Chapter 146: The Last Straw That Broke The Camel’s Back

At the corner of the wall of the Mingshuang Courtyard, which leaned against the Duke’s Mansion’s wall, this was also a blind spot where no one usually came.

Qinger was crying with tears streaming down her face, wiping her tears with a handkerchief, and whispered with a wronged tone, “Sister, it’s all that Concubine Ma’s fault. She and Fifth Miss don’t get along, and she just had to drag me into it. If they chase me away, how will Mother and I live?!”

“Don’t pay her any mind; she can’t even protect herself now.” Yulian said with disdain. She really looked down on Concubine Ma. When the First Madam was around, Concubine Ma was constantly fawning over the First Madam, and that fawning look was unbearable even for the servants.

“What do you mean she can’t protect herself? Maybe after a while, she’ll be promoted to Second Madam. Now that the First Madam has entered the Duke’s Mansion, there’s no Madam in charge in the Mansion. Concubine Ma is so favored, and the Duke will definitely be able to make her the true master with just a word. If she still remembers me then, Fifth Miss won’t be able to protect me either.” Qinger cried even more sadly.

“Just her? She’s so unclean; how dare she think of becoming a Madam!” Yulian ridiculed, although Madam Ling didn’t like her getting close to Ning Zuan, she was still considered Madam Ling’s confidante, and she knew something about Concubine Ma’s affairs.

“Sister, don’t speak ill of others like that. You said last time that you also wanted to be a Madam in the future. Look at you now. Let alone a Madam, if you could even be a Concubine, I wouldn’t have to do this servant work, and moreover, be disliked by people.” Qinger wiped away her tears and accused.

These words made Yulian a little embarrassed. She put on a stern face and scolded, “What nonsense are you talking? Don’t you fear someone will hear?”

“What does it matter if they hear? Didn’t you always tell me before that you wouldn’t forget me when you were rich and powerful? But now you’re still a maidservant. What wealth? You can’t even protect your own sister, and you’re being bullied by a Concubine. If you’re really useless, don’t go to Mother and talk big next time.”

Qinger was feeling wronged, and upon hearing Yulian’s scolding, she started crying again, and she also became careless with her words, and her voice became louder.

Hearing footsteps coming from the front, Yulian was very anxious and covered Qinger’s mouth with her hand, lowering her voice, “Alright, be quiet, don’t let anyone hear, don’t speak.”

The footsteps were right at the corner. Now Qinger didn’t dare to cry anymore, biting her lip hard, suppressing her sobbing.

“Did someone just quarrel?” A crisp, surprised voice, it was Qingyu.

“You didn’t hear wrong. How could anyone quarrel in this place? There’s nothing of that sort in our Mingshuang Courtyard, what’s the point of quarreling!” Lan Ning’s voice was gentle, showing that the two had something to do, and were walking towards Mingshuang Courtyard.

“Lan Ning, are you really going to marry that person to Steward Lu’s nephew? That’s really a shame. Such a beautiful young girl, even more beautiful than Concubine Ma by several points, it’s just a waste on that fool. Thinking about it is really pitiful.”

Steward Lu in the Inner Courtyard had a foolish nephew. When he usually came to the Duke’s Mansion, he would drool and call the pretty young girls “sister,” and rush to embrace them. Once, Steward Lu took his nephew to pay respects to Madam Ling, and seeing Yulian in Madam Ling’s Courtyard, he kept calling her “pretty sister” and rushed over to hug her tightly, saying he wanted to marry the pretty sister.

Then, Yulian was scared to death. Later, it took several old women a lot of effort to save Yulian from the fool’s hands.

Steward Lu also joked at the time that he would let Yulian marry his nephew.

Yulian, at the corner of the wall, had a bad premonition and subconsciously strained her ears.

“However, this can’t blame the First Madam. Yulian is so beautiful, and the Madam is in the Buddha Hall now. If she stays, what if she gets the Duke’s favor? I heard that the Duke has long been very fond of Yulian, if it weren’t for the First Madam stopping him, we might be calling her Concubine Xu now! Pitiful, beautiful woman, tragic fate!”

Qingyu looked as if she was very upset for Yulian, and sighed a few times.

“That’s also her fate. Who told her to dress like that, attracting the Duke’s attention, but unfortunately, it didn’t succeed, and instead, it caused the First Madam’s jealousy. People who are envied by the First Madam don’t have a good end. It’s about to happen, Yulian is going to be taken away. The Old Madam doesn’t like trouble, and she told our young lady to quietly handle it, just find a sedan chair to send the person to Steward Lu, that’s also her misfortune!”

Lan Ning pretended to be sympathetic, but looked helpless.

“The First Madam was originally jealous, and the Duke just glanced at Yulian a few times. Why can’t she tolerate Yulian? The Duke’s identity is noble, and he’s tall and handsome, it’s normal to be admired. Even if he really wanted Yulian to be a Concubine, it wouldn’t be a big deal, is it worth it to put someone in a desperate situation!”

Qingyu became even more indignant for her.

“Alright, alright, we don’t need to worry about others. Anyway, we’re not as beautiful as Yulian, and the Duke couldn’t possibly see us, and we won’t be ordered to marry a fool.”

Lan Ning patted Qingyu on the shoulder, and the two of them turned a corner, chatting and laughing, and headed towards the door of the Mingshuang Courtyard, as if they really didn’t notice that someone was hiding behind the wall.

Yulian at the corner of the wall had completely stiffened, her hand had long been removed from Qinger’s mouth, she was gritting her teeth, and her body felt like it had been struck by lightning. She was so beautiful, and she was going to be matched with a fool, and moreover, it was the First Madam who arranged it for her. How could she not hate this? It was almost the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

“Sister, look, not only can’t you be a Concubine, but you’re also going to end up being a fool’s wife!” Qinger was originally sad and seeking Yulian’s help, but instead, Yulian didn’t have any substantive suggestions. Seeing Yulian standing there, she couldn’t help but mock.

