Ruan Yumu heard about what happened in the North Courtyard. She knew that when two tigers fight, one of them must be defeated. Now she had to establish her own gang. Chu Yue, who had been forgotten in the woodshed, was the best candidate.
In the afternoon, Ruan and Mu brought a sumptuous meal to the secluded woodshed.
The woodshed was surrounded by livestock, and teeming with snakes, insects, and rodents. The fact that Chu Yue, who came from the Princess's residence, could endure such an environment speaks volumes about her inner strength.
Chu Yue was facing the wall at this moment, laughing from time to time, looking completely like a madwoman.
Then she looked at the clean ground, "Snake! Snake! There's a snake! Qiao'er, catch the snake!"
Upon seeing Ruan Yumu's arrival, Qiao'er quickly bowed and greeted her, "Greetings, Madam Ruan!"
"Get up."
"Miss, Madam Ruan has come to see you."
Ruan Yumu clearly saw a hint of surprise flash in Chu Yue's eyes, but immediately pretended to be foolish.
"My concubine! I am your concubine!"
Stop pretending.
Zi Ling wiped a slightly dirty stool next to her with her sleeve, gesturing for Ruan Yu Mu to sit down.
"The one in the North Courtyard has fainted and fallen into a coma. You probably know about her condition."
Although Jiang Mengyi was once the woman in General Qi's heart, after becoming Ruan Yumu and witnessing her various ruthless methods, his love for her has now completely vanished.
Ha, men are so pragmatic; they like someone who is docile.
Seeing that Chu Yue did not react, Ruan Yumu got up and walked over to her.
"Among the pregnant wives and concubines, you and I are the lowest in status. If we do not unite, I fear we will have no place to survive."
Seeing that Chu Yue still didn't react, Ruan Yu Mu continued, "Madam Liu beat the lady's maid half to death and dragged her from Yun Gui Lou to the North Courtyard until she died, with blood flowing all the way..."
She continued to provoke Chu Yue, wanting her to know that Liu Ruhua was not a simple woman either.
"How do we cooperate?" Chu Yue suddenly spoke clearly, and her eyes were no different from those of an ordinary person.
"You continue to pretend here. We'll discuss a plan when Consort Liu goes into labor. You mustn't reveal yourself during this time. All you need to do is give birth, and you'll at least be a concubine's wife. If necessary, you can come out and testify. How about that?"
"It's that simple?"
"Whether you believe me or not, you can only believe me now. You are already Madam's abandoned pawn. If the two of them fall, I will be the one with the highest status in this mansion. I'm sure you know which side to choose!"
Ruan and Mu walked out after saying that.
"Miss, how was it?" Qiao'er immediately came forward as soon as Ruan Yumu left.
"She wants me to testify so she can reap the benefits. No problem, Qiao'er, we'll play it by ear! Qiao'er, you've suffered with me. I'll never forget you when I rise to prominence."
Chu Yue looked at Qiao'er, who had been following her, her eyes filled with guilt.
"What are you saying, Miss? If you hadn't bought me at the market, I would have ended up in a brothel long ago, and I would probably have taken my own life by now."
Recalling the past, Qiao'er felt very sad. During the famine, women were the least valuable. Her father sold her for a bag of rice. Fortunately, she met Miss Chu Yue.
Qi Jingxuan's governance strategy was finally validated the moment the mountain collapsed. Sure enough, the river became deep and narrow, and flowed eastward after covering the ice.
Next, it's time to stabilize the river embankment. For the past few days, Jiang Congzhi has been seeing food being distributed at the soup kitchen in the west of the city. He initially thought it was the prefect doing it, but after inquiring further, he discovered it was a wealthy merchant from Jiangnan named Liu.
"Brother Qi, aren't you going to the west of the city to pay your respects to your father-in-law?" Jiang Congzhi teased Qi Jingxuan as soon as he saw him today.
"What do you mean, father-in-law? Isn't my father-in-law your father, Prince Jiang?" Qi Jingxuan thought that the eldest young master had found him another beautiful woman.
"I'll take you to see it after dinner."
After lunch, Jiang Congzhi took Qi Jingxuan to the west of the city.
"I heard that wealthy merchants from Jiangnan came here to do business, and upon discovering the disaster in our area, they have been distributing porridge daily for almost half a month."
"Yeah yeah"
“My old man was swept away by the water, and I’ve been relying on him all this time.”
Hearing the crowd praising the wealthy businessman, Qi Jingxuan couldn't help but go forward to visit him.
He thought to himself, could the wealthy Jiangnan merchant surnamed Liu be Liu Ruhua's father?
Sure enough, his guess was correct.
"General Qi, I've heard you've been here for a long time. I've been waiting to see when you'll come to pay your respects to my father-in-law, whom I've never met before."
"Master Liu, it was my oversight. Your beloved daughter is doing well in my inner quarters. I never imagined you had such a kind heart; no wonder your business is so successful." Qi Jingxuan was also impressed. The imperial court was already running out of money for disaster relief after years of war, but he never expected the Liu family to be so wealthy.
"Come on in, my dear son-in-law, have a seat."
The group went straight into the inner room and began to talk intimately.
As evening approached, the prefect was hosting another banquet, but this time they didn't go; instead, they invited the prefect himself.
The prefect brought two women with him, saying it was to entertain everyone.
During the meal, the eldest daughter, Qiao Siyu, danced gracefully, accompanied by the piano music of the second daughter, Qiao Silin, captivating everyone.
Seeing that Jiang Congzhi and Qi Jingxuan were staring intently at the two people in the middle, the prefect felt it was time.
He knelt down with a thud. "General Qi, my eldest daughter has long admired your handsome appearance. I hope you will take her back as a concubine!"
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