Chapter 121 What Does It Have to Do with Me?
Chapter 121
Meng Yuning looked at her calmly. Jiang gave her a flattering smile. Meng Yuning recalled her memories of Jiang's cold treatment and deliberate suppression of her original self, Meng Yuning, and a nameless anger rose from the bottom of her heart.
She said silently in her heart, poor girl, don't worry, I will definitely help you get back all the grievances you have suffered in the past.
The Queen Mother noticed that Meng Yuning's expression was strange. Seeing that there was suppressed anger and disgust between her brows, she followed her gaze and saw that it fell on Jiang.
Recalling the secret investigations into the past in the Meng Mansion's harem, the Empress Dowager's heart softened. She gently grasped the girl's cold hand and whispered, "Good girl, don't be afraid. Say whatever you want to say later, do whatever you want to do. I will support you."
These words echoed exactly what Qi Jingyan had said last night. Meng Yuning felt a surge of warmth well up in her heart. She turned to the Queen Mother and smiled, "A Ning thanks Grandmother."
When the Queen Mother saw that she called herself "Grandmother" again, she could no longer hide the smile in her eyes. She reached out and held her in her arms and rubbed her.
The ladies below saw the Queen Mother chatting and laughing in low voices with the strange girl, completely ignoring them, and they became increasingly uneasy.
Those who came to the palace to seek an audience today were all like Jiang. The men in their families were either from the Third Prince's faction or had close ties with the Zhang family.
Last night, the Third Prince's Mansion and the Zhang family were raided at the same time, which had already frightened them out of their wits, fearing that it would be their own family's turn to suffer today.
The male officials in the court went to Chengming Hall to meet the emperor, while the women were sent to plead with the empress dowager, hoping to achieve two things at the same time. Even if the men could not be saved, if they could get the Buddhist and kind empress dowager to say a few good words to His Majesty, at least the women and children in the family could have a chance to survive.
At this moment, the Queen Mother remained silent to them, so they naturally did not dare to speak rashly and could only hold their breath and wait.
They recognized the girl in Taoist robes accompanying the Empress Dowager; she was General Cai's daughter, Cai Yuezhao. The other girl, with bright eyes and white teeth, looked familiar, but they couldn't recall her identity.
Several ladies exchanged glances, and finally one of them recognized her first and subconsciously looked at Jiang, who was sitting restlessly.
Everyone suddenly realized that this was the eldest daughter of Minister Meng, the former prince's fiancée.
Everyone's heart sank. What was going on? Why was the eldest daughter of the Meng family here? Wasn't she supposed to be staying in Lingnan with Prince Shen?
When Minister Meng betrayed the former Crown Prince, the Empress Dowager was furious and ordered Miss Meng to go to Lingnan with her. This was known to everyone in the capital. Everyone thought that she would be in great danger and sighed inwardly.
But she had suddenly returned to the capital? Her complexion was rosy and her spirits were high; it was clear that she had been having a very smooth life these past few years. Could it be that she was quite favored by Prince Shen?
They are all the mistresses of official families. Even if they don't usually care about the work of the men in the family, they know something about the court affairs in Beijing.
As his mind raced, a terrible guess came to mind. Since the eldest daughter of the Meng family had returned to the capital, had Prince Shen also returned?
Could the incident last night be the work of Prince Shen?
When the whole family sat together to discuss last night, everyone was still confused as to why His Majesty, who had been bedridden for a long time, suddenly got better. It turned out that Prince Shen was behind all these changes!
The more they thought about it, the more unsure they felt. They all saw fear in each other's eyes. They were all on pins and needles, wishing they could kneel down immediately and ask the Queen Mother to explain things to them clearly.
In this suffocating silence, the Queen Mother slowly spoke: "It's freezing cold, ladies. What brings you to the palace today?"
Everyone fell silent for a moment. They had originally thought it was His Majesty who was holding the Third Prince accountable, and they still harbored a glimmer of hope. But when they discovered it was His Royal Highness Prince Shen who had returned to the capital, they found it difficult to utter those words of plea. They didn't dare, and they were too embarrassed to do so.
All the ladies looked at Jiang at the same time, signaling her to come forward. After all, her stepdaughter was with the Queen Mother, and the Queen Mother treated her very kindly.
Jiang was in a very difficult situation. Based on the news she had received in the past few years, she was almost certain that "Meng Yuning", this disobedient and unfilial ungrateful person, would never speak for the Meng family. But now, she had no other choice but to try her best.
Seeing the Queen Mother asking questions and being pushed to the front by the crowd, she had no choice but to stand up and kneel down: "Your Majesty, I have come to the palace today to apologize for my crime."
As soon as these words fell, the other women could no longer sit still. They left their seats and knelt behind her, saying, "We are guilty of a thousand deaths. We beg for forgiveness, Your Majesty."
