Chapter 51: Protecting the Reputation of Our Duan Mansion
Lin Yurou looked at Miss Chen's eyes, her brows slightly furrowed, thinking about something.
The girl from the Chen family was also silent. She seemed to want to say something but was hesitant.
"Cousin, do you have any doubts?"
The Chen family girl nodded, then shook her head, "Forget it. It's better not to make trouble when there is no evidence."
Lin Yurou's face immediately became solemn. She waved her hand and asked all the maids in the room to leave and stand guard at the door.
"Cousin, if you have any concerns, please feel free to speak up. This matter is of great importance. It would be bad if someone deliberately plotted to harm you. Tell your family so that they can be prepared in the future."
Miss Chen pursed her lips and hesitated for a long time. She carefully looked out the window a few times, and after making sure that there were no ears on the other side of the wall, she said in a very low voice, "I'm just guessing."
"There was no one behind us at the time, only... only the Second Prince's wife's nanny was there. I suspect..."
She didn't say the rest of the words, but both of them understood her unspoken meaning.
Lin Yurou's face was calm and serious. After a while, she said softly, "If you were indeed pushed from behind, then it must not be a suspicion, but a fact."
Neither of them spoke again, and the atmosphere fell into an eerie silence.
"But I can't figure it out." Miss Chen held Lin Yurou's hand with lingering fear, "Cousin, I have always been self-disciplined and polite, and have never offended her. Why did she want to harm me?"
Lin Yurou looked at the girl from the Chen family and suddenly blurted out, “If they wanted to harm you, the servants of the Prince’s Mansion would not try to save you.”
After the words fell, both of them were stunned for a moment.
An inexplicable feeling of uneasiness slowly rose in her heart. Lin Yurou couldn't put it into words, but she just felt uneasy.
She suddenly thought of Shen Anan who stayed in the water pavilion, and wondered if she had returned to the banquet hall.
She felt inexplicably uneasy about the water pavilion and quickly ordered someone to go to the banquet hall to check.
But before they left, greetings were heard outside the courtyard, and soon Mrs. Lin walked in.
"Mother." Lin Yurou stood up.
Madam Lin nodded, and immediately looked at the girl lying on the bed, sitting beside her distressedly, "Wan'er, are you okay?"
"Don't worry, auntie. Wan'er is fine." Chen Wan'er forced a smile.
Madam Lin helped her sit up and said, "It's good that you're okay. Let's go back home and find a doctor to take a good look at her so that she doesn't get sick any more."
The maids all came over to help Chen Wan'er tidy up her clothes and hair, and helped her get out of bed.
Madam Lin sighed softly and whispered, "This is really weird. How come one after another people fell into the water at a banquet? Maybe the feng shui of the waterside pavilion in the Second Prince's mansion is not good."
Lin Yurou immediately grasped the point and asked anxiously, "Mother said someone else fell into the water?"
"Yeah." Madam Lin had a worried look on her face. "The Shen family's girl also fell into the water, and so did the Duan family. Hey, weren't you with Miss Shen? How did you separate in the middle of the trip?"
If they hadn't been separated, the girl probably wouldn't have fallen into the water. Madam Shen should not blame Rou'er for not taking good care of her.
Lin Yurou's heart instantly tightened, her fingertips curled up in her palms, and a chill ran down her spine.
His face changed, “What did mother say, Miss Shen also fell into the water?”
"Yes, it was also at the waterside pavilion. I heard that he had an argument with Miss Duan, and the two of them fell down somehow."
Lin Yurou frowned tightly.
But they clearly didn't see the Duan family in the waterside pavilion, and she didn't think that Shen Anan would directly fight with Duan Mengmeng. Although they didn't have much contact, she just felt that Shen Anan would not be so disgraceful.
And the one from the Duan family, who has always attached great importance to her reputation and the title of the most talented woman, how could she do such a disgraceful thing in the prince's mansion.
Her eyes moved slowly and met Chen Wan'er's. Both of them felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.
Chen Wan'er's description just now was like a heavy hammer hitting Lin Yurou's heart. Is it possible that An An was like the Duan family, and was...
She felt inexplicably panicked. An An had followed her because she was worried about her. If something happened, how would she face this marriage and Master Shen?
All these coincidences combined together, making Lin Yurou completely unable to stand, "Mother, please take my cousin back home to rest first, I have something to do and will be back later."
She ran out after she finished speaking, and Madam Lin quickly stopped her, "Rou'er, where are you going? This is the Second Prince's residence, don't offend the noble."
Lin Yurou paused for a moment, looked back at Madam Lin, and thought, "I won't stay in the Second Prince's Mansion. I'll go out to find someone."
