Fan Suwan was silent for a moment. “It’s not that I suspect you, it’s that your cousin was poisoned, so I’m investigating thoroughly.”
“Then has Aunt investigated anyone else in the household? Did you investigate Uncle first, or my eldest and second cousins?”
Fan Suwan remained silent.
Jiang Zhiyu smiled sadly. “It seems not. Aunt came straight to me. What’s the difference between that and believing I’m the murderer?”
“Although I grew up in the mountains and didn’t learn any of the rules of high-class families, I wouldn’t poison someone for no reason.”
She always believed in “I won’t offend others unless they offend me. ”
“My aunt sent someone to find me and bring me into the manor, saying I’m a cousin of this family… I didn’t complain at all. Because I know my aunt must have had her own difficulties.”
“But now, my aunt actually suspects me of poisoning my cousin. I’ve never suffered such injustice before. Since my aunt doesn’t believe me, and the manor won’t tolerate me, then I’ll just leave.”
“Wangyou, Rendong, what are you waiting for? Let’s go! Don’t bother packing, it’s never really ours anyway…”
Jiang Zhiyu said, standing up.
Her eyes were already red, glistening with tears, her voice choked with sobs and grievances, yet she still maintained a stubborn and strong expression.
Seeing her like this, Fan Suwan’s heart softened a little.
Fan Suwan quickly pulled Jiang Zhiyu back, her voice even softer than before, “You’re such a grown-up, why are you still acting like a child? You haven’t even said a few words, and you’re already threatening to run away from home.” As
she spoke, she pulled Jiang Zhiyu’s hand and sat her down.
“I’m not doubting you, I’m trying to clear your name. Now that I’ve seen it, and there are witnesses to testify for you, no one can throw this mud at you anymore.”
Jiang Zhiyu stared at Fan Suwan with her red eyes. “Who’s trying to throw this mud at me? Was it my cousin? Why would she do that? I’d rather be a cousin than her, I even gave her the title of the Marquis’s legitimate daughter, why would she treat me like this?”
As she spoke, tears welled up in Jiang Zhiyu’s eyes again.
Hearing this, Fan Suwan seemed to wake from a dream.
She had always felt something was wrong.
Now she finally understood!
Jiang Jingshu hadn’t failed to poison her; she had poisoned herself! She
had sacrificed herself
to make Fan Suwan believe that Jiang Zhiyu had given the poison!
To frame Jiang Zhiyu, Jiang Jingshu was willing to go to such lengths!
Understanding this, Fan Suwan felt extremely conflicted.
She was both pleased with Jiang Jingshu’s ruthless methods and furious that she had been deceived.
Having lived all these years, she’d been completely fooled by Jiang Jingshu!
Should she praise Jiang Jingshu for surpassing her teacher?
Jiang Zhiyu secretly observed Fan Suwan’s expression.
Seeing her constantly changing expression, she knew Fan Suwan had completely believed that everything was a staged performance by Jiang Jingshu.
“Aunt, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you saying anything? Is my cousin’s poisoning serious? Have you called a doctor? Can she be cured?”
Fan Suwan came to her senses and slowly shook her head. “It’s not serious. The imperial physician has already examined her; it’s just a matter of spending some money. It’s getting late; you should rest. I’ll go back and check on her.” Fan Suwan
was genuinely anxious.
Without waiting for Jiang Zhiyu to say anything more, she hurriedly got up and walked out.
Watching Fan Suwan’s departing figure, Jiang Zhiyu’s lips slowly curled into a smile.
Let them fight like dogs!
She had another big surprise in store for them!
Wangyou walked in from outside and spoke in a barely audible voice when she reached Jiang Zhiyu’s side.
“Miss, news has come from the Immortal Pavilion that it’s done.”
Jiang Zhiyu’s smile grew even brighter. “What a pity! I can’t see my aunt’s ugly face with my own eyes. But it’s alright, I can imagine it myself! I can get a good night’s sleep tonight!”
…
Fan Suwan hurried back to Yilan Courtyard.
Before she even entered the inner room, Steward Chen rushed in.
“Madam!”
Steward Chen didn’t immediately say what it was about.
But his troubled expression indicated that it was definitely not simple.
Fan Suwan stopped. “What is it? Speak!”
“This old servant took the prescription from the imperial physician to the Immortal Pavilion, and the people there said, said—”
“Say what! Don’t dawdle!” Fan Suwan urged impatiently.
Steward Chen dared not hesitate any longer and hurriedly said, “The people from Zhexianlou said that these medicinal herbs are extremely rare and expensive. According to the imperial physician’s prescription, one dose costs ten thousand taels of silver. A bowl of medicinal cuisine also costs ten thousand taels of silver.”
“What?”
Fan Suwan’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Everyone knew that the medicinal herbs and medicinal cuisine at Zhexianlou were expensive, and Fan Suwan was no exception.
But before, they weren’t this expensive!
One dose of medicine cost ten thousand taels of silver, and with three doses a day, it would take at least ten days’ worth, which would amount to three hundred thousand taels of silver!
If you add the medicinal cuisine, that’s six hundred thousand taels of silver!
Even with a century-old heritage, the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion couldn’t afford such extravagance!
Did they really think the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion’s money grew on trees?
Fan Suwan’s face was extremely ugly. “Have you revealed your identity?”
