On New Year's Eve, Granny Wang came to the lotus pond in the Cao family's courtyard. After looking around to make sure no one was there, she stretched out her foot and stepped on the frozen surface of the pond. She didn't see any cracks when she stepped on it, so she stomped her foot harder until she saw a visible crack before she stopped.
Not far away, a group of people carrying the Cao family's infant, less than four months old, walked towards the main hall. The person carrying the child was a wet nurse whom Cao Xinqian had specially hired to come to the mansion; she was followed by many maids, just in case anything went wrong.
Cao Xinqian had finally had a son, and he wished he could hold him in his hands every moment, afraid that he might bump into something or hurt him. On New Year's Eve, he and his colleagues had just come out of the restaurant and reached the gate of his mansion when he heard his servants reporting to him in a panic.
"Master, something terrible has happened! The young master... the young master..."
"What did you say? What happened to Heng'er?" Cao Xinqian panicked and grabbed the servant's wrist so tightly that he almost broke it.
The servant was in so much pain that cold sweat poured down his forehead, and he couldn't speak.
Cao Xinqian angrily shoved him to the ground, then turned and grabbed another servant.
"Master, the young master just fell into the water. He's in the main courtyard now. Madam has already summoned Doctor Ji. You..."
Before he could finish speaking, Cao Xinqian took off running towards the main courtyard.
A group of servants stood in the courtyard, trembling with fear as they waited for Yuan Xiqing to reprimand them.
At this moment, Yuan Xiqing's face was pale, and she gripped the edge of the bed tightly, as if she was at a loss.
As soon as Cao Xinqian entered the room, he rushed anxiously to the bedside. When he saw his son's flushed face, his mind went blank.
"Dr. Ji, how is my son...?"
After taking Cao Xinqian's pulse, Ji Xian shook his head and said, "Young Master fell into the water, causing him to feel cold and feverish. I will prescribe a medicine. If the fever subsides by tomorrow morning, there will be no major problems. However, if the high fever persists, I'm afraid... his life may be in danger."
"Dr. Ji, you must save Heng'er, please, you must save him."
"Rest assured, Lord Cao, I will do my best."
Ji Xian left with his medicine box on his back, and soon a servant took the prescription to the pharmacy to get the medicine.
Cao Xinqian glanced at his son, then turned around, his eyes as cold as frost.
"Tell me, how did the young master fall into the water?"
The wet nurse knelt on the ground, repeatedly apologizing, "Master, please forgive me. At that time, the mistress asked me to carry the young master to the front hall. When we passed the pond, a madwoman suddenly appeared, snatched the young master, and threw him into the pond. I was terrified and rushed down to save him, but… but then… the ice on the pond cracked, and the young master fell directly under the ice. We all went down to save him, but… Master, I didn't mean to, please spare my life!"
"Please forgive us, sir. We didn't mean to."
"It's Wang Ma, that crazy woman is Wang Ma, she ran out of the yard."
"Enough!" Cao Xinqian shouted, coldly saying, "If the young master is alright, then you are all alright. If the young master is gone, then you will all go down and keep him company!"
"Master, spare me..."
For a moment, the room was filled with wails and cries of agony. Cao Xinqian's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot, and he ordered his servants to drag all the maids to the woodshed and lock them up.
Cao Xinqian didn't care about Yuan Xiqing's feelings; all he wanted was to skin Wang Po alive.
After throwing the child away, Granny Wang was tied up by the servants who had chased after her and was now being held in a secluded house.
After Xiang Wan and Ji Meiniang left the Cao residence, Granny Wang went mad. Cao Xinqian dared not risk killing her, so he ordered her to be locked up. He still wanted to know where Granny Wang had kept his account books.
Feigning madness was the only way for Granny Wang to save her life. Before leaving, Xiang Wan told her that she would send her grandson Tianbao away, after all, the child was innocent. As for her son Erfu, he had already escaped when someone searched his yard.
Old Granny Wang's biggest failure in life was raising a troublesome son, while her greatest joy was having a clever grandson, Tianbao. To this day, her only hope is that her grandson can grow up safely. Therefore, when Xiang Wan told her she could escape, she devised this plan.
She would surely die if she plotted to murder Cao Xinqian's son. But if the child wasn't his, and Cao Xinqian and Yuan Xiqing got into a fight, that would be the perfect opportunity for her to escape.
So, taking advantage of the servants' laxity on New Year's Eve, she ran away and devised this scheme.
When Wang Pozi saw Cao Xinqian angrily kick open the door, she laughed.
"Cao Xinqian, you should be glad that I helped you get rid of that bastard child."
"You dare to harm my son, and you dare to speak so rudely! You old slave, why don't you just die!"
Cao Xinqian kicked Wang Pozi in the chest, and in his anger, he grabbed her hair and slammed her head against the wall.
Wang Pozi had not expected Cao Xinqian to be so angry. Caught off guard, the blood that spurted out blocked her mouth and nose, making it difficult for her to speak for a moment.
Cao Xinqian, exhausted from beating her, sat down on a chair to the side, his eyes fixed on Granny Wang, wishing he could devour her flesh and blood.
Granny Wang collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath, spitting out blood and foam from her mouth, and laughing maniacally.
"Hahaha, Cao Xinqian, you're so happy raising someone else's son?"
"Even as you face death, you still won't shut your mouth? Old woman Wang, I'll make you taste the pain my son suffered."
"Hahaha, a son? Born a month premature? Hahaha, he's clearly a full-term baby. Cao Xinqian, someone has exercised your right to be a father for you, giving you a son for free. You should be happy. With your health, you still dream of having a child? Don't even dream about it."
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