The last trace of sunset blended into the scattered clouds, rolling into the boundless red twilight. The sky darkened, and a cold wind blew from the lake, carrying the chill of a winter evening. Gu Rou suddenly shivered, feeling an inexplicable sense of foreboding.
She frowned slightly and instructed Ji Yunkou, “Your father seems to intend to arrange a marriage for you with that Young Master Chu. When he brings it up later, just agree and don’t argue to avoid angering him. Anyway, it will take a long time to finalize this engagement.”
Young Master Chu was Ji Chongwang’s prized student. Ji Yunkou replied sullenly, “I understand.”
Gu Rou exhaled softly, her lips curving into a gentle smile before she pushed open the door. However, upon seeing Lin Chan, she paused for a moment, sensing something was wrong, then smiled and said, “Madam… you are here too.”
Ji Yunkou followed, respectfully calling out, “Mother.”
Lin Chan stood beside Ji Chongwang, her expression controlled but grim, her lips trembling as she forcefully threw a stack of bills, coldly saying, “Yiniang Gu, you are usually eloquent. Let’s see how you explain this now!”
Gu Rou’s pupils contracted, her smile almost instantly vanishing.
These were the usury bills she had issued.
According to the laws of the current dynasty, usury was strictly prohibited, especially after the former emperor ordered a severe crackdown by all government offices. This made the matter even more taboo. However, it wasn’t entirely eradicated. If thoroughly investigated, half of the aristocratic families in the capital would be implicated.
But Ji Chongwang was different; he was someone who cherished his reputation the most. Cautious and prudent in his official duties, he had never given anyone a handle to use against him. How could he tolerate a mere concubine in his inner courtyard risking his reputation?
What right did she have? Just because Ji Chongwang was willing to drink a few more cups of tea in her courtyard?
Gu Rou was very self-aware. Just as Ji Yunkou picked up the papers in a daze, not understanding what they were, Gu Rou knelt down with a thud, immediately showing remorse and crying in panic, “Master, Master, it was a moment of madness, it’s all my fault. But it was just this once, please forgive me…”
Ji Yunkou finally understood the content of those black and white papers, and she panicked too. She didn’t know that Gu Rou was secretly issuing usury loans, using the Ji household’s name.
She took a deep breath and was about to plead for mercy when Lin Chan let out a cold laugh.
Lin Chan stared at her, “Where is the money you collected?”
The money…
Of course, it was used to hire a killer.
Caught off guard by Lin Chan’s discovery, Gu Rou had no prepared excuse. After a moment of shock, she thought of using her elder brother as a scapegoat, but just as she was organizing her words, someone in the partition behind the bookshelf was pushed out with a “bang.”
Who else could it be but Sun Zhixing?!
He was Nanny Sun’s nephew, a loafer who had some influence in the underworld. All those shady dealings were done through him, as instructed by Nanny Sun.
At this moment, the loafer hung his head, looking at Yiniang Gu with extreme guilt.
When it came to hiring someone to harm the children of the household, usury was a minor issue.
Seeing Sun Zhixing, Gu Rou’s heart turned half cold. Instinctively, she wanted to defend herself, but when she looked at Ji Chongwang’s cold, indifferent eyes, her arguments stuck in her throat, and she couldn’t utter a single word.
Ji Chongwang had eyes that were almost indifferent to the point of coldness. His pupils were calm and black, his lips pressed flat. His emotions were not easily visible, but that didn’t mean he was unaffected.
Having navigated the political arena for twenty years, he had seen countless conflicts. How could he not see through her feeble defense?
If he knew that she had harmed Ji Yuyao to arrange a marriage between Kou’er and Huo Xian, given Ji Chongwang’s temperament, he would probably sell her off in a fit of rage.
This was the sorrow of being a concubine—her fate was entirely in the hands of the master’s family.
Gu Rou clenched her fists, trying to find a comprehensive excuse to minimize the damage. Just as she was about to speak, Lin Chan angrily exclaimed, “How dare you! How dare you harm Xian’er!”
Gu Rou was stunned. It took her a moment to understand why Lin Chan was so agitated. If it was for Ji Yuyao, Lin Chan wouldn’t be so emotionally invested. It turned out Lin Chan thought she was targeting Ji Xianyu this time.
No wonder she was making such a big fuss.
Ji Yunkou immediately tried to argue, “No, Mother, my mother wasn’t trying to—”
“Stop talking!” Gu Rou quickly interrupted her, trembling as she said, “I was blinded by resentment, holding grudges over minor quarrels with Madam, and in a moment of imbalance, committed a grave mistake. Kou’er is still young and knows nothing. Punish me, but spare her!”
Lin Chan laughed in anger. Even in this dire situation, she tried to shift half the blame onto her!
Lin Chan said, “Didn’t you think the master’s intention to marry Yun Kou to Young Master Chu was instigated by me? Don’t think I don’t know. That day, your precious daughter even questioned Yao’er about it!”
Hearing this, Ji Yunkou shook her head repeatedly, her face turning pale.
Lin Chan glanced at Ji Chongwang and said sarcastically, “Isn’t it because you think that Young Master Chu, coming from a poor family with nothing, is unworthy of your precious daughter?”
Ji Chongwang himself was from a humble background.
