Chapter 676: 282 Bagua_2
Ma Chengteng watched Yueyao’s anxious expression and laughed, "Tomorrow won’t work, I have affairs at the yamen tomorrow. How about the day after tomorrow? I will accompany you to Zhaohua Temple the day after tomorrow!"
Yueyao said, "Uncle, you must keep your word."
Lord Mu had someone investigate, and found that the origin of the rumors was spread by a girl named Lin Yumeng. The reason was that Lin Yumeng had fallen for Ning Lixuan and was envious of Mu Qinglian, who was liked by Ning Lixuan. Of course, she also had thoughts of helping Ning Lixuan achieve his wish.
Mu Qinglian had no impression of Lin Yumeng; she was convinced that Luo Mingzhu was behind this malicious act: "What kind of relation is there between this Lin Yumeng and Luo Mingzhu?"
The maid shook her head, "There’s no relation, Lin Yumeng has never even met Luo Mingzhu. The Lin family has no ties with the Luo family whatsoever." The maid’s implication was that this matter shouldn’t have anything to do with Mingzhu.
Mu Qinglian clenched her fists tightly, "Impossible, this matter must be related to Luo Mingzhu. She’s framing others, hiding behind them and delighting in their misfortune."
The maid paused before saying, "Miss, Luo Mingzhu was not in the Capital City for these past two months. She had been in Ma Family’s other residence with Lian Yueyao until she returned last night."
Mu Qinglian muttered lowly, "Lian Yueyao..." Lian Yueyao was now gaining fame in the Capital City, stepping over her.
The maid said softly, "Miss, the master and madam will vindicate you. Actually, she was well aware that even if it was a baseless rumor, being slandered by others was never a good thing for her young lady."
Yueyao visited Zhuang Ruolan in the morning.
Zhuang Ruolan had been suffering from morning sickness lately, vomiting whatever she ate. When Yueyao entered, Zhuang Ruolan had just finished throwing up. Seeing it was Yueyao, Zhuang Ruolan smiled and invited her to sit down, touching her belly she said, "The first two children were so well-behaved and lovely, but this one is really causing trouble." Zhuang Ruolan had no issues when she was pregnant with Keyue and Yanqi, everything went smoothly. But this current pregnancy was torture.
Yueyao looked at Zhuang Ruolan, who had become rather thin and looked somewhat pale, and asked, "What did Doctor Zhang say?" She couldn’t help with such matters and could only seek the doctor’s assistance.
Zhuang Ruolan shook her head, "The doctor has no solution either, just said it will get better after this period." She was hungry and wanted to eat, but everything would come back up after eating.
Yueyao was helpless too.
Zhuang Ruolan smiled and said, "It’s alright, they say morning sickness won’t last too long, it should pass after this period." In fact, through all this trouble, Zhuang Ruolan had a faint feeling that this child was different from the previous two, and was surely a boy. But such thoughts were to be kept in her heart, never to be spoken out loud.
After chatting with Zhuang Ruolan for a while, Yueyao prepared to leave.
Zhuang Ruolan said, "With my current state, I’ve stopped managing household matters. Now it’s your second cousin-in-law who’s in charge. If there’s anything, go find her."
Yueyao smiled. In Ma’s Mansion, Yueyao dined alone; she only needed to send her menu to the Procurement department, they would make the purchases and send them to her. As for other necessities, there were established rules, so it wasn’t necessary to trouble Madam Tang.
Yueyao received an invitation from Prince Duan’s Mansion. It would have been fine if it were from Princess Consort Duan, but it was an invitation from Prince Duan himself.
Yueyao held the red and gold-embossed invitation and grew suspicious. "Prince Duan seems to be quite supportive of me, and now he has invited me to his mansion as soon as I’ve returned," Yueyao queried, "Xiang Wei, do you think Prince Duan knows? That painting was bought by Prince Duan himself."
