Chapter 169 A Guilty Heart
As evening fell, the sunset painted half the sky red.
Inside the Wei Rui Pavilion, Meng Jinyao directed her maids to rearrange the potted plants in the courtyard, and several maids were busy at work.
Because Meng Jinyao wanted to grow lotus leaves, lotus flowers, and small koi in two large water tanks, she needed to clear some space, and the potted plants that were originally placed there needed to be moved and arranged in a nicer shape.
Suddenly, Meng Jinyao saw a tall figure. Looking closely, she saw a handsome and elegant man walking slowly towards her. The man's eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and a gloomy look was shrouded between his brows, as if he was in a bad mood. She stepped forward and asked, "Husband, are you in a bad mood?"
Gu Jingxi stopped and looked at her with a relaxed expression, asking, "Why does Madam ask such a question?"
Meng Jinyao replied, "I guessed it because I saw my husband frowning."
Gu Jingxi replied calmly, "There are some worries, but it's not a big problem."
Meng Jinyao stared at him intently, and seeing that he seemed unwilling to confide in her, she did not continue to ask.
"What is Madam trying to do?"
Gu Jingxi glanced at the several maids who were busy at work, and felt puzzled.
Meng Jinyao pointed to a vacant lot and said with a smile, "I plan to bring over two large water tanks and put them there to grow lotus leaves and lotus flowers, and then raise a few small koi."
"Does Madam like lotus flowers?" Gu Jingxi saw her nod, then looked around the entire courtyard, pondered for a moment, and said, "Weirui Pavilion is the largest courtyard in the mansion. If Madam likes it, why not dig a small lotus pond in the courtyard?"
Should we dig a pond and plant lotus flowers?
Meng Jinyao was stunned, somewhat flattered, and then shook her head: "That's not necessary. It's expensive and labor-intensive. Just get two large water tanks. If I don't like lotus flowers in the future, I'll have to find someone to fill in the pond, which is quite troublesome."
Gu Jingxi nodded: "Alright, as Madam wishes."
After a while, Gu Jingxi entered the room. Chunliu stepped forward and whispered, "Madam, the young master went to see the Marquis this afternoon."
Meng Jinyao was stunned after hearing this, somewhat confused, but when Chunliu gestured for her to look in the direction of the house, she immediately understood. Gu Jingxi was in a bad mood, perhaps because of Gu Xiuming.
After a moment, she asked curiously, "Chunliu, how did you know?"
Chunliu lowered her voice and explained to her in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "I have some acquaintance with the servant in the study in the front courtyard. When I met him this afternoon, I heard him talk about it, but he only saw the young master go to see the marquis. He didn't see what happened when the young master left, so I can't be sure if it was because of the young master."
Meng Jinyao nodded slightly. Chunliu was a very sensible girl. Ever since she pledged her loyalty to her, she had been keeping a close eye on the situation in the mansion and would tell her about any unusual developments. Now that Gu Xiuming was acting out of character, Chunliu was also paying special attention to his movements. There were many things that even Qingqiu and Ningdong hadn't thought of, but Chunliu had already taken care of them. Although this girl was Gu Jingxi's maid, she used her very well.
After a while, the maids had arranged the potted plants as Meng Jinyao had instructed.
Meng Jinyao glanced at it, nodded with satisfaction, and turned to instruct Chunliu: "Chunliu, it's getting late, go and prepare dinner."
Chunliu replied, "Yes, Madam."
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The summer sun was intense; it was already blazing brightly before noon.
The heat from outside swirls in, and even though the Wei Rui Xuan courtyard has a good orientation, making it warm in winter and cool in summer, it still feels hot.
Fortunately, an ice chest was placed inside to cool down and dispel the heat, making the temperature inside very comfortable.
Meng Jinyao was fiddling with the abacus, checking the accounts. Her mother's dowry shops and estates had previously been managed by Madam Sun. Although they were now back in her hands, the managers were all trained by Madam Sun, so she had to be especially careful with the accounts, otherwise she wouldn't even know if she was being cheated. Of course, managers who couldn't be of good use to her had to be replaced, while those who were obedient would be used for the time being.
Qingqiu lifted the curtain and came in, moving to her side and announcing, "Madam, Chan'er has returned."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao stopped fiddling with the abacus, looked up, and said, "Let her in."
A short while later, Chan'er came in and bowed to her.
Meng Jinyao asked, "Is there some problem over there?"
Chan'er stepped forward and replied respectfully in a low voice, "Madam, Madam Meng has been seeing ghosts repeatedly, so she asked a Taoist priest to come back and perform a ritual. However, the priest's magic is not very good, and the effect only lasts for a few days. Madam Meng is seeing ghosts every night again, and she is in a daze. In her panic, she has not dared to sleep at night for the past two nights and has started sleeping during the day instead."
Meng Jinyao narrowed her eyes, her lips slightly upturned, her smile a little cold. She spoke in a soft, meaningful tone, "Granny Qiao is really something. How can a good servant let her master's schedule be disrupted, with day and night reversed?"
Chan'er, understanding the implied meaning, replied, "Madam, I will remind Granny Qiao."
Meng Jinyao then asked, "Besides that, is there anything else?"
Chan'er shook her head gently. There was something not very important, but after thinking about it, she still mentioned it: "Because Madam Meng has attracted something unclean, Lord Meng dares not step into Madam Meng's courtyard now. He also said that Madam Meng is suspicious all day long."
Meng Jinyao smiled nonchalantly: "It's not surprising. It's very much in line with my father's temperament. Husbands and wives are like birds in the same forest; when disaster strikes, they fly away separately." She paused for a moment, then said, "You can proceed according to the original plan for now. If there's nothing else, you may leave."
Chan'er acknowledged and withdrew.
Ning Dong smiled and said, "Madam, are ghosts really that scary? Madam Sun is even afraid to sleep at night."
Meng Jinyao shook her head slightly and smiled mockingly: "Ghosts are not scary, what's scary is having a guilty conscience."
Ningdong asked curiously, "Madam, do you think the Earl knows about the evil deeds Sun has committed?"
“If he knew, he wouldn’t have doted on Madam Sun for so many years. Chengyu is also his child, clever and quick-witted, and quite favored by him.” Meng Jinyao’s tone was firm. The image of Meng Dongyuan holding his younger brother flashed through her mind. The love and affection in his eyes could not be faked. No matter how much Meng Dongyuan liked Madam Sun, he would not have allowed her to kill his son.
Ning Dong said, "Then the Sun family probably hasn't dared to say whose ghost they saw yet."
“If I don’t say it now, I will say it later.” Meng Jinyao said, then turned to Qingqiu and instructed, “Qingqiu, get ready. I’m going to Lingyun Temple to offer incense tomorrow and will stay there for a day or two.”
Qingqiu nodded in response.
Ningdong felt like she had nothing to do, so she hurriedly asked, "Madam, what about me? What should I do?"
Meng Jinyao chuckled playfully, "Are you destined to be a workaholic? You get itchy all over if you're not asked to do anything?"
Upon hearing this, Ningdong playfully stuck out her tongue and smiled ingratiatingly: "This servant is not destined to be a busybody. This servant just wants to help Madam with her work. I always feel like I have nothing to do when I'm idle."
Meng Jinyao chuckled helplessly: "You still say you're not destined to be a workaholic? Only someone destined to be a workaholic would be like this, unable to stay idle."
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