Chapter 275 Li Nian'er and Wan Ning's Cooperation
Wan Ningniang was hurriedly brought in by Granny Qian. As soon as she stepped into the inner hall, she was met with Jiang Shi's gaze, which was so cold it could freeze one's bones.
She knew something was terribly wrong, her legs went weak, and she knelt down with a thud, not daring to lift her head.
Suppressing her surging anger, Madam Jiang's voice seemed to be squeezed out from between her teeth: "I repeatedly told you to act cleanly and efficiently, and not to leave any loose ends that could implicate the whole household! Is this how you handle things?!"
Wan Ning's mother trembled with fear, prostrating herself on the ground, her voice trembling with sobs as she pleaded, "My...my lady, please calm down! I did give that scoundrel enough silver to keep him quiet. The crowd was in chaos at the time, and he slipped away in the confusion after delivering the message...He...he probably didn't even see me clearly, let alone know that I'm in the Qi residence now..."
Seeing that she still hadn't grasped the situation, Madam Jiang interrupted her sharply: "Fool! Right now, Meng Xiren is blocking the gate of my Qi residence with the 'rascals' you're talking about! Tell me, how did he find them?"
Wan Ning's mother was struck dumb, her face turning deathly pale. She murmured to herself, "No...it can't be..."
The immense fear nearly paralyzed her.
Jiang looked down at her, her eyes filled with disdain and disappointment: "I was so foolish to think you were a clever person!"
Her tone suddenly shifted, becoming icy and resolute: "When you go to see Lord Meng later, you'd better think this through. This matter was entirely your doing, stemming from an old grudge between you and Lu Zhaoruo, a revenge act driven by personal vendetta. It has absolutely nothing to do with the Qi family! If you dare to utter any nonsense..."
She didn't finish her sentence, but the threat in it was self-evident.
Wan Ningniang panicked completely, tears streaming down her face as she scrambled forward to grab Jiang Shi's skirt: "Madam! Madam, you can't do this! Please save me... The Duke of Di's mansion, what kind of family is that? They could crush me like an ant! I absolutely cannot afford to offend you, Madam!"
Li Nian'er, who was standing to the side, had already guessed most of the plot of what was going on.
Looking at Wan Ningniang kneeling on the ground, and thinking of the certain death she would face if she were sent back to the Imperial Uncle's mansion, a crazy and audacious idea quickly grew and spread in her mind.
Since we're going to die anyway, we might as well drag Lu Zhaoruo down to hell with us when we die!
She walked up to Wan Ning's mother, looking down at her and saying, "Wan Ning's mother, I'll take the blame for your crime of spreading rumors!"
Wan Ningniang looked up in astonishment, staring at the person in front of her in disbelief.
She certainly recognized Li Nian'er.
Back in Jizhou City, how arrogant and domineering this county magistrate's daughter was when she led her servants to smash up Lu Zhaoruo's boudoir!
Later, she married into the family of the emperor's brother-in-law, and I secretly envied her good fortune.
But now...
Wan Ning's gaze unconsciously swept over Li Nian'er's gaunt and emaciated face, her disheveled sideburns, and the scars that could not be concealed, and she was horrified.
How could someone who was once so arrogant have been reduced to this state?
Li Nian'er's lips curled into a miserable and eerie smile: "I will confess this crime to Meng Xi. I will bear the wrath of the Duke of Di's mansion, and you... may be able to escape this calamity."
Before Wan Ning's mother could recover from this sudden "blessing," Li Nian'er abruptly changed her tone, her eyes sharpening like knives as she locked onto her: "But you must promise me one thing!"
Wan Ning's mother had no time to think it through and immediately kowtowed repeatedly: "Please speak, Nian'er's wife! As long as I can do it, I will brave mountains of knives and seas of fire, even if it means my death!"
Li Nian'er bent down and said, word by word, "I took the blame for you, and you must avenge the blood feud for me!"
She paused, a chilling smile playing on her lips, and added, "Oh, no. It's revenge for both of us."
Wan Ning's mother, not understanding what was going on, raised her head in confusion.
Li Nian'er continued whispering, "You should also know that the Emperor has sent people to Jizhou to secretly investigate Lu Zhaoruo's background. Once the truth is found, he will request an imperial decree for her, and she will be in the limelight..."
A malice flashed in her eyes: "I want you to beat the drum of petition and appeal to the emperor! Accuse Lu Zhaoruo of murdering my brother Li Xiu and forcing your sister Wan Miaoniang to take the blame and die!"
Wan Ningniang's pupils suddenly contracted, her whole body shuddered violently, and she almost collapsed to the ground.
To strike the drum for petitioning the emperor? To lodge a complaint with the emperor?
Coercing the older sister?
Her voice trembled as she asked incredulously, "What...what do you mean? My elder sister confessed herself that she killed Li Yanei..."
Li Nian'er sneered and interrupted her: "You probably don't know yet, do you? Why would your sister 'admit' to killing Li Yanei?"
Recalling that day, her nails dug deeply into her palms as she raised her chin: "Actually, my brother was killed by Lu Zhaoruo! It wasn't your sister who killed him! It was that poisonous woman Lu Zhaoruo who coerced and bribed your poor sister to take the blame for her death!"
She stared intently into Wan Ningniang's eyes and retorted, "She caused your sister's wrongful death, don't you hate her? Don't you want revenge?"
Wan Ning's mother shook her head frantically, her face deathly pale: "No...it's impossible...my sister clearly told me herself that she used the hairpin..."
