Chapter 217 – Fish In Muddied Waters
There were many gifts and the maid held them carefully, afraid that she would shake the gifts off. At this time, seeing Shufei fall over, she couldn’t dodge in time and was hit straight by Shufei. As a result, she couldn’t help but tilt her body to the side and accidentally hit the other maid on the side.
This maid didn’t have many gifts in her hands, and she was some distance away from Shufei. It could be seen that she was smart and agile. She quickly retreated and stabilized herself without falling down.
The gifts for Lotus Courtyard, however, were scattered all over the ground, and a piece of cloth was even hanging on the maid.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Don’t you watch your steps when you walk!” The maid who was hit glared at Shufei angrily. She had just returned from the border with Concubine Dong, so she had never seen Shufei before.
“I lost my balance and fell. It wasn’t a big issue. Why do you have to scold me like that? Our Sixth Young Lady has never scolded anyone before. Which courtyard are you from? You’re so rude!” Shufei was obviously not easy to deal with. She stood up and pointed at the maid while putting the other hand on her waist.
They had just returned to the mansion from the border, and now she was criticized and pointed at by a maid whom she didn’t know. This made the maid from Concubine Dong’s courtyard feel embarrassed. She widened her eyes and was about to get angry. However, the other maid standing at the side heard Shufei’s words clearly. She hurriedly pulled the maid in front of her and asked, “Are you from the Sixth Young Lady’s courtyard? We are from Concubine Dong’s courtyard and are sending gifts to the young ladies.”
Concubine Dong had instructed them to be especially polite when they spoke with people from the Sixth Young Lady’s courtyard.
“Oh, you are from Concubine Dong’s courtyard. Our Miss asked me to go out on an urgent errand. Sorry, please pick up these gifts yourselves!” Hearing that it was someone from Concubine Dong’s courtyard, Shufei also calmed down and politely apologized to the maid.
“Never mind. Sister, you can leave now if you have something to deal with. The two of us will pick up the things!” The maid behind said politely. She put down the gifts in her hands on the stone bench beside her and started to pick up the gifts that had fallen all over the ground for the maid in front of her.
“Then I am leaving. Thank you!” Shufei said. After she finished speaking, she hurriedly walked as if there was really something urgent. The pile of gifts for Wei Yuejiao were placed on the way she must pass.
Although the maid’s face was filled with indignation, she remembered Concubine Dong’s warning. She could only clench her teeth and suppress her anger. She squatted down to pick up the gifts. The other maid also squatted down to help her. Neither of them noticed that Shufei put the brush into the pile of gifts by pretending to remove the dirt on the corner of her skirt when she walked past the pile of gifts.
Although there were many gifts scattered on the ground, the two maids were quick with their hands and not long after, they had picked up all the gifts and checked them. After confirming that nothing was lost, they each went their own way to deliver gifts to the two young ladies’ courtyards.
The gifts that fell to the ground were sent to Wei Yuewu, so the two maids counted them again. As for the ones sent to Wei Yuejiao, they didn’t fall to the ground at all. Of course, they wouldn’t check the gifts again.
And just like that, the brush was quietly mixed into the gifts for Wei Yuejiao!
When the gifts were delivered to Lotus Courtyard, Wei Yuewu had just freshened herself up. Previously, at the city gate, Huamo used some leaves to make an insect, which frightened Wei Yuejiao to such an extent that she exclaimed in fright and pushed her out of the carriage. As a result, her dress was stained with debris from the leaves.
Huamo was helping dry Wei Yuewu’s hair. When she heard that Concubine Dong had sent some gifts to her, Wei Yuewu let the maid in and casually got up and walked to the front of the gifts that were piled on the table and briefly examined them.
“Thank Concubine Dong for me! Say that I appreciate her kindness!” She said indifferently and then turned around to instruct Huamo, “Put all these gifts in the warehouse later. I won’t need them for a while anyway!”
“Sixth Young Lady, Concubine Dong said that there is one thing that you do not need to lock in the warehouse. It is better to be used now!” Seeing that Wei Yuewu was going to lock up all the gifts, the maid hurriedly smiled. Before coming here, Concubine Dong had repeatedly instructed…
“What is it?” Wei Yuewu glanced at her and said indifferently.
