Madam Peng didn't think Jiang Jiuniang could give her anything good, and opened the booklet without thinking much of it, but her expression changed drastically.
The people around were still discussing the matter of sending the dancers away when they saw Madam Peng's expression. They immediately sensed something was amiss and stared intently at Madam Peng and Jiang Jiuniang.
Madam Peng was shocked and looked very uncomfortable, while Jiang Jiuniang was still smiling happily as before, saying to the people around her, "Everyone, please make yourselves at home. You can enjoy these Hu girls for a while longer. After they come back to my manor, you won't see them as often, haha!"
These Hu women are all professional dancers; they know more than just this one dance and can perform several more in a little while.
Everyone here is a smart person. As soon as they heard this, they knew that what happened next was something they shouldn't know. The more they knew, the greater the risk. It was better not to know.
Everyone returned to their normal selves, eating and drinking as usual, no longer paying attention to Madam Peng's expression.
Only Hu Ji, who initially wanted to get close to the dancers, couldn't accept such a huge drop in status. Regardless of what the other dancers were doing, she covered her face and ran away.
Madam Peng, disregarding everything else, lowered her voice and asked Jiang Jiuniang, "Where did these things come from?"
Jiang Jiuniang smiled and said, "As long as you have the will, nothing can remain hidden forever. Auntie, have you forgotten that my father is the head of Qianfan Pavilion?"
The reputation of Qianfan Pavilion is well-known throughout Beiyan. It is almost the most powerful intelligence organization, and there is nothing that they cannot find out.
Madam Peng's face darkened further, and Jiang Jiuniang added, "If you're so inclined, Auntie, you can easily find out by sending someone to investigate."
Seeing that Madam Peng was still unable to recover, she kindly advised, "Auntie, no matter what, the only people closest to you are the flesh and blood of your own flesh. As for others, who knows how dirty their hearts are? You still need to open your eyes and see things carefully."
After saying that, Jiang Jiuniang returned to her seat. Peng Yuan, who had been extremely nervous, saw her return and hurriedly asked, "Why did you accept so many people? Isn't this just creating trouble for yourself?"
"It's no trouble at all. They're all good-looking and can dance. It would be great to take them home!"
Jiang Jiuniang really thought so. Some time ago, the children in her family wanted to learn to dance. It wasn't that they had to be very good at it, but just to cultivate all kinds of interests. Jiang Jiuniang thought that these dancers danced very well and that she could have them teach them.
Dance knows no social class, and she would never look down on these women's dances because of their lowly status; on the contrary, she admired them greatly.
"But these are my mother's people!"
Peng Yuan was furious. Just because they were good-looking didn't mean they could ignore their status, right?
Jiang Jiuniang patted her hand reassuringly and said, "It's okay, I will make them my people. If I can't change them, then I will naturally deal with it."
Since she dared to accept these people, she would naturally have made corresponding arrangements and would not be easily outmaneuvered.
Seeing that she couldn't persuade her and that getting anxious was useless, Peng Yuan changed the subject: "What did you just give my mother that made her so agitated?"
"It's definitely good stuff, just some secrets."
Jiang Jiuniang smiled mysteriously, but didn't tell Peng Yuan. However, it wasn't that she really didn't want to tell her, but rather that there were too many people around and it wouldn't be convenient to talk. She promised to find an opportunity to tell her when she got back.
Peng Yuan then said, "Alright then, but are you really sure you can succeed?"
She was genuinely worried that Jiang Jiuniang would be tricked. Although Granny Pang was dead, she might still have some tricks up her sleeve, so she dared not let her guard down at all.
"Of course I'm confident, otherwise why would I be so happy to attend this banquet? Besides, I not only didn't suffer any losses at today's banquet, but I also won over six beautiful women. It's obvious that I've come out ahead, so what are you worried about?"
Jiang Jiuniang teased her on purpose, then placed her hand on her high, protruding belly and said, "Alright, alright, don't think too much about it. My little nephew is going to be in a bad mood because of you."
She originally wanted to say "little niece," but considering that people in this era still hope for a son as their first child, she changed her address.
Sure enough, upon hearing her say that, Peng Yuan took a few deep breaths and stopped thinking about it. The situation wasn't as bad as she had imagined. Her mother had left after taking the booklet, so there shouldn't be any more trouble. She could relax a bit.
The banquet went smoothly without any incidents, and everyone had a great time. However, Mrs. Peng, who hid in the backyard with her pamphlet, was not so happy.
Although the booklet is small, it contains many secrets.
Several years ago, her husband had been having an affair with her widowed cousin from her maternal family. Large sums of money from the household were being used outside the home, and those funds were still being charged to her, but she had never noticed.
Not only that, but several of the maids in her courtyard also had ambiguous relationships with her husband. On the surface, there seemed to be no problem, and she never suspected anything.
But the booklet clearly states that all those maids were arranged to serve the master by Granny Pang.
What shocked her even more was that Granny Pang actually had a son, who was her husband's child.
That boy is 20 years old this year and works as a steward on the estate outside the Peng family mansion. Over the years, he has received many benefits from the mansion.
Mrs. Peng's shock was beyond words. She didn't want to believe it, but long-forgotten memories flooded back into her mind like a tidal wave.
No wonder that year, Granny Peng suddenly asked her for a long leave and went back to her hometown for more than a year, saying that her parents were sick and she had to go back to take care of them. She probably gave birth to her child around that time.
A few years later, I heard that her whole family had died, leaving only a poor little nephew who was bullied in the village because no one cared for him.
When Madam Peng heard about it, she felt sorry for the child and took the initiative to ask Granny Pang to take the child in and raise him in the mansion.
Granny Pang was naturally very grateful, but she still considered her feelings. She said that he was just a little nephew, and if he was kept in the manor, the servants would gossip about him behind his back. It would be better to raise him on the estate outside, give him food, and let him live.
At the time, Madam Peng felt that Granny Pang was thinking of her in every way. It was just a child, yet she was so worried and considerate.
Now it seems that it was just that Granny Pang didn't dare to let that child appear in front of her.
She had a general idea in her mind, but still refused to admit it. She called her maid to go to the estate outside and bring the man back so she could see him for herself.
As for her husband's entanglements with those women, she wasn't in the mood to deal with that for the time being.
Now, nothing chills her heart more than Granny Pang's betrayal.
Seeing Madam Peng in this state, the maidservant panicked and hurriedly went out to do her errands. Madam Peng sat alone in the hall, feeling a chill run through her body.
It was bad enough that her husband didn't love her and was always having affairs, but the person she had treated like a sister for decades had also betrayed her. She really couldn't bear it anymore.
"It's fake, it must be fake, Granny Pang would never lie to me!"
She nervously clutched the hem of her clothes with both hands. She shouldn't have trusted what Jiang Jiuniang gave her, but she couldn't help wanting to verify it.
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