Chapter 79

In the hall, Yu Qingniang sat on the ground, crying until her eyes were dry, unable to shed tears.

She kept repeating the same words, knowing well that if he were alive, he would face numerous hardships, but she selfishly wished for him to be alive.

“Madam, please get up and eat something,” Chunlan advised from the side.

Yu Qingniang looked outside the window, and at some point, it had started drizzling lightly, barely visible in the dark.

“Chunlan, have the gatekeeper prepare a carriage. We are going to the capital now.”

“Madam…”

Yu Qingniang regained some of her initial determination—a resolve that Chunlan couldn’t comprehend in her eyes. Her only thought now was to seek justice for him, no matter what.

Liu Wenpo was tied up and placed on the back carriage, while Yu Qingniang sat in the front one, traveling day and night towards the capital.

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…

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“Qingniang, what are you doing so late at night?” Su Mingde peered out, and although the person before him looked weary and haggard, her aura was familiar. He sighed in relief.

He wondered if she had come to her senses and was here to persuade Su Mi?

“My Lord,” after a few days of emotional turmoil along the way, Yu Qingniang regained some composure. She spoke slowly: “I’ve come to seek justice for my son.”

Su Xiong was the name Su Mingde gave to his unborn twins when Yu Qingniang was still pregnant. Su Mi and Su Xiong: Mi means peace, symbolizing tranquility, while Xiong refers to a room for ancient books, hoping that he would focus on learning and eventually enter the officialdom.

When Su Mingde heard the word “Xiong,” his body involuntarily trembled.

Su Xiong was the person he least wanted to mention and the one whom no one in the Su residence spoke of. If it weren’t for the high expectations placed on this son, he wouldn’t have despised Su Mi so much. Su Qi was fine—even his firstborn son—but he couldn’t let go of Su Xiong.

Su Mingde’s voice turned cold uncontrollably. “Why mention him out of nowhere? What justice do you seek?”

Yu Qingniang thought her voice would be hoarse and feeble when she spoke, but it wasn’t. Those words seemed incredibly precious, and she could only struggle to say them bit by bit.

“My Lord, Xiong didn’t die in the womb. He was suffocated to death by Liu Wenpo, alive.” After speaking, she supported herself on the nearby redwood table, feeling as if all her strength had been drained, barely preventing herself from falling.

“Say it again?” Su Mingde grabbed Yu Qingniang’s wrist and left marks with his force.

These past few days should have been a festive time for the New Year, but Yu Qingniang had returned to Jiangling City by herself, and Su Qi had stubbornly refused to come back due to his anger over the hasty marriage. Su Mingde already had a lot of pent-up frustration, and hearing about this matter now added fuel to his emotions.

“My Lord, Liu Wenpo is outside. You can call her in for questioning.”

Su Mingde, wearing his underclothes and not even having time to put on his padded robe, rushed outside. As expected, he saw a woman being held by someone. He vaguely remembered Liu Wenpo’s appearance—it was her.

He fiercely grabbed the woman’s collar, lifting her from the ground. “You caused the death of my son!”

Liu Wenpo was startled by Su Mingde’s sudden aggression. She tried to break free from his grip, but with servants behind her restraining her, she couldn’t get away. She could only cry and say, “Master Su, it was Madam Zhao. Madam Zhao gave me thirty taels of silver to suffocate the young master.”

“Wan Niang? How could it be…” Su Mingde’s face showed a mix of black and white. “Where’s the evidence?”

“My Lord, when Madam Zhao and Nanny Feng came to see me, although it was only a verbal agreement, I took precautions and forced her to write a letter as my protection. I have already given that letter to Madam…” 

“It’s with me.”

Supported by Chunlan, Yu Qingniang walked out of the inner chambers and handed a slightly aged yellow piece of paper to Su Mingde.

Su Mingde unfolded it, and as he read further, his face became increasingly pale.

At that moment, Madam Zhao seemed to have heard the commotion and walked over from the inner courtyard, wrapped in a thick blanket. When she saw Liu Wenpo, she looked confused.

“My Lord, who is this woman… She seems somewhat familiar.” Madam Zhao said this while noticing Su Mingde’s thin clothing. She quickly draped her own thick blanket over Su Mingde, saying, “My Lord, why don’t you dress more warmly? Even if business matters are important, you shouldn’t neglect your health like this.”

Later, Madam Zhao finally saw Yu Qingniang and couldn’t conceal her astonishment in her eyes. “Madam, you came so late in the night?”

Su Mingde shook off Madam Zhao’s thick blanket, grabbed her by the hand, and turned to Liu Wenpo, saying, “Is it her?!”

Liu Wenpo avoided eye contact and nodded.

