Chapter 36 Fermentation

Li Qu was woken up by Granny Xu at noon, as usual.

"Auntie, sleeping too much can cause insomnia at night. Get up and eat something to warm your stomach."

Li Qu's blurry vision gradually cleared, landing on Xu Mama's hands, which were wrapped like rice dumplings.

She sat up and took Xu Mama's hands with a guilty expression: "Why did you have to take such a risk, Mama?"

Xu Mama laughed nonchalantly: "This old servant is watching. The sword has been held back; it won't kill anyone."

"What did the doctor say?"

"I cut my palm, but the bone isn't broken. It's nothing serious, it'll heal in a few days. Now this old servant can't use the toilet without a hand."

Li Qu couldn't help but laugh.

There was still some ointment left from what the Second Madam had given her, and Li Qu gave it all to Granny Xu.

Li Qu sincerely advised, "Granny, you should rest and recuperate for a while."

Xu Mama refused to take sick leave: "This old servant may not be able to use her hands, but she can still use her mouth. She will definitely not cause any trouble for the concubine."

Having no other choice, Li Qu took some things that Granny Xu needed from her small storeroom and gave them to her: "I have no way to repay Granny's kindness in protecting me."

Xu Mama did not refuse and sincerely advised, "Your status is special and you have lost your chastity. You should settle down and be good to Third Master from now on."

They were all from noble and aristocratic families, and the rules and regulations within their residences were largely the same.

If my aunt is captured by that prince from Yan, her fate will surely be tragic.

Concubine...

The runaway concubine...

This is a dead end!

Li Qu was well aware of this.

Ruohe Prefecture is a prison for her.

For her, Yan was a death trap.

Her only chance of survival now is to keep Zhou Jin calm.

Li Qu got up and washed up.

Cold water, along with the contraceptive pill, rolled down her throat. After changing her clothes and dressing, she ordered the meal to be served.

Lunch was an unprecedentedly lavish meal, consisting of six hot dishes, six cold dishes, one soup, and three snacks.

Li Qu barely dared to pick up her chopsticks.

Xu Mama saw through Li Qu's thoughts and picked up her chopsticks to let Li Qu taste the food, but Li Qu stopped her.

She chewed slowly, bite by bite. Only after finishing did she feel relieved, her head neither spinning nor her mind racing.

Li Qu had her doubts, but Granny Xu saw through them.

Everyone in the household could see that the Third Master had truly fallen for his concubine, and no one dared to be negligent in the slightest.

After finishing her meal, Li Qu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She thought the crisis should be over, but in the afternoon, Li Qu asked Cui Guo to find her brother in the outer courtyard to deliver a message to Jishui Lane, only to find that the matter was still escalating.

At that moment, she was lamenting the glass epiphyllum ornament that Zhou Jin had given her the night before, and she broke off a lifelike stamen.

"What a pity."

The glassware has been moved to the Eight Immortals table in the main hall.

Li Qu sat in the main chair, tilted her head to look at the glass on the table, then at the broken flower stamen in her hand, and frowned as she pondered how to restore it to its original state.

Cuiguo rushed in and reported, "Auntie, the Li family in Jishui Lane has been sealed off."

"Hmm?" Li Qu looked up: "What do you mean?"

Cuiguo was slightly out of breath.

As soon as she received the news, she ran from the outer courtyard to the inner courtyard without stopping.

“My brother said that when he took my aunt’s letter to Jishui Lane, the Li family’s gate had already been sealed by the yamen.”

He knocked on the door and asked the neighbors, but none of them dared to utter a word.

Li Qu slowly stood up: "What about the shop?"

Cui Guo shook her head vigorously: "No, the shop has been sealed off too."

Li Qu swayed, almost dropping the glass in her hand.

"Auntie!" Xu Mama subconsciously raised her hand, which was wrapped up like a rice dumpling, to help Li Qu, but Li Qu noticed and raised her hand to stop her: "Mama, watch your hand."

She forced down her increasingly anxious heartbeat: "Hongguo, get some silver."

Hongguo quickly went to the inner room where the money was kept to get the silver.

"Cuiguo, secretly have your brother go and inquire around the Li family and the shop again. Offer him a large bribe, and someone will surely speak up."

Hongguo handed the silver to Cuiguo, who curtsied and quickly took her leave to attend to her business.

"Hongguo, you should also take some silver and go to Jinxiutang in a big way to bribe people and inquire about things, including asking all the people that Third Master uses in the outer courtyard."

Hongguo turned around, took the silver, and went to do her business.

As Xu Mama saw Hongguo off into the distance, she turned to Li Qu with a hint of worry: "I'm afraid no one from Jinxiutang will speak up."

"I didn't expect Hongguo to find out any information."

"With Hongguo distracting us, we can divert the attention from Jinxiutang and make it easier for Cuiguo to carry out her plans."

Li Qu sat down uneasily, placing the cool-to-the-touch glass flower stamen in her hand on the table.

She got up again and went to the inner room.

She couldn't just sit and wait to die; she had to fight for something.

