Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty
Chapter 536 - 527: Is He a Hero?

Chapter 536: Chapter 527: Is He a Hero?

Chen Afu waited anxiously, but it wasn’t until the sixth day of the third lunar month that Jin Yanzi and Jin Bei returned. Along the way, she had pinched her left palm a few times in anxiety, cursing Jin Yanzi for being such a play-bird.

Finally, late in the afternoon on the seventh day of the third lunar month, Jin Yanzi returned with Jin Bei.

That afternoon, Marquis Chu had been summoned to the Imperial Palace, so the two little brothers and Yu’er were sent back to Bamboo Pavilion. On the way, the Third Lady abducted Yu’er to Minghe Residence.

Chen Afu sat in the corridor looking at accounts, while Chu Hanyan beside her was knitting a bracelet for Prince He. The two brothers, Qi Qi, Hui Hui, and Zhui Feng were all playing in the yard.

Suddenly, Qi Qi and Hui Hui excitedly flew to a bamboo pole in the yard. Because of Hui Hui’s weight, the bamboo pole was bent. Zhui Feng ran under the bamboo, looking up and barking loudly.

Chu Hanyan sniffed the air, stood up and laughed, "I can smell Jin Bao." After saying that, she ran toward the bamboo.

From the bamboo leaves came a chirping from Jin Yanzi, "Not fun, I was going to play hide and seek with you."

With that, a pair of birds flew out of the bamboo grove and landed on Chen Afu’s knee. It was indeed Jin Yanzi and Jin Bei.

Anxiously wanting to know about Chu Lingxuan’s situation, but with so many people around, Chen Afu couldn’t ask too directly. So she pointed at Jin Bei with a smile, "Is this a new friend Jin Bao brought back?"

Jin Yanzi nodded in affirmation.

Chen Afu then said to Chu Hanyan and the boys who had gathered around, "Look, Jin Bao has brought us another beautiful bird." She made a show of thinking and added, "This bird is indeed beautiful. Its feather dress is red, but with a hint of gold, let’s call it Golden Vermilion. We’ll go with Jin Bei for its nickname."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Yu and Ming each grabbed a bird with their quick hands, flipping the eyes of these two little birds white.

Chen Afu quickly admonished, "Boys, be gentle. Don’t hurt them."

After they had played for a while, Chen Afu stood up and went to her bedroom. Jin Yanzi quickly followed, flying in through a crack in the window to avoid the little hands.

Jin Yanzi clung to Chen Afu, chirping, "Mommy, you should thank me. If I didn’t intervene in time, Daddy Chu would have brought home another stepmother."

"What happened?" Chen Afu asked, standing up anxiously.

Jin Yanzi answered, "Don’t worry, mommy. Jin Bao and I intervened at just the right time... we were successful..." She then began singing a little ditty, "Beibei, Beibei, oh Beibei, Beibei... we fly together, leaping over the secular world, always together... we flew for four days, finally reaching the Southern Province... we fulfilled our mission, its beauty was not in vain..."

Watching Jin Yanzi in her silly little world, Chen Afu felt like pinching its little neck. However, she also didn’t dare to interrupt it, so she had to suppress her anger and listen.

After Jin Yanzi had finished a few verses of her self-invented ditty, she continued with the main story. Jin Yanzi and Jin Bei, playing and enjoying the beautiful spring scenery, finally arrived at Commander Chu’s main camp after four days. They learned that the rebellion had already ended. The second prince had committed suicide, the former king’s father-in-law had died of illness, the former king’s brother-in-law had also committed suicide, and the rest of the rebels were all captured. However, Chu Lingxuan had gone missing.

It turns out that the second prince had fled to the mountains with more than a thousand followers. Chu Lingxuan had taken a few thousand men to pursue them. Unfamiliar with the terrain, they could not find them. Consequently, Chu Lingxuan had asked the headman of a nearby village to guide them, and the headman’s daughter, Yu Paying, took the lead.

With her guidance, they quickly found the second prince’s hiding place. However, during the attack, Chu Lingxuan was injured while protecting Yu Paying. Despite his injury, he continued to command the battle. Seeing that their situation was hopeless, the second prince committed suicide, leaving the remaining rebels leaderless. Those who didn’t flee either surrendered.

The battle was over, but Chu Lingxuan and Yu Paying had both disappeared.

Upon hearing of his nephew’s disappearance, Commander Chu was immensely worried. He ordered people to search for Chu Lingxuan and requested an audience with the headman. However, the headman wasn’t worried and reassured him that his daughter knew the mountains well and would eventually return home. He even laughed, remarking, "The women of our clan love heroes. By the time they return home, it will not be just two persons, but three."

Hearing the headman’s words, Commander Chu became even more frightened. Aware of his wife’s disposition and that his nephew also feared her, he knew he would have trouble explaining the situation at home if something happened. He dispatched more people to search the mountains, determined to find the missing persons before anything happened.

Upon hearing this, Jin Yanzi also became nervous. She worried that if her little mischief caused Daddy Chu to bring home another wife, mommy would definitely be furious. So, she quickly took Jin Bei into the mountain to search.

Having spent quite some time with Daddy Chu, she naturally recognized his scent. Before long, she found Daddy Chu in a cave in the mountains.

At that point, Jin Yanzi couldn’t resist adding suspense, batting her little green eyes at Chen Afu, "Mommy, do you know what I saw?"

Chen Afu nervously questioned, "What did you see?"

Jin Yanzi’s face turned a little red, and she chirped, "Not suitable for children!"

Chen Afu asked sternly, "Are you saying that they... they had a relationship?"

"Mmm hmm," Jin Yanzi affirmed, nodding her little head. Seeing Chen Afu stand up abruptly, she quickly added, "Don’t worry, Mommy, it wasn’t Daddy Chu’s fault. The woman forced herself onto him. But just at the critical moment, Super Invincible Jin Yanzi stepped in!"

Chen Afu was so angry that she flicked Jin Yanzi’s head and scolded, "You are frustrating me to death. Can you say it quickly, only the important facts."

Jin Yanzi then started telling her story. The cave was deep and large, with torches lit inside. Daddy Chu was tied to a large stone, his upper body bare, one of his legs injured. Despite being bandaged, the bandage was soaked with blood, with fresh blood still seeping out, perhaps due to his agitation.

A beautiful woman in strange attire was touching Daddy Chu, occasionally kissing his face and chirping incessantly. Jin Yanzi explained, "I didn’t understand what she was saying. I guess she was trying to seduce him..." but then made a face and added, "That girl is kind of... but she is indeed attractive. However, Daddy Chu didn’t like her and was particularly disgusted by her. He explained that he was already married with children and that he loved his wife dearly and would never betray her... When his pleas had no effect, he started accusing her of being shameless. He stated that if she dared to do anything immoral, he would kill her as soon as he was free."

Thinking of Chu Lingxuan’s bleeding leg, Chen Afu was heartbroken and inquired anxiously, "Then why didn’t you save him immediately?"

Jin Yanzi answered, "Why should I save him immediately? I wanted to see if Daddy Chu would betray Mommy, if he could resist the allure of a beautiful woman, if he could withstand the physical pain to remain chaste and prove himself a real hero ..."

Chen Afu was furious. She gritted her teeth and asked, "So how did it end? When did you intervene?"