Old Madam really meant it when she said something. No one could persuade her to change her mind.
“He is not allowed to live in the mansion anymore.” Old Madam said resolutely. It seemed that she already made this decision before Qin Yunuan came here.
Qin Yunuan didn’t ask why. She knew that Old Madam must have her own plan. She kept her chin up slightly and said, “I promised my mother I would take Baochuan with me forever.”
Old Madam looked up at Qin Yunuan. The teacup near her hand had cooled off. As the sun went down, Qin Yunuan’s shadow got longer. Old Madam’s absolute voice was as loud as a large bell, revealing her majesty. “This is Prince Ning’s Mansion, my place. I am in command of everything here. You should learn from your mother about how to get along with me. She’s quite good at this. She never makes trouble, let alone the tricky one of being attacked.”
Shortly after Qin Yunuan and Leng Changxi were assaulted, Old Madam, who was far away from them at that time, already knew what happened. She really got something.
“This indeed is my fault.” Qin Yunuan apologized sincerely. Although she didn’t know who the target was, Leng Changxi or she. She knew clearly that someone from the Qin Family was involved. Otherwise, those assassins wouldn’t have shown up suddenly without a sign.
“But….”
Before Qin Yunuan finished her sentence, Old Madam cut in, “So, you can’t bring people from the Qin Family here anymore.” Old Madam had a sip of tea and looked up again. “I have no spare time to protect you.”
Protect them? Qin Yunuan was surprised and curtsied. “Young as Baochuan is, he is obedient, and he will not bring any trouble to you.”
Old Madam snorted and turned her head away. Tilting her head, she raised her hand to ask Zhichan to bring her a piece of Osmanthus cake. The yellow Osmanthus cake was soft and sweet and dotted with some Osmanthus petals. This was Old Madam’s favorite, and she must have this after the noon break.
Doing so, Old Madam was obviously ignoring Qin Yunuan and Qin Baochuan.
Just when Old Madam was ready to put the Osmanthus cake into her mouth, Qin Baochuan shouted out. “Old Madam, don’t eat it. It’s poisonous.”
He screamed out of a sudden, and his words were so terrifying that Zhichan left the whole tray to the ground. The Osmanthus cake, therefore, rolled out and ended up in flakes.
Old Madam paused and squinted at Qin Baochuan who suddenly shouted out just now. Then she had a glance at Zhichan.
Zhichan was so frightened that she knelt down immediately and said, “Old Madam, please pardon me. I forgot my manners just now.”
“It’s fine if you merely forget your manners. You’d better not plan evil tricks.” Old Madam was always straightforward. Zhichan had served Old Madam for a long time as her servant girl. Being over 20 years old, she should be the most poised servant girl. How could she be scared by a scream from a boy? Perhaps, she was just afraid of being caught doing evil.
At once, no one made a sound. Qin Yunuan was observing Old Madam in silence. Old Madam looked serious, but she didn’t frown. This meant that she was not angry but just suspicious.
“What did you say? Poisonous?” Even under such circumstances, Old Madam still spoke slowly and gracefully.
“Yes, it is.” Qin Baochuan nodded.
“It was Suxin who brought me the cake from the kitchen in the Xianghe Courtyard. People who work in that kitchen have served me for years. Who do you mean want to kill me, my granddaughter or people who go through fire and water together with me?”
Leng Suxin had little connection with other people in the mansion, but she was close to Old Madam. This was why other people didn’t dare to displease her, the indifferent Fourth Miss. After all, Old Madam was her backer.
“None of them.” Qin Baochuan shook his head and said with a serious look, “Actually, the cake is not poisonous, but other things on this table are.”
“What?” Old Madam raised her eyebrows and subconsciously looked at the orderly placed teacups, the chessboards and the blooming sagebrush, which was picked up not long ago. It was specially put before Old Madam to help her kill time.
“This is poisonous.” Qin Baochuan replied while picking up the lantern-like sagebrush and shaking it over a clean white porcelain plate before Old Madam. Then, some yellow pollen fell off. “This is not the sagebrush pollen, but the oleander one which is poisonous. Near the pond, the wind is heavy, so the pollen will definitely fall on the cake which is placed right under the flower. The Osmanthus cake is yellow, and so is the oleander pollen. Therefore, people may not be able to tell them apart and take it in. Old Madam, have you eaten the cake?”
