Chapter 82: The Conspiracy Exposed by Ye Yiniang

  "World, Crown Prince's consort? You, how did you end up here?" Xu Mingxia asked in extreme surprise.

  "How about this? If you're allowed to come here, why can't I?" Yang Lian smiled and glanced in the direction where Xuan Yuan Qi had ridden off on his horse, then turned back.

  Xu Mingxia had not yet recovered from the shock of suddenly seeing Xuan Yuan's legitimate wife, Yang Lian said something, she did not hear, her eyes staring at Yang Lian's delicate lotus face.

  Xu Mingxia turned her head from Yang Lian to Xuan Yuan Qi's direction, recalling the scene where she had just stood here, watching Xuan Yuan Qi leave with infinite deep affection, boundless sorrow and endless nostalgia in her eyes.

  Xu Mingxia's face suddenly turned completely red, she thought that the crown prince's wife must have seen her just now...

  Xu Mingxia was too ashamed to look up at Yang Lian's face, she knew that Yang Lian must be extremely angry now, if this thing happened to her, she would not tolerate the woman who peeked at her husband either. But for a long time, she didn't hear Yang Lian scolding her or slapping her, and she couldn't help but raise her head suspiciously, only to see Princess Pingxi of Wang's family looking at her gently, as if she was a glittering golden treasure...

  Xu Mingxia awkwardly opened her mouth and said: "I don't know if the young master's wife has any business? If not, please allow me to withdraw."

  Yang Lian saw Xu Mingxia's restlessness and unease, her eyes flashed, and she smiled: "Today the weather is very good, I'd like to invite Miss Xu to take a walk in the bamboo forest over there, would you do me the honor?"

  Xu Mingxia was immediately anxious and uneasy, this crown prince's wife had called her to the bamboo forest, what did she want to do? Could it be murder? Thinking of this, her face turned pale as paper, she wanted to say no, but she knew she had no reason to refuse, and the crown prince's wife would not allow her to refuse either. But that sentence "I'm honored" was something she just couldn't bring herself to say.

  Xu Mingxia could only nod slightly. She felt her head weighed a thousand pounds in an instant, almost crushing her neck.

  Yang Lian took a look at the anxious woman in front of her and said, to be honest, this Miss Xu was beautiful, but compared to that Miss Xu Liu, she was slightly inferior. In terms of temperament, there was a big difference. That Miss Xu Liu could remain calm when facing her mother-in-law, and Yang Lian knew that the clever Miss Xu Liu had long been aware of her mother-in-law's hostility towards her. Otherwise, at the An Guo Hou Fu, she wouldn't have been able to repeatedly avoid her mother-in-law's designs and traps. To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that Miss Xu Liu was her enemy, Yang Lian would have had some admiration for this woman.

  Yang Lian glanced at Xu Mingxia with disdain, thinking that this one was far inferior to Xu Liu, and didn't even need her to lift a finger. This Xu young lady wasn't worth worrying about. Although it annoyed her that she had feelings for her own husband, putting that aside, she wouldn't be a bad pawn to use against Xu Liu if used properly.

  Yang Lian believes that with her own intelligence and wisdom, she can't control a single chess piece?

  Yang Lian took Xu Mingxia to the bamboo forest behind the Temple of National Protection, strolling slowly, then sat down in a pavilion. When Yang Lian felt that Xu Mingxia's anxiety had reached its peak, she spoke up.

  "We can make a deal." Yang Lian directly cut to the chase: "You help me take down Xu Mingjin, and I'll help you marry into the Ping Xi Wang Fu as a secondary wife. What do you say?"

  She said this when Xu Mingxia just picked up the teacup and took a small sip of tea, upon hearing this, she swallowed it all down with a gulp, choking her face red and neck thick. Seeing her like this, Yang Lian somewhat disgustedly quietly moved her body to the side, instructing the maid to come forward and gently pat Xu Mingxia's back, so that she could recover soon.

  Yang Lian ordered the maid to refill her tea cup and slowly sipped it, waiting for Xu Mingxia to digest what she had just said. The personal maid who was serving her also gave Xu Mingxia a disdainful look, thinking that someone as foolish as her dared to have feelings for their master's husband, truly not knowing the height of the sky or the thickness of the earth!

  Xu Mingxia's blush slowly faded, she carefully thought about Yang Lian's last words, and an unbelievable joyful expression appeared on her face. She trembled with her voice: "Can the words that the Crown Prince's wife just said be repeated? I, I didn't hear it very clearly."

  Yang Lian took one look at Xu Mingxia's ecstatic expression and understood that she must have heard her words very clearly, only that she was just a little unbelievable. Thinking of this, Yang Lian repeated what she had just said: "We can make a deal." Yang Lian went straight to the point: "You help me deal with Xu Mingjin, I'll help you marry into the Ping Xi Wang Fu as a concubine, how about it?"

  Xu Mingxia listened again, and only then did she believe that she hadn't misheard earlier. Without hesitation, she said: "I agree to the conditions of the Crown Prince's consort!"

  Yang Lian heard this and smiled happily.

  Fine, very good. She originally thought it would be difficult to persuade Xu Mingxia to deal with her own sister, but now it seems that there was already a deep-seated conflict between this Miss Xu and her own sister Xu Mingjin. Even if she hadn't mentioned this condition, the situation between this Miss Xu and Sixth Miss Xu would still have been irreconcilable. This way, she could even more easily stay out of it.

  This Miss Xu's methods are still not good enough, but with her own secret help, it seems that dealing with that Miss Xu Liu is not a sure thing, at least it's not far from ten...

  Even if the prince found out in the end, he would still go to find Miss Xu to settle the account. This matter has nothing to do with Yang Lian. Thinking of this, Yang Lian's mood became extremely pleasant, and the gloom of the past few days was swept away.

  Xu Minxia thought for a moment and said: "Then when can you get the young master to agree to marry me?"

  Yang Lian said: "This matter, as long as you help me get rid of Xu Mingjin, immediately, I can let you marry into the Pingxi King's mansion and become the consort of the crown prince."

  Xu Mingxia nodded upon hearing this.

  Yang Lian smiled, the promise she had made to Xu Mingxia was originally a scam. But now looking at Xu Mingxia who listened so obediently, she suddenly thought: The young master never enters my room, after a long time, his mother will be anxious to hold her grandson, and I have no movement in my belly, at that time, his mother will naturally want to take a concubine for him, and I won't be able to stop it. If the concubine taken in has a low status, it's fine, but if she comes from an even more noble background, wouldn't my position be precarious? It's better to let the young master take Xu Xiaojie as his concubine, she helped me deal with her own sister, and I will have a handle on her, in the future, she can only obey me...

  Thinking so, Yang Lian immediately stood up and warmly grasped Xu Mingxia's hand, saying: "Sister, rest assured, after the matter is settled, I will personally let the young master marry you..."

  Xu Mingxia was overjoyed, and what was originally an unattainable goal suddenly became within reach. She was so excited that she didn't notice Yang Lian's ulterior motives. After they reached an agreement, Xu Mingxia quietly returned to her own room, while Yang Lian swaggered out of the temple and back to the Ping Xi Wang Fu.

  It wasn't until after a nap in the afternoon that Xu Mingjin pulled Xuan Yuan Jinglin to sit together in the carriage and return, of course, Xu Mingxia followed quietly.

  All the way back to Shangshu Mansion, Xu Mingjin and Xu Mingxia parted ways with an unspoken understanding.

  As soon as Xu Mingjin entered the mansion, he felt that the atmosphere inside was not right. The servants were hurrying to and fro, each with a tense expression on their faces, as if they were facing a great enemy. Xu Mingjin looked puzzled and hastily stopped a passing servant to ask: "What's going on in the mansion?"

  That servant, seeing it was the sixth young lady who was most favored by the old master, did not dare to be slow and hastily replied: "Replying to Sixth Young Lady, it's Madame who is about to give birth! She started having pains from last night, and now it's already been a day and a half, but she still hasn't given birth. The old master is anxious and has invited several famous doctors from the capital, all of whom say that the fetal position is not good, fearing that it will be a difficult delivery..."

  Xu Mingjin heard this and said: "Isn't the madam supposed to give birth next month? How did it come early?"

  That household servant heard this and looked at Xu Mingjin with a somewhat shrinking gaze, saying: "Replying to Sixth Miss, I'm also not very clear..."

  Xu Mingjin heard this and beckoned him to go busy himself, while he hastily made his way to the Maple Courtyard. The servant behind him couldn't help but say: "Sixth Miss!"

  Xu Ming Jin looked at her with a suspicious expression.

  That servant stepped forward a few steps, thought for a moment and said: "Sixth Miss shouldn't go to the Maple Courtyard after all. Yesterday, the reason why Madam suddenly wanted to give birth was because she was accidentally bumped by Chun Xiang, the senior maid of Fei Cui Garden, at the gate of Fei Cui Garden. Master is still in a fit of anger now, if Sixth Miss goes there, she might be blamed by Master...

