Yun Chu Ling

Chapter 97: He Shi's Identity

Ever since He Xu was forced to leave the capital a month ago due to debt, Yun Chu had arranged for people to follow him.

"He Xu has been heading toward Jizhou since leaving the capital," the servant reported with his head lowered. "His hometown isn't in Jizhou itself, but in Willow Village over thirty li outside Jizhou City. It was only after arriving in the village that I discovered He Xu's original name was He Xu - his clan name is actually He. Chen Bo instructed me to inquire about a woman named He Lingying, but there were no families surnamed He there. In a moment of quick thinking, I changed the surname to He and finally got information - there is indeed a He Lingying, who is He Xu's biological younger sister."

Yun Chu's hand paused.

No wonder she couldn't find any He family clan after searching throughout the entire capital - they were actually surnamed He.

"When I went to ask the village chief for information, as soon as I mentioned the He family, his expression became evasive. He smoked his pipe without saying a word. When I offered him silver, he directly closed his door and refused to speak with me anymore... I stayed in Jizhou for nearly half a month, and only after getting familiar with the village's elderly women did I manage to learn some details. The He family moved to the village over twenty years ago, consisting entirely of elderly people, women, and children under seven years old. Everyone bore injuries, a pitiful sight. In their first month in the village, seven or eight people from the He family died of illness..."

"Among the younger generation of the He family, that is, He Xu's generation, only the two siblings survived. The entire clan pooled their resources to find He Lingying a good marriage, but I failed to find out which family she married into."

Chen Defu looked horrified: "Madam, over twenty years ago, wasn't there a major He family in the capital that fell? Could it be..."

Yun Chu hadn't been born twenty years ago, but she had heard her family mention this matter.

At that time, the He family head served as the Minister of Revenue. That year coincided with a major drought that affected seven or eight southern provinces. The court allocated two hundred thousand taels of silver for disaster relief, but when the funds reached the south, less than twenty thousand taels remained... Countless disaster victims starved or died of thirst, numerous people became displaced, and massive gatherings of common people triggered uprisings... The consequences were severe.

After the situation stabilized, the court thoroughly investigated the relief matter. The investigation revealed shocking corruption throughout the entire Ministry of Revenue, rotten from the inside out.

Although the He family head, as Minister of Revenue, hadn't openly embezzled funds, he had taken benefits from officials who had engaged in corruption. The entire ministry operated as one, completely deceiving the Emperor.

The court was shaken, and the Emperor was furious. The deeper they investigated, the worse it became. Within the entire He family's three clans, all males over seven years old were sentenced to decapitation. Women and children under seven were imprisoned for a full six months. When finally released, only over thirty people remained alive from the once great clan. The court sent them back to their place of origin.

Over a dozen more people died on the way to Willow Village in Jizhou among the thirty-plus survivors, leaving only slightly over twenty people upon arrival.

Life at their destination wasn't much better either, otherwise the youngest generation at that time wouldn't have only survived as He Xu and his sister.

A cold smile appeared on Yun Chu's lips: "So the He Concubine in our residence is actually the daughter of a criminal official."

He Shi's father was a minor official in the Ministry of Revenue, while her grandfather was the Minister of Revenue. Over twenty years ago, the He family could be described as infinitely glorious.Once disaster struck, the entire family collapsed... She finally understood why Xie Shi'an harbored such strong resentment towards the current emperor. With so many clansmen having died at the emperor's hands, He Shi's bitterness towards the imperial court and the emperor naturally seeped into her daily teachings, which was why Xie Shi'an had learned to hate the emperor from such a young age...

Chen Defu was utterly terrified: "My lord has taken a daughter of the He family as a concubine. If this were discovered by those with ill intentions, I fear..."

Although the court had not exiled the women and children of the He family, nor explicitly forbidden them from leaving their native place, the descendants of a convicted official were considered half-criminals. Wandering a thousand miles away might be tolerable, but to venture all the way to the capital and even marry a court official—if this were reported to the Censorate by someone with malicious intent, a single memorial from the censor would be enough to bring serious trouble upon the Xie family.

