Chapter 273 Qing Xue Requests to Leave
The shopkeeper’s hesitancy instantly showed that the so-called order might be false, since he looked very guilty.
The onlookers could not help roaring with laughter.
Initially, a few people truly believed that Di Fenglan had ordered the product. For Qin Wanru, buying it mistakenly was reasonable, but it did not comply with the moral standards.
As the shopkeeper became less confident, everyone knew the truth now.
Di Fenglan fumed in anger, and her face changed colors repeatedly. She felt very embarra.s.sed.
“Miss Di, if you have nothing to tell me, I’m leaving now!” Qin Wanru turned sideways to bow to her, and walked away slowly with Yujie.
Di Fenglan wanted to go over and catch her, but she also knew this was inappropriate behavior. Recently, Ningyuan Army General’s Mansion had a bad name, and the reputation of their Duke Yong’s Mansion had also decreased dramatically. This time, before she came out, Countess Yong had admonished her not to behave wilfully like before!
“Miss Di, perhaps you can order again and wait for the next…”
The shopkeeper’s voice was like a buzzing fly in her ear. Di Fenglan felt angry and irritated, and shouted angrily, “Shut up!”
The buzzing in her ear stopped at once. Using the moment’s quietness, Di Fenglan looked around to find several Misses she knew, staring at her ironically, in the crowd. She could not stay any longer. Shaking her sleeves forcefully, she turned and left immediately.
Her two servant girls followed her closely.
Seeing the two trouble makers leaving, the crowd dispersed as well.
Standing in embarra.s.sment at the door, the shopkeeper took a look at Qin Wanru, who was already in her carriage, and also at Di Fenglan, who was ready to get into her carriage. He felt angry and irritated, and blamed himself for talking too much at that time. Otherwise, the Miss of Duke Yong’s Mansion would not have rushed out. The current bad situation also made him feel ashamed.
But he dared not defend Di Fenglan anymore. Others might not know his master, but he knew him well. If his master discovered that he had given false testimony to help the Miss of Duke Yong’s Mansion, and tried to make such big trouble, his job as the shopkeeper would be gone.
“Shopkeeper, our master is here!” a shop-boy rushed over and whispered to the shopkeeper, whose expression instantly changed dramatically. He dared not say anything, and ran hurriedly to the back of the shop.
Each time his master came, he entered the backyard through the backdoor, never through the front door.
Qin Wanru went to the street market. After buying a few daily necessities, she then paid a special visit to a medicinal herb shop and bought a few herbs for Madam Dowager and Shui Ruolan, and then went home.
She bought many herbs, which were divided into three portions. Two of them were for Shui Ruolan and Madam Dowager, and the rest was for herself. After asking the two servant girls to send the two portions to Madam Dowager and Shui Ruolan, she returned to her Zhifang Pavilion.
Back at her room, she put the herbs and the set of ornaments she bought today, on the table.
Yujie rummaged curiously through the herbs Qin Wanru purchased this time, and asked, “Miss, these are all tonic herbs. You want to improve your health?”
“No. Yujie, mash up these herbs in a while,” Qin Wanru picked out several kinds of herbs and said.
Yujie took them and nodded. Glancing at the herbs in her hands, she understood instantly. “Miss, are you making some tonic pills?”
“Not pills, but meals!” Qin Wanru shook her head. Although she knew how to make the pills, it was inconvenient for her to do so in her courtyard. Besides, she had never made them before. Although she knew how to, she might not make good pills. So, it was better for her to make some herbal meals first.
“Didn’t we already send some to Madam Dowager and Madam Shui?” Qingyue came in with tea, looking at her in a confused way.
“The herbs we sent just now will be used as medicines, but these will be used to nurse the health of the people from our mansion. In winter, health-nursing is necessary. We have just arrived in the capital. Although we have not been affected by the new climate, the climate is different. Making meals with herbs to nurse our health is also good!”
Qin Wanru smiled and, referring to something, spoke.
“People of our mansion? Apart from Madam Dowager and Madam Shui, it is only you and our general!” For an instant, Yujie was confused and, looking at her expectantly, said, “Our general is a military officer, and is always in good health. He also needs this nursing?”
“Eating some herbal meals is always good!” Qin Wanru said smilingly. Picking up the herbal meal prescriptions in her hand, she sat down beside the low bed, to read them one by one.
These were not the prescriptions Mingqiu Nun gave her, but what Nanny Zheng wrote for her.
“In a while, tell my mother I will prepare some herbal meals for nursing the health of our people in the mansion. Ask the kitchen staff to prepare a few more stoves, which will be specially used for boiling the meals. Do not use them to cook other things, to avoid flavor spreading.”
“Yes, Miss, I will let Madam Shui know soon!” Qingyue nodded. After saying that, it seemed that she wanted to say something else, but stopped.
Yujie took the herbs and left, but she still stood beside Qin Wanru. She wanted to say something, but dared not say it casually.
“Is there something you want to tell me?” Qin Wanru noticed that Qingyue looked as if she had something to say. Now she asked, as she read.
“Miss, Qing Xue wants me to tell you that she wants to serve Madam!” Qingyue hesitated but said.