  Xu Mingjin listened with increasing tension and asked: "Where is Chun Xing now?"

  "The old master has already beaten her up, beating out more air than she can take in, and has thrown her out of the house... The servant is afraid that Miss Sixth will vent her anger on him, as he knows that Chun Xiang was Miss Sixth's most trusted and favored maid. She was beaten half to death, it would be strange if Miss Xu didn't get angry!"

  As expected, Xu Mingjin was so angry that his vision went dark. He simply didn't believe that Chun Xing would be such a reckless person. This matter must have been framed by someone else. For now, saving Chun Xing is the priority, and other things can be discussed later.

  "Thrown there, you know?" Xu Mingjin asked.

  That Ding obviously knew that Xu Mingjin would ask this, and he said: "Thrown into the chaotic burial mound in the south of the city..."

  "Take me there!" Xu Mingjin interrupted him, "Now at once, immediately!"

  That household servant didn't dare to hesitate, and hastily brought Xu Mingjin out of the Shangshu Mansion. Like this, Xu Mingjin returned to the Shangshu Mansion from the Huguo Temple in a flurry, without even having time to drink a sip of water, and then hurriedly got on the horse carriage heading towards the south of the city. On the horse carriage, Xu Mingjin asked Yuzhu: "Are all the wound medicines and life-saving medicines on you?"

  Yu Zhu nodded and said: "Everyone is here, miss, don't worry too much. Xia Chun Xing has a good destiny."

  Xu Mingjin said irritably: "How can I not worry? Chun Xing has been serving me since she was a child..."

  Xu Mingjin suddenly felt something was off, and she said: "Yuzhu, I always feel that things are not right, this matter of Chun Xiang, I always feel that someone does not want me to return to the mansion, so they did it this way...the mansion must have had some things happen that we don't know about..." Before she finished speaking, Yuzhu suddenly raised her hand and called out to stop the carriage. The horse carriage stopped, and under Xu Mingjin's suspicious gaze, she put her finger to her lips and blew a loud whistle. Immediately, a group of black-clad guards fell from the sky around them. Yuzhu said to Xu Mingjin: "Miss, these are all the dark guards left by the Second Prince before he left to protect you. Whatever your orders, they will definitely carry them out."

  Xu Mingjin didn't have time to be surprised, she told the dark guards: "Half of you follow that house servant to the south of the city to Just Spring Apricot and Jade Bamboo. You go find Princess Jinglin and ask her to help me call a few famous imperial physicians. The other half will secretly follow me back to the Shangshu Mansion to take action as needed."

  Jade Bamboo hastily agreed and quickly rode a horse towards the direction of the imperial palace.

  Those dark guards immediately divided into two groups and stood locally.

  Xu Mingjin gave a subtle signal to one of the bodyguards, glanced at the house servant, and the bodyguard understood that Miss wanted her to kill the servant to silence him. She nodded silently, indicating she knew what to do.

  That Ding saw Xu Mingjin's eyes and hurriedly shouted: "I'm not Mrs. Xu's person! Don't kill me! I was sent by Old Man Fan!"

  Xu Ming Jin looked at the loudly shouting house servant with suspicion, was he someone his uncle had planted in the Xu household? When did his uncle also have the means to do something like this?

  That Ding looked at Xu Mingjin with a suspicious expression, and hastily pulled out a letter from his pocket, handing it over with both hands. He said: "If I hadn't secretly cheated, Chun Xiang would have left by now! She is the wife of Zhangzi's brother, how can I not save her?"

  An Wei handed the letter to Xu Mingjin, who actually didn't need to read it, just listening to his words was enough for her to believe him. When she opened the letter and saw the familiar handwriting on it, she finally believed that this house servant was indeed the person arranged by Fan Yicheng in the Xu household, because Fan Yicheng had already told her about this matter in the letter.

  "I believe in you. Follow these few brothers to Chengnan to rescue Chun Xing!" Xu Mingjin said.

  That servant, Ding, heard her say this and hastily scrambled to his feet as if he had just received a pardon. "Actually, Spring Swallow Miss has no life-threatening worries, miss should hurry back to the manor! If madam were to have an accident, master would definitely blame you." As he stood up, Xu Mingjin happened to see that on the lower hem of his clothes, there was a flash of a greenish-blue pouch...

  But before he could think of anything else, Xu Mingjin gave the order and took half of the dark guards with him to part ways, rushing back to the Shangshu Mansion on horseback.

  At this time, the sky had darkened, and when Xu Mingjin arrived at the entrance of the maple courtyard, she only heard the noise inside, and from time to time, a mournful cry came out. She knew that it was Mrs. Xu's voice crying out in pain. The servants and underlings coming in and out of the gate were as numerous as cow hair. With a gloomy face, she walked in and saw Old Lady Xu sitting upright in the middle of the courtyard, her expression calm as usual. Xu Ruoyi sat beside Old Lady Xu, unable to sit still, his expression tense, as if there was a nail on his buttocks, his eyes fixed on the delivery room where the sharp cries came from. From time to time, maids and servant women carried out basin after basin of bloody water...

  Yè Yí Niáng sat beside Xú Ruò Yì, looking at his tense expression with a sarcastic smile. Xú Míng Xiá sat next to Yè Yí Niáng, her expression unreadable, no one knew what she was thinking. Xú Míng Yīng, Xú Míng Fāng... all the Miss Xu's had arrived. The sound of Xú Míng Jǐn's footsteps startled them, and they all turned their heads around.

  Xu Ruoyi was the first to see Xu Mingjin. As soon as he saw Xu Mingjin, he thought of the fact that the villain who caused Madame Xu's premature birth was the big maid beside his daughter. He couldn't help but let out a cold snort and said, "You still have the face to come back?"

  Xu Mingjin pretended not to understand and said: "Father, daughter just came back from Huguo Temple with elder sister, what happened?"

  "What's going on that you don't know about? Your maid Chun Xiang deliberately made the mistress fall, which led to her difficult labor. She is your maid, so she must have been instructed by you. Until now, the child has not been born yet. If something happens to the mistress, can you bear the responsibility?" Ye Yiniang said coldly.

  Xu Ruoyi also looked at Xu Mingjin with a heartache and said: "Jin'er, you're too disappointing!"

  Mrs. Xü's expressionless face stared at Xü Míngjǐn and said, "I never thought that my Xü family would produce such a ruthless person! Yì'ér, it seems that we need to take disciplinary action within the family."

  Xu Ruoyi nodded, Xu Mingjin actually dared to harm his offspring, this is what he cannot tolerate. Heaven knows how long he has been waiting for this child, but it was just rushed by his daughter's maid and had a difficult birth, if the child doesn't make it...

  What awaits Xu Mingjin is family law.

  Xu Mingjin said: "I've been at Huguo Temple for the past two days..."

  "Wait a minute," interrupted Ye Yiniang, "What were you doing at the Temple of Protection? Don't dare say that servant girl isn't yours! Don't dare say she wasn't acting on your orders! Even if you did say so, would anyone believe you?"

  Xu Mingjin didn't say anything.

  Yexi Niang looked at Xu Mingjin with satisfaction and said to Xu Ruoyi, "Master, Sixth Miss has done something that goes against the principles of heaven. What do you think should be done about it?"

  Xu Ruoyi looked at Xu Mingjin and suddenly said, "You came back with Xia'er, why did Xia'er arrive early, but you just arrived now? What have you been doing for the past half hour?"

  Xu Mingjin heard this and hastily said: "Father, don't blame me. I was originally coming back with my elder sister, but when we reached the gate, I heard about this matter. Chun Xiang that servant girl is reckless and doesn't know what's going on. Father has already had her executed. Now the most important thing is for Mother to safely give birth to the child in her belly. As soon as I knew about this news, I immediately ordered someone to go to Princess Jinglin's place and ask for her help in inviting several imperial physicians to come to our estate. I believe that with the help of these physicians, Mother will definitely be safe and sound."

  As soon as Xu Mingjin finished speaking, a look of panic flashed across Ye Yiniang's eyes. Xu Ruoyi didn't notice it, nor did Old Lady Xu, or anyone else in the courtyard. But Xu Mingjin, who had been staring at her all along, saw it clearly and sneered to himself: it seemed that Ye Yiniang was indeed the one behind this matter!

  Xu Ruoyi heard that several imperial physicians had come to examine Lady Xu, and his heart was put at ease. Old Lady Xu did not expect that Xu Mingjin would be able to summon the imperial physicians so quickly, and she was also deeply moved. Xu Ruoyi glanced at Xu Mingjin, originally thinking that Chun Xing was sent by Xu Mingjin to harm his children, but now he had some doubts - if Xu Mingjin really wanted to harm his children, then why would he invite the imperial physicians...

  Xu Ruoyi's "family law" that was about to be spoken out just ended like this.

  Yè Yí Niáng watched from the side, seething with resentment. She was just one step away from finding a way to either kill or at least cripple Xú Míng Jǐn, but this little girl had easily dodged her. How infuriating! Moreover, she began to worry secretly, now that the imperial physician had arrived, wouldn't all the secret manipulations she had done be exposed? Yè Yí Niáng became anxious, and for now, the top priority was not to let the imperial physician enter the delivery room...

