“What happened next?” Ren Yaohua asked.

“Next, naturally, we need to find a way to make the rumors come true. Meihong is dead, and her body can’t be found—isn’t this the best evidence?” Ren Yaoqi said slowly.

“What a vicious scheme! Isn’t she afraid of karmic retribution?” Ren Yaohua said through gritted teeth.

Ren Yaoqi recalled the fate of everyone in her previous life and sighed, “Perhaps she’s not afraid of immediate retribution.”

Ren Yaohua looked at Ren Yaoqi’s demeanor—she didn’t seem particularly anxious. Remembering her previous words about thinking several steps ahead, she couldn’t help but ask suspiciously, “What backup plan have you prepared?” She had been in Ronghua Garden all day today and didn’t know what Ren Yaoqi had been doing in secret.

Ren Yaoqi blinked and said, “She’s put in so much effort, so we’ll turn her plot against itself!” Ren Yaoqi leaned close to Ren Yaohua’s ear and whispered a few sentences.

After listening, Ren Yaohua slightly narrowed her eyes, a barely perceptible smile crossing her face as she looked sideways at Ren Yaoqi, “Are you confident she’ll take the bait?”

Ren Yaoqi smiled, “Some people, when things go their way too often, become overconfident and think they can control everything. It’s time to wake her up.”

The next day, when Old Master Ren returned to the inner courtyard, Old Madam Ren dismissed all the maids and servants from the room and personally went forward to help Old Master Ren change out of his outdoor clothes. “How is that girl?”

Old Master Ren said flatly, “There will no longer be such a person in this world.”

Old Madam Ren breathed a sigh of relief, but still felt uneasy. Seeing that Old Master Ren had sat down, she hurried to follow and asked, “Was it done cleanly? Will there be any future troubles? Hua’er’s reputation cannot be ruined by such a lowly servant!”

Old Master Ren snorted lightly through his nose and lifted his eyelids to glance at Old Madam Ren, “She’s been spoiled rotten by you!”

Old Madam Ren brought over tea that had been cooling on the side. “I’ve disciplined Hua’er. She already knows her mistake, and such things will never happen again.”

Old Master Ren didn’t like hot tea in summer and only took one sip before setting it down. “Next time? Tell her that the Ren family has plenty of daughters. One less wouldn’t matter!”

Old Madam Ren glanced at Old Master Ren. She knew his temperament well and didn’t dare say anything more to defend Ren Yaohua, only quietly responded with agreement.

“I’ve already instructed them to do it cleanly. This afternoon, word came that the girl fell off a cliff while leaving the city. They saw the bones at the bottom of the cliff and returned to report.”

Old Madam Ren was now at ease. Now that Meihong was dead, Ren Yaohua’s reputation was preserved. Even if some rumors were circulating outside, they were all baseless speculation that would be forgotten after a while.

Ren Yaohua was Old Madam Ren’s favorite granddaughter, raised by her side since childhood, so she genuinely cared for Ren Yaohua.

“What about Hua’er’s marriage?” Seeing one matter resolved, Old Madam Ren began worrying about another.

Old Master Ren said, “Let’s wait and see. We’ll discuss it again after some time.”

Meihong disappeared without a trace. The Ren family thought the matter had been settled. Unexpectedly, by the next day, rumors began circulating outside that a girl from Chunfeng Pavilion had been quietly silenced after being redeemed by the Ren family.

Combined with the previous rumors, the complete version was: Third Miss Ren had a violent temperament. Because she was dissatisfied with her maid, she sold the maid to a brothel. By chance, that maid ended up at Chunfeng Pavilion in Baihe Town. Just as Third Miss Ren’s cruel and brutal true nature was about to be exposed, she had someone secretly redeem the maid from Chunfeng Pavilion to protect her reputation, then had her killed.

Although the Ren family hadn’t revealed their true identity when they went to Chunfeng Pavilion to redeem the person, the outside rumors were still detailed and vivid, as if people had witnessed it firsthand.

Ren Yaohua hadn’t left her courtyard since the previous day, not even visiting Ronghua Garden. Listening to Xiangqin return every few hours to describe the latest developments outside, Ren Yaohua wished she could throw this chattering maid out.

When Ren Yaoqi came to see Ren Yaohua, she was surprised to find her leisurely practicing calligraphy in the study. “You’re surprisingly composed this time.”

Ren Yaohua didn’t look up. “If you came in and saw me jumping around frantically, wouldn’t you have another opportunity to lecture me? I heard that practicing calligraphy can calm the mind, and it seems there’s some truth to it. For instance, I feel much more comfortable now.”

