Heng (恒) hexagram, upper-middle hexagram
Chapter 32 Heng Hexagram - Upper-Middle Hexagram - Case Within a Case
Upon hearing this, the entire room was shocked. Among the women present, it seemed that only Rong Yan was not surprised that Rong Shu would take the opportunity to make this request.
She had long sought to manage the household affairs and diligently sought advice from Lady Wang, a practice that could be described as "raising an army for a thousand days to use it for one."
As far as Madam Wang was concerned, if Rong Shu were to take over the management of the household, she would certainly benefit greatly, so she was even more eager for her grandmother to agree.
Second Aunt kept glancing at Rong Shu, but was too embarrassed to say anything in rebuttal, as if saying anything would make her seem petty and like she was arguing with a younger generation.
Unexpectedly, the old lady smiled and said, "Alright, since you younger generation will be in charge sooner or later anyway, why don't you give it a try? If you don't understand, go ask your second aunt."
"Oh, thank you, Grandmother." Rong Shu's expression remained calm, whereas on any other day, she would have been beaming with joy.
Wenjun looked somewhat disappointed, perhaps thinking that her grandmother would speak up for her.
After all, Rong Shu was a complete novice in terms of experience. Wen Jun, being experienced, smiled and comforted Rong Shu with a very dignified expression, "Don't be afraid, your aunt is here."
Rong Yan watched this little drama unfold, and if it weren't for the incident with her mother-in-law, she would have been quite pleased.
On the way back to the house, Xie Chengzhi was in a bad mood, and Rong Yan didn't want to talk either, but just thought about what had happened that night.
Of all those present, Wang was undoubtedly the one with the strongest motive for committing the crime.
Lady Wang resented the Marquis's philandering and amorous nature, but as the matriarch of the household, she had no choice but to make all the necessary arrangements for her concubine.
Even so, the Marquis had broken Wang's heart.
So why should a woman give her whole heart to a man?
Thinking of this, she glanced at Xie Chengzhi's back, which was aloof and cold. She found it hard to imagine what kind of woman could be worthy of him.
Back inside, Xie Chengzhi seemed unable to stay awake any longer and lay down on the bed, looking somewhat drowsy.
She tried to cool him down physically, but was stopped.
"It's nothing, you should get some rest. Don't turn off the lights tonight."
"Um."
When did she ever turn off the light? It was only when the lamp oil ran out in the middle of the night, or the wick softened and went out on its own.
He wouldn't let her manage it; what if she got a fever and went crazy overnight? Wouldn't she be held responsible?
That's what she thought, but what Rong Yan didn't expect was that she originally leaned against the bedside in case something happened to him, so she could take care of him. But as soon as she leaned against it, she fell asleep.
He was sleeping so soundly that he didn't even notice when the lamp wick went out.
When he woke up, he was still asleep, but thankfully the fever had subsided.
With Wang Shi's matter on her mind, she whispered to Huali, "I'll go to the main courtyard first to see how the investigation into my mother-in-law's matter is going. If the eldest son wakes up, see what he wants to eat and tell the cook to make it. Try to make it light and remember to add some astragalus slices. Qingzhu is his confidante, so have Qingzhu come in to serve him."
After giving her instructions, she and Yu Ling left the house.
As soon as Huali closed the door, the person on the bed quietly opened their eyes.
When Rong Yan arrived at the main courtyard, many inner courtyard maids were queuing up. Each person was led into two separate courtyards, and no one was allowed to talk to each other.
The old steward of the manor was guarding the courtyard gate, watching the people.
Upon seeing Rong Yan arrive, he bowed respectfully, "Greetings, Young Madam."
"Greetings, Steward Zhou. How is your mother-in-law today?"
"The Lady of the Marquis had no appetite and forbade anyone from entering the room."
Rong Yan sighed, recalling the fiery woman from last night, and knew she wouldn't commit suicide, so he let her go.
Are all the confessions in there?
"It's all inside. The accountant wrote down a huge stack of notes. Would you like to see it?"
Rong Yan thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Oh, no, no, investigating cases is the job of the government. I, a woman confined to the inner quarters, naturally cannot see through such matters."
"Well... but didn't the old lady want you and your eldest son to keep an eye on things a bit..." Butler Zhou didn't dare to speak loudly, only muttering in a low voice, hoping she would hear him.
Butler Zhou was surprised when Rong Yan simply pretended not to hear and sat down to eat melon seeds.
He not only ate sunflower seeds, but also drank tea for a full quarter of an hour, and casually flipped through the confession for a while before leaving.
Before leaving, he instructed Steward Zhou, "By the way, Steward Zhou, I think it would be best to number the testimonies here, otherwise it might be difficult for the officials to find them when they come in the future."