  Ye Yiniang was anxiously thinking of a countermeasure when the imperial physicians arrived.

  Xu Ruoyi personally went out to greet them, and Old Lady Xu also stood up, supported by the wet nurse as she slowly walked to the door. Xu Mingjin followed behind Xu Ruoyi and also left. Ye Yini really didn't want to see those imperial physicians, but everyone had gone to welcome them, so if she stayed here alone, wouldn't that be conspicuous? Ye Yini reluctantly followed behind the crowd, secretly wiping away the cold sweat that had broken out on her forehead.

  Three imperial physicians, Li Taiyi, Wang Taiyi and Xu Taiyi, arrived. The three imperial physicians were middle-aged men with kind faces, followed by three experienced midwives from the palace. Li Taiyi said to Xu Ruoyi: "Your Excellency, I received an order from Princess Jinglin to bring these experienced midwives from the palace to assist in the delivery of Mrs. Xu."

  At this time, Mrs. Xu in the delivery room suddenly raised her voice to a high pitch, which was extremely mournful and made Xu Ruoyi's heart tremble with it.

  Xu Ruoyi was overjoyed when he heard Li Taisheng's words and hastily ordered the few midwives to hurry into the delivery room. Ye Jie stood aside, her heart in her throat, almost shouting: "No, I don't allow you to go in!" But she bit back her words, knowing that if she really said so, Xu Ruoyi would immediately suspect her.

  Those few midwives went into the delivery room and drove out all the original midwives in the delivery room.

  Ye Yiniang stood at the door, watching this scene, her heart sinking down, down, down. This damned Xu Mingjin, it seemed that the plans she had made for a year were going to be ruined. Her son, her throne as mistress, her husband's favor... she felt like she was seeing all these things she had been dreaming of flying away before her eyes...

  After the imperial physicians arrived, Xu Mingjin's heart finally settled down. With these imperial physicians around, even if something really happened to Lady Xu, it wouldn't be pinned on her, Xu Mingjin. After all, she hadn't participated in any of this at all. She poured herself a cup of tea and was just about to take a sip when she suddenly saw Xu Mingxia casting her a deeply resentful glance from amidst the crowd...

  Xu Mingjin was taken aback, and then put the teacup in his hand on the table. Xu Ruoyi, because those palace eunuchs went in, Mrs. Xu's cries stopped, and he felt at ease, he was very thirsty, sat down and saw a cup of tea on the table, picked it up and drank it, Xu Mingjin hurriedly stretched out his hand to knock over the cup of tea on the ground.

  Xu Ruoyi looked at Xu Mingjin with a puzzled expression and said: "Jin'er, what's wrong?"

  Xu Mingjin smiled slightly and said, "Father, I just saved your life."

  Xu Ruoyi was shocked upon hearing this and looked at Xu Mingjin, then at the tea water on the ground, and asked incredulously: "Is that tea water poisonous?"

  Xu Mingjin didn't answer him, but instead called over Li Taizhen and picked up a piece of broken teacup from the ground, which still had some tea water left on it. Xu Mingjin said: "Li Taizhen, would you please check if there's poison in this tea water?"

  Li Taichu carefully took the tea cup fragments from Xu Mingjin's hand, examined them for a moment, then took out a silver needle and put it in the tea water. The silver needle immediately turned black.

  Li said, "The thing dropped into the tea water is arsenic."

  Xu Ruoyi's face immediately turned ugly, how could someone who just came back from the gates of hell look good? Old Lady Xu was also shocked and stunned by what she saw, her only son almost died in front of her...

  Xu Mingjin picked up the teapot on the table and said, "The tea in that cup was poured from this teapot."

  Li Taizhen hastily took over the examination and said, "The water in this teapot has also been poisoned with arsenic. Miss Xu Liu was right, that cup of poisonous tea was poured from this very teapot."

  "Wh-who could have poisoned this?" Xu Ruoyi stuttered.

  Xu Mingjin turned his head to take a look at Xu Mingxia, and found that she was biting her lips tightly, with no hint of fear on her face, only a deep disappointment. It seemed as if she wasn't afraid of Xu Mingjin exposing her at all.

  It turned out that the poison was actually given by Xu Mingxia, and her goal was to take Xu Mingjin's life. Xu Mingjin was very puzzled, before going to the Temple of Protection, Xu Mingxia did not have such a strong intention to kill her. After executing the mission at the Temple of Protection, what exactly happened that made Xu Mingxia hate her so much? Xu Mingjin thought about it in her mind for a long time, but she had no answer. However, she knew that it must be related to Xuan Yuan Qiyue.

  Xu Ruoyi couldn't get anything out of them, so in a fit of rage, she had all the servants in Fengyuan arrested and interrogated. She declared, "If you tell me who the murderer is, I'll let everyone else go. If not, then each of you will have to drink a cup of this poisonous tea!" As soon as she said this, all the servants fell silent like cicadas in winter. Not one person made a sound.

  At last, a servant spoke up weakly: "Master, that teapot looks like it's from the young mistress's courtyard..."

  Xu Ruoyi listened and hurriedly picked up the teapot to examine it carefully. Xu Mingjin chimed in from the side, "Father, even if this teapot is from the courtyard, what of it?"

  Mrs. Xü suddenly said, "That teapot is indeed from Xiǎo ér's house, that batch of porcelain we bought back at the same time, most of them have already been broken, only hers still has one left. The other day, I saw it in her house." She sighed, "Why are these things so hard to believe?"

  Xu Mingxia heard what Old Lady Xu said and hurriedly ran over in tears, saying: "Grandmother, that has nothing to do with me!"

  Xu Mingjin gazed up at the sky, sighed and said: "The pot is in your courtyard, can you say it has nothing to do with you? Who would believe this?" She retorted back to Ye Yiniang's previous accusations without missing a single word.

  Yè Yí Niáng originally had her mind on Mme. Xú, who was inside the delivery room. She stood at the door of the delivery room, pacing back and forth anxiously. Those who didn't know would have thought that she and Mme. Xú were very close.

  When she heard that Xu Ruoyi was almost poisoned to death by a cup of poisonous tea, she was so shocked that she could hardly breathe. When she heard again that the teapot containing the poisonous wine was in her own daughter's courtyard, she almost fainted.

  Ye Yiniang hastily ran over from the delivery room door, knelt down in front of Xu Ruoyi, and pleaded for mercy on behalf of Xu Mingxia: "Master, this matter must be someone secretly framing Xia'er. She is innocent!" As soon as she raised her head, she saw Xu Mingjin looking at her with a smile that was not quite a smile. The moment she saw Xu Mingjin's smiling face, she became furious and couldn't help but think that if it weren't for Xu Mingjin, her plan would have succeeded long ago! Why bother being anxious and fearful here? Thinking of this, he said to Xu Ruoyi: "Master, it's the sixth miss! It must be the sixth miss who framed Xia'er!"

  Xu Mingjin looked at Ye Niang with a silly look in his eyes. He didn't say anything. At this time, Xu Ruoyi had already begun to sympathize with Xu Mingxia after hearing Ye Niang's words, and when he heard Ye Niang's sentence scolding Xu Mingjin, that sympathy disappeared. He let out a cold snort and said: "Which maid brought over the teapot today?"

  Xu Mingxia was just about to say it was her who brought it, when her sleeve was pulled by her own maid Qiaoqiao. Qiaoqiao looked at her deeply and stepped forward with tears in her eyes, saying: "It was me."

  Xu Ruoyi immediately ordered: "Drag him away and beat him to death with sticks."

  "Master, today is the young master's birthday, isn't it inauspicious to kill on this day?..."

  Xu Ruoyi gave her a cold glance and said, "What? Wasn't it you who just suggested that I beat Jin'er's senior maid to death with a stick? You didn't say anything was unlucky then, but now beating Xia'er's senior maid is unlucky?"

  Yè Yí Niáng was speechless.

  Xu Ruoyi ordered: "Drag it away."

  Immediately, a servant came forward and dragged Chao away. Chao didn't make a sound, but Xu Mingxia suddenly turned her venomous gaze towards Xu Mingjin.

  Xu Mingjin was not intimidated by the malice in her eyes, and instead flashed a brilliant smile at Xu Mingxia. My Chun Xing still has a life to live, but your Qiaoqiao can only go die!

  The matter was investigated to this point, and Xu Ruoyi no longer wanted to ask any more questions. Moreover, his mind was on Madame Xu in the delivery room. The several imperial physicians were also present, and after all, this was a family scandal. As the saying goes: "A family's ugliness should not be revealed to outsiders." Therefore, Xu Ruoyi ordered someone to take Xu Mingxia back to her own courtyard and placed her under house arrest.

  At this time, a baby's cry finally came from inside the house. Xu Ruoyi heard it and quickly stood up from his chair, constantly looking in that direction. Before long, a midwife with a joyful face threw out to Xu Ruoyi: "Congratulations, sir! Your wife has given birth to a precious daughter! Both mother and child are safe."

