Chapter 8 The Death of Mother Liu
"What did you say!" Wen Lanting slammed his hand on the table and stood up.
Zhao's mother was so frightened that she stammered, "Yes, the second young lady has come back to her senses. She's in the garden, and everyone has seen her."
"Wasn't she burned to death in the fire?" Wen Lanting felt a chill run down her spine.
She had seen the corpse with her own eyes yesterday; it had long since been burned to charcoal.
How can she be brought back to life?!
It can't be a ghost, can it? That's too far-fetched!
"This servant doesn't know either; the person is currently in the garden."
“Let’s go and invite the old man over. We’ll go and take a look. I want to see if she’s a human or a ghost.”
Wen Lanting steadied his thoughts.
He already had a guess in his mind: that brat might not have been trapped in the ancestral hall and burned to death at all.
Instead, they're hiding, waiting to see them make a fool of themselves!
But whose body was that?
When Shen Qiushan and his wife entered the garden, Shen Shu was sitting and drinking tea.
"You wretched girl! You're still alive!"
Shen Qiushan's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Since you're not dead, where are you hiding? Why didn't you show yourself sooner!"
Do you know that your mother and I thought you were dead, and we were so heartbroken that we didn't sleep a wink all night?
When Wen Lanting saw her standing alive in front of her, she was both overjoyed and terrified.
"It's good that Shu'er is alive, please don't be angry, my lord."
Shen Qiushan's expression changed.
"Why would I get angry if she just behaves herself and doesn't cause me any trouble!"
"On the first day back at the manor, he disrespected his elders, slapped his sister, and even burned down the ancestral hall. What sins have I committed to give birth to such a devilish star?"
Suddenly, he remembered something and exclaimed in shock, "Then whose was that charred corpse from yesterday?!"
Now we've finally gotten to the point.
Shen Shu found it strange. The fat old woman had seen everything she did yesterday, so why didn't she complain?
Shen Shu closed her eyes and started making things up.
“Yesterday my father locked me in the ancestral hall, and I don’t know how it caught fire. When I saw the fire was big, I ran out to avoid it. How could I know who the corpse was?”
"If you don't know, who does!" Shen Qiushan was so angry that he blew his beard and glared.
“Yesterday, didn’t the Duke arrange for two old women to keep an eye on Shu’er at the ancestral hall? Perhaps asking them will reveal the truth,” Wen Lanting said.
She had already asked Zhao's mother and knew every detail of what happened yesterday.
"Bring in those two old women from yesterday."
Soon, the fat woman arrived.
Wen Lanting was taken aback. Why was there only one person? Where was Liu Mama? An ominous premonition rose in her heart.
"You were the first to report the fire yesterday. I thought Shu'er had perished in the flames, but now I know she's alive and well."
“Then the one who died must be someone else. Do you know who it is? How did they die? You must tell them everything you know.”
As soon as Wen Lanting finished asking his questions, the fat old woman burst into tears.
"Madam, it's most likely that it was Liu Mama who died!"
"We were all very worried when we saw the ancestral hall on fire yesterday, fearing that something might have happened to the second young lady. But when we went into the ancestral hall, the second young lady had already gone out to avoid the fire."
“Mother Liu insisted on going in to put out the fire. I thought she wanted to take credit, but I couldn’t stop her. That’s why I went to report the news. I don’t know anything about the others.”
"When you went into the ancestral hall, Shu'er was no longer inside?" Wen Lanting questioned.
"Indeed, madam."
The fat woman, recalling the horrific death of Liu's mother the day before, dared not utter a single word.
That old woman is quite sensible.
Shen Shu found it utterly ridiculous; it seemed Wen Lanting wanted to pin the blame for Liu Mama's death on her.
I really don't understand. This family clearly hopes to use her as a stepping stone and rely on her to curry favor with Prince Cheng. Shouldn't they treat her better?
