Chapter 138: Favoritism and the Meng Family’s Scheme! (Second Update)

If not for the fact that Madam Meng was the official mistress of the Marquis's Mansion, he would have landed a punch right in her face.

At this moment, he didn't even dare to raise his voice too high while questioning her.

Madam Meng was caught completely off guard by his roar, but after an initial, instinctive flash of panic, she immediately regained her composure. With a dismissive, cold laugh, she said, "I have done what needed to be done, and you have done what you needed to do. Why are you still saying these things to me now? What is the point?"

"You!" Fourth Master Xue was shaking with rage, the veins at his temples bulging prominently. Yet he had to forcefully restrain himself, his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides. He endured and endured, until he finally gritted his teeth and questioned once more, "Why? At least give me a reason! Why? Why did you have to do this?"

However, the matter was simply too monumental. Midway through his words, he lost control again, growing agitated once more: "The Marquis never gave permission for you to touch the Old Madam! Now you've killed the Old Madam, and she died an unnatural death. Did you really think you could keep this hidden? The Marquis will definitely investigate and hold someone accountable. How are we supposed to explain this when that time comes?"

Fourth Master Xue had never suffered such a covert and devastating loss in all his life. Beside himself with fury, he paced in circles around the room.

Watching him like this, the corners of Madam Meng's lips curled into a cold, chilling sneer as she dropped another shocking remark: "He never told you to touch Wu Tan either!"

Fourth Master Xue was struck as if by lightning, his footsteps coming to an abrupt halt.

Inch by inch, he slowly turned his head back, looking at Madam Meng once more with an expression of utter shock, terror, and disbelief.

Madam Meng walked over to the table and sat down, pouring herself a cup of water. She merely held it in her hand without drinking, and in a measured, unhurried tone, she retorted, "He only told you all to follow my instructions. He merely said he feared the Heir would abuse his power, so he kept you in the capital for contingencies when necessary. Strictly speaking, did he ever tell you to mess with Wu Tan as you pleased?"

It was only upon hearing this that Fourth Master Xue was jolted back to his senses.

He strode around to face Madam Meng, bracing his hands on the edge of the table beside her, and suddenly let out a breathless, disbelieving laugh of bitter irony. "Madam, this was an order you gave us!" he spat out, word by word, through clenched teeth.

To reiterate, if not for the fact that this Madam Meng was the mistress of the Ding远 Marquis's Mansion, he truly would not have been able to stop himself from giving this woman a severe beating.

Madam Meng raised her eyes and met his gaze without the slightest trace of a guilty conscience. "So then, since it was my command, why are you making a fuss? Just follow orders! If the Marquis finds out and decides to investigate in the future, he will be investigating me. What does that have to do with you? When did it ever become your place to question me?"

This Marchioness had always been proper and seemed like a peaceful person. Who could have imagined that when she turned hostile, she would be so domineering and shameless?

"But the Old Madam—" Fourth Master Xue's lips parted.

After all, he was one of Marquis Wu's trusted men left behind in the capital, and since this double-dealing Madam Meng was completely unreliable, he remained deeply unsettled by this affair.

"Enough!" Madam Meng snapped, rising to her feet in impatience. "I said before—you don't have to take responsibility for this. Besides, this is not a place where you should be lingering. Take off right now before the others return!"

Fourth Master Xue's lips moved; clearly, he was unwilling to be dismissed just like that.

However—

Just as Madam Meng had said, even if it was something he shouldn't have done, he had already done it. Things had reached this point, and he could no longer wash his hands of it.

If he were to fall out with Madam Meng now and she pinned all the blame entirely on him, he truly would not have a single way to defend himself.

After weighing his options repeatedly, he cupped his fists heavily in salute. "Then this subordinate will take his leave. However, the commotion on the mountain today was far too large; it is bound to alert the authorities. For safety's sake, I will take my brothers and lie low outside the city for a while, and return only after the storm passes."

Of course, this was not a consultation with Madam Meng, merely a notification.

Having said his piece, Fourth Master Xue no longer wished to stay a moment longer in Madam Meng's presence. He turned on his heel and prepared to leave.

"Wait!" To his surprise, Madam Meng suddenly called out to him. "We haven't cleared everything up yet. Qu Baochang is dead, but what about Wu Tan?"

