Chapter 587 Think She Has Succeed in Her Scheme and Bribe Qing’er
A letter, which was truly written by her, could be unbearably destructive at an appropriate time.
Even her maternal grandma would be implicated because the man involved in it was Chu Qing, the eldest son of the late Emperor. Both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager had to take his reputation into account on the surface.
Moreover, the letter was vague and could be interpreted in different ways.
“Just forget it!” Shao Wanru said, suddenly reached out to rub her head took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and leaned back.
“Miss…” Yujie said in puzzlement. She didn’t know why her master suddenly dropped the idea and stopped talking about it!
“Fifth Sister, since you want to have a rest, I’m going back now. If you need any help, just send someone to tell me. Anyway, we are related and you are also a Miss of Duke Xing’s Mansion. We can’t allow the reputation of our Duke Xing’s Mansion to be tarnished!”
Shao Yanru stood up and made her farewells with a smile. She didn’t get angry because of Shao Wanru’s changing her mind but acted in favorable manners with a gentle look.
“Thank you, Big Sister!” Shao Wanru said weakly without opening her eyes and just nodded.
Shao Yanru turned around and left with Shuqi. They went back to the main room from the corridor.
After returning to the main room and sitting in the chair in front of the desk, Shao Yanru showed a sneer.
After serving tea, Shuqi said in confusion, “First Miss, is the Fifth Miss really not going to send a letter to Commandery Prince Qing? Isn’t she afraid that Commandery Prince Qing will really ask to marry her in front of the emperor and ruin her reputation so that she will come to no good end?”
“She will do it!” Shao Yanru said with certainty, looking at the courtyard outside the window. In the courtyard, Qing’er was sweeping the floor with a big broom and moved some obtrusive objects from time to time. There was a small vat. Shao Yanru usually did not pay attention to it, so she did not know if it had been in the courtyard before.
“But the Fifth Miss said ‘forget it’ just now, didn’t she?” Shuqi asked, becoming increasingly puzzled.
“She’s afraid that I would know and ruin her plan, so she faked a calm look!” Shao Yanru said with a sneer. She did not believe that Shao Wanru would not be afraid.
A really stupid girl would definitely think it not bad. If Chu Qing went to ask to marry her and the emperor agreed, she would be the legal wife of Commandery Prince Qing. In addition, Chu Qing was a brilliant man. So it could be considered a good marriage!
However, a smart girl would be cautious enough to realize that it was inappropriate for Shao Wanru to get engaged at this time. If she won a man’s heart during the period when she had been observing mourning for her parents, she must be considered a s.l.u.tty girl easy in her morals. If Chu Qing asked to marry her, not only would she be unable to be the legal wife of Commandery Prince Qing, but she might only be a concubine of his.
Although she had Great Elder Princess as her backing, Great Elder Princess couldn’t help her if the emperor was displeased with her. She could be a concubine with a t.i.tle at most and could never be the legal wife.
After living with Shao Wanru for a period of time, Shao Yanru knew that Shao Wanru was definitely not stupid. In this case, she must be aware of the consequences and would never let Chu Qing ask to marry her in front of the emperor.
Besides, Shao Yanru had suggested that Chu Qing had a deep affection for her and would rather hide aside and watch her than ruin her reputation. If she made this request, Chu Qing would definitely agree.
In this way, Shao Wanru could certainly solve the problem without taking much risk. Shao Yanru did not believe that she would not fall into the trap. The reason why Shao Wanru suggested that she would drop the idea must be her wariness of Shao Yanru, and Shao Yanru left at the moment with the intention of giving Shao Wanru some time to make arrangements.
Shao Wanru was so cautious that she wouldn’t go there in person. Besides, she claimed to have sprained her ankle!
Of course, Shao Yanru was not sure that Shao Wanru would go there in person. But if Shao Wanru did, she would not let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to catch Shao Wanru with Chu Qing.
If she really caught Shao Wanru with Chu Qing, she could not only be able to control Shao Wanru but also be able to threaten Commandery Prince Qing with it. How could she let go of such an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone?
Chu Liuyue would definitely be pleased with her plan.
She stood up, picked up the writing brush, dipped it in the inkstone, and began to write a letter.
After finis.h.i.+ng writing, she put the paper into the envelope after drying it off, handed the envelope to Shuqi, and said, “Go down the mountain now to give the letter to Moyan and tell her to give it to Prince Yue. After that, ask my father to send the imperial physician specializing in treating external injuries to the Yuhui Nunnery to treat my Fifth Sister’s injury.”
Shao Yanru usually didn’t send her letter down the mountain to someone directly. She sent it to Moyan, her personal maid in the mansion, and then told Moyan to deliver it. In this way, she could prevent the letter from being found out and confuse others.
The imperial physician usually didn’t visit patients outside, but her father should be able to talk him into coming here. Moreover, Shao Wanru was known as Rui’an Great Elder Princess’s granddaughter. It was said that the emperor thought highly of the imperial physician surnamed Qu.
“Send the imperial physician? You mean the one proficient in treating external injuries?”
“Yes!” Shao Yanru nodded and said. She didn’t believe that she couldn’t find out the truth about Shao Wanru’s injury.
“Yes, First Miss, but don’t I… need to… give it to Prince Zhou?” Shuqi took the letter, hesitated for a moment, and asked.
It was not her boldness that made her ask that. Sometimes Shao Yanru sent two letters.
