Chapter 837 Good Cop and Bad Cop
After all the people of Minister Zhao’s Mansion got the news the next morning, their Old Madam was so angry that she came to Duke Xing’s Mansion in person.
Old Madam met Old Madam Zhao in the flower hall. The former was accompanied by Shao Caihuan and Shao Wanru while the latter by Zhao Xiran.
After everyone got seated, Old Madam Zhao, instead of drinking tea first, looked at Old Madam coldly and asked, “Please tell me why did you do that. If you don’t like Ran’er, we two families can choose not to get married. You don’t have to do such a thing! It is said that it used to be a small courtyard, but now there is even no courtyard at all?”
Everyone could easily tell that Old Madam Zhao came to denounce the fire. Old Madam lowered her horn and said with a smile, “How could we be dissatisfied with Miss Zhao? She is such a beautiful girl, whom I have known since she was a child. How could I not like her? But that fire is really an accident!”
“An accident? How can you let an accident burn all the furniture in Ran’er’s dowry? That is the furniture we have prepared for more than a decade! We have prepared it since Ran’er was a child. I didn’t expect them to be destroyed before being used. You… you…” Old Madam Zhao suddenly coughed loudly.
Zhao Xiran rushed to stand behind Old Madam Zhao and patted her gently on the back, after which Old Madam Zhao recovered from the cough. Seeing that Miss Zhao was calm and peaceful, Shao Wanru narrowed her watery eyes slightly. Then she slowly lowered her head and looked at the ground in front of her, quietly listening to the argument between the two old madams.
Shao Caihuan was a little anxious. She knew what had happened last night early in the morning and even knew that Shao Wanru was involved again, but she was not clear about the details. Noticing that Shao Wanru was silent, she got close and asked with concern, “Fifth Sister, are you uncomfortable?”
Shao Wanru shook her head but said nothing.
“Fifth Sister, if you feel unwell, you can go back and have a rest. I’ll stay here with grandma!” Shao Caihuan became more and more concerned as she felt that Shao Wanru did not look well all day.
Shao Wanru indeed didn’t feel good. Last night, she could not fall asleep immediately after going back because she was first bothered by her deliberation of everything, and then the a.n.a.lysis of Wen Xichi’s character. It was hard for her to believe that Wen Xichi should help her. “Shouldn’t he be indifferent with things like that?”
It seemed that it had little to do with Wen Xichi. According to his personality, he was far from being the kind of person who would take the initiative to put in others’ domestic problems. However, he did put in and even stood on her side, which was most beyond Shao Wanru’s belief. She fell asleep later during thinking of these, but she kept dreaming all night.
Some dreams were about her previous life, and some this life. They all ended up with nightmares. The last scene was still the b.l.o.o.d.y scene, where so many women died. Was she crazy? Why did this happen? She couldn’t believe the answer in her heart. “Despair and darkness?”
Had she been dead at that time? Were her eyes blinded by the despair and darkness? How could a person like him care about others when he did not even care about his own life?
Shao Wanru was shocked and woke up from her nightmares. But later she could not fall asleep again. She stopped thinking about Wen Xichi and tried hard to remember her last life in the palace. What had happened to her after she entered the palace? How did she make her acquaintance with Chu Liuchen? Did she know him or had they known each other before?
These scenes in her memory were all blank. She couldn’t remember anything and suffered a headache along the night, which made her face as pale as snow today. It was apparent that she was not in good spirits.
Shao Wanru slightly shook her head and refused in a polite tone, “I’m well. Thank you, Third Sister!”
On the other hand, Old Madam Zhao had calmed herself down when the two were talking. She picked up the teacup beside and took a sip. “Now, tell me! How will you deal with this matter?”
“Of course I’ll choose another good chamber for the marriage. Don’t worry, I promise that First Miss Zhao won’t be slighted. The furniture to be prepared by us will be the best. As for those burned things, I’ll compensate you according to the cost. Everything will cater to your satisfaction!” Old Madam promised again and again.
Old Madam Zhao put down the teacup and said sarcastically, “Pick a good courtyard? I heard that the burning one was a ‘masterwork’ by one of the Misses in your mansion and that it was the Second Miss who casually picked that courtyard.”
It was not easy to inquire about what had happened last night, but it was not a secret that Shao Jie’er was the one choosing that burnt courtyard.
“Please, Old Madam Zhao. Since you’re here, do help to choose a chamber this time. As long as your choice is your favorite, we will have no objection!” Old Madam of Duke Xing’s Mansion patted her chest and promised again.
Shao Wanru’s heart skipped a beat and her eyes were full of coldness. As she expected, they came for her father’s courtyard. All of these resulted from the coalition between Minister Zhao’s Mansion and Duke Xing’s Mansion to occupy the Quhuan Courtyard, where her father lived as the Heir of Duke Xing. The current scene was just to shut up her grandma’s mouth.