  Daughter? Xu Mingjin heard this and laughed very rudely. The danger to Xu Mingxuan has been removed!

  As soon as these words came out, Xu Ruoyi's face was filled with joy and disappeared. Thousand gold? Not a son? He sat down dejectedly.

  Yè Yí Niáng's face was also stiff. She hadn't expected that after a whole year of careful planning, she would end up with such a result. Fortunately, the mother and child were both safe, Yè Yí Niáng thought to herself, perhaps those things she had bought from the midwives hadn't been used on the mistress? That would be great, then there was no need to worry about Xu Mingjin's invited midwife discovering anything.

  However, she was delighted too early.

  Before long, two midwives walked out of the delivery room. One of them was holding a swaddled baby in her arms, while the other carried some things and came to Xu Ruoyi's side. Although Xu Ruoyi was not thrilled that his wife had given birth to another son, he still looked forward to this child, who was after all his daughter. He reached out to take the swaddle from the midwife, took a look at the baby, then handed it over to Old Lady Xu for her to see, saying: "Hurry up and hand her over to the wet nurse, such a small child shouldn't be outside for too long." The midwife listened, hastily took the baby back into her own arms, and went off to find the wet nurse.

  Another maid stepped forward, presenting the object in her hand to Xu Ruoyi: "Your Excellency, please take a look. These ginseng slices contain a large amount of safflower, which can cause severe postpartum hemorrhage and even death if taken by a pregnant woman during childbirth. Fortunately, we arrived early and Madame had not eaten them yet, otherwise... she would not have been able to give birth to the child..."

  Xu Ruoyi was shocked again. Today's events were happening one after another, and he had already become numb. However, despite this, an enormous anger still arose in his heart, and he felt as if a huge hand was secretly manipulating everything: first, Jin'er's maid collided with the madam, then the madam had a difficult childbirth, next Xia'er's maid brought tea containing arsenic, and now the ginseng that the madam ate contained red flower...

  After sending away the three imperial physicians and several midwives, Xu Ruoyi returned to deal with those previous midwives.

  Enraged, Xu Ruoyi grabbed those few women and growled: "Speak! Who told you to switch the medicinal slices in the delivery room? I've checked the previous slices, they're not poisonous! If you can't come up with a reason, be careful about your own and your family's heads..."

  Those few midwives were both shocked and frightened, and involuntarily, their eyes turned to Ye Niang.

  Ye Yiniang was now sweating profusely down her back, her tense heart racing up to her throat. She was extremely afraid that the several ayis would expose her, and she didn't dare imagine what would happen if Xu Ruoyi only knew that these things were done by her...

  Ye Yini didn't dare to think about what Xu Ruoyi would do to her, so she desperately prayed in her heart: Don't bring me out, don't...

  But Xue Ruo Yi has already been driven to madness by this series of events today, and he is determined to catch the person who is stirring up trouble in the Shangshu Mansion. This is also because of that cup of poisonous wine that made him like this. After all, if Xu Ming Jin hadn't broken that teacup, he might be dead by now. Concerned about his own life, Xue Ruo Yi brought out his usual composure from being on the imperial court.

  Mrs. Xü sat on the side, watching silently without speaking. Aunt Yè stood at the foot of the bed, trying to hide her own anxiety and panic with a forced laugh. Xu Mingying and several others stared blankly at Xu Ruoyi, clearly having no idea who was secretly poisoning him. Xu Mingjin stood in the corner, taking in everyone's expressions, and couldn't help but smile wryly to herself as she thought about how Mrs. Xü had just been rescued from the gates of hell, yet not a single person in this room cared about her, including the newborn baby girl who was being ignored by these people...

  This is a group of apathetic people, on whom you can't find any human touch, any warmth.

  Xu Ruoyi's methods were not to be underestimated, and soon the several amahs could no longer withstand the punishment and confessed: all of this was done at the instigation of Ye Niang.

  As soon as this was said, the whole hall erupted in an uproar.

  Yeniang's face turned pale as paper. She knelt down with a thud and cried: "Master! These few women are full of nonsense! They don't know who instigated them, I am innocent..."

  Old Lady Ye said that, those few women hurriedly took out the silver tickets from their clothes and said: "These are the silver tickets that Old Lady Ye used to bribe us. If we say one false word, let us be struck by five thunders!"

  Xu Ruoyi took over the silver tickets, looked at them one by one carefully, and when he saw that they were all from a certain money house, he slapped those silver tickets on Ye Niang's face with a "slap" sound: "These are all silver tickets from your Ye family's money house. What else do you want to deny?" He said hatefully: "Three thousand taels of silver were used to buy assassins to kill people, Ye Niang, you're so rich!"

  Aunt Ye's whole body was icy cold, she anxiously said: "It's not me! Those silver tickets might just be a coincidence..."

  "Coincidence? Coincidence that they all pointed to you unanimously? Coincidence that none of them pointed to anyone else, but only to you? Are you taking me for a fool? Are you taking everyone in this entire Shangshu Mansion for fools?" Xu Ruoyi said, and then ordered the servants to bring over all the maids and wet nurses by Ye Niang's side for questioning.

  Those people couldn't withstand Xu Ruoyi's severe interrogation and one by one they all confessed.

  Xu Ruoyi walked up to Ye Niang, who was sitting like a pin cushion, and scared her into retreating repeatedly. Xu Ruoyi angrily said: "What else do you have to say now? You're willing to harm another woman from the Ye family just to continue being the mistress of this Shangshu Mansion. Do you hate her that much? Do you want her dead? As far as I know, she's always greeted you with a smile since marrying into the mansion. What requests has she not fulfilled for you? When has she ever put on airs in front of you? You live in the main courtyard, don't you? She's a proper wife living in a side courtyard - it's laughable! When has she ever wronged you? The household finances are under your control, and she's never mentioned to me about taking them back. In this Shangshu Mansion, you're not the mistress, but what's the difference between you and the mistress? Why do you still want to be ungrateful and engage in these harmful schemes?"

  "Does she think that by not competing with me for the position of mistress, not fighting with me over the main courtyard, and not stealing my food, I should be grateful to her? Those things were originally mine! Why should I be a hidden mistress? I'm just taking back what belongs to me. She's blocking my way, so don't blame me, this is all her own doing!"

  Xu Mingjin watched this scene without saying a word. She just sneered in her heart, Ye Yiniang, you're done!

  As expected, Xu Ruoyi didn't think that even at this time, Ye Yiniang would still be so glib. He couldn't express the exhaustion and fatigue in his heart. He shook his head and said: "So you're this kind of person! You've been by my side for over a decade, but only today do I see your true face! You're just like your daughter - ruthless and poisonous! You harmed my wife, and your daughter harmed me. Do you mother and daughter want to dominate the entire Shangshu Mansion with an iron fist?"

  Yexi's mother heard this and said in surprise: "What does Guanxia have to do with this?"

  Xu Ruoyi didn't bother explaining anymore. He turned around and asked Old Lady Xu: "Mother, what do you think we should do about this?"

  According to his intention, that is to divorce. However, Mrs. Xu said: "Yi'er, this matter cannot be spread out, she as a Ye family woman, actually did such a thing, you'd better tell the Ye family first and see what they have to say, if possible, don't divorce her, let her spend the rest of her life in Fudang. This way, outsiders won't say anything about our Xu family.

  Xu Ruoyi said resentfully: "This is too easy for her!"

  Mrs. Xü said: "Yè Jiěniáng plotted against the Xü family's descendants, of course they must be severely punished, let's follow the rules of the household!"

  As soon as this was said, the expressions of the crowd were different, some were gloating, some were watching the excitement, some were detached, but none were pleading or worried. Because Xu Mingxia had already been placed under house arrest by Xu Ruoyi.

  Yè Yí Niáng heard Xú Ruò Yì and Xú Lǎo Fū Rén's words, as if she had just reacted at this time. She hastily knocked her head on the ground and begged: "Master, considering our husband-and-wife relationship of over a decade, can't you spare me this one time?"

  Xu Ruoyi hadn't even responded yet when Old Lady Xu let out a cold snort.

  Mrs. Xu's cold hum attracted everyone's attention, and Xu Ruoyi couldn't help but look at Mrs. Xu, waiting for her to speak.

  "Mrs. Xü was very satisfied with the effect of her cold hum, and when everyone looked over, she slowly said: 'Aunt Ye, you've been married for over a decade, you should understand that once you violate family rules, you must receive severe punishment. This is the first lesson every daughter-in-law who marries into the Xü family must learn. You're already an old person, and yet you still do such things. Now you have only two options: First, let Yì'ěr write a divorce letter for you, and you can leave with it. Second, honestly accept punishment, and then you'll still be Aunt Ye. Choose for yourself!'"

