Chapter 196 Informing Cheng Zhang
A moment later, Qingqiu came over and reported, "Madam, the Second Young Master has arrived. He said he wants to return to the academy today and wants to see you before he goes."
Before Meng Jinyao could reply, Song Xinning said understandingly, "Ayao, go see Second Young Master Meng. You went back to your parents' home yesterday, so you probably didn't get to have a proper get-together with him. Ayan and I will come to see you another day."
Princess Jingning echoed, "Yes, we'll come another day."
Meng Jinyao nodded: "Then let's reschedule for another day." Then she instructed Ningdong, who was standing next to her, "Ningdong, see Miss Song and the princess off."
Qingqiu asked, "Madam, shall I bring the Second Young Master this way?"
Meng Jinyao nodded again.
Qingqiu responded, curtsied, and withdrew to bring Meng Chengzhang over.
About fifteen minutes later, Meng Chengzhang followed Qingqiu to Zuilian Pavilion. After exchanging pleasantries, Meng Chengzhang asked, "Elder sister, did Madam Sun really see a ghost? Or is she just paranoid because she did something wrong?"
Meng Jinyao took a sip of tea and said with a faint smile, "There are no ghosts in the world. It's just that she's feeling guilty."
Chan'er and Aunt Du didn't actually look alike; they only shared a similar gentle and quiet temperament. With makeup and facial enhancements, they could appear to resemble each other. However, after smelling the hallucinogenic incense, Madam Sun felt guilty and, in her mental confusion, believed that Chan'er was Aunt Du's ghost.
Meng Chengzhang looked at her, feeling that she knew something, so he asked again, "Big sister, do you know something?"
Meng Jinyao remained silent. Originally, she didn't want to tell her second brother, fearing it would affect his studies. But given how things were developing, her second brother would find out soon anyway, so it was better to find out now and give him some breathing room.
Seeing her hesitation, Meng Chengzhang said, "Big sister, don't think that just because I'm young, you won't tell me anything. I'm all grown up now, and I can handle anything."
After a moment's thought, Meng Jinyao decided to let him know beforehand. She waved her hand, telling Qingqiu to stand guard outside to prevent anyone from eavesdropping, and slowly said, "Second brother, there's more to your eldest brother's death than meets the eye. He didn't have an incurable disease back then; it was Sun who tampered with his medicine."
These words were like a bolt from the blue.
Meng Chengzhang was stunned and bewildered by the news, unable to recover for a long time. He stammered, "Big sister, is this true?"
Meng Jinyao nodded gently: "It's true. I knew it a long time ago. The day I learned the truth was the day my grandfather passed away. That day, I overheard Sun Shi talking to her trusted maid. I ran to ask my grandfather to punish Sun Shi, but he was already too weak to do anything. Before he died, he repeatedly told me not to act rashly."
Upon hearing this, Meng Chengzhang felt a surge of anger and resentment, but he didn't find it hard to believe. He believed that Sun Shi was capable of such a vicious act. No wonder his eldest sister, who was as close to Sun Shi as a mother and daughter, had become rebellious and slowly turned against her. With red eyes, he choked up and asked, "Eldest sister, do Father and Grandmother know about this?"
Meng Jinyao replied, "I suppose she doesn't know. If she did, why would Grandmother call me a jinx who caused her younger brother's death? And why would she blame me for your older brother's death? Father loved you and your older brother so much back then, he couldn't possibly have remained indifferent after learning that Sun had poisoned your older brother."
She glanced at her second brother and continued, "The 'ghost' that Madam Sun saw was Aunt Du. Aunt Du asked her for her son, and she was so guilty that she couldn't sleep at night and was in a daze."
Meng Chengzhang gripped the teacup tightly in his hand, his eyes filled with hatred, his face taut. The thirteen-year-old boy, no matter how much he tried to suppress his emotions, couldn't help but shed tears in front of his elder sister when he thought of his older brother who died at the age of two, and his birth mother, Aunt Du, who fell ill and passed away after his brother's death. He sobbed. If it weren't for Sun's evil deeds, his aunt and older brother would still be alive.
Meng Jinyao took out a handkerchief and wiped away his tears while comforting him, "Second brother, even if she doesn't die, she will live a life worse than death. Let's wait a little longer, and she will get the retribution she deserves."
As for her next steps, she already has them and is ready to put them into action.
Meng Chengzhang looked up at his elder sister through his blurry, tearful eyes. His elder sister had suffered far more than him over the years, and she had such a huge secret hidden in her heart that she could not express. She must have been tormented every time she faced Madam Sun, while he had always lived under his elder sister's protection.
That thin and frail body always stood in front of him.
If the Sun family succeeded once, they will surely do it again. I suppose after his elder brother died young, the Sun family's evil clutches reached out to him again?
Yes, definitely. I remember once he was pushed into the water by someone, and his eldest sister immediately called for help to save him. He was grateful that his eldest sister arrived in time, and he thought that his eldest sister had been silently protecting him all along.
After he was rescued, he told his elder sister that someone had pushed him. However, his elder sister insisted that she did not see anyone at the time, and only saw him accidentally fall into the water. She said it must have been his imagination. He didn't think much of it at the time, since he had just recovered from a cold and it was possible that he was not thinking clearly for a moment.
Looking back now, I realize that my elder sister did this to avoid alerting the culprit. If Madam Sun knew that he knew someone had pushed him, she would definitely try every means to get rid of him. And even if my elder sister saw who pushed him, the rest of the family wouldn't believe her if she told the truth.
Meng Chengzhang asked, "Elder sister, how many times has Madam Sun attacked me in total?"
Meng Jinyao was taken aback for a moment, but quickly realized that he must have been thinking deeply about the past. So she said truthfully, "I almost succeeded once. The rest were all ruined by my playfulness and 'unintentionally' causing trouble."
Meng Chengzhang then asked, "Was it the time I fell into the water that she almost succeeded in taking advantage of me?"
Meng Jinyao nodded and said, "Yes, that time."
Her voice grew even gentler as she comforted him, "Second brother, you're not a child anymore. It won't be so easy for Sun to harm you. You must study hard and make something of yourself in the future so that your family won't be able to control you."
Meng Chengzhang wiped away his tears, suppressing the resentment in his heart, and nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, elder sister. I plan to try my luck in three years and see how far I can go."
Meng Jinyao smiled with satisfaction, and then said earnestly, "It's good that you have this ambition, but you are still young, so there's no need to rush it. If you really want to take the exam, pass the provincial and ministerial exams first, and then you need to accumulate knowledge and skills for the metropolitan exam. Strive to get a good ranking, and you'll have more confidence for the palace exam. Getting a good ranking in the palace exam will also benefit your future."
“Big sister, I understand.” Meng Chengzhang suddenly remembered Gu Xiuming and asked, “By the way, why did Gu Xiuming suddenly seem like a different person? Yesterday he actually called me Second Uncle very respectfully.”
"Him?"
Meng Jinyao scoffed and said disdainfully, "Don't be fooled by his appearance. He only did this because he realized that he was about to lose his position as the heir apparent. He only started to cry when he was about to die. If he was afraid of losing his position, why did he do something so reckless in the first place? He's been pampered for so long that he thinks he'll never fall from grace."
Meng Chengzhang understood, and then asked, "What about my brother-in-law?"
Meng Jinyao replied, "Your brother-in-law knows his intentions. It's too late for him to pretend to make amends now."
Meng Chengzhang was slightly taken aback. That meant that his brother-in-law already had the idea of deposing the heir apparent, but had not yet taken action, probably because he had other intentions.
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