SFS Chapter 164 Peace Talisman
Chapter 164 Peace Talisman
“Mother?” Shen Qingtan sneered, “If I remember correctly, the Marquis of Chengen and his wife have already publicly declared that they have severed all ties with me.”
"Second sister-in-law, your matter has caused quite a stir in the capital, and your parents are in a difficult position. They not only have to give an explanation to the Duke's mansion, but also to the clan."
Shen Mingzhu said with dissatisfaction, "You have been raised as a matriarch since childhood, so you should know how difficult it is to be in charge of a household. Although they did not take your feelings into account when they handled this matter, you cannot erase the kindness of the Marquis's family in raising you for more than ten years because of this."
What a profound act of kindness in giving birth to and raising a child!
Shen Mingzhu had long known that she was not a biological child of the Marquis of Chengen's family, and she joined forces with the Marquis's family to try to kill her.
They were merely maintaining a superficial relationship, without actually breaking the ice.
Even now, Shen Mingzhu still wants to use the debt of giving birth to her to accuse her of being ungrateful.
Unfortunately, after she severed ties with the Marquis's mansion, they could no longer control her.
“They cut ties with me because they saw nothing to gain from me. Now that they see something to gain from me, they are using the debt of gratitude they owe them to raise me to blackmail me.”
Shen Qingtan scoffed, "It is precisely because of this 'gratitude' that I cannot have any involvement with the Marquis of Chengen's mansion. Otherwise, they would be criticized and cursed as villains, which would be my act of being unfilial."
“You…” Shen Mingzhu felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen, her expression changed slightly, and she dared not cover her lower abdomen in front of Shen Qingtan: “You resent your parents in your heart, but what about Shen Shaobai? His birthday is in half a month. My mother asked me to pass on a message to you. Whether you go or not is up to you.”
After saying this, she glanced at Liuyue, who was carrying a bamboo basket, as she came out of the courtyard, then turned and left Lanxue Garden.
As Shen Qingtan watched Shen Mingzhu's departing figure, the image of Shen Shaobai with teary eyes flashed through her mind.
Madam Shen knew about her relationship with Shen Shaobai and deliberately used Shen Shaobai as a pretext to lead her to the Chengen Marquis's residence.
Liu Yue noticed Shen Mingzhu's glance and came to Shen Qingtan's side: "Second Madam, what brings Third Madam here again?"
Shen Qingtan said expressionlessly, "The Marquis's mansion invited me back to celebrate my third brother's birthday."
"Don't go, who knows what kind of trouble they're up to?" Liu Yue knew immediately that the Marquis's mansion had ill intentions: "You should just prepare a gift and send it to the Marquis's mansion."
Shen Qingtan nodded slightly.
Liu Yue reported to Shen Qingtan: "Second Grandmother, my father has broken his leg. I will ask for leave tomorrow to go home and take a look."
"How is your father?" Shen Qingtan hurriedly said, "Ask Liu Mama for ten taels of silver and a ginseng root, and go back to visit him now."
The key to Lanxueyuan's storeroom was kept by Liu Mama, while the account books were in the hands of Liuyue and Tingxue.
"Second Grandmother, there's no need to give us money. The monthly allowance you secretly give us is already quite high, and I give most of it to my parents. They won't lack money." Liu Yue was very grateful and continued, "My father's fall wasn't serious; it was just a minor sprain."
"I'll give you a few more days off, so you can stay home and relax for a while." Shen Qingtan smiled and said, "Don't worry about me, I have Tingxue and Chunjiao to take care of me."
Liu Yue nodded: "This servant will go pack up and go home right away."
Shen Qingtan brought Tingxue to the fourth room.
The maid guarding the courtyard gate respectfully invited Shen Qingtan inside.
Shen Qingtan stepped into the room, and the sunlight outside the window bathed the floor, casting a graceful and alluring figure on the ground. She looked up along the shadow and saw the Fourth Madam reclining on the chaise longue, her chin resting on one hand.
She wore a light-colored undergarment, with a thin red veil draped over it, revealing glimpses of her snow-white skin, making her extremely alluring.
Shen Qingtan immediately thought of Xishan's clothes, and her cheeks burned.
"Niece-in-law, you've arrived." The Fourth Madam gathered a few strands of her robe and slowly sat up. "I thought you would have some pleasant time alone, but I didn't expect to run into such a spoilsport." She said with some regret, "If they're going to make a move, at least wait two more days."