  As soon as Madam Xu spoke, Xu Mingying and Xu Mingfang's faces revealed a mixture of shock and delight. Zhang Yiniang and Xin Yiniang didn't show such obvious expressions, but the corners of their mouths curled up, revealing their joyful mood at this moment. Xu Mingjin stood there with no sadness or joy on his face.

  Things have developed to this point, which was not expected by Xu Mingjin.

  Standing behind the crowd, coldly watching Ye Niang's embarrassment, thinking of when Madam Fan passed away, she made those vows in her heart. At that time, she said she would definitely take Ye Niang's life to sacrifice to Madam Fan. But today, Xu Mingjin discovered that since returning to the capital for so long, she had never taken the initiative to harm Ye Niang. Even if Ye Niang ended up like this today, it was not because of Xu Mingjin's doing. It turned out that she had never avenged Madam Fan after all.

  Search your heart, Xu Mingjin isn't someone who doesn't hate Ye Niangniang, but she can't put hatred in her heart every day and constantly scheme against others. What she can do is protect herself and the loved ones she cares about, not letting herself get hurt again. Is she too lazy? There's a saying that goes: loving someone is a habit, hating someone requires constant self-encouragement to keep on hating that person.

  Maybe I'm just that kind of soft-hearted person. Xu Mingjin smiled wryly, when others hurt her, she was so cold and ruthless, but when it came to hurting someone she hated with all her heart, she couldn't bring herself to be cold and ruthless.

  Xu Mingjin looked up to see the people in this house, including Old Lady Xu, Xu Ruoyi, Xu Mingying, and Zhang Yiniang... shouldn't each of them be able to treat someone they hate with cold indifference?

  Ye Yinniang fell silent for a long time, Xu Mingjin couldn't understand what Ye Yinniang was thinking at this moment, but Xu Mingjin suddenly remembered one day when he and Yu Zhu discussed the family law of the Xu family. It is said that it was a very tough cowhide whip with one-inch-long reverse thorns on its surface, which could cause skin to burst open and flesh to crack with just one lash, and ten lashes would be enough to take a life. Ye Yinniang didn't want to be divorced, so she had only one choice: death.

  If I were Ye Yinniang, I would choose to divorce. Xumingjin thought to herself. However, she knew that she wasn't Ye Yinniang and her choice couldn't represent Ye Yinniang's decision. The longer Ye Yinniang remained silent, the more likely it was that she would choose family law. The others in the hall also recalled the rumors about the Xu family's house rules and their faces changed. That house rule was said to be a life-threatening existence, although the Xu family hadn't implemented it since Xu Ruoyi's father's generation. But every single member of the Xu family knew about it like the back of their hand.

  Having thought of the severity of family law, everyone no longer had any complaints about Ye Niang's long silence. After all, this was a difficult choice.

  Mrs. Xue had been waiting for me to lose my patience, but she suddenly remembered Xu Mingxia, her most beloved granddaughter. Today, she was going to personally order the whipping or dismissal of her mother. Who knows if this child would resent her in the future? But since her mother did such a thing, she couldn't let it go unpunished, or else it wouldn't be fair to others! Torn like this, Mrs. Xue delayed asking Ye Niang for an answer.

  Ye Yinniang knelt there, thinking a lot. From the time she married into the Xu family until now, over the long decade or so, she had always been in a position of authority in the Ye family. When did things start to change? And how did it become the current situation step by step? It seemed that everything started from when Xu Mingjin and his brother returned to the Xu family. First, they entered the ancestral hall, then her fake pregnancy was discovered, and she was demoted to concubine. Then, the emperor decreed a marriage, Xu Ruoyi married, Madame became pregnant, and Ye Yinniang plotted to harm Madame in order to get custody of the child...

  Mrs. Xu suddenly felt like bursting out laughing, she had wanted to grasp many things in her life, but now she found that what she had been pursuing was just an empty dream after all.

  "I choose family law," said Ye Yiniang. Not for anything else, just so that Xu Mingxia can marry a good family in the future, she must stay in the Xu family!

  Xu Ruoyi obviously didn't expect Ye Niang to choose family law, he looked at Ye Niang and saw a look of resignation on her face, his heart trembled, thinking back to when he first met Ye Niang, when he was still the high school champion, full of vigor and ambition. His mentor told him that being the champion wasn't anything special, if he wanted to make a name for himself in the capital, he had to marry a woman from a noble family. He knew his mentor's words were meant well, so when he met Miss Ye on the mountain road of Huguo Temple, he deliberately showed off in front of her and eventually won her favor, allowing him to bring her back home. After that, with the help of the Ye family, he smoothly rose through the ranks to become the Minister of Personnel.

  The once gentle and shy Miss Ye has finally become the old, sinister woman in front of me...

  Xu Ruoyi's expression was unreadable. Old Lady Xu saw that he didn't speak, so she said: "Alright, bring out the family law! According to the rules, whip him ten times!"

  Xu Ruoyi suddenly said: "No! One whip will do!"

  Mrs. Xü said displeased: "Yì ér, this is not in line with the rules!"

  Xu Ruoyi said: "Mother, if you think it's not proper, then the remaining nine sons will take her place!"

  Madam Xü was shocked and said: "It cannot be done!"

  Xu Ruoyi said: "Then, whip Ye Yiniang once."

  Xu Mingjin watched this scene, thinking sarcastically that Xu Ruoyi had finally done something he should have done. No matter what Ye Yiniang had done in the past, she was the person who had accompanied Xu Ruoyi for the longest time. It's said that raising a dog by your side for a few years can create feelings, let alone a human? If Xu Ruoyi didn't plead on Ye Yiniang's behalf at all, how cold-blooded his heart must be...

  The aunties around heard that Xu Ruoyi was going to take the nine lashes for Ye Yiniang, and they all showed discontent. Why is Master being so good to her? She can even be forgiven for making such a big mistake.

  Mrs. Xü looked at her son, only to see his eyes revealing a firm and determined gaze fixed on her. Mrs. Xü knew that whenever Xu Ruoyi showed such an expression, it meant he was resolute about something. She knew she couldn't change his mind today...

  Mrs. Xu sighed and said, "Alright, let's do it your way!"

  Xu Ruoyi thanked Mrs. Xu and sat back down.

  Before long, the "family law" was presented.

  Everyone stretched their necks to see the legendary "family law". Xu Mingjin, hiding in the crowd, also looked at the whip that was said to be able to make people's skin crack with one lash, and he was really curious about what it looked like. All he saw was a black lacquered tray with a whip on it that was almost the same color as the tray, with thorns all over its body. Because the whip itself was black, the silver thorns all over it seemed even more dazzling. It was awe-inspiring. Apart from this, there were no other special features, and Xu Mingjin couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. This legendary whip turned out to be just a dull black thing! It was too ugly. When someone presented the whip, she thought that at least it should be shining with golden light? But unexpectedly, it looked so unimpressive.

  However, when Xu Ruoyi saw the whip, a look of fear actually appeared in her eyes. This was something that Xu Mingjin had never seen before, and she couldn't help but become even more curious about the whip.

  "Begin the punishment!" said Madam Xü. Immediately, a servant stepped forward and took out the whip from its box. She held it in her hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Xu Ruo-yi about to speak again, so she quickly said: "Ruo-yi, Mother has already agreed with you once. This time, you agree with Mother and just watch quietly from the side, don't interfere with this matter anymore, okay?"

  Xu Ruoyi originally wanted to say that he would be the one to carry out the family law, but he didn't expect that Old Lady Xu had already seen through his thoughts and had reduced the punishment by nine lashes. If Xu Ruoyi were to secretly show mercy again, then this time's use of family law to punish Ye Niang would have lost its significance. Therefore, Old Lady Xu interrupted Xu Ruoyi's words before he could even speak them out loud, forcing him to sit silently on the side.

  She originally thought that the ten lashes were a must for her, she knew that the Xu family's rules were harsh and that ten lashes could possibly take a life. But since this was the only way out, she had no other choice. If she died from being whipped, then so be it, at least she would be free. Xu Ruo Yu's plea for mercy was beyond her expectations. She never thought that Xu Ruo Yu would actually be willing to take the ten lashes in her place, and at that moment, she was moved to tears.

  It turns out he still has feelings for himself.

  Xu Mingjin watched this scene, thought for a moment, and felt that when Ye Niang was flogged later, the scene would not be too good-looking. So she quietly slipped out of the crowd and returned to her own Feicui Garden. Anyway, there's nothing much for her to do now. Even if something happens, it's someone else's business.

  Xu Mingjin slipped away, and no one in the hall noticed. The whip finally still struck with the greatest force, high and raised, drawing a beautiful arc in the air, striking Ye Niang's back, making a loud "slap" sound. Ye Niang fell to the ground at the sound.

  Xu Ruoyi hastily ran over to take a look, and saw that Ye Yiniang had a bloody wound on her back that was three or four inches long, with flesh and blood mixed together. Ye Yiniang had already fainted from the shock.