Before the Empress Dowager could respond, Cai Yuezhao couldn't help but burst out laughing, muttering in a low voice, "It's funny, he deserves death, how can the Empress Dowager forgive him?"
Meng Yuning didn't think it was funny at first, but after hearing Sister Zhao point it out, she couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips and laugh out loud.
The Queen Mother glared at the two girls, but she couldn't help but smile: "You two naughty monkeys, not at all steady."
Listening to the laughter of the old man and the two youngsters, the ladies kneeling on the ground felt their faces getting hot and they all buried their heads deeper.
After the three of them finished laughing, the Queen Mother regained her composure and spoke softly, "I know why you've come. But you've come to the wrong place."
Upon hearing this, everyone knew that the Empress Dowager was unwilling to intervene. Thinking of their children and grandchildren at home, and recalling the tragic scenes they had heard last night about the capture of the Zhang family and the Third Prince's residence, they were overwhelmed with grief and could not help but sob softly and plead for help.
"Her Majesty, please have mercy! Those things outside were all done by men. We women are truly unaware of them, and the children are even more innocent. Please plead for us in front of His Royal Highness Prince Shen and spare us!"
The Queen Mother's eyes turned cold, and she repeated their previous words: "In the past, the government affairs were decided by Your Majesty, then by the Third Prince, and now it is Prince Shen's turn to make the decision. I am just a woman in the harem and have no right to interfere."
After saying this, he refused to say anything more and said in a deep voice, "Come here, please ask all the ladies to leave the palace. From today on, no one is allowed to enter the Cining Palace without my permission. Those who violate this will be severely punished."
Eunuch Song bowed and accepted the order, then walked forward with a group of eunuchs, half-helping and half-begging the group of weeping ladies to lift up their arms and led them out.
Meng Yu stared at the Queen Mother, and when she nodded slightly, he said loudly, "Wait a minute."
Upon hearing this, Eunuch Song led the ladies back into the hall. This time, the Queen Mother did not offer them a seat, but simply gave Meng Yuning an encouraging look, signaling her to speak.
Meng Yuning stood up, walked to Jiang, and asked calmly, "Madam Meng, I want to ask, is my mother's dowry still there?"
When the original Meng Yuning's mother married into the Meng family, she had a luxurious wedding dress and a rich dowry, but later all of it was taken away by Jiang on the grounds that Meng Yuning was "young and didn't know how to manage it."
She wanted to come back, so she sent someone to send it to Meng Yuning's grandmother.
Jiang's eyes were red, and a trace of guilt flashed across her eyes when she heard this, but then she thought, since she had something to ask for, it was a turning point. If she could make her happy, maybe she could say a few good words for her family.
She forced a smile and replied repeatedly, "Yes, they are all here! I have carefully kept them and never touched them at all."
Meng Yuning knew she was lying, but she didn't expose it. "Then, Madam, when you return home today, please sort out all of my mother's dowry, memorial tablets, relics, and my old belongings and make a list. Tomorrow I'll send someone to count and take everything back."
If the dowry was to be paid in full, it would require a large sum of money. Jiang felt a pang of pain in her heart and was extremely reluctant, but at this moment, she did not dare to show any sign of it. She quickly replied, "Yes, I will do it right away when I get back."
Meng Yuning nodded slightly and said, "One more thing. Where is the maid named Yuzhu who used to be by my side now?"
When Meng Yuning left the Meng Mansion, the two old women, Meng Huaifu and Jiang, did not give her time to pack her things or prepare any luggage for her. They just let two maids force her into the carriage.
Only the personal maid Yuzhu, thinking of the relationship between master and servant, shed tears as she hurriedly stuffed her daily clothes, a box of jewelry, and all her private money into her bag, ran after the carriage, and threw the bag in.
If she hadn't been held back by the two maids from the Meng family, she would even be willing to follow her own daughter to Lingnan. At that time, Meng Yuning leaned out of the carriage to wave goodbye, and both the master and the servant cried bitterly.
Although it was not mentioned in the book, based on Jiang's past hatred for Meng Yuning, Yuzhu would definitely be severely punished after returning home.
Now that she is here, she will ask Meng Yuning to get Yuzhu out of the Meng family.
Of course, for safety reasons, she couldn't keep Yuzhu by her side. She would restore her status as a good person, give her some money, buy her a small house, and help her run a small business, which would also fulfill the relationship between her and Meng Yuning.
When Jiang heard her ask about Yuzhu, her face changed and she stammered, "That girl, because she did something wrong, I sent her to the farm. If the young lady wants to see her, I'll send someone to bring her back when I get home."
"I want to see her today," Meng Yuning said, then asked, "Did you hit her back then?"
Jiang was frightened by her fierce aura and waved her hands hastily, trying to argue. But before she could tell a lie, Meng Yuning interrupted her sharply, "Tell me! How did you hit her?"
