Mammy said, “From what this servant observed, they brought along the young ladies and gentlemen of the Duke Residence. However, since none of the young ladies and gentlemen were present, this servant couldn’t ascertain exactly who was there.”
“Alright, I understand. You may leave.” Huimin Princess waved her hand absentmindedly, mentally reviewing the members of Anguo Duke Residence.
The current Duke Anguo could be considered a favorite of the Emperor. His wife was the thousand gold of the former Chief Minister who had retired just a few years earlier. With Anguo Duke Residence currently at the height of its influence, they could indeed quietly suppress matters like beating people to death, and abducting a young lady from a Marquis Manor wouldn’t be difficult either.
Among Duke Anguo’s legitimate sons, the older ones were already married. The only unmarried legitimate son was the youngest, Wang Xingyun.
Could it be him?
Huimin Princess recalled Wang Xingyun from her previous encounters – he was a junior who knew his manners, with quite refined features. In the official and noble circles of Fuking, he could be considered a minor golden bachelor. However, he carried a somewhat gloomy aura. Huimin Princess had thought it might be her imagination, but if he truly was that vicious and malicious, then her impression hadn’t been wrong.
Huimin Princess initially considered summoning Guogong Furen to observe and probe her, but remembering that the Jiang mother and daughters were still next door, summoning her might actually put Jiang Qiaonian in danger. So she suppressed the idea, planning to find an opportunity to investigate after returning.
After finishing her melon, Jiang Xianian felt much more at ease upon hearing that neither her mother nor sister would be going out. As her intense emotions subsided, drowsiness crept over her, and she couldn’t help but fall asleep again.
Qiao Shi gently covered her youngest daughter’s stomach and whispered to Jiang Qiaonian, “I’ll send someone to investigate which Guogong Furen has arrived. Once we determine which family it is, we can avoid them accordingly?”
Jiang Qiaonian nodded repeatedly. “That’s an excellent idea, Mother.”
If they hadn’t succeeded today, what if they later invited them under the pretext of hosting flower-viewing banquets or similar events? Wouldn’t that be walking right into a trap? After all, every Duke Residence wielded considerable power – they couldn’t possibly avoid all Duke Residences.
Qiao Shi specifically sent her most trusted personal maid, Qi Momo, instructing her to proceed quietly without anyone noticing.
As Qi Momo quickly departed, Qiao Shi comforted Jiang Qiaonian in a low voice, assuring her that no matter which Duke Residence it was, she would never be forced to marry into it.
While mother and daughter were speaking, someone outside shouted loudly: “Is the First Madam here? My mistress requests your presence and that of the Eldest Young Lady!”
Noticing how Jiang Qiaonian involuntarily trembled upon hearing that voice, Qiao Shi became quite displeased. She gently patted her daughter’s shoulder and said, “You stay here and watch your sister. Even if someone outside shouts about a fire, don’t come out!”
Jiang Qiaonian nodded.
Qiao Shi glanced at Jiang Xianian and felt somewhat relieved to see that although the little girl murmured a couple of times, she remained asleep.
She personally went outside and without another word, directly ordered: “Tie her up! Lock her in the side room!”
Two sturdy maids immediately stepped forward and restrained the maid, who kept shouting: “First Madam, what are you doing? Why are you arresting me!”
“Gag her too!” Qiao Shi commanded without hesitation.
Soon the maid was gagged and bound hand and foot with rope.
“Why are you asking me? Is it our Marquis Manor’s rule to have you shouting so loudly at the door?” Qiao Shi was furious. She had stationed guards at the entrance to prevent unauthorized entry precisely to stop anyone from secretly harming Jiang Qiaonian.
If there were truly urgent matters, the guards would naturally relay the message instead of causing such a commotion at the doorway.
Moreover, Qiao Shi doubted whether it was genuinely her fifth sister-in-law summoning her.
The maid looked somewhat familiar, yet she couldn’t recall which part of the Marquis Manor she belonged to.
Filled with both anger and suspicion, Qiao Shi ordered two matrons, “Take her to the side room and interrogate her thoroughly! Find out who sent her! Does Fifth Madam still want Qiao’er and me to go to the back hill?”
At the mention of “back hill,” the struggling maid, who had been whimpering, suddenly froze, visibly flustered.
Qiao Shi snorted coldly—this person was indeed problematic.
After dealing with the maid, Qiao Shi returned to the room and explained the situation to Jiang Qiaonian.
Meanwhile, the messenger sent by Huimin Princess hurried back to report the entire incident to Her Highness.
Huimin Princess felt slightly relieved: “It seems Jiang (eldest) Madam has some awareness of the situation. This means I don’t need to intervene.”
After capturing the bribed maid, both Qiao Shi and Jiang Qiaonian felt somewhat more at ease. At the very least, they had disrupted the Duke’s estate’s plans, making it harder for them to succeed.
By noon, the maid sent to fetch the vegetarian meal returned promptly, followed by two monks carrying large food boxes that delivered an abundant vegetarian meal for the mother and daughter.
Qiao Shi initially worried whether the monks’ eagerness indicated some trickery.
But after entering, they remained silent except for bowing upon entry and again after setting out the meal before withdrawing. Only then did she set her mind at ease.