  Xu Ruoyi hastily ordered someone to carry Ye Yiniang back to the Yu Ping courtyard, while also calling for a doctor. He himself followed the sedan chair carrying Ye Yiniang to the Yu Ping courtyard. Old Lady Xu saw him leave without saying a word to her and knew that her son was blaming her. She let out a long sigh and said to everyone, "You can all disperse now!"

  Everyone heard the words and left Xu Lao's Chunhui courtyard one after another. Madam Xu looked up to see that Xu Mingjin was not among the crowd, she did not follow her father, so she must have slipped away during Ye Niang's execution. Madam Xu fell into deep thought.

  Xu Mingjin returned to Feicui Garden and the first thing he did was to summon Yu Zhu and ask her about Chun Xing's situation.

  "Miss, don't worry, she's out of danger. However, I'm afraid she'll have to stay in bed for a while longer. Chun Xing is already awake and recovering at Old Man Fan's place, and Miss Yan is taking care of her." Yuzhu knew what Xu Mingjin wanted to ask, so she went ahead and told her everything all at once.

  Xu Mingjin heard that Chun Xing had nothing to do, and she put her heart at ease. She called over all the maids in Feicui Garden and asked what had happened.

  "Miss, Chun Xing is innocent."

  Xu Mingjin said: "Of course I know that Chun Xing is innocent, what I want you to say is the process of being wronged."

  Autumn Cloud's eyes were swollen like two walnuts, her expression haggard. Xu Mingjin knew at a glance that this girl had shed many tears for Chun Xiang in secret and carried a heavy heart. It seemed that Autumn Cloud and Chun Xiang got along quite well, much better than when they were in Liu City. At that time, she remembered that although Chun Xiang and Autumn Cloud didn't have any major conflicts, they had constant minor ones. Now, Autumn Cloud could cry like this for Chun Xiang, which was truly precious!

  Xu Mingjin's thoughts ran back to those carefree months he spent in Liu City...

  The voice of the autumn cloud recalled her thoughts, "Yesterday, Chun Xiang kept muttering about when Miss would return. She said that Miss wanted to eat the lotus flower pastry she made, and it was already done, but Miss hadn't returned yet..." Xu Mingjin remembered that on the day she left, she had indeed instructed Chun Xiang that she wanted to eat lotus flower pastry. Originally, it was just a casual remark, and after saying it, she forgot about it, not thinking that Chun Xiang would actually remember this matter and make it meticulously for her to eat when she returned. Xu Mingjin's nose felt a little sour.

  "The maid said to her, 'Don't worry, Miss will be back by this afternoon at the latest. We've also been to the Temple of Protecting the Country before, didn't we return last time just at dusk? Now it's only just past noon, there's still plenty of time!'

  Spring Apricot heard this and seemed to recall the previous incident where Miss was kidnapped by Prince Pingxi at the Temple of Protecting the Country. Her face turned tense as she said, 'This time, Prince Pingxi actually dared to openly threaten Miss to meet him at the temple, who knows what tricks he has up his sleeve? If Miss goes, she'll definitely be at a disadvantage!'

  The maid comforted her saying, 'With Princess Jinglin there, Miss will surely be safe.' But Spring Apricot didn't listen. She anxiously paced back and forth in the room, muttering to herself, 'Last time, wasn't Princess Jinglin also there? Didn't that incident still happen in the end? Alas, why didn't Miss bring me along this time?'"

  Through Autumn Cloud's description, Xu Mingjin seemed to see the scene at that time. Chun Xing was standing in this room, worried and getting more and more irritable, not listening to Autumn Cloud's words at all, her face full of anxious expression...

  "The slave girl tried to persuade her, but she wouldn't listen. Finally, she couldn't bear it anymore and ran from the house to the courtyard. The slave girl chased after her, urging her to go back and wait for the master's return. Chun Xing said: 'I can't stay in the house, you go back! I'll go to the gate to welcome Miss.' Saying that, she walked all the way to the entrance of Fei Cui Garden. On the road in front of the gate, she looked around."

  Xu Mingjin could imagine Chun Xiang's anxious mood, she had also waited for someone. In modern times, she had waited for her brother who didn't come home at night, that kind of anxiety, worry and fear, in those few hours of waiting, it was really like the days were passing by slowly, Xu Mingjin knew, at that time Chun Xiang and Qiu Yun, they were in this state of mind...

  "Who knew that at this time, the lady suddenly appeared at the entrance of our Emerald Garden. She appeared so suddenly, as if she had popped out of thin air. At that moment, even I hadn't reacted yet, let alone Chun Xing? By the time I realized it, the lady had already hurriedly warned Chun Xing and stepped forward to greet her when the lady's body suddenly swayed and fell onto Chun Xing..."

  "Then the maids beside Madam all said in unison, 'Is it true that Spring Apricot bumped into Madam?' " Xu Mingjin asked. She hadn't expected that the one who had framed Spring Apricot was actually Madam, she had originally thought it was Ye Niang's doing. This Madam Xu, after marrying into the Xu family, had never been provoked by Xu Mingjin, the two of them had no grudges or grievances, so why would Madam Xu do such a thing? It must be that she and Ye Niang had discussed it beforehand. It seemed they had reached some sort of agreement back then. But, Madam Xu probably hadn't expected that the person Ye Niang wanted to get rid of wasn't just Xu Mingjin..."

  Autumn Cloud nodded and said, "Madam was covering her belly and started screaming in pain. Everyone rushed around to help, and Madam Jiang was carried back to her own Maple Courtyard. All the doctors and midwives who were on standby in the mansion were summoned. The doctor said that Madam had disturbed the fetal energy and might give birth prematurely! At this time, Master had already received the news and hurried over, and Old Madam also rushed over. When Master heard what the doctor said, he immediately became anxious. He ordered the doctors and midwives to do their best to save the child because he had heard that premature babies have a very low survival rate."

  Xu Mingjin showed a thoughtful expression. Qiu Yun continued: "After the lady was sent to the delivery room, the midwife also went in. It wasn't until then that Ye Yiniang rushed over. As soon as she arrived, she apologized to Master, saying that there were too many things going on in the mansion and that's why she came late. Master didn't say anything and let her sit aside. Ye Yiniang asked, 'Isn't the due date next month? What happened, how come it's coming early?'

  The maid beside the lady heard Ye Niang ask this, and immediately told the story of Chun Xiang bumping into the lady, asking Master and Niang to take charge for them. As soon as Ye Niang heard it, she said to Master, "This maid actually did such a thing! Is there someone behind her who instructed her?" Master said, "Don't think wildly, this little maid accidentally bumped into the lady, how could there be someone behind her instructing her?" Ye Niang retorted: "In the vast Xu Fu, with thousands of maids and servants, why did it have to be this maid who bumped into the lady?" Master listened, then revealed a thoughtful expression, seeming to believe Ye Niang's words. At this time, Chun Xiang had already been tied up and taken to Fengyuan, the slave followed her to Fengyuan, Chun Xiang knelt in front of Master, as soon as Master saw Chun Xiang he said: "This maid looks so familiar, which courtyard is she from?"

  The slave hid in the crowd and heard Chun Xing reply: "I am from Fei Cui Garden." The old master listened, stood up and looked at Chun Xing again, seemingly believing her words. Ye Niang said: "Master, this is the sixth young lady's maid! It seems that this matter cannot be separated from the sixth young lady." As soon as Chun Xing heard this, she became anxious; "This matter has nothing to do with my master's daughter! She went to Huguo Temple with Princess Jinglin yesterday and was not in the mansion today!"

  Yè Yí Niáng burst out laughing. Lǎo Ye said, "Jǐn ér went to Hù Guó Temple with Princess Jìng Lín yesterday, it seems she doesn't know about this matter." Chūn Xīng felt relieved after hearing Lǎo Ye's words. Unexpectedly, Yè Yí Niáng added, "Perhaps Sixth Miss is the one who arranged for Princess Jìng Lín to go with her to burn incense at Hù Guó Temple. I heard that it was Sixth Miss who initiated the invitation to Princess Jìng Lín. She can distance herself from the matter and have her maid do the deed, then push all the blame away after the incident occurs. Truly clever!" Yè Yí Niáng couldn't help but praise Sixth Miss. After hearing this, Lǎo Ye couldn't help but start suspecting Sixth Miss.

  Xu Mingjin had already understood everything by this point. She said: "Then, in the end, who gave the order to execute Chun Xing?"

  "Ah, it was Ye Niang. Master and Mistress were sitting there, not making a sound. They just watched as Chun Xiang was dragged away to be beaten with the board, I slipped out and hid in the courtyard, watching as Chun Xiang was pressed down onto the bench by those several rough house servants, being beaten one stroke at a time. I was truly powerless, and at that moment, I really did hate myself." Qiu Yun said, her face showing regret.

  Xu Ming comforted her by saying: "This matter is not your fault, you don't have to blame yourself. What happened afterwards?"