Just as Li Qu sat down at the dressing table, Hong Guo rushed back: "Auntie, Brother Huai Qiu has sealed the courtyard gate, and Cui Guo went out first. I bumped into Brother Huai Qiu."

“Huai, Miss Huaichun has also arrived, and she is accompanied by two nannies.”

No sooner had Hongguo finished speaking than Huaichun, without being announced, entered the room with two maids in a grand manner.

Xu Mama stepped forward to greet her, and Hongguo walked quickly to Li Qu's side with her head down. She picked up a comb and combed Li Qu's hair, while whispering in Li Qu's ear, "It was Miss Huaichun who blocked me back."

Granny Xu bowed respectfully to Huaichun, reminding her of her rudeness: "Miss Huaichun."

With an indifferent expression, Huaichun bowed to Li Qu and said, "Third Master instructed Aunt to stay in the courtyard and reflect on her mistakes."

"Because Granny Xu injured her hand, she specially ordered me to bring people over to take care of the concubine."

As he spoke, he gave a look to the two old women behind him.

The two nannies understood and immediately stepped forward. One squeezed past Granny Xu's position, and the other came closer to serve her.

Without permission, Huaichun knelt down on the prayer mat next to Li Qu, positioning herself on either side of Hongguo.

She asked with a smile, "What are you going to do today, Aunt? I have served the old lady before, and I can do everything from putting on hairpins and styling hair to applying makeup and matching clothes, to making sure everything is appropriate for the occasion."

Hongguo didn't dare to compete with Huaichun. When Huaichun reached out for the comb, she glanced at Li Qu, who remained silent, and quietly gave up the comb.

Huaichun picked up the comb, about to reach out and comb Li Qu's hair, when Li Qu turned to the side and slapped her hard across the face: "You're hurting me."

Xu Mama, who had been pushed aside, let out a long sigh of relief, slightly raised her chin, and stepped forward to push aside the strong old woman who had pushed her aside.

"Go wait over there," Li Qu ordered Huai Chun.

With trembling hands, Huaichun placed the comb on the dressing table and bowed respectfully to Li Qu: "Yes."

She almost ground her teeth to powder, but dared not show the slightest disrespect or presumption.

Her master was furious and came to kill her with his sword, but in the end, not a single hair on this concubine's head was shed. How could she dare to fight back?

However, she claimed to be the head maid of Jinxiu Hall, the maid chosen by the old lady for the Third Master, and that her background was more innocent and noble than that of Li Qu, a concubine of dubious origin.

She looked down on Li Qu.

But Li Qu happened to win over the Third Master's heart.

She was jealous of Li Qu, and seeing that Li Qu had crossed the Third Master's bottom line, she became somewhat arrogant and outrageous in her actions.

She didn't expect Li Qu to actually dare to embarrass her.

I was furious and filled with hatred.

Hongguo picked up the comb again and began to comb Liqu's hair.

Li Qu asked Huai Chun, "Did Third Master take my family members?"

When this was mentioned, Huaichun became gloating and made no attempt to hide it: "Yes."

Where are they?

"Master said he would personally go to interrogate them this afternoon, but this servant does not know where they are being held."

Li Qu unconsciously clenched her fists.

After she finished dressing, she went outside.

Huaichun laughed at her self-righteous behavior, imagining how pathetic she would be when she was stopped by Huaiqiu, the gatekeeper, in her fine clothes.

She might even wail and wail, displaying her vulgarity.

As she laughed, Huaichun noticed that she casually took a pair of scissors from the basket and hid them in her left sleeve, and then, as she passed the fruit plate, she tucked a sharp fruit knife into her right sleeve.

She was like a warrior, full of fierce momentum, even her lackey Xu Mama behind her panicked.

"What does Auntie want to do!"

"Auntie, please don't act rashly!"

"Auntie, don't be confused!"

Li Qu advanced with unstoppable momentum, and upon reaching the courtyard gate, she was met by Granny Rong and her entourage.

Granny Rong blocked Li Qu's path: "Where are you going, Madam?"

Li Qu bowed respectfully: "This concubine has something to discuss with Third Master."

"What a coincidence, the old lady wishes to invite you, my aunt, over for a chat. Please come with me first."

Li Qu was respectful yet neither servile nor arrogant: "Please forgive me, Granny, but my matter concerns my life and death. Please ask Granny to convey my apologies to the old lady. Once I have resolved the current situation, I will personally come to the old lady's house to accept her punishment."

Rong Mama glanced at Li Qu, then beckoned to the people behind her, her attitude leaving no room for refusal.

Li Qu took a step back, raised her hand to reveal a dagger, and held it to her cheek, staring intently at the people who had stepped forward: "Aunt Bai splashed me, and Third Master sent her away. If any of you harm me in the slightest, what will be your fate?"

Granny Rong said coldly, "Madam, you're being insolent."

Li Qu showed no sign of backing down, displaying a willingness to fight to the death: "I am forced by circumstances and have no other choice."

His gaze swept over the crowd before him: "I am determined to leave this place today. Anyone who dares to stop me, come at me!"

After saying that, she stepped out.

None of the people in front of them dared to stop them.