Inside the study, Zhuge Huai had a solemn expression on his face, and said to Zhuge Yue in a deep voice, “Fourth brother, what do you think about this matter?”
The room was quiet, without a sound. Zhuge Huai frowned, and whispered to Zhuge Yue, who frowned as if thinking about something, “Fourth brother?”
“Hmm?” Zhuge Yue raised his head and said absentmindedly, “The Prince of Yan’s Mansion is doomed. Yan Xun is in danger.”
"Yes, I think so too." Zhuge Huai nodded and said, "The Prince of Yan's Mansion is a thorn in the eyes of all the major families. The Batuha family in the western fiefdom has coveted the land of Yanbei for a long time. This time, the dirty water will most likely be thrown on the head of the Prince of Yan. In addition, the master in Shengjin Palace has always preferred to trust outsiders rather than his own brothers."
At this moment, I suddenly heard a lot of noise outside. Zhuge Huai frowned and said loudly: "Zhu Yong, what happened outside? It's so noisy."
"Reporting to the eldest master, the noise came from Taoranyuan. It seems that the Seventh Madam and the singer Taoxiang had a quarrel. The Third Madam and the Fourth Madam all rushed over."
Zhuge Huai's eyes darkened, and he said impatiently, "You won't stop for even a day. You really don't know what you are talking about."
Zhuge Yue, however, pretended not to hear anything and did not respond. He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and lowered his head in silence.
"Master, the Third Madam wants you and the Fourth Master to go to Taoranyuan. She said there is something urgent for you to handle."
Zhuge Huai suddenly became angry and said, "Why do you want me and my fourth brother to go? Isn't it embarrassing enough? Tell them, I am busy."
"Master, the Third Madam has issued a family law order to... to beat Miss Taoxiang of Taoranyuan to death."
Zhuge Yue put down his teacup, stood up, and said, “Brother, just go. Maybe it’s something urgent.”
Zhuge Huai sighed and followed him out of the study.
There was a chorus of angry curses in Taoran Courtyard, with the ladies from each room taking turns to argue and having a great time. But amidst that anger there was a hint of gloating joy: this little bitch who had bewitched the master to the point where she didn't know which way was east, south, west, or north, finally had her day.
Madam Seven stood in the middle of the courtyard with a haughty look on her face, sneering at the disheveled Tao Xiang, "I never expected that something like this could happen in our Zhuge Mansion. The master has always treated you well, but you repay him like this. You really have no sense of shame!"
The third lady was dressed in a fire fox brocade mink dress. She was in her thirties and was well maintained, with a unique elegance and grace. She said with regret, "Taoxiang, when the master left, he said that he would take you into his room when he came back, but you did something so immoral that even I cannot tolerate you today."
"Sister, why are you still talking to her about this nonsense? In my opinion, it's better to kill her with a stick and not let our Zhuge family get dirty."
Taoxiang's face was pale, she knelt on the ground with her hands on her chest, her clothes were disheveled, her eyes were dull, and her whole body was shaking constantly. From time to time, she glanced at the man next to her, but saw that he was trembling like a sieve, his face was blue, and he was even worse than herself.
This was the chaotic scene that Zhuge Yue saw when he entered Taoranyuan. After listening to the Seventh Madam's narration which seemed like she was trying to take credit for herself, the Fourth Young Master of the Zhuge Family's brows suddenly furrowed, his eyes flashed with a sharp light, and his mind started to work rapidly.
"Young Master!" When Zhu Shun saw Zhuge Huai, he immediately rushed forward as if he had seen a life-saving straw. He cried and cried loudly, "She seduced me first. She sent me a letter asking me to come. As soon as I came in, she took off her clothes and seduced me. I remember the kindness of the master and the young master to me. My mind is full of dedication to the Zhuge family until my death. How could I do such a treasonous thing? I fought desperately and didn't give in to this bitch's intentions. I am innocent. I didn't know anything beforehand!"
"You! Do you have any conscience? It was obviously you..."
"How dare you quibble!" With a crisp sound, Madam Seven slapped Tao Xiang in the face and sneered, "A bitch is a bitch. She even dared to use such despicable means to harm me. In the end, she shot herself in the foot. You deserve it!"
“Fourth brother! Where are you going?” Zhuge Huai was stunned, only to see Zhuge Yue turn around and walk away, and he hurriedly called out in confusion.
"Brother, I have something urgent to do. I'll come back to you later."
After hurriedly saying these words, the young Zhuge Yue left Taoran Courtyard and headed hastily towards Qingshan Courtyard.
He pushed open the gate of Qingshan Courtyard with a bang. Huan'er and a few maids were watering the orchids in the flowerbed in the courtyard. When they saw Zhuge Yue, they quickly stepped aside and bowed respectfully. Zhuge Yue didn't even look at them, and walked towards the servants' room without stopping, asking as he walked, "Where is Xing'er? Who's watching her?"
"Xing'er said she wasn't feeling well and went back to her room to lie down." said a little maid.
Huan'er, who was standing by, was afraid that Xing'er would be punished, so she quickly said, "She spent the whole day with us picking new tea and just went back."
Zhuge Yue's face was gloomy as he strode towards Chu Qiao's room. Yue Qi followed beside him and whispered, "Xing'er was indeed busy in the small kitchen all day. I didn't see her go out."
With a bang, the door was pushed open and Zhuge Yue rushed in with a dark face. He saw the child lying on the bed with a pale face, as if he was really sick.