  Qiu Yun said: "They were beating her with a board, and Chun Xiang screamed in pain until she fainted. The servants saw that she had fainted and put down the board to check her breathing. One of the young servants exclaimed, 'Oh no, we've killed her!' But at that time, they had only beaten her twenty times. Some of them went inside to report to the master, but I was standing outside and couldn't hear their conversation. However, I guessed that they were reporting that Chun Xiang was dead. Because after one of the servants came out, they carried Chun Xiang away through the back door. At that time, I thought Chun Xiang was already dead, and my heart was filled with sorrow. I quietly followed behind those people, thinking that even if I couldn't save Chun Xiang, I could at least collect her body for burial. I followed them to the back door, but the gatekeeper wouldn't let me out, and they refused my offer of silver."

  Xu Mingjin said: "I saw that young servant you were talking about."

  Qiu Yun looked at Xu Mingjin in surprise.

  Xu Mingjin smiled slightly and said, "As soon as I returned to the mansion from the Protecting Country Temple, he came running over to tell me about this matter. He said Chun Xiang didn't die. Those few servants who beat her had already been bribed by him. When they were beating Chun Xiang, it looked like they were using a lot of force, but actually, it was just for show. He also told me that those few servants threw Chun Xiang into the chaotic burial mound in the south of the city. I didn't believe his words, so he told me that he was someone sent by my uncle and even took out a letter written in my uncle's own handwriting."

  Qiu Yun said: "He is actually a person of Fan Lao Ye? It turns out that Chun Xing didn't die because of him."

  Xu Mingjin nodded.

  Qiu Yun was overjoyed and wept, saying: "Yu Zhu told me as soon as she came back that Chun Xing wasn't dead, but I didn't believe her."

  Xu Mingjin said:

  "Miss, Chun Xing is now a dead person in the mansion. After she recovers from her injuries, she probably won't be able to serve you again."

  Xu Mingjin said, "What you said is right, Chun Xing can't come back. It's good this way. This Shangshu Fu really has nothing good to stay for. She can change her identity again, no longer be a slave or servant, after she recovers from her injuries, she can marry Zhang Shouzi and stay at Uncle's embroidery shop, so every time I go to the embroidery shop, I can see Chun Xing."

  Qiu Yun and Yu Zhu listened to Xu Ming Jin's words with interest, both of them couldn't help but reveal a smile on their faces.

  In the maple courtyard, Mrs. Xü slept for two days before waking up. As soon as she opened her eyes and sat up, she cried out: "Child, my child..."

  The nurse on the side heard it and hastily ordered the wet nurse to bring the young lady over, putting her in her arms, saying: "Madam, look at how much the eighth young lady resembles you..." Madam Xu interrupted: "What? Young lady? I gave birth to a young lady? Not a young master? Didn't Doctor Li solemnly say that this child would definitely be a son? How did it become a daughter? Did you people bring back the wrong one?"

  "Madam, you have given birth to a precious daughter! I've been attending to her in the delivery room all along. The young lady hasn't left my sight since she was born!"

  Mrs. Xu lay down on the bed as if she had lost all her bones, soft and weak. On the day the child was born, she was so tired that she didn't even have the energy to look at the child before falling into a deep sleep. She didn't even know whether she had given birth to a boy or a girl.

  Two days later, she finally accepted that she had given birth to a daughter. Xu Ruoyi came to see her every day for the past two days, sitting in her room for a bit, looking at the baby girl, and saying a few words of comfort before leaving. His attitude was completely opposite from his enthusiasm when the child hadn't been born yet. Mrs. Xu couldn't say anything to complain about it - after all, she had given birth to a daughter.

  Because Mrs. Xu gave birth to a daughter, and also because of the many things that happened in the Xu mansion these past few days, both Old Lady Xu and Xu Ruoyi were very annoyed, so the third day celebration for the newly born Seventh Miss was not grandly held, only inviting the Ye family and a few close colleagues and relatives to come, and it was done hastily.

  Mrs. Xü was unhappy, and Xü Ruòyì comforted her by saying: "When the month is full, we will definitely have a big celebration."

  Mrs. Xu's anger turned into joy and she said: "The daughter hasn't been named yet! Husband, what should the daughter be called?"

  Xu Ruoyi stroked his beard thoughtfully and said, "How about calling Ming Can?"

  Mrs. Xu thought for a moment and then smiled: "Good, let's call him Ming Can."

  So Miss Xu's name was decided as Xu Mingcan.

  Xu Mingjin has been running out of the mansion every spare moment he gets, going to Linglong Pavilion to see Chun Xing.

  Chun Xing had already woken up. She was lying in bed resting, with Zhang Cuo holding a medicine bowl and about to feed her the medicine. When Xu Ming Jin entered, she saw this scene. She couldn't help but smile, and her laughter startled Chun Xing and Zhang Cuo. Chun Xing lifted her head and saw it was her, and exclaimed excitedly: "Miss! You're here?" She quickly threw off the covers and was about to get out of bed, when Zhang Cuo quickly pressed down on her, saying: "Little ancestor, don't exert yourself, look, the medicine bowl is almost spilled!"

  Chun Xiang didn't even bother to check if the medicine had been spilled or not, her whole heart was already with Xu Mingjin. The young lady has come to see her, that's great, doesn't this mean that the young lady doesn't blame her? Chun Xiang thought about how she was wronged by Madame, and how Ye Niang said she was instructed by the young lady to harm Madame's unborn child, did the young lady get blamed by Master for this matter? Does the young lady resent her...

  Xu Mingjin looked at her with a nervous expression, blinking her big eyes as she gazed at her Chun Xing. A warm feeling floated up in her heart. This silly girl was still blaming herself. Xu Mingjin said to Zhang Shuozi, "You continue to feed her medicine."

  Chun Xing suddenly remembered the scene where Zhang Duanzi fed her medicine had just been seen by the young lady. She blushed and said that she would never let Zhang Duanzi feed her medicine again, snatching the bowl from him and drinking all the medicine in one breath. Anyway, the medicine was warm and no longer scalding.

  Zhang Duanzi was stunned for a moment and didn't say anything. Chun Xing finished drinking, took over the medicine bowl, and made way for Xu Mingjin in front of the bed.

  Xu Mingjin sat down in front of the spring apricot bed.

  Yu Zhu took out a large package and opened it, taking out one item after another to show Chun Xiang: "Everyone is worried about you. This tonic medicine was bought by Qiu Yun from the steward's house. These Shouwu cakes, red date cakes, and cloud slice cakes were also made by Qiu Yun. She couldn't come with Miss this time and was sad for a long time. Miss has already promised her that next time she goes out, she will bring her along." Yu Zhu said, taking out another pile of various pastries: "These are the pastries made by the other maids in Fei Cui Garden last night after they knew Miss would be visiting you today. They know you love to eat these things, so they made them and asked me to bring them to you."

  Chun Xing's eyes turned red as she listened, and she picked up a piece of red date cake to stuff into her mouth, eating it slowly. She smiled: "They still understand me. Hehe. I just took medicine, my mouth is bitter, this is just right to remove the medicinal taste."

  Xu Mingjin smiled and said, "Even if it's delicious, you can't eat too much. Yuzhu, take out a few pieces for her, and the rest will be handed over to Zhang Shouzi to keep well." Zhang Shouzi heard this and quickly came forward with Yuzhu to clean up. Chun Xiang pouted and said, "Miss, I'm a patient, can't I eat a little more?"

  Xu Ming Jinbai glanced at her and said, "You've only been eating that, how can you still eat your meals? It's fine usually, but this time we're passing through the Ghost Gate, so let's restrain ourselves and eat more things that are good for our bodies."

  Although Chun Xing wanted to eat, Xu Mingjin said so, and she nodded in agreement.

  Xu Mingjin said, "Don't have any psychological burden about this matter. Just stay here and recover from your injuries well. Once you've recovered, I'll prepare a generous dowry for you and marry you off with great fanfare."

  Chun Xing was taken aback and said: "Miss, you don't want me anymore?"

  "How could it be? You will always be my maid, only you can't go back to the Xu family anymore. You also know that if it weren't for your uncle's arrangement of people in the Xu family secretly pleading for you, your little life would have been lost there. Anyway, the Xu family has already considered you a dead person, just wait here and get married well, when my lady gets married, you can follow me."

  Chun Xing's face turned bright red upon hearing this. After a long while, she finally said: "Miss, I will listen to you."

  Xu Mingjin was overjoyed upon hearing this, it seemed that during the days she spent nursing Zhang Shouzi back to health, their feelings for each other had made rapid progress. Originally, Chun Xiang had refused to answer, but Xu Mingjin remembered that previously she hadn't been too willing either. After a few casual exchanges, Chun Xiang suddenly asked: "Miss, is the child born to the madam a boy or a girl?"

  Xu Mingjin blinked his eyes and said: "Is there a difference between 'gongzi' and 'shaoye'?"

  Chun Xing felt embarrassed and Yu Zhu and Zhang Duanzi and others all laughed. Just as they were getting into the conversation, Yan Yuwei came in.

