Shen Qingqing was stunned—Song Lingxiao had been beaten?
She followed Manager Chen over.
There she saw Song Lingxiao lying bruised and swollen, with Fu Doctor tending to his wounds.
Yang Wanqing was already there, standing to the side wiping her tears. "Marquis, where are you hurt? Does it hurt? Who did this to you? Have you reported it to the authorities?" Had others not been present, she likely would have thrown herself onto him already.
Seeing this, Shen Qingqing immediately rushed over and deliberately pressed hard on his injuries, making him cry out in pain. "It hurts, Qingqing, please get up first."
Not a chance—suffer the pain!
"Get up now! The Marquis is already injured—are you trying to make his injuries worse?" Yang Wanqing directly reached out and pulled her away with considerable force.
Shen Qingqing deliberately twisted her foot, causing her to fall heavily back onto Song Lingxiao. The impact nearly made him spit blood.
He was in so much pain his eyes rolled back.
"Sister-in-law, why did you pull me so hard? Otherwise, I wouldn't have fallen onto the Marquis. Look how much pain you've caused him." She preemptively shifted the blame.
Yang Wanqing: ???
Wait, it was clearly you… How did it become my fault?
But after opening her mouth for a long time, she couldn't find the words to respond.
"Marquis, do you know who did this?" Shen Qingqing wondered if it might have been Second Brother who had someone beat him up. After all, Second Brother had mentioned wanting to hit him.
"I didn't see anyone. Suddenly, a sack was thrown over my head, followed by a barrage of punches and kicks. By the time I got out of the sack, the person was already gone." Song Lingxiao couldn't figure out why he had been beaten either. He hadn't made any enemies recently.
"Report it to the authorities! How dare someone act so brazenly right under the Emperor's nose? We must report it." Yang Wanqing was furious. Seeing Song Lingxiao in this state, her heart ached, but with Shen Qingqing present, she couldn't express her concern openly.
"Forget it. I don't even know who it was. Reporting it would just be humiliating."
If he reported it, everyone would know he had been beaten up—he couldn't bear the shame.
Moreover, the perpetrator had threatened him: if he dared report it, they would beat him every time they saw him. He was in the open, while the other party was hidden—impossible to guard against.
Who in the world was it?!
"My son!" The Old Madam was helped over. Seeing Song Lingxiao's condition, her vision darkened, and she nearly fainted.
"Mother, your son is fine. Don't worry. It's just some superficial wounds. They'll heal in a few days." Song Lingxiao quickly tried to sit up, but the movement tugged at his injuries, making him look utterly disheveled.
"Don't move, don't move! Lie down properly."
To Shen Qingqing, Song Lingxiao at that moment resembled a monkey in a circus, put there purely for others' amusement.
"Qingqing, from the look of you, you've recovered?" The Old Madam turned to Shen Qingqing. It had been quite some time since she had seen her after Shen Qingqing fell into the water.
"Much better."
"Since your sister-in-law is now managing the household affairs, you should focus on taking good care of Lingxiao."
Shen Qingqing agreed. "Mother, rest assured, I will take good care of the Marquis." She slightly emphasized the word "care."
Yang Wanqing bit her lip, looking anxious. She wanted to care for Song Lingxiao, but as his sister-in-law, she simply didn't have the right to do so—unless Shen Qingqing was seriously ill or not in the residence.
Moreover, if she were to care for Song Lingxiao, she would have to return the authority to manage the household, which she was reluctant to do.
"Qingqing, are you sure your health is fully recovered? If it's too much for you, just let me know. I can lend a hand." She still wanted to try and push for it.
"Sister-in-law, managing the household is already exhausting. You should take care of your health."
"Mother, sister-in-law, you should both go rest. I will stay here to care for the Marquis."
They reluctantly departed.
The Fu Doctor prescribed a medicinal formula and instructed the servants to fetch the herbs.
"Madam, this is a medicinal ointment for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis. Applying it to the Marquis will help reduce the swelling more quickly."
"Does it need to be rubbed in thoroughly to work faster?" Shen Qingqing asked, holding the ointment.
"Yes."
After the Fu Doctor left, Shen Qingqing began applying the ointment to Song Lingxiao.
Then Song Lingxiao let out a scream like a slaughtered pig.
"It hurts! Qingqing, be gentler, it hurts! Ahhh!"
"Marquis, endure it. The Fu Doctor said it needs to be rubbed in thoroughly to heal faster. You heard him yourself." As she spoke, Shen Qingqing didn't lessen the pressure in her hands at all, especially when rubbing the injuries on his face, as if she wanted to crush his face completely.
