Chapter 160 – Memory, She Looked Familiar
“Fifth Young Lady, Concubine Luo has a weak body and doesn’t receive guests. Our master also asks her to have more rest.” Hearing that Wei Qiuju was going to send someone to call Concubine Luo over, the nurse-in-charge from the Mulberry Picking Courtyard hurriedly said smilingly.
Wei Qiuju felt embarrassed by this nurse-in-charge who dared not to obey her instructions. She slapped her hand heavily on the table and angrily said, “What do you mean? Do you think that we are not qualified to call an insignificant concubine over? I tell you, today, we came under grandmother’s orders. Even if this Concubine Luo is seriously ill, she will have to endure it and come here.”
“Fifth Young Lady, Concubine Luo is really not feeling well…” The nurse-in-charge wanted to say something, but when she saw Wei Yuewu’s cold gaze sweeping over, she immediately shut her mouth. This Sixth Miss Wei said little, but she looked shockingly dignified compared with the Fifth Young Lady who easily became angry.
“Concubine Huang, send someone to invite her!” Wei Yuewu said indifferently.
“Yes, I will immediately send someone there.” Concubine Huang happily agreed. She called over a nurse beside her and whispered a few words to her before turning around again.
The hall fell silent again. Wei Yuewu swept her gaze and found that the nurses headed by Nurse Shui were standing some distance away from the nurse-in-charge of the Mulberry Picking Courtyard, each having a look of caution on her face. It was obvious that they were not on friendly terms with the nurse-in-charge. Somehow, an idea came into her mind.
This woman should not be a servant of the mansion.
Concubine Luo arrived fairly soon. She was a young woman of eighteen or nineteen years old. Although she looked delicate, her complexion was fair and her face was rosy. There wasn’t any sign to show that she was in bad health.
Wei Yuewu somehow felt that this face looked familiar. She had a good memory. Even though she had only seen this face once, because it was a special occasion, she paid special attention to the people she met and remembered this face quite well. Now she knew that this should be the target she was looking for.
Indeed, there was a mysterious relationship between Mo Huating and Wei Luowu.
Although her mind raced rapidly, her expression did not show anything. She looked at Concubine Luo who was greeting her respectfully below, and waved her hand as a signal for her to get up. Then, she smiled slightly and said politely, “Concubine Luo, where are you from? How did you enter the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang? Our mansion hasn’t been peaceful recently, so we need to know more about you.”
“Fifth Young Lady, Sixth Young Lady, I am not a native of the capital city. I came here with my lord to the capital. My lord used to be a subordinate of the Second Master. When he returned to the capital to report on his work this time, he gave me to the Second Master.”
Concubine Luo let her hands hang by her sides and lowered her shoulders as she answered obediently.
“Who is your lord?” Wei Qiuju was very dissatisfied with her vague answer that did not indicate who her previous master was. She asked sternly with her eyes wide open.
“My lord is General Xu who entered the capital with Commander-in-chief Xu. He used to be the Second Master’s subordinate, and he followed Commander-in-chief Xu on the Second Master’s recommendation.” Concubine Luo replied calmly with a natural expression.
If Wei Yuewu hadn’t recognized her, even she would believe what Concubine Luo said.
It was basically impossible for the young ladies in the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang to get in touch with an unknown general. Even if this general brought his female family members along to the capital, it was impossible for them to become acquainted with the young ladies in the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang. Therefore, whatever this Concubine Luo said would sound convincing.
As they talked, Jin Ling quietly returned and stood behind Wei Yuewu. Then, a large group of people led by Nanny Hong also appeared in the living room.
Nanny Hong only looked briefly at Concubine Luo who had suddenly appeared. Apparently, the Madam Dowager also knew about this Concubine Luo.
Nanny Hong reported, “Fifth Young Lady, Sixth Young Lady, there are no suspicious people or things here. I took people with me and checked everywhere.” Although she was the Madam Dowager’s people, Wei Yuewu and Wei Qiuju were after all mistresses. Moreover, the two of them were the victims, so only the two of them could make the final decision.
Wei Qiuju did not notice anything unusual either. She frowned and said hesitantly, “Sixth Younger Sister, I think… maybe we should…”
She was very suspicious that someone from the second branch had harmed her. However, without any evidence, she did not dare to make any move. The third branch was less powerful than the second branch. Moreover, she was only a concubine-born daughter of the third branch. Compared to Wei Yuewu, she felt that her status was lower by several levels. Moreover, she felt that she was no match for Wei Yuewu’s schemes, so she took extreme care to show her respect for Wei Yuewu.
Therefore, she didn’t dare to make decisions on her own for fear that Wei Yuewu would get angry.
“Let’s go!” Wei Yuewu nodded and stood up.
Although Wei Qiuju was unwilling, she could only stand up. The maids and old maidservants who followed them also stood behind their own masters.
Concubine Luo retreated to the side and lowered her head consciously.
Concubine Huang smiled and followed them out. She saw them off at the entrance of the courtyard.
“Sixth Young Lady, Fifth Young Lady, now that our Second Lady is ill and has returned to her parents’ house, there is no one who has been formally authorized to take charge of this courtyard. I hope that you two will report to the Madam Dowager that the Second Master has not eaten well or slept soundly in these days. Everything is not going well.”
Concubine Huang stood at the entrance of the courtyard and said smilingly to Wei Yuewu and Wei Qiuju.
Well, the meaning behind these words was clear, and she wasn’t really saying them for Wei Luowu’s sake. Of course, a concubine could not be considered as a person with official authorization. This Concubine Huang did have a big ambition.
“Concubine Huang, please take care of Second Uncle! Now that Second Aunt is not here, we need you to pay more attention to the matters here. Concubine Luo is a newcomer. Although she acted appropriately and was more disciplined than those natives of the capital, you entered the mansion before her. Grandmother naturally values you more.” Wei Yuewu’s eyes lit up as she said softly.
