The entire Marquis's mansion regrets it? Too late, their little one has become the darling of t

Chapter 167 This little aunt is up to something!

The oldest among them, Tie Tou, spoke first.

“My name is Tietou, I’m ten years old, and I’m an orphan with no parents. I’ve always been stronger than other kids. Before, I helped people carry things at the docks. The adults could only carry two bags at a time, but I could carry three. But they took advantage of me because I was a kid and gave me less money than other kids. If I asked for money, they would beat me up, so I had to quit.”

He was still somewhat indignant when he said this.

Yu Ningyao was very satisfied with his keen insight.

She wanted to know more than just basic personal information; she also wanted to know what their special skills were.

Seeing Yu Ningyao's satisfied expression, Tie Tou's anxious heart calmed down a little.

He then pointed to the child who had opened the door earlier and continued his introduction.

"This is Grey Bean, nine years old."

Yu Ningyao was somewhat shocked when she heard this age.

Judging from Grey Bean's height, she thought he was at most six or seven years old.

I never imagined she was nine years old.

It seems that he is not growing tall because he is not getting enough to eat.

“Grey Bean saved me when I argued with those cargo ship owners. He was also an orphan. So we started begging together. Grey Bean has a very good memory. He remembers every street in the capital clearly, and he even knows exactly when the night watchmen change shifts. We were able to find this house this time thanks to his help.”

To prove that what he said was true, Gray Bean didn't say anything, picked up the half-burnt stick, and started drawing on the ground.

In a short while, the streets and alleys of the entire capital were clearly outlined, and even the dog hole at the back gate of the Shuntian Prefecture was clearly marked.

Yu Ningyao was pleasantly surprised.

Iron Head pointed to another little boy and continued, "This is Little Mudskipper, seven years old. He was resented for fighting with the beggars in the west of the city over food, so he joined us. He's slippery as a mudskipper. He's very good at escaping; those beggars in the west of the city have tried to catch him many times but haven't succeeded. He once jumped into the river to hide and held his breath for a long time. If he had gone to steal the buns that day, the shopkeeper definitely wouldn't have noticed."

Tie Tou realized he had done something wrong, his face turned red, he coughed twice, and he didn't know whether he should continue.

The little mudfish lowered its head, its fingers unconsciously rubbing the corner of its coarse cloth clothes, not daring to look at Yu Ningyao.

Yu Ningyao didn't say anything, but pointed to the little girl who had been cooking earlier and asked, "What about her? What's her name?"

Tie Tou quickly said, "This is A Luo, she's six years old. She was thrown into a basket shortly after she was born, and we found her. A Luo was raised by me and Hui Dou'er."

"A-Luo has a sweet tongue and is very endearing. When she goes out begging, she always manages to get some food. Although it's not much, it's enough for everyone to share. However, she's just a little girl, and she was targeted by kidnappers before, kidnapped, and almost lost her life. That's why we don't let her run around anymore. We let her stay and take care of Xiaoyueya."

Yu Ningyao's gaze fell on the last little girl, whose face was somewhat pale.

Seeing her looking at her younger sister, A-Luo smiled and explained, "She has a burn mark on her shoulder that looks like a crescent moon, so we named her Little Crescent Moon."

Yu Ningyao looked over, and Xiaoyueya gave a shy smile and hid behind her sister Aluo.

Tie Tou couldn't help but laugh as he continued, "Little Crescent Moon, she must be five years old. We rescued her when A Luo was kidnapped. She doesn't remember who her father and mother are, or even her own name, so she just lives with us. Little Crescent Moon knows wild herbs, and several times when we had fevers, she was the one who picked up herbs to save us."

Yu Ningyao was very satisfied after listening.

These children each have their own special talents, no wonder they were able to survive in the capital.

"Let's eat first. I'll assign you tasks after we finish eating."

The children eagerly picked up their chopsticks, but waited until Yu Ningyao took the first bite before starting to eat.

Little Crescent Moon started crying as she ate.

"Why are you crying?" Lu Lingguang was startled when he saw it.

Is it really that bad?

He took a few bites and thought it tasted pretty good.

"It's not bad." Little Crescent quickly shook her head.

"It's so delicious, it's like a dream. I can't believe I can actually eat such delicious food, live in such a beautiful house, and wear new clothes."

Xiaoyueya's choked voice brought tears to the eyes of several children.

Yu Ningyao also felt a little uneasy.

She picked up a piece of meat and put it in the small crescent-shaped bowl: "There will be many more good days like this in the future. As long as you behave and don't betray me, I promise you will live such good days every day."

"Yes. I will never betray you, Miss!" Little Crescent Moon nodded solemnly.

Several children also took the oath.

Yu Ningyao smiled with satisfaction.

After the meal, Yu Ningyao handed over the task to them.

Since Tie Tou was able to manage these children well, Yu Ningyao didn't plan to change the leader. She felt that he could definitely arrange things clearly for these children.

"I want you to keep a close eye on Inspector He Yunjin and Lady He Yunqing, wife of the Duke of Xingguo. Make a firm record of their whereabouts, and if possible, find out what they are doing and whether they have met in private. Don't miss any news related to the previous imperial examinations." Yu Ningyao passed on the order.

"Once this is done, I will ask the teacher to give you lessons."

"Tie Tou, you're in charge of coordinating this matter. Make the arrangements well, and I need to see the results as soon as possible."

“Yes, Miss.” Iron Head agreed without hesitation.

Yu Ningyao gave them another hundred taels of silver notes, telling them to use them as they saw fit.

Lu Lingguang, standing to the side, was terrified.

Imperial examination?

This young lady is up to something.

It's a huge deal.

While the children were washing dishes, Lu Lingguang pulled her aside, looking anxious:

"Young lady, what exactly are you trying to do? You dare to interfere in the imperial examinations? That's a death sentence!"

Yu Ningyao told her brother about failing the exam.

"I suspect that the Duchess of Xingguo held a grudge against our family, so she had her brother tamper with my brother's exam paper."

“But these are all just your guesses, there’s no evidence.” Lu Lingguang blurted out.

"I'm looking for evidence, aren't I?" Yu Ningyao glanced at him sideways.

Lu Lingguang: ...

"What if it's just that your brother didn't perform well and didn't pass the exam?"

“Impossible. My older brother wrote down all the answers on the exam paper from memory. I showed it to my father, and he said my brother’s level was high enough that he would definitely pass the exam,” Yu Ningyao retorted.

Fortunately, my older brother has a habit of writing down the answers from memory.

He finished the exam early, so he started memorizing his answers when he had free time.

After memorizing it, I wrote it down from memory when I got home.

While not exactly the same as the original answer, they are about 70-80% similar.

Upon hearing this, Lu Lingguang couldn't help but become suspicious as well.

"Could it be that Lady Xingguo and her group really did this?"

"But that's a major event in the imperial examinations. If they tamper with it, they'll lose their heads. How could they dare to do that?"

"You'll have to ask them for that," Yu Ningyao snorted, staring at him.

"You have to keep this a secret for me, otherwise I'll tell Master and make him train you every day until you're exhausted."

Lu Lingguang nodded hurriedly: "Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut."

After making a pinky promise, the two returned to the general's mansion together. Just before dusk, Yu Ningyao boarded her own carriage and went home.

No one knew what the two children were plotting behind the scenes.

Yu Ningyao originally didn't have much hope of keeping an eye on He Yunjin and his sister, after all, a whole month had passed between the end of the exam and the release of the results, and the two of them might have already been in touch.

Unexpectedly, five days later, Tie Tou and his children gave her a pleasant surprise.