Fourth Master Xue sneered, his sense of injustice still burning fiercely, tinged with heavy sarcasm. "Turns out, Madam, you are not entirely infallible after all. Though you played the mantis stalking the cicada and burned the Old Madam to death, the Second Young Miss has great resilience and good fortune. She killed Qu Baochang and Niu Dahzhuang and escaped. The Heir and the Second Young Master should be able to find her and bring her back, though."

Pausing for a moment, he added, "Actually, Madam, your true target tonight was only the Old Madam, wasn't it? Failing to finish off the Second Young Miss along the way must leave you with some regrets, but your ultimate goal was achieved anyway, wasn't it?"

At first, he had genuinely believed Madam Meng wanted to kill Wu Tan, until she secretly had Qu Baochang sneak outside the meditation room to start the fire, which made him realize the truth in a flash—

Her true target was the Old Madam!

With that, Fourth Master Xue pushed open the door and strode out.

Madam Meng pressed one hand against the table, having no desire to pursue him for his impudence. She simply lowered her head, her dark, gloomy gaze fixed on the floor beneath her feet.

Xurong watched Fourth Master Xue depart, then hurried back into the room, closing the door behind her. Noticing Madam Meng's poor complexion, she guessed tentatively, "Madam, is it—did they fail to deal with the Second Young Miss?"

"If they failed to deal with her, then so be it!" Madam Meng said, her hand resting on the table as she slowly lowered herself back into her seat. A flash of ruthless, decisive cruelty crossed her eyes. "The old hag is dead; my objective has been achieved."

Leaving the South Courtyard, Fourth Master Xue did not depart immediately. Instead, he circled around the back courtyard, located an inconspicuous servants' quarters in the front courtyard, and knocked on the door of a small, isolated room closest to the yard entrance.

The occupant opened the door and let him in. It was Cao Feiying, one of the two chief stewards of the estate.

Steward Cao ushered him inside. It was evident at a glance that he, too, had been awake all night waiting for news, and he asked directly, "How did things go? The Second Young Master and the Heir successively led over two hundred men up the mountain. There weren't any hitches, were there?"

Fourth Master Xue had unspeakable difficulties. He averted his gaze to avoid eye contact, but knowing this could not be concealed, he told the truth honestly: "Something went wrong! Madam... the Old Madam has perished in a sea of flames!"

Steward Cao's expression altered drastically. The very next moment, a fist flew forward, striking Fourth Master Xue and drawing blood from his mouth. "You bastard!"

Having served the Wu family for nearly thirty years and risen to the rank of chief steward, although he had a private room to himself in the manor when not returning home, the room was merely a place to sleep and of limited size. This single punch knocked Fourth Master Xue over, sending him crashing directly into the bed.

Still unsatisfied with his anger, Cao rushed forward, grabbed the man by the collar, and landed two more consecutive blows. Still suppressing his voice with uncontainable fury, he cursed, "You damned scoundrel! You're courting death!"

Fourth Master Xue didn't dare to fight back. He could distinctly feel that one of his back teeth had been knocked loose, and unable to endure any longer, he quickly grabbed Cao's fist and stammered out an explanation in panic, "Steward Cao, listen to my explanation! It wasn't me! I didn't do it, it was Madam! Even if you gave me ten more guts, I would never dare to touch the Old Madam."

Steward Cao remained a remarkably steady person—otherwise, Marquis Wu would not have left him behind in the Marquis's Mansion to handle affairs. Just now, he had simply lost control in a fit of rage. As he vented, his emotions also calmed down by a fraction.

He released Fourth Master Xue's collar, stepped away from him, dusted off his robes, and walked to the side.

Knowing he had caused a catastrophic disaster, Fourth Master Xue dared not conceal anything. Scrambling to his feet, he poured the details out like beans tumbling from a bag: "This really isn't my fault! I came to consult you beforehand, and only after you gave your consent did I carry out Madam's instructions. But I truly never expected Madam to have a backup plan! Madam said at the time that she couldn't stand the Heir and the Second Young Miss scheming to marry the Third Young Miss into the Eastern Palace. She claimed she only wanted the Second Young Miss's life to vent her spleen, but... but I truly didn't expect... after I set up the layout on the mountain according to her instructions, she secretly manipulated Qu Baochang to make a move against the Old Madam instead! As for that Second Young Miss, she said she was going out to play when night fell, and by a twist of fate, she managed to escape it."