“That’s it!” The maid picked out a small box from the pile of gifts, opened it, and respectfully presented it to Wei Yuewu.
Wei Yuewu’s eyes lit up. Inside the box was an exquisite hairpin. It was made of neither gold nor silver, but it looked quite exquisite. It was in the shape of a flower that seemed to be carved out of a tree branch. The elegant color was accompanied by bright flower stamens and pearl tassels hanging down from both sides. It was extremely beautiful.
“What’s this?” Wei Yuewu reached for the box and placed it in front of the dressing table. She picked up the hairpin and examined it. Anyone could tell that she liked it very much.
The maid couldn’t help but feel complacent. She smiled and said, “This is made of a rare kind of wood obtained by Lord Marquis. It has the effect of calming the heart. Concubine Dong thought that if she gave it to you, it would be better to carve it into a hairpin. She specially invited the most famous carver at the border to carve a hairpin for you.”
“Does Third Elder Sister have one?” Wei Yuewu’s eyes flickered as she asked.
“Third Young Lady also has one, but it is a bit smaller than yours because the wood is not big enough for making two hairpins. However, although it’s smaller, it is very beautiful. If you are interested, you can go to Third Young Lady’s courtyard to see it.” The maid nodded and smiled.
“Thank Concubine Dong for me!” Wei Yuewu smiled. Of course, it was impossible for her to go directly to Wei Yuejiao’s courtyard at this time, so the maid’s words couldn’t be taken seriously.
Playing with the hairpin given by Concubine Dong, she suddenly remembered the sachet given by Wei Yuejiao…
“Concubine Dong said that as long as Sixth Young Lady is happy, she is willing to do anything!” The maid flattered for Concubine Dong.
Of course, these words couldn’t be taken seriously!
“How about my father’s old injuries? Has there been any change in his health conditions along the way?” Wei Yuewu asked casually.
“Lord Marquis has almost recovered from his old injuries. It was due to carelessness that he suffered a relapse. The Madam Dowager told Concubine Dong that she would fetch a doctor for Lord Marquis and there shouldn’t be any major problem.” The maid had received Concubine Dong’s instructions before she came, and she could almost answer Wei Yuewu’s questions as soon as she asked.
“Doctor Ming?” Wei Yuewu said absent-mindedly as she fiddled with the hairpin in her hand.
“Yes, it’s Doctor Ming who has been serving the mansion. In the past, when Lord Marquis was in the mansion, he was also treated by Doctor Ming. He knew very well about Lord Marquis’ old injuries and knew well what medicine was the most effective.” The maid replied. Finally, she curtsied to Wei Yuewu again. “If Sixth Young Lady has nothing else for me to do, I will go back first. Concubine Dong is still tidying up her things. I will go back and help her.”
Wei Yuewu nodded and the maid retreated.
“Miss, is there something wrong with this hairpin?” After Concubine Dong’s maid left, Huamo asked.
“Up in the mountain, there is a big tree with overhanging branches. Alas! The gentleman doesn’t know that I’ve lost my heart to him.” Wei Yuewu muttered softly. A hint of coldness appeared at the corner of her lips. Her gaze fell on the corner of the hairpin, where there were three small characters. Without looking carefully, one wouldn’t be able to see them.
This was not the first time she had heard of the characters that read “shan you mu”, meaning “there are trees in the mountain”!
“Miss, is there something wrong with this hairpin?” Huamo couldn’t understand what Wei Yuewu meant, so she couldn’t help but ask.
“No problem!” Wei Yuewu shook her head.
“Since there’s no problem, why did Concubine Dong specifically ask the maid to mention it?” Huamo asked with a puzzled look, frowning. In her opinion, since Concubine Dong had specifically asked the maid to mention it, there must be something special about it.
“This was my mother’s hairpin!” Her white and tender fingers gently slid past the hairpin. As the corners of her lips trembled slightly, her heart ached faintly.
Grandmother once told her about this hairpin. The wood was indeed found by her father. He specially ordered someone to carve an exquisite hairpin and gave it to her mother as a betrothal gift!
Her mother liked the hairpin very much back then. She wore it almost all the time. But now, this hairpin fell into the hands of a concubine. The meaning behind it was enough to make Wei Yuewu ponder again and again.
