50 Confrontation
◎You should also think about your father and the Chu family's reputation◎
Chu Yufu remained silent. Her eyes, which were usually gentle, were now as quiet and deep as a cold pond. The gentle and sweet smile on her fair face faded, leaving only indifference.
She just looked at Wu quietly.
Wu's body stiffened slightly, and she felt a chill coming from behind, with cold sweat oozing from her forehead.
After a moment, Chu Yufu lowered her eyes slightly, her crow-feather-like eyelashes cast a shadow under her eyes, and the aura around her dissipated. She turned around and left with her skirt fluttering, leaving Wu with a slender and straight back.
It was not until her figure disappeared in the yard that Wu took a deep breath, her chest heaving up and down, and her long nails digging into the flesh of her palms.
Mother Meng rushed forward to support her, her voice trembling as she said, "Madam! Calm down. Be careful not to get too angry. If you collapse, what will happen to the young lady? Who will be able to protect her?"
Wu's eyes flushed red, and she was speechless for a long while. She stood up, holding onto the wooden table, raised her still trembling hand, and pointed to the door: "She, she!"
Mother Meng had served her for many years, so she naturally understood what she meant. She looked in the direction she pointed, her eyes complicated. "I never expected that the second young lady would be such a ruthless character, playing the pig to eat the tiger. With such scheming and such methods."
"The old lady came back at this critical moment. She must have secretly sent someone..."
Wu held her hand and slowly sat back in the chair, gritting her teeth and interrupting her: "Now is not the time to argue about this. The most serious problem right now is the Duke of Xin's Mansion! The Duke of Xin's Mansion! Why did they have to interfere at this time!"
Mother Meng frowned and said, "The Xinguo Mansion is something our family cannot afford to offend."
"I know!" Mrs. Wu clutched the handkerchief tightly and shouted in a low voice.
The Duke of Xin maintains a low profile within the capital, yet possesses a profound legacy. The previous Duke of Xin was a founding minister who had accompanied the late emperor in establishing the empire, renowned for his military exploits. Even though the current Duke of Xin holds a humble, unassuming position within the court, he remains deeply beloved and respected by the imperial family. How could the Chu family afford to provoke such a figure?
"But what can I do now? Putting the master aside, I've already offended the old lady today. If I allow that bitch to marry into the Duke of Xin's mansion and become the general's wife, will there be a place for me, Wu Wanzhi, in the Chu family in the future?"
"Absolutely not!" She suddenly stood up and paced back and forth in the hall anxiously.
"If you can't solve the problem, then solve the person who caused the trouble!" She suddenly stopped and looked up with a desperate madness in her eyes.
-
The next day, in Hefeng Courtyard.
Chu Jinhe sat by the window with an expressionless face, staring blankly at the gray sky outside. She casually picked up the tea that had just been served on the small table, touched it to her lips, and before she even took a sip of the tea, she suddenly raised her wrist.
The light yellow tea, along with the tea leaves, splashed over the body and face of the maid Hongying beside her. She threw the empty teacup hard onto the small table. With a crisp sound, the teacup jumped twice on the small table.
"Such hot water, do you want to scald me to death?"
"I dare not!" Hongying knelt down in panic.
“Get out!”
"Yes, yes." She stumbled out the door with tears in her eyes.
The rest of the maids in the room were all silent, their heads lowered, wishing they could shrink into the cracks of the ground. When they had a little free time, a few maids who were familiar with Hongying dared to sneak into the side room where the water was boiled and surrounded Hongying.
"Sister Hongying, how are you? Are you burned?" A little maid pulled up her wet and cold sleeves to check.
Hongying shook her head and choked up, "No, I've been serving the young lady for so long, how could I possibly serve her boiling hot water? The water temperature is obviously just right, I've tried it."
Another older maid looked around helplessly and whispered comfortingly: "Don't be too sad, this is not your fault, you just bumped into the girl's anger."
"There's been a lot of turmoil in the mansion these past few days. Everyone on duty should be alert. The masters of each courtyard are all in a bad mood. Don't let bad luck happen to you! These days are really hard to endure."
"Each academy?" Hongying raised her tearful eyes, a little confused.
"Yes." The maid's voice was even lower, almost whispering.