The vegetarian meal from White Horse Temple was quite visually appealing, and the mother-daughter pair soon began enjoying it.
After finishing, they selected some barely touched dishes to reward the servants who had accompanied them.
While Qiao Shi and the others ate their lunch without suspicion, they remained unaware that the two monks who had delivered the meal slipped away along the wall immediately after leaving the courtyard. After winding through several paths, they met with a richly dressed man.
The man asked eagerly, “Did you see clearly? Is that young lady truly fair-skinned and beautiful like snow and flowers?”
The two bald men nodded vigorously: “Although she kept some distance, we saw clearly—she is indeed a beauty!”
“I glimpsed her face—tsk tsk—so rosy and lovely!”
“Her figure is excellent too!”
“Ah, and those hands! So pale and tender, even the coral bracelet on her wrist appeared vividly red against them! One glance felt like having your heart scratched!”
“Enough!” The richly dressed man interrupted displeasedly. That woman could only be his—no one else was allowed to covet her, not even in their thoughts.
“Was the drug put in everything?”
The bald monks nodded repeatedly: “Every vegetarian dish was drugged, and as you instructed, we delivered large portions to ensure they’d be shared with the servants. Soon everyone in that courtyard will faint!”
The man finally showed satisfaction: “Good. You’ll be heavily rewarded after this is done! Now, let’s go wait at the side gate of that courtyard!”
“Yes, Young Master!”
In the courtyard, after finishing their vegetarian meal, Jiang Qiaonian began to feel drowsy and said to Qiao Shi, “Mother, I’m feeling a bit sleepy. How about you?”
Qiao Shi also felt somewhat lightheaded and replied, “I’m a bit tired too.”
“Shall we take a nap?” Jiang Qiaonian asked, unable to suppress a yawn.
But Qiao Shi sensed something amiss and found herself yawning as well.
Just then, Jiang Xianian woke up and saw Qiao Shi yawning from exhaustion, finding it strange: [Why is Mother so tired? She doesn’t usually yawn this much during her afternoon naps!]
Qiao Shi’s muddled mind cleared slightly upon hearing her youngest daughter’s inner thoughts, and she grew puzzled too. Indeed, why did she feel so unusually fatigued and desperate to lie down and sleep today? This had never happened before.
Jiang Xianian immediately checked the System: [Oh no! Mother and Elder Sister have been drugged! The drug must have been put in their lunch! I only napped for a while—how could this happen?!]
Jiang Xianian couldn’t help but let out a sharp mental scream. She hadn’t expected that even hiding in the courtyard wouldn’t keep them safe from harm! She had let her guard down too soon!
Qiao Shi also jolted awake: Someone drugged their lunch?!
“Qiao’er! Quick, we must vomit the food we just ate. We’re never this tired during our usual naps—we must have been drugged!” Qiao Shi urgently called out.
Jiang Qiaonan snapped back to reality and anxiously asked, “How do we vomit? I can’t make myself throw up.”
Jiang Xianian was equally frantic: [It’s simple—just stick a finger down your throat! Then think of the most disgusting things! Hurry, hurry! If we delay any longer, the drug will take stronger effect! By then, it’ll be too late to vomit, and we’ll be at their mercy!]
Qiao Shi and Jiang Qiaonian shuddered. Qiao Shi sternly said, “Qiao’er, do as I do. We must vomit it out!”
With that, Qiao Shi leaned over the spittoon a maid handed her, stuck her finger down her throat, and soon began retching violently.
After vomiting, Qiao Shi broke out in a cold sweat all over, feeling weak and drained.
But she couldn’t afford to collapse—she had to protect her daughter.
So she personally guided Jiang Qiaonian to stick her finger down her throat and make herself vomit.
Having finally thrown up, Jiang Qiaonian was not only teary-eyed but also flushed bright red.
Seeing her mother and elder sister in such a wretched state, Jiang Xianian’s heart ached: [Ahhh, you vile scum, making Mother and Elder Sister suffer like this! Next time I see Little Twelve, I’ll tell him all about the evils this bastard has done! I’ll have him report it to his Emperor Father and Crown Prince brother!]
After the mother and daughter finished vomiting, Qiao Shi ordered the others to do the same, trying to empty their stomachs of the vegetarian meal as much as possible.
However, the drug that had already been absorbed wasn’t so easily dispelled. Everyone still felt somewhat dizzy and weak in the limbs.
After rinsing their mouths, the mother and daughter hurriedly straightened their clothes and hairpins.
Suddenly, Jiang Xianian cried out in alarm again: [They’re coming! They’re entering through the side gate! They plan to take advantage of the drug’s effect to target my elder sister! There’s nowhere to hide here, everyone’s drugged, and we can’t outrun them—what do we do, what do we do?!]
When Jiang Qiaonian heard that the poisoner had arrived, she immediately panicked: “Mother, what should we do? Let’s quickly have someone close all the doors first!”
Before Qiao Shi could speak, Jiang Xianian sighed and said: “This is a temple. Those two monks know this place like the back of their hand. Even if we close the doors, they can still climb over the walls. Two doors won’t be enough to stop them.”