Huanhuan was dragged away.

Shen Chen felt a sudden sense of powerlessness in his heart, and after bidding farewell to the elders, he returned to the mansion.

Ah Zhi’s persistent voice of inquiry echoed behind him, but he did not turn back.

...

The next day, the Ye Mansion received two servants sent by Shen Chen.

They were precisely the two whom Ye Zhi had bribed to gather information...

Without a doubt, this was Shen Chen’s expression of displeasure towards her method; he had investigated it thoroughly overnight upon returning and had sent the people back without punishment.

Inside Qingyi Garden, Ye Zhi and Ming Yan were dressing up in the room. Upon hearing the news, Ye Zhi immediately flew into a rage, exclaiming, "Wasn’t I just concerned about him? Is it necessary to go this far? I haven’t done anything heinous, nor have I stolen any secrets. Sending them back is his way of showing off, isn’t it? No, I have to go find him and get to the bottom of this."

Ming Yan, beside her, hadn’t had time to persuade the miss before a swift breeze passed, and the person disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Fearing that the miss and the lord would argue again, she rushed urgently to the Shen Mansion.

Upon arrival, she expected that the miss would have already entered the mansion, but unexpectedly, she was arguing with Housekeeper Qin at the entrance.

"Qin Yin, how dare you, how dare you stop me? Do you not know that I am your future mistress? Once I enter the Shen Mansion, the first thing I’ll do is remove you from your position as housekeeper."

Qin Yin’s expression was grim, and with an emotionless face, he said, "Miss Ye, speak of that when the day arrives. The master is not in the mansion right now, and entering won’t help you."

There was clearly no room for negotiation.

Ye Zhi took a deep breath, raising a bright and gentle smile: "Then I’ll go inside and wait for him, don’t stop me."

"I cannot let you in," he replied with a flat voice, unperturbed.

Denied outright, Ye Zhi became angry, took a few steps back, and circled around to the side of the wall, leaping over the high wall into the mansion.

Qin Yin frowned, urgently using Qinggong to pursue, sensing that things might go awry.

Ming Yan, who couldn’t perform martial arts, arrived at the high wall, filled with anxiety.

Inside the Shen Mansion, a peach and gray figure were maneuvering in the air with Qinggong.

Due to her few visits, Ye Zhi wasn’t familiar with the layout, but after circling around a few times, she roughly grasped her bearings and flew straight towards the main hall of the mansion, intending to sit and wait for the Little Traitor to return.

She knew Qin Yin wouldn’t dare to touch her.

Unexpectedly, she encountered an unforeseen duo in the hall.

Ye Zhi’s anger flared up: "Liu Qingxi? Why are you here? And Shen Chen, aren’t you supposed to be at court, not back yet? How can you be here when you are my fiancé? Didn’t you avoid suspicion..."

Qin Yin, who had arrived using Qinggong, cast an apologetic look towards the master: Sorry, I couldn’t stop her.

Shen Chen began to explain: "She came to see me about a case."

On previous occasions when she visited, he had refused. The last time, Liu Qingxi brought up his ominous fate and refused to leave, staying for half an hour before going. Today, she came again to the Shen Mansion. Shen Chen originally refused, but she sent a message through a servant about a major incident regarding the Investigation Factory.

It was less than a quarter of an hour after letting her in when Ye Zhi arrived.

"Then why did you have Qin Yin stop me and not let me in?"

Her voice carried a trace of grievance.

He did not directly answer her but looked at Liu Qingxi: "Miss Liu, I have matters to attend to. You may leave. The information you brought isn’t worth anything. If there’s nothing else, don’t wander near the Shen Mansion, or else it’s not good if those two big guard dogs in the back courtyard accidentally injure someone."

Liu Qingxi was surprised, as she originally wanted to see Ye Zhi throw a fit.