The incident happened in the Second Prince's Mansion. If An An really had something wrong, her staying in the Second Prince's Mansion would be of no use except alerting the enemy and even putting herself in danger.
She first had to make sure An An had returned home safely.
She walked hurriedly, trying her best to appear calm so as not to let anyone notice anything, and left through the side door of the Prince's Mansion.
She was walking too fast and didn't have time to stop at the corner, so she was hit hard on the shoulder. The woman coming towards her and she both took several steps back and only managed to hold on to the wall to avoid falling.
Lin Yurou rubbed her shoulder that was hurt by the collision. Her eyes were a little red, but she still looked at the woman opposite her first.
"I'm sorry, I was in a hurry and bumped into..."
After seeing the woman's face clearly, Lin Yurou's words suddenly stopped.
"Miss Duan Er."
"Miss Lin." Duan Yingying nodded, glanced back quickly, and was about to leave.
"Second Miss Duan." Lin Yurou stepped aside to stop her, "Are you going to the Second Prince's Mansion?"
Duan Yingying frowned and nodded, her eyes wandering, "I left something in the prince's mansion, and I want to go in and get it."
Lin Yurou glanced behind her a few times, her eyes flickering, "Where's Miss Duan San? Aren't you guys together?"
"Oh, my third sister...she went back home first." Duan Yingying lowered her head and spoke hesitantly. Lin Yurou obviously noticed something was wrong.
If she was not mistaken, the sign hanging not far ahead should be that of the Duan Mansion's carriage.
If Duan Mengmeng is safe and sound, then An An must have returned home safely as well.
Thinking of this, Lin Yurou made way and walked towards the Duan Mansion's carriage. Duan Yingying's face turned pale and she hurriedly grabbed her.
"Miss Lin, what are you doing?"
Lin Yurou tilted her head to glance at her and said, "I want to see Miss Duan San about something."
"Don't go." Duan Yingying shook her head slightly at her, as if she was afraid of being seen by someone.
Lin Yurou noticed that a corner of the carriage window in front was opened, and a little maid stuck her head out and looked over here.
Her heart moved and she keenly realized that something was wrong.
She looked at Duan Yingying with inquiry in her eyes and a cold tone, "Didn't Miss Duan San fall into the water and be sent back to the mansion early? Now that the ladies and girls have left, why haven't you left yet?"
Duan Yingying opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but finally closed it silently.
"Miss Lin, stop asking questions and go back home."
She lowered her voice and made a dangerous gesture with her fingers at an angle that no one in the carriage could see, hoping that Lin Yurou would leave quickly.
“Miss Shen also fell into the water. As long as we make sure Miss Duan San is okay, then I believe Miss Shen has also returned home safely.” Lin Yurou walked towards the carriage again.
At the same time, two maids came from nowhere and walked towards the two of them.
Duan Yingying immediately grabbed Lin Yurou, put on a smile and pretended to greet her. Only then did the two maids stop, but their eyes were fixed in this direction.
Looking at this situation, Lin Yurou was certain that something must have happened to Duan Mengmeng.
She narrowed her eyes and stared at Duan Yingying, "What's going on?"
Duan Yingying bit her red lips hard, and then said in a very low voice, "I don't know what's going on. The woman in the carriage is not my third sister."
She saw the clue, and the woman said that her third sister was still in the Second Prince's mansion and asked her to go there to look for her.
She was not a fool. Considering how attentive the Second Prince had been to Duan Mengmeng in the past, she understood something. However, she could not go back to report the news as the maids in the Second Prince's mansion were watching her.
Hearing this, Lin Yurou was stunned for a moment, and it took her a while to realize what it meant.
"That person in the carriage is not your third sister! Is it fake?"
Duan Yingying nodded with difficulty, "If Miss Chen is also like this, I think..."
She didn't say the rest, but Lin Yurou understood.
They were sent out of the Second Prince's Mansion together. If Duan San was fake, then it was very likely that An An who returned to the mansion was also fake and was still in the Second Prince's Mansion.
Duan Yingying looked back and saw that the two maids were already walking towards them. Her face turned pale and she spoke hurriedly.
"She asked me to go back to the mansion with her in the carriage, saying that the Second Prince would send my third sister back in a while, but I am really worried. Miss Lin, if we are not back before dark, please go to Duan Mansion to inform us."
Lin Yurou nodded slightly.
Duan Yingying walked towards the mansion and said, "Could you please keep it a secret, Miss Lin? This matter concerns the reputation of the Duan Mansion and my third sister."
Lin Yurou glanced at her and said nothing.
Going to the Duan Mansion to report the news under the Second Prince's nose was already a dangerous matter. If one kept it secret and went quietly, one would be caught by the Second Prince's men before he even got close to the gate.
At this time, he still cares about those things. "Life is always more important than reputation."
