"Yes, she told Ruyue that all I needed to do was give her one of my sister's pieces of jewelry. Ruyue was completely surprised; she had no idea that she was so vicious, that she would do something like this." Wu Ruyue was now truly regretful. If she had known that Lady Fucha harbored such malicious intentions, she would not have actually taken that pearl hairpin and given it to that maid named Hongqiao.
It turned out that her claim of needing to use the restroom last night was indeed an act. She had dragged Wu Shi along to avoid arousing Wu Shi's suspicion. She only gave the pearl flower to Hong Qiao and then deliberately pretended to be lost, thus deceiving Wu Shi.
Hongqiao had stayed in the Nian family's east courtyard for more than ten days and knew the way inside by heart. She secretly placed Wu's pearl hairpin in the room where the meals were kept, without anyone noticing. This led to what happened last night.
Madam Wu stared at Wu Ruyue with a complicated expression, so angry that she wanted to slap her, but in the end she thought that what difference would it make if she hit her, since she had already done such a thing.
"Pack your things immediately and return to Wuling. I'll write a letter and have Father send someone to meet you on the way. I'll talk to the concubine later and have the household send a carriage to take you back," Wu said decisively to her.
Wu Ruyue hadn't expected to be sent back after all. She wanted to argue, but Madam Wu interrupted her, saying, "Don't say anything more. Your marriage to the young master of the Song family is settled. Go back and wait two years before you get married. If you continue to be stubborn, I'll have the old woman gag you, tie your hands and feet with rope, and throw you into the carriage. Which do you choose?"
Wu Ruyue was so shocked that she didn't know what to say. Looking at Wu Shi's eyes, she knew that this time, no matter what, she would not be allowed to stay.
After instructing two maids to take Wu Ruyue away to pack her things, Wu Shi thought for a moment, then took Hongying's hand and headed towards the South Courtyard, since there was still some time before the time the Fourth Master had mentioned.
Lanqin was having breakfast when she saw Wu Shi enter with a pale face. She was slightly taken aback, but quickly told the maids to bring Wu Shi another set of bowls and chopsticks.
"Haven't you had breakfast yet?" Lanqin saw Wu's worried expression and knew that she must have something to ask her, most likely about last night. But since what she said later had been agreed upon by the Fourth Prince and Nian Gengyao, Wu's suspicion had been almost completely cleared. So why did she have something to ask her about now?
"Qin'er, thank you so much for last night. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have been captured by the Fourth Master. The way that master of the Nian family wanted to tear me to pieces is terrifying to even think about," Madam Wu said gratefully to Lanqin.
“Sister Wu, there’s no need to be so polite. Please sit down. Fourth Master isn’t stupid. He won’t pin the blame on you for something you didn’t do,” Lanqin said.
"Qin'er, I've come to tell you something. Alas. It's all because of my good-for-nothing sister. She actually took my pearl hairpin and gave it to someone. Otherwise, how would my pearl hairpin have ended up there yesterday!" As Madam Wu said this, she felt extremely ashamed.
Lanqin was slightly surprised. She thought there must be a traitor among the Wu family, but she didn't expect it to be that little girl Wu Ruyue. It was really surprising.
"Why would she do this? You're her own sister." Lanqin suppressed her shock and asked.
Wu's eyes seemed somewhat evasive; she wished she could disappear into a hole in the ground. She had known Wu Ruyue's intentions for a long time, and now she truly regretted letting her come to the capital.
"Sister Wu, is there something you're hiding from me?" Lanqin noticed the evasive look in Wu's eyes.
"Qin'er, that girl Ruyue, actually, has always harbored feelings for the Prince. I discovered it a long time ago and always wanted to send her back. Later, when I saw that she finally agreed to the marriage with the young master of the Song family, I was relieved." Madam Wu knew that she could no longer hide it from Lanqin. Now that the matter of Madam Nian had not yet been resolved, she could not conceal anything.
Lanqin wasn't too surprised. In fact, she had seen the envy in Wu Ruyue's eyes long ago.
The extravagance of the Prince's mansion, the pomp and circumstance of servants, the handsome and aloof Fourth Prince, and the elaborate and exquisite clothes and headdresses were indeed very enticing. Moreover, Wu Ruyue was indeed beautiful, and her desire for a better life was not a bad thing. However, it was unforgivable that she would disregard the bond between sisters for these reasons.
"Sister Wu, who instructed Ruyue to take your pearl hairpin?" Lanqin sighed and asked.
“Fucha clan. She said Fucha clan made her do it. She only gave my pearl hairpin to Fucha clan's maid and then came back,” Wu said immediately.
"In other words, the hairpin was placed in that room last night by Fucha's maid, with the intention of framing my sister. That makes sense." Lanqin thought about the scene from last night again and immediately understood.
“Last night, only Lady Fucha was closest to Lady Nian’s table, and it seems she toasted Lady Nian.” Lady Wu understood as well.
“That’s right. Yesterday, under the guise of toasting, she secretly put poison into the cup on the Nian family’s table. Then she used the pearl hairpin to frame her sister. She really did it very discreetly.” Lanqin sighed, “She thought you would never suspect that it was your own sister who took it, so she was so bold.”
Madam Wu nodded and said, "What a vicious plan. This Fucha woman is usually so quiet, yet she managed to devise something like this. Why is she targeting Madam Nian? Aren't they on good terms?"
Lanqin nodded and said, "That's what I can't figure out either. Fucha has been getting close to Nian lately, so why has she turned her attention to Nian?"
"No matter her reason, we must not let her escape this time. Ruyue can testify that the pearl hairpin was given to Hongqiao. If it is also confirmed that the poison on Nian's table was her doing, then we can convict her." Wu was disgusted with Fucha, who actually instigated her sister to harm someone, and she was furious.
“Okay. Then let Ruyue testify against her. Sister, don’t overthink it. Have breakfast first, and then I’ll go back and bring Ruyue over as well. Don’t worry, I’ll plead with Fourth Master. Ruyue was instigated by someone; at most, she’ll just be sent back.” Lanqin said.
"Don't worry, I've already given her the order. She has to go back immediately. Even if we have to tie her up, we have to tie her up and send her back. That brat, she's got quite the ambition. I've really spoiled her." Madam Wu snorted angrily as she mentioned Wu Ruyue.
Lanqin patted Wu's shoulder and said, "It's understandable that a little girl can't resist such extravagance. However, she went a bit too far this time. Giving her a proper lesson might not be a bad thing."
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