Chapter 163 - 161: She Never Fights a Battle She Can’t Win (Second Update)

Chapter 163: Chapter 161: She Never Fights a Battle She Can’t Win (Second Update)

Xu Jing paused slightly and could only turn her head to look at Zhao Shaohua, who was walking over.

She saw that after the recent escape for her life, her hair was in a messy bun, and her exposed skin was covered in patches of black and gray, looking quite disheveled.

But her eyes were bright, filled with the joy of surviving a catastrophe, and she said, "You got involved because of me, and if anything happened to you, I wouldn’t know what to do. The Song family’s carriage is over there, Doctor Xu, come with me for a wash and tidy up."

Xu Jing knew that her current appearance was probably no better than Zhao Shaohua’s. Although she was somewhat worried about Xiao Yi, she knew that rushing over like this would only draw criticism, so she nodded and followed Zhao Shaohua onto the Song family’s carriage.

It was clear that the people around the carriage were all from the Song Family and Zhao Family. Seeing Zhao Shaohua, they couldn’t hide their excitement and lingering fear. Zhao Shaohua said a few words to them and then pulled Xu Jing onto the carriage, asking her maid to tidy Xu Jing’s messy hair.

She sat on the other side of Xu Jing, sighed softly, and said, "It’s finally over. I’ve already handed Mrs. Yu over to her husband."

Xu Jing couldn’t help but glance at her. As if knowing what Xu Jing was thinking, Zhao Shaohua let out a bitter laugh and said, "After all, Mrs. Yu’s husband is her legitimate family. I have no reason to keep Mrs. Yu from them.

Nanny Zhou already explained to us that the thing Mrs. Yu fed us was never poison but merely to intimidate us. We who were captured suffered no injuries, and as for Zhen’s case... there are indeed hidden reasons. As long as we don’t press charges against Mrs. Yu for kidnapping us, and considering the fire has nothing to do with her, the Wang Family shouldn’t excessively blame her.

However, whether Mrs. Yu can stay peacefully in the Wang Family afterward is another matter."

She had already made up her mind to join forces with the Zhao and Song families to support Mrs. Yu.

Nevertheless, the tragedy of Zhen was also partly the Wang Family’s responsibility. Previously, Mrs. Yu could turn a blind eye for her husband and son, but after what happened to Zhen, Zhao Shaohua believed it was impossible for Mrs. Yu to stay with the Wang Family any longer.

After finishing, she looked at Xu Jing and asked, "By the way, Yanci... did Vice Minister Xiao find the real murderer of Zhen?"

She had seen Xu Jing coming out of the room where Xiao Yi was interrogating others and hadn’t thought much of it, just assuming Xu Jing was assisting Xiao Yi with the autopsy and that Xiao Yi kept her in the inquiry room for another purpose.

Xu Jing nodded, knowing that after Xiao Yi returned, he would compile everything into a dossier and submit it.

They would certainly learn the truth; it was only a matter of time.

She omitted the fact that Wang Wuniang had once had an abortion and told Zhao Shaohua everything else.

Zhao Shaohua’s chest heaved as she listened. When she heard that Ma Ming hadn’t escaped and was likely engulfed in flames, she gritted her teeth with eyes full of tears, "He got off too easily! Committing such atrocities, he deserved to be torn apart by five horses, to be executed by slow slicing!

I always knew, Zhen wasn’t the kind of woman they said she was, how dare they, how dare they so insult Zhen..."

She hated Ma Ming, hated those who maliciously speculated about Zhen, but what she hated the most... was herself...

To think she called herself Zhen’s intimate friend, she hadn’t even known about the inhuman suffering Zhen had endured.

Xu Jing remained silent.

Even if Wang Wuniang didn’t struggle, it wasn’t her fault. When life cannot be preserved, what is purity? The fault lies with the fiends who humiliated her.

Yet, the world is too harsh on women. Even in modern times, people obsess over the so-called perfect victim, let alone in ancient times when survival for a woman was fraught with peril.

Wang Wuniang’s tragedy was the fault of the criminals, the fault of those who criticized her, and how could it not be the fault of this society?

After calming herself a bit, Zhao Shaohua suddenly took Xu Jing’s hand and said solemnly, "Doctor Xu, uncovering the truth about Zhen’s murder involved much effort from you, and I don’t know how to thank you... Is there anything you want? I want to show my gratitude properly."