After offering this rough preliminary explanation so Steward Cao understood the origin of the matter and wouldn't strike him again, Fourth Master Xue proceeded to recount the specific course of events in meticulous detail.

This included what Qu Baochang had told him—that he went into the room to confirm the Old Madam was sleeping inside before barring the door shut and carrying out the deed.

Steward Cao listened as the veins at his temples throbbed violently, his complexion turning alternately green and pale, looking utterly wretched.

Fourth Master Xue hurriedly added, "When I saw the fire over there, I rushed over at the very first moment, but the outside of the house had been doused with lamp oil, making it completely impossible to get close. I genuinely had no idea Madam would pull a stunt like this. Brother Cao, I just went to see Madam, but Madam said even if the Marquis finds out, she will shoulder the blame. What on earth should we do about this? There's no way to keep it hidden; the Old Madam is gone, and the Marquis will surely rush back to mourn. Moreover, the traces on the mountain cannot be wiped away. The Heir and the Second Young Master should already realize by now that this wasn't an accident."

"She will shoulder it? On what grounds will she shoulder it?" Steward Cao ground his teeth in suppressed rage, the muscles along his jaw twitching incessantly. Finally, he spun around sharply, his gaze like torches, staring straight at Fourth Master Xue as he issued an order: "Then why are you still lingering here? Are you waiting for the Heir and the Second Young Master to return and net us all in one fell swoop? You certainly cannot stay in the capital for the time being, regardless. You must set off immediately, travel south in person, and tell the Marquis the whole story from beginning to end, exactly as it happened. Let Madam carry the black pot she brewed herself! How could this woman be so utterly devoid of a sense of proportion? Has the Marquis not treated her well enough? She is simply hateful!"

By the end, Steward Cao was grinding his teeth with hatred, slamming a fist down onto the table.

Yet Fourth Master Xue still hesitated. "Tell the Marquis? But just now, Madam even threatened me regarding the Second Young Miss incident—if I run off to complain, she likely won't admit to any of it when it comes to harming the Second Young Miss. Between you and me on one side, and her on the other, the Marquis will undoubtedly believe her."

"What do you know?" Steward Cao glared at him impatiently. "The Marquis's heart leans toward Madam and her children; there is no doubt about that, or else he wouldn't have left you and me behind in the capital with instructions to heed Madam's commands. But what danger could Madam possibly face here in the capital's Marquis's Mansion that requires our assistance? Out of respect for the Marquis, even if the Old Madam disliked her in her heart, she would never actually do anything out of line. Therefore, what the Marquis left us here to protect Madam against—must be the two children left behind by the former wife. On this matter, the Marquis is inherently biased to begin with; even he himself cannot fully trust the Heir and the Second Young Miss. So just tell the truth as it happened. Regarding the Old Madam's affair alone, you must get there before Madam and explain it clearly to the Marquis first."

Hearing this, Fourth Master Xue felt as though his mind had suddenly opened up to enlightenment. Without a trace of further hesitation, he gave his assent and hurriedly slipped away before Wu Qinglin and the others could return to the mansion.

After meeting up with Lao Xin at their prearranged spot on the main street, the two of them casually purchased some dry rations and headed straight out of the city.

Meanwhile, back at Xiangguo Temple, Wu Qing钰 had already invited the abbot over.

Considering that Huo Yunhao was half a party involved, Wu Tan deliberated and had her invited in as well.

Huo Yunhao's condition was somewhat better than Wu Tan's; aside from some scrapes and bumps from tumbling down the mountain, she was essentially unhurt. She had been in the side chamber taking care of a terrified Nanzhi, and when she was summoned into the main room, she still carried a distinct sense of awkwardness.

Since a charred corpse had been cleared out from the room where the Old Madam resided, everyone had been terrified at first, assuming it really was the sleeping Old Madam who had been burned to death. The abbot had entered offering apologies without pause.

Wu Tan glanced at Huo Yunhao and quickly clarified, "That—that isn't my grandmother!"

"Ah!" the old abbot exclaimed in astonishment.

