Chapter 999 Who Was Forced? The Time Is Right!
Another servant girl came out from behind Shao Wanru and worked together with Yujie to make Madam Jiang sit down on the chair.
“Madam Jiang, please don’t disturb our Miss to release the souls of the former Heir of Duke Xing and Infanta Qinghua from purgatory by reciting the Amitabha Pure Land Rebirth Dharani!” Yujie said in a low voice, looking neither humble nor arrogant.
Madam Jiang was so angry that she gritted her teeth secretly, but she could not interrupt Shao Wanru again. She could only suppress the anger in her heart and asked Yujie in a kind and pleasant way, “When will Princess Chen finish it?”
“I’m not sure!” Yujie whispered the answer.
Once again, Madam Jiang was enraged by her words, but she had to suppress her anger before asking, “The holy text of a sutra is limited. How could you not know when she would finish it?”
“You’re right. Her Highness can finish reciting it after some time, but she often recites it more than once. When she lived in the Yuhui Nunnery, she would chant it the whole day. No matter how many times she does it, she won’t think it’s enough to fulfill her filial duties. Back then, our Miss wanted to do a religious ritual in the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. Now, she will certainly take this rare chance to chant it as many times as possible!” Yujie said.
She then bowed respectfully to Madam Jiang and lowered her voice to say, “Please do not disturb Her Highness again and let her finish chanting the Amitabha Pure Land Rebirth Dharani for her parents in peace.”
Madam Jiang thought she had learned to control her temper after spending so much time in the Yuhui Nunnery. In fact, she had been good at keeping her composure when she was in the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. In the eyes of everyone, she had always been a dignified and decent n.o.ble Madam. However, whenever she faced Shao Wanru, somehow, Madam Jiang couldn’t contain her anger.
“No one knew how long it would take, and she told me to stay away!
“How could I walk away? I’ve made painstaking efforts to set this trap. Don’t even think about getting away with ease!”
So, she shook her head and said, “Then I’ll stay here with Princess Chen.”
“Madam, you don’t look well. You’d better go back to rest. We can stay here with Princess Chen. Her Highness may not finish chanting it soon!” Yujie said.
“It doesn’t matter. I also wanted to chant some Buddhist sutras here!” Madam Jiang said with a frigid smile. Shao Wanru had robbed her of her good job. According to her original plan, she would be kneeling here to let everyone see her sincerity: even though she was seriously injured, she was willing to kneel until the end of the ritual.
Although she had made a mistake, it was not serious. w.a.n.g Shengxue was mainly to blame for the case. People wouldn’t believe all that he had confessed. Many of them would stand on her side.
As for whether Shao Wanru believed it or not, it was not a big problem. At least on the surface, Shao Wanru, who was now Princess Chen, couldn’t do things with no concern due to her status.
Since Shao Wanru became Princess Chen, she had to behave with great dignity. With so many things to take care of, she could no longer do whatever she wanted to do at will.
As long as Madam Jiang won over enough sympathy from others, Shao Wanru, who was Princess Chen, had to swallow her feelings and intercede for her.
In particular, Madam Jiang had invited people from the Ministry of Justice over because she wanted them to see how Shao Wanru got along with her in private. It would be better if Shao Wanru beat her furiously or said something improper in a rage.
However, she did not expect Shao Wanru to treat her indifferently as if she had not seen her. She did what she should do. At this moment, she was engrossed in reciting the Amitabha Pure Land Rebirth Dharani, leaving Madam Jiang no chance to talk to her.
Her version of events was entirely different from what actually happened. Madam Jiang, gritting her teeth in hatred, had to brace herself to meet the challenge. She couldn’t retreat. If she left, she would have no chance to irritate Shao Wanru or make Shao Wanru forgive her, even on a superficial level. Either way would get her out of trouble.
The room quieted down with only the sound of Shao Wanru beating the wooden fish lightly. The corners of her mouth moved slightly as she recited scriptures silently. There were Buddhist monks and Taoist priests in the wing rooms on both sides of the main room. They chanted their religious scripts in rhyme, making this place an otherworldly sort of place. Everything seemed so unreal.
Madam Jiang couldn’t sit anymore because she was beaten with sticks. Though her wounds were not as severe as they appeared, she was sick and wounded. Sitting still like this made her feel more uncomfortable than when she knelt on the ground.
Leaning against the chair, she moved slightly to make herself feel better and secretly heaved a sigh of relief. Then she lowered her head and listened to the chants quietly. After a while, she turned in another direction. Shortly after that, she moved again uneasily. Since she stayed on the chair for a long time, she felt stiff in her arms and legs. Her injured legs, especially, became sore and numb with bursts of pain.
She turned again.
“Madam Jiang, let me change a place for you.” Yujie saw her embarra.s.sment, so she walked to her side and whispered.
Madam Jiang looked around. Her chair was next to the incense table and close to Shao Wanru. Therefore, she didn’t dare to move too much. Feeling very uncomfortable, she reached out to point at the door and motioned for Yujie to move the chair there. It was far away from the table and Shao Wanru, so she could move at ease to relax.
Yujie nodded and asked a maid to help Madam Jiang stand up while she picked up the chair and gently put it down at the hall’s entrance. Then she invited Madam Jiang to take the seat.
Holding the hands of the servant girl, Madam Jiang walked over slowly. After sitting down again, she lifted her legs. Only then could she stretch her legs again. The wounds on her legs also felt much less painful.
Her feet were right beside Shao Wanru just now. It was really inconvenient for her to lift her legs because she was afraid she would accidentally touch Shao Wanru.
