Chapter 64: Confirmation
Jinchao returned to Paulownia Courtyard to find Yuzhu still sitting on the stone stool beneath the grapevines, gazing longingly at the clusters of green grapes overhead.
She called Yuzhu over and said, "...Father's birthday is approaching soon. I’m not sure if the Affairs Office has everything prepared. Why don’t you come with me to check? We can also see if there are any servants or maids you recognize there."
Yuzhu found this odd. "Miss, you know I was always in the attendants' quarters before coming to serve you. I don’t know anyone from the Affairs Office."
Jinchao smiled faintly. "You’ll recognize them once you see them."
She changed into a sapphire-blue jacket with ruyi patterns and set off for the Affairs Office with Yuzhu, Qingpu, and Mama Xu in tow. Mama Xu didn’t understand what Jinchao was up to and glanced at Yuzhu—this little maid, around eleven or twelve years old, had a round face and didn’t appear particularly sharp, though her eyes were quite lively.
Qingpu remained silent, but she understood perfectly. The Eldest Miss was taking Yuzhu to the Affairs Office to see if the person who had secretly met with Yu Xiang was from there. If that were the case, then the rhubarb in Madam’s medicine must have been added under Song Yiniang’s orders.
The Affairs Office was located in the side rooms on the southern side of the outer courtyard, just a short walk beyond the festooned gate.
Normally, the Affairs Office handled social receptions and arranged household events. The steward, Steward Sun, had once been a tea merchant but turned to service in the Gu household after his business failed. He was someone Father held in high regard.
Steward Sun, dressed in a slate-blue straight robe, looked quite spirited.
"...What a rare visit from the Eldest Miss! The master’s birthday is still over ten days away. I’ve only just started preparing the guest list and procurement menu," Steward Sun said with a smile, though inwardly, he found it strange. The Eldest Miss never involved herself with the Affairs Office, and the birthday was still far off. Even when matters involved the inner courtyard, it was usually Song Yiniang who handled them. Why had the Eldest Miss come here personally?
Jinchao took a seat in the Grand Preceptor’s chair and replied with a smile, "I’m just here on Mother’s behalf. She’s always particularly attentive to Father’s affairs. By the way, I also need to ask on her behalf—her usual medicinal herbs have run out. Has Liu Daifu delivered a new batch?"
Steward Sun was even more puzzled. Hadn’t she just summoned Liu Daifu today? Why not ask him directly? Still, he maintained his smile. "I’m afraid I don’t know about that. Luo Liu usually handles such matters. Let me call him for you..." With that, he went to the back to summon him.
Yuzhu glanced around and whispered to Jinchao, "Miss, I truly don’t know anyone here..."
Jinchao merely smiled without responding. When Luo Liu lifted the curtain and entered, he first bowed to Jinchao before saying, "This servant reports to the Eldest Miss. Liu Daifu’s medicines are usually delivered at the beginning and middle of each month. It might still be a few days before the next delivery."
Yuzhu stared at the servant, dumbfounded.
A single glance at Yuzhu’s expression told Jinchao all she needed to know. When Steward Sun returned, she took her leave. "...Please inform Song Yiniang that I came today to inquire about Mother’s medicine."
As she stepped out of the Affairs Office, Yuzhu hurried after her. "Miss! That’s the one! That’s the man who met with Yu Xiang in secret! How did you know he was here?"Jinchao said coldly, "He wasn't just having a secret rendezvous with Yu Xiang—he was doing something far more significant!" Concubine Song was colluding with the outer courtyard to harm Mother.
Her audacity knew no bounds. To secure the position of the legitimate wife, she had exhausted all means!
Mama Xu hurriedly pulled Qingpu aside to ask what had happened. Qingpu recounted everything Yuzhu had witnessed to Mama Xu, who was utterly shocked: "...Although we knew Concubine Song was two-faced toward Madam, we never imagined she would actually try to kill her! How vicious! Then... what does the Eldest Miss plan to do?"
Jinchao fell silent for a moment. If she hadn't seen with her own eyes Concubine Song instructing Luo Liu to add the medicine, she wouldn't have believed it either.
If she reported this to Father, without solid evidence, Concubine Song's silver tongue would easily shift the blame onto her, accusing her of false accusations. How had Yuzhu discovered Yu Xiang and Luo Liu meeting in secret? Yuzhu was also her own maid—would Father even believe Yuzhu's words? And Mother had been taking rhubarb for over half a year—why had they only discovered it now?
Though Father was angry with Gu Lan, he still trusted Concubine Song. At the very least, he had allowed her to continue managing the inner household, which showed how much he valued past affections.
After some thought, Jinchao went to Mother's quarters, wrapped a piece of rhubarb in a handkerchief, and took it to the Waterside Pavilion.
Steward Sun had just left moments before.
Since Concubine Song managed the inner household, Steward Sun held her in high regard and relayed every detail of Gu Jinchao's visit and her instructions to Concubine Song without omission. Concubine Song was astonished. After Steward Sun left, she murmured to Qiaowei, "Our Eldest Miss is truly remarkable—she even discovered the rhubarb..."
Qiaowei was uneasy. "Madam, do you think the Eldest Miss will report this to the Master?"
Concubine Song pondered for a long while before slowly shaking her head. "...She isn't that foolish."
A month after Madam Ji fell ill, she had begun adding rhubarb to her medicinal cuisine. If not for Gu Jinchao, Madam Ji would likely have died long ago from excessive rhubarb consumption. It had always been Yu Xiang who communicated with the servants in the Affairs Office, and Yu Xiang was utterly loyal to her—she wouldn't breathe a word.