Concubine Huang was overjoyed upon hearing these words, and then a hint of jealousy flashed in her eyes. A concubine who had just arrived in the mansion a few days before actually dared to compete with her! It seemed that she must be more careful. Otherwise, this woman might steal her position someday.
She thought about how the Second Master valued Concubine Luo these past few days. Now, even the Sixth Young Lady said so. A sense of crisis came into Concubine Huang’s mind as she made a decision in her heart. It seemed that she must send someone to keep an eye on Concubine Luo. If anything unusual happened, she would make a fuss about it.
Despite having these thoughts, she responded without any hesitation, “Young ladies, don’t worry. I will try my best to handle matters in the second branch and I will definitely take good care of our master.”
Wei Yuewu did not say anything else and brought Wei Qiuju with her to report to the Madam Dowager.
Although Wei Yuewu and Wei Qiuju didn’t find anything, the two of them had personally investigated the matter. The Madam Dowager also promised that the investigation would continue, but Nanny Hong would take over the subsequent work.
Wei Yuewu returned to her own Lotus Courtyard. After she sat down, Jin Ling immediately delivered a cup of tea.
“Miss, I have looked into it. When Concubine Luo entered the mansion, the Second Young Lady should still be alive. Then, the Second Young Lady died, and the Second Master was not in the right mood, so he didn’t arrange for the usual formalities. However, I heard that the Second Lady drank the ceremonial tea served by Concubine Luo. Therefore, she is now a legitimate concubine.”
After learning that a new concubine was brought to the second branch, Jin Ling secretly went there and asked some maids of the second branch to inquire about this Concubine Luo.
Wei Yuewu took a sip of tea and said calmly, “She was sent here by Mo Huating.”
“What?” Jin Ling asked in shock. Although she felt that the time when Concubine Luo entered the mansion was really suspicious, she did not expect that she would be Mo Huating’s people. She couldn’t help but ask in shock.
“She was a maid serving Mo Huating’s cousin.” Wei Yuewu paused for a moment and said with certainty.
When Wei Yan and Chen Nianshan fought each other that day, Wei Yuewu noticed there were many maids beside Chen Nianshan. The reason why this maid attracted Wei Yuewu’s attention was not because she was Chen Nianshan’s confidant, but because she was much more beautiful than the other maids. However, it could be seen that she was not favored. She remained on the periphery and did not dare to come close to help Chen Nianshan.
It seemed that she wasn’t liked by other maids.
Wei Yuewu only cast an additional glance at her back then. She did not expect that she would actually see her in the courtyard of the second branch.
Sure enough, in the absence of Wei Yan, Concubine Luo was sent here to act as a go-between.
It seemed that there really was an agreement between her Second Uncle and Mo Huating, and this agreement was not just because of Wei Yan…
Wei Yuewu narrowed her watery eyes slightly, and she began to connect the dots. The affair between Wei Yan and Mo Huating was no simple matter. It must be a part of Wei Luowu’s plot!
Rebellion?
Wei Luowu was also a high-ranking official. Everyone knew that the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang was favored by the royal family and had one high-ranking official and one senior general. Besides, they were also connected to the royal family through marriage. Did this Second Uncle know what he was doing? Why would he do this?
Wei Yuewu knitted her eyebrows and instructed, “Jin Ling, tell Yan Yang to see the heir-apparent and report on what he saw in the mansion these past few days and what we found out today.” Yan Yang had been staying in the mansion these past few days to monitor the movements in the outer courtyard.
“Miss… will Concubine Luo attack you?” Jin Ling asked uneasily. Since Concubine Luo was from the mansion of Marquis Jing Yuan, she must take this possibility into consideration.
“Not for the time being.” Wei Yuewu shook her head. Since Concubine Luo had been chosen by Mo Huating and sent to the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang, she was naturally not a reckless person. Now that her foundation was unstable, she would not dare to act without the most careful thought.
Moreover, Concubine Huang was not easy to deal with either.
“Don’t worry about the second branch. It seemed that our courtyard is going to be bustling with activities.” Wei Yuewu stood up and walked to the window.
Coincidentally, the Third Miss Wei, who was about to enter the mansion, would live in Fengyi Courtyard that was not far from Wei Yuewu’s Lotus Courtyard.
Ever since she was back, the Madam Dowager had frequently sent maids and old maidservants to Fengyi Courtyard. For a concubine-born daughter, Wei Yuejiao had received much more attention from the Madam Dowager than what was fitting for her status.
Thinking of the screen in Wei Yuejiao’ room that was personally embroidered by mom, a trace of coldness flashed in Wei Yuewu’s eyes. The existence of that screen in that place was simply a slap in the face of mom and her.
Be it Concubine Dong or Wei Yuejiao, the screen there seemed to be an announcement that they had come with ill intentions!
“Jin Ling, when you go out, bring Huamo with you.” The thought of Wei Yuejiao caused Wei Yuewu to remember the screen again. Her watery eyes moved as she instructed Jin Ling, who was about to leave the room. Then, she turned to Huamo, who raised her head blankly. “Huamo, go to the embroidery shop and buy some silk thread. Just pick the ordinary one.”
“Yes, I know. Miss, do you want embroider something? Embroidering is too tiresome for the eyes. Just tell me what you want and I will embroider it.” Huamo was good at embroidery, and she instantly knew what kind of silk thread Wei Yuewu wanted.
“It’s ok, I’m just going to do a little embroidery work.” Wei Yuewu said. She turned around and walked to the writing desk. She picked up a brush, thought for a moment, and began to draw.
There were some things that she had to prepare in advance…
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