Cui Huan scrambled back to Qing Feng Courtyard in a panic, embellishing everything that had happened at Tingxue Courtyard with dramatic details when reporting to Lin Wan’er.
Upon hearing this, Lin Wan’er trembled with rage and kicked over the charcoal brazier beside her, sending sparks flying everywhere.
“Impossible! How could she be in her room?”
She had clearly sent people to verify—that wretched Lin Shu had sneaked out. Could she have grown wings and vanished into thin air?
Cui Huan knelt on the floor, too terrified to speak.
“What about the Young Master? What did the Young Master say?” Lin Wan’er clung to this last shred of hope.
Cui Huan stammered in reply, “The Young Master… the Young Master ordered this servant to return and tell you to mind your own affairs. If there is a next time, it won’t be as simple as house arrest.”
These words poured over Lin Wan’er like a bucket of ice water, extinguishing all her fury.
Xiao Che no longer trusted her.
He had actually begun to suspect her!
…
Lin Shu slept like the dead.
She was awakened by hunger.
The moment her consciousness returned, a splitting headache tore through her mind, making her groan softly.
“Young Miss! You’re awake!”
Hua Ping, who had been keeping vigil by the bed, cried out joyfully, tears instantly welling up in her eyes. “You’ve been asleep for two days! This servant was worried sick!”
Two days?
Lin Shu was dazed. She hadn’t expected the side effects of the Incantation to be so severe.
She struggled to sit up, and Hua Ping hurriedly stepped forward to support her.
“Young Miss, please take it slow.”
Leaning against the headboard, Lin Shu rested for a long while before the grogginess began to recede slightly.
She looked at Hua Ping and noticed the dark circles under her eyes and her haggard appearance, but her spirits seemed intact, and there were no obvious injuries on her body.
“How are you? Where did those people hurt you?”
Hua Ping hadn’t expected her mistress’s first concern upon waking to be for her well-being. Her nose stung, and tears fell even faster. “This servant is fine—just some superficial wounds that will heal with time. But you, Young Miss…”
“I’m all right. As long as the item is safe, it was all worth it,” Lin Shu interrupted, her voice still hoarse.
Hua Ping nodded vigorously, carefully retrieving the oilpaper package from her bosom and handing it over.
Lin Shu opened it and glanced inside, confirming that the letter was intact before finally letting out a sigh of relief.
She rewrapped the letter, concealed it close to her body, and then turned to Hua Ping. “Hua Ping, there’s one more thing I need you to do next.”
“Young Miss, just give the order!” Hua Ping responded without hesitation.
After the life-and-death struggle in the alley, she had developed an almost blind trust and admiration for her mistress.
“Spread the word privately about Lin Wan’er’s poisoning scheme,” Lin Shu said calmly, her gaze steady and resolute. “Say that Lin Wan’er, in order to frame me, went so far as to hire assassins to attack you, an innocent maid, in broad daylight, intending to silence you and destroy the evidence.”
Hua Ping’s face paled.
Lin Shu saw her fear and softened her tone. “I know you’re afraid, but Hua Ping, think about it—if we hadn’t been lucky that night, what would have become of you?”
Hua Ping shuddered.
She would have died.
She would have been hacked to death in that deserted alley, her corpse rotting undiscovered.
“She has already decided to kill, and she won’t stop easily,” Lin Shu said, each word striking Hua Ping’s heart. “If we retreat now, we’re just offering our necks for them to strike.”
“Rather than waiting for death, it’s better to take the initiative.”
“We won’t just spread the word—we’ll make sure everyone knows. We’ll peel off Lin Wan’er’s pitiful disguise layer by layer before the entire household!”
Hua Ping’s breathing quickened. Fear remained, but a courage mixed with anger and resentment slowly rose from the depths of her heart.
Yes.
Why should Second Miss commit evil deeds yet pretend to be innocent, receiving all the affection?
“Miss, this servant… this servant understands.” Hua Ping lifted her head, her eyes filled with determined light. “This servant will go now.”
Lin Shu nodded with relief and instructed, “No need to deliberately seek out specific people. Just find those gossipy old women and pour out your grievances and fears to them. Remember, tears can sometimes be sharper than knives.”
“Yes, this servant remembers.”
Hua Ping wiped her tears, bowed solemnly, then turned and hurried out.
…
The atmosphere in the Chancellor’s residence changed overnight.
Initially, everyone was discussing how Eldest Miss Lin Shu had a vicious heart, even poisoning Old Madam Xiao.
But within half a day, a new, more explosive piece of news spread through the entire residence like wildfire.
“Have you heard? The one who poisoned the old madam wasn’t Eldest Miss at all—it was Second Miss!”
“Really? But Second Miss looks so delicate and kind…”
“Appearances can be deceiving! I heard Eldest Miss’s maid Hua Ping obtained solid evidence of Second Miss’s poisoning, and Second Miss, guilty conscience and all, directly sent assassins to intercept and kill her to silence her!”
“Heavens! If this is true, it’s truly terrifying!”
“Tsk tsk, you never really know someone… Who would have thought Second Miss was such a person…”
Gossip was the sharpest weapon of this era.
It required no evidence—only a compelling story.
Lin Wan’er hiring assassins to kill a witness.
This story was clearly far more thrilling than the tale of an elder sister jealous of her younger sister.
Instantly, the servants’ gazes toward Qing Feng Courtyard changed. What was once envy and flattery turned into contempt, fear, and avoidance.
The news naturally reached Xiao Che’s ears as well.
Xiao Che had returned to the Marquis residence and was practicing swordplay in his courtyard. As he listened to his shadow guard’s report, his sword movements grew increasingly fierce.
“Young Master, this is what everyone in the Chancellor’s residence is saying now… that… that Second Miss Lin…” The shadow guard’s voice held some hesitation.
“That she hired assassins to kill?” Xiao Che sheathed his sword, his voice cold as ice.
“Yes.”
Xiao Che’s brow furrowed tightly.
He recalled Cui Huan’s weeping account that night and the sight of Lin Shu sleeping peacefully in bed.
Connecting this with everything that happened in the woodshed and the current rumors spreading throughout the residence…
A complete logical chain formed in his mind.
Lin Wan’er administered the poison and framed Lin Shu.
Lin Shu sent her maid out to find evidence to prove her innocence.
Lin Wan’er, guilty conscience stricken, sent people to kill the witness.
Everything made sense.
Xiao Che turned with his sword, ready to head straight for the Chancellor’s residence.
“Young Master!”
A guard from the Marquis residence hurried over. “The Madam requests your presence immediately.”
Xiao Che paused, suppressing the fury in his heart, and nodded. “I understand.”
Jing’an Marquis’s Wife’s courtyard was located in the eastern wing of the Marquis residence—quiet and elegantly appointed.
When Xiao Che stepped into the warm chamber, his mother, Jing’an Marquis’s Wife, was sitting upright in the main seat, holding a cup of hot tea in her hands but had not taken a single sip.