Chapter 49: Accusation
Aunt Zhang had experienced hard times until she met General Xie and was able to settle down.
Therefore, she always thought that as a girl, Yu'er only needed to live a peaceful life and find an ordinary family for her without being involved in those intrigues and disputes.
However, she only now realized that she was wrong.
Fortunately, it's not too late yet.
Now, everything is ready, just wait for the opportunity, just like waiting for a rabbit by a tree, just waiting for the lady to fall into the trap!
…
On the other side, Mrs. Xie carefully counted the days, letting time pass quietly.
In the blink of an eye, within these two days, General Xie's complexion finally improved.
So after dinner, she took some money and set off for her son Xie Wuqi's villa in the west of Beijing.
Unexpectedly, Xie Wuqi was delayed in leaving his shift today and has not returned home yet.
Only Liu Yueli stayed at home, and she had hired two maids to serve her personally.
As soon as Mrs. Xie arrived, Liu Yueli immediately stood up to greet her, with a smile as bright as a spring flower, as if there had never been any conflict between them.
However, Mrs. Xie still held a prejudice against Liu Yueli deep in her heart, but considering the last deep conversation at Xiangguo Temple, she suppressed her emotions, but her words were still sharp:
"After all, she's a woman who knows how to manage a household. She even hired two maids to serve her. No wonder Wuqi's salary is always stretched."
"Come here and let me see if these two maids are innocent. How can Wuqi allow someone with unclear background to be around him?"
There was a hint of sarcasm in Mrs. Xie's tone, and Liu Yueli's smile froze instantly, but she quickly adjusted her attitude and nodded slightly to the maids.
After hearing the voice, the two maids came forward in an upright manner. Madam Xie only took a quick glance at them and her brows furrowed involuntarily.
"Where did these two maids come from?"
After all, she was the mistress of the general's mansion. How could she not see that these two maids were not unworldly, but rather knew the rules too well, as if they came from wealthy families.
Liu Yueli noticed the strange look on Mrs. Xie's face, and her heart tightened. She hurriedly explained:
"I bought them from a matchmaker. These two maids are quite clever. I only gave them a few days of instruction, and they quickly mastered all the etiquette rules."
The door knocker clanged, and Xie Wuqi's voice, wrapped in a chill, rushed in: "Mother!"
When Mrs. Xie turned around, the hem of her skirt knocked over the teacup on the table.
The brown tea flowed along the seams of the green bricks to the edge of Liu Yueli's skirt. She stared at the puddle of water and heard Mrs. Xie muttering in a tearful voice: "You're finally here. Your father has been impeached again these days..." Her voice stopped abruptly because she saw mud spots on the hem of her son's official robe.
While tidying her hair, Liu Yueli winked at the two maids sweeping the corridor.
The maid in the apricot-colored bodice understood and dragged her companion back toward the moon-shaped gate. Mrs. Xie's thoughts and eyes were now completely focused on her son, and she had long forgotten her suspicion that the maid was lazy.
"You just said that the censor impeached you?" Xie Wuqi's sudden high tone startled the sparrows under the eaves.
Liu Yueli lowered her head and stared at the lotus flowers on the tip of her embroidered shoes. She heard the teacups gently clinking on the tray - Madam Xie was pouring tea for herself with trembling hands to calm her nerves.
"That's right!" Mrs. Xie spilled half a cup of tea and pressed the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief, "Those censors who have nothing better to do than to interfere with people's broken engagements." She suddenly fell silent in the middle of her words, as she remembered that the instigator of the broken engagement was right in front of her.
Xie Wuqi's veins bulged as he gripped the back of the chair. What impeachment from the Imperial Censor? It was clearly Pei Ji making trouble in front of the Emperor! That day at the foot of the Changning Earl's Mansion, I thought he was just joking, but who would have thought he'd actually dare to bring it to the Emperor's door? What a sanctimonious hypocrite!