“I… I don’t want to marry a fool!” Yulian finally came to her senses this time, her heart churning like a storm. How could she have imagined that Lan Ning and Qingyu were speaking to her?

She had always known that Madam Ling wouldn’t let her get close to Ning Zuan. Although she would dress up beautifully whenever she had the chance to show her face in front of Ning Zuan, she didn’t have any objections to Madam Ling’s decision because she had other ideas. She was originally thinking of waiting for Madam Ling to give her an opportunity, the Eldest Young Master was always younger and more handsome than the Duke.

She just didn’t expect Madam Ling to be so ruthless, to marry her to a fool, and everything she had said before was a lie.

“Sister, didn’t you hear? Just now, Sister Lan Ning and the others said that the Duke has always been fond of you. If you don’t want to be married to a fool, then hurry up and find the Duke. You are more beautiful than that Concubine Ma, and you are younger than her. There’s nowhere you can’t get the Duke’s favor.” Qinger also remembered what Lan Ning had said before. Thinking that as long as Yulian became a Concubine, her own status would also rise with the tide, and Concubine Ma wouldn’t dare to bully her anymore, she immediately urged Yulian.

Yulian had always wanted to be a Concubine, and in front of her mother and younger sister, she often expressed that she would definitely be wealthy in the future. Qinger had also come to the Duke’s Mansion wholeheartedly to enjoy Yulian’s blessings, but she didn’t expect to wait and wait. Instead of waiting for her own sister to become wealthy, she received the news of having to marry a fool, how could she be willing?

At this moment, she naturally immediately came up with an idea for her.

Yes, she didn’t want to marry a fool, she wanted to find the Duke. The fortune teller had said that her fate was very good, she absolutely couldn’t sit and wait for death. She must, before Steward Lu comes, find the Duke, and the Duke would definitely help her.

“You go back and wait for my news.” Pushing away Qinger, who was standing very close to her, Yulian gritted her teeth, clenched her fist, and rushed out.

Qinger didn’t expect Yulian’s reaction to be so intense. She wasn’t prepared, and was pushed by her, falling to the ground on her butt, and immediately screamed in pain.

After finally getting up, she walked with a limp, but she couldn’t help but show a few points of joy on her face. As long as her sister gained the Duke’s favor, she would also be the Duke’s legitimate relative. From then on, she wouldn’t have to serve others, and she could enjoy the life of a young lady.

Thinking of where she was proud, she had long forgotten her previous sadness, as for whether she would be driven out of the Mansion gate, that was no longer in her calculations.

This interaction between the sisters Yulian and Qinger, all fell into Qingyu’s eyes, who was hiding on the side. Seeing Yulian leave, she turned and entered the courtyard gate, heading straight for the main room, and reported the news to Ning Xueyan.

Ning Xueyan, who was reading a book, heard Qingyu’s report, put down the book in her hand, looked at the window, and saw Qinger entering with a joyful expression, supporting herself on the wall. She met a few maidservants from the courtyard, who were all curious and asked her what was going on, and she just said, in a lukewarm tone: “It’s nothing,” and then turned to her own room, which was completely different from her usual timid image.

These two sisters both had worldly eyes.

Such a pawn, it’s a waste not to use it!

Letting Lan Ning and Qingyu pass by when the sisters were together, was to make Yulian more determined in her decision. As for the little thoughts in her mind before, for the future, or there would be another kind of help!

Yulian’s goal was to climb into bed, to become a Concubine in a wealthy family. It doesn’t matter whose bed she climbs into, it’s impossible to want to play both sides. Doing this, I can also be considered to have helped her. I heard that Ning Huaiyuan will be home in these two days…

“For the Outer Study, send a few more people. Father is sleeping there alone, and it’s always not reassuring. Moreover, he still has to go to morning court, let someone serve him early tomorrow morning.”

It is necessary for more people to know this news earlier, so that the news can spread, isn’t it!

The matter of Yulian and Ning Zuan, the next morning, spread throughout the entire Duke’s Mansion. It was said that last night, the Duke let Yulian serve him. This morning, some people saw Yulian, shy, coming out of the Duke’s Study, hurrying back to the Cloud Mist Courtyard. This news was confirmed by the maidservants and old women who saw it along the way.

In the cold and clear Buddha Hall, Madam Ling had gotten up early, lit a stick of incense, was sitting on a cushion, holding a wooden fish, and quietly chanting scriptures. The Old Madam would occasionally send people to check, although she was angry in her heart, she dared not neglect it on her face.

At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Madam Chen rushed in hurriedly, panting as soon as she entered: “First Madam, First Madam, it’s not good.”

“Why are you shouting like that? Early in the morning, what else could happen?” Madam Ling coldly glanced at Madam Chen, her eyes gloomy. It had only been a few days, and there were already a few points of gray in her hair, and she no longer had the bright and vivid appearance of the day, the whole person exuding a kind of coldness and gloom.

If one hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, no one would believe that the seemingly All-Round Duchess had become as if she had aged by ten years.

“First Madam, it’s not good! Someone saw that little Bitch Yulian, climbed into the Duke’s bed last night. This morning, someone saw her with her clothes disheveled, coming out of the Duke’s Study. The Kitchen said that the Duke also specially instructed someone to cook her a soup, and told her to rest well!” Madam Chen’s throat raised a few points in anxiety.

With a “clang”, the wooden fish in Madam Ling’s hand fell, smashing on her foot…