Ch 106: A Maidservant’s Testimony

Madam Ling came very quickly, unlike her usual gorgeous attire; now, she was only wearing a commoner’s clothes, and she had no face powder on. This made her look like she was sincerely praying to Buddha, but it made her look a bit old, especially with the bandage wrapped around her ears, which made her completely different from the young and beautiful Concubine Ma. 【

“Madam Ling, you said yesterday that Concubine Ma was having an affair with another man and was seen by a maidservant, so that’s why the miscarriage and abortion happened later, just to frame you?” The Old Madam asked.

“Mother, this was all Biyun said, your daughter-in-law is not very clear either. I was originally thinking of asking yesterday, but later Mother let me go into the Buddha Hall, and I didn’t have time to ask. It’s better for Mother to ask now.” Madam Ling had known about Concubine Ma’s troubles on the way here. Her heart skipped a beat. Now, she was looking at Concubine Ma with a cold and dark expression, pushing the matter onto the Old Madam, deliberately avoiding the matter of Concubine Ma being poisoned.

Fortunately, she had prepared beforehand!

Not to mention what happened just now, let’s talk about what happened before. This also makes sense.

Biyun was the maidservant who was with Concubine Ma when something happened.

“Biyun, what happened yesterday?” The Old Madam turned to Biyun, who was kneeling on the ground, and asked.

“Your servant also didn’t know what was going on yesterday. The Concubine first said she was going to rest in the back. When she walked to the pavilion, she said it was nice up there and wanted to meet Fifth Miss. She asked your servant to prepare a warm stove and such things. Your servant was very busy. When I finished preparing everything and wanted to go up, I saw a man enter the pavilion.”

“What, a man?” The Old Madam’s face was filled with anger, and her face showed a shocked expression. Although Ning Zuan had told her about this, he had only mentioned it in passing.

“It was a man, who came up and spoke to the Concubine affectionately. Your servant dared not go in at the doorway and hid at the doorway, and heard the Concubine specifically say… say…” Biyun said, and she specifically looked at Ning Xueyan, as if she dared not say it.

“Say, what’s the matter?” The Old Madam scolded.

“Say…that…Fifth Miss, wanted to send the Concubine and that man to elope, so Fifth Miss took advantage of talking to Fifth Miss to have a secret meeting with that man.” Biyun timidly said, and her voice got lower and lower.

“What are you talking about with an empty mouth and a white tongue? You mean Fifth Miss wanted to help Concubine Ma and the man elope? What does this have to do with Fifth Miss? Fifth Miss and Concubine Ma have never been close, why would she do this?” Madam Ling heard the voice and scolded, as if she was speaking for Ning Xueyan, but looking at the Old Madam’s increasingly gloomy face, this effect was really not a little bit!

Ning Xueyan stood to the side, sneering in her heart, quietly watching Madam Ling acting, but didn’t say a word.

“Yes…your servant…saw it, your servant also didn’t know…afterwards, Fifth Miss brought people over again. Your servant served the tea to Concubine Ma to drink. It just happened to be placed beside Fifth Miss. I don’t know how it happened, the Concubine had such a thing after drinking it, and then the Concubine blamed the First Madam and bit the First Madam!”

Biyun seemed to really not know anything, vaguely saying everything that happened.

The information in these words was provided one by one. The point of these information was Ning Xueyan, and even her motive was thought out. The reason Ning Xueyan caused so many things was to frame Madam Ling, causing Concubine Ma to think that Madam Ling wanted to harm her, so she bit off a piece of Madam Ling’s ear.

Things were linked one after another, tightly connected, and before Concubine Ma looked for Ning Xueyan, it also became an excuse for Ning Xueyan to deliberately frame Madam Ling.

Madam Ling unexpectedly fabricated such words in such a short amount of time; she really cannot be underestimated!

Even Concubine Ma, who was on the side, was stunned, and for a moment forgot to continue acting.

“You know, slandering the master, you will be beaten to death!” The First Madam said with a grim expression.

Biyun shivered twice, and suddenly pointed at several people in the crowd and said, “It wasn’t just your servant who saw Concubine Ma and a man pulling and pushing. They all saw it.”

The several people who were named looked very panicked. At this time, they had to walk out of the crowd. They happened to have entered the pavilion with Ning Xueyan at the time.

“You all saw it?” Ning Zuan couldn’t help but ask.

“Yes…yes, your servant saw Concubine Ma fall on the ground, that man holding her…the…other, your servant is not clear.”

Madam Ling unexpectedly even calculated this, it’s really high. But such a perfect plan, no matter how you look at it, doesn’t look like it came from Madam Ling’s hand. A trap, a trap aimed at herself, involving Concubine Ma. Even all her own behavior was reasonably calculated.

It’s as if everything was arranged beforehand!

If she didn’t guess wrong, this trap came from one person’s hand, wanting to make herself bear the Duke’s Mansion’s scandal, sacrifice her own and Concubine Ma’s lives, to preserve Madam Ling’s good name, or to preserve Ning Ziyan’s reputation; the thinking was indeed perfect!

Unfortunately, this matter was handled by Madam Ling, it was destined to have no good result…

“You wretch, say, is this designed by you and this bitch?” Ning Zuan was angry and hateful, and he sternly scolded, his face showing an indescribable embarrassment. He viciously glared at Ning Xueyan and Concubine Ma, as if as long as they said one thing, he would immediately choke them to death.

As a man, and the dignified Duke, such a thing happened in the mansion, how could he not be extremely angry.

