Chapter 196 The enigmatic master foresaw
Ding Rong’s wife kept kowtowing to Madam Luo until bleeding, and said miserably, “Madam, you cannot listen to rumors, but treat Second Mistress Luo unjustly. What kind of people Wu Jiu is? How could she have anything to do with him? She does not know him at all! Besides, I have just said that Wu Jiu and Run Xiang are a couple. If Second Mistress Luo really has something to do with Wu Jiu, how could I mention his name in public? Did I make my master be uncomfortable intentionally?”
Madam Luo nodded. That was right. If Wu Jiu were Sun Meiniang’s adulterer, Ding Rong’s wife certainly would not mention the name in public. Was there any misunderstanding?
Feng Yang smiled and said, “It seems that Wu Jiu is the key figure now. Why not call him over for a confrontation?”
Ding Rong’s wife stunned for a moment, and forced herself to answer, “Childe Feng, you don’t know. Wu Jiu was thrown out with his broken legs when he was found to fornicate with Run Xiang. Now a few days passed, I don’t know where to find him, and we are short of manpower during New Year. Even if we have extra people, we may not find that flunkey.”
Feng Yang muttered and said, “This is easy to do. You are short of hands, but the people in my family have nothing to do. Why don’t I help you to find Wu Jiu?”
Ding Rong’s wife and Sun Meiniang exchanged a deep look. No one knew what emotion contact they had. Then, Ding Rong’s wife gritted her teeth and said, “Well, thank you, Childe Feng, for your generous help. If he can be found out, he will prove that Second Mistress Luo is innocent.”
Ding Rong’s wife thought that it was so difficult to find Wu Jiu. As long as the servants involved said nothing, just let Feng Yang fumble. To say the least, even if Feng Yang found Wu Jiu and asked him to clarify all things he knew under severe punishment, although she would be accused of framing Run Xiang, and Second Mistress Luo also would be accused of maltreating Run Xiang, Second Mistress Luo could clear the accusation of adultery. It was self-evident which of these 2 crimes was more severe. As long as Second Mistress Luo was innocent, whatever she did could be forgiven. Run Xiang was nothing but a flunky, and her life belonged to her owner, which could be controlled as the owner’s wish. All terms were listed on the Indenture of Sale.
Feng Yang thought for a moment and said, “Please find a few ones who are acquainted with Wu Jiu, and a painter. So, they can paint his portrait together for me. Then I can find him on the basis of it.”
Just a portrayal? Ding Rong’s wife responded immediately, “This is easy. I’ll order those people right away.”
At the moment, Pan Jingyang came with 7 or 8 doctors, including Doctor Ma and Doctor Song. These doctors were almost fully armed. All of them wore handkerchiefs on their faces, gloves on their hands, and uniform smocks with gray clothes, as if they had come to some terrible affected area.
These doctors dug out Luo Chuangu who buried half in the stone powder. Each of them, with 3 layers of gauze, took turns to feel his pulse, and checked the whites of his eyes and the coating on his tongue. After a long-time consultation, there was no conclusion.
Thereupon, Doctor Ma asked Sun Meiniang, who also stuck with stone powder, that what abnormal feeling and discomfort she had, but he got a sneer as an answer. He had no choice but to ask He Danggui. He Danggui kindly reminded him that in terms of common sense, the incubation of leprosy and smallpox was half a month after infection. Now even immortals couldn’t tell. Then she suggested him to give Luo Chuangu some menthol until he woke up. Pan Jingyang put forth his strength and let Luo Chuangu sleep for so long time.
Doctor Ma and others were so concerned, and messed up. When hearing it, they were suddenly enlightened. They found the most refreshing medicine in medical kits. After a while, Luo Chuangu was awakened successfully.
Luo Chuangu didn’t get rid of previous violent emotions. With a scowling face, he drummed out the group of masked doctors who were so solicitous of him. No matter how many deadly diseases there were in the stone powder, he causally swept them on a wing chair, and sprawled in the chair. His dark eyes gazing at He Danggui who was sitting in the chair.
