Being a reborn legitimate daughter is not easy

Chapter 242 Tracking Down the Whereabouts

Chapter 242 Tracking Down the Whereabouts

[Ding~ Min'er's favorability +100, reward: Good/Evil Value +10, acquired: One 'Heart of Loyalty'. Please claim the reward for reaching maximum favorability.]

Unexpectedly, by stopping Master Zhao from killing Min'er, she inadvertently increased Min'er's favorability. Ye Pianran's gaze lingered on Min'er's grateful face for a moment before returning to Master Zhao's face.

Upon hearing that everything was caused by the Guanyin jade pendant, Master Zhao hurriedly tried to throw it away, but then realized that Ye Pianran had already taken it. He quickly said:

That thing is yours now!

Ye Pianran said, "If I'm not mistaken, this jade pendant didn't originally belong to you, sir. I wonder how you obtained it?"

Ye Pianran guessed that Wang Shusheng's wife, Xue Ling, was at Zhao Yuanwai's residence. After asking this question, she carefully observed Zhao Yuanwai's expression. Upon hearing the question, Zhao Yuanwai lowered his eyes, his gaze darting away, and hurriedly replied.

"This...this jade pendant, I found it in the market," Master Zhao said hurriedly.

No, he's lying.

"Is that so?" Ye Pianran sneered, "If you can't tell the truth, then I can't help you." With that, she turned to leave with Ye Lingyue. Zhao Yuan, understanding the unspoken message, quickly said:

"Girl, please stay!"

Ye Pianran turned around, her gaze extremely cold.

“Miss, why do you say that? Why would this jade pendant be—why would it be—” Master Zhao swallowed nervously.

"Let me ask you, after you were poisoned, did you fall into a nightmare that terrified you and you couldn't get rid of it?" Ye Pianran asked.

Zhao Yuanwai's expression changed: "How did you know?"

Ye Pianran's lips, hidden beneath her veil, curled slightly, but her voice was icy cold: "That's because the jade pendant contained the spirit of its original owner. It was this wisp of spirit that sensed the pendant had changed hands, and upon learning that the master had been poisoned, it caused the poison to torment him day and night, until it penetrated deep into his bones, ultimately leading to his death from nightmares. If the master had thrown the pendant away earlier, he wouldn't have suffered this torment, but now it's too late. Although I've cured the master, if he can't tell the truth, find the pendant's original owner, and return it to its rightful owner, that wisp of spirit will continue to create terrifying nightmares, preventing him from ever escaping them, until he finally dies of madness."

Master Zhao was completely stunned and terrified. That vivid illusion, that feeling of watching himself being dismembered—he never wanted to experience it again. It turned out it was all because of that jade pendant; it actually contained—

A sudden chill ran through him, and Master Zhao shivered, asking in a trembling voice, "Must the items be returned to their rightful owner?"

Ye Pianran: "Of course, the one who tied the knot must untie it."

Although Master Zhao was clearly frightened and his face looked very strange, he insisted:

"But I truly do not know who the original owner of the jade pendant was. I did find this jade pendant at the market. If you don't believe me, you can go to the West Market and ask."

This jade pendant clearly belongs to Xue Ling. It couldn't possibly have been lost by Xue Ling in the West Market and just happened to be picked up by Master Zhao, could it? He's clearly lying! Besides, she's already put it this way, so why would Master Zhao rather endure the torment of the illusion than tell the truth? Could there be some hidden story behind this?

It seems she'll have to find another way.

“In that case, then you should take care of yourself, sir,” Ye Pianran said, turning to leave. But her gaze fell on Min’er, who had been staring at her expectantly, and her heart stirred again.

"By the way, since your mansion can no longer accommodate this woman, why don't I take her to Shuntian Prefecture on your behalf? What do you think, sir?"

Master Zhao wished the women in his household were as far away from him as possible, so he immediately said, "Excellent, excellent! Take her away quickly! Let the authorities punish her properly!"

With Min'er, whose face was as white as paper, Ye Pianran and Ye Lingyue left the Zhao residence without looking back.

However, after leaving the Zhao residence, Ye Pianran did not send Min'er to see the authorities as she had told Zhao Yuanwai. Instead, she took her to a secluded corner where no one was around, gave her a few pieces of silver, and said softly:

“I know you were also taken by that Master Zhao through trickery, and you had no choice but to poison him. I will not really send you to the authorities, but Master Zhao will definitely not let you go. From now on, you will probably have nowhere to stay in the capital. You might as well take this opportunity to leave.”

With her favorability rating at its maximum, Min'er now trusted Ye Pianran completely. She knelt down before Ye Pianran with a thud, sobbing and crying:

"If it weren't for you, Miss, Min'er would be dead today. I will never forget your great kindness! Please feel free to ask if you need anything, and I will do it even if it means bleeding from my head!"

Of course, Ye Pianran wouldn't rescue Min'er for nothing; she was waiting for Min'er to say just that.

"In that case, I happen to have some questions for you about the Zhao family."

Min'er nodded repeatedly: "Min'er will tell you everything she knows!"

"How many days have you been a concubine to Master Zhao? How much do you know about the Zhao household? Have you seen any of Master Zhao's other concubines? Is there a woman surnamed Xue among them?" Ye Pianran asked several questions in a row.

Min'er was taken aback by her question, and then began to answer the first question: "According to the date, I have been in the Zhao family for more than twenty days. After entering the Zhao family, that old bastard... Master Zhao dotes on me and often takes me with him. But it's strange, I know that I am his ninth concubine, but I have not seen his other wives and concubines these days, nor has anyone come to cause me any trouble. It's as if I am the only woman in the Zhao family. I have not seen any woman with the surname Xue."

Wang Shusheng said his wife, Xue Ling, disappeared fifteen days ago, which means Min'er had already entered the Zhao residence before Xue Ling's disappearance. But strangely, Xue Ling wasn't in the Zhao residence, and Min'er had never seen her. Could it be that Xue Ling's disappearance had nothing to do with Master Zhao?

Taking the white jade Guanyin pendant out of her bag, Ye Pianran asked again, "Miss Min'er, when you were serving Master Zhao, did you ever see him wearing this pendant?"

Min'er still had a deep impression of the white jade Guanyin pendant, and immediately nodded and said, "I've seen it! I don't know which day it was, but he came back from outside and was playing with this jade pendant in his hand. I thought the jade pendant was beautiful and wanted to ask him to take a look, but he wouldn't let me touch it and hid it away carefully."

Ye Pianran's gaze sharpened, and she asked, "Was it fifteen days ago?"

“Yes, that’s right, around that time!” Min’er nodded vigorously.

"Do you know how he got that jade pendant?" Ye Pianran pressed on.

Min'er shook her head: "I don't know. He didn't explain. He only said that it was a treasure he obtained by chance."

Seeing that the clues had gone cold again, Ye Pianran frowned even more deeply. No one had seen Xue Ling at the Zhao residence, and she didn't know what Xue Ling looked like. How could she possibly find Xue Ling's whereabouts?

“However, although I don’t know, there is one person who definitely knows!” Min’er clenched her fists and said with resentment in her eyes, “Wang Bao, he is a dog by Master Zhao’s side. He has been with Master Zhao for many years. There is no matter how Master Zhao does things without him. He must know how the jade pendant came about!”

Gripping the white jade Guanyin pendant tightly, Ye Pianran's voice suddenly lowered:

"Miss Min'er, I need your help with something. Would you be willing?"