Granny Fang nodded repeatedly: "I heard it, I heard it, I heard it all."
"Please don't rush, tell me slowly."
Shen Xiyin frowned slightly, completely bewildered.
Just as Madam Wei was about to say something more, two maids entered the room one after the other.
The first maid to enter handed the food box to Granny Fang, saying, "These are some snacks that Miss Fang bought from Dongyue Tower. She asked me to bring them to the old lady for her to try."
"You're so kind, Miss."
Granny Fang opened the food box, and an enticing aroma immediately wafted out.
The food box had three layers, and each layer contained different snacks.
Shen Qiyin hadn't eaten much breakfast, but the smell made her feel hungry, and her stomach started rumbling.
Seeing that Madam Wei was not seriously ill, she decided to take her leave so she could quickly grab something to eat.
Who knew—
Madam Wei also heard her stomach growling and immediately instructed Granny Fang to place several plates of pastries in front of her.
The old lady said, "Eat!"
Shen Xiyin was a little confused.
"...Thank you, Madam." Seeing that the other party didn't seem to want her to leave and seemed to have more to say, she swallowed back her words of farewell and instead said, "I shouldn't refuse Madam's kindness."
"These snacks are a gift from Miss Jiang to you, so I cannot use them without permission."
Madam Wei frowned and said, "Weren't you hungry?"
"Yes, there is a little, but I prepared it myself." As she spoke, she took out an oilcloth bag from her medicine box, inside which were a few pieces of pastry: "Look."
It's also a dim sum from Dongyuelou.
Xiao Yan bought it for her.
The old lady was not satisfied: "They're all cold now."
"It's alright, I'm not that delicate." Fearing that the old lady would insist, Shen Qiyin quickly picked up the pastry she had brought and took a bite.
Seeing this, the old lady smiled helplessly and instructed the servants, "Go and pour a cup of grape water."
Shen Qiyin had heard of and seen the concept of "thirst," but had never actually drunk it.
I did see the recipe in a food journal.
It is said that fresh seasonal fruits should be juiced, filtered, and then simmered over low heat to remove excess water until the juice becomes a thick paste. After cooling, it should be poured into a container and then sealed for preservation.
When you want to drink it, simply steep it in an appropriate amount of boiling water.
Given the Shen family's financial situation, eating some fruit was already the limit; they would never be willing to juice such fine fruits.
The maidservant quickly brought it over; the pale purple grape juice was served in a glass cup, and it looked so delicious that it seemed like a meal to behold.
Chen Xiyin took a sip; it was sweet and sour, refreshing and not greasy, and tasted especially good.
She thought to herself, "I'll keep an eye out tomorrow to see if they sell them outside, so I can buy some for my honeysuckle to try."
Shen Qiyin ate and drank, waiting for Old Madam Wei to continue. But even after she had finished both pastries and drunk almost half of her water, the other woman just kept staring at her without saying a word.
Just then, Wei Xuan, Ruan Xinghu, and Marquis Wu'an walked in together.
Shen Qiyin guessed that perhaps the matter of Wei Heng's poisoning had been resolved and that it was inappropriate for her to stay. She had just stood up to take her leave when Old Madam Wei pulled her back down into her chair.
"Madam..."
Madam Wei waved her hand affectionately and said, "Don't worry, eat yours."
Unable to leave, Shen Qiyin was forced to listen to a "secret story".
The incident started like this—
With Wei Heng's birthday approaching, Jiang Jiyao wanted to buy him a gift. Knowing that he had no other hobbies besides listening to the zither, she decided to buy him a fine zither.
Somehow, this matter reached the ears of a nanny surnamed Shi.
She was the dowry maid of the first wife of the Marquis of Wu'an.
Seeing Wei Heng's health improve day by day, she thought that the current Marquis's wife was not Wei Xuan's biological mother, and she was afraid that after Wei Heng recovered, she would persuade the Marquis of Wu'an to change the heir. Therefore, she made a mistake.
She secretly bribed one of the shop assistants at Qingyin Pavilion to tell Jiang Jiyao when she went to buy a zither that he had a rare and exquisite zither in his possession, though it was expensive.
The Marquis's family was wealthy and powerful, so why would Jiang Jiyao care about such a small amount of money? Seeing that the zither even had a fragrance, she immediately bought it and gave it to Wei Heng.
Yesterday, after Marquis Wu'an inquired about the incident from Jiang Jiyao, he sent his steward Wei Chong to Qingyin Pavilion early this morning to identify the person.
The man said he had been paid by an old lady to do this.
Based on his description, Wei Chong had a few candidates in mind. When he called them over to show them to him, he immediately recognized Granny Shi.
Seeing that things had come to this point, the latter stopped denying it and simply admitted to everything.
Although Granny Shi's move was risky, the chances of success were very high.
If Shen Qiyin hadn't also happened to be someone who understood the zither, then even if she knew medicine, she might not have been able to discover that there was something wrong with the zither.
After figuring out the whole story, Marquis Wu'an immediately wanted to execute Granny Shi with a whip, but Wei Xuan begged and pleaded, and she was spared her life. However, she was banished from the capital and never allowed to set foot in the capital again!
That concludes the matter.
It was clearly Wei Xuan's servants who harmed Wei Heng. Not only Marquis Wu'an, but even the Marquis's wife seemed to have no doubt that Wei Xuan was behind it, which gave Shen Qiyin a new understanding of him.
So he's just stupid, not bad?
There are people in this world who are not inherently bad, but often make many mistakes and hurt many people because of their stupidity.
Hopefully, Wei Xuan won't become that kind of person in the future.
When Shen Qiyin came to her senses, she saw that Marquis Wu'an and the others had already left.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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