Xie Wanning endured until Xiao Chengyan was completely asleep before daring to sneak up, not daring to move for fear he would notice.
She even cleaned him up perfectly, leaving no trace on the bed, before limping out.
Xiao Chengyan was a martial artist, with a slender waist and broad shoulders, and considerable strength.
Luckily, no one was in his courtyard, otherwise the commotion would have given them away.
She gritted her teeth and went out to find Hongye, pretending nothing had happened, and went back with her.
Yingzi stood at the door, seeing that the candlelight inside hadn’t been lit, so she didn’t go in.
…
Xie Wanning returned to her room trembling. Chunhuan, seeing her pale face, immediately became wor ried, “Miss, are you alright?”
Xie Wanning shook her head, indicating she was fine.
Chunhuan helped her to bed and asked softly, “The hot water is ready. Would you like to take a bath?”
“No, Xiaohuan, please help me take off my shoes.”
She was exhausted, her bones felt like they were about to break, especially her back, which felt like it was about to snap.
Before going to sleep, Xie Wanning instructed, “Xiaohuan, wake me up at dawn tomorrow morning and prepare the hot water.”
Hearing Chunhuan’s reply, she finally fell into a deep sleep.
At dawn, Xie Wanning was woken up by Chunhuan. She hadn’t had enough sleep, but she could only get up with her sore legs. After taking off her clothes, she looked at herself in the mirror.
Fortunately, there were no marks in the places that were most likely to give her away, except for two faint handprints on her lower back.
Those were left when Xiao Chengyan held her tightly when he was being fierce.
Xie Wanning felt a little hot thinking about what happened last night. In her previous life, she had always followed the rules, but in this second life, she had done something so earth-shattering.
But it’s better to do it now. With no way out, she won’t hesitate; she’ll just go for it.
After washing up, Xie Wanning felt much better. With makeup on, her complexion was rosy, and her eyes seemed to hold a pool of water, making her look even more radiant.
Today was the day for the three-day homecoming. In her previous life, Xie Wanrou insisted on returning with Xiao Chengli on this day, the two of them riding in the same carriage, making it seem like they were husband and wife, while she was just a concubine. It
was one thing for her to disgust her at the Xiao family, but she couldn’t let her and Xiao Chengli return to the Xie family to disgust her stepmother.
Didn’t Xie Wanrou like to feign illness?
Then she’d really be sick.
“Xiao Huan, have you prepared everything I asked you to prepare for Aunt Rou?”
“It was prepared yesterday, all fresh, live animals. It cost a fortune.”
Chunhuan was indignant, angry at the thought that such precious things had been given to Xie Wanrou, and that she didn’t even appreciate it.
She really wanted to poison her, to kill this poisonous woman and be done with it.
Seeing that Chunhuan was truly angry, Xie Wanning smiled and popped a delicious pastry into her mouth. “Once it’s ready, have Feiyue and Liuying deliver it.”
“Oh, and also tell them that my husband was at Aunt Rou’s place last night, and he’s probably just woken up. Tell them not to offend Aunt Rou, lest they anger my husband.”
Chunhuan’s eyes lit up, and she immediately understood Xie Wanning’s meaning, her anger turning to joy, and she immediately went to do it.
On the other side, Feiyue and Liuying were overjoyed upon hearing the news. They knew this was an opportunity given by the young mistress, and it was a matter of who could seize it.
So the two maids dressed up more beautifully than the other, swaying their hips as they carried the gifts to Xie Wanrou’s courtyard.
Meanwhile, Xie Wanning took Hongye to curry favor with Madam Xiao.
Madam Xiao was quite generous; today, Xie Wanning was returning to her parents’ home, and she personally ordered Granny Qi to prepare gifts for her to take back.
Xie Wanning knelt down to express her gratitude, but Madam Xiao did not tell her to get up. Instead, she said sternly, “Xie Wanning, you should know why I value you so much. If you can use the same ruthless methods your stepmother used to manage the inner quarters, I will be satisfied.”
“I hope you will change after returning to the manor this time, understand?”
“Mother-in-law, your daughter-in-law understands.”
Although she said this, she looked trembling and her head was bowed low, not at all like someone who could stand up straight.
Madam Xiao was even angrier, got up and left with a flick of her sleeve.
After leaving Madam Xiao’s courtyard, Xie Wanning straightened her back .
What ruthless methods? It was nothing more than using her to deal with Xiao Chengli’s concubines. Whether Xiao Chengli turned against her or not was unimportant. Once
the concubines were dealt with, Xiao Chengli could focus on participating in the autumn examinations. Even if Xiao Chengli divorced her in the end, it didn’t matter. Because as long as Xiao Chengli passed the examinations, Madam Xiao could find him a new wife at any time.
But she couldn’t pretend to be stupid for long. She had to deal with Xiao Chengli and Xie Wanrou quickly.
Xie Wanrou had to die, and her child couldn’t be born. Then, with Xiao Chengli dead, the child in her womb would become Madam Xiao’s only hope, and she would fight tooth and nail for it.
The plan was ambitious, but one step at a time, it could be accomplished.
On the way back to the courtyard, Xie Wanning deliberately walked towards the small pond.
The pond wasn’t large, but it was deep, filled with many plump koi carp, swimming together in a beautiful display as they fought for food.
As she was watching, Xie Wanrou suddenly rushed out from around the corner, hurrying towards her.
Hongye instinctively became wary, but Xie Wanning glanced at her, signaling her to stand aside.
Hongye took a step back, cautiously looking around to make sure no one else was nearby.
Xie Wanrou was only accompanied by a maid, and coincidentally, Xie Wanning was only accompanied by Hongye.
“Xie Wanning, you vile woman! You deliberately sent two lowly maids to my courtyard, hoping they would steal Chengli’s favor from me, didn’t you?”
Xie Wanrou’s face was contorted with rage, her eyes fierce, a stark contrast to her gentle and submissive demeanor before Xiao Chengli.
Xie Wanning smiled faintly, “What nonsense are you spouting, Aunt Rou? Feiyue and Liuying were arranged by my mother-in-law; they have nothing to do with me.”
Xie Wanrou stepped forward, very close to Xie Wanning, and whispered angrily, “They have nothing to do with you, so what do you mean by sending those things? Are you insane? I’m your own sister! How dare you use such vicious tricks to harm me?”
Xie Wanning had planned to send them for a few more days, but she hadn’t expected that after only one visit, she would recognize them. It seemed that Xie Wanning had used this tactic far too many times, and she was quite afraid of it herself.
Xie Wanning feigned ignorance, smiling sweetly, “Those are all precious living creatures, very nourishing. Why don’t you appreciate it, Aunt Rou?”
“Xie Wanning, you dare to harm my child!!”
Xie Wanrou raised her hand to slap Xie Wanning, but Xie Wanning grabbed her wrist, met her gaze, and said gently, “I didn’t harm your child, I’m doing this for your own good.”
“You…”
Before Xie Wanrou could resist, Xie Wanning grabbed her by the back of the neck and forced her to bend over.
“Aunt Rou, no matter how beautiful the fish in this pond are, you can’t get too close, or you’ll fall in.”
With that, she kicked Xie Wanrou in the back of the knee and pushed her into the pond.