"Go home tomorrow after your shift and apologize to your father." Madam Xie suddenly grabbed her son's wrist, the jade armor inlaid on it hurting him. "I've set up a tight net in Caifang Garden. Tomorrow, I'll make sure Concubine Zhang is smashed to pieces." She glanced at Liu Yueli and said, "If you want to take this girl with you, then take her. The west wing is empty anyway."
Liu Yueli dug her fingertips into her palm. That day, when Xie Wuqi had taken her out of the house, he had said such nice things—"I'll definitely welcome you with the three letters and six ceremonies." Now, even the status of a concubine had to be obtained through charity.
She stared at the jade pendant swaying on the belt around Xie Wuqi's waist, and suddenly remembered the mandarin duck pendant that was broken when Luo Zhaohan broke off the engagement.
"Wuqi should listen to Madam." When she raised her face, her eyes were filled with tears. "A man's fame and honor are the most important." She said this considerately, but her heart felt like it was filled with ice.
The day before yesterday, when she went to a silk shop to get clothes made, the shopkeeper didn't even look at her, treating her as a concubine.
Xie Wuqi's eyes flickered between his mother and Liu Yueli, his Adam's apple rolling up and down: "My child listens to my mother."
Before she finished her words, the jade bracelet on Mrs. Xie's wrist had already knocked against the table, the crisp sound of jingling mixed with her sudden and relaxed laughter.
Liu Yueli turned her head away to look at the dead branches outside the window.
The north wind blew the remaining snow onto the window paper, and the rustling sound was very similar to the footsteps at the back door of Fuyuan General's Mansion that night.
Xie Wuqi was the same at that time. When he said "Follow me", she really believed that she could make a good future.
"That bitch, Aunt Zhang..." Madam Xie sneered, gritting her teeth. "Tomorrow I'll make her feel like she's crying out for help."
The nails stained with marigold juice made sharp scratches on the bluestone table, as if he could hear the opponent's shrill cries.
Xie Wuqi stared at his mother's distorted face, and suddenly remembered how Concubine Zhang looked when she jumped into the well in her previous life. Her wet hair stuck to her pale face, and in her hand she clutched a half-broken pearl necklace—it had been a birthday gift from General Xie.
"Father's side..." He just opened his mouth when he was interrupted by Mrs. Xie.
"Your father values his reputation above all else." Madam Xie stroked the cloud pattern on her son's official robe. "When something happens tomorrow, he'll understand who the pillar of the general's mansion is." She glanced at Liu Yueli and said, "Although the west wing is remote, it's quiet."
Liu Yueli bowed to express her gratitude, but the hairpins on her temples were shaking violently.
She recalled hearing the maids gossiping in the kitchen this morning about the west wing being haunted and the concubine in front being hanged from the beam. Madam Xie was using her as a pawn and expecting her to be grateful.
The sound of the night watchman came from afar, and Xie Wuqi stood up to say goodbye.
Liu Yueli followed him to the Chuihua Gate and watched him stride towards the stables without so much as a backward glance. The cold wind blew snowflakes against his collar, and she suddenly remembered the day she broke off her engagement, when she had also walked out of the Fuyuan General's Mansion without a backward glance.
"Miss, be careful not to catch a cold." The maid in an apricot-colored bodice handed her a hand warmer and gently stroked her palm with her fingertips. Liu Yueli suddenly woke up - these two were the spies sent by the noble.
She clenched the hand warmer and turned around, catching a glimpse of Mrs. Xie leaning against the door frame and watching her son leave, a smile on her lips.
…
Wuwei General's Mansion.
At three quarters after noon, the sun was pale and the icicles under the corridor were dripping with water.
Madam Xie tightened the collar of her fox fur coat, her gilded armor clacking against a celadon cup. She stared at the closed carved door of the study, a sneer tugging at the corners of her mouth. The cheers of Xie Wuchen's shot hitting the bull's eye in the martial arts arena had been heard clearly across the three courtyards.