Luo Chuangu nodded and said, “Go ahead! Who actually hurt Concubine Hua? Tell us everything you know without any concealing!”
He Danggui didn’t care about his attitude. She smiled and said, “Madam Luo and Second Uncle, please be perspicacious! Administrator Ding said that I am an ‘outsider’, and I shouldn’t interfere with the matter of Second Branch. So, why should I, ‘an outsider’, murder Second Uncle’s child? Neither distributing the interests of Second Branch, nor transferring hatred, it doesn’t matter to me, an ‘outsider’, right?”
All evidence of Concubine Hua was not on He Danggui’s side. She was completely ambushed by Sun Meiniang, who had been preparing it for at least 2 months. There are both witnesses and physical evidence. The witnesses included Concubine Hua who had ‘submitted’ to Sun Meiniang. The physical evidence included the jade pendant that disappeared a month ago, which was a pretty sufficient testimony. She couldn’t quibble. Even if she told the truth that Sun Meiniang hurt Concubine Hua, and she saved Concubine Hua, no one would believe her.
Therefore, she simply took the opposite ways. She pretended to be an innocent person who had been framed entirely and denied everything rascally. Anyhow, Madam Luo had lost her trust in Sun Meiniang. And the witnesses Sun Meiniang brought up were no longer reliable. With that hyper and sullen state, Luo Chuangu couldn’t wait to hear more tenebrous truth.
He Danggui tried to make her expression look honest and innocent. She speciously explained, “Madam Luo, you asked young Misses to be less idle, but to enrich ourselves and to learn more pharmacology. So, I responded to the call and studied in Medicine Pavilion. Every day I stayed there from morning till night, and I have touched countless medicines. How could I know whether there is Concubine Hua’s medicinal pack among them? How could I know that the medicinal pack was not deliberately put to my hand by someone ulterior? How could I know how many ill-disposed people were spying on me while I was learning how to make up a prescription?”
Sun Meiniang scoffed and raised her eyebrows. She said, “You mean, all those maids misread you blindly and wronged you collectively? You probably don’t know that some of these maids are doing manual work in Medicine Pavilion, but some are maids of First Branch and Third Branch. Will they be arranged to spy on you together? He Danggui, don’t quibble anymore!”
Feng Yang raised his eyebrows and said, “Money makes the mare to go. What can’t they do if they get back-up by someone powerful in the family?”
“Well, Madam Luo, I’m ‘unaware’ of all this, but someone is ‘prophetic’.” He Danggui shrugged and said ironically, “That’s so weird! More than 10 maids all remember what kind of medicines I have touched in the past 2 months! Ah, Madam Luo, you may as well ask them whether they remember what they had for lunch the day before yesterday, or what color of clothes they wore three days ago. Let’s see how many people can answer them. If they can’t remember anything about themselves, why do they remember my things as maids of Medicine Pavilion, First Branch and Third Branch? Before today, no one expected that Concubine Hua would bleed, and no one thought the pleasant Luo’s Mansion could appear so insidious abortifacient. You say, do those witnesses all foresee? They know that Concubine Hua’s medicine will go wrong sooner or later, so they keep in mind who has been near.”
Madam Luo repeatedly nodded and said, “Yes, that’s right. It’s possible that 1 or 2 maids see this matter by chance. Why is it that a dozen people come out to testify against you as soon as the matter of abortifacient happened?”
Sun Meiniang was anxious. He Danggui actually confused right and wrong! In fact, those maids weren’t all her arrangements. Some of them were real witnesses, who had seen He Danggui sneakily changing the medicine, so they came to snitch. Then Sun Meiniang roughly figured out that He Danggui changed Concubine Hua’s medicine. Sun Meiniang carefully prepared that medicine for Concubine Hua. If Concubine Hua ate 3 months continuously, she would miscarry quietly. Even the doctor could only sign that Concubine Hua was too weak to save the baby.