“Father, do you really think that I deliberately caused such a thing to harm Mother, yet you don’t know when I’ve been as all-seeing and all-knowing in the mansion as Mother? Father, do you want to determine my and Concubine Ma’s guilt based on the words of a maidservant alone?” Ning Xueyan suddenly laughed, and calmly looked at Ning Zuan’s anger.

Does Madam Ling really understand her husband? In front of so many people, letting Ning Zuan lose the face of a man, is it really okay?

Concubine Ma eloped, not to mention where this man came from, just talking about Ning Xueyan, this Fifth Miss, how many people in this entire mansion respect her? If it is said to be all-seeing and all-knowing in this mansion, it is none other than Madam Ling. Moreover, Concubine Ma is Ning Zuan’s favored concubine, compared to the weak Ning Xueyan.

She, this concubine, has more weight to her words!

How could she beg in front of Ning Xueyan to help her elope with another man!

Madam Ling’s face stiffened, the Old Madam’s eyes held a few more doubts, and even Ning Zuan turned to Madam Ling. With one sentence, she completely reversed everyone’s attitude.

“Father only blames the Concubine, saying that she had a secret meeting with others, and also conspired with me. May I ask Father, since the Concubine entered the mansion, has she been wholeheartedly devoted to you?” Ning Xueyan continued.

“Duke, this servant’s heart for you can be seen by the sun and moon. If I really didn’t want to enter the mansion, I would have told the Duke directly at first. Why would I follow the Duke into the mansion? The Duke loves me, do I regret it after I get the Duke’s love?” Concubine Ma understood at this time, and covered her face and cried.

These words were very reasonable. Concubine Ma entered the mansion the latest and was most favored by Ning Zuan. Ning Zuan felt that he hadn’t treated her poorly. How could she conspire with other men to elope? This really doesn’t conform to propriety. Moreover, Concubine Ma usually behaved very well. She flattered the Duke before the Duke and after the Duke, as if only Ning Zuan was in her heart.

Speaking of which, it’s really impossible to elope with someone.

Moreover, the day Concubine Ma entered the Duke’s Mansion, it was also voluntary. After Ning Zuan coincidentally met and took a fancy to her, he sent someone to ask her to be a concubine. She agreed with her own mouth, and she also happily got on the bridal sedan chair, so it couldn’t be considered forced.

“Father, I didn’t want to say this, but now that it has been dragged onto me, in order to clear me, even if I have discord with Concubine Ma, I have to say,” Ning Xueyan continued, “That day, everyone only saw Concubine Ma fall on the ground, as if entangled with a man, but actually, Concubine Ma was resting inside. Seeing a man come in, she fled out in a hurry, and then fell on the ground. That man chased after her and happened to bump into each other.”

Ning Zuan was stunned, then looked at Madam Ling, and his face showed a very strange expression.

Looking at Ning Zuan’s expression, Madam Ling’s intuition was not good, and her face showed a look of fear.

“Father, in the entire Duke’s Mansion, if there’s anyone who can’t order others around, it’s only me!” Ning Xueyan said this last sentence with a smile, but unfortunately, it could make people feel her helplessness.

A dignified direct daughter of the Duke’s Mansion, could not even order a servant around, let alone make people frame the mistress of a mansion, a dignified Duchess.

If these words were said the other way around, it’s very possible!

“As for her?” Ning Xueyan pointed at Biyun and said calmly, “If Father doesn’t believe it, you can go and check who she belongs to!”

“Duke, you…go check…it’s this little bitch, a cup of medicine, cut off this servant’s offspring, if it wasn’t for her, how would this servant dare to bite the First Madam, disregarding her life.” Concubine Ma’s last sentence dispelled Ning Zuan’s last bit of hesitation.

Concubine Ma’s behavior was very smooth, and she usually obeyed Madam Ling’s instructions in every way. Yesterday, she dared to rush over and bite Madam Ling. It could be seen that she hated her extremely. Under what circumstances would she be so hateful? According to Ning Zuan’s understanding, that was Madam Ling did something to frame Concubine Ma, making Concubine Ma have no way out, and she would fight so hard.

As for the man bumping into a woman and falling on the ground, it cannot prove that something must have happened.

Ning Zuan, when he was young, also had such a thing. When he was a guest at another mansion, when he turned a corner, he bumped into a beautiful woman, and that seemed to be a concubine too. At the time, he almost got beaten as an adulterer.

If it wasn’t for Madam Ming at the time coming out to testify for him, his reputation would have been ruined at that time!

Ning Zuan, of course, would not casually say such an embarrassing thing. Even Madam Ling, he never mentioned it, but Ning Xueyan knew it from a chance conversation with Madam Ming.

The same scene, the same thing, the same misunderstanding, everything was logical, and the matter was so reasonable. Concubine Ma and Ning Xueyan originally had discord, and the two of them could never conspire to plot against Madam Ling. It was Madam Ling who wanted to shirk her responsibility, and blamed everything on the two of them.

As for Concubine Ma’s behavior of being poisoned, it better demonstrated Madam Ling’s intention to kill and silence.

Thinking that she was fine and well, but she was unexpectedly made to think that Concubine Ma had given her a green hat, and it would spread out, and she would be unable to raise her head in front of everyone. Ning Zuan’s face became gloomy, and his gaze fell on Madam Ling, Biyun, and the faces of the several people who had just testified, and he didn’t say a word for a full half a day. 【

The faces of Biyun and the others all showed expressions of shock and panic. If Ning Xueyan and Concubine Ma were framed, then they were the ones who slandered.

This further deepened Ning Zuan’s doubts.