Chapter 602 Turn Qin Yuru’s Trick against Her, Two Carriages
“Now down the mountain…” The old maid said with a sigh. She seemed to have much to say but didn’t know where to start at the moment, so she just said a few words and paused.
However, her refraining from finis.h.i.+ng the sentence was the most curiosity-provoking. How could Qing’er, who was just an immature maid, restrain herself? She became concerned about her master and asked anxiously, “Nanny, what’s going on down the mountain? Does it have anything to do with my master? What’s going on? Tell me!”
“I… can’t tell you about the nonsense!” The old maid shook her head and said helplessly. After that, she kept her mouth shut and seemed to be unwilling to say anything no matter how Qing’er kept asking her.
It made Qing’er feel itching to know it. She begged, promised to keep it a secret, and kept saying that she just wanted to know it and would never tell anyone else.
Finally, she managed to convince the old maid to tell her. Looking around and finding no one else around them, the old maid pulled Qing’er to hide behind a tree and said in a low voice, “People said that the Second… Fifth Miss is an ungrateful person, who claims to observe mourning for her parents on the mountain for three years but actually leaves our Old Madam, who has raised her, alone after becoming a Miss of a higher status.”
“How is that possible? My master came up the mountain to observe mourning for the former Heir and the Infanta!” Qing’er said furiously.
“I know it’s true, but others spread the rumor. Do you know why our Old Madam suddenly fell sick?” The old maid smacked her lips and said.
“Why?” Qing’er asked, becoming increasingly itching to inquire about the whole story.
“At a banquet, the Mesdames and Old Mesdames from other manors said that the Fifth Miss was ungrateful despite being raised by our Old Madam for so many years and she would not go down the mountain to visit her even if our Old Madam got sick. This time I came here to tell the Fifth Miss that our Old Madam is sick, but in fact, the Mesdames of plenty of mansions are waiting for what the Fifth Miss will do. If the Fifth Miss doesn’t act properly, I’m afraid…”
The old maid sighed, and then pulled Qing’er out and said, “Forget it. It’s none of our business. Even if our Old Madam is ridiculed by all the Mesdames from other mansions in the future, it has nothing to do with us, who are just servants. As a Miss of Duke Xing’s Mansion, the Fifth Miss could get married in the future even… with a tarnished reputation!”
“Hey, what are you talking about? What do you mean by saying that my master could get married even with a tarnished reputation!” Qing’er said. She became displeased, stood still, and refused to leave with the old maid.
“Fine, fine, it’s my fault, but it really has nothing to do with me. I am just a servant and come here to pa.s.s on a message. Let’s go. I’ve met the Fifth Miss. It’s okay that she’s reluctant to go down the mountain. Anyway those Mesdames and Old Mesdames our Old Madam a.s.sociates with are probably not as n.o.ble as Duke Xing’s Mansion. Just let them say what they like!”
The old maid seemed to be unwilling to get into trouble, pulled Qing’er hard, and was about to go out.
However, instead of walking out, Qing’er turned around and pulled the old maid back, while saying, “Let’s go to meet the Fifth Miss and tell her about it. Although they are probably not as n.o.ble as Duke Xing’s Mansion, I can’t allow them to gossip about my master anyway!”
Qing’er said in rage.
“Qing’er, you don’t have to worry about it. What can we do as servants? Your master has the final say. Didn’t the Fifth Miss decide to ask Old Madam to come up the mountain tomorrow? Let’s go now. Don’t get yourself into trouble!” The old maid didn’t want to go with Qing’er, but she, who was not as strong as Qing’er, was pulled back and shouted anxiously.
“You didn’t tell my master that plenty of Mesdames and Old Mesdames mocked Old Madam of General Qin’s Mansion. My master respects Old Madam Qin the most and won’t allow her to be mocked by others!” Qing’er said with an angry look, thinking that she did it to defend the reputation of her master, and Old Madam Qin and her master would definitely be pleased with it.
“I… I was just afraid of getting into trouble, so I just said as our Madam told me. Anyway, it has nothing to do with us, who are just servants. Why do you have to be so serious about it…” The old maid seemed to be reluctant to go back and kept persuading Qing’er to drop the idea. However, she was pulled back by Qing’er.
The two of them came back while pulling and pus.h.i.+ng each other. Yujie happened to stand in the corridor. Seeing them come back, she came over with a surprised look.
“Sister Yujie, watch over her, I have something important to report to the Fifth Miss!” Qing’er said indignantly and her face turned red due to fatigue. Along the way, although the old maid didn’t struggle fiercely, Qing’er was so tired that she breathed heavily.
“Okay, get in. Qu Le is inside. You can ask her to inform the Fifth Miss!” Yujie looked at the old maid and said with a nod.
Qing’er wiped the sweat off her forehead and hurried to the silence room.
Hearing the sound from outside, Qu Le came out of the silence room, and stood still at the sight of Qing’er.
“Sister Qu Le, I have something important to report to the Fifth Miss!” Qing’er said anxiously.
Qu Le glanced at her face, which turned red due to fatigue and went in to report. After a while, she asked Qing’er to get in, and then there came Qing’er’s angry and loud voice from inside. Qing’er was talking about what she had heard from the old maid. In the courtyard, the old maid leaned forward and heard everything clearly.
