Wan Shi’s face changed color, and the next moment, she said calmly, “Sister is wrong again. Back then, it was your own weak constitution that couldn’t sustain the pregnancy, and it had nothing to do with me!”

Lin Shi suddenly pointed at her and shouted sternly, “It was you! Although the physician didn’t find anything in that bowl of lotus seed soup, I know it must have been you who tampered with it. Otherwise, how could I have miscarried right after eating the lotus seed soup!” Her voice trembled as she continued, “I will never… never forget the feeling when the child left me. Jichun said… that child had already formed, with hands and feet, and when it came out, he… was even still alive! If I could, I would rather give up everything just to keep this child! From then on, every ninth day of the first lunar month, I hold a memorial service for him, and this year is no exception.”

Jichun said from the side, “Reporting to Second Madam, Madam began the memorial service for the young master from the second watch and didn’t finish until the fourth watch. Miss Wu was with Madam the entire time.”

Yunyi sighed inwardly. She had happened to encounter Lin Shi carrying candles and paper money to memorialize the child, and had been called over by her, which was why she hadn’t been able to pursue them out of the manor. However, she hadn’t known that there was such deep resentment between Wan Shi and Lin Shi.

Wan Shi sighed, “I never thought that after all these years, you still haven’t gotten past your fixation. Ever since you entered the manor, I’ve always treated you like a real sister. How could I harm you? On the contrary, ever since your miscarriage, you’ve opposed me at every turn, treating me as your sworn enemy. Do you know how heartbroken I am every time I see you like this?!”

“Heartbroken?” Lin Shi sneered, “I’m afraid you’ll only truly understand what heartbreak feels like when something happens to Fifth Young Master!”

Her words made Wan Shi’s face suddenly darken, and she said in a stern voice, “Don’t you dare act recklessly!”

“Don’t worry, I definitely won’t act recklessly, at least not now. As for Meixue, I don’t care what reasons you have, but you’d better not trouble her again, or don’t blame me for being impolite!” With that, she left with Yunyi in a huff, completely ignoring Wan Shi’s extremely ugly expression.

It wasn’t until they had left Yuxiu Pavilion for quite a while that Lin Shi finally stopped. Her body was still trembling slightly. After Jichun helped her sit down on a stone bench nearby, Yunyi said softly, “Actually, the matter with Chunxiu is already over. Third Madam doesn’t need to say those things anymore, lest you make yourself sad.”

Lin Shi tried to calm her emotions and shook her head, “I’ve been holding these words in my heart for a long time. It’s good to say them out now. Wan Shi…” She clenched her fists and said coldly, “As long as I’m alive, I will never let this matter rest with her.”

Yunyi probed, “Did Second Madam… really do such a thing?”

Lin Shi remained silent with narrowed eyes, and Jichun answered for her, “At that time, Madam and Fourth Madam were pregnant at almost the same time. Madam was slightly further along – by New Year’s, she was already about five months pregnant. Although her constitution was somewhat weak, the physician took careful care of her, and Madam herself was cautious, so there were no major problems. Later, Second Madam, who was quite close to Madam at the time, sent over a bowl of lotus seed soup. Master didn’t suspect anything and drank it, but that very night she experienced unbearable abdominal pain. By the time the physician arrived, Madam was already bleeding. Although the physician tried everything, he couldn’t save the child… the child was just gone.” She sighed and continued, “Only Second Madam had sent lotus seed soup that day, so it must have been Second Madam without question. Unfortunately, the physician couldn’t find any problems with the lotus seed soup, and Second Madam was skilled at playing the victim in front of the Governor and First Madam, so the matter was ultimately dropped.”

“So that year, only Fourth Madam gave birth to a child?” When Yunyi was in the palace, she had seen plenty of scheming and intrigue among the concubines, but she hadn’t known that the women in these deep courtyards were no less ruthless.

Jichun shook her head, “No, a month later, Fourth Madam also miscarried. Neither of them made it to full term. Later, a servant girl gave birth to a daughter.”

Lin Shi gritted her teeth, “I blame myself for being too naive, believing Wan Shi’s sweet words and being completely unguarded against her, which is how I fell into her trap.”

Yunyi didn’t know how to comfort her and only said, “The past is past. Don’t be too sad. Everything will gradually get better.”

Lin Shi looked at her for a moment, then suddenly smiled, “You’re really quite silly. Although I asked you not to tell anyone what happened, you can’t just let others misunderstand you as a murderer. In that situation, would I have blamed you?”

Yunyi smiled slightly, “They were only suspicious at the time, so I didn’t say anything. If it had really come to the point of execution, then Meixue would have had to apologize to Third Madam.”

Lin Shi’s gaze was gentle as she said, “You’ve already done more than enough for me.” She then stood up and faced the winter sun scattered across the sky, sighing, “Who would have thought that a wealthy family’s daughter would break her word and abandon her commitments, while a small dancer would keep her promises and never betray or abandon.”

Yunyi looked down without speaking. After a while, Lin Shi said, “After today’s events, Wan Shi probably won’t openly move against you anymore. However, this person is sinister and cunning, most skilled at striking from the shadows. Be careful yourself, and if anything seems wrong, you can always come to me.”

“Meixue will remember. Thank you for Third Madam’s kindness.” After Lin Shi left, she also headed to the music hall. That night, Steward Lin sent down word that, following orders from above, Yunyi and Jiang Caiping were each to be docked three months’ wages. Upon hearing this, Jiang Caiping immediately became anxious. Just the day before her return, her father had accidentally broken his leg and couldn’t go out to work, and they needed to hire a physician and buy medicine. The family was desperately counting on her to bring money home, but now three months’ wages were suddenly docked – it was truly a matter of life and death.

Knowing Jiang Caiping’s situation, Yunyi took out half a string of coins from under her pillow, “I still have some money here. Take it first.”

Jiang Caiping shook her head repeatedly, “No, how can I take sister’s money?”

“Since you call me sister, don’t be so formal. At most, when you get your next wages, you can slowly pay me back. I don’t need much money in the manor anyway.” Seeing her say this, Jiang Caiping gratefully accepted it, then said angrily, “What ‘from above’ – it’s obviously Second Madam! She can’t stand to see us doing well, so she’s using this as an excuse to punish us. She’s really petty.”

Just as Yunyi was about to speak, there was a knock at the door. When she opened it, it was actually Jichun. After entering the room, Jichun took out two strings of coins from her sleeve, “Madam knows you’ve been docked three months’ wages, so she specially asked me to bring these as your wages. She’ll also send them on time for the next two months.”

Yunyi was surprised and quickly said, “How can this be proper? Please ask Miss Jichun to take this money back. Caiping and I cannot accept it.”