“What?!” Qin Dezhao knew he was drunk and thought he had misheard. “Has the Magistrate of Jingzhao taken the wrong medicine? How dare he come to my Marquis Zhongyong’s mansion to arrest the wife of a titled Marquis for no reason?!”
“The bodies of the five dowry maids that Madam sold off were found in the mass grave outside the city. The parents of those dowry maids identified the corpses. That’s why the Magistrate came to our mansion to arrest Madam. The servants in the mansion are looking everywhere for the Marquis, waiting for you to return and take charge!” his attendant said with a mournful face.
The drunk Qin Dezhao slammed the table and stood up, his eyes filled with severity, roaring in anger: “They were just a few maids beaten to death – has the Magistrate’s office gone mad, or do they want to be my enemy?”
“No, my lord! These maids had already been freed from bondage and were commoners. Madam is involved in a murder case involving civilians, which is why the Magistrate’s office came to arrest her! Please return to the mansion quickly, my lord!” The attendant was sweating profusely, almost in tears.
Qin Dezhao sobered up considerably. What was wrong with the Duke’s mansion – using commoners as dowry maids? In his half-lifetime, Qin Dezhao had never heard of using commoners as dowry!
“Return to the mansion!”
The attendant quickly retrieved Qin Dezhao’s gray squirrel fur cloak and helped him put it on, supporting him as they went downstairs.
Just as they stepped out of the tavern threshold and Qin Dezhao was about to board his carriage, he saw his cousin, Imperial Censor Sima Yan’s carriage stop in front of his. Sima Yan lifted the carriage curtain and looked at Qin Dezhao.
Qin Dezhao quickly cupped his hands: “Cousin…”
Sima Yan’s expression was displeased: “News of your wife’s involvement in a murder case reached the Imperial Censorate half an hour ago, and Dezhao still has the mood to drink here?!”
The hair on Qin Dezhao’s back stood on end: “Dezhao will return to the mansion immediately!”
“The current atmosphere among meritorious noble families is particularly disliked by His Majesty. Dezhao, listen to your elder brother’s advice – have your wife quickly accompany the Magistrate’s officers to the government office for questioning. Do not rely on the Marquis mansion’s noble status to oppose the Magistrate’s office! Now that the discord between your mansion’s stepmother and legitimate son has been brought to the surface, and your legitimate son Qin Lang voluntarily requested to give up his heir position and received praise from His Majesty, there’s no guarantee that court officials seeking to curry favor with His Majesty won’t impeach your Marquis mansion. When that time comes… His Majesty might strip your mansion of its noble status! Remember this…”
As the cold wind hit his face, Qin Dezhao immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
“Thank you for your cousin’s guidance!” Qin Dezhao’s attitude was respectful.
Sima Yan sighed and shook his head at Qin Dezhao: “It’s the end of the year – tell your wife to behave and stop causing you trouble!”
After speaking, Imperial Censor Sima Yan lowered the carriage curtain and had the driver leave.
Qin Dezhao quickly ordered his driver to return to the mansion immediately.
From the moment Jiang Shi indulged her daughter in injuring Bai Jinxiu, who had just married into the Marquis Zhongyong’s mansion, misfortune seemed to cling to their mansion like a curse. Qin Dezhao now harbored resentment toward Jiang Shi as well.
The main gate of the Marquis mansion was already surrounded by curious onlookers and officers from the Magistrate’s office, with the gates tightly closed.
Qin Dezhao avoided the commotion and had his attendant stop the carriage at the side gate, entering the mansion with a gloomy expression. As soon as he entered the inner courtyard, Qin Dezhao heard Jiang Shi’s shouting and cursing at the useless servants inside her room. His temple veins throbbed as he lifted his robes and entered.
“My lord…”
Nanny Wu saw Qin Dezhao enter and quickly curtsied.
Qin Dezhao strode forward, grabbed the cane Jiang Shi was using to beat the maid, and delivered a slap that sent the Marquis’s wife sprawling onto the soft couch: “You ignorant, poisonous woman who accomplishes nothing but ruins everything! You’ve caused such a huge disaster, and you’re still here beating and cursing people!”