At that time, Sun Meiniang guessed that He Danggui must find the secret of antiabortifacient and changed Concubine Hua’s medicine furtively. Hum, what a meddler! It was to court death that He Danggui wanted to be a good person. Sun Meiniang was worrying that she couldn’t pull He Danggui down. In this way, Sun Meiniang often sent different status of maids in each yard to take turns to Medicine Pavilion, and let them witness the scene that He Danggui changed the medicine.
At first, Sun Meiniang thought that the more witnesses she had, the stronger the testimony would be, which could send He Danggui to hell completely. However, Sun Meiniang didn’t expect that He Danggui put it as a “doubt”, and Madam Luo believed in He Danggui unexpectedly! It was a hell of the day. The situation had been reversed gradually since that eccentric Biddy Wen appeared. By this time, He Danggui actually turned the tables on the attackers and bit her back.
How detestable! It was not a good time. But how could anyone know her opium poppy? This was her deepest secret, which her closest maid didn’t know except Luo Chuangu. She always drove out her maids and only let Luo Chuangu wipe her back when having a bath. Who found her secret?
But she was not a kind woman. Look at you, He Danggui, did you think that you could bring the dead to life with your more than 10 years of life experience, a little pretty trick, and the gift of gab?
Sun Meiniang took off all her jewelry on her head and hands, and knelt forward. She said to Madam Luo frankly, “I’ve really been badly wronged today. All sorts of strange things happened. Now if you doubt me, I have nothing to say. He Danggui said those witnesses are suspicious. How about Biddy Wen? She didn’t show up early or late, but appeared tonight when He Danggui was interrogated. Since she knew the secret of my tattoo, why didn’t she inform it as soon as possible? In my opinion, Biddy Wen is definitely an ill-disposed culprit, and she was even at the behest of someone!”
He Danggui reminded her, “Biddy Wen is the one Administrator Ding got. Who knew beforehand that I would be destined to get shackled today? And no matter how suspicious her background is, she’s dead. Could it be that someone chased her with a knife, so she wrote out her deepest secret in a moment of grief?”
Sun Meiniang ignored He Danggui and only stared at Madam Luo. She said, “We have been peaceful for too many years, and a little bit of bad things aren’t seen. Madam Luo, last time our whole family was grieved because of the death of my father-in-law. It was not long after Chuanxiong took He Danggui to Luo’s Family. Then He Danggui was sent away, and we had good days. No bad luck all years around, which was the best time for our family. Qian of First Branch and his wife, are a devoted couple. They have twins and a lovely, snow-white baby named Yan. Our Second Branch’s Qiong is beautiful and good-natured, who is the greatest pride of our family. Shao is also a lovable child. Whoever sees her will smile from the bottom of the heart. However, 3 years ago, He Danggui suddenly crawled out of the coffin in Taoist temple. Hearing this, Qian’s wife and I both felt creepy. We found lots of fortune-tellers. Each of them shook his head and said that the bane and dun had come. I also mentioned to you before...”
“Eh-hem!”
Feng Yang made a loud cough, which suddenly interrupted Sun Meiniang’s emotional reminiscing and drew everyone to see him. His left arm put on the back of He Danggui’s chair, and his right hand was shaking the fan. He smiled and said, “Second Mistress Luo, first, I most hate that other people oppress somebody with some strange stuff of numerology, just like my aunt Jiugu, who is a such kind woman. But because of a fortune-teller’s nonsense, she is lonely all her life, living with others’ criticism. Second, Sister He’s physiognomy and birth chart are beyond compare. These words come from me, the famous Taoist Sage, Master Bai Yangbai’s second disciple. I guarantee I won’t lie to you. I haven’t seen such a good birth chart for more than 10 years. Luo’s Family will count on her later.”
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