"Madam, please go back." Xie Shiliu stood in front of the door with his fists clasped together, and the black iron wristband shone with a cold light.
This guard had followed the general through a sea of blood and corpses, and even his words were filled with the smell of blood.
Madam Xie was neither anxious nor annoyed. Her red-haired fingertips brushed the golden hairpins on her temples. "Please tell them again..." She suddenly raised her voice, "It's about the one in Caifang Garden. Don't you want to hear it, General?"
“Squeak—”
The scent of ink wafted in from the crack in the door. General Xie was sitting behind a rosewood desk, wiping his sword with suede.
The sword reflected his furrowed brows: "What are you trying to do?"
"Master, please try this Cordyceps and Pigeon Soup." Madam Xie pushed the celadon bowl forward, and the floating oil on the surface of the soup formed golden circles. "I have been simmering it over the fire for two hours. It is very good for replenishing qi and blood."
"Ding!" The scabbard slammed heavily on the table.
Madam Xie's fingertips trembled, but she still wore a smile on her face. "Wuqi came back to apologize today after finishing his shift. The child was so thin that his knees were bruised when he knelt in the ancestral hall."
"A loving mother often spoils her son!" General Xie abruptly stood up, the jade pendant on his sword tassel jingling against the wall. Outside the window, the north wind whipped through withered branches, casting a shadow in his eyes. The emperor's words, "How can a tiger father have a dog son?" were still ringing in his ears when he woke up, but the smoke of war on the Dongling border would be lit at the beginning of next spring...
Madam Xie noticed the unease in his eyes and took the opportunity to take a step closer. "Mrs. Zhang brought Wuchen to pay her respects yesterday, saying she had just acquired an ebony bow. Let me tell you, our Wuqi is working at the Military Affairs Department, and we're in need of..."
"That's enough!" General Xie swept the teacup away with a flick of his sleeve, and porcelain shards exploded on the blue bricks. "If this is all for these trivial matters, get out of here and go back to your yard!"
"I'm going to report Xie Wuyu for private transactions!" Madam Xie suddenly raised her voice, her gold and jade earrings dangling at her cheeks. "She actually wanted to give something to the Luo family boy!"
“Bang!”
The inkstone flew past Mrs. Xie's hair, and the ink splashed onto the hem of her scarlet skirt.
General Xie's face was livid, the gold wire wrapped around the hilt of his sword almost digging into his palm. "Yu'er has only just reached the age of marriage! How dare you, a vicious woman, slander her!"
"Evil woman?" Madam Xie stumbled and held onto the antique shelf, her jade forbidden steps shattering into pieces. "Master, why not ask Concubine Zhang what shameless thing her precious daughter has done!"
General Xie caught a glimpse of Madam Xie standing beside the desk, her expression dazed. He couldn't help but frown slightly. He was about to ask her to leave when suddenly, Madam Xie broke the silence and spoke abruptly:
"Master, I know I haven't earned your deep love, but over the years, I've managed the family finances and taken care of the household chores with unwavering diligence. While I haven't achieved any significant accomplishments, I can still say I've worked hard and made great contributions."
General Xie mistakenly thought that Madam Xie was going to start gossiping about Xie Wuqi again, and a look of boredom appeared on his face.
Unexpectedly, Madam Xie suddenly changed the subject: "When I asked to see you just now, I mentioned the matter of Caifang Garden. Do you think that this was just an excuse for me to see you?"
"Thankfully, I'm a good housekeeper, so I was able to expose this scandal. Otherwise, if it were to be exposed, not only would the General's Mansion's reputation be ruined, but I would also be ashamed to face the world again."
Hearing this, General Xie frowned and said in a more serious tone, "What exactly do you want to say?"
Madam Xie raised the corner of her mouth slightly, and said calmly, "That Liu Yueli is shameless and seduced Wuqi. I know you detest this."
"What if I tell you that there is also a 'Liu Yueli' in our mansion, and that this person... is none other than your beloved daughter?"