Concubine Dong was lying about the origin of the hairpin. Her purpose of sending this hairpin was clear. She was telling her that this hairpin, which was once used as a betrothal gift to the late Marquise, was given to her by Marquis Hua Yang after Marquise Hua Yang passed away.
The hairpin had a similar fate to the screen that his mother had personally embroidered: while the screen was possessed by Wei Yuejiao, the hairpin fell into the hands of Concubine Dong.
Even if the two things hadn’t been given to others, Wei Yuewu was unable to obtain them. The hairpin was a clear reminder: she was able to have it only because Concubine Dong delivered it to her as a gift. Otherwise, she couldn’t get it on her own.
“Why was Marquise’s hairpin in Concubine Dong’s hands?” After realizing what Wei Yuewu meant, Huamo was stunned for a moment and couldn’t help but ask angrily.
“Without my father’s consent, how would Concubine Dong dare to take it?” Wei Yuewu smiled coldly.
She was a direct descendant of the legitimate Marquise Hua Yang. Concubine Dong was only a concubine. In the eyes of the aristocratic families, a concubine was half a maid and half a mistress. Even if the matriarch was gone, it was impossible for a concubine to possess the precious items of the late matriarch. It was therefore quite clear that this Concubine Dong was completely different in the eyes of everyone in the mansion.
Concubine Dong had been placed in the same position as the matriarch!
This was a great humiliation to the direct descendants of the legitimate wife. On the surface, it seemed that Concubine Dong had kindly returned this hairpin to Wei Yuewu. In reality, this was an act of defiance.
Moreover, she remembered that her grandmother once said that this hairpin had already been given away, but now it turned out to be in Concubine Dong’s hands…
“How could Lord Marquis do such a thing!” Huamo felt indignant and murmured to herself.
“Since she gave it to me, I’ll keep it. Not only will I keep it, I will also wear it. I will let others see who is the real mistress of this mansion!” Wei Yuewu smiled faintly. It was really meaningful for Concubine Dong to send this hairpin over!
Did Concubine intend to warn her or intimidate her? Or did she want to show her status in Madam Dowager and Marquis Hua Yang’s heart and let her know that she would definitely become the next Marquise Hua Yang?
This woman was indeed extraordinary. She was actually able to think of such a method. This method was much better than Wei Yuejiao’s!
However, this allowed Wei Yuewu to be even more certain that Concubine Dong must have directly caused the death of her mother.
Putting the hairpin in her hand on the dressing table, Wei Yuewu stood up. She cleaned her hands in the basin and took the handkerchief from Huamo to wipe her hands. Then, she asked, “Has Jin Ling returned?”
She had sent Jin Ling to investigate Doctor Ming. She also asked her to take that bottle to see if there were any similar medicine that could be made in other drug stores. That medicine seemed to be Doctor Ming’s exclusive recipe.
“She hasn’t returned yet. Perhaps she encountered some problems in making the medicine.” Shufei replied. With a bottle that was used a few years ago, it would be very difficult to make the same medicine.
Just as they were speaking, Jin Ling lifted the curtain and walked in. “Miss, I am back!”
“What’s going on?”
Seeing the anger on her face, Wei Yuewu asked with a smile.
“I saw something at the gate. Is that maid from Concubine Dong’s courtyard? When she was walking out of the gate of our courtyard, she bumped into the old maidservant who was guarding the door. She bumped into the old maidservant with so much force that the old maidservant couldn’t stand up due to the pain. The maid helped her into the room beside the gate of the courtyard. I happened to pass by and saw the maid took off an earring and gave it to the old maidservant as compensation before leaving. But when I went in to ask the old maidservant, she didn’t say anything.”
Thinking about what happened just now, Jin Ling was furious. The servants of Concubine Dong were too blatant. They actually bribed the people in Miss’ courtyard.
“Miss, what does Concubine Dong want?” Shufei was quick-witted and immediately understood what Jin Ling meant. “Shall I call that maidservant over and interrogate her?” She asked anxiously.
Wei Yuewu shook her head and smiled. “There’s nothing wrong for the maid to offer her earring as compensation to someone hit and injured by her. Although this earring is a little expensive, it’s not reasonable for us to intervene because one was willing to give and the other was willing to accept the offer.”
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