Clues
Lin Xu lowered her eyes, her mind churning with thoughts. For some reason, she had a feeling that this Miss Sun had probably already passed away.
Since she ordered Zhiyuan to secretly follow Yaoniang, using the guise of a flower-delivering servant to investigate, she discovered some unusual clues.
Yao Niang has long since replaced Sun Biying as the top courtesan of Bihua Tower, and Dou Yanxun often spends the night with her. However, Zhi Yuan secretly followed her for a few days and discovered that something was amiss. Dou Yanxun never showed himself during the day, instead sending only a servant from the Dou household to Bihua Tower in secret. And every day, she could glimpse a pot of fresh, seasonal flowers on the windowsill of Yao Niang's room.
Sometimes it's the fresh and elegant gardenia, sometimes the fragrant red peony, and sometimes the layered and elegant daphne.
The cycle repeats itself, with each half-day period constituting a cycle.
At first, Lin Xu also couldn't see through the mystery. In the end, Zhi Yuan was bold and meticulous. Although she was treated coldly after being transferred to the flower room, she quickly became a half-manager of the flower room with her outstanding abilities. Whenever she went out of the mansion to buy flower seedlings and other things, she would hide in a corner of the bustling city and secretly look at the long window with the lattice door.
Fortunately, the secret was quickly discovered. Whenever the gardenias were fragrant, Yao Niang would wear a pure white dress; when the peonies were in full bloom, she would wear a scarlet silk dress; and when the daphne was in bloom, she would naturally change into a pale purple skirt...
Choosing clothes in colors that correspond to the floral pattern creates an unspoken, intimate ambiance.
Lin Xu felt a chill run down her spine. Perhaps Dou Yanxun really did have so much "leisure and refined taste".
Originally, she thought it was just a private moment between the two of them, but Zhiyuan, who had more to say, kindly reminded her—
On the evening of the day she received the newly replaced flowers, Yao Niang would secretly cover her face with a light veil and leave Bihua Tower alone when no one was looking.
The path she took when leaving was often quite different. Sometimes it was a pebble path in the backyard, sometimes it was the fence of a low wall in another courtyard, and once, she even climbed out of a window of another room on another floor. When Zhiyuan noticed this scene, it was already dark that day. She knew that this matter could not be delayed, so even in the dark, she secretly sent a message to Lin Xu with fresh flowers from the flower room.
On this night of Qixi Festival, she had originally planned to take advantage of the crowds to visit Bihua Tower and investigate. Unfortunately, she had somehow been discovered by Dou Yanxun while trying to hide her whereabouts, which led to the misfortune of being kidnapped by him in a dark alley today.
Fortunately, fortune and misfortune can change in an instant. Although Dou Yanxun discovered her whereabouts and gave her a cold warning, she still managed to keep her composure and put on a passable performance. But she wondered... how much of her story would Dou Yanxun actually believe?
However, Dou Yanxun's attitude made her realize that Yao Niang's matter was not so simple. On the surface, he was intimate with Yao Niang every night, but in reality, Yao Niang would quietly leave in the chaos, while he had not even stepped into the Bihua Tower.
The key issue is the person Yao Niang actually went to see in the dark.
.
The ointment on her neck gradually began to take effect, and she felt a burning pain in the wound. Zhiyuan carefully picked up a round fan and gently blew a breeze through her, finally bringing her some coolness.
She forced herself to sit up and pulled open the bottom drawer of the carved pearwood table beside her. Countless jewels and precious stones filled her eyes. Her slender fingers traced over each of the priceless gems, and she picked out several heavy hairpins and jade hairpins. She then gestured for Zhu Ling, who was in the distance, to come to her side.
"You two are now my most capable and trusted people. In the past, I acted rashly and inevitably treated you harshly at times. Consider this as some compensation."
Upon hearing this, Zhiyuan quickly knelt down and said, "Miss, please don't say that. I have always been taken care of by you, and I am already extremely grateful. How could you say that I have mistreated you?"
Lin Xu smiled and took both Zhi Yuan and Zhu Ling's hands in hers, saying softly:
"The incident with Fu'er last time already showed the deep sisterly bond and unwavering loyalty between you two, which is truly rare. In the future, I will still need your full support and assistance. As you know, Qingwu's passing is one of the greatest regrets of my life. From now on, as long as you remain loyal to each other, I will treat you as my own sisters. This is my promise."
Zhu Ling's eyes were already brimming with tears, and she sobbed softly, "Thank you so much for your kindness, Miss. This servant and Sister Zhiyuan will always be of one heart and mind with you, Miss, and have no other thoughts."
The three of them, mistress and servant, were filled with gratitude. The soft, luminous moonlight filtered through the half-open carved window of the room, along with the intoxicating fragrance of pomegranates bursting forth in the courtyard. She raised her eyebrows slightly, and in the distance, a crescent moon could be faintly seen hanging high in the dark night sky, with wispy clouds drifting among it.
July is scorching hot, and her birthday is fast approaching.
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It was midsummer in Lanyue, and the weather was getting hotter every day. With diligent daily medication, Lin Xu's neck wound gradually healed, and with the addition of rouge and powder, it was almost undetectable. Qi Shi's body was also gradually becoming bloated; her once graceful figure was now quite noticeable due to her advancing pregnancy, and she had become more picky about the food in the manor.
