Qin Shuying took the sedan chair back to Yilan Garden. Upon entering the room, Hong Juan had already summoned a physician who was waiting. The physician examined her injuries, prescribed medicine, and left behind a medicinal salve.
Nanny Fu carefully applied medicine to Qin Shuying’s wounds, tears streaming down uncontrollably: “Miss, why did you have to really injure yourself!”
Qin Shuying endured the pain in silence. Without real injuries, how could she get past the old madam’s scrutiny? Even when lying, it needed to be seventy percent believable. Being careful was never wrong.
The old madam’s lack of any statement about this matter was actually a statement in itself. The old madam still had affection for her after all, which was why she didn’t scold her.
But the old madam was also angry – angry that despite seeing through Xu Shi’s scheme, she hadn’t stopped it but instead added fuel to the fire.
Because ultimately, it was the Qin mansion that lost face. The old madam had always valued family reputation and conduct, so this incident was definitely a heavy blow to her.
Qin Shuying would never retreat.
The old madam should also see clearly that even if she yielded, it wouldn’t make Xu Shi stop. It was time to let the old madam know that if Xu Shi wasn’t made to stop, after one such incident in the Qin mansion, there would be a second.
The root of the Qin mansion’s reputation and conduct problems wasn’t with her, but with Xu Shi.
Qin Fangfang claimed she had been pushed in by Qin Shuying, but Xu Shi didn’t dare let her speak these words, threatening her life to make Qin Fangfang swallow her anger and keep quiet.
Xu Shi didn’t dare let her speak this way because she knew Qin Shuying had a loose tongue. If Qin Fangfang dared to complain to the old madam like this, Qin Shuying had ways to make people suspect Qin Yunyun instead.
Xu Shi herself didn’t matter, but she couldn’t let her daughter get implicated.
Moreover, Qin Shuying had actually dared to personally push Qin Fangfang in – such fierce behavior had truly frightened Xu Shi.
In Yilan Garden.
After a long while, Qin Shuying said: “Others hold the knife while I am the fish on the cutting board – once is enough for such days.”
Nanny Fu’s heart ached terribly. Wiping her tears, she said: “Yes, Miss.”
Nanny Fu thought Qin Shuying was referring to the past, but Qin Shuying meant her previous life.
Over the next few days, servants from Duke Chu’s mansion came to the Qin mansion several times. The old madam used the excuse of vegetarian fasting and Buddhist prayers to avoid seeing them even once – it was all handled by Xu Shi.
Apart from such matters, the old madam was quite angry, but she had always been someone who valued face. Feeling too ashamed to see people, she simply avoided meeting anyone.
Xu Shi pushed all the blame onto Sun Qingping. With no direct evidence proving this was Xu Shi’s handiwork, the old madam simply refused to see Xu Shi or Qin Fangfang.
The old madam wanted to confine Xu Shi to her quarters, but this incident had caused such a commotion that everyone in the capital knew about it. If she confined Xu Shi now, wouldn’t that clearly indicate that this affair was arranged by Xu Shi?
After all, she was Concubine Lian’s mother and the Sixth Prince’s paternal grandmother.
Now that the Sixth Prince had gained the Emperor’s favor, the old madam would never drag down the Sixth Prince at this time.
Although the noble ladies had probably already guessed the truth, others speculating was one thing, while actively admitting it was another matter entirely.
As long as the fig leaf wasn’t torn away, Xu Shi remained that charitable good person.
In Yilan Garden, in the study.
Ziteng entered and, seeing Qin Shuying put down her brush, said: “Miss, Nanny Mi has arrived.”
“Let Nanny Mi come in.”
Mi Luo walked in, standing beyond the desk, her voice very low: “Miss, I’ve arranged everything you mentioned.”
Ziteng’s brow twitched slightly. For several months now, Miss had been planning something, always having Nanny Mi handle it personally, sometimes taking her along as well. After several negotiations, she naturally noticed some issues but didn’t know what exactly Miss was trying to do.
Since Miss couldn’t go out often, Mi Luo reported back each time. Whenever Nanny Mi came to report, Miss always had her listen alongside, and though she found it strange, since Miss didn’t explain, she naturally couldn’t ask.
Qin Shuying took the account book Mi Luo handed over, examined it carefully, then selected several items to explain in detail to Mi Luo. Mi Luo nodded continuously while once again suppressing the turbulent waves in her heart.
Many of these personal connections had been accumulated by Qin Yaoyao previously. From later developments, Lu Changxuan still didn’t know about these matters, otherwise how could he possibly leave them unused? But how did Seventh Miss know?
Qin Shuying slightly raised her head to look at Mi Luo, her eyes clear and bright, her smile barely perceptible. Though seemingly gentle as a spring breeze, it made one feel as if standing at the edge of an icy abyss.
Mi Luo was startled and quickly lowered her head, suppressing the strange thoughts in her heart, not daring to ask or think.
Having served Miss for several months, she naturally understood that Miss and the first branch were mortal enemies. Though she didn’t know why this was so, and it was indeed difficult for ordinary people to understand – after all, Seventh Miss’s closest relatives now, apart from the old madam, were the first branch. Anyone else wouldn’t tear apart relationships like this.
After Qin Yaoyao’s incident, before Mi Luo was sold off, she had managed to see Qin Yaoyao twice. Qin Yaoyao told her the truth of the matter, so she knew that Qin Yaoyao had been killed by Xu Shi and Qin Feifei.
Whether it was Seventh Miss or Second Miss, both were mortal enemies with Xu Shi. Therefore, she unhesitatingly stood on Qin Shuying’s side, never daring to be perfunctory or careless with the tasks assigned to her.
Seeing that she had composed herself, Qin Shuying continued discussing business matters with her. After finishing, Mi Luo left, and Qin Shuying had Ziteng leave as well, closing her eyes and lying quietly alone.
Her revenge plan couldn’t proceed without business, and without trustworthy and useful people, business couldn’t continue. Mi Luo was someone she could trust, but Mi Luo would definitely have suspicions about her behavior. However, Mi Luo was a smart person and trustworthy.
If Mi Luo couldn’t be trusted, in the several months between Qin Yaoyao’s incident and death until she found Mi Luo, Mi Luo could have completely aligned herself with Lu Changxuan, telling him about the businesses Qin Yaoyao had that weren’t yet public, thereby gaining Lu Changxuan’s trust. That way, Mi Luo’s family wouldn’t have been scattered and sold off.
Many of the people she had cultivated back then had aligned themselves with Lu Changxuan. What remained were only Mi Luo and Nanny Fu’s family, as well as…
Qin Shuying opened her eyes, took up her brush, and wrote a line on paper, then signed her name.
After the ink dried, she personally sealed it in an envelope, then continued reading.
Although she held deep-rooted thoughts about wives obeying their husbands, ever since discovering the affair between Qin Feifei and Lu Changxuan, Qin Yaoyao had instinctively developed resistance toward Lu Changxuan.
By then she had been showing her face publicly for six years, had contacted all sorts of people, witnessed much human warmth and coldness, and was no longer the sheltered young woman kept in the inner chambers. With her beloved son, she naturally had to plan for his future.
So she became more cautious.
Now she was very short of personnel, but fortunately she had money. Therefore, she had Mi Luo secretly recruit several managers and opened shops in other parts of the capital. Through business, she recruited a group of people to handle affairs.
Such matters required gradual progress and couldn’t be rushed.
As long as everything was properly arranged and carefully planned, there would always come a day when it would prove useful.