Chapter 12 The Wicked Servant
Shangguan Jin's words left the ladies speechless.
There were also instances of the wives of the heads of the families exchanging barbs and veiled barbs.
But they're mostly done covertly.
We all have status and are of similar standing, so we can't act like uncouth village women and throw a tantrum in the street!
But today, the attitude of the Duchess of Dingguo made everyone feel that something was very wrong.
It seems like it's specifically targeting the Marquis of Wuding's residence.
Upon further reflection, they suddenly realized that things were not so simple.
It was already unusual for the Duke of Dingguo's mansion to suddenly hold a birthday celebration for the old lady.
This is suddenly targeting the Marquis of Wuding's residence again.
The Marquis of Wuding's family was a noble family, second only to the three dukes.
Not only was he related to the Empress Dowager's family, but Marquis Wuding was also the right-hand man of Duke Anguo.
Even if another Duke of Qi met Marquis Wuding, he wouldn't dare to act superior.
Today, the Duchess of Dingguo suddenly targeted the Lady of Wuding, which means that someone is targeting the Wuding Marquis's mansion behind the scenes.
Who else but the imperial family could target the Marquis of Wuding's family, which is backed by the Empress Dowager?
Thinking about how the Empress Dowager's power had been declining in recent years, the ladies seemed to understand something.
Perhaps... the imperial family reassured the Duke of Dingguo's mansion!
Thinking about it this way, everyone suddenly felt a cold sweat break out all over their bodies.
The current emperor is not the Empress Dowager's biological son. The Empress Dowager had no other choice but to put the current emperor on the throne.
For this reason, after the imperial family conferred the title of Empress on the eldest daughter of Prime Minister Xu, they also conferred the title of Imperial Concubine on the niece of the Empress Dowager.
The imperial concubine gave birth to a son, who was granted the title of Prince of Qin by the imperial family.
Empress Xu's son was appointed Crown Prince by the Emperor...
Everyone knows that after the imperial family passes away, these two brothers will inevitably fight to the death.
Could it be that the imperial family now intends to deal with the Duke of Anguo's mansion to pave the way for the Crown Prince?
But the Duke of Anguo's mansion was no pushover. The Zheng family, who came from military backgrounds, wielded considerable power in the army, second only to the valiant Duke of Dingguo.
Now that the Duke of Dingguo is no longer here, it's really hard to say whether that position will go to the Crown Prince or the King of Qin.
Who says the future heir to the throne will necessarily be the crown prince?
The current imperial family rose to power from an insignificant prince with the support of the Duke of Dingguo and other military generals.
Furthermore, although the Duke of Dingguo's mansion claimed it was for the old lady's birthday celebration, it didn't look like a birthday celebration at all.
Even if it were the old lady of a wealthy family in the countryside celebrating her birthday, they would still hire a troupe of actors to make it more lively.
However, the Duke of Dingguo's mansion didn't even hire a theatrical troupe.
This indicates that someone wanted to convey some message through the words of the Duchess of Dingguo.
This was the first grand banquet held at the Duke of Dingguo's mansion in three years, and everyone with a bit of a reputation was going to attend. At this time, whatever was said would be known to everyone.
Last year's tea ceremony, the tense situation at the border, and those remarks made against the Lady of Wuding Marquis...
This shows that the Tian family's meaning is very clear: the Dayu Dynasty now has more than just the Duke of Anguo and the Marquis of Wuding capable of fighting wars...
The ladies felt they had discovered the truth!
They were eager to say goodbye and go home, knowing that the men in their families would surely be interested in the news they brought back.
As expected, not a single word spoken by the Duchess of Dingguo was superfluous.
Lady Wuding seemed to have thought of something as well. She was a little surprised, but she still defended her second son.
"My Yu'er isn't like that..."
“Miss… ah, no, Madam!” Dongmai walked over quickly.
Shangguan Jin, who was still ready to fight, immediately put down the fan in her hand when she saw Dongmai coming over.
"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
Oh, this is Aunt Dong. She's been helping me manage the Duke's mansion for the past few years.
"When the Duke was alive, he doted on her greatly." Shangguan Jin explained to the ladies with a smile.
Apart from Madam Shangguan, all the other ladies responded with an "oh".
Then they all took a look at the winter wheat.
