Reborn in Each Other’s Bodies: A Mother and Daughter’s Deadly Revenge - Chapter 73

“Mother—” Sheng Mingzhu lifted her skirts and hurried into the room, “I was so worried about you—”

“That’s thoughtful of you.”

Sheng Minmin replied indifferently, not even glancing at Sheng Mingzhu. Instead, she picked up a piece of lotus root cake with her chopsticks, took a bite, then turned to Qingchi and instructed,

“My mouth feels bland. Have the kitchen prepare a bowl of fish jelly for me to have tonight.”

Qingchi bowed and left.

Anyone could see that the madam was displeased with the sixth young miss.

Sheng Mingzhu bit her lip, her eyes quickly welling up with tears.

“Mother, I wanted to visit you first thing this morning, but the servants said I might disturb your rest…

“Now that I’ve come late, are you angry with me…?”

Seeing that the “mother” at the dining table still wore a cold expression, Sheng Mingzhu seethed inwardly. With a thud, she dropped to her knees. “Mother, I was wrong…”

She then clung to her “mother’s” legs, sobbing loudly.

The atmosphere in the room grew tense, and not a single servant dared to speak.

The servants thought the madam’s anger was justified—the sixth young miss had gone too far!

If Sheng Mingzhu truly cared about her mother as much as she claimed, she would have rushed to see her the moment she was allowed out of her courtyard. She certainly wouldn’t have stopped Qingying and the others from interrogating Taoniang.

Now, dragging Taoniang here bound and seemingly ready to punish her? It was obvious she was actually here to plead for Taoniang’s mercy!

The madam had always doted on the sixth young miss like a precious jewel, yet Sheng Mingzhu’s behavior… To put it bluntly, it bordered on unfilial!

“Look at you, I didn’t say anything. Why are you kneeling on the floor? Get up.”

Only after a long pause did Sheng Minmin finally seem to notice Sheng Mingzhu on the ground, her tone indifferent.

“I’ve been unfilial. I don’t dare to get up…”

Outside, Taoniang, bound and gagged, heard her daughter’s cries and grew frantic with worry.

Earlier that morning, she had sought out a maidservant who always seemed short on money. Gritting her teeth, she took out two hundred taels of silver—hidden in her undergarments—and begged the woman to secretly deliver a message to Mingzhu at Haitang Courtyard.

Thankfully, Mingzhu had come. Taoniang had spun a tale about hearing of a particularly efficacious temple outside the city and sending out a prayer letter to bless the household…

Now, fearing the madam would suspect her, she had begged Mingzhu to speak on her behalf and hinted at her desire to leave the estate.

After all, Mingzhu had come from her own womb. The girl had listened, heart aching, and agreed.

Taoniang had coached her on what to do and even had Mingzhu order her bound and brought here… Surely Mingzhu could persuade the madam to let her go…

Taoniang’s emotions swung between terror and desperate hope.

She had risen from a rural nobody to become a wet nurse in the Sheng household, then switched her own daughter with the Sheng family’s, ensuring Mingzhu grew up in silks and satins as a nobleman’s daughter.

She had even taught herself to read, and now a highly skilled martial artist owed her a favor…

Taoniang was convinced the Bodhisattva had always favored her! She would surely survive this ordeal too!

Inside the room, Sheng Mingzhu had finished explaining the situation.

“Mother, this is the prayer letter Taoniang wrote. There were three copies—the other two haven’t been sent out yet…”

She placed the two letters beside Sheng Minmin’s right hand, but the madam didn’t even glance at them.

“Taoniang said she was grateful to work in the household, so she wrote these letters praying for the Bodhisattva to bless you and Father…

“I know she did wrong—a servant causing such trouble and raising suspicions… I can’t stand her either now…

“But Mother… Taoniang would never dare to harm you…”

Seeing that “Mother” remained silent, her aura growing colder by the second, Sheng Mingzhu couldn’t bring herself to outright beg for Taoniang’s release. She could only cover her face with a handkerchief and weep.

Just then, a servant announced the arrival of the eldest young master.

After last night’s incident, Sheng Mingjian and his siblings had skipped their studies for the day.

Sheng Minmin allowed the eldest young master to enter, and soon Sheng Mingjian stepped inside, bowing respectfully in greeting.

When “Mother” ignored him, continuing her meal in silence, Sheng Mingjian knew she was displeased. He should have swallowed his words.

But his gaze fell on his beloved younger sister, kneeling on the floor in tears, and his heart ached. Pressing his lips together, he spoke anyway.

“Mother, Taoniang doesn’t have the ability or the courage to harm you!

“That letter must have been a coincidence. Still, she broke the household rules by secretly sending it out—she deserves punishment!

“But… she’s already been injured several times, and she isn’t a life-indentured servant. Killing or crippling her would only tarnish your reputation…

“Considering she’s cared for Mingzhu all these years, if not for merit, then for past service… I suggest simply expelling her from the estate. Out of sight, out of mind—

“Without this troublemaker around, you and Mingzhu won’t have any more misunderstandings…”

Sheng Minmin set down her chopsticks, wiped her mouth leisurely with a handkerchief, and gestured at the food.

“Take it away. I’ve lost my appetite.”

Even a fool could tell she meant Sheng Mingjian’s words had “ruined her appetite.” As the Sheng family’s legitimate eldest son, he had never been treated with such blatant disdain before.

“Mother” had truly changed! The old “Mother” would never have humiliated him like this.

His fists clenched inside his sleeves, and his youthful face twisted with barely suppressed emotion.

The servants bowed their heads even lower.

“Eldest Son, you’re quite well-informed.”

Only then did Sheng Minmin look at Sheng Mingjian, her smile faint and mocking.

“Taoniang comes from a peasant family. If the wet nurse I originally hired for Sixth Daughter hadn’t broken her leg, she would never have gotten the job. She should be digging sweet potatoes in the fields right now—

“For six years in this household, because Sixth Daughter favored her, I let her live more comfortably than my first-rank maids, even giving her two taels of silver a month. What suffering has she endured?”

Sheng Mingjian faltered, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sheng Mingzhu’s pleading gaze. Gritting his teeth, he dropped to his knees with a thud.

“Mother, please show mercy. Mingzhu has a soft heart—if Taoniang dies here, she’ll be haunted by it, unable to eat or sleep—”

Hearing this, Sheng Minmin’s lips curled slightly. She would have loved to skin Taoniang alive, but now wasn’t the time.

First, without concrete evidence of Taoniang’s schemes, killing her would invite criticism and hinder her future plans for revenge.

Second, the black-clad man behind Taoniang gave her pause. What if he sought vengeance for Taoniang’s death by assassinating her?

Besides, letting Taoniang die now would be too merciful!

She wanted Taoniang to watch as Sheng Mingzhu fell into the mud, living a life worse than death.

She would destroy Taoniang’s hopes, crush her dreams, and only then send her to hell.

For now, Sheng Minmin would settle for collecting a small “interest” from Taoniang before “letting her go”—banishing her back to Taohua Village.

The Feng family was full of wolves. Once they realized Taoniang had lost her lucrative position and could no longer bring them benefits, her life would become a living nightmare.

And let’s not forget Huang Yaning in Taohua Village. After all the suffering she endured at the Feng family’s hands, how could she not hate Taoniang?

Let the two of them tear each other apart! Sheng Minmin couldn’t wait to see the show. It was bound to be very entertaining.