“What?” Qin Wanru’s eyes glistened with a trace of sharpness. She stopped reading and narrowed her watery eyes. “How interesting!”
“Qing Xue says she wants to serve Madam!” Qingyue hesitated again, and answered.
In the past, Qing Xue left Madam Di and came to serve Qin Wanru, but she was once Madam Di’s servant. So, it was very difficult for Qin Wanru to believe her. For a short time, it was also difficult to give her a suitable position. So, she became a princ.i.p.al maid, who had a princ.i.p.al maid’s wage, but did not have important tasks.
Unexpectedly, she requested to leave and serve Madam Di proactively. It was hard for others to avoid thinking too much into this request.
“Why does she want to go to Madam Di?” Qin Wanru put down the prescriptions in her hands, and asked with a placid look.
“She says…since Madam wants to take her, she is willing to serve Madam Di and keep an eye on Madam Di for you. She only hopes that she can leave Qin’s Mansion someday, and be rid of her servant’s status!”
Since she already told her, Qingyue proceeded to reveal every detail of Qing Xue’s request.
What she said made Qin Wanru silent for a while. After a long time, Qin Wanru said, “Ask Qing Xue to come here!”
Qingyue nodded and went back hurriedly. In a short time, she came back with Qing Xue, who looked slightly pale.
As soon as Qing Xue came in, she kowtowed once to Qin Wanru, then raised her head, and with tears in her eyes, looked at Qin Wanru, and said frankly, “Second Miss, I hope you can grant my wis.h.!.+”
Qin Wanru eyed Qing Xue’s face with a deep look that seemed to see through a person’s heart, making Qing Xue, who was kneeling on the floor, s.h.i.+ver for a while. Now, she dared not belittle Second Miss at all.
“You want to serve Madam Di?”
“Yes, Second Miss, previously I was already Madam Di’s maid. Since I came to the mansion, Madam Di had been manipulating me secretly. Since it is so, let me go straight to her and serve her, lest that she should use me to do something else!” Qing Xue bit her lip and said.
“Does she have any hold on you?” Qin Wanru’s expression changed, and asked.
Qing Xue’s indenture was in her hands. The day Qing Xue came to their mansion, she chose her. Naturally, the indenture was in her hands, and Madam Di did not have it.
“Second Miss, my parents are working in Duke Yong’s Mansion. I dare not disobey Madam Di’s orders!”
Qing Xue shed tears. As she wiped away her tears with her handkerchief, she told her everything in detail.
Initially, Qing Xue was Madam Di’s maid, when she came to the mansion. That time, Madam Di did not necessarily need to deal with Qin Wanru and Shui Ruolan. She only thought she was clever and raised her as her confidant, getting teachers to train her. Since she was afraid Madam Dowager would suspect her, she had her raised on a farm.
Later, when Madam Di knew Qin Wanru wanted a few servant girls, she made special efforts to get her to enter the mansion. She was afraid Madam Dowager would find out, so she burned the previous indenture and made a new one, and sent it to Qin Wanru.
When she sent Qing Xue to Qin Wanru, she gave her parents a lot of money and promised them future subsidies. However, after becoming Qin Wanru’s maid, Qing Xue was not given the key post as Madam Di had expected, and Qin Wanru seemed to try to stay away from her.
Even so, Madam Di did not want her to come back. Instead, she began to treat Qing Xue better, and even sent a few more silver to her parents.
Later, when the mansion moved to Beijing, she brought Qing Xue’s family to the capital under another excuse, and also found jobs for them, letting them work in Duke Yong’s Mansion. Their tasks were light, but they had high wages.
By doing this, Qing Xue’s family was under the control of Duke Yong’s Mansion. If Qing Xue did anything improper, her family would not have good benefits!
“Now you want to go back to Madam Di only because you are afraid your family will be hurt, right?” After hearing Qing Xue’s story, Qin Wanru understood the situation and raised her clear watery eyes to look at Qing Xue, although she could not tell what she was thinking.
“Yes, that’s what I think. Second Miss, now I am serving you, but I was exposed. Last time you let me off, thank you so much for your mercy. I dare not ask for anything, and I dare not let Madam Di think otherwise. So, I had better go straight to her and serve her. Then, she will not have any excuse to ask me to hurt Second Miss!”
Qing Xue wiped away her tears, raised her teary eyes to look at Qin Wanru, and said sadly.
“That means you have no other choice?” Qin Wanru said calmly and narrowed her watery eyes slightly, shooting an eerie look that made Qing Xue’s heart tremble, but since the topic was gentle, she was not that worried.
Qing Xue nodded and said, “Second Miss, now this is my only choice. To thank you for your mercy, if I can get any useful information from Madam Di, I will come and tell you!”
Her words showed her grat.i.tude, and also obviously her dilemma, but this was her only choice now!
Anyone in her situation would do that, but this did not include Qin Wanru.
Qin Wanru’s eyes closed slightly and her eyelashes fluttered a couple of times, leaving shadows on her tender, white cheeks. Her voice sounded softer, but her irate mood made Qing Xue, who was kneeling on the floor, s.h.i.+ver. “Qing Xue, do you think I can be cheated that easily!”