Chapter 135: Here to Deliver a Child

A woman dressed in a green silk gown stood with her head lowered, her eyes slightly reddened.

Both Zhou Zhao and Zhou Ruizhen were startled.

“Sister-in-law, isn’t that Shopkeeper Liu? Why is she in our store?” Zhou Zhao asked in surprise.

Du Wanchun pulled Liu Niangzi closer and smiled. “I was worried that Lady Li might seek revenge again, so I arranged for Shopkeeper Liu to stay at our store at night for the next few days.”

Realization dawned on Zhou Zhao. “Ah, I see! That’s a great idea!”

Liu Niangzi looked at Du Wanchun with deep gratitude. “I can’t thank you enough, Wanchun. If not for you, I might have perished in the fire tonight.”

As she spoke, she wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes.

Du Wanchun handed her a cup of tea and said, “There’s no need to thank me. It was just a coincidence that I could help. But what do you plan to do next, Liu Niangzi?”

Liu Niangzi looked up at her and replied, “Now that they believe I’m dead, it might actually work in my favor. In a few days, I’ll leave here and head to the capital to find my sister.”

Du Wanchun smiled. “You and your sister must be very close.”

Liu Niangzi nodded. “Yes, we are.”

Du Wanchun then asked, “Which household does your sister serve in the capital? I can ask my second brother to help you inquire about her whereabouts.”

Liu Niangzi shook her head. “I don’t know exactly where she works, but I do know that she was bought by Lord Wu. She might still be in the Wu household.”

Hearing this, Du Wanchun nodded thoughtfully and said, “My second brother knows people from the Wu family, but I haven’t heard of any maid or concubine with the surname Liu in their household.”

Liu Niangzi frowned in confusion. “That can’t be right. My sister mentioned in her last letter that if she ever left the Wu household, she would come looking for me.”

Du Wanchun lowered her gaze slightly and deliberately said, “Could something have happened to her? Otherwise, why hasn’t she come to find you?”

Liu Niangzi’s expression immediately changed.

She quickly grabbed Du Wanchun’s hand and asked urgently, “Wanchun, you said your second brother is in the capital, right?”

Du Wanchun nodded.

Liu Niangzi hurriedly took out a letter from her sleeve and said, “Three years ago, my sister wrote me a letter. She said that if anything ever happened to her, I should take this to General Han in the capital.”

“I’m just a weak woman, and traveling such a long distance to the capital isn’t easy for me. Wanchun, could you ask your second brother to help deliver this letter to General Han?”

Zhou Ruizhen and Du Wanchun exchanged glances, their eyes filled with surprise and intrigue.

Du Wanchun took the letter in her hands. “Alright, I’ll speak to my second brother about it in a few days.”

Liu Niangzi, still shaken from the night’s events, looked pale and distracted even after handing over the letter.

Du Wanchun turned to her and asked, “Liu Niangzi, what are your plans for the future?”

Liu Niangzi pondered for a moment before letting out a long sigh. “With my shop destroyed, I have no reason to stay in Cheng’an County any longer.”

Du Wanchun thought for a moment and then suggested, “In that case, why don’t you secretly head to Qingzhou Prefecture and start anew there?”

Liu Niangzi nodded. “I have nowhere else to go. Qingzhou Prefecture seems as good a place as any.”

Du Wanchun took out some silver from her pocket and handed it to Liu Niangzi as travel expenses for her journey.

Deeply grateful, Liu Niangzi quickly said, “Thank you, Wanchun. I’ll consider this a loan, and I’ll repay you in the future.”

Du Wanchun nodded. “Alright. By the way, Liu Niangzi, the Sun family dared to commit arson and murder so brazenly. Do you know what kind of backing they have?”

Liu Niangzi glanced around cautiously before lowering her voice. “I once heard my elder sister mention that the young master of the Sun family and Imperial Concubine Wu were acquaintances in the past. After she entered the palace, she would often have the Sun family send cosmetics to her.”

“Acquaintances?” Du Wanchun asked, puzzled.

Liu Niangzi leaned in and whispered, “Probably something romantic. Even my sister wasn’t entirely sure, but she only told me about it. Wanchun, you mustn’t spread this around.”

Du Wanchun whispered back, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.”

Liu Niangzi continued, “The Sun family’s deliveries of cosmetics were always on a strict schedule—about once every three months. And every time, the young master of the Sun family would personally make the delivery. I remember my sister writing in a letter that three years ago, not long after one of these deliveries, Imperial Concubine Wu became pregnant.”

“She even joked that the young master of the Sun family wasn’t delivering cosmetics, but delivering a child!”

Du Wanchun, Zhou Ruiyuan, and Zhou Zhao were all stunned.

They exchanged glances but refrained from asking any further questions.

Liu Niangzi quickly covered her mouth. “This… This must never be overheard by anyone. Otherwise, we’ll all lose our lives.”

Du Wanchun chuckled. “Don’t worry. Everyone in this room is one of our own.”

Only then did Liu Niangzi relax.

After reassuring Liu Niangzi, Du Wanchun and Zhou Ruiyuan opened the letter together.

Inside, it detailed how Imperial Concubine Wu had framed the Empress for poisoning.

There weren’t many words in the letter, but the accusations were written with undeniable clarity.