HCB Chapter 232 His eyes, however, were unfathomable.
Chapter 232 His eyes, however, were unfathomable.
Xu Liu'er subconsciously reached out and touched her wrist.
She forced herself to remain calm and changed the subject with a light laugh: "My husband found out about this. I thought he wouldn't care about such a small thing."
Xie Zhongzhi was not swayed by her and continued to gaze at her.
Xu Liuer rarely wore jewelry when she was at the border, but this habit gradually changed after she returned to the capital.
Although she doesn't wear much jewelry, she still knows how to dress well.
Either wear a bracelet or wear earrings.
But today, there were none at all...
Xie Zhongzhi became suspicious and said in a low, slow voice, "Your attire today... is rather plain."
“Where does it look plain? Aren’t you still wearing a few jade hairpins in your hair?”
Xu Liuer's heart was pounding a little, but she casually touched the jade hairpin in her hair.
She smiled and said, "Wearing this jewelry all day made me feel tired, so I took it off to rest."
Xie Zhongzhi stared at her for a moment, as if trying to discern the truthfulness of her words.
But at this moment, he couldn't quite remember whether Xu Liuer wore jewelry on weekday evenings or not.
After a moment's thought, he was about to nod slightly, no longer dwelling on the matter.
But just then, a childish yet indifferent voice suddenly rang out, "Really?"
The two turned around at the same time and found Xie Siyuan standing at the door at some point.
He squinted his dark eyes, his gaze shifting between Xu Liuer and Xie Zhongzhi.
"Are my mother's jewelry... really still there?"
Xie Siyuan spoke slowly, his voice sinister, like a snake lurking in the shadows, waiting for its prey.
Xu Liuer's heart skipped a beat, and her fingertips felt slightly cold.
She tried her best to keep her composure. "Of course I am. Why would you ask that?"
Xie Siyuan tilted his head, revealing a sinister smile: "Then open it and take a look."
He drawled, his dark eyes fixed on her, "Or is it that Mother doesn't actually want us to see this?"
He could tell at a glance that she was lying!
Xu Liu'er's ears always turn red when she lies, and this time was no exception.
What is this stupid woman up to now?
Xie Zhongzhi narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed intently on Xu Liuer.
The doubts that had just been suppressed began to resurface.
Tonight, Xu Liuer seems...very nervous.
"Liu'er, since Siyuan has said so, let him take a look at the jewelry box," Xie Zhongzhi said to her.
Xie Zhongzhi's voice was as gentle as ever.
But Xu Liuer instinctively felt a chill creep up her spine.
She gripped her sleeve tightly, a thin layer of sweat seeping from her palms.
She knew that if she hesitated even a little longer, she would only arouse more suspicion.
Xu Liuer forced a faint smile: "Since my husband wants to see it, then let's take a look."
The maid quickly brought over the jewelry box.
The atmosphere inside the room was tense. Xie Siyuan stood to one side, his eyes gloomy and the corners of his lips slightly upturned.
Xu Liuer reached out her hand, her fingertips resting on the lid of the jewelry box.
With a "click," the lid of the wooden box was gently lifted.
The neatly arranged jewelry inside was revealed.
Gold hairpins, hair ornaments, jade bracelets, pearl earrings... each piece gleamed in the candlelight.
Xie Zhongzhi's gaze slowly swept over the jewelry in the box.
Xu Liuer lowered her eyes, hiding a hint of nervousness in them.
She was worried that her jewelry-selling scheme would be discovered, so she made preparations, and now all the jewelry in the box is fake.
She replaced it with a counterfeit.
I just don't know... if Xie Zhongzhi can figure it out.
Xie Zhongzhi's gaze swept over the jewelry one by one, as if searching for something.
But she eventually looked away and said softly, "Wear it when you should from now on. A lady should have the dignity of a lady."
Hearing him say this, Xu Liuer knew that Xie Zhongzhi's doubts had been largely dispelled.
She obediently replied, "Yes, I understand."
She then sighed softly, "Recently, disaster victims have been flooding into the capital. They are poorly clothed and starving. I feel terrible about it, so how can I have the mind to dress up?"
"Your kind heart hasn't changed." Xie Zhongzhi's tone was gentle, but his eyes were unfathomable.
"My lord is joking. The disaster victims are displaced, and I just can't bear to see them suffer."
Upon hearing the words "disaster victims," Xie Zhongzhi smiled, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.
Xie Siyuan stood to the side, her little face gloomy.
His dark eyes were fixed on the jewelry box, and the corners of his mouth were turned down.
Clearly, they don't believe it.
His gaze lingered on Xu Liuer's face for a moment, filled with suspicion.
What exactly is this woman plotting?
In the following days, the number of disaster victims outside the city not only did not decrease, but actually increased.
The weather is getting colder and colder; the first snow fell in early December.
Xie Yanli became even busier.
However, this time he listened to Qin Jiuwei and entrusted the matter to a trusted subordinate.
Qin Jiuwei counted the days, knowing the epidemic was about to break out, and specifically instructed Xie Yanli to minimize contact with the disaster victims when settling them, and to protect himself first.
Shen House.
"What are you looking at?" Shen Xingjian asked, curious as he saw Jiang Yunzhu engrossed in reading the letter.
"I'm reading the letter my cousin just sent."
Jiang Yunzhu spoke slowly, her gaze still fixed on the letter.
"What did you write?" Shen Xingjian moved closer, put his arm around her waist, and asked in a low voice.
“My cousin told me before that I shouldn’t send people out for disaster relief, but now she’s telling me to keep my servants in check and not to go out in the coming days, but she didn’t say why.”
Jiang Yunzhu frowned, her worry deepening.
"Is something going to happen?"
Her hand tightened around the letter, and she felt even more uneasy.
A cold wind rose again outside, causing the wooden door to sway and creak.
At this moment, in an exquisite villa in the capital city.
"I heard that the Li family has set up a soup kitchen in the east of the city. They not only serve rice porridge, but sometimes they also make wontons. The eldest daughter of the Li family has also hired many doctors to treat the disaster victims. Now the disaster victims all say that the eldest daughter of the Li family is a living bodhisattva."
"Miss Li was the first woman in the capital to set up a soup kitchen. Now everyone knows about her kindness, even the palace knows. The Emperor even issued an edict to commend Duke Li."
Shen Wen, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but sigh, "Li Mengqing's move was really brilliant. Now everyone knows about her kind and benevolent beauty."
"To be honest, although the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion, Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion, and Wei State Duke's Mansion all set up soup kitchens, the Li family was the first to do so, and their soup kitchen was the largest. Basically, all the disaster victims had eaten soup at the Li family's soup kitchen."
"I've heard that the Empress Dowager has summoned Miss Li to the palace for tea, saying that she is a model of womanhood."
Hearing everyone praising Li Mengqing, Xie Wanning was so angry that she almost crushed the cup in her hand.
This opportunity to be the center of attention should have been mine!
It's all Qin Jiuwei's fault! She's the one who stopped me back then!
"Wanning, why doesn't your Xie family have set up a soup kitchen?" a noblewoman asked in confusion.
Upon hearing this, Xie Wanning's expression suddenly froze on her face. Before she could react, someone else asked a question.
"Now that Prince Xie has been ordered to resettle the disaster victims, why doesn't the Xie family take this opportunity to lend a helping hand?"
"That's right. Even the Meng family, who are usually stingy, have set up several soup kitchens. Does your Xie family really not plan to set up any soup kitchens?"