klisemfg Chapter 361 Must be hiding in the Prince's Mansion
Chapter 361 Must be hiding in the Prince's Mansion
At dusk, Gou Hongying returned to the Shangshu Mansion in anger.
In the court today, Prime Minister Ouyang Ming's ridicule made him, the Minister of Revenue, lose all face.
When the vermilion lacquered door slammed shut behind him, he suddenly noticed a dusty figure standing in the corridor.
It was the housekeeper he sent to Nanhu to look for his son a month ago.
"Master..." The butler's hesitant look made Gou Hongying's heart tighten.
He waved away his attendants and called the butler into the study.
"Have you found the young master?" His voice trembled, even he didn't notice.
The housekeeper wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "By the time I arrived in Nanhu County, the house had already changed three owners. Concubine Yang...died of illness five years ago."
Seeing Gou Hongying's expression suddenly change, he hastily added, "But the neighbors are saying that the young master was taken away. Some say...some say he came to the capital to look for his relatives."
"What?" Gou Hongying slammed the table and stood up, causing the celadon teacups on the huanghuali table to clink.
Five years ago, the child was only six years old. How could he have traveled all the way to the capital?
He thought that his only son might be dead in the wilderness, and a cold sweat suddenly broke out on his back.
"Send more people to look for him, no matter what!" He gritted his teeth and ordered, "Remember, you must not let the lady know about this..."
"Yes, sir!" He bowed and retreated.
Gou Hongying suddenly remembered that he had said a lot of unpleasant words to Yin Zhizi in a rage yesterday.
If anything happened to his son, he would only have one daughter left...Gou Chunmei.
Mei'er's pale face when she begged him yesterday appeared in front of him. Gou Hongying's heart tightened suddenly. The sweat on the back of his neck had not dried yet, and new cold sweat broke out.
He straightened his clothes and hurried to the back hall.
As he passed through the triple gates, he noticed that the Shangshu Mansion was unusually quiet today.
At this time of day, as long as Mei'er was at home, she would definitely hear her scolding the servants, or Yin Zhizi arranging the servants' work.
But now, the bulbuls under the corridor are huddled silently in their gilded cages.
"Madam...Mel..."
Gou Hongying's call echoed in the empty courtyard. Several maids who were cleaning the house knelt on the ground in panic, but no one dared to look up to answer.
Gou Hongying grabbed her personal maid, who was kneeling under the rose bush, and asked, "Xiao Tao! Where is the Madam?"
The woman who collected the peaches was shaking violently at this moment: "Sir, Master, we haven't seen the Madam and the Young Miss since we woke up this morning..."
These words were like a thunderclap hitting my head.
Gou Hongying shook off the maid and stumbled towards the main house.
The moment the carved door was pushed open, a faint scent of agarwood was mixed with an unusual sense of emptiness.
The gilded jewelry box on the dressing table was wide open, empty inside. In the rosewood wardrobe, Yin Zhizi's favorite dresses had disappeared without a trace.
"Someone come!" His furious roar caused dust to fall from the beams.
After a while, the servant on duty reported tremblingly that he saw the lady and the young lady go out from the back door at 5 p.m. yesterday, and said that they were going back to her parents' home for a short stay.
"Going back to your parents' home?" Gou Hongying sneered.
Yin Zhizi is the aunt of Concubine Yin. How can she return to her parents' home in the land of Xia Kingdom?
Gou Hongying collapsed to the ground in anger.
After a long while, Gou Hongying suddenly jumped up and rushed out.
Yes, there is also the Prince’s Mansion. Mei’er is the Crown Princess after all. Maybe the Madam has also gone to the Prince’s Mansion.
They must be hiding in the Prince's Mansion...
This thought supported him as he rode his horse all the way to the Prince's Mansion.
"Minister Gou breaks into the palace late at night, he's so arrogant." Crown Prince Zhao Haoxuan was checking documents in the study. When he saw Gou Hongying come in, he didn't stand up, but just slowly put down his wolf-hair brush.
Gou Hongying bowed hastily and said, "Your Highness, please forgive me. Has my wife sent Mei'er back?"
"I was just about to ask the Minister." The Crown Prince's face suddenly darkened. "Your daughter left the palace without permission yesterday and has not been heard from since. Now that you've married into the royal family, how could you stay at your parents' home and not return?"
Gou Hongying's vision went dark.
Yin Zhizi and Mei'er are not in the Prince's Mansion, so where did they go?
His money was gone. Could it be that the mother and daughter had absconded with the money?
How is this possible?
He still had to hand Mei'er over to the Imperial Concubine, otherwise, the Imperial Concubine would not let him off easily.
Also, could it be that Yin Zhizi just took away all his life savings?
"Master Gou, is the food ready?" Zhao Haoxuan's voice sounded again.
Gou Hongwen felt dizzy and blood spurted out of his mouth, and he fainted.
Zhao Haoxuan was shocked. He was just asking about food. Was it necessary to be so angry that he fainted?
He quickly stepped forward and lightly touched Gou Hongying's nose with his fingertips. Fortunately, Gou Hongying was still breathing, but he was just so angry that he fainted.
"Somebody come!"
As Zhao Haoxuan's voice fell, Ye Fan quickly entered the study.
"Commander Ye, arrange for someone to send Minister Gou back, and by the way, find out what happened in the Gou Mansion!" Zhao Haoxuan ordered.
Ye Fan took the order and left in a hurry.
It didn't take long before the whole story was thoroughly investigated.
Zhao Haoxuan laughed out loud, a sly look flashing in his eyes. "Commander Ye, I'm afraid Minister Gou won't be able to provide even a grain of military rations for this expedition!"