She had been exercising regularly lately, so her hands were stronger than before.
"Stop rubbing, stop! It's fine if it heals slower." Song Lingxiao's voice was choked with tears—it genuinely hurt.
"Marquis, do you want to go to the Academy on duty with this face?"
That one sentence silenced Song Lingxiao.
He could only endure it.
By the time Shen Qingqing felt it was enough, she noticed Song Lingxiao's eyes were filled with tears.
Tch, useless man!
"Marquis, I will stay here tonight to take care of you."
Song Lingxiao immediately refused, "No need!"
Realizing he had refused too quickly, he added, "You also need to rest. Staying with me will definitely disrupt your sleep. I'm fine, no need to accompany me."
"Then I'll go prepare the medicine for you. Lie down and rest for a while."
He couldn't even be bothered to reply, only wanting her to leave quickly. The sight of her made his face ache.
Nanzhi accompanied Shen Qingqing to prepare the medicine. "Madam, are you going to prepare it yourself?"
"Is he worthy?" She snorted disdainfully. She had personally rubbed the ointment on Song Lingxiao earlier to vent her anger, but prepare medicine for him? She'd be doing well not to poison him.
She directly ordered the servants to prepare it.
"Be careful, all of you. Don't let it burn."
"Madam, should we also add a little…" Nanzhi lowered her voice to ask. This was a good opportunity.
Shen Qingqing shook her head. "The Fu Doctor will probably examine him daily. Adding poison would be easily discovered. A little impatience spoils great plans. We'll have plenty of chances in the future."
That pair of scoundrels—she would deal with them one by one.
"By the way, go to the wet nurse and bring Song Xinyin over. She'll sleep with me tonight."
Nanzhi immediately understood what she meant.
She hurried to the wet nurse to find Song Xinyin but was told that Song Xinyin wasn't there—she was at Yang Wanqing's residence.
"Madam, the young miss is with Lady Yang. The wet nurse said Lady Yang often takes the young miss away. The young miss is willing to sleep with Lady Yang and even warned the wet nurse not to speak carelessly." Nanzhi rushed back to report.
"Let's go!" Shen Qingqing strode toward Song Zhu Study.
Regardless of whose daughter Song Xinyin was, at least nominally she was her daughter now. If Yang Wanqing cared at all about Song Xinyin's future, she wouldn't dare utter a word!
"Madam, what about the medicine…"
"To hell with it! It'd be best if he died!"
Nanzhi was stunned. Madam was so fierce!
The people at Song Zhu Study lacked discipline, so there was hardly anyone guarding the place. As soon as she entered, she saw Yang Wanqing playing with Song Xinyin and asking, "Yin'er, do you like your auntie more or your mother?"
Shen Qingqing: …
"I like them both!" Song Xinyin answered in her childish voice.
"If you had to choose one?" Yang Wanqing looked at her eagerly.
Song Xinyin pouted thoughtfully for a moment. "I like my mother more!"
Yang Wanqing looked surprised, clearly not expecting this answer.
"Why?"
"My mother is beautiful! And she smells so nice, like flowers!" The child, having no filter, spoke her mind freely. Having been pampered all her life, she hardly cared about others' feelings.
Shen Qingqing, standing by the doorway, nearly laughed aloud.
She spoke up at just the right moment. "Yin'er, Mother is here to pick you up."
"Mother!" Song Xinyin immediately rushed toward her. Shen Qingqing picked her up. "How about sleeping with Mother tonight?"
Yang Wanqing gritted her teeth in frustration but had to restrain herself.
"Aren't you supposed to be taking care of the Marquis?"
"The Marquis isn't an invalid. The Fu Doctor checked him and said it's nothing serious."
"You're being too neglectful of the Marquis. You should stay by his side all night."
"If Sister-in-law is so concerned about the Marquis, why don't you go watch over him?"
Yang Wanqing froze. "Wh-what did you say?" She visibly tensed up.
"There are many matters to attend to while managing the household. Sister-in-law should rest early." With that, Shen Qingqing carried Song Xinyin away.
Returning to the main courtyard, she had Nanzhi deliver medicine to Song Lingxiao. "Marquis, the Madam suddenly felt unwell and has returned to lie down. Please remember to take your medicine." After placing the medicine on the table, she quickly slipped away.
Song Lingxiao: ???
After Song Xinyin fell asleep, Shen Qingqing took her small hand and pricked it, dripping blood into a bowl of water.