Chapter 131 What a convincing act!

Qingling received the message.

It took her almost half a month to get the baby to sit up and be able to walk.

Lou Yue styled her hair, looking worried: "What's coming will come."

“The head maids in each section report to the Lady of the Marquis at fixed times. If Lady of the Marquis sees the roster that Granny Liang gave us today, she’ll definitely be furious.” Xia Chan picked out a suitable rouge from her dressing box. “Miss, why don’t you pretend to be sick again? I’ll do your sick makeup.”

Yao Qingling should have spoken to Madam Hou privately and obtained her consent before the head maid reported it to the higher-ups, instead of the situation that is now.

At that time, Yao Qingling couldn't even get out of bed. If she had told Madam Hou then, Madam Hou would definitely have come to Mulan Courtyard to take a look.

At that time, two possibilities emerged.

The first scenario is that Yao Qingling feigns a serious illness and requires a female physician to attend to her. In that case, Lady Hou will again have designs on Hui Bafang and seize the opportunity to take her away.

The second possibility is that Lady Hou would continue her pretense and invite a doctor to investigate the truth. However, unlike the new mansion, where Qingling could ask Doctor He to act and deceive everyone, the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion has its own dedicated doctor. Lady Hou would then invite her own doctor, making it impossible to hide Qingling's pregnancy.

Currently, Qingling only has one person who can support the shop, Taoye, and that's only half done. As for Lin Shiyuan, he's not officially in charge, and if Hui Bafang were handed over to him, even as a temporary manager, Ma would never agree.

How could she bear to lose such an opportunity?

Therefore, regardless of the possibility, Yao Qingling faces the dilemma of losing control of Hui Bafang.

Not only will Hui Ba Fang be taken away, but all of her dowry will also be taken away by Ma Shi.

When Ma found out she was pregnant, it was more serious than if she had a serious illness.

Ma would immediately go to the Grand Princess of Deyang and tell her that she was pregnant with Zhan Xingzhuo's child!

Qingling is still too weak; she can neither protect the shop nor the children.

Therefore, she had to buy time.

Qingling only informed the head maid that someone had been added to the courtyard. Of course, she also gave the maid a bribe to keep it a secret for the time being.

At that time, Lou Yue told the nanny, following Qing Ling's instructions, "You must have heard some of the filthy things that happened between the Second Master and that daughter of a disgraced official. My young lady fell ill back then and is now sick again, which is why we have to hire a female physician so that we can take care of her at any time."

"This matter cannot be discussed outside. You should have heard some things already. Master Zhan is about to be promoted. If this gets out, the Grand Princess of Deyang will definitely be unhappy and will blame Miss for ruining Master Zhan's reputation. Nowadays, our Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion and the Duke's mansion have no relationship. If gossip spreads, it will be detrimental to the Marquis's mansion."

"My young lady endured her injuries and illnesses, not wanting anyone to know, just to protect the peace of the Marquis's mansion."

"Furthermore, Madam Hou is currently busy arranging a marriage for her cousin, and there are many trivial matters to attend to, so please don't trouble Madam Hou any further. The young lady can pay the doctor's allowance herself, which will not prevent the nanny from handling the accounts. Madam Hou will know the details after reviewing the accounts at the end of the month."

Having received the bribe, the old woman thought that the young lady of Mulan Courtyard was quite opinionated these days, so she might as well do her a favor and readily agreed.

That's how it went; it was kept under wraps for almost half a month before it came to light.

Yao Qingling looked in the mirror, touched her hair, moved her head, and looked at her cheeks, which had become fuller.

These days, Xia Chan and Lou Yue take turns feeding her, making her even fatter.

She said, "What kind of illness could make someone this fat?"

Xia Chan stared at her: "..."

Qing Ling smiled faintly: "We've already weathered the most dreadful times, so what's there to rush now? Just wear your usual makeup."

After she finished dressing up, Xia Chan thoughtfully gave her a fragrant sachet to mask the medicinal smell that had accumulated during her pickling process.

Yao Qingling took He Yin to Dan Gui Courtyard.

At this moment, in the Dan Gui Courtyard, the head maid had already repeated Lou Yue's original words. When Qing Ling arrived, she heard Madam Ma's angry rebuke: "That female physician doesn't receive her allowance from the public treasury, so you don't need to let me know, is that what you mean?!"

Madam Ma caught a glimpse of Qingling out of the corner of her eye and deliberately asked, "Granny Liang, who exactly is in charge of this vast Marquis's mansion?"

Yao Qingling came in: "Auntie."

She slightly bent her knees in greeting.

