Chapter 342 Making Huayi a Concubine

A quarter of an hour later, Granny Chai and Qin Xin brought over all the people from Xinghe Courtyard.

Accompanying Huayi and the other two was Xiao Qingyuan, whose hair was loose and whose collar was open, clearly indicating that he had just gotten up.

His face was extremely ugly: "Shen Wantang, what are you trying to do?! You want to interfere in what's happening in my courtyard? You even sent guards to my courtyard to arrest someone, what are you being so arrogant about? The Ning Prince's Mansion is my home, not yours, you really think you're something special!"

Shen Wantang said in a calm tone: "It is true that the Prince's mansion is the Prince's home, but since my mother has given me the power to manage the household, I have to take care of everything. Now that the maid in the Prince's courtyard has died suddenly overnight, as the mistress, I naturally have to ask her questions as usual, so as to find out the cause of Chundie's death and give her and her parents an explanation."

"What's the point of investigating this? She just died from an upset stomach, didn't she?"

"Then, Your Highness, what did Chundie eat that killed her?"

"How could I possibly know what a maid ate! I don't care what she ate anyway, it was all her own fault for being greedy, and her death is her own doing, it has nothing to do with me!"

Shen Wantang looked at him coldly: "A living person has been lost, and the young master has made such a hasty conclusion?"

Xiao Qingyuan snorted coldly: "How could I have made such a hasty conclusion? Isn't it normal to have an upset stomach? I hold a position in the Dali Temple, and I'm much better at solving cases than you!"

"Has the young master solved any cases while serving at the Dali Temple?"

"I--"

Xiao Qingyuan was stumped by her question. He hesitated for a while before saying, "I haven't been in the Dali Temple for long, and the capital has been very peaceful recently. I don't need to solve any cases!"

"In other words, the Crown Prince has taken up a post at the Dali Temple but has accomplished nothing. So why is he using your position at the Dali Temple to pressure me?"

Xiao Qingyuan's face turned slightly pale: "Shen Wantang, don't force me to curse you!"

Shen Wantang didn't care about his words; she was more concerned about the sudden death of her maid.

"The food in our Prince Ning's mansion is all freshly made. Even the maids and servants will not eat leftovers from the previous day. The amount of food they eat on a daily basis is also fixed, and it is very rare for anyone to get an upset stomach."

"Why did Chun Die, who lived in the Prince's courtyard, get food poisoning and even die? Could it be that there was something wrong with the food sent to the Prince's courtyard? But Xia Chan, who ate and lived with Chun Die, is fine."

"Doesn't Your Highness find this strange at all? Haven't you considered the possibility that Chun Die might have been murdered?"

Xiao Qingyuan said impatiently, "Chundie is just an ordinary maid. She's honest and simple-minded. Who would harm her? Your wild imagination is ridiculous!"

"I think you're just using Chundie's death to deliberately upset me!"

"You knew perfectly well that Huayi was pregnant, yet you still had the guards forcibly bring her to your courtyard. You were deliberately trying to cause trouble for Huayi!"

"Yesterday I mentioned buying lychees for Huayi, and you started getting jealous of her, so you deliberately sent someone to buy lychees to annoy me. Today you're stirring up trouble again. You just don't want me to have a good time! You don't want Huayi to have a good time!"

As Shen Wantang listened to his unfounded accusations, her gaze fell on Huayi.

Today, Huayi is dressed in a water-red brocade ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) paired with a lotus-root-colored rabbit fur vest, making her look elegant and noble.

She no longer bowed her head and cowered like before, nor did she act servilely. Instead, she raised her chin slightly and stood close to Xiao Qingyuan's arm.

But she has indeed lost a lot of weight, and she hasn't been eating much in the last few days.

Shen Wantang had heard Qin Xin say that no matter what the kitchen sent over, Hua Yi always said she didn't want to eat it. Even when she did eat a little, she was very careful, as if she was afraid that the food might contain abortion pills.

Shen Wantang didn't care whether Huayi ate or not, since it wasn't her who was hungry.

What bothered Shen Wantang was that Huayi's mentality had changed. Before, she treated herself as a maid, always obedient and compliant. But now, she considered herself as half a mistress.

If Chundie's death was indeed caused by someone, then Huayi is undoubtedly the most likely suspect.

"Painting style".

Shen Wantang spoke calmly: "You are now helping the young master manage his courtyard, and Chun Die and Xia Chan are also under your care. Yesterday, did you see Chun Die eat anything that would upset her stomach?"

Hua Yi didn't answer her question. She looked at Xiao Qingyuan and softly called him, "Your Highness—"

In front of everyone, Xiao Qingyuan took her hand and said, "Don't be afraid, I'll support you."

Hua Yi shook her head: "With the young master here, I am naturally not afraid. However, although I am in charge of Chun Die and Xia Chan, I have not been feeling well these past two days and have not been watching them all the time. I am not very clear about what they have eaten."

As she spoke, she reached out to protect her stomach and leaned closer to Xiao Qingyuan.

Xiao Qingyuan sensed her dependence and saw her subconsciously clutch her stomach, so he assumed she was feeling unwell again and quickly put his arm around her waist.

Then, he turned to Shen Wantang and questioned, "Why are you scaring Huayi? How could Huayi possibly know what the maid ate! Shen Wantang, how come I never realized you were so petty? Now that you see Huayi is pregnant with my child, you've been making things difficult for her in every way! Is this how a mistress of the house should act?"

Shen Wantang immediately saw through Huayi's subtle actions and the hidden scheming behind them, and also saw through her intention to not answer her questions but only talk to Xiao Qingyuan.

She felt that now that she was pregnant with Xiao Qingyuan's child, she was qualified to challenge her, the Crown Prince's wife.

A mocking smile appeared on Shen Wantang's lips. It turned out that this maid wasn't very smart after all.

You couldn't hold back so quickly?

Shen Wantang's voice was icy: "Your Highness didn't mention that Huayi is pregnant with your child. I almost forgot that Huayi should no longer be Your Highness's maid."

Xiao Qingyuan was furious: "Shen Wantang, what do you mean? Do you mean to kick Huayi out of the palace? Let me tell you, I will never allow it!"

"Your Highness is truly dark-hearted. In your eyes, am I such a jealous and wicked person? You even want to drive away the maid who is pregnant with your child? Don't forget, Your Highness, Huayi was a gift I gave to you personally."

"So what do you mean?"

"What I mean is, it's time to promote the concubine in the painting."

Xiao Qingyuan was stunned: "You, you're going to take the initiative to make Huayi your concubine? You're really that magnanimous?"

“I’ve always been this magnanimous. When the young master wanted to take Consort Chu as a concubine, I didn’t say a single word of objection. What, is the young master unwilling?”

"Of course I'm willing! I've wanted to make Huayi my concubine for a long time. It's really unfair to her that she's always been a maid!"

"Then let's do it today! Have her serve the concubine's tea and perform the concubine's rites now. From now on, she will officially become the young master's concubine. Granny Chai, bring the prayer mat."

Granny Chai took a prayer mat and placed it directly in front of Shen Wantang's feet.

She spoke coldly and sternly: "Huayi, why aren't you kneeling down and paying your respects to the Crown Princess!"