Shen Mingtang returned to her room.
Hua Rong and Hua Sui exchanged glances, then after a moment's thought came over to comfort her.
Hua Sui spoke first, "Miss, the young master after all considers Da Guniang his own sister…"
"That's right, Miss, men are all like this – they're the most unreasonable," Hua Rong chimed in. "Please don't be angry. Getting upset only harms your own health, it's not worth it."
Shen Mingtang was somewhat bewildered by their words, turning to look at them in confusion.
Suddenly, she couldn't hold back a laugh.
"I'm not angry," she explained.
Now that her mother had given up on Shen Mingyue, she was thinking about how to make her elder brother see Shen Mingyue's true nature completely.
The matter with Liu Jia… was quite serious and actually presented an excellent opportunity.
She figured Qin Shi wouldn't voluntarily tell her son about this matter, but the Yuchang Marquis Manor likely wouldn't let it rest, so this matter would inevitably come to light sooner or later.
Shen Mingtang thought that rather than waiting for the Yuchang Marquis Manor to blow this matter out of proportion, it would be better for her to take the initiative and control the damage from this incident.
Shen Mingtang stood up and went to the desk, instructing her maid to prepare paper.
She could use this situation to her advantage.
She carefully wrote a letter, sealed it, and handed it to Hua Rong. "Go to the Yuchang Marquis Manor and say this letter is for the Young Madam of Yuchang Marquis."
She had met that Young Madam several times when she was accompanying Prince Rui.
She was an extremely formidable and intelligent woman.
Back when Prince Rui was about to ascend the throne, the Yuchang Marquis Heir had already become the Yuchang Marquis. Under others' instigation, he attempted rebellion, but it was this Young Madam who single-handedly reined him back from the brink and brought the Yuchang Marquis before Prince Rui.
Thus, she saved the entire Yuchang Marquis household from execution.
Although the Yuchang Marquis Manor was closely connected to Hong Wang, the son of the current Noble Consort, and the heir had been acting recklessly in the capital because of this status, his wife was very reasonable.
Shen Mingtang thought for a moment, then called Hua Rong over again and gave her some additional instructions in a low voice.
Hua Rong didn't ask any questions, taking the letter and hurriedly departing.
Shen Mingtang had assigned the two maids their duties: Hua Rong was clever and bold, so she handled external matters, while Hua Sui was meticulous and loyal, responsible for matters close to her.
Each had their own responsibilities.
This made it much more convenient for Shen Mingtang to conduct her affairs.
She just didn't know when Yu Momo would return… Thinking of Yu Momo, a gentle warmth rose in her heart.
Everything in her courtyard, including how the maids and servants conducted themselves and the attitudes of the masters, were all things Yu Momo had gradually taught her how to handle. In just a short time, Yu Momo had taught her so much and helped arrange so many things for her.
Shen Mingtang sat in her room for a while longer, then got up to look for Qiuyue.
Qiuyue had just come out of Qin Shi's room.
"Has Mother fallen asleep?" Shen Mingtang asked softly.
Qiuyue nodded. "She just fell asleep. The young master is keeping watch beside her."
She thought for a moment. "This servant told the young master about some things Da Guniang has done recently. It's just that the young master…"
Qiuyue sighed.
She felt she had already spoken quite plainly about some matters, yet the young master stubbornly believed that Er Guniang and Zhou Yiniang were behind everything, insisting that Da Guniang's current closeness to Zhou Yiniang was entirely due to Zhou Yiniang's manipulation.
Although one could say that, if Da Guniang had any conscience at all, she wouldn't have yielded to Zhou Yiniang's instigation, would she?
"Thank you for speaking up for me," Shen Mingtang said.
Qiuyue quickly waved her hand, "Second Daughter, you mustn't say that. This servant merely offered what little help she could."
Shen Mingtang fell silent for a moment before abruptly changing the subject, as if making casual conversation. "Are you my mother's accompanying maid, Miss Qiuyue?"
Qiuyue nodded, somewhat puzzled by why she would ask this, but still replied, "This servant has been serving Madam since I was six years old. When Madam married into the Shen family, I came along as part of her dowry."
In previous years, Madam had considered finding her a good match for marriage, but she couldn't bring herself to feel at ease about Madam's situation in the Shen family, so she firmly refused.
To this day, she remains with Madam in the capacity of a maiden attendant.
"Could you tell me in detail about what happened back when Zhou Yiniang and my mother were both pregnant and gave birth around the same time?" As Shen Mingtang spoke these words, her palms were sweating with nervousness.
Qiuyue frowned, "Why is Miss asking about this all of a sudden?"
Of course she remembered—she had been the one staying by Madam's side throughout, nearly scared out of her wits.
"I heard that my mother's health deteriorated after giving birth to my elder sister," Shen Mingtang had already prepared her reason. "So I wanted to ask if something happened at that time?"
Seeing her explanation, Qiuyue didn't ponder further.
She sighed, "It was indeed a perilous situation back then. Because of Zhou Yiniang, Madam nearly… If Miss wishes to hear about it, please come to this servant's room. I'll recount it to you in detail."
Shen Mingtang decisively followed behind her.
At Yuchang Marquis Manor.
The Heir's Wife raised an eyebrow at the young maid delivering the message below, "Your young lady—is she the Shen family's Second Daughter who saved Prince Rui's life?"
Hua Rong acknowledged affirmatively, speaking according to Shen Mingtang's instructions, "The young lady said that the Heir's Wife is an intelligent person who must have deduced that the woman mentioned by the Heir refers to her. Today, she wishes to propose a transaction with the Heir's Wife. The details of the transaction are written in the letter."
The Heir's Wife lowered her head and opened the letter in her hand. Neat, elegant handwriting met her eyes.
She curved her lips slightly.
If nothing else, these characters appeared impeccably proper on the surface, yet concealed within them was a hint of sharp decisiveness. No wonder the Heir had suffered a loss at her hands—it wasn't entirely unjust.
A Shen family concubine-born daughter… How could a concubine-born daughter develop such presence?
When the Heir's Wife read the contents of the letter, she couldn't help but let out a cold laugh, "How did she obtain information that even I wasn't aware of?"
"The young lady anticipated you might not believe it, so she suggests you verify it for yourself," Hua Rong replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.
When the young lady wrote this letter, she hadn't concealed it from her or Hua Sui.
Thus, she knew the letter's contents.
The Yuchang Marquis Heir was keeping a woman in a residence west of the capital. Had it been any ordinary woman, it might not have mattered, but this woman happened to be from the Southern Jin Kingdom.
It was common for men to keep courtesans or outside mistresses—neither was considered a major affair.
But keeping a Southern Jin woman? If the Emperor were to find out, he would likely be furious, and it might even lead to the downfall of the Yuchang Marquis Manor.
"You may return first. If this proves true, then I agree to this transaction," the Heir's Wife lowered her gaze, her fingers tracing the handwriting on the letter.
Unseen by anyone, she let out a soft sigh, frustration brewing in her eyes.
Fortunately, this information concerned the safety of the Yuchang Marquis Manor, while the matter the Shen Second Daughter proposed for exchange was merely a trivial affair.
Hua Sui bowed and took her leave.