Concubine Qiao’s first thought was to immediately inform Luo Chengzhang about this matter. However, after some consideration, she calmed herself down.
She pondered: If she were to tell Luo Chengzhang, how would he react? He would undoubtedly be furious, then grow cold towards Luo Yining, perhaps even forcing her to move out of the Luo family home. But would he acknowledge Luo Yining as an illegitimate child?
As Concubine Qiao’s mind gradually cleared, she realized Luo Chengzhang certainly wouldn’t. He wouldn’t even let this information spread, as it would not only tarnish Gu Minglan’s reputation but also disgrace himself and the entire Luo family. This affair would affect more than just Luo Yining; it could even impact Luo Yihui in the capital, and more broadly, the Luo family’s reputation.
However, given Luo Chengzhang’s personality, it was impossible for him to simply endure this—no man could. What she could do was to stir up Luo Chengzhang’s disgust towards Luo Yining, as deeply as possible, until he couldn’t bear to see Luo Yining in front of him.
Concubine Qiao took a sip of water, finally clarifying her thoughts. This kind of matter was best dealt with sooner rather than later. If delayed, unexpected complications might arise. There was still Luo Shen Yuan in the household, and Luo Yining was no pushover—they couldn’t afford to be discovered.
Luo Yile had just learned about the whole situation, and she was also shocked. Indeed, anything was possible in this world—Luo Yining wasn’t her father’s biological child, but the offspring of Gu Minglan and a lowly guard! If her mother hadn’t repeatedly confirmed this, she wouldn’t have believed it! She quickly realized the benefits she could gain from this situation.
This matter was disadvantageous to almost everyone, except for her. Without Luo Yining, she would be the only young lady of the second branch of the family.
Thinking of this, she even felt a hint of sympathy for Luo Yining. How could she bear suddenly falling from the status of a legitimate young lady to this?
Concubine Qiao looked at the exquisite and luxurious furnishings in the room and asked her daughter, “Tomorrow is the Cold Clothes Festival, isn’t it?”
Luo Yile looked at her and asked, “What… are you planning to do?”
Concubine Qiao shook her head and smiled, “No need for planning. I just need to bring someone before your father, and Luo Yining will never be able to recover.”
“It’s just ancestor worship for the Cold Clothes Festival,” Concubine Qiao said softly.
It wasn’t until evening that Luo Shen Yuan met with his servant in the study.
The servant hurriedly entered Luo Shen Yuan’s study, his expression grave. Luo Shen Yuan dismissed everyone else and asked him to speak slowly.
The servant said, “I’ve found out that the person is the wife of a shop assistant from Concubine Qiao’s store. She’s gravely ill. There’s nothing particularly suspicious about her. She’s originally from Baoding, later married and moved to Jingzhou, and only returned to Baoding with that shop assistant a few years ago. I heard that the assistant stole money from Concubine Qiao’s shop to treat her illness and was almost crippled by Concubine Qiao. For some unknown reason, Concubine Qiao later forgave him, and their family suffered no consequences. Moreover, Concubine Qiao even helped them set up some household items…”
Luo Shen Yuan sat down on the dongpo chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest. “Is that all?”
The servant nodded, “The neighbors aren’t familiar with their family, so I couldn’t find out much more.”
Luo Shen Yuan’s fingers paused, and he asked again, “Any movement from Concubine Qiao’s side?”
The servant shook his head, “No movement. After entering Concubine Qiao’s courtyard, I didn’t see anyone being sent out. Concubine Qiao was in her room making shoes for the Fourth Young Master, just like usual.”
Luo Shen Yuan gazed at the darkening sky outside the window, wondering what Concubine Qiao was up to.
Some seemingly unrelated events are only unconnected because we haven’t found the connection yet. If one thinks carefully, there must be a relationship between all things. There was nothing unusual about Concubine Qiao bringing a sick person into the mansion; this person must have some kind of relationship with her, but he just didn’t know what it was.
“Don’t delay, send more people to inquire,” Luo Shen Yuan said calmly. “Don’t overlook Concubine Qiao’s shop either. Come see me again early tomorrow morning.”
The servant acknowledged and withdrew.
That evening, a strong wind blew, breaking a tree by the courtyard steps. When Yining woke up the next day, she found that the fallen tree had crushed the steps. Today was the Cold Clothes Festival, and they were to worship their ancestors in the afternoon. Yining dressed simply and went to Lin Hairu’s place, where Luo Chengzhang was already accompanying Lin Hairu for breakfast.
He was drinking porridge, with Concubine Qiao standing beside him, serving.
Seeing Yining arrive, Luo Chengzhang looked up and said, “The wind was strong last night. I heard a tree in your courtyard was blown down. Is everything alright?”
Yining sat down, and a maid immediately brought her a bowl of bird’s nest porridge. For some reason, Concubine Qiao’s gaze fell on Yining’s bowl of bird’s nest porridge, and the jade bracelets on her hand holding the bowl. Yining’s clothes were always made of fine silk and Hangzhou silk. Her skin was so delicate it looked as if water could be squeezed from it.
A faint smile appeared at the corners of Concubine Qiao’s mouth.
Yining noticed that Concubine Qiao had been looking at her for a long time without turning away, but of course, she wouldn’t think Concubine Qiao liked her. Yining said, “It’s fine, just the steps were crushed.”