Madam Ma glanced at her sideways, pretending not to see her, and stared at Granny Liang: "In your eyes, do you still consider me the lady of the Marquis's mansion?"

Granny Liang knelt on the ground and kowtowed deeply: "Madam, you are naturally the one in charge of the inner courtyard of this Marquis's mansion. Miss Qingling, please say a word for this old servant!"

Granny Liang became anxious.

Ma looked at Yao Qingling coldly.

The maidservant beside her quickly handed her some tea to soothe her throat; Madam Ma, her throat hoarse from scolding, took the tea and drank a big gulp. She made a big fuss about it, saying the tea was too hot, and smashed the teacup at Yao Qingling's feet.

"This water is so hot, are you trying to scald me to death! Without me, the Lady of the Marquis, you can find other masters, can't you?"

The little maid was so frightened that she knelt down with a thud, crying and kowtowing, begging the Lady of the Marquis to be lenient.

Granny Liang was also terrified, her face turning ashen. She was an old hand in the household and knew that the Lady Marquis was making an example of her.

Normally, this would be a minor matter.

Adding a concubine to the young master's courtyard is not a big deal.

Furthermore, Miss Qingqi complained that she didn't have enough maids in her courtyard and arbitrarily transferred people from other courtyards, only to give her a heads-up.

She was just doing Miss Qingling a favor, why is it being treated so seriously?

Yao Qingling watched coldly, then smiled slightly and said, "Aunt, is this all because of me that you're so angry?"

She glanced behind her and gestured for He Yin to present a piece of Ganoderma lucidum.

The Ganoderma lucidum was packaged in a square box, making it seem precious.

“I brought some Ganoderma lucidum to help my aunt calm down. It’s nothing valuable, but I don’t have anything else to offer. Fortunately, Ganoderma lucidum is something that ordinary people can eat; it can nourish the body and prolong life.”

Ma's nature is hard to change; he loves to take advantage of others.

She subconsciously looked at the Ganoderma lucidum.

Having been a Marquis's wife for so many years, she has gained experience and can distinguish what is good.

That Ganoderma lucidum wasn't actually a valuable item. Ganoderma lucidum is graded, and the one in the box could only be considered a second-to-high-grade product; it was just packaged in a nice box.

Are you trying to fool her with this?

Ma said sarcastically, "You're a big boss from all walks of life, how could you not have valuable things in your possession?"

Yao Qingling lowered her eyes: "Aunt, I've said it before, Hui Ba Fang belongs to the Marquis's Mansion, I just manage the shop. Everything that comes in and goes is recorded in the ledger. This Ganoderma lucidum is my personal property, given to me by the Grand Princess when I was in the Duke's Mansion."

Ma's eyes flickered slightly. Heh, what a fine example of integrity.

That's quite a convincing act.

She said it was a gift from the Grand Princess, so it could only have been a gift from the Grand Princess. Could she possibly go to the Grand Princess to verify it?

Even if that were true, would she be able to take the Ganoderma lucidum to verify it in person?

But Yao Qingling's attitude of admitting her mistake is evident. If Madam Ma keeps pressing the issue, she would lack the benevolence of an elder.

Before Madam Ma could say anything, Qingling sat down on her own.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and forced a smile: "Aunt, I've just recovered from my illness. I only walked a short distance and I already feel weak. So I found a stool to sit on."

She had to act as if she had just recovered from a serious illness to prove how important the female doctor was to her.

"Aunt, I've come here to make things clear."

“Granny Liang must have told you. I was very ill at the time and couldn’t come to explain to my aunt in person. I thought it wasn’t a big deal, since the doctor’s monthly allowance would come from my account and wouldn’t affect the household’s monthly allowance.”

Granny Liang nodded vigorously from the side.

Madam Ma looked at Qingling and saw that she was becoming more and more like the head of the household.

If she gains power, wouldn't the Marquis's mansion be entirely under her control in the future?

An alarm bell suddenly rang in Ma's mind, and she narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Qingling, it’s not that I’m trying to find fault with you. I don’t know how you managed things when you were in the new mansion, but the Marquis’s mansion has its own rules. The rules of the Marquis’s mansion cannot be changed. You grew up in the Marquis’s mansion, so you know them better than anyone.”

Qingling replied, "Aunt, I didn't want to say anything, but what you're saying is wrong. Are you saying that after I married into the Duke's mansion, the Grand Princess taught me to be unruly?"

Ma had only said a few words when Qingling seized on a loophole and shut her down, staring at her with wide eyes, trying to find something to say in return.

That brat! She made such a scene when they divorced, but now she's treating the Grand Princess like royalty.