Early the next morning, Seventh Miss and Xu Fengjia were roused from bed by Lixia, who came bearing news. “…When they entered this morning… she was already gone, blood all over the floor.” Though the head maid’s face was pale, her tone remained steady. “Duke Pingguo has already gone over, and requests that the Heir Apparent also wash up and go quickly.” She paused, then added, “The Duke says Young Mistress need not enter Shensi Hall, but in a while he will also summon you to Qingping Garden to speak.”

Seventh Miss was startled at first, then quickly regained her composure. She half-sat up and said softly, “Understood.” Then she asked Xu Fengjia, “What time did you return last night? I fell asleep waiting and didn’t notice at all.”

Xu Fengjia moved much more briskly than her, rolling out of bed in one motion while dressing. “I came in not long after you fell asleep. We didn’t settle anything last night. Mother said everyone should go rest and talk again this morning.” A trace of barely perceptible mocking smile appeared at his lips as he said in a low voice, “See, now that we’re talking, hasn’t everything resolved itself?”

Without waiting for Seventh Miss to reply, he turned and strode into the washroom. Shangyuan and the others naturally busied themselves preparing hot water, while Seventh Miss also rose to change clothes with Lixia’s assistance.

Fifth Young Mistress’s suicide was completely within her expectations—indeed, within everyone’s expectations last night. Only her suicide could circumvent countless difficult problems. Duke Pingguo had sent her back to Shensi Hall last night precisely to provide her every convenience, hadn’t he? Only when she learned that Fifth Young Mistress had died by the blade did Seventh Miss show some emotion. “She truly was ruthless with herself.” As she spoke, she couldn’t help but laugh self-mockingly. “Of course, if she was ruthless with others, she must have been even more ruthless with herself.”

After eating breakfast at this leisurely pace, Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother entered the room. Both wore unhappy expressions. “Mother, Auntie Guyu won’t let us go to school!”

Looking at these two nearly identical little faces, Seventh Miss felt the great stone weighing on her heart shift aside a bit. A faint smile emerged from her heart. “The household has some matters today, so it’s not convenient for Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother to attend school. In a while Mother also needs to go into the garden to help. You two can’t help, so don’t cause trouble—just stay in the room and practice calligraphy, all right?”

Fifth Brother was fine with this, but Fourth Brother immediately said, “Can we go play at Zhishan Hall? Or go to Shensi Hall to play with Sister Hexian!”

Seventh Miss was unprepared. At Fourth Brother’s words, her face showed surprise and some difficulty. Seeing this, Fourth Brother’s face revealed a thoughtful expression. So young, yet he already knew what it meant to fish for information. Though the technique was crude—Fourth Brother probably didn’t even know this was called fishing for information—it showed how clever this child was, instinctively grasping questioning techniques and already able to read adult expressions.

Seventh Miss simply put down her rice bowl and asked Fourth Brother, “Where did you hear that something happened at Shensi Hall?”

Fourth Brother glanced at the oblivious Fifth Brother and smiled with slight pride, raising his head. “When I was washing up, I heard someone tell Auntie Guyu that with such things happening at Shensi Hall, the children shouldn’t go to school… Mother, what happened to Fifth Uncle and Fifth Aunt?”

Seventh Miss hesitated. Fifth Brother immediately interjected, “Big mouth! Little brat, what are you asking? When it’s time for you to know, naturally you’ll be told!”

The tone of this rebuke didn’t sound at all like Fifth Brother’s childish voice, but more like the old nannies outside scolding young maids. Coming at this moment, it was perfectly apt. Seventh Miss couldn’t help but laugh heartily. She played with the two children a while longer until someone came from Qingping Garden saying, “Please would Young Mistress come to Qingping Garden to speak.” Only then did she instruct the two children, “You stay home and behave, don’t go out causing trouble,” before taking two maids into Little Cuijin.

At this moment, everyone in Little Cuijin wore different expressions. Though they couldn’t be called panicked, everyone’s faces bore added gravity. Seventh Miss had just entered Qingping Garden’s courtyard when she heard the Grand Dowager’s trembling voice from inside the main hall. “What on earth is happening? Suddenly overnight, Yu Jing is locked up? Even if he did something wrong, he’s grown, about to be a father again—couldn’t Duke Pingguo teach him properly instead of tormenting his son like this?” Her tone was rarely so fierce. Seventh Miss didn’t dare delay, hurrying forward and lifting the curtain to enter. She saw First Young Mistress and Fourth Young Mistress surrounding the Grand Dowager, both urging her, “Please sit down to talk.”

Madam Xu stood by the window, not stepping forward. Seeing Seventh Miss enter, she gave her a meaningful look and said loudly, “Seventh Miss, go relieve Fourth Sister-in-law. She’s with child and can’t withstand such strain!”