“You don’t need to this time. Just tell Prince Yue to send someone to watch over Chu Qing in secret!” Shao Yanru shook her head and said with a complacent sneer. At this time, it was unnecessary to send too many people to carry out the task. Unlike the situation that dark night, the more people fis.h.i.+ng in troubled waters, the better, because the disturbance made it more difficult to find out who actually did it.
Of course, none of these had anything to do with her, who just a weak Miss was staying in her boudoir all the time!
“Miss, shall I send another maid from our mansion to serve you? As soon as I leave, there will be no other maid to serve you!”
Shuqi looked at Qing’er, who was outside the window and said indignantly, “Look, the Fifth Miss claims to come up the mountain for meditation, but she has brought so many maids. There is even an inferior maid in the yard. But you have only brought me, which makes it inconvenient for you to go out!”
Especially when she went down the mountain, Shao Yanru had no other maid. Shuqi really felt indignant for her master. Obviously, her master was the most distinguished Miss in Duke Xing’s Mansion. The eldest legitimate daughter of an aristocratic family was usually cultivated in a different way. Even if there were other legitimate daughters, they couldn’t compare with the eldest legitimate daughter in all aspects.
Moreover, the Fifth Miss came from outside.
“It’s unnecessary. I’m fine with that. It’s inconvenient to have other maids!” Shao Yanru shook her head and said. She didn’t need too many maids to serve her. Shao Wanru had lived on the mountain for a long time, so it was normal for her to have more maids. But she had been lived here for only a few days, so it was not good for her to make a big scene.
“Well, but who can bring you lunch later?” Shuqi was still worried and said.
“When you go out later, tell Qing’er to bring me lunch at noon. When it’s time for dinner, you will probably be back!” Shao Yanru said, blinked her eyes, and looked at Qing’er, the maid in the courtyard. She seemed to be so strong that she could push the vat aside and continued sweeping the floor.
It had been inconvenient last time because Shao Wanru’s maids were all absent, but now they were all here. Even if they left later, since Shuqi had told the little maid about it, Shao Yanru would not starve even if the little maid brought her lunch later.
The little maid worked for Shao Wanru and usually did some menial jobs in the courtyard. She cleaned the courtyard most of the time and seldom got into Shao Wanru’s silence room. It was obvious that she wasn’t considered important.
It was much better to use Shao Wanru’s maid than to use her own maid!
“When you talk to her later, give her a big pouch and tell her that I give it to her because of seeing her consistent efforts in cleaning the courtyard, and then tell her to bring me lunch!” Shao Yanru gave an order.
“Yes, Miss, I’ll tell her about it now and then go down the mountain!” Seeing her master’s face, Shuqi knew that her master must have an idea, so she replied and left immediately.
After getting out of the room and seeing Qing’er, who was in the yard, Shuqi walked over with a big smile.
“Qing’er, what are you doing?” Shuqi walked up to Qing’er and asked in astonishment when seeing that she was still pus.h.i.+ng the vat.
Shuqi thought that she had never seen the vat before.
“There are some water lilies planted in the vat. I’m trying to place it in a good place, where the Fifth Miss can admire them!” Qing’er said without even turning her head and continued pus.h.i.+ng the vat.
Although the vat was not very big, it was filled with water, on which there were a few water lilies in bloom. A vat of water lilies in autumn was quite eye-catching. Shuqi found it delightful to have her eyes filled with the strong green.
“Where do the water lilies come from? They are still in bloom!” Shuqi was really astonished and asked.
There was a place planted with water lilies in the Yuhui Nunnery, but at this time, they had withered away. So it was impossible to see such thin but really blooming water lilies.
“They come from Pushan Nun’s place. It’s said that no one knows when Pushan Nun will come back, but she has planted a vat of beautiful water lilies. The Fifth Miss saw them when visiting Pushan Nun last time and liked them very much. Hearing that Pushan Nun was absent and no one took care of the water lilies, she asked the abbess to allow her to move them here and take care of them!”
Qing’er finally pushed the vat to a place in front of the silence room. After looking it up and down and feeling satisfied with its location, she wiped the sweat off her forehead and looked back at Shuqi with a bright smile.
“Sister Shuqi, are you going out?”
“Yes, I’m going down the mountain to fetch some clothes for my master, because the clothes we brought before are not plain and she doesn’t like them. I won’t be able to come back at noon. Qing’er, could you please go to the kitchen and fetch my master’s lunch later?” Shuqi said with her attention going back to Qing’er while handing her a pouch in secret.
Qing’er had received some pouches from Shuqi sometimes, so she took it very naturally at the moment. After touching it and finding that it seemed to have contained not a few money, she said with an increasingly bright smile, “Sister Shuqi, you can go back now. Rest a.s.sured, I’ll fetch both lunch and dinner for the First Miss. You can go down the mountain!”
“Thank you very much, Qing’er!”
“Don’t mention it. I am just a maid, and it makes no difference whether I serve the First Miss or the Fifth Miss. Both the First Miss and the Fifth Miss are my masters. You don’t have to thank me!” Qing’er said with a big smile. Despite her low voice, Shao Yanru, who had been watching them, heard it clearly and involuntarily showed a smile.
It was a good choice to make use of Qing’er, an inferior maid who worked for Shao Wanru but couldn’t attract Shao Wanru’s attention. It was worthwhile for her to often instruct Shuqi to reward Qing’er for helping her in various affairs.
It seemed that Qing’er was not completely stupid, and she needed such help at the moment…