"Last night, I heard Mrs. Wang, who was sweeping the front yard, gossiping. She said that the young master of the Pei family had been promoted, and the mistress wanted to give this good marriage to our eldest daughter instead! The second daughter naturally refused to accept it and made a scene. The old lady hurried back, and it seemed that this was also because of this matter."
Several maids looked at each other.
Although they were from the eldest daughter's courtyard, the second daughter was always gentle and polite when she walked around the mansion on weekdays, and never criticized the servants casually. They all had a good impression of the second daughter from the bottom of their hearts. Hearing about such things, they couldn't help but feel a little sympathy: "How could it be like this..."
"Shh, it's enough for you to know this, but don't tell anyone else." said the older maid.
Several people nodded in agreement.
But there are no impenetrable walls in the mansion, and conversations like this happen from time to time. These "secrets" are like willow catkins in spring, flying all over every corner of the Chu family without anyone noticing.
Zhuyu Courtyard was no exception. Pan'er and Cen'er, who had just arrived in the courtyard, even walked lightly for fear of disturbing their master, and were extremely attentive in what they did.
The sun sets, and the last bit of golden light falls.
Pan'er pushed the door open quietly and leaned half of her body in: "Miss, I just went to the kitchen to get some raw milk. Can I heat up a bowl for you?" The girl had no appetite for lunch today. She hardly touched her chopsticks and only picked up two vegetables to eat. She must be hungry now.
Chu Yufu put down the Chinese medicine book in her hand and shook her head: "No need to heat it up, just boil it and cool it down with iced well water. I want to drink it cold."
Then he raised his hand and pressed it between his eyebrows, and asked, "How long has Lanzhu been out?"
Pan'er looked back at the sky and calculated in his mind: "It's been about four hours."
When she came back from the front yard yesterday, the more she thought about it, the more familiar the four words "Xinguo Mansion" seemed to her. She lay in bed late at night thinking about it for a long time, and suddenly she remembered that on the night of the Lantern Festival, when she and her cousin Lu were resting in a teahouse, the storyteller was talking about anecdotes about Xinuo Mansion with saliva flying.
A long time had passed, and she had just listened to it at the time. Now she only vaguely remembered that it was a story about the eldest son of the Duke of Xin who was terminally ill and on the verge of death.
So early this morning, she asked Lan Zhu to quietly leave the house and go to the teahouse to find the storyteller to find out.
As the sky grew darker, the candles were lit early in the morning at Zhuyuyuan. Pan'er and Cen'er arranged the dinner that had been delivered from the kitchen. Chu Yufu waited and waited, and just when she was worried about something going wrong, Lanzhu finally returned.
Chu Yufu immediately stood up, pulled her to sit down, and poured her a cup of tea.
Lan Zhu ignored the formalities and took the water, drank it in one gulp, then said, "I'm exhausted. The storyteller wasn't at the teahouse today. I asked around and found his house, then waited for a long time before I finally saw him!"
Chu Yufu sat up straight and asked, "What did that person say?"
"It's exactly the same as what we said in the teahouse that day. Lady Xin Guogong has only one son, a real treasure. He's been weak and sickly since childhood. I heard he was weaker than others even from infancy. The medicine he's taken over the years could fill an entire room. His health has been getting worse since the New Year. Lately, he's been looking for a doctor who specializes in acupuncture to treat his illness."
Lan Zhu's eyes sparkled: "It must be that you, the young lady, cured Madam Jiang with your miraculous healing skills. The fame spread to the Duke's wife, so she came to find you."
Chu Yufu listened quietly, holding the teacup in both hands and stroking it gently.
She cured Madam Jiang in early March, and now it was already April. If Young Master Yan was seriously ill as the storyteller said, why would he wait until today to find him?
Furthermore, there are so many skilled doctors in the capital, and the only case she can present is that of Old Madam Jiang. Why did the Duke's Mansion choose her?
Seeing her lost in thought for a long time, holding her teacup, Lan Zhu held her hand and comforted her, "Young lady, don't overthink it. This matter is an opportunity that God has sent to you. Why they came to you, and whether you can cure it, are not important. What matters is to seize this opportunity and use the power of the Duke's Mansion to force the mistress to retreat!"
Chu Yufu smiled when she heard this. It was indeed true: "Yes, we have to get through this difficult time first."
"Every difficulty comes, but every difficulty comes!" Lan Zhu chuckled and leaned closer to ask, "Miss, did anyone come to the Duke of Xin's mansion this afternoon?"
