Granny Chu was greatly startled, her face twisting into a grimace. She quickly knelt down. “This old servant did not! Please, Old Madam, be advised! This old servant is absolutely loyal to the Third Young Lady and never spoke those words!”
“Loyal?” Jiang Yao lowered her head, looking heartbroken yet striving to appear strong.
She stepped forward, clutching Old Madam Jiang’s sleeve, her eyes glistening with tears. “Grandmother, there is one more thing. Many of the ornaments in my room, excluding those engraved with the Jiang family mark, were stolen by this ‘loyal’ granny. Grandmother can send someone to search her room right now.”
“You, how did you know!?”
Granny Chu suddenly looked up, staring at Jiang Yao with a venomous expression.
The items she stole today hadn’t been transferred out yet when Jiang Yao brought her to Jingya Hall ( – Serene Elegance Hall). She hadn’t had time to dispose of the stolen goods.
“Granny, where exactly have I wronged you?”
Jiang Yao let out a breath, her smile miserable, and used a handkerchief to wipe the tear stains from the corner of her eyes.
“After I recovered from my illness this time, I felt my mind become unusually clear. I heard your family had a happy event, and I even had someone make a long-life lock and send it to you. Yet you still steal the jewelry Father gave me? Have I ever mistreated you during the years you’ve been by my side?”
“Why did you try to drive a wedge between my grandmother and me? And who exactly ordered you to do this?”
Cold sweat poured down Granny Chu’s face, but she quickly grasped the situation.
She couldn’t speak. If she did, her entire family would likely suffer.
“No one ordered me! It was, it was this old servant who was momentarily confused and greedy…”
But Old Madam Jiang had experienced everything life could throw at her. She turned the prayer beads in her hand, thinking hard.
“Go check this treacherous servant’s bond of servitude – the contract that proves she is a slave) and see who purchased her.”
Granny Fang was swift and returned in less than the time it takes an incense stick to burn. “Reporting to Old Madam, this Chu woman was originally bought by the First Madam for the Third Young Lady.”
“Send for Madam Liu (- the First Madam).”
Half an hour later, Madam Liu arrived late. She initially didn’t know what had happened, but upon seeing Granny Chu kneeling on the ground with her hands and feet bound, her heart immediately tightened.
Granny Chu’s mouth was gagged; she couldn’t say a word, only shake her head frantically at Madam Liu.
Madam Liu paid her no mind. Seeing Old Madam Jiang’s displeased expression, she quickly curtsied. “What is the matter? Mother, please don’t let this upset you.”
Old Madam Jiang took a sip of her tea and asked without raising her head, “Did you find this nanny for the Third Young Lady back then?”
Such a treacherous servant, inciting discord behind the scenes!
Fortunately, the Third Young Lady didn’t completely believe her and knew to come and ask this old woman. Otherwise, this matter might never have been cleared up.
Thinking this, Old Madam Jiang glared at the kneeling Granny Chu, anger surging again.
Look at this treacherous servant, adorned in gold and silver, while her Third Young Lady only wore a simple wooden hairpin.
She wondered how much had ended up in the hands of this traitor.
“It has been so long, this daughter-in-law can’t quite recall. It looks like someone I bought from the slave dealers. But I don’t know what mistake she committed to make Mother so angry.” Madam Liu forced herself to speak.
Old Madam Jiang glared at Madam Liu, picked up the teacup by her hand, and angrily smashed it onto the ground. Every word was squeezed out from between her teeth: “This wicked servant sowed discord between family members and stole the master’s property. The Jiang family cannot tolerate such a traitor.”
“What!”
Madam Liu immediately flew into a rage, pointing at Granny Chu. “How dare this treacherous dog do such a thing! Do you not want your entire family to live!?”
Granny Chu was prostrate on the ground, knowing this was a warning.
If she revealed the First Madam’s involvement, the lives of her whole family would be forfeit.
Granny Chu only continued to kowtow, incoherently begging for mercy through the gag. “It was this old servant who was confused and greedy! It is all this old servant’s fault alone!”
“Someone, administer the silence drug and sell her off along with her bond of servitude!” Madam Liu gestured behind her.
The granny behind her held a small glazed bottle and walked toward Granny Chu.
Granny Chu was held down by two strong nursemaids, her mouth shut tight and her face etched with despair.
“Wait a moment.”
Jiang Yao poured a fresh cup of tea and presented it to Old Madam Jiang. “Grandmother, calm your anger. In the end, it is also my fault for believing slander and thus wasting so much time that I could have spent with Grandmother.”
Old Madam Jiang accepted the cup, gently patting her granddaughter’s hand, feeling distressed.
Her own daughter had married far away, and she only saw her once a year. Jiang Yao, on the other hand, had been brought to her by Jiang Mingji as an infant, so naturally, she had invested considerable affection in her.
Madam Liu couldn’t stand to see them being close. She frowned and asked, “What are we waiting for? Take her away quickly, don’t let her offend Mother’s eyes.”
“Don’t be in such a hurry, Eldest Aunt. This person stole a lot of my jewelry,” Jiang Yao said slowly, looking up at Madam Liu. “We have to get clear where those items were sold and where the money went.”
Hearing this, Madam Liu’s body stiffened.
More than half of the money Granny Chu made from selling the jewelry had gone into her pocket.
But how did this girl, Jiang Yao, know?
No! She must be bluffing. Don’t panic.
The lives of Granny Chu’s whole family were in her hands. Even if Jiang Yao asked, she wouldn’t get anything out of her.
“Ah, yes, this must be properly investigated. Yao’er, hurry and ask,” Madam Liu forced a smile.
A faint smile played on Jiang Yao’s lips, but her eyes darkened and deepened.
This Madam Liu was deeply calculating. She was not favored by the Eldest Uncle, who left her at home while he conducted business. His intention was for her to foster good relations with Old Madam Jiang and the Third Branch. Instead, Madam Liu constantly engaged in petty schemes within the manor.
Especially after giving birth to Jiang Wencan. At that time, the original host was still being raised in Old Madam Jiang’s courtyard. Although the Old Madam was delighted at the birth of the first young master in the manor, she did not neglect Jiang Yao.
In fact, because Jiang Yao was raised by her side, everything from clothing to daily necessities was personally overseen.
In Madam Liu’s eyes, this naturally became proof that Old Madam Jiang favored the Third Branch.
She believed her legitimate son from the First Branch was less important than a concubine’s daughter from the Third Branch, which is why she devised this scheme.
Granny Chu, under the guise of doing what was best for the original host, had instilled countless words of division and slander in Jiang Yao over the years.
As for Madam Liu, Jiang Yao examined her: a jeweled belt around her waist, pearls and jadeite adorning her head, sapphire earrings dangling, and five or six rings on her fingers. She was incredibly opulent.
The Jiang family had not yet formally divided the household property, and Old Madam Jiang had personally appointed Madam Shen to manage the accounts.
Monthly allowances were distributed according to rules. Even if the Eldest Uncle occasionally sent money back, Madam Liu likely couldn’t afford so many expensive things.
Many servants guarded the gates of the Jiang manor. If no one had been bribed, Granny Chu wouldn’t have been able to transport the stolen jewelry out at all.
Jiang Yao sneered internally. So, the original host was the only fool in this situation.
“Even now, are you going to keep your mouth shut?”
“What does the Third Young Lady mean by that?” Madam Liu pressed her lips together, looking impatient.
“This person has already confessed that this was all her own idea.”