Wu Tan stated with a straight face, "The orientation of that courtyard isn't good. I disliked the intense afternoon sunlight, so I discussed it with her and had her move to another room tomorrow. She even left a maid behind to help me pack my things, didn't she?"

If this had happened inside her own household, the death of a maid was nothing; a casual lie could gloss it over. But here in a temple, with such a massive commotion alarming so many people, there had to be a seamless explanation before it could be presented satisfactorily to the authorities.

As she spoke, Wu Tan turned her gaze to Huo Yunhao without changing expression or blinking an eye.

Huo Yunhao held no fondness for her disloyal maid, and spinning lies came quite naturally to her. Seeing the abbot look her way, she adopted a distracted, melancholic expression. "Oh, that coarse-cleaning maid of mine indeed could not be found after the incident."

Wu Tan continued smoothly, "Besides, my grandmother had a temporary matter arise yesterday afternoon and hurried down the mountain."

The steward monk who had entered alongside the abbot looked perplexed. "That's not right... Wasn't it someone from Master Huo's household who came to report to this poor monk yesterday afternoon that they were heading down the mountain?"

He turned his head to look at Huo Yunhao.

Wu Tan chimed in preemptively, "Oh! Perhaps the servant didn't make it clear, but it was my grandmother who wanted to go down. However, our family carriage broke down, so we borrowed a carriage from Miss Huo, and most of our family's attendants followed along."

These monks were universally benevolent and never accustomed to viewing human hearts with malicious intent. Hearing Wu Tan's explanation, which sounded entirely reasonable, they figured the person yesterday simply hadn't spoken clearly or they themselves had misheard.

This was the only matter that required cover, and it wasn't merely to bamboozle the officials; its primary purpose was to account for the Old Madam's whereabouts—

To prevent Madam Meng from growing suspicious.

With this single matter smoothed over through Wu Tan's blend of deception and coaxing, Wu Qinglin stepped forward, cupped his fists toward the abbot and the monk, and bowed solemnly. "I have roughly understood the course of events from yesterday night. It appears someone sneaked up the mountain under the cover of darkness to loot valuables and subsequently committed arson. Whether they were targeting our family from the outset is unclear, but since it has fallen upon us, our Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion bears an inescapable responsibility. My younger sister is injured, and we must urgently descend the mountain to seek medical attention. I must ask the abbot to dispatch someone to accompany my household down so we can jointly report to the Jingzhao Prefecture and explain the situation. As for the meditation rooms burned down in the temple, including the expenses for rebuilding the Mahavira Hall and recasting the golden bodies of the Buddhas and Vajras within, our Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion will shoulder the entirety of the costs. Within the next two or three days, I will have the estate's steward deliver the silver notes here. Causing trouble for all the revered masters of the temple was a matter of absolute necessity; please accept my profound apologies."

Xiangguo Temple was the premier large-scale temple near the capital, enjoying the most vigorous incense offerings. While the temple was wealthy, rebuilding an entire Mahavira Hall and recasting the destroyed Buddha statues required an enormous expenditure—by any calculation, no less than tens of thousands of taels of silver.

After all, the temple housed over three hundred people; trying to produce such a massive sum of money all at once would stretch them thin.

Wu Qinglin's attitude was sincere, and Abbot was indeed a forthright man. "Amitabha! This old monk failed to properly secure the temple gates, almost implicating the two young benefactors; I am deeply ashamed. Yet, while Wu Benefactor's generosity is appreciated, it is truly unmerited. However, the temple's main hall has been reduced to ashes, and reconstruction and renovation are matters of extreme urgency. Since Wu Benefactor is willing to bestow charity—then let this sum of silver temporarily be considered a loan from this humble temple to the benefactor. In days to come, as funds accumulate, we shall slowly repay it."

"You are too courteous, Master. My grandmother comes up the mountain to offer incense and pay respects to the Buddha every month. If she were to hear that the Buddha statues were burned, her heart would surely ache just the same. Consider this our household's contribution to setting her mind at ease; there is no need for Master to speak of loans," Wu Qinglin replied.

Though they could not explicitly admit it, the truth remained that the destruction of the temple's main hall today was entirely due to their family's involvement. Such compensation was nothing more than their rightful duty.

