Volume 1, Chapter 36: Xie Shu, would you truly be so kind?

Xie Shu felt a surge of satisfaction in her heart. She looked at Lady Li, who was struggling to contain her fury, and urged with a bright, feigned smile, "Mother-in-law, for the sake of your future step-son, you really should drink this tea."

"Xie Shu, you bitch! It was you! You were the one who deliberately sent her here!" The more Lady Li pondered, the more she felt she had been set up.

Watching Lady Li’s slow, realization-filled expression, a mocking smile tugged at the corners of Xie Shu's mouth. She shielded Lin Wan’er’s body and, ignoring Lady Li entirely, turned to the Marquis of Cheng'en and said, "Marquis, Concubine Lin is in a delicate condition. Perhaps we should spare her the kneeling for the tea ceremony."

"Very well." Having heard the physician’s advice for complete rest, the Marquis naturally had no desire to let Lin Wan’er exert herself; after all, the child in her womb was precious! To have a son in his twilight years—what a glorious prospect!

"Marquis! How could you, how could you treat me with such contempt!" Lady Li could not believe that the Marquis valued Lin Wan’er so highly. A mere base-born child, yet it was enough to see her trampled upon!

The Marquis had always been indifferent to the affairs of the inner household. To him, words like "contempt" meant nothing; as long as something was to his benefit, it was only right.

"It is just a cup of tea. Whether she stands or kneels, isn't it still a tea ceremony?" The Marquis rolled his eyes at Lady Li, impatient. "At your age, why must you fuss over such trivial details?"

Trivial details?

If even a prostitute dared to show her such disrespect, how could she maintain her standing in the mansion in the future? Were not all the servants here fickle, blowing whichever way the wind turned? Lady Li was so infuriated by the Marquis’s remark that her face turned deathly pale; she longed to tear that old face of his to shreds.

"Madam, please, have some tea." Lin Wan’er was always quick-witted. Since the Marquis had spoken, she naturally would not kneel. Without waiting for Lady Li to erupt further, she respectfully held the tea cup up and presented it to her.

The arrow was already on the string; it had to be released.

Looking at those delicate, jade-like hands before her, Lady Li wished she could snap Lin Wan’er’s arms and dig out the piece of rotting flesh in her womb.

"Whether you drink this tea or not, I will be bringing her into this household regardless." Seeing Lady Li’s hesitation, the Marquis sneered, issuing a threat.

Indeed. It was merely taking in a concubine; he did not need Lady Li’s consent. Even if he simply sent a small sedan chair to bring the woman in, she would have to swallow her resentment and accept it.

However, if Lady Li drank the tea, the Marquis would, to some extent, compensate her for her magnanimity.

For many years, this was how Lady Li had survived.

The affection they showed in public was driven entirely by mutual interest.

Lady Li knew full well the Marquis’s long-standing desire for an heir—especially since she herself could no longer conceive.

"Fine. I will drink it." After a moment of thought, Lady Li gritted her teeth, let out a cold laugh, and drained the cup in one gulp.

Yet, the moment the tea touched her tongue, an intense, bitter taste began to spread!

"Cough, cough—"

Lady Li had drunk it too quickly, and before she could spit it out, she opened her mouth only to choke, coughing incessantly until her throat burned.

Seeing this, Green Willow covered her mouth to hide a giggle. The tea was clearly sour and bitter.

"Enough. The tea ceremony is over, so I shall be off. As for the arrangements for the new concubine, you can handle them yourself, Madam." With members of the Ning clan still detained at the Jingzhao Prefecture, the Marquis naturally had to run around making connections. He had no desire to involve himself in these trivial household matters; he preferred, as always, to be an absentee master.

However, Xie Shu intercepted the Marquis before he could leave. "Marquis, it would be more appropriate for me to make these arrangements. If Mother-in-law were to have a lapse in judgment and make a mistake, this child might..."

Xie Shu deliberately left her sentence unfinished, but the Marquis understood her implication with a moment's thought.

Recalling Xie Shu’s actions in the ancestral hall, however, he did not trust her. Instead, he asked with lingering resentment, "Xie Shu, would you truly be so kind?"

Xie Shu stepped forward and replied with apparent sincerity, "What I did yesterday was merely to clear out the black sheep of the Cheng'en Mansion. For that, the Marquis should thank me. After all, the Jingzhao Prefecture has long since... set its sights on the private salt trade."

She spoke the final words so softly that only the Marquis could hear them.

At the mention of "private salt," the Marquis felt a tremor run through his heart and cold sweat break out on his palms. He leaned in and asked with utmost caution, "What exactly do you mean?"

"Marquis, you said it yourself. Since I have married into the Cheng'en Mansion, our fates are naturally intertwined. We are in the same boat; how could I possibly wish you harm?" Xie Shu spoke so earnestly that it seemed as though she had married into the mansion with true intent, rather than out of a momentary impulse.

"In the current state of the Xie family, only by marrying could I protect myself." Seeing that the Marquis remained guarded, she felt no anxiety, continuing with calm composure, "I only hope the Marquis will take some trouble to help me investigate who it is that seeks the destruction of my Zhenyuan General's Mansion."

When dealing with a cunning old fox, speaking only three-tenths of the truth was enough.

As for whether he believed her or would act on it, that was irrelevant.

What mattered was that Xie Shu needed to secure a temporary safety within the Cheng'en Mansion.

Lady Li and Ning Rongsheng were fools not worth mentioning; with a little thought, their methods were easy to predict.

But the Marquis... if he truly wished to harm her, he would be a difficult opponent.

The Marquis rubbed the bridge of his nose, his eyes glinting with a cold light as he stared deeply at Xie Shu.

It was true: the Xie family and the Ning family were now grasshoppers tied to the same string.

The Empress Dowager had originally been deeply worried about the influence of the Zhenyuan General's Mansion, but what if that power could be turned to her own use?

"If you can take good care of Concubine Lin, I will not hold your previous actions against you for the time being." Lady Li was narrow-minded and had always been harsh toward those in the mansion. Although the Marquis did not think Lady Li would be bold enough to harm his child, he knew human nature was unpredictable, and a little extra caution was always wise.

Hearing this, Xie Shu immediately responded, "I will certainly live up to the Marquis's trust."

The two of them negotiated, leaving Lady Li completely aside.

"She is a concubine, she naturally falls under my authority! Why are you interfering?" Lady Li glared fiercely at Xie Shu. If the woman were under her own nose, she would have plenty of ways to get rid of that base-born brat.

"Enough. It is settled. Concubine Lin will be under the care of the Heir’s wife." The Marquis waved his long sleeves and strode out of the room.

Left behind, the few women in the room stared at one another, each looking at the others with mutual disdain.

With the Marquis gone, Lin Wan’er, now bolstered by Xie Shu’s support, wiped the corners of her eyes. Shedding her previous weakness, she turned to Lady Li with an arrogant air. "In the future, I look forward to your care, Sister."

Xie Shu added, "Oh, and by the way, Concubine Lin will be living with me from now on, in the Ruyi Courtyard."