The Double

Chapter 9: Private Matters

The group of madams and lords standing behind Madam Liu were first startled by her inexplicable words. Second Miss Jiang was, after all, a disgraced young lady who had poisoned her legal mother. Though she appeared pitiful, openly assisting her would mean opposing Ji Shuran. The Ji family of the Vice Metropolitan Inspector-General were currently favorites of the Hongxiao Emperor, and not just anyone could meddle in the household affairs of the Grand Secretary's family. Thus, everyone had intended to stand by and do nothing.

Who could have expected that after merely exchanging a few greetings with Madam Liu, Second Miss Jiang would prompt Madam Liu to immediately propose taking her back to Yanjing? She was even willing to offend the Ji family for a young lady she had only met a few times.

What was even more unexpected was that Second Miss Jiang refused.

Everyone was utterly astonished by Jiang Li's response, and Tong'er was secretly anxious. Madam Liu looked at her inquiringly and asked, "Why is that, Second Miss Jiang?"

Jiang Li smiled and replied, "My father sent me to the family temple to cultivate my character. Though it is difficult, it brings peace and health to the family. If I give up halfway, it would be a disrespect to the Bodhisattva. Moreover, my father has not yet sent for me to return. How could I take matters into my own hands?"

In her words, she made no mention of the past incident where she was punished for poisoning her legal mother. Instead, she only said she had been sent to cultivate her character and pray for the family's blessings. To others, it sounded as if Second Miss Jiang was avoiding the main issue, but to Madam Liu, it carried a deeper meaning.

Madam Liu had been close friends with Ye Zhenzhen for many years and knew her to be sincere and kind-hearted. She naturally did not believe that Ye Zhenzhen's daughter could be so malicious. However, when Jiang Li's incident occurred, Madam Liu had already had no contact with the Jiang family for years, and Jiang Li had been witnessed by many madams pushing Ji Shuran and causing her to miscarry. The evidence was irrefutable. Though Madam Liu did not believe it, there was nothing she could do.

Now, seeing her old friend's daughter being bullied here and appearing so gentle and pure-hearted, Madam Liu suddenly grew suspicious. Perhaps Jiang Li did not mention the past mistake because there had been no mistake at all. The accusation of poisoning her legal mother might have been merely a pretext, an excuse for someone to send her away and torment her at will.

Just listen to Jiang Li's last words: she would follow Jiang Yuanbai in everything. Yet, Jiang Yuanbai had probably never given this daughter a second thought!

Madam Liu felt a surge of anger. Then she saw Jiang Li look up at her with some confusion and ask, "Speaking of which, I wonder why you are here, Madam? And these..." She glanced at the group behind Madam Liu and asked, "Are they also here to offer incense? Usually, not many people come here to pray—they prefer the nearby Helin Temple. Besides, it's quite late now. Surely you esteemed madams and lords are not here just to offer incense?"

At these words, the expressions of those present shifted again. Madam Liu, however, suddenly seemed to realize something. After a moment of thoughtful silence, she said to Jiang Li, "This family temple is not a proper one. Since your father sent you here, he should have chosen a reputable family temple. Very well, since you are unwilling to leave with me, I will depart for Yanjing tomorrow. However, I believe your father will soon send for you to return."

Her words carried a clear implication.

Jiang Li seemed to understand, yet also seemed not to, and merely smiled as she said, "Then I thank you, Madam."Madam Liu continued, "But you needn't be so devout as to kneel in the Buddha hall at midnight. Justice resides in people's hearts, and if your heart is sincere, the Buddha will naturally see it. Yuxiang," she said to the maid beside her, "for the next few days, you shall stay here and take good care of Second Miss Jiang. With only one maid by her side, it might not be sufficient." She then looked at Jiang Li and added, "Second Miss Jiang, there's no need to decline. Your mother and I are old friends. Yuxiang is my personal maid and knows a bit of martial arts. With her by your side, I'll feel more at ease. Once you return to Yanjing, you can send Yuxiang back to me."

