This was no longer a simple case of taking a concubine. However, it could not be used to testify against You Yuecheng. Yun Ya had loose morals and had already had an affair with someone else, and no one would believe her. You Yuecheng had always enjoyed a good reputation. A mere Yun Ya could not shake his reputation. Even though the jade pendant was owned by those who could enter the palace, You Yuecheng was not the only person who had it. It was possible that he would bite Luo Wenyou back
However, Mo Xuetong thought they should not waste such a person. She might as well get someone to watch over Yun Ya. Yun Ya was still in her courtyard which would be tightly guarded but nothing could be seen on the surface. When there was a need, she could be taken out to testify against You Yuecheng. It would be the most appropriate use at the crucial juncture. However, it was still not a good time to alert the enemy.
Then the servants took Yun Ya and her two servants around her out of the room.
Luo Bin brought Madam Qu and Luo Mingzhu to the study, and Luo Wenyou and Mo Xuetong were left in Old Madam’s house.
“Grandmother, I was wrong. I almost harm the entire Fu General Manor!” Luo Wenyou took two steps forward, knelt down in front of Old Madam with guilt and kowtowed heavily a few times. His eyes grew red when he saw that Old Madam still looked pale. He felt really guilty. He was the one who had caused his grandmother to be angry.
Old Madam took over the cup of tea Nanny Shen had remade and handed it to her. She took a sip to calm herself down and sat up straight, asking, “Do you know where your mistake is?” There was a flash of red in her eyes. Her grandson was not so confused, and it was enough to comfort Old Madam.
“I shouldn’t ignore the family’s interest and admitted this matter to protect Aunt from censure…” Luo Wenyou was extremely regretful at this time. He did not know that Yun Ya was not only restless by nature, but also harbored an evil intention against Fu General Manor. Almost, Fu General Manor was almost ruined by him. At the thought of this, how could Luo Wenyou not regret it?
He had always been kind and had grown up with You Yuecheng since he was a child. They usually attended the same banquets and were in the same circle. He did not expect You Yuecheng to plot against him. Even though he did not know what happened in the desolate yard in the back yard, he knew that matter must not be leaked out to others. His grandmother had told him very clearly when he was very young. When Mo Xuetong returned to the capital, his grandmother repeatedly told him not to say it to her.
Luo Wenyou knew that it was an unusual thing when he thought of how strict his grandmother was with the matter. However, he did not expect You Yuecheng to be interested in this place. How could Luo Wenyou not be angry and feel afraid? If Yun Ya became a member of Fu General Manor, she might really be able to find out about it. Then, his grandmother’s secret would be revealed to the world. His grandmother said that the secret would shake the foundation of Fu General Manor and cause the Emperor to grow suspicious of them.
That might lead to a disaster that involved the extermination of the whole family!
“You’er, did you think that Yun Ya was a gentle girl before and that it doesn’t matter to put her in the back yard? Did you think that was what your Second Aunt wanted, so you help her?” Old Madam sighed and looked at her grandson who she had been cultivating wholeheartedly into the successor of Fu General Manor. The child was too soft-hearted, and it would not be a big deal if he was in an ordinary family. However, he could not act like this in a grand manor like their family because it would kill many people.
Luo Wenyou’s face changed a few times. He looked at Old Madam’s face and said firmly, “Grandmother, I won’t do it again!” His heart was much stronger than before after what happened today. He looked at Mo Xuetong, who was quietly standing by the side. When he thought that she could see the crux of the matter just now and he could not find out anything about it, he felt guilty again.
“Get up!” Then Old Madam did not say anything else. Luo Wenyou could only depend on himself to understand this matter. Her grandson was smart and nice, but he was too soft-hearted. He had been caught by his aunt today and might be taken advantage of by his concubines tomorrow. It was really worrying.
In the future, he would be Fu General, the one who would truly be in charge of Fu General Manor. How could Old Madam not be worried? Fu General Manor was famous for its martial arts skills, and Luo Wenyou was a scholar and no longer had any advantage. If he remained too soft-hearted, Fu General Manor would truly end up in defeat.
“Grandmother, don’t worry. I will not make the same mistake again.” Luo Wenyou promised, gritting his teeth. A hint of darkness flashed in his eyes. He had not expected someone to want to know about the desolate courtyard. It had been so long. It seemed that someone was going to use this matter against Fu General Manor.
As the heir of Fu General Manor, Luo Wenyou was not as gentle as he looked.
“Grandmother, Eldest Cousin has already admitted his mistake. Forgive him! Besides, I wonder if someone discovered this on the way here…” Mo Xuetong said with a smile. She picked up the tea that Old Madam had placed by the side and held it in front of her. Then, she stood behind her and started to knock on her back obediently.
Old Madam understood immediately before she finished her words. She sighed to herself that she was indeed old and useless. She had forgotten something so important. She told Luo Wenyou, “Don’t stay here anymore. Your cousin is here with me. Go and see how many people have gotten the matter about Yun Ya on the way and give a gag order. If anyone dares to talk about this matter, their entire family will be sold together.”
“Yes, Grandmother. I will do it right away.” Luo Wenyou cast a glance at Mo Xuetong who was standing by the side. Even though he had something to say to her, he knew that he should not delay. He curtsied to Old Madam readily and left. His second aunt could put drug into his and his second uncle’s wine, and then, she had worked with Yun Ya to plot what would happen next. They must have sent a large number of people to do this perfectly. However, he did not know if these people belonged to his second aunt or Yun Ya who developed them after she came here.
