Chapter 292: The Inside Story
Anxin smiled and said, "Ninth Master said we must handle the matter you entrusted us with properly. So I came up with this idea."
"It's been years, but Anxin has grown quite capable!" Fu Tingyun praised.
Anxin scratched his head sheepishly.
"Then go attend to your tasks," Fu Tingyun said with a smile. "Let me know if anything comes up."
Anxin responded with an "Aye," bowed, and withdrew.
A few days later, he returned to report to Fu Tingyun: "Miss Min's father was ultimately sentenced to immediate execution, carried out after autumn. Seeing her father gone just like that, Miss Min was utterly heartbroken and cried herself into a severe illness. Since there was no one left in the Min family to take charge, Yu Jingxiu sent Cheng Xin to help Miss Min arrange her father's funeral."
Fu Tingyun was taken aback and mused, "If Miss Min's father has already passed, why is she still hiring kitchen help in Needlemaker Alley? It doesn’t seem like she’s preparing to escort the coffin back to her hometown—more like settling down to live there."
Anxin replied, "According to the kitchen maid, after Miss Min's father died, Yu Jingxiu sent someone to inform her mother. But it turned out her mother had already passed away in mid-July from constant fear and distress, and her younger brother went missing after their mother's death. Miss Min suspects her mother and brother were harmed by the Min clan and dares not return. She begged Yu Jingxiu for help. He agreed to investigate the matter for her and, seeing how gaunt she had become from grief and sleeplessness, took it upon himself to hire a kitchen maid to help Miss Min recuperate."
Fu Tingyun frowned. "So, does this mean Miss Min has no intention of returning to her hometown?"
"Most likely not," Anxin said cautiously. "I found out that Yu Jingxiu helped Miss Min temporarily place Minister Min's coffin in the Fire God Temple outside Di'anmen, with incense offerings paid for three years. Cheng Xin has gone to Miss Min’s hometown—from the sound of it, he plans to have her mother properly buried first. Once the matter of her missing brother is resolved, Minister Min’s coffin will be sent back to be buried alongside her mother."
Fu Tingyun found this rather odd. "Even if Minister Min had no close relatives within the five degrees of mourning, surely there must be someone in the Min clan willing to step forward? Minister Min was a Presented Scholar who brought honor to the family. How can the clan act this way without fearing condemnation from their neighbors?"
Anxin chuckled. "I’ve already sent someone to investigate the matter in Miss Min’s hometown. We should have news in ten days or so."
Fu Tingyun nodded and later confided in Yu Wei, "If Miss Min has been reduced to relying on Yu Jingxiu’s charity, it shows this lawsuit has left her family destitute. But if her mother and brother were harmed by the clan, there must be a reason, right?"
"Who can say for sure when it comes to clan matters?" Yu Wei sighed. "Take our own master, for example. The way the Dowager died was so unjust, yet could he speak a word of protest? Not only could he not, but he was also branded as ruthless and vindictive. Isn’t that unfair?"
Fu Tingyun let out a long sigh. "Let’s see if Anxin can uncover anything.""No need for Anxin to investigate, I already know this Miss Min is no good," Yu Wei curled her lips in disdain. "With both parents deceased and her only brother missing, yet she can stay comfortably in the capital—what a cold-hearted woman..." Her gaze shifted as she added with a smile, "But she and that Yu Jingxiu would make a perfect pair."
Fu Tingyun couldn't help but smile, thinking of Zhao Ling.
Her heart instantly swelled with sweetness, making her unwilling to dwell on such messy matters. She inquired about the fabric at home: "If I remember correctly, Shopkeeper Ye San sent several bolts of bright red cotton during the Dragon Boat Festival. Find them for me—I want to make Ninth Master a robe. He should be sending a letter soon, and we can have it delivered to Guizhou for him to wear during New Year's."
Yu Wei cheerfully agreed and retrieved the red cotton. Fu Tingyun measured, cut, and personally began sewing New Year's clothes for Zhao Ling.
Before the clothes were finished, Zhao Ling's letter arrived, along with two trunks delivered by a clerk from the Right Military Governor's Office. The clerk, a man in his thirties polished by years of bureaucratic service, chattered animatedly with the Zhao household servants as Yue Chuan and Baoshu carried the trunks inside: "...Lord Zhao executed all captured bandits except one, whom he released to deliver a message to their leader: 'I will come to kill you at the second watch tonight.' That night at the appointed hour, horns blared and cannons fired—the bandits fled in terror, leaving behind countless weapons and armor. Now in Guizhou, bandits scatter at the mere mention of Lord Zhao's name, while common folk weep with gratitude at hearing it." His tale stirred such pride in Zheng San and others that they upgraded the clerk's Biluochun Tea to premium West Lake Longjing.
Fu Tingyun smiled knowingly when she heard.
Yu Wei, sorting through the trunks, also glowed with pride. "What should we do with these furs Ninth Master sent?" she asked.
"Store the tiger skin for his study when he returns," Fu Tingyun replied. "The gray squirrel fur can make a coat for Daoist An."
Yu Wei hesitated in surprise. "But what about the young mistress and young master...?"