However, after that, she couldn’t hear Shao Wanru’s voice clearly even if she leaned forward. Yujie was standing beside her, so she couldn’t go over even if she wanted to and could only stand in the yard with a forced smile.
It didn’t take long for Qing’er to come out in rage. She said to the old maid, “Don’t leave at the moment and follow us down the mountain later. My master is going down the mountain to visit Old Madam Qin right away. How can we allow those, who look down on Old Madam Qin, gossip about her, and tarnish my master’s reputation!”
“Is the Fifth Miss going down the mountain to visit Old Madam?” The old maid was stunned and asked.
“Yes, we’ll go now!” Qing’er said complacently.
“But now… it’s a little late. It’s better for the Fifth Miss to stay in the Qin’s Mansion tonight. It’s been a long time since Old Madam met the Fifth Miss.” The old maid said with joy.
“Uh… my master has her plan!” Qing’er couldn’t answer at the moment, so she just said vaguely.
“No, I have to tell Old Madam about it so that she will be delighted and prepare a courtyard for the Fifth Miss. During all these years, no matter how much Old Madam missed the Fifth Miss, she didn’t dare to ask the Fifth Miss to visit her!” The old maid said, began to wipe off her tears emotionally, and then turned to run out.
They couldn’t catch up with her even if they wanted to!
In the yard, neither Yujie nor Qing’er chased after her. After they stood calmly for a while, Qing’er said, “Let me go outside and prepare a carriage for Miss!”
“Okay!” Yujie said knowingly with a nod and turned back to the silence room.
In the silence room, Qu Le had helped Shao Wanru freshen up and change her clothes. Now Shao Wanru was dressed in a set of Qu Le’s clothes instead of the black clothes in which she had always been dressed in the Yuhui Nunnery or her own clothes.
Qu Le was a maid. Nevertheless, because she worked in Duke Xing’s Mansion, in order to show that they thought highly of Shao Wanru, Duke Xing’s Mansion usually sent someone to make new clothes for Yujie and Qu Le when making clothes for other servants in the mansion in the past few years, although the clothes were made of the material for servants.
Now Shao Wanru was dressed in a set of clothes, which Qu Le had never worn, and they fit Shao Wanru.
Her hair was done in two simple buns fixed with a hairpin. Everyone would think that she was just a maid from a mansion.
“Let’s go!” Shao Wanru stood up, pulled the front of her clothes, and said.
“Miss, are you really going down the mountain? It’s dangerous now!” Yujie looked at the sky outside the window and said uneasily. The sun is sinking in the west. They could go down the mountain at the moment, but it would be dark soon and they might run into danger on the way. The pilgrims, who were not going to stay in the Yuhui Nunnery, had basically gone back at this time.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s go down and have a look. But we are not going to go down the mountain in our carriage!” Shao Wanru said with a smile. The one, who made such a great effort to trick her down the mountain, seemed to have a great plot!
The one able to make use of a servant of the Qin’s Mansion should be Qin Yuru! She didn’t kill Qin Yuru three years ago for the sake of Old Madam Qin and Qin Huaiyong. Now was Qin Yuru going to stir up trouble again?
Shao Yanru was so scheming that she managed to provoke Qin Yuru to take action. Well, she would teach Shao Yanru a lesson that it was unwise to cooperate with someone as malicious as a snake!
Qin Yuru was a fierce poisonous snake, which could be out of control at any time.
“Yujie, go and tell Mingqiu Nun that I want to borrow the carriage in which she went down the mountain!” Shao Wanru gave an order.
Mingqiu Nun went down the mountain to treat Chu Liuchen from time to time, so the Yuhui Nunnery prepared a carriage for her. Although it was not big, it was very light and useful.
“Yes, I’m going now!” Yujie said with a nod, but she stopped after taking only a few steps, “Miss, we need a coachman!”
In the past, when Mingqiu Nun went down the mountain, her carriage would be driven by a nun in the Yuhui Nunnery, who was able to do it. But now it was inappropriate to ask a nun in the Yuhui Nunnery to drive the carriage.
“It doesn’t matter. Qing’er is able to drive the carriage. Besides, I’ll let her drive our carriage and let the coachman from my grandma’s mansion drive the carriage of the Yuhui Nunnery!”
Shao Wanru made the arrangement unhurriedly.
Of course, Qing’er was not an ordinary maid. Shao Wanru had asked her just now and knew that she could drive a carriage. The coachman sent by her grandma was also trustworthy. At that time, her grandma drove the coachman from Duke Xing’s Mansion away with a trick because he was untrustworthy!
Knowing that her master had made a proper arrangement, Yujie felt at ease and turned to Mingqiu Nun to borrow the carriage.
After packing up for a while, Shao Wanru walked out of the Yuhui Nunnery with Qu Le. When they reached the parking place, Yujie had borrowed the carriage and waited there.
Qing’er sat on the shaft of her carriage, while the coachman from Rui’an Great Elder Princess’s Mansion sat on the shaft of the carriage borrowed from Mingqiu Nun.
Shao Wanru asked Qu Le to go back and stayed here to watch over the situation. She only took Yujie to get in the ordinary carriage of Mingqiu Nun, and Qing’er drove an empty carriage, which moved slowly in front of her carriage.
The two carriages left the side door of the Yuhui Nunnery one after the other and then went down the mountain along the path. The old maid from the Qin’s Mansion had disappeared…