Chapter 76: Would You Believe Me If I Said I Was Struck by Lightning?

The silver-haired man said hurriedly, "I’m sorry, I’ve got the wrong place." He turned to leave.

Then he looked at the house number next to him, his brow furrowing slightly. "That’s not right! The letter says it’s this house!" Then, he returned.

"Excuse me, young lady," he asked, "do you happen to know someone named Ji Youzhi?"

Looking for Seventh Brother?

Wang Dongxue looked at the two men. She felt as if she had heard about this silver-haired man before, but she had been rather forgetful lately and couldn’t quite recall it at that moment.

"He’s our family’s Seventh Uncle! May I ask who you are? And why are you looking for him?"

Hearing Wang Dongxue’s words, the silver-haired man couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. He clasped his hands and said, "I am Feng Wushang."

Feng Wushang?

"It’s the National Master! Sir, please come in." Wang Dongxue was surprised and quickly invited him in. "Our Seventh Uncle and his eldest brother have gone out on business. I’m not sure when they will return."

The National Master remained silent upon hearing this, but the young man accompanying him spoke up.

"Regarding the case Youzhi is handling, I wonder how far along it is? Has he found any trace of where those children are?"

Upon hearing that, Wang Dongxue gently shook her head. "I am just a woman of the household; I wouldn’t know about such matters."

Although they had stated their identities, Wang Dongxue couldn’t simply trust them based on a name alone without further confirmation.

No! Actually, there was also the proof of his legendary silver hair.

"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH... Sister-in-law, Mother is alone with Suisui. I’m worried she’ll overtire herself. Could you go help look after them?" Ji Youran’s voice suddenly came from the bed.

Wang Dongxue had stayed behind precisely to take care of Ji Youran and Xiaosuisui.

Normally, when a man was ill, his own wife should be the one to take care of him. But the relationship between Huo Xing’Er and Ji Youran was, to put it mildly, complicated. Moreover, the task Ji Youyuan and the others were undertaking critically required Huo Xing’Er’s assistance. That was why she had remained.

"Okay!" Realizing that Ji Youran had deliberately sent her away, Wang Dongxue was now about eighty percent convinced of the National Master’s identity. Then she left.

As soon as Wang Dongxue left, Ji Youran, who was on the bed, began to speak.

"Greetings, Your Majesty. Please forgive my rudeness, commoner that I am."

The National Master and the young man were both quite surprised. They swiftly turned their gaze to the bed. All they could see was a white, lumpy form; their mouths couldn’t help but twitch.

"Who... who are you? Which one of the Ji family’s seven brothers are you?"

If there was one thing the Ji family didn’t lack, it was sons. Old Madam Ji had given birth to a child almost every year, totaling eight children. If General Ji hadn’t passed away so suddenly, it’s estimated she might have had another seven or eight.

Ji Youran lay in bed, unable to move.

He cursed inwardly. To be seen in such a pathetic state by the two most powerful men in the land—he was truly down on his luck.

"I am Ji Youran, the second son of the Ji family, and Ji Youzhi’s second elder brother."

"Ji Youran, what happened to you? Were you beaten by Old Madam Ji?"

The Emperor was extremely surprised. He knew Ji Youran. Previously, when there was a poisoning incident in the Imperial Palace, it was Ji Youzhi who had rushed him all the way from the Medicine King Residence to the palace. Ji Youzhi had dragged him, the young Emperor, back from the gates of King Yama Palace.

"Your Majesty! If I said these injuries were from being struck by lightning, would you believe me?"

"Struck by lightning?" The Emperor was dumbfounded.

The National Master, also very intrigued, asked, "What heinous thing did you do to incur the wrath of heavens and men, to be struck by lightning and end up like *this*?"

The Emperor also chimed in, "Exactly, what did you do to get struck by lightning? If you hadn’t said so, I would’ve thought Old Madam Ji had beaten you again!"

Youzhi had often told him things about the Ji family, so the Emperor was also aware of Ji Youran’s notorious ill luck. It was said that because of this, Ji Youran constantly bemoaned his fate, questioning why he was born so unlucky. Old Madam Ji believed he was blaming her for not giving birth to him at an auspicious hour. Thus, she would occasionally give him some "special attention," sometimes even beating him until he was half-paralyzed.