"She's here. I heard from Yunsui that it was the Duke's wife who came in person, but my mother is still adamant and refuses to give in. I heard that the Duke's wife didn't look very happy when she left."
Chu Yufu took the chopsticks from the table, put half of the rice into the empty bowl, picked up some of each dish and piled it on the rice, then handed it to Lan Zhu: "You must be hungry after running around all afternoon. There's no outsiders here, so eat here."
Lan Zhu did not refuse, she took the bowl with a smile and said, "Thank you, young lady."
The puppy sleeping by the door smelled the delicious food and started circling the table early, its tail wagging. Lan Zhu looked at it with amusement and tossed a piece of stir-fried meat at its feet. "Suck it up! You're so greedy, little fat dog! You've grown into a ball, but you're the only one who's eager to eat. Here, go and have some."
Who would have thought that Chuyi, who usually could hold a piece of bone and eat for half a day, would just come close to sniff it, shake his little head, walk around the meat three times, whimper a few times in his throat, and finally turn around and lie back in the nest.
Lan Zhu was dumbfounded, with her chopsticks hanging in the air: "Hey, it was just picking up its trouser legs, why is it refusing to eat now that I really give it to it?"
"I guess you're not hungry..." Chu Yufu responded subconsciously, but she suddenly stopped talking halfway through. She pursed her lips and looked at the food on the table. Her face changed slightly and she grabbed Lan Zhu's hand.
"Don't eat it."
She leaned over to the plate of meat and sniffed a few times, but didn't detect any strange smell. She raised her head and said, "Go, ask someone to go to the kitchen and get a live chicken or a live duck or something."
Seeing her sudden change of expression, Lan Zhu also thought of something. She threw down her chopsticks, opened the door and called someone to the kitchen.
In less than a quarter of an hour, Yinsuo ran in holding a quacking little white duck. Several people pried open the duck's beak and forced a few pieces of fried meat into it. At first, the duck was still flapping its wings, but after a few minutes, they watched the duck's movements become weaker and weaker, its slender neck slowly softened, and finally its little round eyes closed, and there was no sound.
Yinsuo covered his mouth, gasped, and said with wide eyes, "Miss, there's poison in the food!"
Chu Yufu sneered, "She's really got a good plan. As long as I 'die of illness,' not only will my elder sister be able to marry into the Pei Mansion, but no one in the Xin Guo Mansion will be able to say a word about it. It also confirms my claim that I'm too ill to see guests!"
This is indeed something that Wu could do. She would take advantage of her grandmother's illness and let her die suddenly. By the time Uncle Chu comes back, she might have already been buried.
Yinsuo said: "This, this is too..."
"vicious!"
Lan Zhu gritted her teeth and finished the two words she hadn't said, then said, "Fortunately, Chuyi is here, and fortunately, young lady, you are so careful! Even the mistress of a noble family resorted to such a despicable means as poisoning. Young lady, let's go report this to the old lady!"
Chu Yufu slowly shook her head: "No, don't make a sound for now, just put this dish away and let me think about it."
"Also, don't spread this. As for the food for the next few days, just accept it when the kitchen sends it, but don't eat it. You and Yunsui will have to work a little harder and go out the corner gate to buy some extra vegetables and rice, and we'll cook it on the small stove in the yard."
The two responded: "Don't worry, girl."
The two sides spent the next two days arguing like this. On the third day, things changed - Master Chu actually returned to Beijing early.
On the morning of the third day, it was raining heavily. The gate of the Chu Mansion was banging loudly. As the gatekeeper opened the door a crack, Master Chu jumped out of the carriage.
His face was livid. He snatched the umbrella from the servant, raised it above his head, and strode through the puddles toward the front yard. The housekeeper practically trotted to keep up, holding the umbrella in one hand while whispering a rapid report of the major events that had occurred in the family over the past few days.
When it came to the fact that Wu insisted on finding a new husband for the second girl, the old lady hurried back but was so angry that she fell ill and lay in bed. Then the wife of Duke Xin came to seek medical treatment in person but was stopped by Wu in the flower hall. The veins on his forehead bulged, and he could no longer suppress his anger and threw the oil-paper umbrella to the ground.
"Ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous! Is this how she manages my household!?"
