With Grandma Jiang's comforting words, Jiang Segu gradually calmed down.

She lifted her head from Grandma Jiang's arms and asked, "Mother, did you let Shui Ling come over?"

The rest of the Hou family were outside the mansion; only Shui Ling and Mama Hou were inside serving them.

“A few days ago, Madam Hou came to beg me to release Shui Ling from the manor. She said that Hou San had found a husband for Shui Ling. The man was a scholar with some pride and did not want to marry a woman of slave status. I remembered that Madam Hou had mistreated Shui Ling in order to feed you, so I agreed!”

Jiang Segu suddenly remembered that Hou's mother had mentioned going to her mother's courtyard to ask her mother to pray for a good marriage for Shui Ling.

When parents truly love their children, they plan far ahead for them!

Grandma Jiang had arrived in a hurry. Although Qiaohe had told her that there were some suspicious circumstances surrounding Mama Hou's death, she did not know the details. Seeing her daughter so heartbroken, she assumed that she was grieving over Mama Hou's death.

“Azi, don’t be sad. Life and death are predestined. When the Hou family comes, your mother will give them more money for their funeral and promote Hou San to the head manager. Their son will have a few more years of experience, and I will not treat him unfairly!”

Shui Ling's dowry will be prepared by her mother as if it were her own daughter's, ensuring that no scholar in that family will look down on her!

"Mother Hou was your wet nurse, and your mother will handle the funeral arrangements properly. You can go to her mourning hall to pay your respects for seven days; that will fulfill the bond of master and servant we've shared over the years!"

Jiang Segu listened quietly to what Grandma Jiang San said, without rushing to refute anything.

After Grandma Jiang finished speaking, she sighed for her mother's kindness.

My mother and I have truly treated my mother well, so why is she doing this?

“Mother, I summoned the Hou family not for Madam Hou’s funeral arrangements, but to interrogate them.”

"Interrogation?" Grandma Jiang's expression changed. "What's going on? Isn't Mama Hou implicated because of you and me?"

Jiang Segu shook his head, and then told Jiang San's grandmother about how Hou's mother had concealed Xiao's mother's death and Hou's mother's unusual behavior.

Grandma Jiang was horrified and exclaimed, "Oh no! I thought she was just afraid that Shui Ling's marriage would fall through because of her slave status, so she returned the indentures of Master Hou and the others to them and sent someone to the yamen to cancel their slave status! Now that I think about it, she had already paved the way for the Hou family's future!"

Having lived through a lifetime, Jiang Segu understood that the Marquis's mansion had no right to interrogate those who had escaped slavery in private. Moreover, since the Marquis's mother had given them their family's indenture in advance, the Marquis's family must have been prepared!

Just then, Xiuhe, who had been sent to find the Hou family, arrived.

"Reporting to Third Madam, the Hou family has arrived..."

Jiang Segu was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected the Hou family to dare come in the middle of the night!

When she saw the group of unfamiliar faces following behind Hou San's family, Jiang Segu finally understood how fearless the Hou family was!

"Hou San, how dare you!" Jiang Segu preemptively said, "The master summoned you here, and you act more important than the master himself! I ask you, what do you want with so many people? Are you trying to rebel against your superiors, or are you trying to cause trouble in the chaos?"

Her voice was deep and powerful, like a hammer striking everyone's hearts.

Those who followed were all at a loss, shrinking back in fear, their desire to watch the spectacle instantly turning into frustration.

Hou San looked sorrowful and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. "I was just anxious when I heard that my wife had died unexpectedly. I thought I would ask everyone to carry my wife home so that my family wouldn't be unable to carry her away."

He calls himself an old man, which means he is no longer a servant of the Yin family!

The reason for inviting so many people is simply because they fear they might not be able to leave alive!

Jiang Segu's gaze swept across the faces of the Hou family members. Her face was expressionless, yet it sent chills down one's spine!

Perhaps knowing he was in the wrong, or perhaps aware of what his mother had done, Hou San subconsciously lowered his head. "Third Grandmother, you called our whole family here in the middle of the night to collect Sanfeng's body, didn't you?"

Sanfeng was the maiden name of Hou's mother.

Grandma Jiang wanted to turn hostile on the spot, but before she could speak, Jiang Segu said, "Xiuhe, when you went to find Hou San, did you tell Hou San why you called them here?"

Xiuhe shook her head and replied, "Never!"

"Since you haven't, I'm curious, Hou San, where did you learn about Hou's mother's passing?"

Her voice was icy, as chilling as well water at night.

Hou San felt a panic in his heart. He did not expect that Jiang Segu, at such a young age, would be so calm in the face of trouble and would be able to catch him in the wrong!

"When the old man saw that Miss Xiuhe wanted our whole family to come into the mansion, he guessed that something had happened to Sanfeng, so he called everyone here, just in case!"

How cunning!

But Jiang Segu would never let him get away with it so easily!

"So that's how it is! Hou San, you can summon a bunch of people to my Hou residence based on your own guesses, then let me guess too! Did you instigate a group of people to break into our Hou residence in the middle of the night to do something improper?"

Hou San waved his hand, about to explain.

Jiang Segu stopped him, preventing him from speaking. "You don't need to explain yourself to me. Qiaohe, go next door and ask Deputy Commander Gu of the North City Military Command to bring all those who broke into the Marquis's residence to the Military Command for detailed interrogation!"

The common people naturally held officials in awe, and when they heard that Jiang Segu was going to arrest them, the crowd immediately erupted in a clamor!

"Sixth Miss, we are innocent! It was Hou San who instigated us to come here!"

"Yes, Sixth Miss, you are very perceptive; you can't wrong us!"

"Sixth Miss, we'll leave right away and won't cause any trouble..."

"..."

Grandma Jiang wanted to settle things peacefully, because if things got out of hand, it would be bad for her daughter's reputation. Besides, the people who came with Hou San were not her servants. If they were angered, it would be really hard to handle the situation!

Jiang Segu knew her mother's gentle nature and didn't want to make a big fuss, but she couldn't let these people off so easily, lest they think that the Marquis's mansion was a place where one could come and go as one pleased!

So, before Granny Jiang could speak, she said, "Do you think our Marquis's mansion is a marketplace? You think you can come and go as you please? Our Marquis's mansion is not a government office. I don't know how to deal with your unauthorized intrusion into someone else's residence, especially into the private quarters of a young lady like me. It would be better to ask the government to handle this!"

One stone stirs up a thousand waves.

Those who followed all knelt down and begged for forgiveness, saying they would never dare to do it again!

Jiang Segu looked at everyone and remained silent for a long time.

Grandma Jiang tugged at her sleeve, "Azi, don't go too far!"

Jiang Segu then spoke softly, "My mother is kind-hearted and doesn't want to hold it against you. However, you still need to cooperate with me and sign a document guaranteeing that you will not repeat the offense before you can leave!"

Upon hearing this, how could anyone refuse?

Jiang Segu whispered a few words in Qiaohe's ear before Qiaohe led the group to the west wing...