Chapter 139: Chapter 140: A Good Son-in-law Candidate

This morning, Qi Yue was seeing patients at the clinic, when suddenly someone from the Prefectural Office came, saying Chu Yunfei had instructed her to come over for a meal after her consultations, as he had something to discuss.

Qi Yue agreed, asking Nanny Zhang to arrange the carriage, and planned to go straight there at noon.

Ever since her reputation soared, she had no choice but to acquire a carriage for herself.

Because there were simply too many people on the streets who wanted to greet her.

Sometimes Qi Yue felt as if she had become a different person; in the past, she would never engage in idle chitchat on the streets and would most likely dismiss people with a hot temper.

“Who would have thought that at such a young age, I would be burdened by fame!”

When she got into the carriage, she sighed silently to herself.

Yet even so, halfway through the journey, she was recognized by an uncle selling steamed buns, who insisted on giving her a few freshly steamed buns.

Unable to refuse, she accepted them and ordered Nanny Zhang to bring the silver over later.

And so it was that she entered the gates of the Prefectural Office with a packet of hot steamed buns.

The previous incident involving Chu Xiaohua’s shenanigans eventually came to Chu Yuntian’s attention, and he had sent her back to her parents’ home; as a result, the Prefectural Office was now very quiet.

Therefore, when Qi Yue arrived, she was greeted warmly.

Chu Yuntian, all smiles, pointed at the steamed buns in her hand and joked, “Yueyue, you’re coming to your adoptive father’s house for a meal, so why are you bringing your own provisions?”

Qi Yue also smiled, and after explaining the situation, Chu Yuntian nodded repeatedly.

“You’ve been righteous in helping others; the common folk surely remember that!”

The wife of Chu Yuntian was also chuckling merrily at the side.

“Indeed, Yueyue’s reputation has spread far and wide. Just the other day, Xiaohua was saying that even in their provincial government offices, people are talking about Yueyue’s superb medical skills and noble medical ethics!”

The wife of Chu Yuntian was a woman of the inner court who, aside from taking care of her husband’s daily life, concerned herself with nothing else.

Even now, she was unaware of what Chu Xiaohua had done.

The couple had no intention of informing her.

After all, she is their biological daughter; knowing too much could potentially lead to troubles.

Chu Yuntian and Qi Yue exchanged a glance and swiftly moved the conversation away from that subject.

“Alright, Yueyue must be starving after a busy morning; let’s eat first!”

“Yes, yes, let’s start the meal!”

The three of them made their way to the dining room where the concubine Aunt Chu also came up to greet them, ushering Qi Yue to take a seat inside.

“Yueyue, you haven’t visited in such a long time!”

“Auntie, it’s just that I’ve been really busy lately.”

“You need to take care of your health and not overwork yourself.”

“Thank you, Auntie, I will.”

As they chatted, they entered the room only to find two men already seated at the table.

Qi Yue didn’t recognize either of them, one in his early twenties, the other around twenty-four or twenty-five.

Seeing someone come in, both men stood up and looked at Qi Yue attentively.

Chu Yuntian immediately made introductions.

It turned out that the slightly younger one was Chu Xiaozhi, Aunt Chu’s son with Chu Yuntian, and the other was Chu Yuntian’s magister, named Feng Liang.

Qi Yue felt the name Feng Liang seemed familiar, and after thinking for a moment, she remembered that Chu Yuntian had mentioned him to her before, saying that he came from a modest family with bright prospects and was a good candidate for a husband.

She instantly understood Chu Yuntian’s reason for inviting her.

Had she known she was being introduced to suitors, she would not have come.

What she hadn’t anticipated was that Aunt Chu shared the same intention.

During the meal, she persistently had Chu Xiaozhi serve dishes and pour wine for Qi Yue, treating her with great care; the implication couldn’t have been clearer.

In all fairness, both men – one the son of a Prefectural Governor, the other a rising star in the bureaucracy – were indeed decent candidates for marriage.

However, compared to Zhao Xiyan, they fell short by more than a little.

Just taking looks into account, a hundred Chu Xiaozhis and Feng Liangs couldn’t match one Zhao Xiyan.

She, who admired the moon on the branches, how could her heart be moved by the little flowers and grasses below it?

Thus, Qi Yue didn’t even bother to take a good look at the two men, instead, she just chatted with Chu Yuntian and concentrated on eating.

