The Duchess acted swiftly in order to save her son. She prepared the betrothal gifts that night. They were all good items she had taken from her dowry. The fall of the Duke Zhenguo’s manor over the years meant that while they did not have to worry about basic necessities, the budget was still a little tight.
Fortunately, the Duchess had never touched her dowry and there were still some expensive items in it. She thought that if the betrothal was successful, Mo Xuemin would be considered her daughter-in-law. These things would still end up returning to the manor. That eased her anger slightly. Once the little slut entered the manor, she could torture her in any way she wanted.
The Duchess went to the Mo Manor early the next day!
Mo Huawen had not yet returned from morning court. The Old Madam had returned to her courtyard, embarrassed and guilty. She was too ashamed to see anyone and let others tell Mo Huawen that she was ill and that he need not come and greet her. Had this been any other day, the Old Madam would have treated the Duchess in a friendly manner because of Mo Xueyan. However, now that something like this had happened, she was in no mood to receive the Duchess. She only said that she was not feeling well and told Auntie Qing to receive the Duchess instead.
Mo Huawen went to Auntie Qing’s courtyard on the day of Mo Xueqiong’s incident. He gave Auntie Qing a scolding while Mo Xueqiong was beaten ten times by the paddle. Mo Xueqiong was lying in bed right now. When Auntie Qing heard the Old Madam’s summons, she could not do anything but ask Auntie Mo to receive the Duchess instead.
Auntie Mo had never received such a distinguished guest like the Duchess. She felt really apprehensive. She welcomed the Duchess with a smile.
“Madam Duchess, why have you come today?” Auntie Mo asked with a smile. She did not know why the Duchess was here and carefully invited her into the living room. The maids served tea.
The Duchess was already feeling displeased when she saw that she was being received by a concubine. However, when she thought of how she was here to plead with the Mos, her eyes grew slightly warmer. She said lightly, “I wonder if you can let me see First Miss.”
She truly could not be bothered to chat with a concubine. It was an insult to her status. As such, she spoke in a straightforward manner and asked to speak with Mo Xuemin. She did not believe that the little slut would dare to say that she was not in a secret relationship with Yun’er in her face.
“Madam, you are too kind. Of course you may.” Auntie Mo gave it a thought and nodded in agreement.
She was just a concubine and did not know much. On one hand, she felt that the pressure the Duchess was exerting on her was too great. She felt very uncomfortable. Since the Duchess wanted to see First Miss, she might as well let First Miss deal with it. She went out and asked the servants to take the Duchess to Mo Xuemin’s courtyard.
The Duchess brought her own servants who held the betrothal gifts and went to Mo Xuemin’s courtyard. Mo Xuemin had only just woken up and was sitting in her room in a daze, thinking about some things. When she heard that the Duchess was outside, she could not help but be stunned. She suddenly stood up and went further inside the room. She told Mo Xiu to tell the Duchess that she was not in!
She felt that she had nothing much to say to those from Duke Zhenguo’s Manor after that happened.
However, the Duchess had already barged in. It was impossible for her to avoid the Duchess. As such, she could only invite the Duchess to sit down.
“First Miss Mo, what happened that night? Why was Yun’er with you? I heard that you returned to your manor early that day.” The Duchess sat down. Her eyes were dark as she spoke coldly. She did not bother being nice to Mo Xuemin. Mo Xuemin was from a good family. However, she was not at home sleeping in the middle of the night and was instead found on the streets. That itself proved that there was a problem with her.
Mo Xuemin did not think that the Duchess would be so sharp. She paused and could not speak for a moment. She felt so anxious that her face was flushed red.
She was certain that Sima Lingyun would not dare to say anything about that matter. However, she did not expect that the Duchess would come to their home and ask her about it directly.
Sima Lingyun would not say anything about how the two of them plotted together against Mo Xuetong. This meant that Sima Lingyun would not be able to explain his actions. He could only plead guilty to the count of failed rape. She would then be able to escape with her chastity intact despite the fact that the two was caught hugging with their clothes in disarray. Furthermore, if the Princess helped her secretly, it would be easy for her to get away with her crime.
However, while she had managed to successfully scheme against Sima Lingyun, she had not taken the Duchess into account.
“First Miss Mo, if the officials of the Ministry of Justice find out that others discovered the secret meeting between you and Yun’er in the palace on the same day, would they think that what happened after was just another secret meeting between the two of you?” The Duchess pressed on. Her eyes were cold and sharp.
“I did not have a secret meeting with His Excellency in the palace!” Mo Xuemin defended herself anxiously.
How would she dare to admit something like that? If what happened in the palace was linked up with what happened later that night, it would be easy for others to think that she was having a secret relationship with Sima Lingyun.
“If not, then why did you not explain yourself clearly then? Instead, the others forced Yun’er out into the light as well. There were so many young ladies and masters there that day. Were they all confounded?” The Duchess’ eyes were fierce and vicious. She stared at Mo Xuemin unyieldingly.
“But that person said that he misunderstood me in the end.” Mo Xuemin said, her expression changing slightly.
“Did that person watch you the entire time, First Miss Mo? Or was he the person you were having a secret meeting with all this while? Is that why he knows you so well! First Miss Mo, I will cut the chase here. Yun’er has been taken to the Ministry of Justice and still has not been released. You just have to admit that you were together with Yun’er that night. The two of you encountered a robbery and Yun’er was injured because he was trying to save you.” The Duchess slammed her teacup onto the table. However, there was a hint of a gentle smile on her face.