The Grand Dowager stood facing Madam Xu, originally beating her chest and stamping her feet. Hearing Madam Xu’s words, she was reminded and immediately slowed her movements, slowly sitting down with the two young mistresses’ support. She glared at Madam Xu with rarely seen sharpness and said irritably, “What exactly is going on! Have you all gone mute?”

It seemed this lady had received news of Fifth Young Master’s confinement early this morning and, in her urgency, had rushed to Madam Xu to demand answers. The moment Madam Xu returned, the Fifth Branch suffered a heavy blow—the Grand Dowager’s move, though smacking of relying on her age to bully others, was indeed cleverly executed.

But how could Madam Xu quibble with the Grand Dowager over this? She glanced at Seventh Miss, sighed, and said gravely, “Let Shanheng explain.”

Seventh Miss understood perfectly well that this explanatory task still fell on her shoulders. Her gaze also settled on the Grand Dowager’s head, while a faint question arose in her heart. Judging from Fifth Young Master’s performance yesterday, he should have known about the poisoning. As for what Qiu Zhi did on the boat, it was hard to say whether he knew or not. Poisoning Fifth Miss and wounding Xu Fengjia with an arrow were two entirely different matters. First, poisoning might not necessarily be fatal—in modern terms, this could only be called negligent homicide, since Fifth Young Mistress’s motive couldn’t have been to poison Fifth Miss to death immediately, otherwise she could have chosen a more concealed poison. Second, the relationship between Fifth Miss herself and Fifth Young Mistress had been very bad, so this might have been Fifth Young Mistress acting rashly out of anger. Though the motive itself was utterly treasonous, it ultimately didn’t cross Duke Pingguo’s deepest line. But if Qiu Zhi’s attack were confirmed, this would mean the Fifth Branch had deliberately attempted to murder the heir—with intentions to replace him…

Precisely because this matter was of such great consequence and lacked direct physical evidence, Seventh Miss and Xu Fengjia hadn’t included it in the case details, lest endless wrangling muddy the waters. But what kind of person was Duke Pingguo? He would certainly understand certain subtexts, and Fifth Young Mistress also understood that Duke Pingguo understood, which was why she had unhesitatingly admitted to everything and emphasized that she had acted alone, taking all the blame upon herself. Whether Duke Pingguo believed it was another matter, but Seventh Miss had no intention of letting Fifth Young Master escape punishment so easily. She might not need to take Fifth Young Master’s life, but this slap must strike the Fifth Branch so hard they could never raise their heads again for all eternity, must eliminate whatever thoughts Fourth Young Master might harbor, must secure Xu Fengjia’s position as heir as solid as Mount Tai…

However, she still believed that the Grand Dowager had known nothing about Qiu Zhi’s matter from beginning to end. Though she was dissatisfied with the Sixth Branch, she didn’t seem to harbor ambitions for the heir’s position—otherwise, why would she have allowed Fifth Young Master to idle away in the guards? She would have sent him to the northern frontier long ago to build merit and establish his career. The old lady hadn’t known about Qiu Zhi’s affair, but what about Fifth Miss’s matter? Had she also been kept in the dark, or did she know and merely adopted an attitude of tacit consent, or even encouragement?

As Seventh Miss recounted everything from the beginning, she fixed her gaze on the Grand Dowager. This kind-looking old lady had only heard Seventh Miss speak a few sentences when her expression changed. She seemed not to have anticipated that Fifth Miss’s death would be brought up again at this time. Beyond surprise, her demeanor showed less dissatisfaction and more traces of caution, with a hint of barely visible concern. She straightened her back and fell silent, listening carefully to Seventh Miss’s account.

In recent days, Seventh Miss had recounted this story countless times until it flowed smoothly from practice. She spoke of Yu An, spoke of Little Songhua, spoke of Qiu Zhi… and finally, spoke of Wu Xun’s family. The Grand Dowager’s expression maintained an abnormal calm throughout. She seemed to suppress everything in her heart, making it impossible for Seventh Miss to read anything—neither guilt nor anger. Only when Seventh Miss mentioned Fifth Young Mistress stepping forward to confess last night did her expression suddenly shift, letting out a long breath.

“After returning last night, Fifth Sister-in-law may have…” Seventh Miss drew out her words. Seeing a trace of shock and understanding appear on the Grand Dowager’s face, she continued, “This morning when they entered, it’s said she had already taken her own life with a blade. When discovered, she was beyond saving. Fifth Brother was ordered confined to the woodshed by Father last night and hasn’t been released yet.”

She picked up her tea and took a sip, indicating she had finished her account, while still closely observing the Grand Dowager’s expression, trying to discern the current emotions of this cunning and deep old woman.

The Grand Dowager tightly closed her eyes. After a long silence, she puffed out her cheeks, let out a breath, and suddenly opened her eyes. “Not a single word of this matter must spread outside!” The old lady’s eyes flashed sharply, her first words decisively settling the entire affair.