Shen Qingtan said reproachfully, "Fourth Aunt..."
The Fourth Madam saw that Shen Qingtan's cheeks were flushed, as if she were a mimosa plant growing in her backyard.
She was afraid of provoking someone so much that they would never come to her yard again.
The fourth wife got back to the main point: "Niece-in-law, you are indeed very perceptive. Sure enough, someone came to my courtyard to gather information. Fortunately, the people in my courtyard are not short-sighted."
"The people you value are discerning and know who is a worthy master to rely on," Shen Qingtan said with a smile. "My third brother's wife is unkind to her servants; who would dare to easily seek refuge with her?"
The fourth madam chuckled and said, "You're right. The maids in the manor are always more informed than their masters."
Shen Qingtan asked about the important matter: "Fourth Aunt, when will Fourth Uncle return? Has he sent you a letter?"
The fourth madam frowned: "You need to see him for something?"
Shen Qingtan shook her head: "I want to know how the war is going in the Northern Border."
The Fourth Madam thought that the First Madam's father and brothers were all in the Northern Territory, worrying about the war every day, and mistakenly thought that Shen Qingtan was also worried: "He sent a letter home, mentioning that the war was won, but did not say when he would return."
Shen Qingtan took out a purse and handed it to the Fourth Madam: "This is a peace charm that the Second Master and I obtained for my maternal grandfather, uncle, and fourth uncle. Please give it to your fourth uncle."
The fourth madam opened her purse and saw a thick stack of amulets inside. She exclaimed in surprise, "One for each person, four should be enough. There must be seven or eight here?"
Shen Qingtan explained, "We'll also ask for one for the main general and one for the deputy general, and pray for the soldiers as well."
The Fourth Madam knew that if she sent it out herself, she couldn't say that Shen Qingtan and Zhao Yi had asked for it.
This will only make Zhao Qiyuan smug again.
However, this was a token of Shen Qingtan's affection, and the Fourth Madam could not refuse it, so she accepted the peace charm.
"I will send someone to the northern border later."
"Fourth Aunt, thank you."
The fourth wife thought to herself: You really should thank me. I paid a high price for giving you the amulet.
-
In a secluded private residence in the capital, a small sedan chair made of blue cloth was parked at the back gate.
Marquis Chengen stepped out of the sedan chair and knocked on the back door.
A moment later, the back door opened.
The Marquis of Chengen displayed a plaque, and the old man guarding the gate let him in and led him to the study.
"The master is inside. Go in yourself."
The old man left with a single sentence, then hunched over and departed.
Marquis Chengen knocked on the door, and only after hearing a sound from inside did he push it open. He saw Prince Yu resting his head on his hand, leaning against the long couch, his eyes closed in meditation.
The room was quiet, filled with a delicate sandalwood scent.
Marquis Chengen's heart sank. Because of his understanding of Prince Yu, the more composed he was, the more it foreshadowed something big that was about to happen.
He recently set a trap for Shen Qingtan, thinking it was foolproof, but it turned out to be a case of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
He thought Shen Qingtan was a cicada, but little did he know she was actually a sparrow.
“Your Highness, the reason I fell into Shen Qingtan’s trap was because she disappeared and Zhao Yi returned to the manor alone, injured. I specifically sent people to inquire, and the cause of the matter was that Shen Qingtan was investigating Qingzhou. You attacked her, and that’s why she went missing.”
Marquis Chengen said tremblingly, "Before this, grave robbers broke into my mentor's tomb. With the two incidents happening at the same time, I thought about it more deeply and suspected that Shen Qingtan's people broke in to find evidence against us. Only then did I become certain that you really did arrange for someone to hunt her down, and that she really was assassinated and disappeared."
He observed Prince Yu's expression and, seeing that Prince Yu's face was normal, his heart sank to the bottom.
Marquis Chengen continued, "That's precisely why we plotted to ruin her reputation. Whether she truly disappeared or deliberately concealed her whereabouts, a dead end awaited her. Who knew she would actually go to Guanzhou for disaster relief..."
"Heh." Prince Yu sneered, slowly lifting his eyelids: "I sent assassins to kill Shen Qingtan. If the mission failed, they would commit suicide. How did your men find out that I sent someone to assassinate her?"