"Yes, Madam is right."
The old women waited until she left before they dared to say, "Steward Zhou, this lady has been eating melon seeds for so long? I think she changed her testimony way too fast."
"Hmph, what do you know? She came here pretending to look at the confession, but she was really just eating sunflower seeds. That way, everyone will think she's doing her best."
"Oh, Steward Zhou, you can't say that. Didn't Madam herself say that she doesn't understand cases? That's the business of the yamen, isn't it?"
"That's where her shrewdness lies. She seems to manage everything, yet she doesn't offend anyone."
After Rong Yan left, he passed by Anning Garden and happened to overhear the maids in the courtyard saying, "She's so old and has never been able to get married. Now that the Lady of the Marquis has had this incident, she'll be even less likely to get married."
"Alas, that's true. The Marquis takes in concubines who are all younger than the last, but his own wife is so old and he doesn't even think of finding her a duke's son."
"It's not that she didn't look for someone. I heard that Second Sister herself didn't want to, and it seems that she already has someone else outside."
Out of the corner of their eye, they noticed Rong Yan standing at the courtyard gate, and they were so startled that they immediately shut their mouths.
"Young...Young Madam."
Rong Yan smiled slightly and said to them, "You dare to speak ill of your master, which is a offense punishable by slapping. As maids of the inner courtyard, how dare you be so talkative? Since you call me Young Madam today, I will meddle a little, otherwise people will think that our Runan Marquis's Mansion has no manners at all. I will punish the three of you and send you to the outer courtyard, disqualifying you from entering the inner courtyard for life. In addition, half of your wages will be deducted for three consecutive months."
The two maids were so frightened that they immediately kowtowed to her. Even though she was not their mistress, the mistress absolutely had the right to do so.
Being sent to the outer courtyard meant doing heavy physical labor, and not only that, they were also fined three months' wages. The two were furious and secretly criticized their master, which was overheard by the new young mistress.
"Young Madam, we know we were wrong! We know we were wrong, and we will never do it again."
As long as they aren't kicked out, I'm willing to accept any punishment; after all, they got caught talking nonsense.
The two women left in tears. Just then, the door was opened, and Xie Ningling came out wearing a light-colored ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress).
She asked in a low voice, "Why is my sister-in-law so angry in the yard?"
Rong Yan smiled and didn't argue. If she were to reveal everything, it would be Xie Ningling who would be embarrassed.
She simply said casually, "The servants are ignorant; I'll replace them with two more clever ones another day."
Rong Yan glanced at her exquisite makeup and charming attire, and asked casually, "Are you going out?"
Xie Ningling hurriedly shook her head, "No, no, sister-in-law, please come in and sit down."
Xie Ningling's boudoir was very elegant, with a faint fragrance wafting through the room. The fragrance seemed somewhat familiar, as if she had smelled it somewhere before.
The interior layout is meticulously arranged according to feng shui principles, and is designed to attract romance in a way that is considered extremely auspicious.
Beneath the west-facing window sill, a cluster of white flowers serves as the perfect finishing touch. The furnishings in this room are consistent with the layout of the other rooms.
"Is this house of yours also a masterpiece by that Mr. Qian?"
Xie Ningling was a little confused, but she nodded honestly, "Before my eldest brother had his accident, he would come every month to change the position of the objects."
"Are you very familiar with him?"
"Not familiar with each other, we've hardly run into each other more than a few times."
Rong Yan raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. Not familiar with her? And why would she take it upon herself to arrange for her to attract romantic opportunities?
She then asked, "Does your sister-in-law know anything about this?"
"I didn't know, I was just asking casually."
Rong Yan sat down and pondered for a moment before casually mentioning, "By the way, Ning Ling, I noticed that your statement was somewhat inappropriate. I think you must have misremembered the time you returned. You should go and have Steward Zhou correct it later. Otherwise, if the authorities investigate, it could lead to misunderstandings."
Xie Ningling was a little nervous. "What? I wrote the wrong time?"
"Hmm, you wrote that you went down the mountain the day before yesterday, but didn't you just rush back last night?"
Xie Ningling's face turned deathly pale, and she stammered, "Ah, then, then it was indeed my mistake."
Rong Yan nodded, "I saw it by chance, so I'm just reminding you. You know, if the authorities notice something is wrong with the timing and suspect you, that would be terrible. I know it wasn't you who poisoned it, so you'd better change it as soon as possible."
Rong Yan smiled and finished speaking, then stood up and said he had to leave.
Xie Ningling panicked and immediately ran to Steward Zhou to get the statement, but when she looked at it, she found that she had not made any mistakes at all, and her heart sank.
Oh no, we've fallen for their trap.
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