Chen Yu felt a chill run down her spine. Was Yang Hua going to torture her?
really.
Yang Hua was arrogant and domineering, always eager to win. When General Mu was alive, she kept her temper in check and took care of her younger siblings.
In the past two years, General Mu and Madam Mu passed away one after another. Yang Hua took over the Mu family and, being competitive, naturally wanted to control the Mu family's finances.
The Mu family owns hundreds of shops in the capital, and their assets in other places are countless.
Desires are endless, and insatiable greed is never satisfied.
Although Yang Hua was already incredibly wealthy, she had gone mad with greed. Upon learning that Shen Yu had robbed the Mu family's merchants, she decided to make Shen Yu pay back double.
squeak!
The door opened, and Yang Hua walked in, giving Chen Yu a flippant scolding: "The Mu family has many members and huge expenses. As the eldest daughter of the Mu family, how dare you steal their supplies? You've caused them to starve. How can you face your deceased father and mother?"
"How could the Mu family be eating coarse food?" Chen Yu immediately retorted, "The Mu family's businesses are now more than half as much as when Father was alive, only the cotton supply is gone. Restaurants, liquor, salt, seafood, cloth... aren't they all guaranteed to make a profit? Why would we eat coarse food? I think it's because our parents are gone, and our eldest brother isn't home, so you're deliberately deceiving the Mu family."
[Shut up! Pin her fingers down.]
The two old women were stunned, and stammered, "Princess, you mustn't pinch your fingers. If the general returns and sees this, he will surely blame you."
Yes! Even if the young lady is wrong, she's still family, so let her be punished by kneeling.
Yang Hua was enraged. "You scoundrel! How dare you stand up for me, the princess! Then use needles to stab me!"
Where to puncture?
[The ten fingers are connected to the heart; when pricking her fingers, not a single one should be missed.]
Soon! A terrible scream came from the ancestral hall, then it stopped.
Gu Lingrong, who was eavesdropping outside the window, was puzzled. Seeing that no one was in the courtyard, she peeked through the crack in the window.
Shen Yu was bound by ropes and kneeling on the ground, with two old women kneeling beside her. One old woman pressed Shen Yu's hands to the ground; the other old woman took turns pricking Shen Yu's fingers with two needles.
Yang Hua, disregarding her pregnancy, bent down and stuffed a handkerchief into Chen Yu's mouth. She then pulled out a piece of paper and laid it in front of Chen Yu: "The Mu family should be united against external forces. To ensure you no longer oppose the Mu family, I have drawn up a contract. If you sign and affix your seal, you and your child will be provided for for life."
Shen Yu looked over and realized that Yang Hua wanted the shop under her name.
She glanced at Yang Hua and spat, then sneered: "Before, you were determined to marry me to Prince Jing to climb the social ladder. Now that your brother is the emperor, you're greedy for money and want my cotton shop? Wishful thinking! If you get the cotton shop, the common people will freeze."
Snap!
Yang Hua slapped Chen Yu and roared, "Keep stabbing her! Don't stop until she agrees to sign and put her fingerprint on the document!"
Then, two embroidery needles were simultaneously inserted into Chenyu's fingers, one after another. The nanny inserted and removed the needles quickly, while Chenyu bit her handkerchief tightly and sweated profusely.
At this moment, Gu Lingrong, who was hiding outside the window, slipped into the garden and quietly left through the dog hole.
Yang Hua held absolute power in the Mu family. When Mu Nanfeng was not in the mansion, Yang Hua became even more lawless and domineering. He not only attacked the eldest daughter of the Mu family, but also embezzled the Mu family's money, leaving the Mu family to live in poverty.
When Gu Lingrong learned of this, she didn't know what to do, so she thought of going to her father, who worked in the county government.
She hurriedly left the Mu family home and saw Hongyu leading a group of people rushing towards her.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress."
Hongyu nodded and walked into the Mu family's house, but suddenly stopped and called out, "Stop!"
