Zhоu Chujin gave а disdаinful laugh and liftеd her gazе tо thе dооrwаy.
Mаdam Ma Fushan was standing guаrd оutside.
Lаnting’s heаrt tightеnеd, аnd she sаid urgеntlу, "Еldеst Miss, I didn’t liе to you. Тhе phуsician was аn acquаintancе оf thе mаstеr, mоst skillеd in treating wоmеn’s ailmеnts. Аftеrward, thе phуsiсian found it vеrу strangе. He said his рrescriptiоn wаs а familу heirloom, hаd nеvеr gonе wrоng bеfоrе, аnd he hаd nеver еncоuntered suсh a situаtiоn. Нe еvеn саlled in the midwife аnd the maidservants who wеre attending in thе room tо questiоn thеm, but he simрly couldn’t figure out what had gone wrong. When the physician left, he kept shaking his head, calling it ‘a strange affair.’"
Zhou Chujin said, "But that alone doesn’t prove there was anything wrong with the pot of water Xinlan brought, does it?"
"Yet not long after, I ran into Xinlan!" Lanting said. "The mistress’s health was poor, and the master devoted himself entirely to her, paying little attention to household matters. With the New Year approaching, the New Year’s provisions at home were not yet fully prepared. The senior maidservants took turns attending to the mistress in her room, while the experienced maidservants were either watching over Eldest Miss or Second Miss—especially Second Miss," she said, glancing at Zhou Shaojin. "She was born as tiny as a kitten, and it took two days before she had the strength to suckle. The master was torn between Second Miss and the mistress, while also finding time to check on Eldest Miss. He grew visibly thinner. The steward called upon us junior maidservants to help take inventory of the New Year’s provisions.
"I had learned to read under the mistress’s guidance and knew a bit of arithmetic, so the steward had me check the bills with the clerks at the goods store.
"The clerk’s handwriting was very messy. I had only recently learned to read, so while checking the bills, I had to ask the clerk from time to time what he had written.
"When I looked up, I saw Xinlan.
"She was wearing a silver-red embroidered robe. On her head was a large kingfisher-feather hairpin, and her ears were adorned with gold ginkgo leaf earrings. On her hands were three or four gold stirrup-shaped rings, glittering brilliantly, more splendidly adorned than the mistresses of ordinary households. However, she didn’t have a single maidservant or manservant with her.
"I called out to her right then.
"She seemed not to hear and went straight into the silver shop next to the general store.
"I originally thought of going over to greet her, but the inventory was only half done, and I was afraid of making a mistake, so I didn’t move. After I finished taking stock and was waiting there for the steward to come and load the cart, I saw Xinlan come out of the silver shop.
"She was accompanied by a man. He wore a blue scholar’s robe, and in the middle of winter, he only had a headscarf on. He looked about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, very thin and haggard.
"I asked the clerk in the store who the man was.
"The clerk told me it was Master Cheng Bai from Cunren Lane..."
Zhou Shaojin felt as if she couldn’t breathe.
She clutched her sleeve.
Zhou Chujin, however, frowned and said, "How did that clerk know Cheng Bai?"
Lanting said, "Cheng Bai had also opened a north-south goods store in the Taiping Street area at the time, and he had business dealings with the general store where we were shopping, so they knew each other."
Zhou Chujin nodded slightly.
Lanting continued, "I was very curious at the time.
"Didn’t Xinlan marry a cotton merchant? How did she get involved with Master Cheng from Cunren Lane? I also thought about the things she was wearing, which were worth at least twenty or thirty taels of silver. Just then, a manservant came over and said that two boats had collided outside Jiangdong Gate. The fish boats couldn’t enter the city for the time being, so the steward had to go to Jiangdong Gate to check. He told us to finish taking inventory and bring the goods back first.""I made an excuse that I wanted to go to the street to buy two new handkerchiefs for the New Year, handed the things over to the servant to load onto the cart, and quietly followed them.
"Xinlan and Cheng Bai twisted and turned through several alleys before stopping in a small lane. I heard Lanting say, 'I'm a woman all alone, staying in an inn. Respectable people think I'm here to seek relatives but have nowhere to go. Those lecherous men think I'm a woman of ill repute, knocking on my door in the middle of the night, scaring me so much I can't sleep all night. When can I follow you home? As the saying goes, whether rich or poor, marry a wife to celebrate the New Year. The New Year is almost here—you can't possibly let me spend it alone in an inn, can you?'
"Cheng Bai comforted her, saying, 'Soon, soon. Once I finish this busy period, I'll bring you home.' Then he took out a silver ingot and gave it to her, telling her to buy whatever she liked. He also said, 'Don't wander around during this time. Be careful not to let anyone suspicious notice anything.'
"At that time, I didn't know that the mistress had once been engaged, nor did I know who this Cheng Bai was. I thought Xinlan was being unfaithful, abandoning her husband to run off with this man. I looked down on her character and turned away.
"It was only later, when the mistress was on her deathbed, that Uncle Zhuang came to the house and caused a scene, saying the master had caused the mistress's death and demanding compensation. That's when I found out the mistress had once been engaged to Cheng Bai.
"But even then, I didn't connect the dots.