General Xie was stunned at first, then he was furious and stood up angrily, "You are talking nonsense!"
Madam Xie had anticipated this. She sneered, "Not only you, General, but even I, upon hearing this for the first time, find it hard to believe."
Mrs. Xie shook two letters from her sleeve, and the parchment clattered against the huanghuali wood table with a clatter. The sunlight filtering through the window lattice revealed the dark patterns on the corners of the paper; it was the gold-sprinkled paper used exclusively by the young ladies of the Xie family.
"When Wu Yu was born, I wanted to bring her home to raise." Madam Xie's nails, stained with rouge, scratched across the letter, slapping a heavy poke at the three characters "Mr. Luo." "Master insisted that Concubine Zhang knew the rules, but now have you seen the private letters between them?"
The gold and jade-inlaid armor scraped against the paper, making a teeth-grinding sound.
General Xie's knuckles were white from clenching the letter, and the letter crumpled in his palm. The opening words, "Seeing you write is like seeing you in person," stung his eyes—it was the first letter home he had personally taught his youngest daughter to write when she reached the age of 15.
"Climbing the social ladder, secretly giving and receiving things, shameless..." Madam Xie took a step closer with each word, the tassels of her golden hairpin brushing against her husband's shoulders. "The young master of the Luo family has come to our house for tea three times, and each time he 'happened' to see Wu Yu chasing butterflies in the garden."
The deliberately drawn-out ending of her tone was like a poisoned silver needle, piercing General Xie's temples where veins bulged.
Green smoke rose from the incense burner on the table. Mrs. Xie looked at her husband's trembling hands and felt a sense of revenge in her heart.
Twenty years ago, on the night when Aunt Zhang came into the house, she was also like this, pinching the mandarin duck embroidery on the wedding quilt and listening to the music from the next yard until dawn.
"Wu Yu is as timid as a mouse. She doesn't even dare to write a love word in the letter." She suddenly sneered, and the jade bracelet on her wrist knocked against the corner of the desk. "If I wait another half a month, I will definitely be able to teach her to write 'Si Sheng Qi Kuo'." Before she finished speaking, she saw General Xie suddenly look up, and the bloodshot in his eyes was as ferocious as spider webs.
Mrs. Xie's heart skipped a beat, then she remembered something more important: "Those gossipers in the Censorate are probably going to turn the affairs of the Xie family's harem into a storybook." She deliberately emphasized the word "harem." "When General Luo finds out that his only son was seduced by a concubine, I'm afraid he'll come to kill him!"
"Bang!"
General Xie suddenly slammed the letter onto the table, causing the inkstone to jump half an inch. The ink splattered on the character "Yu" at the end of the letter, reminiscent of the cinnabar he had personally applied between his daughter's eyebrows on her coming-of-age day.
"Aunt Zhang can't teach you such things!" A low growl rolled out of his throat, like a wounded trapped beast.
Mrs. Xie was stunned for a moment, suddenly feeling a dull ache in her chest. That year, when Concubine Zhang had a difficult labor, the master had waited outside the delivery room with red eyes. She dug her nails deep into her palms, suddenly snatched up the stained letter, and thrust it directly into her husband's face. "Master, would you rather believe your own daughter has accepted such low status than protect that lowly servant?"
The paper pages rustled, and Xie Wuyu's beautiful small calligraphy struggled among the ink stains.
General Xie vaguely saw his daughter bending over the desk practicing calligraphy. She always liked to place the sheep-hair brush at an angle with her thumb and index finger resting on it. That was a habit that Aunt Zhang had taught her.
"Go to Caifang Garden!" Madam Xie suddenly grabbed her husband's sleeve, her jeweled armor scratching the brocade. "You should ask Aunt Zhang yourself if she dares to swear to heaven!"
She had already instructed Nanny Chao to take people to tie up the mother and daughter, and now she thought it was time for the show to begin.
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