Sure enough, Ji Chongwang’s eyelids twitched. He disliked anyone mentioning that period of his life. He slapped the table and said, “Enough!”
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, the weariness of days of toil showing on his face. These internal squabbles were a constant annoyance. He frowned and said, “There is an estate in the suburbs of the capital. Move there to avoid influencing Kou’er with your crooked ways. Xun’er will stay with Madam and have nothing to do with you.”
Gu Rou felt her heart sink, but she knew this was the best outcome. She bit her lip and said, “Yes, thank you, Master. I will reflect on my mistakes at the other estate.”
Lin Chan was not satisfied with this outcome. Everyone knew that if weeds were not uprooted, they would grow again with the spring wind. Although Xun’er was only two years old, raising him could foster a mother-son bond. But he was still Gu Rou’s child. When he grew up, he might want to bring his birth mother back to the house.
Lin Chan did not want such a hidden danger to remain. She said, “For committing such a heinous act against the legitimate daughter, even reporting her to the authorities would result in a prison sentence. Sending her to reflect at the other estate is too lenient. I think selling her off would be the cleanest solution.”
Ji Chongwang sipped his tea, feeling a headache coming on. “Do you still think the matter isn’t big enough, wanting to make it a public scandal and invite ridicule?”
Lin Chan, stifling her words, thought to herself, “Fine, even if she goes to the other estate, there are ways to ensure Gu Rou suffers for the rest of her life!”
Thus, the matter was quietly settled. Given Ji Chongwang’s temperament, family scandals were not to be aired publicly. If this scandal spread, involving usury and hiring a killer, it would lead to lawsuits. He was already entangled with Huo Xian and other troubles. More scandals would only invite further scrutiny and potential upheaval. Consequently, only those present knew the truth about Gu Rou. Officially, it was said that the concubine had contracted a serious illness and was sent to the other estate overnight. As for the second young lady crying inconsolably in her room, it was merely out of concern for her mother.
The Ji household seemed to have returned to its former peaceful state.
Biwu, chatting idly, remarked, “Yiniang Gu hasn’t stepped out of the inner courtyard. I wonder what serious illness she has… I heard the second young lady fainted twice from crying. Could the illness be that severe?”
Ji Yuluo, without lifting her head, responded, “Who knows.”
The young girl was focused on embroidering a pouch she intended to give her husband on their wedding day. She appeared exceptionally serious, her needlework seemingly skillful at first glance. However, upon closer inspection, the embroidered pattern of two indistinct flowers or koi fish prompted Biwu to frown deeply.
In her memory, her young mistress, though not formally trained like others, excelled in all the arts, including musical instruments, chess, calligraphy, painting, and particularly needlework.
In the past, when they lived in the secluded corner of the estate, they often relied on the money earned from selling the scented sachets the young mistress embroidered.
But this piece…
However, Biwu quickly understood. Counting on her fingers, she realized the wedding day was less than half a month away. The training nanny had been rigorously instructing and training her. Just a few days ago, the nanny had made the young mistress stand for hours with a bowl on her head in the corridor. Yet, when the young mistress produced such an unsightly piece of embroidery, the nanny had stopped making her stand and switched to extra needlework practice instead.
Sitting and embroidering was far better than standing in the sun!
Thinking this, Biwu concluded that Ji Yuluo was intentionally embroidering poorly on purpose.
But it was so naturally bad that it almost fooled her.
As Biwu stared, she couldn’t help but voice her thoughts. Unexpectedly, the person in front of her paused, her hands stopping. Ji Yuluo looked up at her with a smile, “Are the pastries ready?”
That smile, when seen for a long time, made one’s scalp tingle a bit. Biwu dazedly responded, “Yes, I’ll go check the kitchen…”
Interestingly, the young mistress had a good appetite recently, asking the kitchen for an extra plate of pastries every day. Fortunately, with the third young lady around, it wasn’t difficult.
After Biwu left, Ji Yuluo discarded the needle and thread, her gaze falling on the embroidered pouch with a strange expression. Then she gently furrowed her brows and glanced at the scattered red silk around her.
She would soon be leaving the Ji household.
Some things must be done before it’s too late.
Outside, dark clouds gathered, and the light at the horizon fluctuated, sometimes bright, sometimes dim, before finally being swallowed by the lingering clouds. The temperature dropped sharply, as if it were about to rain.
Chaolu had already filled her stomach, leaving crumbs of pastries all over the table. She lay on the table, bored, with her head propped up. Ji Yuluo spread out a sheet of letter paper and quickly wrote a few lines before folding it and placing it in an envelope, which she handed to Chaolu. “Place this letter on Lin Chan’s bedside after one incense stick’s time—then prepare a horse for me.”
Chaolu followed her instructions, squatting under the eaves for a while. When Lin Chan was coaxing young Xun’er to sleep, she slipped the letter in.
Lin Chan had been in high spirits these past few days, arguably the happiest she had been in over a decade. She was even unusually patient with young Xun’er, who was not her own son.
With a spring in her step, she returned to her inner chamber, where Nanny Wan helped her remove her shoes and socks. It was then that Lin Chan noticed the letter.
“Where did this come from…” Lin Chan’s face changed dramatically upon reading it, her fingers instinctively crumpling the edges of the paper. “Gu Rou… how could she know about this?!”
