"Find out where Mother Yun will be locked up," Ning Xueyan said quietly.
"But..." Qingyu said hesitantly.
"Go!" Ning Xueyan said and gave her a push.
This time, Qingyu turned and ran away.
Looking at the back of Qingyu, Ning Xueyan smiled.
Mother Yun was Madam Ling's accomplice and must know a lot about the Madam’s schemes. How could she let her die so simply?
* * *
The Lord Protector's Manor was holding a wedding ceremony and the banquet was arranged near the second door. But the backyard was in chaos, and nobody noticed that somebody was watching them in a loft near the second door .
In a vast, luxurious living room, a handsome man sat against the railing. His clothes had a pattern of bloody flowers on a black background. He was beautiful, but also daunting. Several guards stood far away, at the entrance of the stairs, not daring to move. The temperature around him was distinctly chilly, and the guards kept their distance.
He lifted a glazed cup and took a sip from it slowly, gazing out the window.
At this time, he looked at the thin Ning Xueyan with great interest.
"This is interesting… I didn't expect there to be such an interesting little girl in the Lord Protector's Manor!" he said, as if he had found some interesting prey.
How surprising! Ning Xueyan had always been such a delicate girl; he had not expected her to be as fierce as a wolf. She’d bit herself without any hesitation. Everyone knew that it was easy to be cruel to others, but difficult to be cruel to oneself!
* * *
It was late, and the Lord Protector's Manor was dark. Two people were on the way to the Madam Dowager's Lucky Garden with a lantern. Just now, the Madam Dowager asked Ning Xueyan to see her.
"Young Miss, why does Madam Dowager want to see you now? Will she blame you for what happened?" Mother Han asked anxiously.
"Don't worry. They won't do anything to me!" Ning Xueyan said. She clearly knew Madam Dowager's purpose. So many people gathered there only for one purpose—they wanted Ning Xueyan to be responsible for this matter! It was even possible her father would be there.
Unfortunately for them, she had no intention of taking the blame.
"Young Miss, but..." Mother Han was still worried.
"Mother Han, when I enter the Lucky Garden, you wait for me outside. Then, at the proper time, come in and do what I told you." Ning Xuyan looked down at the path beneath her feet, an intent expression on her face.
Looking at the confident Young Miss, Mother Han relaxed and nodded forcefully. "Don't worry. I've got it all in my mind."
When they arrived at the Lucky Garden, the whole place was ablaze with lights. A large number of servants stood still outside, not daring to move out of fear of provoking the masters in the house.
In the room, the Madam Dowager sat on the couch with an unpleasant look, and Madam Dowager Liu, sitting beside her, also frowned. Ning Zu'an sat calmly to the right of the Madam Dowager, and Madam Ling stood beside his chair with her head bowed.
The Madam Dowager stared at Ning Xueyan angrily as soon as she came in. She knocked on the ground firmly with her crutch and said severely, "Kneel down."
The atmosphere became more tense.
Ning Xueyan was not in a hurry. When she came in, she saw the entire scene clearly and knew that Madam Ling must have said something bad about her. The Madam Dowager also wanted to use this opportunity to suppress her.
Taking a cup of tea brought in by a maid, Ning Xueyan stepped forward and said in a gentle tone, "Grandmother, are you better now? Please, don't be angry. Your health is the most important thing."
Madam Dowager Liu nodded off to the side. "This girl is kind-hearted. Even now, she worries about her grandmother's health. It's totally different from what Madam Ling said."
"Xueyan, did you intentionally make trouble in the front yard?" Madam Dowager Liu asked before the Madam Dowager could tell Ning Xueyan to kneel down again.
"Grandmother, I'm a mistress of the Lord Protector's Manor — how could I do that? My mother has died, I was very sad and hadn't eaten for a day, so I felt dizzy. I knew I couldn’t fall ill, or no one would keep vigil for my mother. I had no choice but to go to the kitchen to get some food with Mother Han," Ning Xueyan said sincerely with tears in her eyes.
"Madam Ling, why there was no servant in Bright Frost Garden? And why did no one send meals?" Madam Dowager asked angrily. Ning Zu'an turned to stare at Madam Ling.
This wasn’t going as Madam Ling had planned. With the Madam Dowager and her husband, who had always favored her, both staring at her, she began to tremble with fear.