Intimidated by the power, Jiang no longer dared to hide anything and trembled, saying, "I just slapped my face, nothing more."
Thinking of the smart and loyal little girl in her memory, Meng Yuning's heart was filled with anger: "How many times did you beat her?"
Jiang was sweating profusely: "Fifty, fifty."
Meng Yuning gritted her teeth and said, "Okay, then you'll also receive these fifty slaps today."
She not only wanted to seek justice for Yuzhu, but also wanted to vent her anger for the poor girl who had been bullied by this vicious woman for many years.
Jiang's eyes widened in shock. "How dare you! I am your mother after all. As a daughter of the Meng family, you dare to torture your elders? Aren't you afraid of being criticized by the world?"
Meng Yuning snorted coldly, each word as cold as ice: "My mother has long passed away, who do you think you are?"
"For so many years, you've imprisoned me in a side courtyard, forbidden me from leaving the house, deprived me of food and clothing, often made me kneel, and often beat and scolded me, yet you keep saying it's for my own good. Everyone knows that you're just jealous that my mother is better than you in every way, so you vent all your resentment on me!"
"Now that I have returned, I must repay all the humiliations I suffered in the past."
After saying this, she turned to the Queen Mother and bowed respectfully: "Grandmother, An Ning would like to borrow someone from you."
The Queen Mother nodded slightly to Nanny Tao, who immediately responded and summoned two strong palace maids to hold Jiang on either side.
Nanny Tao rolled up her sleeves but did not use her hands. Instead, she took out a bamboo shoe horn from her bosom and lashed out left and right. Amid Jiang's shrill wails, fifty crisp sounds were heard in a row.
After the execution, Jiang's face was swollen like hair and she was unrecognizable.
Witnessing this scene, the remaining ladies were so frightened that they all knelt on the ground, trembling all over.
"These fifty slaps are for Yuzhu," Meng Yuning said, then looked at Aunt Tao. "Aunt Tao, I don't know how many times she slapped me back then. My hands were often so swollen I couldn't even hold chopsticks. She wouldn't let me see a doctor, let alone give me medicine. I could only endure it. Today, considering she's older, I'll give her fifty slaps on each hand."
Nanny Tao responded promptly, raised her shoe horn again, and slapped Jiang's palm hard.
After the fifty strokes, Jiang had cried herself hoarse and collapsed to the ground, filled with regret. If she had known this would happen, she should have taken advantage of the girl's young age and created an accident to kill her when she first entered the mansion! Now it was too late to regret.
Meng Yuning nodded slightly to Nanny Tao, and the two palace maids immediately let go.
She lowered her eyes and looked down at Jiang, who was curled up on the ground. Her voice was cold and clear: "Remember these two things. Today I want to see Yuzhu intact, and tomorrow I want to see my mother's dowry."
Jiang Shi no longer dared to say no, and she agreed vaguely. As she struggled to her feet, she still held on to a glimmer of hope and pleaded, "Miss, your sister Jingru was also taken away from the Third Prince's residence last night. She is now in prison. Please take care of her and don't let her be bullied..."
When Meng Yuning heard this, the image of that vicious girl who, at a very young age, led the maids and servants to deliberately throw mice, snakes and insects into Meng Yuning's courtyard appeared in front of her eyes. She scared Meng Yuning and her servants to tears, but she jumped and clapped her hands with joy.
She snorted coldly and turned back to sit beside the Queen Mother. "She is not of the Meng family bloodline, so she has nothing to do with me. Whether she lives or dies, what does it have to do with me?"
Seeing Meng Yuning's indifference, Jiang gnashed her teeth in anger. However, when she thought of the tragic situation in the prison, she trembled with pain and said, "Even if we are not related by blood, she has always called you sister for many years. How could you just stand by and watch her die?"
Cai Yuezhao gently tugged at Meng Yuning's sleeve, and the two looked at each other and understood each other.
Meng Yuning sneered, "Jiang, for the sake of everyone's dignity, I didn't want to mention this matter. Since you are shameless and deliberately trying to disgust me, don't blame me for speaking frankly."
Jiang's heart suddenly sank, and an ominous premonition came to her mind: "W-what happened?"
Meng Yuning said in a firm tone, "Meng Jingru is your biological child with Meng Huaifu. You two were already secretly in love when my biological mother was still alive!"
These words were like thunderclaps. All the ladies in the hall gasped and looked at Jiang in disbelief, their eyes filled with shock and contempt. Some of them even subconsciously stepped aside, away from Jiang.
Jiang had just stood up with great difficulty. Upon hearing this, her face turned pale, her legs went limp, and she collapsed to the ground: "How, how did you know?"
It is indeed so.
Meng Yuning suddenly had an idea and stood up from the couch. She asked sternly, "My mother passed away because of your shameless conspiracy, the two of you, right?"
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