Now it seems like they'd love for her to have another crime on her record so they could punish her!
Looking back now, it's probably in her father's and mother's eyes...
I just felt that Shen Shu was nothing more than an unlucky daughter, not even as good as a servant!
"Did Mother really want Liu Mama's death to be related to me?" Shen Shu looked at her.
Wen Lanting was startled, realizing that Shen Shu was targeting her again, and quickly covered her face with a handkerchief.
"Shu'er, you've misunderstood. Your mother just wanted to clear your name, which is why she asked a few more questions."
"How dare you speak to your mother like that!"
Shen Qiushan glared angrily, "Do you think the death of a servant is a trivial matter? A servant's life is still a life, shouldn't it be investigated?"
Shen Shu was tired of hearing these words. No matter what they said, they always had reasons and excuses.
"Now that the questioning is finished, may I leave? My dear father?"
Shen Shu's eyes darkened, already showing great impatience.
Now that she has cleared herself of all responsibility, why bother talking to those wolfish parents?
"Even if Liu's mother's death had nothing to do with you, how did the ancestral hall catch fire?"
Shenqiu Mountain refused to let them go.
"How would I know how the fire started? Father is really strange. No matter what I say, he treats me like a criminal. He might as well just send me to the authorities."
Wen Lanting immediately sensed something was wrong; for her second daughter to say such things was definitely a sign that she was trying to cause trouble.
He hurriedly tried to reconcile them, saying, "It's gone, so be it. The ancestral hall has been in disrepair for years and should have been repaired long ago. Please don't be angry with Shu'er anymore, sir."
"A doting mother often spoils her son!"
Shen Qiushan was so angry that his face turned red.
His wife is just too good-natured. Shen Shu is already arrogant, and Wen Lanting's indulgence only fuels her arrogance!
"Have you finished yelling? If you have, hurry up and prepare a yard for me. I need to rest."
Her parents, one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop, must have had a really tough time dealing with them.
"What a wretched girl! What a wretched girl!"
Shen Qiushan was so angry that he looked up to the sky and roared, "Whose daughter is this?!"
He stormed off in anger.
"Please, Mother, quickly prepare a courtyard for me."
Shen Shu looked at Shen Qiushan's angry back and wondered why he hadn't died of anger.
If I can anger her to death, then I'll have gotten half the revenge.
Wen Lanting gritted his teeth at Shen Shutian's fearless demeanor.
These incidents, one after another, would have terrified anyone else, but she remained calm and composed.
But now Wen Lanting has no way to deal with Shen Shu, how can she not be angry!
"Then Shuer, come with me."
However, she shouldn't expect to stay in any nice places.
Before long, they arrived at a house.
Shen Shu looked at the crooked gate, covered in cobwebs, and let out a cold laugh.
Wen Lanting's expression changed, and he hurriedly tried to make amends.
"Most of the courtyard is occupied now, and it can't be cleaned up in a short time. This side room is a bit simple, but it can be tidied up and made habitable. Shu'er, why don't you make do with it for now?"
"Don't worry, Mother, I'm very satisfied." Shen Shu smiled insincerely.
They dared to give her a place in a dilapidated courtyard? Fine, then Wen Lanting better not regret it.
Wen Lanting was taken aback. This brat didn't retaliate?
Just then, Qing'er, the head maid of Chenxiao Courtyard, rushed over, shouting, "Madam, something terrible has happened!"
"What happened again? Why are you all so flustered? What's wrong with you?!"
Qing'er hurriedly knelt down and looked up, saying, "Madam, yesterday the eldest young lady was..."
But when she glanced at Shen Shu, Qing'er was so frightened that she dared not speak and lowered her head again.
"What's wrong with Xiao'er? Tell me quickly!" Wen Lanting rarely showed such anxiety.
"Yesterday, the eldest young lady was slapped unconscious by the second young lady. Now she's awake and says she can't bear this humiliation and wants to die!"
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