Just as expected, Old Madam Lu grew even more furious at her words. "What are you all standing around for?" she roared. "Throw them out immediately!"

How could the servants dare to hesitate upon hearing this? They immediately swarmed forward.

Aunt Wang tried to argue, but the moment she opened her mouth, a rag was stuffed inside it.

Soon, Aunt Wang and her son were tied up and thrown out of the Duke Dingguo Mansion.

Seeing this, the man hurried after them. "Shuya! They may not want you and our son, but I do! Lu Xuan is my flesh and blood..."

Old Madam Lu clutched her chest, gasping for breath from fury. "Those scoundrels..."

"Mother, you must take care of yourself," Lady Lou said, rushing to support her. "Let me help you back to your chambers to rest."

Old Madam Lu nodded.

"Jun’er, come quickly and help me support your grandmother," Lady Lou called out.

Lu Jun gave Chen Jiu a thoughtful glance but said nothing. He stepped forward to help support Old Madam Lu as they headed toward Fushou Hall.

"Brother, what a mess..." Lu Jingsi sighed. "For something like this to happen, I’m afraid the Lu Family will become the laughingstock of the entire Capital City." With that, he shook his head and walked away, though inwardly he was reveling in their misfortune.

’Ever since we were children, my brother has been better than me at everything, a man with almost no weaknesses. Who’d have thought he’d see such a humiliating day—the son he acknowledged was another man’s spawn!’

’It’s absolutely hilarious!’

No one noticed Lu Zhenbei quietly let out a sigh of relief.

He turned to Lady Wei and stammered, "W-Wife..."

Lady Wei shot him a glance and asked coolly, "Lu Xuan... Is he really not your son?"

Hearing this, Lu Zhenbei hesitated. "After the incident back then, I returned to the Capital City. But a month later, I received a letter from Lady Wang. She said she was carrying my child..."

Lady Wei frowned. "You concluded the child was yours based on a single letter?"

"I had my doubts and even sent people to investigate," Lu Zhenbei said in a low voice. "But Lady Wang hadn’t been with any other man besides me, and the month of the child’s birth lined up."

"So, you’re saying Lu Xuan could actually be your son? Then that man from before..." As Lady Wei spoke, something seemed to click, and she turned her head to look at Chen Jiu.

Chen Jiu, holding the bowl, was just about to slip away unnoticed.

Zhi Wan also wanted to make a getaway. She hadn’t expected the person her cousin hired to be so formidable, using a simple blood paternity test to make Old Madam Lu throw Aunt Wang and her son out.

Since she knew the truth, she didn’t want to stay, lest her aunt and uncle question her later and she let the secret slip.

"Wan’er, Chen Jiu, stop right there!" Just then, Lady Wei suddenly called out to them.

Zhi Wan paused, then slowly turned around. "Aunt."

Chen Jiu also turned back sheepishly. "Does the Madam have any further instructions?"

Lady Wei’s gaze fell on Zhi Wan first. "Are you hiding something from me?" she asked, her brow furrowed.

Zhi Wan quickly waved her hands. "Of course not."

"Then why were you running off?" Lady Wei asked suspiciously.

Zhi Wan replied calmly, "The sun is too strong. I just wanted to go back and rest." As she spoke, she deliberately cradled her right hand.

Sure enough, Lady Wei remembered the injury on her hand. Her suspicions vanished, and she said hurriedly, "Then you should hurry back and get some rest."

"Yes," Zhi Wan replied. Seeing her aunt’s gaze shift to Chen Jiu, she didn’t rush to leave.

"That man from before, did you find him?" Lady Wei asked Chen Jiu.

A flicker crossed Chen Jiu’s eyes, and he mumbled, "It wasn’t me. It was the Princely Heir."

"Jinzhi?" Lady Wei was taken aback.