They then discussed the ancestor worship. In the afternoon, they were to go to the ancestral hall to offer incense. People from the second branch of the family also arrived one after another. Luo Chengzhang led the children of the second branch to the ancestral hall, where they worshipped the ancestors together and burned the cold clothes. Yining looked at her grandmother’s tablet; her grandmother had been dead for over three years now. Without her grandmother by her side, she hadn’t disappointed the old lady’s expectations. But thinking of how much her grandmother had loved her when she was alive, she still felt a twinge of pain in her heart. She could never forget the scene of her grandmother’s death.
Luo Chengzhang couldn’t help but feel sad in front of his mother’s tablet. Seeing Yining offer incense to her grandmother, remembering how much the old lady had loved her when she was alive, and how this child still remembered her grandmother’s kindness, he called Yining to his side and gave her detailed instructions.
Concubine Qiao watched from the side, smiling coldly. These were once familiar scenes, but after knowing that Luo Yining was an impostor, how could she tolerate it? Luo Yining didn’t deserve any of this, and Luo Chengzhang shouldn’t be so good to her. She was nothing but a guard’s child, as lowly as could be.
Concubine Qiao returned to her courtyard and ordered someone to tidy up Zhang Shi.
After offering incense to the ancestors, Luo Shen Yuan called Yining over and asked about the tree in her courtyard.
Yining didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. It seemed everyone knew about the fallen tree in her courtyard. She said to Luo Shen Yuan, “I noticed the Concubine was acting strangely today. Third Brother, do you know who she invited into the mansion yesterday?”
Luo Shen Yuan shook his head, “I only know it was someone from her shop.”
Yining frowned upon hearing this. She turned back to look at her grandmother’s tablet, feeling that something was off, starting from when she saw the fallen tree in the courtyard. She had thought it was Concubine Qiao acting strangely, but if even Luo Shen Yuan hadn’t noticed anything, perhaps nothing was wrong after all.
Yining had always trusted her intuition. For example, the day before she fell off the cliff, her right eyelid had been twitching constantly. But intuition couldn’t explain everything.
When Luo Shen Yuan returned to Feng Xie Tang, the servant was already waiting outside. Upon seeing him, the servant immediately paid his respects: “I’ve finally learned some more information and hurried back to report to you.”
Luo Shen Yuan took a cup of tea from a maid and drank it, gesturing for him to continue.
The servant hesitated before saying, “I found out that this person, Zhang Shi, used to serve our former Second Madam.”
So she had served Gu Minglan.
Luo Shen Yuan put down his teacup, took off his cloak, and handed it to a maid, then sat down and asked, “For how long?”
“I heard it was quite a long time. She used to be a maid of some standing, but I don’t know how she ended up in this situation.”
Luo Shen Yuan was silent for a moment. He suddenly remembered that half a year ago, he had gone to Zhending to find Nanny Zheng.
Before Old Madam Luo died, she had told him that Luo Yining was not a child of the Luo family. Such a private matter could only be known by close maids and servants. To be cautious and to conceal Yining’s identity, Luo Shen Yuan had gone to ask Nanny Zheng about what had happened back then. If there were any loopholes, he would cover them up immediately.
At first, Nanny Zheng refused to see him, until he explained his purpose. Only then did Nanny Zheng tell him the whole story of what had happened back then. She also told him, “…We all knew that loose lips sink ships. People’s mouths can’t always keep secrets, and once someone speaks up, this matter will snowball and become unstoppable. So everyone who knew about this left the Luo family one after another. The few of us who served the Madam didn’t even dare to stay in Baoding. I returned to Zhending, and some others married and moved to Tongzhou or Jingzhou. We absolutely wouldn’t stay in Baoding.”
Luo Shen Yuan suddenly understood.
“You said she came from Jingzhou?” Luo Shen Yuan asked.
The servant nodded, and Luo Shen Yuan suddenly stood up, his face darkening.
This person had first served Gu Minglan, but later married and moved to Jingzhou. She must have been one of the people who knew the inside story back then. If his guess was correct, this person had probably told Concubine Qiao about what happened back then, and Concubine Qiao now knew that Yining was not Luo Chengzhang’s biological child. Not only did she know, but she had also kept this person. Her purpose was obvious.
Only this explanation made sense.
To think that Concubine Qiao had found out! Luo Shen Yuan let out a breath and closed his eyes briefly. This matter definitely couldn’t be allowed to spread. He would never let Yining bear the name of an illegitimate child.
But now that Concubine Qiao knew about this, she would surely speak out, unless she was killed.
Only the dead don’t speak.
But Concubine Qiao was no ordinary concubine, and if she knew, wouldn’t the maids in her room also know? Perhaps she had also told Luo Yile. He couldn’t possibly eliminate all these people one by one.
If it came down to it, he could only threaten her with Luo Xuan Yuan.
Luo Shen Yuan suddenly opened his eyes. To avoid any unforeseen circumstances, Concubine Qiao would surely go to Luo Chengzhang as soon as possible. He immediately ordered, “Send someone to Zhending to ask Nanny Zheng to come. Tell her Yining is in trouble.” He then looked at the maid behind him and called someone over, “Go find the Seventh Young Lady and bring her here. No matter who comes looking for her, she is not to leave this place.”
He took his cloak back from the maid. He needed to go to Luo Chengzhang immediately.
If he hadn’t misjudged, Concubine Qiao should already be on her way to see Luo Chengzhang now.