182 - 181: The Shy Child

Pei Zhan said, "This is my friend."

Sitting with him, Mrs. Zhang naturally knew it was either his relative or his friend. What she wanted to know was the background of this young lady!

She smiled slightly, "Won’t the General introduce us?"

Pei Zhan replied, "My friend is shy and doesn’t like to meet strangers. Let’s not delay the Princely Heir’s Wife from dining." With that, he spoke to the young monk who had been waiting on the side, "See what the Princely Heir’s Wife and the Commandery Princess are eating and serve the same. Add a portion of walnut cake, a portion of barley cake, and a vegetable soup."

Mrs. Zhang was rebuffed, feeling upset, but Pei Zhan was a hot favorite with the Empress and a pillar of the court. Moreover, he was a powerful minister, so she couldn’t do much. She found her own way to smile, "I really couldn’t tell that General Pei is such a meticulous person. This young lady is indeed quite good-looking, worthy of the General’s attention."

She genuinely meant the middle part of her statement.

Though the young girl looked young and somewhat weak, lacking a bit of the fullness and grace, her open and candid expression gave her an extraordinary spirit, making her stand out like an orchid nourished by immortal dew.

Instructing Nanny Hu to investigate the young female pilgrims who stayed on the mountain last night was still yielding no results. If it wasn’t for her being with Pei Zhan, she would immediately suspect Xu Yin’s actions last night. Such looks and temperament would undoubtedly be exceptional enough for the Assistant Minister, a former top scholar, to make an exception.

Thinking of this, she cast another glance at Xu Yin.

But Xu Yin was adding porridge for Yongping, seemingly unconcerned by the recent scene.

Mrs. Zhang was indignant. This couple really knew how to put on a show. Quarreling behind closed doors was a daily occurrence, yet they pretended to be so sweet in public.

Fu Zhen was actually quite grateful that Pei Zhan shielded her from Mrs. Zhang.

She now wished nothing more than to gain some weight quickly and strengthen her body, so missing even a single mouthful bothered her. Therefore, when Pei Zhan pulled her back earlier, she didn’t resist much.

As long as she wasn’t forced to kneel and pay respects to those heartless people, why wouldn’t she seize the chance to eat good food?

But she wasn’t pleased with Mrs. Zhang’s words.

Pei Zhan had clearly only elevated her status to fulfill his promise of not making her bow, but Mrs. Zhang made it sound as if there was something between them!

However, since eating was of utmost importance, she kept silent and pretended not to hear.

Seeing her wolfing down her food, Pei Zhan advised, "Eat slowly."

Then he pushed the cooled vegetable soup towards her.

Even Xu Yin couldn’t help but take a look.

Last night behind the curtain, Fu Zhen suddenly turned into Zhang Shicheng, and the matter was not over. However, there were more pressing issues to deal with at the time, so even though he suspected it, Xu Yin did not pursue it further.

Now seeing the two of them appearing so openly and Pei Zhan being so attentive, he couldn’t help but revisit the unresolved issues from last night.

Looking at it now, the chance that Fu Zhen and Pei Zhan were accomplices was about ninety percent. Assuming that when Pei Zhan seized the dagger, Fu Zhen, as an accomplice, had no escape and accidentally entered his room, wasn’t impossible.

If that assumption was valid, then the "assassin" who took the dagger must have been Pei Zhan. It wouldn’t be impossible for him to have Prince Rong invited deliberately. For him to appear to "hunt the culprit" while having someone move Zhang Shicheng to gag Mrs. Zhang was also not an issue.

And the subsequent "ghost encounter" by Zhang Shicheng was mostly orchestrated by Pei Zhan.

However, such an assumption left many inexplicable details.

First, if Pei Zhan was the assassin, why would he need Fu Zhen as an accomplice? It wouldn’t be difficult for him to accomplish this alone. Even if it were, wasn’t Liang Chen, who went up the mountain with him, a thousand times more competent than Fu Zhen?

To say the least, even if he did need Fu Zhen as an accomplice, with his years of leading experience, he would have planned an exit for his partner. Why would he leave Fu Zhen behind, needing that remedy to save her afterward?

The most crucial question is, if Zhang Shicheng’s "ghost encounter" was man-made, who was this "ghost"?

How could she know so many things that were impossible for outsiders to be aware of?

And if everything was led by Pei Zhan, how did he acquire that dagger? How did he know about the alley blood case?

Xu Yin, filled with thoughts, glanced again at Pei Zhan who was calmly adding soup for Fu Zhen and put down the bowl.

Pei Zhan appeared so open and aboveboard, was it because he thought these tactics wouldn’t be uncovered, or because it wasn’t actually him, making him fearless?

"Why aren’t you eating?"

Yongping looked at him, following his gaze to the young girl sitting opposite Pei Zhan.

Today’s visit to the temple dining hall was due to hearing Mrs. Zhang was here.

Yesterday, after several taunts by Mrs. Zhang about not being loved by Xu Yin, she was upset, thinking that after Xu Yin’s harsh words at the manor, he’d indeed become estranged. To her surprise, he returned! And he gently coaxed her!

After arguing with Mrs. Zhang at night, Xu Yin came to her room and spent a long time with her, and because they were in a Buddhist retreat, they slept separately.

This made Yongping feel that her relationship with Xu Yin was still strong, with minor conflicts just being common in marriage. If he returned to soothe her after a quarrel, didn’t that prove their bond could withstand such tests?

So, she insisted that Xu Yin come and show themselves in front of Mrs. Zhang, to slap her in the face and show her that her marriage could not be easily disturbed by a petty person like Mrs. Zhang!

She noticed the young girl as soon as she entered.

Although Pei Zhan was dazzling in many ways, to a woman, especially with her husband at her side, this young girl, appearing only fifteen or sixteen with eyes shining like stars, captured her attention more.

"Why aren’t you eating?" After saying this, she added, "That young lady truly is outstanding, isn’t she?"

Prior to now, Xu Yin had never shown an interest in this girl; he had always been that way for years, never casting a glance at any woman other than her.

But he was also a mortal. Facing such a beautiful girl and especially as she was brought by Pei Zhan, might he not appear too deliberately indifferent?

Xu Yin withdrew his gaze, meeting the inquiry in her eyes.

He smiled, "She does look nice at first glance, but how could her charm compare to yours?"

Yongping smiled back, "Aren’t you quite familiar with General Pei? I want to invite that young lady over for a chat."

If that girl came closer, she could then find out whether he was truly unaffected or just pretending.

Xu Yin looked at her and then nodded, "Sure, you don’t have many friends usually. Anyone who can catch Ming Zhi’s eye must have something exceptional. If you hit it off, maybe you’ll gain a close friend."

He didn’t want to provoke Pei Zhan. But once Fu Zhen was near Yongping, he would have plenty of opportunities to verify his suspicions through her.

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