If it had been confirmed yesterday by Shao Jie’er that she once sent someone to talk to Shao Jie’er, she must be got involved in the fire case. Moreover, Old Madam Zhao just said the fire was a mistake of a Miss in the mansion, then everyone might blame it on her. At that time, even Shao Wanru’s grandma was unable to defend her though she wanted.
After all, it was easy for people to be misled to believe that the fire set on the bridal chamber might have been caused by Shao Wanru. Otherwise, the fire wouldn’t have broken out after Shao Jie’er had just left it.
Moreover, if it was proved that her servant girl had once been involved, Old Madam would never make any investigation in it because she wanted to pretend to protect her, which in fact would get her into the trouble of bearing all the blame dumbly. The evasive att.i.tude like that was the deadliest, leaving her no chance to defend herself.
More ridiculously, she even had to express her grat.i.tude to Old Madam for her sham favors.
She pressed her lips gently, waiting to see what they would do today to take Quhuan Courtyard for themselves.
She looked up in the direction from which she had sensed something and then her watery eyes just met Zhao Xiran’s gentle ones. Zhao Xiran smiled back lightly as Shao Wanru looked back at her, which made the former more agreeable.
Shao Wanru lowered her head and continued to be a silent audience enjoying their performances. As for First Miss Zhao, she seemed to be not a plain character.
“We have the right to decide the bridal chamber? I’m afraid that there will be all kinds of disapproval from your family after we pick an unexpected one!” Old Madam Zhao sneered.
“No, there won’t. You can choose any courtyard as long as it is a vacant one you like!” Old Madam promised with a smile. She became more and more humble.
“Well, that’s what you have promised me. Don’t regret it!” Old Madam Zhao looked at Old Madam with satisfaction and said.
“Of course!” Old Madam said with relief. Then she pointed at Shao Wanru and Shao Caihuan and said, “These are my two granddaughters from the main branch and the third branch respectively. Both of them agree with this.”
“Third Miss Shao and Fifth Miss Shao?” Old Madam Zhao knew a little about them. She glanced at them up and down, especially more at Shao Wanru, and then nodded with approbation. “The two Misses of your mansion are as graceful and elegant as fairies.”
She waved to them. Shao Caihuan and Shao Wanru stood up together. Old Madam Zhao took off a pair of bracelets from her hands and put one of them on Shao Caihuan’s hand. “It’s the first time we have met. Please accept the bracelets as the presents under the situation where I didn’t prepare something better!” Old Madam Zhao said, about to put the other on Shao Wanru’s hand.
Her att.i.tude was very gentle, completely different from that in which she treated Old Madam just now. She looked like an amiable elder.
At a glance, Shao Wanru had known that the bracelets were of great value. Took a look at other clothes on Old Madam, which were precious but not ostentatious. Only the bracelets were unusually gorgeous so that it was easy to tell that they were specially prepared for young ladies. The three rubies inlaid on each of them were glittering enough to catch everyone’s eyes.
It made Shao Wanru feel herself in the wrong to disagree after a pretty advantage. What’s more, Old Madam had arbitrarily made a promise on behalf of her just now. If she accepted the bracelet, later she would not be able to speak out her disapproval anymore. By the time, even her grandmother could not disagree with it.
One played the good cop and the other the bad cop. “They want to deal with not only me but also grandmother!”
Taking a step back to avoid Old Madam Zhao, Shao Wanru respectfully bowed sideways to her and said, “I don’t deserve such a precious gift from you, Old Madam Zhao!”
Shao Caihuan, who was happy and enjoying the bracelet in her hand, was suddenly stunned. She took the bracelet off and respectfully returned it to Old Madam Zhao. “Old Madam Zhao, they are indeed too precious. We dare not accept them!”
Shao Caihuan tried hard to stay the same as Shao Wanru. What happened yesterday had already made Shao Wanru unhappy. Today, she could not break up with Shao Wanru again.
Though Shao Caihuan was very tempted with the bracelet and Old Madam seemed to be very satisfied with her behavior of accepting it, she still felt that it was better to keep consistent with Shao Wanru at this time.
Old Madam Zhao’s smile froze. Holding the bracelet in her hand, she turned to look at Old Madam, whose face was also expressing embarra.s.sment. She was smiling, but it wasn’t a real smile. The hypocritical smile was exactly what she was having now.
“Third Girl, Fifth Girl, never refuse a gift from an elder. Take them and thank Old Madam Zhao!” Old Madam took a deep breath and suppressed the anger and annoyance in her heart. That was totally a heavy slap in her face. Was it obvious that to refuse the goodwill of Old Madam of the Zhao’s Mansion in front of her meant that her previous promise was invalid, wasn’t it?
Shao Caihuan hesitated, looked at the bracelet in her hand, and then looked at her grandma. She didn’t know if she should obey her grandma this time.
But she was afraid that Shao Wanru would be angry. She turned back to peek at her.
Shao Wanru raised her head and looked at Old Madam with hateful eyes, which were with a little coldness and anger.
Old Madam inexplicably felt something injudicious, so she hastened to darken her face and said, “Fifth Girl, are you going to disobey me?”