Qi Jingcheng had originally come to see Shen Danru, and now that she had left, he naturally had to leave as well.
He thought to himself that there was plenty of time, and he wasn't in a hurry. He believed that Ru'er would forgive him someday.
Seeing that Qi Jingcheng was about to leave without saying a word to her, Shen Yingxue was furious and her hatred for Shen Danru intensified.
Back at the Duke's mansion, she smashed things all over the floor, then ordered Banshu to find the wet nurse: "Mama Liu, go find a Jianghu assassin and kill her for me."
Madam Liu naturally knew who the young lady was referring to. Although she hadn't gone out with her young lady today, the person who had gone out with her had already told her what had happened that day.
“Miss, she is a nobody with no status, someone who can't be brought to the table. We can have our guards kill her directly. If our Duke’s mansion wants to kill someone, that’s easy.”
“Mother, you don’t know this, but the Crown Prince still has that woman in his heart. If he finds out that I hired someone to kill her, he will hate me. It would be better to find a secret way to kill her without making a sound. I’m sure the Crown Prince won’t trace it back to me. He’ll just think that Song Shiyue did it. Wouldn’t that be killing two birds with one stone?”
Song Shiyue is actually Chen Yuqing. She disliked her previous name because it was too rustic, so she changed her name to Song Shiyue.
"Miss is so thoughtful. This old servant will make the arrangements right away."
Although this Liu Mama was only Shen Yingxue's wet nurse, she had a good-for-nothing son who, relying on his mother's powerful position in the Duke's mansion, caused trouble outside and had some connections with shady dealings. It would be easy for him to find an assassin.
Seeing that Liu Mama had left, Shen Yingxue's face turned fierce: "Song Danru, I was going to spare your life, but you insisted on coming to my door. This is your fate, so don't blame me."
Shen Danru bought a lot of things, and she regretted not bringing more servants. Some of the items were delivered directly to the house by the shopkeepers, while others were not delivered, so the servants had to carry them themselves.
They were relieved when they found a slave trader and bought ten servants.
Of the ten servants, four were old women, who were to be used for cooking, washing, and other tasks; two were maids, one for the mother and one for the eldest sister; and four were young servants, one of whom was younger but had some education and was to be Yu Yan's page.
As for Xiao Wei and his men, Shen Danru never treated them as servants, nor did she intend to have them do any work. She only needed them to ensure the security of the mansion.
With these people who bought the goods helping them share the burden, the group felt much more relaxed.
As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the Shen family mansion, they saw some people unloading things from a carriage.
Everyone was puzzled. They had only arrived in Shengjing yesterday. Apart from the Jiang family sending someone to inquire about their well-being and deliver some gifts, Liu Nian and his wife had also come with Liu Xiangzhu. Besides, they didn't know anyone else.
Even though they knew each other, Shen Danru didn't think they were that close.
She did have two close friends before, but after she fell on hard times, they stayed far away from her and would never come to see her again.
Whose family are you?
One of the stewards quickly stepped forward and respectfully replied, "Miss Song, don't you recognize me? I am from the Crown Prince's residence. The Crown Prince asked me to deliver something to you."
Shen Danru looked him over and did indeed recognize him; he was from the Crown Prince's residence.
"You've mistaken me for someone else. There's no Miss Song here. Why don't you go to the Marquis of Xuanping's residence? Miss Song is still there. Take these things with you; you've delivered them to the wrong place."
Shen Danru instructed her servants to throw out everything that had been brought in. After the Shen family members had all gone inside, she then ordered the door to be closed.
The butler looked embarrassed.
His master had instructed him to send all these things here, but he made a slip of the tongue and called for Miss Song instead. How was he going to explain this to his master now?
Annoyed, he slapped himself twice: "Serves you right for being so quick-tongued! Now you've got yourself into trouble."
They knew about Shen Danru's past, of course. Miss Song, no, Miss Shen, certainly didn't want anyone to bring it up again; it was her scar.
Now look what's happened; the delivery failed, and now he'll have to go back and wait for punishment.
He couldn't be forceful; if he displeased Miss Shen, he would be courting death, and would his master forgive him when he returned?
"Uncle Zhong, what should we do now?"
The steward's name was Li Zhong, and everyone in the household called him Uncle Zhong.
"What else can we do? Let's go back and ask our master before making any further plans."
Uncle Zhong shook his head. It seemed that it would be difficult for his master to gain Miss Shen's forgiveness.
Shen Danru then called Xiao Wei over.
“Brother Xiao, things are different in Shengjing and Ningzhou. In addition to being responsible for the security of the residence, you will also temporarily take over the role of steward. Apart from the Jiang residence, I will not accept any gifts from strangers who come to deliver them while I am not in the residence. In particular, those people from the Crown Prince’s residence do not need to be reported to me; just refuse them.”
"Grandfather hasn't returned to the capital yet, and Father is only an eighth-rank official. In Shengjing, his position is utterly insignificant. We are nothing but ants, and our future will be fraught with difficulties. I hope Brother Xiao will put in his good care."
Until Shen Danru finds someone trustworthy, she can only rely on the people Xiao Wei brought.
Although the person bought had a contract of indenture, Shen Danru did not trust Xiao Wei as much.
Through their interactions on the way here, Xiao Wei and his group had repeatedly risked their lives to protect the Shen family. To Shen Danru, Xiao Wei and his group were more like her own family.
Xiao Wei was a tough man, and no one could make him submit. His only weakness was his mother.
Now, Aunt Xiao's health is getting better and better thanks to Shen Danru's care. She eats well, dresses well, and doesn't have to do any work on the estate. She is also served by others. All of this is thanks to Shen Danru in front of him. He has already recognized Shen Danru as his master and will not listen to anyone else except Shen Danru.
He didn't even care about the Shen family members; only Shen Danru was a threat to him.
Later, when they learned of Shen Danru's identity, they were very surprised. No wonder their master's words and actions seemed extraordinary. They were even more determined to follow their master closely.
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