Yun Chu shook her head.

He Lingying was merely a weak woman. Even if she married a court official, the imperial court would not see it as significant. The price Xie Jingyu would pay would, at most, be a demotion by one rank.

But if descendants of the He family—one marrying a prince, another entering the Imperial College...

The He family bore a grudge against the imperial family, yet they went to great lengths to get close to the royals. What would the emperor think?

If this matter were carefully orchestrated, it could wipe out the entire Xie family in one fell swoop.

What needed to be done now was to transform He Lingying from Concubine He into the biological mother of the Xie family's eldest young master, second young master, and eldest young lady—these three children.

Leaving the manor and returning to the Xie residence, Yun Chu went straight to Xie Jingyu's courtyard. This was his study, and after their marriage, he had always stayed here.

When she arrived, the maids were somewhat surprised, as Yun Chu had not set foot in this courtyard for a long time.

"All of you, step back," Yun Chu said. The maids promptly nodded and withdrew in an orderly manner.

The study was filled with books, and on the desk lay a half-written memorial by Xie Jingyu. Yun Chu picked it up and glanced at it—nothing out of the ordinary.

She searched around and, tucked between the pages of several books, unexpectedly found an account book.

She took it out. The elegant handwriting was clearly that of a woman:

"In the spring of the 13th year of Shuntian, Yuquan, gave birth to the eldest young lady, midwifery, five taels."

"In the autumn of the 14th year of Shuntian, Yuquan, gave birth to the eldest young master, midwifery, seven taels."

"In the autumn of the 18th year of Shuntian, Jizhou, gave birth to the second young master..."

The Xie family's ancestral home was in Yuquan, Jizhou. After Xie Jingyu passed the provincial examination, they moved to Jizhou, and later, after he became a Presented Scholar, they came to the capital... All these timelines matched perfectly.

A slight comparison of the handwriting confirmed it was He Lingying's writing.

Yun Chu smiled. Xie Jingyu truly did not guard against her at all, leaving such an important item casually on the bookshelf.

She tucked the account book into her sleeve.

Just then, Ting Shuang's voice came from outside, paying respects: "Greetings, my lord."

Xie Jingyu frowned. "Why are you here?"

Ting Shuang lowered her head. "The lady came to speak with you, my lord. Seeing you were not here, she went inside to rest for a moment."

As she spoke, the door opened.

Yun Chu stood behind the door, her gaze falling on Xie Jingyu's hands. "Husband, what is that in your hand?"

Xie Jingyu lifted a gift box. "This is a ginseng root sent by Lord Hu."

He raised his other hand. "And this is tea given by Lord Zhou."

Yun Chu curled her lips.

It seemed that after becoming the future father-in-law of the Anjing Prince, Xie Jingyu's fortunes were gradually on the rise.

"What did you wish to discuss with me, my lady?" Xie Jingyu set the gift boxes on the desk and looked at Yun Chu."During the morning greetings, Concubine Yu came to me in tears, wanting to take Yun Ge'er back," Yun Chu began. "Yun Ge'er seems to have fallen ill as well. What does my husband think?"

Xie Jingyu frowned. "Since Yun Ge'er has been given to Concubine He, she should be the one to raise him. If he's ill, we'll simply call a physician."

"That was my thought as well," Yun Chu said with a smile. "Speaking of which, Concubine He does share some connection with our Xie family. This morning, Concubine Tao mentioned that Concubine He and Ping Jie'er look nearly identical. If outsiders who didn't know the truth saw them, they might mistake Concubine He for Ping Jie'er's birth mother."

Hearing this, Xie Jingyu froze as if his heart had plunged into an ice cellar.

He should have realized it sooner - daughters often resemble their mothers. The older Ping Jie'er grew, the more she would come to resemble He Shi's face...