Without evidence, Gu Jinchao wouldn't dare bring this to Gu Dezhao.
A young maid outside the door announced through the curtain, "Madam, the Eldest Miss is coming this way. She's walking very quickly—the maids couldn't stop her..."
Song Miaohua straightened her collar and sneered. "Why stop her? Show her to the parlor!"
Jinchao had already overheard Song Miaohua's words from outside.
As she walked beneath the corridor, the maid stammered, "Eldest Miss, please... please proceed to the parlor..."
"Step aside! How dare you block the Eldest Miss's path!" Caifu scolded her in a low voice, and the maid immediately fell silent.
Jinchao lifted the bamboo curtain painted with the Three Friends of Winter and entered the western chamber. There was no screen inside, and Concubine Song sat by the window on the heated kang, looking toward her.
"Eldest Miss, what brings you here in person?" Concubine Song said with a smile, then instructed Qiaowei to bring a brocade stool for her.
Jinchao walked up to her, recalling how she had seen Steward Sun hurrying away earlier. She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Madam, you truly have nerves of steel. Even with your scheme exposed, you remain unruffled. If Lan Er had even half your cunning, she wouldn't have ended up in such a miserable state that day!"
Concubine Song's expression stiffened momentarily before she feigned confusion. "Eldest Miss, what are you talking about? I don't understand.""Wouldn't it be clear if you just looked at this!" Jinchao threw the rhubarb wrapped in an embroidered handkerchief onto the small table.
Concubine Song glanced at the corner of the exposed rhubarb without even lifting a finger. She raised her eyes lazily and said, "What is this? The more Eldest Miss speaks, the more confused I become. If you're here to trouble me, sit down and take your time. If not, please leave."
Qiaowei brought over a stool, and Jinchao smiled, saying, "Of course, I'm here to trouble you, Concubine. Otherwise, I wouldn’t bother stepping foot in this place."
She wasn’t in a hurry either. After sitting down, she continued, "Your maid, Yu Xiang... today, she secretly met with a servant boy by the rockery near the hanging flower gate. My maid happened to pass by and saw them—so affectionate, whispering sweet nothings. I took that maid to the Affairs Office today, and guess what, Concubine? The servant boy meeting Yu Xiang was none other than Luo Liu, the one who collects medicine for Mother!"
"And today, I just happened to find rhubarb in Mother’s medicine. This herb is cold in nature—Mother absolutely cannot take it. So, how did this rhubarb get there? Could it be that you, wanting to become the rightful wife, or perhaps Lan Er wanting to be the legitimate daughter, 'accidentally' put it in?"
Concubine Song’s expression shifted slightly.
She had thought Gu Jinzhao had merely discovered the rhubarb and suspected her involvement. But now, it seemed she was already convinced it was her doing! Yu Xiang always met Luo Liu in the Weeping Willow Grove—how could a passing maid have stumbled upon them? Could it be that Gu Jinzhao had been keeping watch over the Waterside Pavilion all along?
Song Miaohua quickly steadied herself and sneered, "Eldest Miss can call black white and white black as she pleases. If you point to your maid and have her claim she saw my maid committing adultery with Luo Liu, wouldn’t I have no choice but to accept it? You take me for too much of a pushover! If I pointed to one of my maids and accused your Qingpu of adultery with some servant boy, wouldn’t she also be condemned and driven out of the household?"
Yuzhu, hearing this, flared up in anger. "How can you say such things, Concubine! What I saw was true—Yu Xiang and Luo Liu met in the Weeping Willow Grove! How dare you slander Qingpu-jie like this! It must have been you who ordered Yu Xiang to harm Madam—otherwise, how did the rhubarb end up in her medicine?"
Song Miaohua shot her a cold glare. "This maid has no manners—it seems Eldest Miss hasn’t taught her well! Qiaowei, teach her a lesson on Eldest Miss’s behalf."
Qiaowei stepped forward, raising her hand to strike, but Qingpu immediately seized her wrist. Qiaowei tried to pull back, but Qingpu’s grip was unyielding, leaving her unable to move. Her face twisted in discomfort—she hadn’t expected Qingpu to be so strong, her fingers crushing Qiaowei’s bones painfully!
Yuzhu fell silent and retreated behind Jinchao, who patted her hand reassuringly before fixing Song Miaohua with an icy stare. "My maids are not yours to discipline, Concubine. Have you forgotten your place? Where is the respect for hierarchy?"
No matter how formidable Concubine Song was, in name, she was merely a concubine. Gu Jinzhao was the legitimate eldest daughter—how dare she presume to punish Yuzhu in front of her?
Staring at Gu Jinzhao’s frosty expression and Qingpu’s unwavering stance, Concubine Song felt a surge of frustration. In the past, Gu Jinzhao had never flaunted her status to bully her like this. Now, she seemed to have thrown all caution to the wind—even using hierarchy to suppress her!Concubine Song slowly stepped down from the kang and bowed to Jinchao, saying, "Eldest Miss, please forgive me, it was my fault. But no matter how you use status to pressure me, what I didn't do, I truly didn't do. No matter how harsh you are, you can't force a confession through torture... Besides, I've always served Madam with utmost dedication, and she has treated me extremely well. Why would I poison her? You must think carefully about this."
Yuzhu and Caifu were so furious at her innocent expression that their fingertips trembled with anger.
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