Duan Yingying's face turned pale again, "But..."
The reputation of the Duan family is very important, even more important than the two girls.
"Miss Duan Er." Lin Yurou's voice suddenly sank, "You should know the danger of this matter. Before you make such a request, have you considered the safety of me who is helping you?"
Duan Yingying's back stiffened, her fingertips slowly curled up in her palms, her face was pale, her eyes were full of guilt, "I'm sorry, Miss Lin."
The carriage of the Duan Mansion had already left, and the two maids also appeared in front of them.
Lin Yurou's eyes darkened. She thought Duan Yingying had figured it out and was about to leave, but she was stunned by what she said again.
"Then... Miss Lin, please don't bother with your help. Please keep today's incident a secret. My third sister was just invited by the Second Prince to be his guest. The Duan Mansion is full of loyal and brave people. I don't think the Second Prince will do anything to her."
Lin Yurou looked back in disbelief. If time had allowed, she would have gone back to take a closer look at this girl who had been fooled by the Four Books and Five Classics.
She ignored her and continued walking forward.
The Duan family wants to preserve their reputation, so it’s their business if they choose to swallow their anger. There’s no way she won’t save An An.
Duan Yingying had already walked into the Second Prince's Mansion, and the two maids also walked up to Lin Yurou, "Miss Lin."
Lin Yurou glanced at the two of them, holding the hairpin in her hand, and asked in a very bad tone, "What are you doing?"
"My mother is still in the mansion. Go and see when they will come out."
She looked like she was waiting anxiously.
The two maids looked at each other with suspicion in their eyes. They were far away and were not sure whether Duan Yingying had said anything to Lin Yurou. But even if she had, if Madam Lin was still in the mansion, then Miss Lin would definitely not be able to do anything.
"Didn't the ladies leave through the main entrance? Why did Miss Lin come out through the side door?"
A maid questioned.
Lin Yurou has always been gentle in front of others, but now she frowned and looked a little intimidating.
"My cousin fell into the water. How could she leave through the main gate when there were so many people around? Would she let others laugh at our Lin and Chen families?"
"What are you standing there for? Why don't you go?"
The little maid frowned.
One of them touched the other and said, "Let's go back to the mansion and take a look."
It was already a surprise that we failed to deal with Miss Duan Er, but fortunately that girl valued her reputation and did not dare to make a fuss. If another person got involved, with so many families of important officials involved, it would definitely be a lot of trouble.
The maid thought about going back to report to the Second Prince, who would definitely have a way to make the Lin family shut up.
Besides, as long as the carriage was hijacked by bandits, who could prove that the person in the carriage was not the girl from Shen Duan's second mansion?
The two of them bowed and made way for Lin Yurou.
After thinking about it, I decided to let the secret guards follow him for a while.
Lin Yurou's curled fingers loosened, but her face remained expressionless and she walked away calmly.
The two of them glanced at Lin Yurou's figure and could faintly hear her unhappy complaints about not being able to find the Lin Mansion's carriage.
The two of them withdrew their gaze and quickly returned home.
"Miss, they've left." The little maid whispered to Lin Yurou.
Lin Yurou remained calm, but her steps became noticeably faster.
"Girl, where are we going?"
At the fork in the road, the master and servant stopped.
Lin Yurou bit her lip and resolutely turned around and walked towards the busy street, not in the direction of the Shen Mansion.
"If the Second Prince really captured An An, he would definitely set up defenses in the Shen Mansion. And the two maids just now, they just can't make up their minds, but once they report to the Second Prince, the Second Prince will definitely take action."
So you can't go to either the Chen Mansion or the Duan Mansion.
"Then where are we going?" The little maid glanced back fearfully, and suddenly caught a glimpse of a dark shadow out of the corner of her eye. She trembled with fear.
"Miss, I always feel like someone is following us."
"Yeah." Lin Yurou responded indifferently.
She stopped in front of a hawker, picked up a tiny bronze mirror to look at her hair accessories, then put the mirror down and continued walking forward.
It was afternoon and the long street was bustling with people coming and going. Lin Yurou took her maid and went to crowded places.
The two of them had slender figures, and were not noticeable at all, especially when they were in a high place. After a while, the secret guards could no longer see their figures.
The two secret guards looked gloomy, looked at each other, and split up to look for him.
Lin Yurou watched the two walk away before she leaned out from behind a dozen oil-paper umbrellas. The vendor looked at them with some confusion, "Girl, which one do you like?"
Lin Yurou handed the vendor a silver ingot and said, "I'll take them all, but I don't have any servants with me, so I can't carry so many things. Could you please help me send them back to the mansion?"
The peddler took the silver and smiled so hard that his teeth were showing, and said yes repeatedly.
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