Gu Lingrong shuddered and froze on the spot. She slowly turned around and lowered her head to ask, "Your Majesty the Empress... are you calling for Lingrong?"
Seeing Gu Lingrong's flustered expression, Hongyu realized that something was very wrong:
Just now, Baihe came to report that Consort Na had left the palace without permission. She was thinking of reporting this to the Emperor so that others would not say that she was deliberately targeting Consort Na.
Just as the Emperor was about to leave the palace, he was told that Princess Yanghua had sent someone to report that Consort Na had been caught red-handed in collusion with a merchant.
She and the Emperor rushed to the Anping Flower Tea Shop, where the officials were searching for people from the Guli tribe to translate Consort Na's letters.
Since she couldn't find Chen Yu and Yang Hua, she used the excuse of visiting Yang Hua to rush to the Mu family.
The Mu family had increased their guards at the gate, but Yang Hua was nowhere to be seen. It seemed that Yang Hua was dealing with Shen Yu.
Hongyu looked at Gu Lingrong and asked, "Is Chenyu at the Mu family's house?"
【exist. 】
"Send someone to summon Princess Yanghua and Chenyu. You take me to the main hall." Hongyu said, walking towards the main hall.
Gu Lingrong looked at the guard and asked, "Where is the princess? Quickly go and report as the Empress instructed."
Having said that, she hurriedly caught up with Hongyu and stammered:
[Your Majesty... The weather is bitterly cold, and it's starting to snow again. Lingrong will brew you a bowl of tea to warm you up.]
Gu Lingrong walked quickly ahead, leading Hongyu into the hall.
However, the servants of the Mu family all obeyed Yang Hua, and Gu Lingrong dared not speak up even if she wanted to sue Yang Hua.
So she picked up the teapot and poured tea for Hongyu herself, blocking the maid's view with her body, and wrote on the table: "The fish is in trouble."
Hongyu was secretly delighted:
Gu Lingrong was the eldest daughter of the Gu family, but she was suppressed by Yang Hua and made a concubine. Gu Lingrong must have felt resentful.
Since Gu Lingrong intends to expose Yang Hua, why doesn't she secretly win Gu Lingrong over and use her to deal with Yang Hua?
She reached out and erased the writing on the table, then took out a glass bracelet, held it in her hand, and murmured:
[I desired an exquisite bracelet, and my maidservant purchased it this morning. Lingrong, could you please assess its quality?]
Lingrong looked at it and saw that the glass bracelet was pieced together with gold.
As Hongyu tapped the gold, she said, "I really don't like it, so I'm giving it to you. Don't just think about brewing tea for me; you also need to take care of Princess Yanghua. She's pregnant, and if she collapses from exhaustion, who will manage this vast Mu family?"
Lingrong was apprehensive and hesitated for a moment before accepting the bracelet with both hands, sincerely expressing her gratitude: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for this gift. I have learned a great deal."
After a while, Yang Hua strode over, waved away the four maids in the room, and patted her belly while bowing slightly to Hong Yu.
"Your Majesty, I have finally caught Consort Na red-handed. She is colluding with merchants. I have already sent someone to report to the Emperor. Fearing that the Emperor would protect her, I also sent someone to tell Lord He about this matter. Lord He is upright and fearless. Now Consort Na cannot escape."
Hongyu nodded, pointed to the armchair beside her, and teased Yanghua, "Sister, you're almost due, aren't you? Still concerned about court affairs, please sit down and rest. The Emperor has gone to the Anping tea shop and is currently discussing this matter with Lord He."
Why is the Empress coming to the Mu family when she's not with the Emperor?
[Since Consort Na is in trouble, I shouldn't get involved, lest someone accuse me of targeting her. Therefore, I've come to have tea with my elder sister.]
At this moment, Gu Lingrong entered carrying tea and placed it in front of Yang Hua. "Princess, the weather is bitterly cold. Have a bowl of white fungus soup to warm yourself."
Yang Hua was already parched, so she picked up the small bowl and drank, unaware that she was about to face a great calamity.
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