Chapter 227 Acting, the Plaintive, Kind White LotusQin Wanru was standing at the side door, which didn’t open, only with a small crack. From there, she could see the outside clearly. Now, the mansion’s gate opened, and she saw her grandmother, her father, and those of Duke Yong’s Mansion walk out of the main entrance. With a blink of her watery eyes, she turned sideways to look at the servants at her grandmother’s heels.
She asked Yujie to come near and whispered something to her.
Yujie nodded and went to join them silently. Now, many people came out of the gate, forming a messy crowd, in which there were every master’s servants. With her wits, Yujie found one of the servant girls usually led by Nanny Duan, pointed at Nanny Duan’s location, and returned silently.
That servant girl also looked bright. She didn’t go over right away. After waiting a while, she jostled her way over to Nanny Duan and whispered something.
Qin Wanru stood behind the door crack, still watching Ning Caixian.
Feeling that people were coming out of the gate, Ning Caixian raised her exhausted head, looking at Madam Dowager standing among them. Suddenly, she pushed away her servant girl supporting her forcefully, kowtowed hard several times toward Madam Dowager, and said sadly, “I hope Madam Dowager can let my cousin and I stay together. Even if I became his slave or maid, I would be willing!”
Just as she finished these words, she pa.s.sed out immediately.
The servant girl who was pushed away was stunned, but she rushed to her instantly, wailing, “Miss, Miss, please wake up, please wake up!”
Madam Dowager frowned, wis.h.i.+ng to say something, but Nanny Duan whispered something in her ear. Madam Dowager nodded, eyed Countess Yong, and said with a cold look, “Countess Yong, is this the reason for your mansion to break the betrothal with Yuru?”
As she finished speaking, she stepped back, leaving the s.p.a.ce in the center for Countess Yong, who was standing on the side.
Countess Yong was stunned and said anxiously, “Madam Dowager, we never thought so, how… can we… deal with this now? Madam Dowager, please tell me!”
Madam Di gritted her teeth, ready to say something, but Qin Huaiyong glared at her angrily. So, she had to shut up, only glaring at Countess Yong angrily. Now, she hated her to the bone!
The thing had been messed up. Even if Yuru were married to the family, that would be a scandal, but apart from Di Yan, Qin Yuru could not get another suitable match at this time.
“Countess Yong, your words sound funny. This girl is your niece, she had private love with your son, then ran away with him, but why did you bring this affair to our mansion on purpose? Countess Yong, since you are dissatisfied with my granddaughter, let’s break the betrothal, and you don’t have to deliberately make it look like our mansion doesn’t allow your mansion to get your son married!”
“No, we won’t break the betrothal. Take the woman away!” Duke Yong, who had been silent, couldn’t help saying with a cold expression, as he saw that Madam Dowager unusually asked to break the betrothal.
Qin Huaiyong was now a new bigwig, so getting this marriage was much better than the current one with Ning Caixian for Duke Yong. Not only had Ning Caixian’s name become stinky, but their so-called runaway had also made others think that Di Yan was a joke.
“Let’s break the betrothal!” Qin Huaiyong said coldly from the side, as he raised his eyes to look at the pale face of Ning Caixian, who fainted, and forced some ridicule on his cold, hard face. “Take the woman who smeared others’ images to the officials. My daughter is not that easy for others to plot against. Then, whatever measures your Duke Yong’s Mansion wants to take to save her, it will not be our mansion’s business any longer!”
Qin Huaiyong hadn’t spoken much even until now because he had been hesitating. So, he allowed Madam Dowager to make the decision. But now when he saw that Madam Dowager was determined, he stopped hesitating at once.
When Qian Wanru saw the nearly imperceptible movement of the fainted Ning Caixian on the ground, an eerie coldness appeared on her lips. “She is acting indeed, and her acting is brilliant, but she would never have thought that my father would deal with this matter so decisively, would she? My grandma’s att.i.tude did influence my father’s.”
“Father!” Qin Yuru shrieked.
“Shut up!” Qin Huaiyong interrupted Qin Yuru severely, scaring her into silence and all the onlookers into shutting up.
“Yuru, you listened to your mother and wanted to marry your cousin, and I didn’t object in the beginning, but look at the woman whom your cousin seduced! Not only did she find a man to frame you and smear your image, but she also instigated your cousin to run away after their plot was found out. Now, taken back, she also worked out such a way: coming to our mansion to cry and playing the miserable one. Guards, take her to the yamen!”
Qin Huaiyong spoke, dark-faced.
His words stirred waves. Previously, a man at Qin’s Mansion’s gate said firmly he wanted to marry Qin Yuru as if it were happening now. “Is that really the trick of the woman? If so, the woman is too scary. Letting her enter the mansion will make the mansion inharmonious, not to mention marrying her.”
“What would want such a woman?”