From the moment she realized she had dragged Xu Jing into this peril, Zhao Shaohua had intended to compensate her.

She hadn’t expected that Xu Jing would help them so much in their quest for the truth, and this compounded feeling of guilt and gratitude left Zhao Shaohua unsure of how to express her feelings, so she simply asked Xu Jing directly.

Xu Jing was slightly taken aback, looking at Zhao Shaohua’s eager eyes. After a moment of silence, she said, "There’s nothing I want, but... I hope Young Madam Zhao can help a friend of mine."

Xu Jing almost immediately realized that this was the perfect opportunity to ask Zhao Shaohua for help reopening Tianyi Hall’s branch in the Western Capital.

Initially, Xu Jing hesitated, wondering if it was too soon to bring up this matter, given that her acquaintance with Zhao Shaohua wasn’t very deep. However, a perilous situation often accelerates the bonding between people. Xu Jing could see that after the past day and night, Zhao Shaohua trusted her more, and in turn, Xu Jing had gained a better understanding of Zhao Shaohua’s character.

From the way she cared so deeply for her friends, unwilling to abandon Xu Jing and Xiao Yi in danger, it was evident that she was a loyal and trustworthy woman.

Most importantly, she had the support of the Zhao and Song families; neither of which was insignificant.

Zhao Shaohua was momentarily stunned, then nodded, "Of course, you can say it, if it’s within my ability, I will surely help."

"Young Madam Zhao probably knows, I’ve been staying at a friend’s house lately. My friend’s surname is Zhou. Like me, their family runs a clinic in Anping County, but it’s a legacy from their ancestors, far larger in scale than my Xinglin Hall. Originally, they had a branch in the Western Capital, but three years ago, when my friend’s father passed away, the family experienced a tumult, and his elder brother had to close the Western Capital branch for safety."

As Xu Jing spoke, she quietly observed Zhao Shaohua’s expression, "Over these years, my friend’s elder brother has been striving to restore the clinic’s former scale. Naturally, they also want to reopen the branch in the Western Capital, but it turns out, it’s not that simple..."

Zhao Shaohua naturally caught the implication in Xu Jing’s words. To be honest, supporting a clinic to open a branch in the Western Capital was merely a matter of asking around for her. She owned many businesses and wasn’t clueless about such matters. However, despite the simplicity, she still needed to ask some questions first.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhao Shaohua asked, "Why isn’t it simple? The Western Capital is just a part of Great Chu’s land. There shouldn’t be much restriction for outsiders coming to do business here."

Xu Jing knew this wouldn’t be straightforward, so she feigned a wry smile, "To tell you the truth, among the top clinics in Anping County, it was not just my friend’s clinic. My friend’s clinic is called Tianyi Hall, and there’s another local clinic called Guangming Hall, which has always been their competitor. Three years ago, when my friend’s clinic had to scale back due to the upheaval, Guangming Hall took the opportunity to develop rapidly, and now both in strength and scale, they surpass Tianyi Hall.

Knowing that Tianyi Hall wants to reopen a branch in the Western Capital, naturally, Guangming Hall... My friend said that Guangming Hall found a backer in the Western Capital, and fearing that backer, Tianyi Hall hasn’t dared to reopen the branch there."

Zhao Shaohua’s eyes flickered, "Who is their backer?"

Xu Jing calmly replied, "I heard it’s the Jiang Family."

Xu Jing knew that she was taking a gamble, but she never played a game she wasn’t sure of winning.

Zhou Qi hadn’t explicitly said how Guangming Hall was suppressing them, but Xu Jing wagered that the suppression wasn’t the Jiang Family’s intention, and Guangming Hall was merely acting under the guise of its relationship with the Jiang Family.

After all, a prestigious family like the Jiang Family had no need to target a small Tianyi Hall. While they certainly had their reasons for supporting Guangming Hall, there was no obvious necessity on the surface to connect supporting Guangming Hall with suppressing Tianyi Hall.

Unless Zhou Qi was hiding something from her, or Tianyi Hall, unknowingly, had offended the Jiang Family.

As long as the suppression of Tianyi Hall wasn’t directly from the Jiang Family, and since it didn’t involve Zhao Shaohua or the Jiang Family’s interests, dealing with a pretentious Guangming Hall wouldn’t even require the Zhao and Song families to step in. Zhao Shaohua alone would suffice!