"The children are still young and energetic—thick cotton jackets will suffice. Daoist An, being elderly, feels the cold more keenly," Fu Tingyun explained. "We'll make fur coats for Youyou and the others when suitable pelts come along later." She then instructed Yu Wei to categorize the tea and medicinal herbs Zhao Ling had sent: "Since Ninth Master is in Guizhou, it's only proper to send local specialties as seasonal gifts."
Yu Wei acknowledged with a smile.
Anxin requested an audience.
Fu Tingyun had Zhenzhu bring him in, remarking with amusement, "I feel like I'm watching a play."
"Exactly what it is," Anxin grinned.
Chuckling, Fu Tingyun dismissed her attendants and asked, "What's happened over there?""We've looked into it," Anxin said softly. "After that Lord Min passed the Presented Scholar exams, he helped his clan dispute land with a wealthy family from a neighboring village. Later, when Lord Min met with misfortune, the Min family had no one left who could stand up to that wealthy household. The rich family then incited some idle troublemakers from the Min clan to harass Madam Min, which caused her to fall gravely ill from distress. Miss Min's younger brother disappeared during the chaos when the Min family was helping prepare Madam Min's funeral. There were rumors that the boy had been abducted and sold. Yu Jingxiu knew about this too—he specifically told Cheng Xin not to mention it to Miss Min. In front of her, he only said Madam Min had passed from illness and her brother was missing. He even asked Lord Jiang, the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Shandong, to help search for the boy."
Fu Tingyun was stunned. "He actually asked a colleague to help Miss Min find her brother?"
"Yes!" Anxin replied. "I heard Lord Jiang assigned Vice Commissioner Pei of Shandong to handle it, and that Pei is notorious for being a gossip..."
Fu Tingyun couldn't help but laugh. "Any other details?"
"That's all we've uncovered for now," Anxin said. "If we learn more, I'll report to you immediately."
Fu Tingyun nodded, though privately she wondered whether Madam Yu had noticed all this commotion.
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Like any mother, Madam Yu had loosened her grip after her son achieved the top honors in the imperial exams, secured a bright future, and married. By the time she heard about him helping Miss Min search for her brother, it was already March of the following year.
Trembling with anger, she summoned Fan Shi and demanded, "...Did you know about this?"
Fan Shi was utterly dumbfounded.
After their argument over the Needlemaker Alley incident, they hadn't spoken for two whole months until Yu Jingxiu finally relented. She thought the matter had blown over, never imagining he was still involved with that place.
Madam Yu realized from Fan Shi's expression that she'd asked the wrong person.
Her lips quivered silently for a long moment, too disappointed and disheartened to speak. With a wave, she dismissed Fan Shi and slumped against the large bolster pillow, even her appetite gone.
Housekeeper Shu grew anxious and tentatively suggested, "Shall we call Consort Fei to ask?"
Madam Yu scoffed. "That troublemaker."
After Fan Shi fell ill with heart palpitations, Madam Yu had confined Fei Shi to her quarters to copy Buddhist scriptures, assigning Consort Wu to attend to Fan Shi instead. Consort Wu's gentle and cautious nature gradually thawed Fan Shi's former coldness and distance toward her.
"At least she'd know more than the clueless young madam," Housekeeper Shu argued, finding Fei Shi far more straightforward than Fan Shi. "The young master occasionally speaks with Consort Fei."
After a brief hesitation, Madam Yu gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Housekeeper Shu immediately summoned Consort Fei.
When questioned about Miss Min, Consort Fei answered frankly, "The young master mentioned to me—"
Before she could finish, Madam Yu's teacup smashed against her, leaving tea leaves strewn across her skirt.
"Please calm your anger, madam," Fei Shi said without a trace of panic, offering a resigned smile. "These days, with Consort Wu attending the young madam during her illness, I rarely see her. I could only relay this to Consort Wu and ask her to pass the message along..."It actually involved Consort Wu!
A flicker of surprise flashed through Madam Yu's eyes. Though she understood that Fei Shi was clearly trying to divert the blame, the fury in her heart made it impossible for her to control her emotions.
"Summon Consort Wu here," she ordered Housekeeper Shu sternly, her temples throbbing.
Housekeeper Shu didn’t dare delay and immediately called for Consort Wu.
Consort Wu, however, looked utterly bewildered. "The mistress already knows about this! She and the master even had a fight over it earlier." As she spoke, she cast a puzzled glance at Fei Shi and added, "Earlier, Consort Fei even advised the mistress, saying the master was acting chivalrously... That’s why I didn’t say anything more to the mistress."
One was too dull, the other too cunning.
Madam Yu stared at the two women before her, her head splitting with pain, and could only wave them away in frustration. "You may leave."
Consort Wu curtsied and withdrew, but after performing her own curtsy, Fei Shi bit her lip and remained standing, looking hesitant.
Madam Yu felt nothing but disgust rising in her chest, her expression turning even colder.
Suddenly, Fei Shi knelt down, gazing up at Madam Yu with earnest eyes. "Madam, please hear me out for a moment."
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Updates these days will be irregular, so bear with me for now!
PS: Earlier, I hit a writing block—not because I didn’t know what to write, but because I had to reel in what I’d already put out. I felt like I couldn’t bring it to a satisfying point and was quite anxious, unsure how to resolve it... I hope the ending of this story will show some improvement.
O(∩_∩)O~
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(End of Chapter)
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