Xiang Wei smiled and said, "When the enemy comes, we will meet them head-on; if gossip spreads, we’ll cover it up. If he knows, he knows. But I believe Prince Duan won’t spread the word about this."
Yueyao wasn’t worried that Prince Duan would publicize the fact that she was the Hermit in the Wild. If he wanted to disseminate it, he wouldn’t have waited until now. "Tell the messenger that I will be going to Zhaohua Temple to offer incense tomorrow, and the day after, I’ll visit the Royal Mansion to see the Prince. When the Buddha wants to see you, there’s no refusing."
Seeing that Yueyao was about to practice her calligraphy again, Xiang Wei hurriedly told her a juicy piece of gossip about Ning Lixuan and Mu Qinglian.
Yueyao, watching Xiang Wei’s excited demeanor, thought for a moment and said, "Don’t tell me you’re the one who spread this gossip." It wasn’t without reason that Yueyao first suspected her—Xiang Wei loved nothing more than stirring up trouble. Everything had been fine before, but suddenly this rumor popped up, making it difficult not to suspect her involvement.
Xiang Wei didn’t refute but chuckled slyly, "Young Mistress, they’ve come to bully us, and if we don’t fight back a little, I would feel like I’m letting down both Mingzhu and you!"
Yueyao scoffed, "Why does it involve me?"
Xiang Wei’s smile faded, and she scoffed coldly, "You might not know yet, but Mu Qinglian has spread rumors claiming you love money above all else, saying you don’t deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as her. She wants to step on you. I didn’t tell you because I was afraid you would be upset."
Yueyao had been unaware of these developments.
Xiang Wei wasn’t someone to take things lying down. "Although the Heir Apparent knows about this matter, his temperament dictates he’ll only target the Duke Ning’s Mansion, without caring about Mu Qinglian. If we let Mu Qinglian off so easily, I wouldn’t be willing. She loves to spread gossip about others so much, let her taste what it’s like to be defamed."
Yueyao could only marvel at the Princely Heir’s discerning eye, "It’s fortunate you weren’t placed by Mingzhu’s side, or else you would have caused endless troubles!" Her resolute nature, coupled with Mingzhu’s support, would surely lead to conflicts.
Xiang Wei laughed softly, "Young Mistress, kind people are easy to bully, gentle horses are easy to ride. If you want to avoid being bullied, power is one aspect, but your own strong-willed nature is also crucial. You were too soft-hearted before, which is why Lady Mo dared to push you around."
Yueyao didn’t respond, clearly acquiescing to Xiang Wei’s words. Though she didn’t fully agree with Xiang Wei, she found her actions satisfying: "Make sure to keep things in proportion and don’t stir up trouble."
Seeing that Yueyao didn’t probe further, Xiang Wei replied, "Don’t worry, Mistress, I understand restraint." Xiang Wei knew Yueyao’s situation was somewhat delicate, and one false step could cause her trouble. Therefore, she handled things with great care, which is why she had waited so long before taking action.
Yueyao didn’t inquire further, "How is the Marchioness doing?"
Xian Wei’s expression grew serious as she answered, "She woke up last night. The Imperial Physician changed her prescription, saying it had good effects and could extend her life by two or three years if nothing went wrong. But for some reason, her condition suddenly worsened yesterday, and she fainted. The exact cause is still unclear, although the Imperial Physician mentioned she might only last until the end of the year, or perhaps only these next two months. Fearing that Mingzhu would be heartbroken, we dared not tell her."
After some thought, Yueyao shook her head and said, "You must tell Mingzhu so she is prepared. Otherwise, she might not be able to handle the shock." She should know early, so she can treasure every moment with the Lady of Marquis Jingning. That way, when Mingzhu looks back, it won’t be as painful.
Xiang Wei thought Yueyao’s idea made sense, "Alright, I’ll send a message to Bai Yi right away to inform him. He can then relay it to Mingzhu."