Yun Chu Ling

Chapter 103: The Truth Revealed

Xie Jingyu and Xie Shi'an returned to the mansion simultaneously.

Father and son exchanged a glance before heading straight to Yun Chu's Sheng Residence.

"Husband, you've finally returned," Yun Chu said with a cold expression. "I just had someone reinvestigate the curse incident. It was indeed Concubine He's doing. How do you think she should be dealt with?"

Xie Shi'an clenched his fingers. "Mother, send Concubine He away."

As early as two months ago, he had wanted his father to send He Shi away from the Xie family, but she insisted on staying, causing all these troubles.

If she remained, who knew what else might happen...

"Send her to the manor estate," Xie Jingyu said. "Let her keep Wei Ge'er company."

Yun Chu picked up several letters from the table and handed them over. "While searching Bi He Garden, the servants found these. Have you seen them before, husband?"

Xie Jingyu didn't understand why she suddenly changed the subject. Suspicious, he took the items and scanned them, his face abruptly changing color.

Xie Shi'an glanced at them and froze.

These were letters exchanged between He Shi and her maternal family from several years ago!

He had long told He Shi to burn these things. Why were they still found during the search?

"Judging by your expressions, husband and An Ge'er, you must have known about Concubine He's identity for some time," Yun Chu turned around and picked up several embroidered handkerchiefs from the desk. "Recently, Concubine He has been selling her embroidery. A merchant purchased them in large quantities and sent people to the Xie family to inquire about her. At the time, I didn't understand why. Only after seeing these letters do I realize that Concubine He is actually the direct granddaughter of Minister He, the former Minister of Revenue from twenty years ago! Those embroidery techniques seem to be unique to the He family! If even I could uncover this, wouldn't others be able to as well?"

Xie Jingyu nearly staggered.

Someone was investigating He Shi's identity. What did this mean? It meant someone was targeting the Xie family and suspected He Shi's connection to the He family from over twenty years ago!

Although the He family's incident happened more than two decades ago, and the court hadn't forbidden He descendants from marrying, any association with the family of a convicted official could lead to impeachment by the Censorate, which would certainly affect his official career.

If he weren't serving in the Ministry of Revenue, others might suspect but not say anything.

But as a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue, he had taken in the granddaughter of the former Minister of Revenue as his concubine. Would the court suspect him of emulating the He family's corruption and bribery...

And recently, to gather Ping Jie'er's dowry, he had indeed accepted many things he shouldn't have.

"The dynasty has laws stating that if one forms marital ties with descendants of convicted officials, it must be reported to the court," Yun Chu said word by word. "Judging by your reaction, husband, you probably haven't reported this to the court, have you?"

Xie Jingyu closed his eyes.

How dare he report it? That would be asking for trouble.

When he first met He Shi, he only knew her as He Lingying and had no idea she was a He descendant. It wasn't until Ping Jie'er was born that she revealed her background.

At that time, their relationship was deep, and he hadn't yet entered official service. He didn't take He Shi's identity seriously, secretly arranging a residence without Old Madam's knowledge and keeping He Shi as an external mistress. Soon after, she gave birth to An Ge'er, followed by Wei Ge'er.

Over all these years, no one had ever suspected He Shi's identity, and even he had gradually forgotten her original surname was He.

But now, with someone investigating He Shi, he could no longer deceive himself.He took a deep breath and said, "She's just a concubine. There's no need to report to the court. Since she's made a mistake, this is the perfect opportunity to send her away—far to the south or north. As long as the Xie family severs ties with her, even if her identity is exposed, it won't affect the Xie family."

After speaking, he looked toward his eldest son beside him.

Xie Shi'an's lips were pressed into a tight line, his fingers clenched into fists.

After a long silence, his face showed determination: "Then let it be as Father says. Send her far away."

As long as He Shi was gone, even if someone wanted to investigate her identity further, it would be difficult. Even if they found out, by then the Xie family would have no connection to He Shi... He would secretly protect her, ensuring she lived without worries for the rest of her life.

"Do you think sending Concubine He away will solve everything?" Yun Chu lowered her gaze. "Actually, Concubine He is the birth mother of An Ge'er, Wei Ge'er, and Ping Jie'er, isn't she?"

Xie Jingyu was stunned into silence.

Not only was He Shi's identity exposed, but Yun Chu also knew about the true parentage of the three siblings.

Her calm demeanor made it clear she had known this for a long time. Why hadn't he noticed anything at all?

Xie Shi'an never expected to hear these words. Many thoughts flashed through his mind, and finally, he spoke what he believed to be sincere words: "He Shi only gave birth to me, but Mother, you are my true mother."

Xie Jingyu swallowed hard and said, "Madam, it's not what you think. Although He Shi is the children's mother, I never intended to have any further relationship with her. If not for the incident at the last banquet, she would have remained a servant in the Xie household, not Concubine He. Please don't hold any resentment in your heart."

"Talking about this now is meaningless. Husband, you should think carefully about how to handle the matter of Concubine He." Yun Chu walked out. "I'm going to see Old Madam."

As soon as she left, Xie Jingyu slumped into his chair.

Arriving at Anshou Hall, before even entering the room, Yun Chu heard Xie Ping speaking: "Concubine He would never do such a thing! Even if she truly wanted to be the mistress of the household, she wouldn't curse Old Madam and Grandmother. This must be a frame-up—there must be more to the story. Old Madam, please have someone reinvestigate this!"

Old Madam reclined on the couch and said after taking her medicine, "Ping Jie'er, must you defend He Shi like this?"

"Old Madam, you might not know," Yun Chu said as she entered from the doorway, "Concubine He is Ping Jie'er's birth mother. Of course she has to defend her own mother. There's nothing wrong with that."

Xie Ping turned sharply: "Mo-Mother..."

"Chu'er, what nonsense are you speaking?" Old Madam's fingers stiffened for a moment before she continued as if nothing was wrong. "Ping Jie'er's birth mother died long ago. You are her mother now!"

"An Ge'er has already told me that Concubine He is the birth mother of all three siblings." Yun Chu's expression remained calm. "I just wonder if Old Madam knows about He Shi's original identity?"

A thunderous shock seemed to strike Xie Ping's ears. Her body felt out of control, threatening to collapse.

Before she could process the first statement, the next words left her even more unable to react. She leaned on her maid's arm to keep from falling to the ground.

Old Madam's eyebrows furrowed: "What other identity could He Shi have besides being a concubine of the Xie family?"While she was still pondering the previous statement, the granddaughter-in-law had already learned that He Shi was the biological mother of several children and was likely to make a scene. After all, it had been claimed earlier that An Ge'er's biological mother had died, which was why the granddaughter-in-law had agreed to accept the three children as legitimate heirs... Now, the supposedly deceased woman had turned out to be a concubine in the household. The granddaughter-in-law would surely feel deceived by the Xie family, and it would be troublesome if she took the matter to the Yun family...

As the old lady was lost in these tangled thoughts, she heard Yun Chu say, "He Shi's grandfather was He Tao, the former Minister of Revenue over twenty years ago—the same He Tao who was executed for corruption and bribery, leading to the beheading of all male members of his three clans above the age of seven."