Madam Xu remained impassive, nodding in agreement. “Last night everyone discussed it and reached the same conclusion. If this matter becomes public, no one will have face—it must absolutely be covered up.”

The Grand Dowager’s second question was, “Has someone been sent to notify the Zhang family?” After all, she had been the duchess of this manor for many years. Though she hadn’t managed affairs for years, at critical moments she could still take charge.

First Young Mistress and Seventh Miss exchanged a glance. The two sat down beside Fourth Young Mistress to listen to Madam Xu and the Grand Dowager’s discussion. In such a setting, daughters-in-law didn’t yet have the standing to speak.

“This is a matter of great consequence.” Madam Xu’s expression was solemn. “I think it would be more appropriate for either myself or you, Old Madam, to personally explain to the Zhang family.” She paused, then added, “However, I heard Zhang Shi left a letter at her side. In the letter she not only admitted to all crimes but also stated that taking her life by blade was her own act of suicide out of guilt, unrelated to anyone else. She affixed her private seal and left her dowry maid Little Fuchun as a witness. With her testimony, even if the Zhang family wants to make trouble, they probably can’t.”

The Grand Dowager’s expression was grave. After pondering for a moment, she said decisively, “I say we should say she died of smallpox like Yu Qiao, then?” Multiple deaths from an infectious disease in one household wasn’t exactly rare.

“We must first ask Duke Pingguo.” Madam Xu had nothing else to say, only, “If the Duke has no objections, I think this arrangement would be very good.” She glanced at Seventh Miss and said in a low voice, “You need to have the wake, laying out the body, and encoffining arrangements clear in your mind.” Seventh Miss was naturally already prepared. She nodded and said softly, “As soon as word comes from there, we’ll sound the cloud board here to announce the death.”

The Grand Dowager seemed to age several years all at once. She nodded wearily and struggled to stand. “Then I’ll return to Leshan Residence and not trouble you further.” Everyone had matters to attend to. Madam Xu stepped forward to see the Grand Dowager out. At the doorway, the Grand Dowager looked back at Madam Xu once, then shook her head and turned to leave.

As soon as she left, Madam Xu instructed the daughters-in-law, “Duke Pingguo has actually already had someone open the woodshed to let Yu Jing see Zhang Shi one last time. I didn’t mention this just now for fear of upsetting the old lady and making her want to go see as well. When you speak, be careful not to let the old lady find out.”

No matter how much the Grand Dowager disagreed with Madam Xu, she was still Madam Xu’s mother-in-law. Certain proprieties had to be observed.

The daughters-in-law all solemnly acknowledged. First Young Mistress volunteered, “Mother, with so many matters in the household these days, and Fourth Sister-in-law being heavily pregnant, we shouldn’t have her appear. Sixth Sister-in-law and I can take turns managing things—I believe we can get through this.”

Madam Xu’s gaze lingered on Fourth Young Mistress for a moment before she also sighed. “Very well. This time someone has truly died. Mo Shi, you shouldn’t leave Shendou Hall these days to avoid bad fortune—I think it would actually be good for you to return to your natal family for a few days.”

With a pregnant woman in the household, there were many taboos. Not only was Fourth Young Mistress inconvenienced, but the household’s affairs were also inconvenient. This time was different from Yu Qiao’s death—Fifth Young Mistress had genuinely died young and violently. Fourth Young Mistress bit her lip, glanced at Seventh Miss, and said somewhat inquiringly, “Though it’s inconvenient for me to appear, I could still help you watch the children…”

Everyone hastily exchanged a few courteous words before Fourth Young Mistress seized the opportunity to descend gracefully from the offer. “Then I’ll pack my luggage shortly and have Yu Qian send me back to my natal family.”

Madam Xu fixed Fourth Young Mistress with a stern stare and said coolly, “When you return to your natal family, still be careful what you say. If others ask how Zhang Shi died, you must know how to answer.”

“Naturally it was from smallpox infection that proved difficult to cure, with high fever that wouldn’t break.” Fourth Young Mistress answered naturally, her manner showing not the slightest irregularity. Only then did Madam Xu nod with satisfaction and dismiss the three sisters-in-law. “Then all of you go attend to things.”

The three left together. First Young Mistress said, “I need to return and have someone fetch the children back from their studies,” and hurried off first. Seventh Miss also planned to return to Mingde Hall to gather her people, and thus walked alongside Fourth Young Mistress for a stretch. Fourth Young Mistress remained silent until they reached the fork in the path, then said softly, “I truly never expected it would be just this one night!” Without waiting for Seventh Miss to reply, she added quietly, “When she was going on and on about Liao Shi this, Liao Shi that, pregnant this, pregnant that, with that smug spring breeze expression—how did she never think of today?”

Though there was a trace of sadness in her words, listening carefully, there was also a hint of undisguised satisfaction.