Hearing the Madam Dowager's inquiry, Madam Ling hurried to cry out her grievances!"Mother, I arranged for food to be sent. Maybe the servants were too busy to serve the Fifth Miss — there were so many guests, and I can't always be with the Fifth Miss! It really has nothing to do with me."Madam Dowager looked at Madam Ling unhappily for a while, then said in a deep voice, "You've been in charge of this manor for some time. How can these servants deceive and bully their masters? Although Xueyan lives in a remote house, she is also a mistress of the Lord Protector's Manor. Later, you will arrange for more servants in her Bright Frost Garden. She can't be slighted any further.""Yes, Mother. I was too busy and neglected Xueyan. Xueyan, it's my fault. I am sorry." Madam Ling made an apology quickly, then turned to Ning Xueyan and began a formal bow of apology.Ning Xueyan saw this and knew that if she were to accept Madam Ling's bow,
When Ning Xueyan finished, everyone fell silent."Who... no one will tell His Majesty!" Madam Ling struggled to speak.Madam Dowager Liu pounded the desk heavily and stood up. She pointed at Madam Ling, then turned to stare at Ning Zu'an. She knew the Madam Dowager's decision was not proper and understood the consequences if it was discovered. She disliked people who behaved improperly, and now she saw that Madam Ling wanted Madam Ming to take responsibility for her own mistake. It might bring disaster to the Lord Protector's Manor!Madam Dowager Liu was so angry that she could not speak for a moment. After a while, she said angrily, "Madam Ming has died, but you still want to humiliate her. Madam Ling, you have replaced her — aren't you satisfied? Why do you make trouble? Zu'an, how could you let this happen? Did you hate your wife that much?""Aunt, I..." Ning Zu'an trailed off, frowning slightly. He gave a look to Ning Xueyan an
The next day, the scandal of the Lord Protector's Manor shocked the court!Many officials impeached Ning Zu'an in court. They said that Ning Zu'an had hidden the news of his co-wife's death and dared to hold a wedding ceremony with no regard for ritual or principle. Such a vicious act was abhorrent!In the end, it was proved that Madam Ling was to blame, but Ning Zu'an was the Marquis bore some responsibility, as well. If he had valued his co-wife, he would have been aware of her death, and this scandal would not have happened.His Majesty was so angry that he threw the memorial to the throne to Ning Zu'an and asked him to read it while kneeling. As for Madam Ling, if not for Ning Zu'an's entreaty, and that she was the mother of Ning Zu'an's only son, she would have been killed directly."Young Miss, Madam Ling has been taken to the palace by the Empress’ people. I heard that she will be stripped of the title of First-class Marchio
Ning Xueyan looked out and saw that Qingrui was back. Technically, she was a first maid of Ning Xueyan, but in fact, she was one of Madam Ling's people. She usually relied on Madam Ling's influence and had bullied Ning Xueyan often. Qingrui was trying to curry favor with Madam Ling and told her people everything that happened in Bright Frost Garden.She likely had something to do with Madam Ming's death.Qingrui, dressed in a beautiful new satin dress, looked disdainfully and sneered at Mother Han, who was covered in coarse linen and white cloth. "I had something to do. The wedding was important, and I had to help First Miss. You’re lucky — you can rely on the Second Madam to be lazy.""Qingrui, how dare you say that!" Mother Han shouted, trembling with anger.With Madam Ling backing her, she was not afraid of Mother Han."Give your fire a rest, old woman! What kind of temper do you have so early in the morning? The Fi
Ning Xueyan sneered inwardly when she spotted the red dress under Qingrui’s clothes.To think that mere maids dared to wear a mourning garment on top of a gaudy outfit when her masters did not. It was obvious how badly they treated Madam Ming and Ning Xueyan. Everyone in this manor was brave enough to bully her. Outsiders knew only of the first wife's eldest and second daughters of the Lord Protector's Manor, but not the fifth daughter born by Madam Ming.The two servants came over and lay down the teapot and food basket in their hands. The older female servant poured a cup of water and passed it to Qingrui, who squatted down and handed it to Ning Xueyan. Ning Xueyan respected the traditions; she had been kneeling for an entire morning and did not even have a sip of water. Yet she saw the cold tea, she found that she had no appetite."You must be starving, young lady. Keep calm and have some water before eating. It's better for your body that w
Madam Dowager was drawn here after she heard that Qingyu was requesting Frigid Pills, just as Ning Xueyan had planned. She knew Old Lady Qin would be ill at ease after giving Qingyu the Frigid Pills and would inform Madam Dowager about Ning Xueyan's condition.After all that racket in the Lord Protector's Manor yesterday, all eyes were on them. They must not allow rumors of the Fifth Young Miss being abused to spread. With her health, she was like a master who was at death's door. And they were having guests over this afternoon! What would they say if she fainted inside the mourning hall?After thinking about it, Madam Dowager decided to check on the situation personally. The family was already at the heart of so much uproar; she must not allow people to continue gossiping about the Lord Protector's Manor.To her surprise, she heard a sharp-tongued maid bombarding Ning Xueyan the moment she entered the mourning hall. The maid even mentioned the
Out of nowhere, Ning Xueyan turned around and bellowed, "Stop right there!"This time, even Madam Dowager and Mother Han noticed someone shifting suspiciously behind the white banner. The middle-aged woman that had just arrived at the door looked at Ning Xueyan in bewilderment. She didn't know if she should put down her raised foot. She was the very picture of awkwardness!"Could you be sneaking out to find a way to save these two evil servants? Fake some evidence and witnesses to help them out of this predicament?" a pale-faced Ning Xueyan said coolly.Madam Dowager, who occupied the central seat, watched the middle-aged woman wear a guilty expression as if her intention had been uncovered. She turned livid with rage and flung the teacup in her hand at the woman's feet.The woman was so frightened that she trembled. With a loud thud, she kneeled down and tried to explain herself. "Fifth Miss, I'm just feeling the urge to go to the
"How can she not know who Lan Ning is?" Ning Xueyan thought, gripping her lapel.In her previous incarnation, Lanning was her close personal maid. Although Lanning was sent by Lord Protector's Manor to serve her, Ning Xueyan treated her well and they had a deep relationship.That night, however, Lanning wasn't there!"Maybe you don't know it, my lady." Qingyu said, "Lanning was the first class servant of Yunying courtyard. She had nowhere to stay after Lady Ziying left. She thought you might be a good master, so she begged me to ask you."Once, Qingyu was bullied by Xianghong and Miao'er, maids of the Second Young Miss, blocking the way to stop her moving. Lanning shouted that Madam Dowager had come, and the two bullies ran away. Besides, Lanning was nice to everyone. Most people in Lanning’s position would refuse to become a handmaid of the Fifth Young Miss, who was unfavored, But Lanning just wanted a master who would treat her w