Chen Jiu reported, "This subordinate informed the Princely Heir that you and the Miss had been bullied. The Princely Heir was very distressed and very angry." As he spoke, he surreptitiously glanced at the Duke’s expression. "Of course, the Princely Heir was delighted at the prospect of suddenly having a younger brother. He just never expected that Young Master Lu Xuan would harbor such malicious intent, carrying a dagger to try and kill you, Madam, and even biting the Miss. The Princely Heir is far away in Jiangning and was frantic when he heard, but he’s tied up with official duties and cannot return for the time being. To prevent another such disaster, his only option was to have Aunt Wang and her son expelled first."

Hearing this, Lady Wei was deeply moved.

’I never would have thought my son, who usually seems so cold and indifferent, would care so much about me and Wan’er.’

’All my love for him hasn’t been in vain.’

The corners of her lips curved up slightly, but when she saw Lu Zhenbei standing beside her, she quickly suppressed her smile. Clearing her throat, she said coolly, "Jinzhi did what he did to seek justice for Wan’er and me. If you’re not satisfied, you can take it up with me."

Lu Zhenbei sighed. "How could I possibly blame Jinzhi? What he did today... was handled well."

"You don’t blame him?" Lady Wei asked in surprise.

"Why would I blame him?" Lu Zhenbei said. "He was only seeking justice for you and Wan’er. He did the right thing."

Upon hearing this, Lady Wei’s expression softened slightly. She reminded him, "But Lu Xuan... he really is your son. Are you truly not angry that Jinzhi had them thrown out?"

Lu Zhenbei’s expression darkened. "I never planned on letting them move into the Duke Dingguo Mansion anyway." ’If Lady Wang hadn’t caused a scene at the Inspectorate and alerted the Emperor, I never would have let them come here to be an eyesore for Minghui.’

After a pause, he added, "Also, I want to reinvestigate what happened back then."

Lady Wei was stunned for a moment but said nothing.

At this, Chen Jiu couldn’t help but interject. "Duke, while today’s events were indeed arranged by the Princely Heir, it’s very likely that Young Master Lu Xuan is not your son. Tong Da should be able to return with the truth later."

Lu Zhenbei paused. Recalling Aunt Wang’s unusually frantic reaction during the blood paternity test, he asked, "Is Tong Da the man from a moment ago? Is he also one of Jinzhi’s men?"

"Yes," Chen Jiu confirmed with a nod.

"I see. You are dismissed," Lu Zhenbei said with a nod.

Seeing Chen Jiu leave, Zhi Wan also made a quick exit.

Once she was out of her aunt and uncle’s sight, Zhi Wan called out to Chen Jiu.

Chen Jiu looked at her, confused. "Does the Miss have any other instructions?"

"What did you add to the water?" Zhi Wan asked curiously, looking at the bowl in his hand.

"Alum," Chen Jiu replied. "The Princely Heir taught me." As he spoke, his face filled with pride.

’His Princely Heir was truly brilliant. Even from a thousand miles away, he had effortlessly gotten rid of those two pests.’

Zhi Wan’s eyes widened in realization. "No wonder the blood merged so quickly."

The people of this era used the blood-merging method for paternity tests and were firm believers in it. As long as two drops of blood merged, it was considered proof of a father-son relationship.

That was why Aunt Wang and her son had been unable to defend themselves today.

Even Old Madam Lu, who had initially been so kind to them, had immediately changed her tune and demanded their expulsion.

’My cousin’s method is as ruthless as it is effective.’

’Still, my cousin probably would have tolerated having Lu Xuan as a half-brother. But because Lu Xuan hurt Aunt and me, he took action to punish them.’

’Even if Lu Xuan really was Uncle’s son, after this, he could forget about ever returning. No matter how much of a scene Aunt Wang caused, it would be useless, since Uncle wouldn’t be on their side.’

’Aunt Wang had schemed endlessly to get into the Duke Dingguo Mansion, only to be driven out and left with nothing.’

Zhi Wan found it all very satisfying.

Remembering something, she suddenly asked, "Oh, right, Ah Jiu, yesterday at Qingyin Pavilion, why did you set Dongxiang up?"