  Xu Mingjin hadn't seen her for some time, and this time when he saw her, he was overjoyed. He rushed up to give her a big hug. Chun Xing whispered weakly to Yu Zhu, "Why do I always have the illusion that Miss treats Yan more affectionately than me?" Yu Zhu smiled and said, "Do you want Miss to give you a bear hug too? Can you handle it? Even if you can handle it, Miss wouldn't dare come up and hug you! What if she accidentally breaks you apart, where would Miss find another Chun Xing to be Zhang Shuo's daughter-in-law? Wouldn't Zhang Shuo cry and beg Miss for his daughter-in-law?"

  Spring Apricot hastily surrendered, saying: "Jade Bamboo, I'll be seeing you in three days! Who would have thought that in just a few short days, you'd become as virtuous as Autumn Cloud? The two of you were particularly vigorous when scolding me..." Jade Bamboo burst out laughing. Laughing, Xu Mingjin let go of Yan Yuwei and walked over.

  "Miss, how is everything at the mansion now? Is Madam still bothering you? Has Aunt Ye been up to anything lately?"

  Xu Mingjin smiled slightly and said to Yu Zhu: "You tell her about the things that have happened in the mansion over the past few days, I'll go see my uncle first." With that, he pulled Yan Yuxi out.

  Chun Xing saw Xu Mingjin leave and pitifully asked Yuzhu: "Good Yuzhu! Miss has left, can you bring me a piece of that pastry?"

  Jade Bamboo looked at Chun Xing's greedy appearance and found it particularly amusing. She thought of the suffering she had endured and her heart softened, so she took out a few pieces of Shouwu cake and placed them in front of Chun Xing. Chun Xing was overjoyed when he saw them, hastily picked one up and started eating. As he ate, he said: "Don't just stand there, tell me about what's been going on at the Xu household these past few days... I've been unconscious for so many days, I have no idea what happened..."

  Yu Zhu sighed and slowly told Chun Xiang about the things that had happened at the Xu family's house over the past few days. Chun Xiang ate pastry while listening.

  “…After Ye Niang was flogged, Master ordered someone to send her back to the Yeping Courtyard. However, on the second day, Old Madam used the excuse that a concubine who had committed an offense against family rules did not have the qualifications to live in the main courtyard and drove her out of the Yeping Courtyard. She temporarily lived in a secluded courtyard near the Buddhist temple to recover from her injuries, planning to let her move into the Buddhist temple after she recovered. Old Madam took away Ye Niang's authority as housekeeper. The Mistress had just given birth and was still weak, so she couldn't say anything about this matter. However, the servants in the Qingyi Courtyard all said that Old Madam was in charge of the household, and the Mistress wasn't happy. Actually, Old Madam was also unhappy, which was because the Mistress had given Master a precious daughter. Oh right, there's also Eldest Miss; she actually tried to poison our Miss by putting poison in her tea on that day. Our Miss was clever, but that cup of tea almost ended up being drunk by Master instead. In the end, Master found out that the teapot belonged to Eldest Miss's courtyard, and this matter couldn't be separated from Eldest Miss. Master then placed Eldest Miss under house arrest, and she still hasn't been released until now…”

  Chun Xing listened with a lingering fear, and she clicked her tongue: "The eldest miss can actually do something like poisoning? Fortunately, our miss is clever."

  "Who says it's not?! This time, even if Madam did scheme against you, it was also your own carelessness that gave her the opportunity. You were standing there, letting her take advantage of you. Am I right?"

  Chun Xing heard this and lowered her head in shame.

  "Miss treats you really well," Yu Zhu sighed. Chun Xing looked over, seemingly waiting for her to continue. Only then did Yu Zhu say: "Chun Xing, your temperament is not suitable for living in a deep house like the Xu family's. If you have to suppress your own personality, you won't be happy. Maybe you think Miss placed you with Old Man Fan because she didn't want to reuse you, but that's a big mistake. Look at Young Master, Miss tried every means to let him go to Lu Shan Academy to study, far away from her, does that mean Miss doesn't care about Young Master? Miss cares, but she doesn't want Young Master to live in the Xu family's place full of traps and hidden dangers. She's afraid he'll get hurt. You're the same. There aren't many people close to Miss. The ones she cares about are even fewer, Miss is one of them, she cares about you, doesn't want to lose you, and is afraid you'll be harmed in a place like the Xu family where people swallow others whole, so Miss will take the opportunity to let you stay here. As long as she knows you're safe, she can rest assured, when she misses you, she'll come over to see you."

  Chun Xing had been listening very seriously all along, and at some point, she forgot to eat the pastry in her hand, just holding it there blankly.

  "Actually, Miss herself wants to leave the Xu family very much. Unfortunately, it's not that simple."

  "Miss wants to leave the Xu family, then there is only one way to go - get married. But Miss is only 14 years old now, and it's still far from coming of age!"

  "It's only been two years, and it will pass quickly." Yuzhu said: "Miss is worried about another thing. With Master's current official position, he cannot marry Miss to a family with too low a status, but families with high status are similar to our family situation. As long as they are large households, there will be no lack of intrigue and struggle. Miss does not want to live such a life."

  Chun Xing heard this and also found herself at a loss for words. She murmured, "No wonder Miss doesn't want to marry Prince Ping Xi as his concubine..."

  Yu Zhu originally wanted to say, what's the matter with you saying that Ping Xi Wang Shizi is doing something? What does he have to do with our family's young lady? But she thought about it and realized that Chun Xing was right too. The young lady just didn't want to marry Ping Xi Wang Shizi, which had something to do with him being a prince. Therefore, considering that Chun Xing got hurt, it would be better for her to say less.

  On this side, Yu Zhu is conducting in-depth ideological education work for Chun Xing. On the other side, Xu Ming Jin pulled Yan Yu Wei out of the yard and came to Fan Wei Chen's yard outside. At this time, he was still dealing with some things at the front embroidery workshop. Yan Yu Wei sat in the hall drinking tea with Xu Ming Jin.

  Xu Mingjin looked at Yan Yuwei and found that she had matured a lot in recent days, and was even more beautiful. She exuded a strong charm from head to toe, always easily attracting people's attention. Just now, as they walked along the road, many passing servants frequently turned back to look, every pair of eyes staring intently at Yan Yuwei beside Xu Mingjin. Xu Mingjin couldn't help but sigh with emotion, thinking that this Yan Yuwei following her uncle was living a life that was truly carefree...

  "Yan sister, how long has it been since you last returned home? Don't your parents and family worry about you?" Xu Mingjin asked cautiously, because she suddenly remembered that this Yan Miss had eloped with her uncle to come to the capital. In the blink of an eye, it's almost been a year...

  Yan Yuwei's expression turned gloomy, and the smile at the corner of her mouth slowly disappeared. Xu Mingjin felt deeply regretful, it was all because of his own big mouth, he clearly knew that this was a taboo topic, but still asked tactlessly. He hurriedly made amends, "Sister Yan, don't be angry, I was just talking nonsense." But it seemed to have no effect. Yan Yuwei just couldn't get happy again.

  Fan Yicheng walked in and saw this scene. Yan Yuwei looked worried, Xu Mingjin looked distressed, but he didn't know what she was distressed about. He spoke up: "Yuwei, Jin'er, what's wrong with you two?"

  "We're fine." Yan Yuwei forced a smile and replied. Xu Mingjin heard her say this, looked at Fan Yicheng with a helpless expression.

  "Jin'er, that painting of the Twelve Beauties of Jinling you did last time has been sold. It was sold for 30,000 taels of silver. The embroidery shop's earnings this month are very good. Profit..." Xu Mingjin interrupted him, saying: "Uncle, since you're so rich now, can't you finally get married? I want an aunt."

  Fan Yicheng looked at Xu Mingjin in surprise, not knowing why she suddenly brought up her aunt again. He coughed and was about to speak when Yan Yuwei suddenly stood up and said: "I'm a bit uncomfortable, I'll go back to my room to rest first." As soon as she finished speaking, without waiting for Xu Mingjin and Fan Yicheng to respond, she quickly walked out like the wind.

  Fan Yicheng looked at Xu Mingjin with a puzzled expression and asked: "Did you provoke her?"

  Xu Mingjin Bai said with a glance: "I don't have the ability to make Yan sister so angry, do you even know why she's angry?"

  Fan Yicheng helplessly said: "I just came in and she left, how could I have had the chance to offend her?"

  Xu Mingjin stood up, looking into Fan Yicheng's eyes and said: "Uncle, give me a straight answer today. Are you willing or not to marry Yan sister? If you're not willing, then be honest with Yan sister as soon as possible. She's been following you for over a year without any clear understanding, and you haven't even given her any indication. How can she bear this?"

  Fan Yicheng pursed his lips tightly.

  Xu Mingjin's voice grew louder as he spoke: "Other people are also raised by their parents, you may not have your parents to worry about anymore, but others do! Can't you put yourself in the shoes of a parent who hasn't seen their daughter for over a year?"

  Fan Yicheng said, "Jin'er, it's not that I'm unwilling to give her a name, I've thought about it, when your grandparents' great revenge is avenged, I'll take eight sedan chairs to bring her back, but now..."