Since the moment Yu Qingniang laid eyes on Auntie Zhao, she had been holding back, but she couldn’t bear it any longer. She clenched her teeth, took a quick step forward, and slapped Auntie Zhao without any hesitation. Still unable to let go of her resentment, she pushed Auntie Zhao to the ground and stomped directly on her stomach. Nanny Feng, seeing this, quickly shielded Auntie Zhao and cried out, “Madam, what is the reason for beating our Madam? You must clarify.”

Yu Qingniang’s eyes were bloodshot. “Auntie Zhao, did you dream of my son in the middle of the night? Did you have a nightmare?”

Auntie Zhao, protected by Nanny Feng and unharmed, lay on the ground with an expression of complete ignorance. “Madam, I have no idea what you are talking about.”

She then turned to Su Mingde and said, “Master, what is the matter? I have treated you well, and you know it. Whatever it is, you need to explain it clearly and let me understand, even if it costs me my life.”

Nanny Feng secretly gave a signal, which Liu Wenpo noticed. She promptly said, “It really was her; it was her. I remember clearly. She gave me fifty taels of silver to strangle the young master.”

Su Mingde frowned. He remembered that Wenpo had just said something different. “Wasn’t it thirty taels?”

Liu Wenpo immediately changed her statement. “Yes, it was thirty taels. I misspoke earlier.”

Auntie Zhao, now seeming to have a grasp of the situation, was helped up by Nanny Feng. She moved further away from where Yu Qingniang stood and approached Su Mingde.

“Master, I have served you all these years and never done anything to betray you. What you are saying about the legitimate young master, I have no knowledge of it.”

“Madam, if you truly do not wish for me to be your secondary wife, I won’t. But I refuse to accept this false accusation. Even if you beat me to death, I won’t accept it!”

Auntie Zhao sobbed as she spoke, addressing Yu Qingniang but still looking at Su Mingde. There was no fear in her eyes, only unwavering resolve, which made Su Mingde suddenly have a hint of doubt. The situation had unfolded too suddenly, and the timing was indeed too coincidental.

Yu Qingniang, with cold eyes, saw through her act. “Master, I will go report to the authorities. An eye for an eye.”

Auntie Zhao, with her neck held high, shouted, “Madam, if you want to report to the authorities, go ahead. I have done nothing wrong. But I have one request.”

Su Mingde hesitated and asked, “What request?”

“It’s that Qi’er has not returned yet. I want to wait for him to come back. I don’t know when Madam will come, but right now, I have found out what Wenpo meant back then. No one here believes me; only Qi’er would believe me.”

When Yu Qingniang heard Su Qi’s name, her heart ached. Even if Auntie Zhao had paid with her life, Su Qi still hadn’t returned. But Auntie Zhao’s son was alive and well. The thought of it made her emotions uncontrollable.

“Why wait for Su Qi to come back? What is he? Can’t we send you to the officials without him?”

Yu Qingniang’s hysterical appearance made Su Mingde feel like she had become a different person.

He didn’t know that Mrs.Yu had previously endured for the sake of the Su sisters and later to maintain family harmony. But now she wanted justice for her son, so what if her words were coarse and vulgar?

Yet, the more she acted like this, the less clear Su Mingde’s judgment became and the more speculations he formed.

His feelings for Yu Qingniang had gradually faded over the past few decades, unconsciously diminishing the love he had for her in his youth due to the conflicts that arose between them regarding Su Xian and Su Mi.

The bond of non-blood-related kinship is sometimes the most fragile and easily swayed. What he cared about most now was his only son, Su Qi.

“Qingniang, wait for Qi’er to come back, and once everything is clear, I will personally report to the authorities,” Su Mingde said in a deep voice.

In the end, he only had Su Qi as his remaining son, and Auntie Zhao was his son’s biological mother. Su Xiong was no longer alive. After the intense emotional turmoil, he calmed his mind.

He couldn’t let Su Qi resent him.

Without waiting for Yu Qingniang’s response, he continued, “Take Auntie Zhao back to the inner courtyard and do not let her leave again.”

“No, Master! We have witnesses and evidence. Why do we still need to wait?” She had rushed here all night, wanting to quickly throw Auntie Zhao into prison. Why wait?

“Qingniang, even if she did it for real, we still have to wait for Qi’er to return and let him know before taking action.”

“It’s not a matter of ‘even if she did it.’ Auntie Zhao did do it. You’ve seen the evidence, and I’ve told you before that I heard it that night—the sound of Xiong crying. You didn’t believe me then, so why don’t you believe me now?”

Yu Qingniang met Su Mingde’s gaze, her expression growing even more desolate. “Master, if Su Qi begged you, would you still send her to the authorities?”

Su Mingde was momentarily speechless.

In an instant, Yu Qingniang understood. A business-minded person doesn’t act without personal gain. Her Xiong was gone, and Su Qi was his only hope.

She didn’t say anything more, turning around and walking toward the courtyard. If he wouldn’t report it to the authorities, she would do it herself.