"I just thought Xinlan's actions were improper and had shamed the mistress.
"Even so, I was still curious about whether Xinlan eventually entered the Cheng family. If she really became Cheng Bai's concubine, would the mistress feel ashamed if she knew? I tried to find out more about Cheng Bai. That's when I learned that Cheng Bai had also fallen ill, and the Cheng family had no idea about Lanting's existence. Not long after, Cheng Bai also died, and the matter became even more obscure.
"I only had suspicions in my heart but didn't dare tell the master.
"For all these years, it has been like a burden on my heart. Whenever I think about it, I can't sleep or eat. If I hadn't met the eldest young lady this time, I would have taken this secret to my grave. Who would have thought I'd end up revealing it? It must be the mistress's spirit in heaven protecting the eldest and second young ladies, ensuring they aren't left in the dark and allowing her grievances to be redressed."
There had been no such scene in her previous life!
Was what Lanting said true or false?
Zhou Shaojin carefully considered Lanting's words.
Zhou Chujin sneered, "It seems you won't tell the truth unless we make things difficult for you. Madam Ma Fushan, bring in those two sturdy maids!"
Lanting's face paled, and she pleaded, "Eldest young lady, I've told you everything I know, not a single word is false. If you don't believe me, I can swear on my life!"
Madam Ma Fushan peeked into the room, saw the situation, and quickly withdrew.
"Fine!" Zhou Chujin stared at her with a piercing gaze and said, "Swear now. If you've concealed even a single word, may your sons be slaves for generations and your daughters prostitutes for generations."
Lanting stared at Zhou Shaojin in shock, her lips trembling as if her throat were blocked, but no sound came out.
"What? You don't dare!" Zhou Shaojin sneered and said, "Let me ask you: when you entered the household, Xinlan should have already been married off, right?""Yes!" Lanting nodded, her expression tinged with uncertainty and caution.
"Since that's the case, why did you ask the shop assistant who that man was when you saw Xinlan walking out of the silver shop with a stranger? Normally, wouldn't most people assume the man was Xinlan's husband?"
"I, I forgot to mention it to you," Lanting said, looking nervously at Zhou Chujin. "When she came to visit the mistress, she mentioned she had come alone..."
"Is that so?" Zhou Chujin replied. "If she came alone, wouldn't Mother have been curious about why she was by herself? Even if you were just a young maid and didn’t know what Mother and Xinlan discussed, wouldn’t it have been perfectly normal for Xinlan’s husband to come looking for her after such a long time?"
"She said at the time that her relationship with her husband was strained, so that’s why I..." Lanting hastily added.
"Lanting," Zhou Chujin coldly interrupted her. "You may not be tired, but I am. You’re hiding something, but it’s only because you want to bargain with me, to let you return to Baoding and stay by Father’s side. You’ve served Father for so many years—you should know his temperament better than anyone. Father respects Mother above all else. Do you realize what you’ve been saying in front of us today?"
Lanting’s eyes flickered, her face ashen as she slumped to the floor.
"No, no, no..." she shrieked sharply. "I didn’t say anything, I said nothing at all..."
Zhou Chujin had no intention of letting her off. She continued, "I only need to write a letter to Father, recounting everything you said today word for word. If what you said is true, you deliberately concealed it. Tell me, how would Father view you then? And how would he deal with you? If you were spreading rumors, fabricating stories about Mother’s life and death, do you think Father would still let you stay by his side? Would he treat you the same as before?"
These final words were the last straw. Lanting could no longer afford to scheme or worry about anything else. She murmured, "It won’t happen, it won’t. The master wouldn’t treat me that way... The master is the most loyal and righteous person in the world..."
Zhou Chujin and Zhou Shaojin listened, finding it utterly distasteful. Zhou Chujin simply called for Madam Ma Fushan to come in and said, "Fetch two buckets of river water and douse her to wake her up."
It was already mid-autumn. While well water was warm, river water was cold, and splashing it on someone carried a chill.
Madam Ma Fushan acknowledged the order and soon returned with two sturdy maids carrying water. Pointing at Lanting, she said, "Drench her!"
The two maids rolled up their sleeves and poured the water over Lanting.
Lanting shuddered from the cold and regained her senses.
Madam Ma Fushan immediately led the two maids out, carefully closing the door behind them.
"Speak!" Zhou Chujin said, looking at Lanting, who was drenched like a drowned rat and unable to even wipe the water from her face because she was tied up. "If you talk, I might be pleased enough to spare your life. But if you don’t, I’ll write to Father about this and let him deal with you." She then smiled and added, "However, I think Lady Li would be even more interested in you than Father. Perhaps I should write to Lady Li first, and then to Father..."
"No, you can’t do that!" Lanting screamed.Zhou Chujin stood up and said, "Then see if I can do this or not!"
"I'll talk, I'll talk!" Lanting immediately crumbled, weeping, "Miss, please spare me, I'll tell you where Xinlan is."
So this was Lanting's trump card?
Zhou Shaojin pondered.
※
Sisters, an extra update for cadyss!
PS: I've said before there's very little inner-house conflict in this book. Writing about Lanting is because it will lead to another matter, so please be patient.
o(n_n)o~
※ (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote to recommend it. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
!!
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