Wu Qinglin's determination to foot the bill was absolute, and his reasoning was impeccably dignified.

Sensing his sincerity, the abbot expressed his gratitude repeatedly before accepting the arrangement.

Once they had seen them off, Wu Qinglin turned back and instructed the rest of the group, "Pack up and head down the mountain. Grandmother must be growing anxious waiting at home."

Wu Qing钰 had overheard Wu Tan's casual fabrication of wild tales earlier, guessing she had deliberately hoodwinked the two monks, but he had refrained from exposing her. At this moment, he frowned deeply and asked, "What on earth happened last night?"

Clearly, it was Wu Tan who had discovered the anomaly and sent the Old Madam down the mountain to escape a calamity; how could there be so many coincidences?

Wu Qinglin glanced at him, then simply patted his shoulder. "This is not the place to talk. We'll discuss the details in depth once we return to the mansion. I'll take Tan'er and go by carriage. We brought too many people up yesterday; go tally the numbers and lead them down the mountain first. Dawn is about to break, and it won't do if we run into incoming pilgrims."

"Understood!" Wu Qing钰 acknowledged, turning to leave first.

Wu Qinglin walked over to the bedside to pick up Wu Tan.

Pushing his hands away, Wu Tan leaned forward instead to ask Huo Yunhao, "I'm sorry for keeping you delayed all night. Are you coming down with us?"

Given the awkward relations between their families, Huo Yunhao hesitated as she looked at Wu Qinglin, then said softly, "Is it convenient?"

Wu Qinglin lowered his gaze to Wu Tan, nodded slightly after a moment, and said, "We are returning to the city anyway. If you wish to travel with us, go pack your things, but we can only drop you off inside the city."

With their families' sensitive relationship, dropping her off right at the Huo family doorstep would benefit no one.

"All right!" Huo Yunhao was genuinely anxious to return. "I don't have anything to prepare; it's just that my maid was frightened into falling ill and cannot travel for now. I just need to give her a word of instruction and I'll be right back."

With such a massive incident befalling the Wu family yesterday, although Wu Tan had instructed someone to send word to the Huo estate to set her mind at ease, she figured they must have been far too busy themselves to remember. Having been unaccounted for the entire night, if Huo Yunhao let her eldest sister, Huo Yunhua, start stirring up trouble unchecked without returning, disaster would surely ensue.

Wu Qinglin offered no further comment as he scooped up Wu Tan and walked out first.

Huo Yunhao hurried to the side chamber to instruct Nanzhi with a few words, temporarily placing her in the care of the temple monks, before hastening to the front carriage house to find the Wu siblings.

By the time she arrived, Wu Qinglin had already seated Wu Tan on a nearby stool. Musong, who had been checking the carriage, unexpectedly discovered that the carriage wheel appeared to have been tampered with, bearing the marks of a smashed crack along the axle. He was currently reporting this to Wu Qinglin: "Heir, this carriage cannot be used. Although the crack doesn't look obvious right now, the mountain road is bumpy; it's bound to cause an accident before we go far."

Having grown accustomed to such tactics by now, Wu Tan simply let out a cold snort: "They really leave no stone unturned, don't they? Thank goodness I borrowed someone else's carriage yesterday to send Grandmother down the mountain."

She turned her head and spotted Huo Yunhao.

Having inadvertently peered into another family's privacy once again, Huo Yunhao wore a somewhat awkward expression. "Um... can we still leave now?"

She was truly anxious.

Wu Qinglin instructed Musong, "Never mind that. Leave this carriage here, go find the temple's steward monk, and borrow a carriage from them."

"Understood!" Musong acknowledged and left.

With nothing to do, Wu Tan began meddling, turning to ask Huo Yunhao, "Are you in such a rush? Are you afraid your Eldest Sister might do something to Madam Huo?"

Having bared their souls to one another to an extent, Huo Yunhao had adopted a sort of fatalistic attitude and didn't shy away from speaking frankly with her. However, with Wu Qinglin present, she felt a trace of awkwardness, laughed evasively, and said, "She wouldn't dare! Greed for money and dowries is one thing and she acts with impunity, but she knows very well herself that her marriage is currently hanging by a thread. If she really pushed my mother to the brink... who knows, the palace might demand she observe a period of mourning before marrying. So no matter what, she wouldn't dare let anything happen to my mother."