Anyway, he had to investigate it and re-organized the backyard. It seemed that his marriage could not be delayed. His mother was in the frontier, and his grandmother was old, and Mingzhu was married. After such a thing happened, his second aunt would be punished. There was no one in charge in the inner yard, which was really troublesome.
Luo Wenyou had been a little reluctant to marriage, but now he didn’t have this idea. He just wanted to find someone quickly to help his grandmother. His grandmother was too old to have the energy to take care of the matters of the backyard.
He was thinking about this as he strode away. Old Madam felt she could not hold on any longer, and could only lean down with Nanny Shen’s help. Her health was poor and she had almost fainted from the anger earlier. Even though she had calmed down now, she still felt that she was in low spirits.
“Grandmother, rest for a while. I will knock on your leg and massage you.” Mo Xuetong placed her hand on Old Madam’s acupoint. She narrowed her eyes slightly and could immediately sense that Old Madam’s blood and qi had waned. Knowing that the old woman did not have the strength to speak now, she took the little hammer on the side and sat on the stool in front of the couch. Then she started to massage her leg while massaging it.
Old Madam closed her eyes comfortably and let out a long breath. However, she did not fall asleep immediately. She said to Mo Xuetong slowly, “Mingguo Manor wants to plot against us. King Yan is standing behind Mingguo Manor, and King Yan is backed by the Empress. Even though King Yan is raised by the Empress, he is not the Empress’ adopted son. If the Empress can acknowledge King Yan, then he is the true legitimate son. There will be no prince who has a higher status than him.”
Mo Xuetong pursed her lips. She understood what Old Madam meant. Even if King Yan was locked up now, there was still a lot of hope. Since the Emperor ordered to lock him up, he could also order to release him. After all, King Yan had not committed any crime of rebellion. Some things were only known to everyone, but there was no real evidence to prove them.
Just like what happened to Yun Ya this time, Mo Xuetong was 100% sure that You Yuecheng had intentionally seduced Yun Ya to do it, but Yun Ya said that he did not know about it. However, there was no evidence. It was said that the letters about the two of them having an affair had long been stolen by Nanny Qian and burned to ashes. Even if the matter was brought to the royal court, once You Yuecheng said that he had nothing to do with this matter, no one could get a handle against him. Even if they knew that it was true, they could do nothing about it.
Everyone knew that King Yan and King Xuan had become enemies because of what happened last time. Old Madam was afraid that Mo Xuetong would suffer, so she especially reminded her.
“Grandmother, don’t worry. I know. I will tell His Highness to be careful.” Mo Xuetong thought for a moment and said, without hiding anything. Others might not be able to see that Feng Yuran wanted to seize the throne, but Mo Xuetong believed that her grandmother knew about it. That was why she reminded her. Furthermore, Feng Yuran would need Fu General Manor’s help.
Her mother was from Fu General Manor, so as long as Feng Yuran stood out to fight for the throne, everyone would know that Fu General Manor was on his side. This kind of blood relationship could not be explained easily. Mo Xuetong felt guilty towards Fu General Manor. Without any words, Fu General Manor was pinned onto Feng Yuran’s side. Even though they did not do anything, the implications behind it were sufficient.
Old Madam knew that she already understood when she heard Mo Xuetong’s simple and clear reply. She nodded. Her granddaughter was different from Xia’er. Mo Xuetong might seem gentle, but she was strong. Through this matter, Old Madam had seen Mo Xuetong’s proper arrangement. The girl had pushed Yun Ya step by step, and even her second uncle had listened to her subconsciously. She was brave and intelligent, and was a person who could do great things. If she were a man, she could do something great. It was a pity that she was a girl!
Old Madam was relieved. Since she had been tired and angry, soon she seemed to fall asleep. Mo Xuetong held the little hammer in her hand and continued to knock the old woman’s leg. She started to feel a little dazed because she would take a nap at this time every day. Noticing that she was so sleepy that she almost could not hold on to the hammer, Nanny Shen smiled and pulled on Mo Xuetong’s sleeve, pointing at the wing room on the left.
There were several times when Mo Xuetong came here and it was too late to go home, she rested in that room.
Mo Xuetong was indeed sleepy. She did not stand on ceremony, and held Mo Ye’s hand, heading to the left wing room. Luo Mingzhu came to King Xuan’s Manor early in the morning, and then, she went to Feng Yuran to ask for help and had prepared some things. She was really tired the entire morning and did not eat much at lunch in order to come quickly lest Old Madam would feel hard to deal with it.
“She’s such a good girl. What will she do if she finds out that I’m not her biological grandmother?” As Old Madam heard her leave, her voice sounded from the bed. It was very soft, as if she was muttering to herself.
If not for the fact that Nanny Shen had been paying attention to her, she would not have listened. She knew that Old Madam was worried about Consort Xuan. This was a knot in her heart. She comforted Old Madam softly, “Old Madam, what are you talking about? Consort Xuan has been thinking about you wholeheartedly. She immediately came here as soon as she realized that something happened to the manor. What does it matter if you are related by blood or not? You have been raising Miss and doting on her for so many years…”
“But, it’s not good to let her know!”
“I think so too. Let’s put it aside now. After all, not many people in the yard know about it. There’s no hurry.”
“That’s the only way…” The breath on the couch started to ease up. Old Madam had really fallen asleep. Nanny Shen cleaned up everything on the table softly, then she went to the couch and tucked Old Madam in before she left with cups and plates in her hands.
She understood Old Madam’s worries of both gains and losses! The event of the past was a grudge between generations…