Even her personal maid was given to Jiang Li, which showed how much Madam Liu valued her. It also suggested that perhaps it wouldn't be long before Jiang Li could return to the Jiang family in Yanjing and resume her status as the young lady of the house.

Jiang Li thanked Madam Liu, who then settled down in the nunnery with the other ladies and young misses. Yuxiang indeed followed Jiang Li, and Jiang Li and Tong'er were moved to a more comfortable room typically occupied by other nuns. However, not a single nun was to be seen.

Taking advantage of Yuxiang stepping out to fetch water, Tong'er quietly asked Jiang Li, "Miss, what's going on? Why have all the nuns disappeared? And why are there so many people here now?"

Tong'er could roughly guess that this had something to do with Jiang Li, but she didn't know exactly what Jiang Li had done. Over the past days, Jiang Li had only asked her to feed the monkeys, but feeding monkeys couldn't possibly lead to all this commotion!

"Didn't I ask you to feed the monkeys?" Jiang Li said calmly. "The abbot of Helin Temple, Master Tongming, has a senior disciple named Liaowu who is involved with Jing An Shitai from our nunnery. They meet secretly in the back forest of Helin Temple on the nineteenth of every month. The monkeys on the mountain, having been fed pastries by you for over half a month, wait there every evening. Tonight is the nineteenth, and the monkeys went as usual, expecting you to feed them. When they saw Jing An and Liaowu, they mistook them for the feeders and approached them for food. The two, already guilty and nervous, were startled and likely made some noise, alerting the ladies. These ladies and young misses are all wealthy or noble—how could they tolerate such filthy deeds in a sacred Buddhist place? They would inevitably demand an explanation and have all the nuns in the nunnery arrested."

Tong'er was stunned and murmured, "How could this be...?" She then grew anxious again. "Such a secret matter—how did you find out about it, Miss?"

"I overheard it," Jiang Li replied, taking a sip of tea from the cup on the table. "Two young nuns were chatting, and I happened to hear them."

Tong'er was still incredulous. "This is too dreadful."

Jiang Li smiled faintly. Of course, she knew. Back when she was still Xue Fangfei, Princess Yongning had people administer medicinal soups daily, trying to drain her life away. Confined to her room and unable to leave, she overheard the servants speaking freely, as if she were already dead. That was how she learned that the place where Princess Yongning and Shen Yurong secretly met was a temple not far from Yanjing.

Those servants also gossiped about another secret: Liaowu from Helin Temple was actually a lecherous monk. He had defiled many women, not even sparing the nuns from the nearby nunnery. It was from Liaowu that Princess Yongning got the idea to meet Shen Yurong in a temple for their clandestine encounters.When she awoke as Second Miss Jiang and learned that Helin Temple was nearby, the first thing that came to her mind was this secret. At the very first sight of Jing An Shitai, Jiang Li knew that the nun must have a lover. A monastic, young and beautiful—if she had no lover, why would she use hair ointments and powders? Why would she adorn herself to be so fragrant?

After all, one dresses up for the one who appreciates them.

A complete plan formed in Jiang Li’s mind. Of course, this plan was not guaranteed to succeed. Perhaps the servant women hadn’t spoken the truth; perhaps Jing An Shitai’s lover wasn’t Liaowu; or perhaps when they met in secret, no exclamations were uttered. If any of these were the case, the whole scheme would come to nothing.

In that event, Jiang Li would have to find another way.

But her luck wouldn’t remain so poor forever—this time, by sheer coincidence, it worked.

Tong’er clasped her hands together: "Thank goodness you overheard their gossip, thank goodness you thought of this plan. Otherwise, how would you have met that Madam Liu? Perhaps it was all the doing of the flower demon—no, the flower immortal we saw tonight, ensuring that the wicked get their due!"

Flower immortal? Instantly, the face of the young man on the rooftop surfaced in Jiang Li’s mind.

"He’s no flower immortal," Jiang Li chuckled.

"He’s Duke Su."

Aha, wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day! May you all get to sleep with your crush every day~\（≧▽≦）/~

(End of Chapter)