Zhuge Yue was slightly stunned, not expecting her to be in the room. But for some reason, when he saw her lying there peacefully, he felt relieved, as if a big stone had been lifted off his shoulders, and felt inexplicably relieved.
"Fourth Young Master?" The child sat up in shock, hugging the quilt, his voice still carrying a hint of sleepiness, "Did Xing'er do anything wrong?"
Zhuge Yue was stunned, then shook his head, a little embarrassed, "No, I heard from Huan'er that you were sick, so I came in to see you."
"Oh." The child nodded, "Master brought so many people to see Xing'er. Xing'er thanks Master."
Zhuge Yue's face immediately turned red, and he felt somewhat at a loss, but he didn't know what to say. He stood there, cleared his throat, and coughed.
Seeing Zhuge Yue's embarrassment, Zhu Cheng quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, "Xing'er, the young master has come to see you, why don't you get up quickly?"
The child was stunned, his face looked nervous, he bit his lips lightly, but did not move.
Zhuge Yue's eyes turned cold, and suspicion suddenly arose. Today's matter was very cumbersome. If she wanted to avoid the layers of secret guards, she had to be careful and sneak around, so the clothes she wore would definitely leave traces. I rushed back as soon as I heard the news, so I shouldn't be much slower than the person who secretly planned it. She looks like this, could there be something hidden under the quilt?
“Xing’er,” Zhuge Yue walked forward slowly, his eyes fixed on the child’s face, and said in a deep voice, “Pour me a cup of tea.”
The child looked terrified, biting his lip and said, "Master, can you please go out first? Xing'er will...will get up and serve you in a while."
“No.” Zhuge Yue walked to the bedside, grasping the thin quilt on the child with his slender fingers. His dark eyes approached the child’s large eyes, and he spoke word by word, “I want to drink now.”
A scream of "Ah" suddenly rang out, and everyone was stunned, with shouts of surprise coming one after another. On the small bed, I saw a thin child hugging his knees tightly, burying his face deep in his arms, his shoulders shaking, and his long black hair scattered on his shoulders. He was not wearing a single strand of clothing!
Zhuge Yue clutched the quilt, and was dazed for a moment. After a long while, Zhuge Yue's handsome face suddenly turned red. He turned around abruptly and shouted angrily at the servants who were staring at him with wide eyes: "What are you looking at? Get out!"
The servants woke up as if from a dream and left the room one after another.
Zhuge Yue threw the quilt onto Chu Qiao, and said impatiently, "Hurry up and put on your clothes!"
It was very quiet behind me, and soft sobbing sounds slowly began to sound. Zhuge Yue frowned, not knowing who he was angry with. He angrily said impatiently, “Forget it, you should just lie down.”
Then he strode out of the room and the door slammed shut. The child in the room raised his head, his expression was calm, his eyes were peaceful, without a trace of sadness. Chu Qiao lifted the mattress from under her and threw her clothes, which were stained with mud, onto the ground without mercy.
Zhuge Yue was indeed alert enough, and he was so fast that she didn’t even have time to put on her clothes.
But it’s a good thing this way. No one will be brave enough to enter her room this afternoon, so she will have more time to do the next thing.
The child lowered his head and smiled gently, with a somewhat gloomy look on his young face.
It's time to pay back the debt.
Just as I changed my clothes, there was a knock on the door. Huan'er ran in excitedly and said with a smile, "Xing'er, there's good news, do you want to hear it?"
Chu Qiao was small, and her legs couldn't even touch the ground when she sat on a high chair. She poured a cup of tea and drank it very dignifiedly, "Go ahead."
"Xing'er!" The little maid pouted unhappily, "Do you want to listen or not? You don't look excited at all."
Chu Qiao smiled and said, "Just say what you want to say. You will still say it even if I say I don't want to hear it."
"Humph, I won't argue with you, but this is really good news." Huan'er said with a smile, "Butler Zhu from the outer mansion had an affair with a newly favored singing girl from the inner mansion, and was caught by the Seventh Madam. Even the Third Madam and the eldest young master were alarmed. The singing girl has been thrown into the well, and Butler Zhu has been beaten with fifty sticks. How about it, is it good news?"
The hand holding the teacup froze for a moment. Chu Qiao sat on the chair, her eyes narrowed slowly, hiding all her emotions and sharpness quietly, and nodded: "It is indeed good news."
Huan'er said angrily, "That's right. Zhu Shun is always bullying others because of his power. Which of us servants has not been bullied by him? He is responsible for the fact that your children from the Jing family were sent to the old master. He was beaten up today, which can be regarded as God's mercy, letting us vent our anger."
Chu Qiao's expression remained unchanged, her voice was soothing, with a hint of deliberately suppressed lowness, "Having an affair with a singing girl in the inner chamber, such a crime was only punished with fifty strokes of the cane, it's too trifling."
"Who said it wasn't true?" Huan'er said, "Just now, the Seventh Madam was so angry that she came to the Fourth Young Master to seek justice. It's a pity that our Young Master has always been unwilling to get involved in these matters. The First Madam and the Master are not in the mansion, so everything is decided by the First Young Master. And Zhu Shun is the First Young Master's man, alas."
Chu Qiao nodded and said slowly: "Okay, I understand, Huan'er, thank you for telling me."
Huan'er saw that her face looked a little off, and her voice slowed down. She said a little uncomfortably, "Xing'er, are you feeling unwell? Should I go find a doctor for you?"