This is the same Dong, who outwitted the stunningly beautiful Concubine Xin, bestowed upon her by the Empress Dowager, in the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, leaving her unable to even cry.
It looks like...
Well, just as the Duke of Dingguo said, Aunt Dong is charming and innocent, and has no bad intentions.
However, the Duke of Dingguo disregarded the stunning beauties bestowed upon him by the palace and favored only this one...
Yes, the Duke of Dingguo has very unique tastes.
Dongmai gave each lady a hasty bow.
Then he bowed respectfully to Madam Shangguan.
Finally, he leaned close to Shangguan Jin's ear.
She even covered her mouth with her hand and whispered a few words.
"Madam, what about the Marquis of Wuding's residence..."
Dongmai's voice grew softer and softer, but Shangguan Jin's eyes widened even more.
"Really? You didn't see wrong?" Shangguan Jin glanced at the Lady of Wuding Marquis before whispering to Dongmai.
"Really, I didn't see it wrong."
Not only did I take a look myself, but I also invited the craftsmen in the manor to come and see.
"It doesn't match up." Dongmai continued, speaking in what she considered a very soft voice.
Shangguan Jin glanced at Marquis Wuding again, then covered her mouth with her fan and whispered, "Let's talk about it at the party. It's not appropriate now."
The ladies, ears perked up...
What's inappropriate? We've already gone this far, what's still inappropriate?
"Sister Jin, what you're saying means it's related to our Marquis of Wuding's mansion!"
"Let's be frank and ask each other directly. What exactly is wrong with our Marquis of Wuding's mansion?" the Marquis of Wuding's wife said bluntly.
She just started making fun of her own son, and now she's making fun of the Marquis of Wuding's family. If she doesn't get her revenge, she'll become a laughing stock in the capital.
"Madam Song, let's talk about this when we're alone later!"
"Some things..." Shangguan Jin pretended to be troubled.
Lady Wuding was even angrier when she saw Shangguan Jin like this.
Isn't this blatantly implying that the Marquis of Wuding's household has something shady going on?
If we don't make things clear today, who knows what these people will say about the Marquis of Wuding's mansion when they get back!
"Let's say it to your face. Our Wuding Marquis's Mansion is upright and honest, and there's nothing shameful about it."
"But there are some people who have been keeping it all hidden all along," Lady Wuding snorted.
The ladies instinctively picked up the not-so-fragrant tea and drank it.
What are you saying? We didn't hear you.
"Madam Song, it's hard to say." Shangguan Jin still wouldn't budge.
"Speak!" Lady Wuding Marquis insisted.
“Alright! Dongmai just told me that there’s probably a bad servant in the Marquis of Wuding’s mansion.” Shangguan Jin sighed.
Ladies with your ears perked up... wicked servant?
Lady Wuding... Did they have a wicked servant in their household? Or did this charming and naive Aunt Dong discover it?
this......
Seeing the stunned look on Lady Wuding's face, who wasn't even using a fan, Shangguan Jin stopped hiding her true feelings.
"The congratulatory gifts from the Marquis of Wuding's residence have been moved into the backyard."
When the servant was carrying it, he accidentally knocked over the load of brocade.
Then the congratulatory gift fell out.
Just then, Aunt Dong happened to pass by, took a look, and sensed that something was wrong.
She said the gift list from the Marquis of Wuding's residence listed ten bolts of Suzhou and Hangzhou brocade, but what fell out looked like ten bolts of coarse cloth.
It's the kind of coarse indigo cloth worn by the servants who do odd jobs in our mansion.
Aunt Dong sensed something was wrong.
Then, after looking through the gift list, I found that many of the gifts sent by Marquis Wuding did not match the list.
She thought to herself, "This must be a trick by the stewards in your household."
Aunt Dong thought to herself, "Our two families will be in-laws in the future. If your family has such a bad servant, our Duke Dingguo's family will also lose face."
That's why I thought of telling you.
"Look, these are all trivial matters within the inner quarters, but you insist on making me say them in front of everyone..." Shangguan Jin sighed.
Each lady remembered the key information for today's banquet: the wicked servant!
Heh, in the entire capital, which family isn't a servant of the imperial family?
The Marquis of Wuding's household has produced a wicked servant...
Lady Wuding only then realized what was going on.
The servants in the manor ruined her important plans...
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