Two family guards came and pushed the wailing servant girl away, ready to take Ning Caixian. Qin Huaiyong’s iron-fisted action was beyond many people’s imagination, petrifying Countess Yong and even Duke Yong. The only one who reacted fast was Di Yan.
He rushed over and lifted Ning Caixian up, imploring Qin Huaiyong loudly, “Uncle, please forgive her, she has been really wronged. She is so kind, how could she have done such things? It is the mansion’s supervisor who had an evil idea and made such trouble. She has been really wronged!”
“What’s the use for you to say this to me? Go and tell the officials!” Qin Huaiyong eyed Di Yan coldly and said sharply.
Stunned, Di Yan never thought his uncle, who was usually kind, would speak this way, seemingly petrifying him instantly.
Guards came and pushed him away, but he held onto Ning Caixian and implored his parents loudly, “Father, Mother, please save my cousin. She has never done anything evil, she doesn’t know anything, either, and Cousin Yuru has unclear relations with others indeed. That hairpin is really in Cousin Yuru’s hands…”
“Smack!” A hard slap came and shocked all the people on site.
Aware of it first, Countess Yong felt the pain and trembled all over, glaring at Qin Huaiyong furiously. “What do you mean by this? Why slap my son? What’s the problem even if he doesn’t want to marry your daughter? Can’t he give up your daughter? Qin Yuru’s reputation has not been good, is that untrue?”
Countess Yong’s words were also her first reaction, but after saying them, she saw that Madam Di wearing a dark face had rushed over and slapped Ning Caixian, who was still faking being faint twice, making her eyes roll. This time, she nearly pa.s.sed out.
“Take her away…” The scene happened so fast that Madam Dowager couldn’t even have time to stop it. Angered, she became pale and soft and fainted.
Instantly, everyone at the gate acted in a panic. Qin Huaiyong was also anxious and had to deal with Madam Dowager’s condition first.
No one thought this matter could get so out of control. After Madam Dowager fainted, Countess Yong and Duke Yong became embarra.s.sed instantly. This was the gate of Qin’s Mansion. The two of them were also the younger generation of Old Madam Qin, but they allowed Di Yan and a woman with an unclear image to make Old Madam Qin faint. If such words were to be spread out, Duke Yong would even be impeached by the imperial censors.
Qin Wanru still stared at Ning Caixian, finding that she had now opened her eyes sadly. With tears running down, she pushed Di Yan away, looking depressed and extremely hopeless. She swayed, turned, and walked to the outside, and the people at the gate couldn’t help but give way.
The crowd at the gate all looked at Madam Dowager. Countess Yong saw the scene, but she blinked and pretended she hadn’t seen it. Di Yan reached out his hands to support her, but he was stopped by one of Countess Yong’s old maids. He dared not shout any longer, but sadly looked at the swaying back of Ning Caixian.
Nanny Duan suddenly whispered something to Qin Huaiyong, who turned and saw Ning Caixian, who had walked away, shouting severely, “Guards, take her to the officials!”
Hurriedly, two guards went over and grabbed Ning Caixian.
Ning Caixian never thought that Qin Huaiyong would not let her off even until now. She bit her lips, panicked, and, wearing that depressed and desperate expression, turned to Di Yan instantly. As her tears dropped down, she implored Di Yan silently.
Seeing her movements, Di Yan felt his guts become knotted and he pushed away the old maid’s hands, ready to rush to her.
“Grab the heir of the duke!” Qin Huaiyong shouted severely again.
The two guards at the gate grabbed Di Yan from either side, and he couldn’t move at once.
“Cousin, I… I would never break up with you even if I died…” Ning Caixian had sensed the danger and wailed as she was pulled away.
That Qin Huaiyong dealt with this matter in a sweeping manner was beyond everyone’s imagination. Seeing the guards take her away so ruthlessly, the people at the gate were all shocked.
“Shouldn’t such inner yard affairs be dealt with by Madam or Madam Dowager? Why take this lady to the officials for this matter? Is it true that this woman who was here just now has done something so evil that the officials have to meddle in it?”
Since Qin Huaiyong took action decisively, many people who had sympathy with Ning Caixian just now began to suspect her. After all, Qin Huaiyong sent her to the officials and did not deal with her in private. When she was in the yamen, the following trial would give her justice clearly.
If it were only the runaway affair of the son of Duke Yong with a woman, how come it was taken to the officials?
“These of you, what happens next will have no relations with our mansion, we will return your betrothal gifts as soon as possible, please leave now!” After Ning Caixian was taken away, Qin Huaiyong eyed Duke Yong and his wife coldly. As he finished these words and didn’t wait for their reply, he turned to support Madam Dowager, who had been woken up through great efforts, followed by Madam Di and her daughter, walking into their mansion.
With a “bang”, the door closed, leaving Duke Yong and his family outside, along with the crowd at the gate, looking at one another.
“Duke, how dare they act like this!” Countess Yong trembled out of fury, pointed at the closed door, and said severely.
But what answered her was a slap.