Before the official from the Great Li Temple had finished speaking, Nangong Yan was enraged. The gentleness in his demeanor vanished, and he glared at the official coldly, saying, "What is your meaning? My wife is pregnant with our sixth child. How could she possibly harm Shao Min Princess?"
The official from the Great Li Temple secretly cursed in his heart, knowing beforehand that this would happen. They were most afraid of handling duties involving these nobles, but the prince's consort indeed had a suspicion, and it was not feasible to not come at all.
"Nangong Yan, prince Yanshi, please forgive me. The officials are merely performing their duties according to the current evidence. According to what we have found, the prince's consort currently does have a suspicion."
Nangong Yan sneered coldly, "Suspicion? My wife was merely strolling in the rear mountain and that's considered suspicious? As for the grievances you mentioned, they were just a few unpleasant words between women. This is also considered a motive for the crime?"
The Great Li Temple official was retorted into silence, his forehead beading with sweat. After a few seconds of silence, he said nervously, "This… I came today only to ask a few questions, not to suspect the princess consort. If it truly has nothing to do with the princess consort, I will leave of my own accord."
Yu Yao looked at the Great Li Temple official and explained, "I did go to the rear mountain yesterday morning, but I just walked around twice and came back."
"Then may I ask if the prince's consort encountered anyone in the rear mountain?"
The Great Li Temple official, seeing Yu Yao's cooperation, breathed a sigh of relief in his heart as well. His gaze followed hers, pressing further.
Yu Yao lowered her eyes to recall for a moment before looking at the official, "I did encounter a young man wearing blue robes in the rear mountain. He was quite young, around twenty years old. He was holding a black ink folding fan, which seemed to belong to one of the temple's guests."
She was referring to the West Wind. Since he is already dead and his body has been transformed by her, there's no harm in letting these officials suspect him.
"Blue-clad youth?"
The official's face grew serious, his gaze fixed on Yu Yao, and he furrowed his brow, "Does the princess consort know the identity of that person? And can she remember their appearance clearly?"
"I'm not sure about his identity; I didn't have a conversation with him, nor do I recognize him."
Yu Yao shook her head in confusion, then added, "I can remember some of his appearance."
Seeing that Yu Yao remembered the man's appearance, the official let out a breath of relief and relaxed somewhat, "Then please, would it be possible for the princess consort to draw a portrait of that person for us to see?"
"Of course!"
Yu Yao nodded slightly.
She got up and entered the room, walked to the writing desk, drew out a roll of paper, dipped her pen into the ink, and began painting.
She drew the appearance of Xi Feng as he was dressed that day.
However, thinking that the person was a secret guard from the Long Princess's residence, she worried that if others recognized him, it might create complications.
She made a slight alteration to the facial features, making it look like Xi Feng but not exactly like him.
It's not necessary to pin this case on Xi Feng; what matters is to make it an unsolved case.
Yu Yao quickly finished the painting. She placed her brush down, blew on the inkstains on the paper that had not dried yet, and then took it out and handed it to the official.
"Thank you, princess consort. The official is taking his leave!"
The official from the Great Li Temple took the painting and gave it a glance before departing quickly.
Upon the departure of the officials from the Great Li Temple, everyone in Jingfu Mansion heaved a sigh of relief.
"These officials from the Great Li Temple are becoming increasingly brazen. They dare to investigate the family of the Prince of Jing. Hmph..."
The Prince of Jing looked at the direction of the door and said with a dissatisfied expression.
The princess consort's gaze fell on Yu Yao, her tone slightly resentful, "Why did you go to the rear mountain without any reason? If you don't like listening to sermons, just stay in the house quietly."
She used to quite like this daughter-in-law of hers. She was informed and discerning, well-read and mannerly, and had good sense in her dealings with others.
However, since she has been to the Wan'an Temple, she has been causing trouble frequently, which has made her develop a disliking for it in her heart.
Nangong Yan could hear his mother's complaints about his wife, and he frowned slightly, looking at his mother with a hint of disappointment in his eyes. "Mother, since we've come to Wan'an Temple, how can we stay in the house all the time? Yao'er was just casually walking around the rear mountain at that time. Who would have known that such an incident would occur?"
This was the son's first time disagreeing with himself, which made the princess consort feel slightly uncomfortable in her heart.
The couple had been married for over a decade, and the Prince of Jing could not help but notice his wife's mood. Seeing that she was unhappy, he felt heartbroken.