Fortunately, Nanny Zhang noticed her reluctance and came forward to smooth things over.

“Miss, yesterday you told Mrs. Zhang that you would come for another consultation today; we’re running out of time. Perhaps it would be best if I inform her not to wait.”

Qi Yue would not miss such a prime opportunity, immediately pretending as if she had just remembered something.

“Ah, I forgot about this matter. Aunt Zhang’s illness can’t be delayed; I must go back right now.”

As she spoke, she promptly stood up to apologize.

“Foster father, lady, aunt, I forgot that I still have a patient today. I must leave first; I will apologize to you another day.”

Hearing that it was about a patient, nobody said anything to stop her.

Chu Yuntian said he had something to discuss and accompanied her on her way out.

“Yueyue, are you blaming your foster father for arranging this?”

“Which arrangement?” Qi Yue deliberately played dumb.

Chu Yuntian sighed deeply.

“How could your foster father not understand your feelings? But you’re already over seventeen years old, nearly eighteen. It’s time to think about your lifelong affairs.”

“Okay, I understand.” Qi Yue was only putting him off, eager to leave.

“As long as you understand. Your foster father is not trying to force you. Both Xiaozhi and Feng Liang are good men; you could try to interact with them first!”

“Sure.”

Qi Yue was busy leaving; whatever Chu Yuntian said, she just nodded along hastily.

The two soon arrived at a small reception room, and it was there that Chu Yuntian suddenly stopped as if he had just remembered something.

“Yueyue, the reason I called you here today is actually for another important matter.”

Seeing Chu Yuntian’s solemn expression, Qi Yue also became tense.

“Foster father, what is it?”

Chu Yuntian glanced around to ensure no one was present before speaking in a low voice, “We have a lead on the person who administered the poison!”

“Ah,” Qi Yue’s eyes widened in shock, “Who is it?”

“We’re not certain yet, but we can confirm that this person is from the Donggao Qing Family.”

“How did foster father ascertain they are from Donggao? Did you find anything unusual about this person?”

“We discovered a strange tattoo on his arm. That symbol is the mark of the Donggao Qing Family.”

Upon hearing about the strange symbol, something clicked in Qi Yue’s mind. She quickly pulled out a piece of paper and homemade charcoal pencil and hastily drew a pattern resembling a crescent moon, yet not quite like one.

“Foster father, take a look. Is it similar to this pattern?”

Chu Yuntian took the paper and after one glance, his complexion changed drastically.

“Yueyue, how could you know about this? Could it be that you have met this person?”

Qi Yue shook her head.

“Foster father, this is the pattern that was on the knife found stuck in you; I thought it strange, so I memorized it.”

“I see.” Chu Yuntian nodded, “This further proves that the individual is indeed from the Donggao Qing Family.”

“Foster father, is the Donggao Qing Family that formidable? Can’t we capture him?”

“This person is exceedingly cunning. My people have been shaken off by him several times; he is quite difficult to capture.”

Chu Yuntian let out a long sigh and looked towards the distant horizon.

“What you don’t know, Yueyue, is that the Donggao Qing Family is a branch of the Donggao Royal Family. Fifty years ago, the Emperor of Donggao, because his brother had no son, granted his youngest son in adoption to him to become his heir.”

“Initially, all was peaceful, but later, this brother suddenly revolted. After the rebellion was suppressed, and the entire family was to be executed, the adopted son put forth a petition stating he wished to lead his family out of the Royal Family and take a new surname, living henceforth by farming.”

“Afterwards, they changed their surname to Qing and kept away from political affairs. But for some reason, over the past decade or so, the Qing Family seems to have come back to life, stirring quite a momentum in Donggao.”

“Also, many signs suggest that they may have instigated this conflict between the two countries.”

Qi Yue listened quietly, feeling as though she had heard the surname ‘Qing’ somewhere before, but she could not recall where exactly at the moment.

“Foster father, is the surname ‘Qing’ common?”

Chu Yuntian shook his head, “In the four nations, there is only the Donggao Qing Family.”

While Qi Yue was pondering where she had heard the surname, she heard Chu Yuntian continue, “Yueyue, I am telling you this so that you are cautious for your safety. After you saved those commoners, I’m worried that someone with the surname Qing may come after you.”

“I will be careful!”

“Should I send soldiers to protect you?”

“There’s no need, I’ve already hired people to guard the house.”

After exchanging a few more words of caution, they finally departed.