After Jinsong finished speaking, Hai looked at Su Chengye and said, "This girl said it clearly, and big brother should have heard it clearly. Catching the thief and the stolen goods, Aunt Zeng can't falsely accuse my maid of stealing without any evidence."
"As for what happened the other day, I don't consider it a humiliation. Aunt Zeng asked me to come over, hoping that I could help take that pearl headdress to Prince Ning's mansion as a gift to the newly married Princess Ning."
"Brother, do you think I should agree to Concubine Zeng's request when the Emperor personally visited Prince Ning's residence yesterday and so many court officials and ladies were present?"
"I want to give the pearl headdress to my niece-in-law who just came home in front of all the ladies, saying it's a gift from the concubine of the Marquis' Mansion?"
Hai's question after question made Su Chengye's face change. Hai did the right thing. If she really agreed to Concubine Zeng's request, it would be a joke.
Hai continued, "I was explaining the matter to Concubine Zeng, but she heard it as an insult. She even came to question me. I want to ask, are there any rules in this Marquis's Mansion?"
"A concubine who gave birth to a child can question the mistress of the house? Who gave her the courage?"
Hai came from a noble family, and she possessed the arrogance of a scholar. She had endured the old lady's harassment in the past because of her filial piety and upbringing, but that didn't mean anyone could bully her.
But obviously, saying this to Aunt Zeng was like talking to a cow.
Aunt Zeng didn't notice that Su Chengye's face had turned dark, nor did she understand the deeper meaning of Hai's words.
She knelt on the ground and cried, "Old Madam, Lord Marquis. I am the Sixth Young Master's biological mother after all. If you don't give me an explanation today, I... I will not live."
When she said the last sentence, she cried even more sadly.
Zeng Yi Niang's father ran two taverns in the capital, and his life was much better than that of ordinary people. He had two concubines in the mansion, and they often flirted with each other to win favor.
This trick of crying, making a fuss, and then threatening to hang oneself was a common tactic used by concubines in the mansion. Although it was not very polite, it was effective.
But the wealthy and powerful always valued maintaining dignity in everything they did. Acts like Concubine Zeng only made people more disgusted.
Su Qingyu couldn't help but ask in a cold voice, "What does Aunt Zeng want to do?"
She kept calling him "Sixth Young Master" because she wanted to rise to prominence by relying on the fact that she gave birth to the eldest son. But what Aunt Zeng didn't know was that her dirty deeds were no secret.
For some reason, Aunt Zeng shuddered subconsciously when she heard Su Qingyu's cold tone.
Then he said, "We have to search to find out whether she took it or not. I think it would be better to search Qingyin Garden to prove her innocence."
Qingyin Garden is the residence of the third wife. Searching Qingyin Garden is equivalent to humiliating the third wife.
Concubine Zeng said this just to humiliate Hai. As for the headdress, she had someone hide it in the bushes in the garden. They would find it after the search, and the matter would be over as a misunderstanding.
Su Qingyu laughed out of anger. This Aunt Zeng really didn't know her place and dared to say anything.
It is really a fantasy for a concubine to want to step on the third wife of the head of the family to gain a sense of existence.
But where is that headgear now? Could it be in Qingyin Garden?
Su Qingyu turned her head and gave Feicui a look. The master and servant had been together for many years, and Feicui could understand what she meant at a glance.
While no one was paying attention, Feicui quietly retreated, walked out of the hall, and walked quickly towards Qingyin Garden.
Su Qingyu sneered from inside the room. "Search? What if nothing is found? If nothing is found, is Concubine Zeng willing to commit suicide to express her guilt?"
Aunt Zeng was stunned. If they found out, they would let her commit suicide?
She looked at Su Chengye aggrievedly again, "My Lord, the eldest lady also wants my life. Is it because this child is getting in the way of the eldest lady that she treats me like this?"
Su Qingyu glanced at Aunt Zeng's expression and knew that she did not deliver the things to Qingyin Garden. She probably did not have the ability to do so.
The other masters all looked gloomy at this moment, especially the third master, Su Chengxun. However, due to the eldest brother's face, they could not interrupt.
He, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly said, "Miss, you are joking. How can you take someone's life casually?"
"I see that Aunt Zeng is so confident in what she said, so why not search for it? We have to find out where the things are and get to the bottom of this matter."
"This isn't a humiliation, so don't take it personally, Third Sister-in-law."
Su Qingyu couldn't stand He's despicable behavior of taking advantage of the situation, so she snorted and said, "Since the thing was lost in the mansion, don't just search Qingyin Garden. Why not search the entire mansion thoroughly? Qingyin Garden, Qixia Garden, Songhe Hall, search them all."
Since it was He who started the conversation, Su Qingyu also looked at He when she spoke.
She saw a hint of panic suddenly appear in He's eyes, but soon returned to normal.
Su Qingyu was suspicious. Why was it that when the search was mentioned, Third Aunt didn't panic, but Second Aunt did?
He spoke again, "It's not good to make a big fuss. We can't cause unrest in the whole house. In my opinion, it's better to search in Aunt Zeng's courtyard and Qingyin Garden first."
Su Qingyu's mind moved slightly, and she became interested in why He was in such a panic.
"Second Aunt is right. We must get to the bottom of this matter. Aunt Zeng is the Sixth Young Master's biological mother, and Third Aunt is also the head lady of our Su family. It would be bad for anyone to be wronged."
"How about this, let Madam Yuan take the people and search each courtyard one by one."
"Right or wrong, let's see what happens."
Concubine Zeng froze on the ground for a moment, confused as to how this had become a house search. Wouldn't that make her a criminal? She had intended to humiliate Hai, but she hadn't intended to cause unrest in the entire house.
But once Su Qingyu made her decision, not only Aunt Zeng, but even He and the old lady were powerless to stop her.
He Shi, of course, didn't want anyone to search the house, so she tried to persuade the old lady, "Mother, this isn't a big deal. Why make it known to everyone? Today is the first time the eldest grandson's wife of the Su family is visiting us. Don't make a fool of yourself."
After persuading the old lady, He went on to persuade Su Chengye and his brothers, repeating the same words over and over again.
It's nothing more than keeping the peace and not embarrassing yourself in front of the new daughter-in-law.
Su Yuanzhou, who had been sitting there without saying anything, suddenly chuckled and spoke.
"Second Aunt, you're worrying too much. Yue'er is the daughter-in-law of the Su family, so naturally she wants the best for them. It's just some trivial matters in the inner house, it's not a joke."
"Why not ask the people we brought from Prince Ning's Mansion today to help investigate? They're impartial and will surely conduct a fair search."
Su Yuanzhou didn't know what Su Qingyu was thinking, but his sister must have her reasons for what she said.
After hearing what Su Yuanzhou said, the old lady and Su Chengye did not say anything in rebuttal.
The search was handed over to Madam Yuan, who employed people from Songhe Hall, with additional assistance from people from Prince Ning's Mansion.
Su Qingyu took advantage of He's inattention and quietly told Zhenzhu about it.
"You and Chuntao go to Qixiayuan, where the second wife lives, and search the second wife's house carefully for me."
"She looks unhappy. There must be something shameful in her room."
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