Steward Chen lowered his head even further. “This old servant has! But the people from Zhexianlou said that, let alone the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion, even if the Emperor and Empress Dowager wanted to buy it, it would be the same price.”
“What arrogance!”
Fan Suwan’s anger surged, but she had nowhere to vent it!
If anyone else had said this, she could have scoffed.
But this was the Zhexianlou!
Zhexianlou represented the Shennong Jiang clan!
Who didn’t know that the eldest daughter of Shennong Manor was the Empress Dowager’s savior!
In recent years, the Empress Dowager had been sending good things to Shennong Manor non-stop, almost emptying the private treasury!
Not only that, the Empress Dowager had also specifically instructed Prince Chen that no one was allowed to cause trouble at Zhexianlou.
If anyone dared to cause trouble at Zhexianlou, regardless of their status, they would be arrested on the spot!
Even though Fan Suwan was extremely dissatisfied at this moment, she could only suppress her anger.
“You wait outside!”
After instructing the steward, Fan Suwan walked into the inner room.
Jiang Jingshu had been waiting for Fan Suwan to return, and as soon as she saw Fan Suwan enter, she eagerly sat up.
She was already dressed, completely covered, with sleeves that were deliberately made longer, even her hands were hidden inside.
“Mother! How is it?”
Fan Suwan looked coldly at Jiang Jingshu. “Chunfa, speak.”
Chunfa curtsied. “Miss, I’ve already questioned the maids serving in the guest courtyard, the cleaning ladies outside, the guards and secret guards in the mansion. After Miss returned to her courtyard, she hasn’t come out again.” Jiang Jingshu was stunned
But soon, she said angrily, “That’s impossible! Who else could it be but her! What about her two maids?” ”
Those two maids only poured the bathwater, and a maid accompanied them the whole time. There was nothing wrong with them. The maid also touched the bathwater, and her hands are fine; she wasn’t poisoned.”
Chunfa quickly finished speaking and hurriedly retreated behind Fan Suwan, afraid of being angered by Jiang Jingshu.
Jiang Jingshu couldn’t care less about Chunfa at this moment.
Her expression was blank, and she kept muttering to herself.
“Impossible! This is impossible!”
“It’s her! It’s definitely her!”
“Mother, believe me! It must be her who poisoned me! Otherwise, could I have poisoned myself?”
Fan Suwan said expressionlessly, “Didn’t you prepare it yourself?”
“No—”
Jiang Jingshu wanted to deny it, but looking at Fan Suwan’s cold eyes, she could only admit it.
“I prepared it, but how could I poison myself! Mother, you have to believe me! I’m about to participate in the imperial concubine selection, how could I take such a risk!”
Hearing Jiang Jingshu’s explanation, Fan Suwan’s heart stirred slightly.
It seemed to make sense.
But—
“It wasn’t Jiang Zhiyu who poisoned you, nor did you poison yourself, so did the poison somehow get into your bathtub?”
Before Jiang Jingshu could answer, Fan Suwan continued.
“I sent the steward with the imperial physician’s prescription to the Zhexianlou to get the medicine and medicinal food. But he returned empty-handed.”
“Why?” Jiang Jingshu hurriedly asked.
This concerned whether she could be cured of the poison and enter the palace through the imperial concubine selection; she desperately wanted to know the reason.
“The people at Zhexianlou said that each set of medicine and each bowl of medicinal food would cost ten thousand taels of silver. To completely cure the poison, at least six hundred thousand taels would be needed.”
When she said the last few words, Fan Suwan’s voice was icy cold.
Six hundred thousand taels! This
was not a small sum for the Zhongyong Marquis’s mansion.
If it were an expense for a proper matter, that would be fine.
But this was clearly a waste of money!
If Jiang Jingshu hadn’t bought this damn poison and inexplicably been poisoned herself, why would she need to spend so much silver?
Jiang Jingshu hadn’t expected that the antidote would cost so much silver!
But even if it cost so much silver, she still needed to be cured!
Otherwise, was she supposed to enter the palace with this body full of holes?
“Mother!”
Jiang Jingshu scrambled out of bed and knelt down.
The wounds on her body weren’t just unsightly, they were incredibly painful.
The simple act of getting up and kneeling again caused her to break out in a cold sweat.
The sweat amplified the pain a hundredfold as it soaked into her wounds.
Jiang Jingshu’s face was deathly pale, large beads of sweat rolling down her cheeks, yet she still looked pleadingly at Fan Suwan.
“Please, Mother, save me!”
“I still want to participate in the imperial concubine selection!”
“I still want to enter the palace as a concubine and speak well of the Marquis of Zhongyong’s family to the Emperor!”
“Mother! I’m still useful!”
Fan Suwan knew, of course, that Jiang Jingshu was still useful.
Otherwise, upon learning that it would cost 600,000 taels of silver to cure the poison, she would have simply turned and left.
Fan Suwan raised her hand and gently stroked Jiang Jingshu’s face. “Jingshu, how could your mother abandon you! Don’t worry, even if it costs six hundred thousand taels, your mother will definitely cure you!
But one thing is certain: this poison wasn’t administered by Zhiyu. Don’t hold a grudge against her, and never do such a thing again. Your mother hopes that you two sisters can help each other and make the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion better and better! Can you do that?”
Jiang Jingshu clenched her fist tightly, her face full of obedience. “Yes! I can!”