Hearing this, the Wu siblings experienced a simultaneous flash of realization.

In an instant—

They suddenly grasped the reason why Madam Meng had taken the risk to secretly harm the Old Madam.

From the very beginning, she had vehemently opposed Wu Qingjun's marriage to Xiao Yun, but since the marriage was bestowed by the imperial palace, she lacked the power to object by even half a syllable. Now, by moving against the Old Madam, once the Old Madam passed away, she would have the opportunity to find a way to have Wu Qingjun observe mourning, thereby delaying the wedding.

A three-year mourning period was a superficial solution that didn't address the root cause, but given the frantic, desperate state Madam Meng had been in at the time, it was entirely possible she wanted to take this first step.

The brother and sister exchanged glances, each reading the other's thoughts. Yet, with Huo Yunhao present, they found it inconvenient to spell it out directly.

It wasn't long before Musong returned, having borrowed a carriage from the temple.

As it belonged to simple monks, the largest plain cloth carriage was only half the size of the Wu family's vehicle and completely unfurnished inside. Worried that the bumpy mountain road would jar Wu Tan's injured leg, Wu Qinglin climbed into the carriage alongside her, having her sit close to him.

The journey back to the city proceeded smoothly enough, though due to the peculiar relationship with Huo Yunhao, conversation along the way was virtually nonexistent.

Upon entering the city, since they were riding an inconspicuous temple carriage, Wu Qinglin chose not to dump Huo Yunhao halfway. Instead, he made a detour and dropped her off right at the Huo family's threshold.

Seated at the outermost edge of the cramped carriage compartment, he bent his knees to allow Huo Yunhao to step down.

Alighting from the carriage, Huo Yunhao paused for thought, then turned back before the curtain dropped, curtsying awkwardly in a half-salute. "Marquis's Heir, thank you."

Without a word, Wu Qinglin merely glanced at her before letting the curtain fall, signaling Musong to drive the carriage back to the mansion.

On the way back, Wu Tan couldn't hold back any longer. "Brother, do you think Second Mother made a deadly move against Grandmother just to force Wu Qingjun into mourning? Normally, when an elder of the household passes away, there is a three-year mourning period, but that's under ordinary circumstances. A marriage with the royal family doesn't necessarily have to follow standard precedent."

Exchanging a gaze with her, Wu Qinglin contemplated with a similarly solemn expression, "The imperial family indeed doesn't need to follow precedent. But if Madam Meng could persuade Father to submit a memorial requesting it before the throne on Wu Qingjun's behalf, it wouldn't be entirely impossible. It's just—knowing Father's temper, I suspect she's laboring in vain."

While Wu Wu was filial, would he really submit a petition to request a delay in Wu Qingjun's marriage just for a three-year mourning custom that the imperial house didn't strictly observe? It was practically impossible!

"Besides, what good would a three-year delay do anyway?" Not dwelling on the feasibility of the plan, Wu Tan considered a different angle. "Wu Qingjun is betrothed to the Crown Prince. Even if she drags it out for three years, what can she do even if she doesn't marry the Crown Prince?"

Therefore, no matter how one looked at it, Madam Meng's actions were all wasted effort, performing utterly futile labor.

Madam Meng didn't strike someone incapable of understanding these issues; Wu Tan simply couldn't fathom what on earth was going through that woman's mind.

The siblings pondered all the way home without unlocking the mystery of Madam Meng's intentions. Upon returning, Wu Qing钰 had just finished arranging the estate guards they had brought back. Hearing that they had returned to the mansion, Madam Meng found it impossible to feign ignorance and hurried over from the back courtyard with an anxious expression. Catching sight of Wu Qinglin carrying Wu Tan through the doors, she plastered on a look of profound concern and rushed forward. "I only learned this morning that you rushed up the mountain late last night. Tan'er, your leg... what on earth happened?"

Wu Tan flashed her a smile, radiant and bright. "Thank you for your concern, Second Mother! It was a close call, but we're safe! Let's go talk in Grandmother's rooms; Grandmother should be up by now, shouldn't she?"

As these words left her lips, Madam Meng's complexion underwent a drastic, instantaneous transformation.

***