"Ouch!" the housekeeper exclaimed, picked up the umbrella, and put it over his head again. "Calm down, calm down! Your clothes, shoes, and socks are all soaked. I'll have someone bring you some clean clothes. You can change into them and warm up first."
"What are you changing?" He gasped for breath and gritted his teeth, "Go, call Wu to the hall immediately. Also, have Fu come too. Don't disturb the old lady yet!"
"Yes." The butler turned around and gave hurried orders.
After Chu Yufu finished washing up, she walked to the flower hall in the front yard with an umbrella. The angry roar of Master Chu could be heard through the sound of rain.
"...This is the way you treat me! I've only been away for a few days, and you've already caused such a huge mess! Do you know how I got back? It was the Duke of Xin! A handwritten letter was handed directly to me, asking me to return home immediately to 'take care of family matters'! Listen! Listen! How embarrassing, truly embarrassing!"
"Who was it that kept saying He'er didn't want to get married? Now that Pei Yue has been promoted, you're jealous and want to switch Fu'er's marriage to He'er. What do you think of the Pei family? What do you think of the Chu family and Fu'er? Where do you put the face of all of us! Is this how you act as a mistress and a mother?"
By the end of his speech, Master Chu was so furious that a muffled sound came from the room, as if someone had slammed the table with his hand.
What followed was Wu's tearful defense.
"Master, what are you talking about? How could I not love Fu'er? If I didn't love her, why would I give her my most valuable private shop to buy her a doll? I really love her and want to protect her, so I didn't let her marry Pei Yue! I went to Xuanmiao Temple with all my heart and asked Taoist Yuquan for a divination. It clearly states that they are incompatible. I am not making this up. If you don't believe me, you can go to Xuanmiao Temple and ask for clarification yourself!"
Hearing this, Chu Yufu took a deep breath and stepped into the flower hall. She straightened her back and spoke in a clear, cold voice, "Mother, do you really think that father would believe the same lie twice?"
The hall fell into dead silence, and Mr. Chu and Mrs. Wu turned to her at the same time.
"Lies?" Master Chu frowned. "Fu'er, what do you mean?"
In front of her father, Chu Yufu bit her lower lip, her eyes quickly filled with tears, and she said sadly, "Daddy! If it weren't for mother's constant pressure, I would have kept this to myself. But, but today I really can't stand it anymore!"
She sobbed, "Back then, mother used the same method to bribe that so-called Taoist priest, letting him talk nonsense in front of you, saying that my aunt was unlucky for you. That's why my aunt died with hatred and was ignored by you until her death. Now mother has done the same thing again, bribing the Taoist priest to say that my horoscopes are incompatible with Pei Yue's, just to satisfy her selfish desires..."
"You're slandering me," Wu's eyelids twitched as she shouted fiercely, "Stop pretending to be pitiful! This is all nonsense! I've never done anything like these!"
Chu Yufu turned around suddenly and said, "If you don't want others to know, then don't do it yourself! Mother, do you think that no one knows about it because time has passed? I have a witness who knew the truth back then. If you don't believe me, we can report it to the authorities and let the Dali Temple investigate thoroughly and give us a fair judgment!"
"You!" Mrs. Wu didn't expect that she would do this. Her face turned pale in an instant, her eyes widened, and she pointed at her, unable to speak.
Master Chu covered his chest, as if all his strength had been drained away. He staggered a few steps and sat back on the chair. He held his forehead with one hand and slumped for a long time before he seemed to catch his breath and spoke in a hoarse voice.
"Fu'er, if you want to report it to the police, please don't mention it anymore. You should also think about your father and the reputation of the Chu family."
He paused, raised his eyes and said, "These are not the most important things at the moment, let's put them aside for now. We can't afford to offend the Duke of Xin's Mansion, so you should go to the Duke's Mansion today and take a look -"
"I can't let it go."
Chu Yufu reached out to wipe away her tears and looked at him with red eyes.
"You know, I've always been respectful and obedient. I've never said no to anything my parents ask. But today, I'm determined to fight for my place."
Her voice was not loud, but it was very clear: "If you don't return everything that belongs to me, I will never set foot in the Duke of Xin's mansion!"
Mr. Chu was stunned for a moment, then said, "I'll ask your mother to change the name on the note."
"More than that." Chu Yufu shook her head slowly.
"And the dowry my aunt left behind, I want to take it all away!"
【Author’s words】
I'm really trying hard to type on the keyboard (poor)
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