As He Yunze pondered this, he pursed his lips, about to speak.
But thinking back to what happened last time, it was because he had a preconceived notion that Ruo'an had medical skills that she was forced to take on this responsibility, which almost led to a big mistake.
The angry words of Prime Minister Lin still echoed in his ears, and He Yunze's heart pounded. He dared not utter the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
The room fell silent, and Song Ruoan did not notice the slight change in He Yunce's expression.
Just then, Ah Lian suddenly came in to report: "Young Madam, Madam Song heard that you have been ill recently and is worried about you. She has arrived at the Marquis's residence and is waiting outside the courtyard."
Upon hearing this, Song Ruoan remembered that her mother had mentioned in her letter that she would be visiting her today.
She hurriedly waved to A-Lian: "Hurry up and let Mother in, don't let her catch a cold at the door."
Seeing her eyes suddenly light up, He Yunze also suppressed his turbulent thoughts and put on a gentle smile:
“You’ve been wronged, and your mother-in-law is heartbroken. It’s my fault for not taking good care of you.”
Upon hearing his words, Zhao Qianlan's voice came from outside: "I've heard about Ruo'an's situation. It's not your fault; she's just foolish and always gets hurt by her sister."
Upon hearing this, Song Ruoan looked at Zhao Qianlan who was slowly walking towards her, and tears streamed down her face: "Mother...it has nothing to do with my sister."
Zhao Qianlan shook her head with heartache and walked to the bedside: "Do you think I don't know that she bullied you back in the Song family?"
Zhao Qianlan's words confirmed He Yunze's suspicions. He hurriedly got up to greet her, saying, "My mother-in-law is here without telling me beforehand. If I had known, I would have gone to pick her up in person."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qianlan looked He Yunze up and down, a distant yet concerned smile on her face:
“I shouldn’t have come, but Ruo’an is so immature. She was punished twice as soon as she married into the Marquis’s mansion. I felt sorry for her, so I came to comfort her.”
"A few intimate words between mother and daughter."
Upon hearing this, He Yunze knew that she meant to blame him, and he felt guilty as well: "Then let my mother-in-law and Ruo'an talk. I have some business to attend to at the government office, so I'll be leaving now."
Zhao Qianlan nodded politely, her attitude not as warm as it had been during her last homecoming visit.
Sensing her lukewarm attitude, He Yunze knew that Song Ruoan had been wronged. After much deliberation, he finally whispered to Shuangxi as he left:
"Even if your young mistress doesn't want me to investigate who poisoned her, thinking that Grandmother won't believe it, I must find out the truth and not let her suffer any injustice."
"Shuangxi, go and investigate in private, without alerting anyone else. Once I have gathered all the evidence, I will combine it with other matters and present it to Grandmother. This will be a decisive blow, and Song Xizhi will no longer be able to deny it."
Upon hearing this, Shuangxi was impressed by He Yunce's thoughtfulness towards Song Ruoan. "Alright, this servant will go and investigate secretly right away!"
He was about to leave when he finished speaking, but then, with a happy expression, he added, "Seeing that you and Madam have reconciled makes this servant truly happy."
He Yunze was also very happy, and the heavy feeling in his heart was gone: "I shouldn't have doubted her in the first place, and I will never do it again."
He and Shuangxi were talking secretly on this side, while Zhao Qianlan and Song Ruoan dismissed all the servants and the mother and daughter were whispering intimate words in the room.
Zhao Qianlan lifted her clothes and looked at the scars left on Song Ruoan's back. The crisscrossing scars were hideous and had not fully healed to this day.
Her heart was breaking with pain: "How did it get like this?"
"Back in the Song residence, didn't you have Song Xizhi completely under your thumb? How come she's turned you into this?"
"If I had known, I should have killed that wretched girl back at the Song residence!"
Feeling Zhao Qianlan's distressed words, Song Ruoan trembled with grievance: "Mother, are the scars on my back ugly?"
Zhao Qianlan wiped away her tears and regained her composure: "It's not ugly. I've brought you some scar-removing ointment, and soon you won't be able to see anything."
As she spoke, a cold glint flashed in her eyes: "But this can't go on forever. We can't let Song Xizhi be so smug for too long."
Upon hearing this name, Song Ruoan's eyes flashed with hatred: "I've long wanted to send her to hell. It would have been easier to handle in the Song family mansion, but now in the Marquis's mansion, everyone listens to her, and even the servants all like her."
"Where are your grandmother and mother-in-law?" Zhao Qianlan frowned.
Song Ruoan shook her head: "I'm trying to please them. They hate me now, and no matter what I do, they won't believe me."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qianlan suddenly fell silent.
As if struck by a sudden thought, her eyes lit up: "I've got it! Use incense! Use spices to please them! Spices are what the women in the capital love most."
Song Ruoan was slightly taken aback: "Mother, where did you get this incense? Do you have any connections?"
Zhao Qianlan shook her head meaningfully: "I don't have connections, but I do have incense made by Su Mingyue. I'm still keeping it safe and sound, just in case Song Xizhi takes it."
She finally understood why Granny Wu had come to the Song residence so inexplicably a few days ago!
“A few days ago, Granny Wu came to the Song residence and said that Song Xizhi wanted to take back the relics left by his mother. I became suspicious and asked about it.”
"Then Wu stammered for a long time, but I still managed to find out that she wanted Su Mingyue's belongings, those incense sticks, to give to Old Madam He in order to curry favor with them."
Hearing this, Song Ruoan finally understood: "Sure enough, that bitch Song Xizhi was able to win over Old Madam He's favor entirely because she shamelessly fawned over her every day!"
Thinking about it, she nervously grasped Zhao Qianlan's hand: "What about the incense? Did you give it to her? I remember Su Mingyue is very good at making incense, but I don't know why she is so low-key. Not many people outside know about this."
Zhao Qianlan raised an eyebrow smugly: "How could I give it to her? After Su Mingyue died, I hid the incense, firstly because it was a valuable item, and secondly because I was afraid your father would remember her again. We had completely forgotten about it, but that idiot reminded us."
"After Granny Wu left, I searched high and low and found it. The incense still had the recipe wrapped around it. You can take it as part of your dowry and give it to your mother-in-law and husband."
Song Ruoan listened in silence, but a slow smile appeared on her lips: "What's so good about a dowry? In the end, it's not something I made myself, and they won't look at me any better because of it."
"But if I knew how to make this, that would be different."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qianlan's eyes lit up with greed: "You mean...?"
Song Ruoan nodded calmly: "Su Mingyue is dead, and there is no way to verify the truth. Song Xizhi also does not have this incense recipe, so I am the only one in the world who possesses this recipe."
"I want to use what Song Xizhi's mother left behind as a weapon to pierce Song Xizhi's heart. Only by playing with it in this way can I kill him and destroy his spirit, and only then can I be happy."
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