If she admitted that she was together with Sima Lingyun when they encountered a robbery, it would mean admitting that she had a secret relationship with Sima Lingyun. Mo Xuemin would not allow herself to be at a disadvantage. As such, she no longer pretended to be weak and gentle. She looked up and looked straight at the Duchess. She retorted, “Madam, you should not say that. His Excellency knows what happened that day very well. How could you make me bear the brunt of that charge? Even though you want to save His Excellency, you shouldn’t say that.”
“If you hadn’t dated Yun’er, he would not have gone out so late at night.” The Duchess stood up furiously. Nanny Tian, who was standing beside her tugged on her sleeve.
“Rest assured, I will have him send a big red sedan to marry you if nothing happens to him. You will be the future wife of the Marquess. I will not let Yun’er mistreat you.” The Duchess forced down her anger and sat down again. She was here to plead with Mo Xuemin and had no choice but to lower herself.
“Madam, you think too highly of me. What kind of abilities do I have to save His Excellency? So many people saw us that day, and no matter what kind of miracles I can pull, I cannot save His Excellency. Please think of a different solution, Madam.” Mo Xuemin refused the Duchess. She harrumphed coldly to herself. She was not interested in becoming the wife of the Marquess whose family was in ruins.
“First Miss Mo, are you truly unwilling to save Yun’er?” “Are you not afraid that I’ll tell others of your relationship with Yun’er? You would only be able to become a concubine at the most then when you want to step back into our manor!” The Duchess gritted her teeth and threatened. She did not think that Mo Xuemin would be so stubborn.
“Madam, we did not have a secret relationship for you to speak of.” Mo Xuemin would not relent at this moment.
When she thought back carefully, she did not think that the Duchess had anything in her hands that could prove that she and Sima Lingyun were having a secret relationship. She was very careful and told Mo Jin and Mo Xiu to pass on the message most of the time. They did not leave behind any physical evidence.
“Alright, First Miss Mo, you are really stubborn. Then we shall see!” The Duchess was so angry that her voice trembled. She stared at Mo Xuemin coldly, looking as if she wanted to eat her up.
Mo Xuemin could not help but shudder. She avoided the Duchess subconsciously while still saying stubbornly, “Madam, please go back. Father wants me to stay at home and think about what I have done. I cannot have you over anymore.”
Mo Xuemin was throwing the Duchess out!
The Duchess was so angry that her expression turned dark. She stood up suddenly and glared at Mo Xuemin viciously. She ignored Nanny Tian who was tugging on her sleeve and turned away with her servants. She was a Duchess. She did not believe that she would not be able to deal with a little concubine’s daughter.
“Miss, what are we going to do?” Mo Xiu asked anxiously when she saw the Duchess leaving angrily. She had been standing by the side earlier and felt very anxious on behalf of her mistress. She only realized her palms were sweaty when the guests left.
“It’s alright. What kind of evidence could the Duchess have to prove that Sima Lingyun and I had a secret relationship!” Mo Xuetong harrumphed coldly. “The Duchess must be at her wit’s end to come and plead with me. She wants me to admit that I am immoral and then have her son marry me. She really is a good schemer.”
She was extremely eager to avoid the Duke Zhenguo’s Manor right now. Why would she save Sima Lingyun? If they were to really discuss the matter, she would only be able to walk freely if Sima Lingyun was charged as guilty. Between the two of them, only one of them could take responsibility for the incident. She hoped that Sima Lingyun would take full responsibility.
Furthermore, she now had the Princess to support her. She was not afraid that the Duchess might seek revenge! If the Duchess really had a solution, she would not have come here.
The Duchess left the Mo Manor gardens huffily. When she thought of what Mo Xuemin had said earlier, she was so furious that she felt like exploding. She walked even faster. She felt that she might just die of anger if she stayed in the Mo Manor any longer.
There was a rockery in front. The Duchess turned around it without looking around clearly. She walked forward with large strides. There was a flash of a figure in front of her. She stumbled and heard a shout of dismay before she could react. Behind her, Nanny Tian had been watching her mistress. When she saw her mistress stumbling, she hurried forward to steady her. The person across them, however, lost control and fell to the ground heavily.
It was a maid who was about 13 or 14 years old. The fruit bowl she was holding smashed onto the ground. The apples and oranges in the bowl scattered in all directions. The maid was flustered and her face was pale as she picked up the fruits anxiously. She did not even look at the person who bumped into her.
The Duchess harrumphed coldly when she saw that it was a little maid from the Mo Manor. She stepped over the apples and continued on. She was furious and disliked everything about the Mo Manor. It was naturally the maid’s fault that the fruit bowl was shattered. What had it to do with her?
“Oh no, Old Madam meant to give this to Miss. I heard that it was Duchess Mingyang who had brought them especially back to the capital. It’s now ruined. Oh no!” The maid picked the apples while muttering to herself tearfully. She was shocked and frightened.
Duchess Mingyang? Duchess Zhenguo stopped and turned around to signal at Nanny Tian.
Nanny Tian had been following the Duchess and heard what the maid said clearly. Her expression immediately turned to one of joy. She squatted down hurriedly and helped the maid while she said, “Are these fruits really from Duchess Mingyang? Didn’t they say that the Duchess didn’t come to the capital?”
“Of course it’s true!” The maid wiped away her tears. When she saw Nanny Tian helping her pick up the fruits, she sniffed thankfully and said, “Thank you, of course it’s true. The Madam has been here for a while but has been keeping the Lady of Xian all this while. The Lady did not want anyone to know where she was, so she said that she was not spending the new year in the capital. Now that the Lady is about to leave, the Madam is bidding farewell to her old friends.”