Li Nian'er immediately picked up on her words, her tone aggressive: "How is it impossible? You know how doting my brother is on your sister! Gold, silver, jewels, silks, and satins—she has everything! He even bought her a villa to keep her as a mistress! I remember, most of the things you used to wear were gifts from my brother to your sister, which she then gave to you."
Observing Wan Ningniang's wavering expression, she continued to press on: "Ask yourself honestly, my brother dotes on your sister so much, what reason does your sister have to kill him?"
"Think about it again! Why did Lu Zhaoruo, who had no relationship with your sister, suddenly become so kind as to take you as her adopted sister after your sister's death? Is there really such a thing as kindness without reason in this world?"
Her voice suddenly turned sharp: "If she really had such a kind heart, why did she ignore you after acknowledging you, leaving you to fall into such a state?"
Wan Ning's ears were ringing; Li Nian'er's words were like thunderclaps, exploding again and again.
yes……
She didn't believe at the time that her older sister would kill Li Yanei.
In her memory, the voice of her rushing to the prison cart and questioning her sister echoed clearly in her ears: "Sister! Why did you kill Li Yanei? Li Yanei... he treated you so well! He bought you a villa, gave you gold and silver jewelry, and gave you money to do things every month... It was because of him that our family's life became more comfortable, and Father and Mother had less to do."
"The silks and satins you wear, the hairpins and ornaments in your hair, the rouge on your face... which one of them wasn't a gift from Young Master Li?"
"Even though you're just a mistress, your food, clothing, and daily necessities are more respectable than those of many legitimate wives..."
"Little sister... little sister used to envy older sister..."
"But sister, why...why did you kill him?"
At that time, my sister just cried and shook her head.
Looking back now, how much injustice and helplessness was hidden in those tears?
Wan Ningniang's thoughts were in turmoil, and the more she thought about it, the colder she felt.
Besides, has Lu Zhaoruo ever truly cared for me?
She looked down at her mutilated right hand.
She cut off four fingers to show her loyalty in order to beg Lu Zhaoruo not to abandon her, but what happened in the end? She was still ruthlessly driven away by Lu Zhaoruo!
Li Nian'er slowly squatted down and whispered in her ear like a ghost: "Think about it, how tragically your older sister died... She was cursed by thousands of people, paraded through the streets, and finally hanged to death. And the culprit behind all of this was Lu Zhaoruo!"
Wan Ning's mother suddenly remembered her sister's instructions in prison before she died: "Your sister has arranged a place for you. From now on... you will follow the owner of Lu's Embroidery Shop. She will treat you well."
At the time, she only felt that her sister had found a way out for her, but now, thinking about it more carefully...
Her eyes widened suddenly!
It turned out that Lu Zhaoruo had indeed forced her sister to take the blame, and her sister had only agreed because of her!
However, Lu Zhaoruo did not keep her promise afterward, and she let her older sister down! She caused her older sister to lose her life in vain!
What a vicious Lu Zhaoruo!
But then I thought, what kind of good person is Li Nian'er? Why should she believe her?
Seeing her hesitation, Li Nian'er simply told her the truth: "Let me tell you the truth! At that time, I conspired with your sister and her maid to lure Lu Zhaoruo to another courtyard and gave my brother some hemorrhoid powder. I wanted my brother to defile her, partly for revenge and partly to fulfill my brother's infatuation. As you know, my brother has always been infatuated with her."
"The whole 'your sister resisted to protect her younger sister, my brother was enraged and beat her, she was forced to fight back and accidentally killed him, and finally set fire to the house'...it's all a lie!"
Her eyes were filled with hatred: "It was all Lu Zhaoruo who forced them to fabricate it! Your sister never killed my brother, it was Lu Zhaoruo who killed him, yet she forced your sister to take the blame and die!"
Wan Ning's mother was struck dumb, never expecting that the trouble back then was actually caused by her sister and Li Nian'er conspiring together!
If that's the case, how could my sister suddenly kill Li Yanei?
Her pupils dilated sharply as she came to the conclusion that Li Yanei was killed by Lu Zhaoruo! And her elder sister was forced to take the blame!
Everything Lu Zhaoruo did afterward—taking her as her sworn sister and burying her sister—was all hypocritical compensation and pretense!
Li Nian'er continued to rub salt into her wounds: "Think about it, how tragically your older sister died... She was insulted by so many people while being paraded through the streets, and finally died alive on the execution ground."
The image of Wan Miaoniang's tragic death vividly appeared before Wan Ningniang's eyes. She collapsed to the ground, utterly devastated, and wept bitterly.
Li Nian'er straightened up and gave a bitter smile: "Will you do this deal or not?"
Jiang, who had been observing coldly, spoke up at the opportune moment: "If you agree to this, once the storm has passed, I will have my son Qi Liang grant you the title of concubine. From then on, you can stay in the Qi family legitimately and live a peaceful life."
Her tone turned cold as she pointed out the seriousness of the situation: "As for Lu Zhaoruo, forget about being a royal merchant or a noblewoman; all of that will vanish in the end. She will only become a prisoner and have to pay for your sister's life!"
I promise you!
Wan Ning's mother suddenly looked up.
She stared intently at Madam Jiang, confirming once again, "You just said you would allow me to be your concubine, do you mean what you said?"
Jiang replied calmly, "Of course it counts."
After saying that, she gestured to Granny Qian.
Granny Qian immediately understood and stepped forward to help Wan Ningniang up with great courtesy, as if she were already half a mistress.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
