Lü Wan, with Xiao Huan, caused quite a stir in the main kitchen.
They wrestled with several older women. The two young maids emerged unscathed, while the matrons and maids in the main kitchen were thoroughly dealt with. Xiao Huan rode on Bian Pozi's back and shoved all the dishes sent to Xin Yuan Ge into Bian Pozi's mouth.
For a moment, the main kitchen echoed with heart-wrenching wails.
Lü Wan and Xiao Huan walked out of the main kitchen with heads held high, like victorious roosters.
"Damn bitch!"
Qin Yurou threw everything on the table to the ground. Rouge and powder spilled everywhere, and a gold-inlaid jade hairpin snapped in half.
The maids knelt on the ground in fear, terrified that the furious concubine would take her anger out on them. "Your Ladyship, please calm down, please calm down."
Ever since the concubine's hand became disabled, her temper had become increasingly gloomy and peculiar. Even the maids who had accompanied her from the Qin Mansion had been punished frequently. Everyone in Ling Long Ge was on edge, but the maids and servants outside couldn't see it.
"Calm down, calm down, all you can say is calm down."
Qin Yurou's hatred grew like weeds in damp, dark places. As time passed, instead of withering, it grew even more luxuriant. The burning emotions of hatred and rage, like maggots that cling to bones, gnawed away at her sanity day and night.
She glanced at her reflection in the mirror. Her bandaged face was increasingly hideous and distorted, yet she felt a sense of exhilaration from unleashing the demon in her heart without restraint. This feeling intoxicated her, made her sink deeper.
She looked at the maids kneeling on the ground, malice surging in her eyes. She suddenly crouched down, picked up the broken hairpin, and cruelly stabbed it into the maid's hand.
"Ah~"
The maid let out a cry of excruciating pain.
Qin Yurou raised her hand and covered the maid's mouth. She wore a gentle smile, but her eyes blazed with malicious fire. She leaned into the maid's ear and whispered, "Shush, don't cry. If you cry again, I'll cut out your tongue."
The maid's face showed a look of terror, and she gazed at Qin Yurou as if seeing the most wicked and terrifying devil.
The other maids lowered their heads in fear, their bodies trembling like sieves.
...
The next day, the dishes served to Xin Yuan Ge improved.
Lü Wan flipped through the food box. The vegetables were fresher, and there was an extra meat dish.
Nan Shiying sighed leisurely, a hint of weariness in her voice. She waved her hand, telling Lü Wan to put the dishes in the backyard first.
"Your Ladyship, aren't we going to throw them away?"
After placing the dishes, Lü Wan returned to the room, poured Nan Shiying a cup of tea, and asked the question that had been on her mind.
Nan Shiying didn't answer. Instead, she asked her, "Do you know who poisoned the food?"
Lü Wan blinked. Wasn't this supposed to be luring the snake out of its hole and inviting the enemy into the urn? The hole hadn't even been dug, and the urn hadn't been bought, so why were they asking for the result directly?
Nan Shiying sighed again. "The dishes from the main kitchen have changed."
Lü Wan nodded, not understanding. The next moment, she suddenly froze, her mind clearing like a bright dawn. "Your Ladyship means that after I and Xiao Huan caused trouble, the main kitchen changed the dishes because the person behind the poisoning feared that the dishes would be too simple and you wouldn't eat them, so they changed them?"
Nan Shiying curled her lips and praised, "Not entirely foolish."
"Is it really the concubine?" Lü Wan gasped.
Nan Shiying hummed, not sure if she was mocking someone, her tone filled with ridicule and disdain. "Truly an idiot."
It's just that there are too few women in Ji Jinmo's courtyard. Someone like Qin Yurou, if placed in the imperial harem of our Great Yuan Kingdom, might not survive a month.
"Save the dishes. Tonight, after dark, throw them in the flower bed outside Ling Long Ge. Oh, right, have Bai Zhi find Jia Huan and tell him to buy a basket of mice," Nan Shiying commanded.
Lü Wan glanced at Nan Shiying and suddenly felt a desire to mourn for the concubine.
...
"Qin Yurou?"
Xuan Yi, without any concealment, reported everything he had heard from Nan Shiying to Ji Jinmo.
Ji Jinmo played with a string of coral bracelets, his brows furrowed, a storm brewing in his eyes, yet his expression remained calm.
Xuan Yi and Xuan Thirteen exchanged glances, seeing the unspoken criticism in each other's eyes.
The coral bracelets in the master's hand were a gift from the princess. The master had previously disliked coral the most, but now he couldn't put them down.
The coral was almost polished smooth.
As Xuan Yi and Xuan Thirteen exchanged glances, Ji Jinmo's voice drifted down from above. "Tell that woman to spare Qin Yurou's life."
In other words, as long as she didn't die, the princess could deal with her as she pleased?
Xuan Yi's heart leaped, and the same thought arose in Xuan Thirteen's mind: Holy cow, has the master fallen for the princess!
Is he being too lenient with her?
The concubine is also the legitimate daughter of General Qin Qiancheng!
However, Xuan Yi and Xuan Thirteen only thought this; they dared not question Ji Jinmo in any way.
...
"Understood!"
Nan Shiying felt a little sympathy for Qin Yurou. She didn't know if Ji Jinmo was cold-blooded or if he truly hadn't liked her, to be so indifferent to her. Sparing her life was probably just because of her status as the legitimate daughter of the great general.
"Pitiful, truly pitiful~"
Nan Shiying shook her fan and suddenly remembered that day she stole... no, borrowed Ji Jinmo's clothes. After taking them out of the box, Nan Shiying changed and put on some light makeup. She then slipped out of Xin Yuan Ge stealthily, avoiding the servants.
Xuan Yi squatted on the roof, a few black lines popping out on his forehead.
What new mischief are you up to now?
Nan Shiying swaggered towards the front courtyard. As she passed the garden in the front hall, she even stopped to admire the flowers with interest.
Wei Yuan, walking through the garden, suddenly paused, then took two steps back and entered the garden.
"This is a Muyao flower."
Nan Shiying was looking at the most vibrant flower in the garden when a clear and melodious voice suddenly sounded in her ear. Nan Shiying turned her head and saw a man in a white robe.
Gentle breeze, a gentleman like jade.
He was completely different from Ji Jinmo.
As complex as Ji Jinmo's temperament was, this man's temperament was pure.
It was a kind of reservedness, like standing tall as Mount Tai without arrogance.
"Muyao flower?"
Nan Shiying glanced at it, then withdrew her gaze. She was very curious about the Muyao flower the man mentioned.
There was no such flower in the Great Yuan Kingdom.
"Muyao flower, with a sweet scent and bright colors, can be used in medicine or to make poison."
"Like the iris, it can both save and kill."
When the man mentioned the iris, Nan Shiying's heart involuntarily tightened. She unfolded her fan and smiled, cupping her hands towards the man. "May I ask your esteemed name, sir?"
"Wei Yuan."
Nan Shiying thought for a moment, but no corresponding information appeared in her mind. She smiled and replied, "Quanzhou, Feng Jiu."
Wei Yuan: "..."
If Yin'er hadn't mentioned it, I would have truly believed you were Feng Luan from Quanzhou!
Why are you using one alias to hide another!