Ren Yaoqi walked toward the desk, wanting to see if Ren Yaohua’s calligraphy had improved, but when she looked down, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing. She looked at Ren Yaohua teasingly, “No wonder you feel much more comfortable.”

She saw that Ren Yaohua had filled more than ten sheets of rice paper, each covered with the character “kill” (杀) in various sizes, written with such force that the ink penetrated through the paper.

Ren Yaohua threw her brush into the brush washer and examined her morning’s masterpiece while saying, “Why are you here? Time to close the net?”

Ren Yaoqi shook her head, “Wait a bit longer. The outside isn’t chaotic enough yet. I don’t believe this is all she’s capable of.”

Ren Yaohua sneered, “True, she knows that if she doesn’t finish me off in one move, she’ll have hell to pay later.”

At this moment, Xiangqin came running in again, her face full of excitement and indignation, “Miss, those people outside are going too far! They’re saying that our Ren family couldn’t marry into the Qiu family because the Qiu family learned about your true nature and used excuses to refuse the engagement.”

Wujing, who followed behind her, shot her a fierce look. “Why do you need to tell Miss about these troubling matters in such detail?”

Xiangqin looked matter-of-fact, “Of course, we need to remember clearly and firmly how others are stepping on us; otherwise, if we forget later, how can we pay them back with interest?”

Wujing was speechless.

Ren Yaohua looked at Xiangqin coldly, “Enough! Thanks to you, I’ve remembered quite firmly enough!”

Xiangqin stuck out her tongue and quickly hid behind Wujing.

“Miss, Nanny Zhou is here,” reported the little maid guarding the door.

Ren Yaohua glanced at Wujing, who hurried out to invite Nanny Zhou in. Seeing that Ren Yaoqi was also in Ren Yaohua’s room, Nanny Zhou wasn’t surprised.

Ren Yaoqi asked, “How is it?”

Without catching her breath, Nanny Zhou said, “Third Miss, we can’t find out how the news was leaked. When Old Master returned yesterday, Old Madam dismissed all the maids and servants, not even leaving anyone to serve tea. According to what you said, Old Master should have been discussing Meihong’s matter with Old Madam. Logically, Old Madam and Old Master didn’t let the servants below know that Meihong was already dead.”

Ren Yaohua frowned, “But news of Meihong’s death still got out? Given her nature, if she hadn’t already confirmed that Meihong was killed, she wouldn’t risk creating such a big commotion.”

Ren Yaoqi wasn’t surprised and asked, “What about Nanny Gui?”

Nanny Zhou was startled, “Nanny Gui? She should have been guarding the door when Old Madam and Old Master were talking, but no one can prove she overheard their conversation, and no one saw her deliver a message to Concubine Fang.”

Ren Yaoqi said casually, “But no one can prove she didn’t overhear Grandfather and Grandmother’s conversation, can they?”

Nanny Zhou was stunned. “Third Miss, you mean?”

Ren Yaoqi smiled, “Others can speak groundlessly, so why can’t we? Concubine Fang is usually too careful, so this time I want her to lose because she’s too careful. We can’t prove that it was Concubine Fang’s people who leaked the news, but did this news grow legs by itself? It always needs someone to take the blame.”

Concubine Fang might not have gotten the news of Meihong’s death from Old Madam’s room—she believed Concubine Fang had this capability—but Old Master Ren and Old Madam Ren wouldn’t believe it. So she would help them push forward an inside traitor!

This traitor’s job was to drag Concubine Fang down with her.

Nanny Zhou hesitated, “Miss, are you certain that Nanny Gui is Concubine Fang’s person?”

Nanny Zhou was still somewhat surprised that Concubine Fang could buy off the old nanny whom Old Madam Ren trusted most. Although Nanny Gui wasn’t Old Madam Ren’s dowry servant, she had served by Old Madam Ren’s side for at least thirty years. When Ren Yaoqi told her that Nanny Gui might be Concubine Fang’s person, Nanny Zhou was still half-believing.

Ren Yaoqi blinked and tilted her head, “Of course, I’m not only certain, I have evidence!”

After Ren Yaoqi returned, recalling various events from her previous life, she initially only had suspicions. Given Concubine Fang’s nature of liking to control everything, she would have someone by Old Madam Ren’s side, otherwise, many things wouldn’t make sense. After all, Concubine Fang wasn’t a deity who could predict everything.

She had observed all the maids and servants around Old Madam Ren, and after eliminating others one by one, she finally focused on Nanny Gui. However, at that time Ren Yaoqi was only suspicious and couldn’t be certain. Because both Concubine Fang and Nanny Gui were very careful and had no obvious interactions in daily life.

Speaking of this matter, she still needed to thank Xueli, a former headmaid by her side.