Having lunch, Old Madam just wanted to take a break in the pavilion. Later, when Qin Yunuan came here to find her, she directly pretended to fall asleep. Thus, she had no time to eat the cake yet. If what Qin Baochuan said was true, she…
“How do you know this is the oleander pollen at one glance?” Old Madam still had sharp eyes and was as shrewd as before. “Since you say that people can hardly tell them apart. How do you know the difference?”
“It’s easy.” Qin Baochuan said in earnest. “Brushes and grass near the pavilion attract mosquitoes, but there are no mosquitoes near the sagebrush which usually is attractive for mosquitoes too. It is because the oleander pollen is mosquito-repellent. More importantly, I was almost killed by such pollen before, so I remember it well.”
This was not a perfectly reasonable explanation, but it was rare that a six-year-old child could be so smart. When he mentioned that he once suffered from the poisonous oleander pollen, it reminded Qin Yunuan that Qin Linfeng had instigated Tinghe to put poison into Baochuan’s breakfast. Old Madam was also shocked when hearing this.
After a long while, Old Madam set her eyes on Qin Yunuan who stood quietly next to Qin Baochuan. Qin Yunuan seemed not surprised that Qin Baochuan was so clear and logical. Actually, in her previous life, she already knew how smart Qin Baochuan was.
Old Madam took the pollen-covered porcelain plate to closely observe the pollen. At her young age, she was plotted against by other people many times and plotted against others as well. It was easy for her to recognize the oleander pollen. Then she was shocked. That really was the oleander pollen.
“you and your little brother are alike.” Old Madam gave a vague comment which contained praise and inquiry. “You both are smart, bold and good at leveraging your strength.”
Qin Yunuan curtsied and remained calm. As expected, Old Madam said in a cold voice, “And, you both displease me.”
The words were not pleasant, from which Qin Yunuan clearly noticed Old Madam’s preference for them.
“Zhichan.” Old Madam looked down at the shaking Zhichan who knelt down. Zhichan was the one who took care of her vases and incense. Old Madam knew clearly why the oleander pollen was in the sagebrush. “There is no need for you to serve me anymore. I can’t keep you at my side.”
It sounded alright, but Zhichan knew Old Madam was meant to kill her. No one could be alive after harming Old Madam.
“Old Madam, please forgive me. I have served you for many years. You shouldn’t doubt me simply because of his words. I really don’t know where the oleander pollen comes from. There must be someone framing me.” Zhichan was begging bitterly.
“You have served me for years so that I don’t keep an eye on you now.” Old Madam never treated people who brought harm to her nicely. She was the same as Qin Yunuan in this regard.
“Old Madam….” Zhichuan was struggling, but suddenly she was dragged away by two slim servant girls who actually had muscular arms. They were well trained and sharp. Clearly, they were skilled in martial arts.
“Now, are you satisfied?” Old Madam lowered her head and took a sip of tea. It was unclear whether she was asking Qin Yunuan or Qin Baochuan.
Qin Yunuan slowly took a step forward and said, “I’m worrying that someone plots this behind. After all, Zhichan is just a servant girl. Old Madam, why do you….”
“Find out the people behind through her?” Old Madam looked up, and she gave Qin Yunuan a sneering glance. She seemed to laugh at her innocence and ignorance. “Since Zhichan came here to serve me ten years ago, I have already known who her real master is. I didn’t kick her out because I want to let her master spy on me. I love to see how complacent she was when she got those deliberately-revealed messages. She thinks she is smart, but everything is still in my command. Without you, I would not kill Zhichan. At my old age, I’m boring. Now that someone would like to fight with me to help kill time, why not play with her?”
The Old Madam in the Prince Ning’s Mansion, or Ge Yunying, a big name in the southern battlefield, had fought with people for half her lifetime. She already regarded fighting as a fun thing.
At once, Qin Yunuan felt chillness inside. The Old Madam indeed lived in an unrestrained life but also a tiring life. Thinking of herself, Qin Yunuan also found her living amid fights. She was not sure whether she would remain in such a state when she grew old, just like the Old Madam.
“Old Madam, who are you talking about?” Qin Yunuan sounded out.
