At the Sheng residence, a few days ago, Qingxin suddenly fainted in public. The house physician came to see her and prescribed some medicine.
After that, rumors started spreading that the eldest young master had been mistreating Qingxin.
Sheng Minmin heard about it too, and found it absolutely hilarious inside.
A few more days passed, and all kinds of gossip kept multiplying—spreading further and getting stranger with each telling…
If this continues, it will seriously damage Sheng Mingjian’s reputation.
It was at this point that Sheng Minmin sensed something was off.
She hadn’t fueled the fire herself, but the rumors were spreading way too fast. That means someone might be pulling the strings behind the scenes…
But who could it be…?
Sheng Minmin felt that Sheng Yong was the most suspicious.
Sheng Yong has always been a paranoid person.
Over the years, her relationship with her so-called “biological children” had grown increasingly cold. Her interactions with Sheng Yong were basically like dealing with a stranger. So it wouldn’t be surprising if Sheng Yong had his own suspicions.
And besides—that night when Xiaoque came to snitch, there’s no guarantee that Sheng Yong’s people didn’t see her.
What’s more, since Sheng Yong wants to take Qingxin away, he’d definitely be keeping an eye on the people around her.
What if Xiaoque also told Sheng Yong about tipping me off?
If that happened, Sheng Yong would certainly test her.
He’d want to find out whether she truly sees Sheng Mingjian as her son.
If she still considers Sheng Mingjian her son, then she would obviously need to “properly” resolve this matter and deal with Qingxin appropriately.
Looking deeper, Sheng Yong is also using this to test her attitude toward him…
Sheng Minmin realized she needed to be more careful in her actions.
That day, she took her usual afternoon nap, and when she woke up, Qingying told her that Qingxin was requesting an audience.
Qingxin entered the main room and saw that the madam’s expression didn’t look good. She knew the madam had heard the recent rumors and was displeased with her.
Although she was afraid, remembering the master’s instructions—and that he promised to back her up no matter what—she mustered her courage, knelt on the ground, and started crying.
“Madam…”
Sheng Minmin took a sip of tea before speaking casually.
“Get up first.”
How could Qingxin dare to get up?
Not only did she not get up, but she crawled forward and hugged Sheng Minmin’s thigh.
“Madam, I came to the Peony Courtyard when I was little, from a naive little girl who knew nothing, to becoming your head maid.
“Madam, you raised me and taught me.
“All these years of your kindness and favor toward me—I will always remember in my heart, and I am endlessly grateful…”
Qingxin first tried to play the emotional card. When she saw the madam’s tense expression soften just a little, she then spoke between sobs.
“Madam, if it weren’t for the fact that things have reached such a point… I would never have come to bother you…”
“What injustice have you suffered?”
“Madam, the eldest young master… he… his personality has changed drastically…”
“No—I misspoke. It’s that I don’t know why I’ve angered the eldest young master. I can’t earn his favor. I deserve to die—”
As she spoke, Qingxin “accidentally” revealed a patch of bruises all over her arm—purple and black…
Seeing the madam’s expression drastically change, and feeling her grab her arm without letting go while examining it closely,
Qingxin felt secretly overjoyed. Still crying on the surface, she continued.
“Madam, I’m not afraid to die. My life isn’t worth regretting.
“But what I’m afraid of is that if this continues, I’ll ruin the eldest young master’s reputation, drag you down with me, and tarnish the reputation of the entire household…”
The madam’s expression grew uglier and uglier, while Qingxin grew more and more excited. She could feel that her chance to rise up was right around the corner.
It was worth it that she had deliberately “provoked” the eldest young master last night, nearly driving him mad, so that he left all those marks on her body.
The master had said that once she exposed the injuries and showed that she was loyal to both the madam and the eldest young master—
And that she was only seeking an audience now to protect the eldest young master’s reputation—then the soft-hearted madam would surely let her leave the residence.
No matter which estate she was sent to, the master promised he’d find a way to take her away.
Sheng Minmin was silent for a moment. “Qingying, take her to the back—”
Qingying then led Qingxin behind the screen to examine the injuries.
After a while, the two came back out, and Qingxin knelt on the ground again.
“There are countless bruises and wounds all over Qingxin’s body,” Qingying said.
“That wretched, depraved child—”
Sheng Minmin’s face turned ashen, and she lowered her voice to curse.
“Even though I’ve given up on him and don’t want to deal with him, he still can’t act like a beast and disgrace the Sheng family.
“If he’s already like this now, who would ever dare to marry him in the future?
“I’m going to drag him to the ancestral hall right now and discipline him with the family rod—”
As she spoke, Sheng Minmin’s chest heaved violently. Fuming with rage, she was about to go out and hit someone.
“Madam, no—” Qingying quickly stopped her.
“Madam, right now… there are already plenty of rumors in the household. If Qingxin comes to the Peony Courtyard and you punish the eldest young master immediately afterward—
“Then the servants below will all know the rumors are true, and that will only harm the eldest young master’s reputation even more—”
“That wretched, depraved child—how could I have given birth to such… a thing?”
As Qingying gently helped soothe Sheng Minmin’s anger, she said softly,
“The eldest young master is still young. Maybe he’s been under some stress recently, which is why he’s acting like this. You can slowly guide him in the future…”
“He’s still young? How can he have the nerve to say he’s young?
“The seventh young lady in this household is the youngest, but look how he treats her? Not a shred of brotherly behavior. All his focus is on a fake—
“Every time I see him, I want to give him a beating…”
Sheng Minmin was so angry she cursed quite a bit, and Qingying kept consoling her.
It was a long while before Sheng Minmin finally calmed down a little and sat down. Her gaze fell on Qingxin.
“You’ve been with me since you were little, and I’ve always cared for you. I originally wanted you to be with that useless excuse of a son, hoping you’d have a child or two and live a comfortable, wealthy life—
“But now he’s… Are you willing to leave the residence?”
Qingxin’s heart raced. She looked up cautiously and asked, “What does Madam mean…”
“Recently, two of the household’s young ladies were choosing husbands, and they picked out a few capable young supervisors. If you want to get married, I’ll pick one of them for you. I’ll return your indenture contract and give you a generous dowry too—”
Hearing this, Qingxin felt her hair stand on end. Her only target was Sheng Yong; there was no way she wanted to marry a servant!
“Madam, I don’t want to get married for the time being…”
Sheng Minmin pressed her lips together, seeming somewhat displeased.
“Then you can go to one of my estates to recover and take care of your health. Once you’re better, you can still help me with things—”
Then Sheng Minmin turned to Qingying again and asked,
“Which of my estates is good for recuperation during this season…”
“Madam—”
Even though Qingxin trusted the master’s abilities, she was afraid that delays would lead to trouble. She didn’t want to go to one of the madam’s estates, so she finally couldn’t help but interrupt.
“My father recently went to the household’s hot spring estate. If possible, I’d like to go there…”
After she finished speaking, Qingxin suddenly saw the madam’s gaze turn fierce as she looked at her—with a hint of anger as well.
But when she looked again, the madam’s expression was completely blank again.
Qingxin wasn’t sure if her eyes had played tricks on her, but she felt guilty and was badly frightened.
Her limbs went weak, and cold sweat began to bead on her forehead.
She lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to breathe loudly, and deeply regretted what she had just said.
The room was dead silent for a long time. After what felt like forever, Qingxin finally heard a single word.
“Fine.”
“Thank you, Madam—”
Qingxin was instantly overjoyed. She kowtowed repeatedly on the ground, thanking the madam profusely.
Little did Qingxin know—Sheng Minmin had also achieved her own goal, and her excitement and thrill were no less than Qingxin’s.