Nanny Wu and all the maids were so frightened they knelt, prostrating themselves without daring to raise their heads.
Jiang Shi covered her face and turned to look at the furious Qin Dezhao with wide eyes. She had wanted to get angry, but thinking of the officers waiting outside to arrest her, she quickly crawled on her knees to the Marquis’s feet: “My lord! My lord, you must save me! The Duke’s mansion wants to harm me! Yesterday, when I visited, they said the indenture contracts for those maids were in Bai Jinxiu’s hands, but overnight, those five maids became commoners! The Duke’s mansion wants to destroy me – my lord, you cannot ignore this!”
Qin Dezhao’s eyebrow twitched, and he calmed down completely. After pondering for a moment, his eyes showed intense coldness: “You said… yesterday they told you the indenture contracts for those maids were in Bai Jinxiu’s hands?!”
“Absolutely true! If I speak falsely, let me be torn apart by five horses! If you don’t believe me… my lord, ask Nanny Wu!” Jiang Shi clutched Qin Dezhao’s leg, crying without any dignity befitting a noble lady.
Nanny Wu, trembling like a sieve, kowtowed heavily: “My lord, yesterday this old servant accompanied Madam to the Duke’s mansion gate to bring the young madam back, hoping to ease the matter of the young master leaving the mansion! But the Bai family’s Third Miss said that our young madam deliberately took that stone blow to pave the way for the young master’s departure with her life. Miss Bai also said that the indenture contracts for those five dowry maids were all in the young madam’s hands, and she didn’t know which human trafficker would dare take people away without seeing the contracts! All of this is true!”
Duke Zhenguo’s mansion… Qin Dezhao gritted his teeth tightly, his piercing gaze frightening. Nanny Wu was so scared she didn’t dare lift her head.
Qin Dezhao closed his eyes – the alcohol had completely worn off: “Go with the Magistrate’s officers for now. I will ask people to make arrangements and will not let you suffer injustice! But if you don’t go now… it will implicate our entire Marquis mansion and your son.”
Hearing Qin Dezhao’s words, Jiang Shi turned pale and collapsed to the ground.
The Marquis Zhongyong’s mansion was in chaos. That very evening, the news of the Marquis’s wife being imprisoned was relayed back to Duke Zhenguo’s mansion through the steward nanny that Bai Jinxiu had left at the Marquis’s mansion.
This situation was exactly as Bai Qingyan had predicted, though she felt no particular joy about it.
Before Bai Qingyan retired for the night, Chun Tao came hesitantly to report that the little maid Yin Shuang, who had been secretly following Chun Yan, had come to report that Chun Yan had met with a young servant in the front courtyard today.
Seeing that young servant leave the mansion, that little maid Yin Shuang didn’t know any better and followed him out. She saw the young servant head straight to the back gate of Prince Liang’s mansion and whisper with Prince Liang’s servants. Without a word, she rushed over, knocked the person unconscious with one punch, and carried him back. Just now she dumped him at Guard Lu’s place, then came happily running to the Qinghui Courtyard entrance to claim credit and ask for pine nut candy…” Chun Tao said with a mixture of tears and laughter.
Bai Qingyan, who had been sitting before the bronze mirror full of anger, immediately burst into laughter: “Yin Shuang is fourteen this year, isn’t she?”
“Yes, Miss, she is fourteen. You still remember…” Chun Tao picked up the white jade comb to arrange Bai Qingyan’s hair.
When Shen Qingzhu brought Yin Shuang back to the mansion, she was only ten years old, not only thin and weak but also not very bright mentally. However, she possessed considerable strength. Because she ate so much that her family couldn’t afford to feed her, her parents sold her.
Yin Shuang had followed Shen Qingzhu for so many years – who knew what her martial arts skills were like now?
“Tomorrow, go inform Nanny Qin to transfer Yin Shuang to Qinghui Courtyard. Have Chun Xing and the others teach her proper etiquette, and she’ll stay in Qinghui Courtyard from now on,” Bai Qingyan said.
Chun Tao’s lips moved, thinking of her childhood friendship with Chun Yan and wanting to plead for her: “First Miss, Chun Yan she…”
“Leave her alone for now – just have someone watch her.”