Chapter Eight: Your Daughter Wants to Elope
"How did you know?" Jing'er blurted out instinctively, then hurriedly covered her mouth, "Nothing of the sort..."
Jingwu interrupted her: "They can't hear you."
Jing'er turned her head to look at the others beside her, who had no reaction, and then she felt relieved.
If word gets out that the girl eloped, she'll probably be beaten to death.
Jingwu looked at the person in front of him and continued, "Your young lady eloped with her lover tonight. The next day, when the masters couldn't find her, the first person to be punished was you, her personal maid."
Hearing this, Jing'er's heart trembled. Indeed, the young lady had gone missing, and she would definitely be the first to be punished. According to the madam's personality, she wouldn't kill her, but would only give her ten strokes of the cane and drive her out of the mansion. But in this cold winter, how could she survive after being beaten?
But the girl said she would return the indenture to her and take her with her. She would let her go home halfway there.
"No, the girl promised me she would take me with her."
Jingwu chuckled and then said, "Is that so? If your daughter meets a good man, she will indeed take you with her. Unfortunately, your daughter has not met a good man."
"What do you mean?" Jing'er looked up at her in surprise.
"That man's name is Chen Sheng, right? Did he tell you that he was an orphan who grew up on the charity of others and came here to study? Actually, no. His name is Chen Dayong. He has a wife, a son and a daughter, and a mother back in his hometown. It was his wife's dowry that helped him come here to study. He only has his eyes on the Shen family's property. He deliberately seduced your daughter, and after consummating the relationship, he married into the Shen family and took over their property."
Jing'er was surprised to hear this. Indeed, the master only had one daughter, and he had once said that he would find a son-in-law to live with him and take over the family business.
However, what the person in front of you says may not be true. If the girl doesn't believe him and offends her future son-in-law, and he doesn't take her with him, her own life will still be in danger.
Jingwu saw through her thoughts and smiled, "Think about it again. If this man is reliable, why would he encourage your daughter to elope tonight? If you still don't believe me, you can go to Chenjia Village to investigate."
Upon hearing this, Jing'er suddenly understood.
Indeed, my husband doesn't care about family background. As long as the person is of good character and single, he's willing to consider them.
Moreover, this future son-in-law is a scholar, and the master values these talented scholars the most, so what is he afraid of?
Thinking this, Jing'er immediately stood up and said to her, "I will go back and tell you right away. If what you said is true, I will definitely thank you handsomely."
Jingwu smiled at her, and only after she left did he remove the barrier.
Those nearby could only see the two talking, but couldn't hear what they were saying at all. After the maid left, they were all curious about what they had just said.
When Jing'er returned to the Shen residence, she saw her mistress counting her jewelry, making plans for their elopement that night.
"girl......"
"Jing'er, you're back?" Shen Yulan looked at her with a smile: "Have you bought everything I asked you to buy?"
Jing'er shook her head, looking at the girl in front of her with a hesitant expression: "Miss, is it absolutely necessary to leave tonight?"
"Of course, I promised Chen Lang."
“Young lady, I met a master on the street today. She said that Young Master Chen is not an orphan. He has a wife and children at home. He is just after the Shen family’s wealth and is deceiving you.”
Shen Yulan had a good temper, and she wasn't anxious when she saw the maid's reaction. She just thought she was joking and smiled, saying, "When did you start believing in these things? There are charlatans everywhere."
“Girl, she’s not a liar. She even predicted that you would elope tonight. I didn’t tell her anything.”
"That's amazing! I'll definitely have to meet him someday if I get the chance," Shen Yulan said with a smile as she packed her things.
Jing'er panicked. She was worried about her own life and that her mistress was being deceived. So she rushed forward and grabbed her hand: "Miss, you have to believe me. Can we not leave today? Let's send someone to check if Young Master Chen has a wife and children before we go. Besides, Master doesn't care about family background. If Young Master Chen were to ask you for your hand in marriage openly, Master might not refuse. Why do we have to elope with you?"
Miss Chen paused in her packing, her eyes slightly unfocused: "Yes, why is that?"
She then sat down and calmed herself for a moment, wondering if she had agreed too hastily.
As Shen Yulan watched the sky gradually darken, it was time to leave. She sat in front of her dressing table, looking at herself in the mirror with a chaotic mind, and the travel money she had packed beside her.
As the time she was supposed to meet Chen Sheng drew closer, she twisted the handkerchief in her hand tighter and tighter. As if she had made up her mind, she stood up and walked outside.
The maidservant stood guard at the door and watched her mistress walk out empty-handed, and suddenly felt a sense of relief.
"Jing'er, go to the back gate and see if Chen Lang has come. If he has, tell him that the mansion is under tight security today and I can't leave. Tell him to go back first."
Upon hearing this, Jing'er immediately agreed and walked briskly toward the back door.
Shen Yulan watched her walk away, then lifted her foot and walked towards the neighboring courtyard.
Snow was falling heavily outside. She stood in front of her mother's door and knelt down without hesitation.
Outside the back gate of the Shen residence, a man with shifty eyes was looking around furtively.
He held an umbrella in his hand, rubbed the goosebumps on his hands, and couldn't help but complain in his heart about why Shen Yulan hadn't arrived yet.
Suddenly, he heard a sound coming from inside.
Chen Sheng immediately stood up straight, rubbed his frozen face, and gave the newcomer a warm smile.
Unexpectedly, when the door opened, it was a maid who came out.
His expression froze. He looked behind her and asked, "Where's your daughter?"
Jing'er looked at the person in front of her, lowered her eyes, and hid her emotions: "The manor is under strict guard today, and the young lady couldn't get away. She asked me to tell you to go back first and she will contact you again in a few days."
"Huh?" Chen Sheng was stunned by these words and exclaimed somewhat incoherently, "I've been waiting for her for so long and she's not coming?"
Hearing the sudden increase in volume, Jing'er immediately turned around to see if anyone else in the mansion had been alerted: "Miss is truly unable to leave today, young master, you should go back first. If you disturb the master, you might be punished."
After saying that, she didn't say anything more to him, immediately closed the door, and went to find her own daughter.
Chen Sheng stared at the tightly closed door, and in a fit of anger, kicked the steps twice to vent his frustration, but he kicked too hard and hurt his foot.
The next second, he sat down in the snow, clutching his feet and grimacing, muttering under his breath, "That damn woman, she made me wait so long in this snowy weather, and she still dared to play me for a fool. Once I get her, I'll see how I deal with her."
He muttered curses under his breath as he limped away from the back gate of the Shen residence.
In the courtyard, when Madam Shen's personal maid got up in the middle of the night, she saw the Third Miss kneeling at the door and immediately went to report to the Madam who was resting.
The lady, wearing a coat, came out and, seeing her daughter kneeling at the door, tenderly helped her into the house.
Shen Yulan knelt in the room and told her mother everything.
When Madam Shen heard about this, she was both angry and anxious. She scolded her daughter and sent her back to her room to copy Buddhist scriptures one hundred times.
After Jing'er left, Jingwu sat on the stall waiting for the next person destined to meet him.
A moment later, an older woman came up, sat down in front of her, and handed her ten coins.
"Master, please take a look at my youngest son. He keeps sleeping and won't wake up."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com