Gao Youyi sat in the warm pavilion, lazily peeling a pomegranate. The glistening red pomegranate seeds piled up like a small mountain in the jade porcelain bowl. Her jade fingers flew, her movements never stopping.
Lin Xu looked at the barely concealed sorrow on her stepmother's full, jade-like face, picked up a silver spoon, and took a sip of the red plum pastry. The texture was smooth and layered, quite refreshing in the summer heat. She moved the soft brocade pillow behind her to a more comfortable position before chuckling softly:
"Why should Mother get angry with her? She's only a bit more assertive now that she's pregnant. We should just be more accommodating to her."
Gao Youyi looked at her hands, which were covered in bright red pomegranate juice, and impatiently took the handkerchief handed to her by her maid Xintan. She carefully wiped her hands clean before suppressing her anger and saying:
"Am I such an unreasonable person? It's not uncommon for the household to have a joyous occasion, so naturally we should be happy and make preparations. It's just that Qi Shi insists on using her pregnancy to gain favor, often complaining at night about stomach discomfort and sending people to invite the master over. That's not all; she also claims that her body is too delicate to withstand the heat and has the steward send ice from the ice cellar to her courtyard first. Every time I pass by Yilan Courtyard, I feel a chill in the air. I was just trying to kindly advise her that I was worried the cold would disturb her pregnancy, but who knew that yesterday she would go directly to the master and complain that I couldn't stand the amount of ice in her room and was resentful. What a joke! Do you think I, a dignified young lady from a noble family, would be jealous of a vat or two of ice?"
Gao Youyi gritted her teeth, as if she were truly furious. Qi Shi, who was always quick-witted, always pretended to be gentle and self-possessed, but now that she was pregnant, she was too lazy to even pretend.
Lin Xu raised the corners of her lips and gently comforted her, "She is suddenly pregnant now. Even if Father doesn't like it, he will still have to protect her for the sake of the child in her womb. As for Mother, you have been in the manor for some time now. Have you had anyone check on your health?"
Upon hearing this, Gao Youyi's face flushed crimson. She gave Lin Xu a reproachful look and whispered, "How can a young lady not be so discreet before marriage?" Even so, she knew Lin Xu meant well, so she sighed, her eyes deepening with sorrow, and covered her mouth with her handkerchief, speaking softly:
“Of course I have seen it. My husband is gentle and kind, and he treats me with kindness and gentleness in every way. I also want to get pregnant as soon as possible. After we got married, I never stopped taking the medicine to help me conceive. The medicine is very bitter. I gritted my teeth and drank it all, but it still didn’t have much effect.”
A thoughtful expression also appeared in Lin Xu's eyes. The Qi family had previously harbored intentions of poisoning, so while she couldn't make hasty judgments, she absolutely couldn't let her guard down. Thinking this, she couldn't help but ask softly:
"Which doctor prescribed the fertility-enhancing medication for the mother?"
The manor has always maintained several physicians to handle minor ailments such as headaches and fevers that people occasionally suffer from. Among them, Physician Zhang is the most skilled, and he is also quite knowledgeable about gynecology, especially concerning young ladies. He has been working in the manor for many years.
Gao Youyi shook her head. "I know what you're wondering about, Xu'er. I'm just as suspicious. I noticed that since Qi Shi became pregnant, she has been taking care of her health with Physician Zhang. So I kept an eye on things. I sent the prescription for pregnancy support that Physician Zhang gave me to my sister-in-law to have someone take a look. There was nothing wrong with it."
She sighed deeply, her face filled with sorrow as she gently stroked her flat stomach, her voice carrying a subtle chill:
“Before I got married, I watched my aunts try all sorts of ways to drink fertility-enhancing drugs and I laughed at them for wanting to gain status through having a son. Now that it’s my turn, I realize that no matter what, having a strong womb is the biggest barrier to gaining a foothold in this huge family.”
Seeing Lin Xu sigh repeatedly and remain silent, Gao Youyi forced a smile and waved her hand, saying, "Never mind, let's not talk about this. Xu'er, you'll be turning fifteen in a few days. It's a big deal, so we can't be careless."
Since ancient times, a girl's coming-of-age ceremony has been the most important event from birth until marriage. She remembered that on this day in her previous life, she was in a bad mood and simply went through the motions, even offending her maternal aunt who had come all the way from He City to congratulate her. In this life, she had no expectations for it either; everything was arranged by her matriarch, Gao Youyi. Traditionally, besides her parents, a girl's coming-of-age ceremony required inviting several guests and a virtuous, elderly woman as the principal guest, with formal invitations sent out. In her previous life, the principal guest was Lin Xu's second maternal aunt, Madam Hu.
Now that the Gao family and the Lin family have officially become related by marriage, and this is the first time that Gao Youyi, as the head of the household, has handled such an important matter, the principal wife has naturally been chosen to be a relative of the Gao family, Gao Yanbang's wife, Madam Yang.
Gao Yanbang is currently investigating a case in the remote Shu region, while Yang Shi is managing the household alone. I have heard that she has always been very close to my sister-in-law, and she has also been granted the honor of being named a Lady of the Imperial Family at just over forty years old. Naturally, she is worthy of this position as the principal guest.
Gao Youyi acted decisively and with the air of a grand mansion. In the past few days, various decorative curtains and all the necessary items for the banquet had already been prepared in the mansion. She had also reviewed the guest list one by one, which consisted of her parents' close relatives and some well-connected aristocratic families. The list was very appropriate and flawless.
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