“Madam, I’ll make you a cup of tea!” Yujie asked in a low voice again.
Madam Jiang nodded. In a cold sweat, she was tired and painful. At this time, she was thirsty.
Yujie went inside and soon came back with a cup of tea. After that, she asked a servant girl of Prince Chen’s Mansion to bring a large tea table from the side room. Then she placed the teacup on it.
Madam Jiang picked it up and took a sip, breathing a long sigh of relief. With a malicious look, Madam Jiang stared at Shao Wanru, who was kneeling inside with her back to her. At this time, they were far apart from each other.
“Madam, here are some snacks, and you can eat them with the tea. Her Highness specially told us to take them here from the Prince Chen’s Mansion!” Yujie walked to the door, picked some snacks from the sacrificial offerings they brought here, and put them on the table in front of Madam Jiang. Then she pointed to Shao Wanru and said, “Madam, please don’t make much noise when enjoying them. It may disturb Her Highness!”
Her behaviors nearly drove Madam Jiang crazy.
“G.o.dd.a.m.ned Shao Wanru! Indeed, maids often look and act similar to their masters. I thought this maid was smart, but how could she let me have the sacrificial offerings from the Prince Chen’s Mansion here? It’s unacceptable.”
“Nanny Yu, take these away!” Madam Jiang said to Nanny Yu, who was following her.
“Well…” Nanny Yu looked at the table with a frown. In her eyes, the large table was the most annoying thing. She didn’t know where Yujie found such a table, which didn’t fit in this place at all. “Madam…”
She was about to persuade Madam Jiang to remove the table too.
“Madam Jiang, they are gifts from Princess Chen to the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. Don’t you like them?” Yujie suddenly interrupted her, and her smiling face immediately darkened. The servant girl of Prince Chen’s Mansion, who had been working with her, stared at Madam Jiang and Nanny Yu with an unfriendly look.
Nanny Yu panicked and choked on her drool. She couldn’t help coughing loudly. For fear of disturbing Princess Chen, she ran outside, pressing against her chest.
“How could I distaste gifts from your mansion? But it’s not appropriate to eat snacks now!” Madam Jiang, trying so hard to suppress her anger, explained to the maid whom she despised the most in the past.
However, as a saying goes, a man standing under the low eave has to lower his head. Madam Jiang was no longer the Madam of Marquis Xing with great dignity. At this time, she had to endure it. Even if it was for her daughter, she must swallow the insults.
“Not appropriate now? Then when do you think it will be suitable?” Yujie said unhappily with an overbearing air.
“I mean… let’s withdraw them for the time being. When Princess Yue finishes, we can have them together!” Madam Jiang endured the humiliation and suggested with an amiable smile.
She was all skin and bone and appeared a little spooky when she smiled. Apart from that, she was still the capable Madam of Marquis Xing as she used to be.
“Her Highness has already had the snacks. Madam Jiang, you’d better eat some first!” Yujie suddenly picked up a plate of pastries on the table and handed them to Madam Jiang. “Madam Jiang, please!”
Although her words sounded polite, she acted disrespectfully.
Again and again, the maid forced her to do something she didn’t want to. No matter how forbearing Madam Jiang was, she could not bear it any longer. Her face darkened as she barked, “How dare you! Get out, right now!”
“Madam Jiang, do you want them or not?” Yujie ignored her harsh order and looked down truculently at her, raising her eyebrows. It seemed as if she would stuff the pastry in her hand into her mouth by force if Madam Jiang couldn’t give her a good answer.
“You… you…” Madam Jiang flew into a rage, pointing at Yujie with a wave of anger. Eventually, she managed to hold back her anger and only squeeze out a single word through clenched teeth.
“Madam Jiang seems to be in a really good mood. Sitting elegantly at the memorial ceremony, she enjoys those snacks with nice tea. And at whim, she reproached Princess Chen’s trusted maid. How imposing she is!”
As a peal of laughter came, Madam Jiang’s heart thumped with fear. Immediately, she realized something was seriously wrong. “Why would someone come at this time? Shouldn’t they all be stopped outside? Only when she finishes her business here will the others be allowed to get in to offer sacrifice! Who could enter and behave so unruly?”
Madam Jiang turned around and saw the few servants of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion hiding behind a group of people. Infanta Yuan’an, who was smiling, was escorted by them.
They must be here to pay their respects because the servant girls and old maids behind her had many sacrificial offerings in their hands.
“Madam Jiang, you’re an elder, but you’re nothing compared with Infanta Qinghua, aren’t you? How could you be so disrespectful to the deceased? And how dare you humiliate Princess Chen like this? You have no respect for the royal family at all!” At this time, Infanta Yuan’an also saw Shao Wanru, and her face changed greatly. She pointed at Shao Wanru, severely denouncing Madam Jiang’s conduct.
Before the marriage, both Infanta Yuan’an and Shao Wanru were descendants of the royal family. Although their surnames were not Chu, they were descendants of Great Elder Princess.
Shao Wanru kept knocking on the wooden fish, the corners of her mouth curling up a little. Her long eyelashes moved as she opened her eyes slightly. She remained calm and stole a glance at the back of the altar table. There was no wind just now, but something there moved. “Someone must be hiding over there!” Shao Wanru thought to herself.
After she came in, she found that there was someone there. From time to time, Madam Jiang would look over there. Although she did it quietly, Shao Wanru noticed it.
It was almost the time when Infanta Yuan’an, who wanted to be on good terms with her, appeared…