He couldn't help but kick Nangong Yan and scolded, "Your mother-in-law was just talking, she wasn't really blaming your wife. You young fellow got so worked up, it's actually made your mother-in-law unhappy."
Nangong Yan rubbed the area where he had been kicked and felt extremely helpless inside. Why did one sentence make her mother-in-law unhappy?
Yu Yao watched the scene unfold with a cold expression, not uttering a single word throughout.
Yu Yao suddenly felt that the princess consort was very mannered. She was pampered by her husband and son, but when she didn't get her way one day, her little mood swings appeared immediately.
Yu Yao also noticed the princess consort's dissatisfaction with herself. She felt that the relationship between the stepmother and daughter-in-law was just like that. She decided to distance herself from them in the future, minimize communication, and spend less time together.
She didn't want to see the princess consort and directly pulled Nangong Yan back to their room.
Yu Yao's action of pulling her son back into the room without saying a word made the princess consort even more unhappy, feeling that this was a sign of dissatisfaction from her daughter-in-law.
The Prince of Jing saw that his beloved wife was becoming increasingly unhappy. Her actions showed that she was displeased with him. Specifically, she was twisting the soft flesh on his waist with her small, white, and soft hand, making a turn.
Although it didn't hurt much, it was a sign of his wife expressing her anger.
Suddenly, the Prince of Jing felt incredibly sorry for himself, wondering who he had offended and why he was being bullied.
However, due to his wife's authority, the Prince of Jing didn't dare to show his feelings, instead pretending to be happy and trying to make her happy.
Inside the room, Nangong Yan was also trying to cheer up Yu Yao.
"Yao'er, don't take your mother-in-law's words to heart. She doesn't mean to blame you; she's just…"
Nangong Yan suppressed his eyebrows, his eyes dark and profound like ink. With his tall and slender figure, he gently pulled Yu Yao into his arms, caressing her eyebrows with a gentle touch, feeling a heart of compassion.
Before, watching her mother-in-law seemed to be in good condition, and she was also satisfied with Yao'er. How come this time they came to Wan'an Temple and suddenly found a problem with her?
Yu Yao nestled in his arms, her unhappiness on her face unhidden. She continued his sentence, "It's because she thinks I'm causing trouble for you two and now she has a grudge against me..."
"Yao'er, your mother-in-law..."
Nangong Yan's eyebrows were twisted so tightly that they could have been tied into a knot. He wanted to explain, but realized that what his wife had said was the truth.
"I can endure anything, just not provocation. Let's let this go this time. If there's a next time, don't blame me for not giving her face."
Yu Yao pushed Nangong Yan away and sat on the bed, leaning at an angle, eyeing him with a slight tilt. She was giving him a heads-up in advance.
The reason Yu Yao did not confront the princess consort today was mainly because she thought that the princess had been quite nice to her in the past, and Nangong Yan had stood up for her, so she felt no need to say anything.
Next time, she won't be so polite.
Nangong Yan smiled faintly, not feeling angry at all, but rather loving the way Yu Yao looked like this. It was as if a little kitten had its fur ruffled by a provocation. He found her adorable in any way he looked at her.
With a smile on his lips, the dignified and handsome prince sat down by the bed, his refined and elegant face softening even more. He embraced her waist again, his eyes filled with affectionate gentleness. "As long as you're happy, that's fine. But your mother-in-law wouldn't do such a thing."
Yu Yao looked at the man in front of her and did not push him away, allowing him to hold her.
Her heart coldly huffed: this is not certain. Once the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has a crack, they will only see each other less favorably in the future.
Being polite and respectful to each other without interfering is the best.
...
As night fell, the moonlight faded into the black clouds.
The room was lit with flickering lights, emitting a weak glow.
Nangong Mo was leaning at an angle on the soft couch in the guesthouse, listening to the servant's report. He couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"The officials from the Great Li Temple are becoming increasingly bold, suspecting a weak woman of all things."
The guard lowered his head and stood by the side, not daring to say anything.
"That official who interrogated her has been dismissed on the grounds of finding excuses, and I do not want to see him appear in the Great Li Temple."
Nangong Mo suddenly spoke coldly.
He didn't even ask for the name of the official, who was of no importance to him.
The servant's heart was filled with turmoil, wondering if the crown prince was interested in the princess consort of Jingfu Mansion.
And even went so far as to dismiss the official from the Great Li Temple for that person.
He felt as though he had stumbled upon an earth-shattering secret, but in order to keep his head from being cut off, he had to keep this secret bottled up inside.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The guard respectfully bowed his head and said, then he retreated.
