"What's wrong? What happened?" Madam Wang asked with concern. She suddenly recalled the rumors from that morning, and her face flushed with anger as she loudly demanded, "Did that bitch Liu's clan give you a hard time because of last night's incident?"
"I'll go find her!"
As Madam Wang spoke, she got up to leave.
Nan Yujin grabbed her, "No, Mother, don't overthink it. Calm down, don't get angry over someone unworthy and ruin your health."
"It's really not?" Madam Wang asked again, still not reassured.
"It really isn't!"
"Then what is it?" Madam Wang sat back down.
"It's about the household management."
Upon hearing this, Madam Wang let out a cold laugh, "What, your father changed his mind again?"
"No!"
Nan Yujin said, "His Majesty has decreed that our Nan Manor will host the wedding banquet for the two countries' alliance."
"So?"
"Father just called me to his study and said that this banquet is bound to cause trouble. If trouble arises, our Nan Manor will be held accountable, and then..."
"Then I, the madam in charge of the household and organizing this banquet, will bear irrefutable responsibility."
"So that's why your father wanted me to take over the household management, wasn't it?"
Nan Yujin glanced at Madam Wang and said, "I don't think Father can predict the future. Everything seems like a coincidence. This is also why Father called me today. He asked me to ask you if you want to manage the household now or after the banquet."
"Heh~"
Madam Wang sneered repeatedly. When she mentioned Nan Chaoyin, she didn't sound like she was talking about the husband she had shared a bed with, but more like an enemy she had harbored grievances against for years.
Nan Chaoyin's words were spoken lightly, but last night he had just stripped Liu's clan of her managerial power. This morning, he had sent over the keys to the storeroom, and now he was saying these words. The servants in the manor knew that she was reluctant to take over the household management because of the banquet. Those who didn't know might think that the master pitied Liu's clan and regretted giving her the managerial power, so he wanted the keys back as soon as they were handed to her.
In this way, how would the servants in the manor view her? Even if she took over the managerial power later, how many servants would be convinced?
Was this her making a choice? This was her having no choice!
"Your father is truly cunning!" Madam Wang actually didn't want Nan Yujin to know how heartless and indifferent his father was. But she only had half a year to live. If he continued to be immersed in respecting and loving his father and couldn't see his father's true face, Madam Wang truly feared that if Nan Chaoyin one day cruelly calculated against Yujin, Nan Yujin would suffer a great loss!
"Do you think your father told you all this because he was afraid I would bear the blame?"
"Wasn't he?"
"My son, these keys were only handed to me this morning. If they are returned to Liu's clan by noon, then my prestige, which is already meager, will be completely lost."
"Mother has no choice, do you understand?"
Nan Yujin pursed his lips, his voice a little hoarse, "So, Father's instructions and the so-called choice were all an act?"
"Your father favors Liu's clan more than you can imagine."
Madam Wang recalled that when Nan Yujin was not yet born, Nan Shiying's mother was the most favored one. She was a charming woman, but her heart was not at all with Nan Chaoyin.
Liu's clan's eyes strongly resembled that woman.
For a man, if he cannot have the person he loves the most, having a substitute is also good. Even if it's just a substitute, after that person's death, it's enough to gain Nan Chaoyin's full favor.
"So Mother thinks that even this temporary entrustment of household management was your father's choice to let Liu's clan escape punishment?"
Madam Wang nodded, then shook her head. "I want to say yes, but all of this is just my guess. There's no concrete evidence. However... what exactly happened last night that caused Nan Chaoyin to strip Liu's clan of her managerial power?"
Nan Yujin was silent for a moment, then began to recount what happened last night. Of course, he didn't mention that he had almost lost his life. He only said that he had gone to Li Wan Pavilion and was blocked and obstructed by the guards there.
Madam Wang's expression was relatively calm at first, but as she listened to the end, her anger surged.
"Good, very good!"
Just a guard from Li Wan Pavilion dared to mock her son. It was her fault. If she hadn't been bedridden and unable to manage the household these years, her son wouldn't have ended up in such a predicament.
Amidst her anger, Madam Wang couldn't help but blame herself.
She grabbed Nan Yujin's hand, her eyes slightly red as she apologized, "It's all my fault. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have had to endure insults from those scoundrels."
"Mother, this is not your fault!"
"No, no, it's me..." Madam Wang blamed herself for being too weak back then. If her heart had been stronger, she wouldn't have been so heartbroken by Yuqing's death.
"Mother, you don't need to blame yourself." Nan Yujin comforted Madam Wang, but Madam Wang felt even more self-reproach. Nan Yujin thought for a moment and decided to tell his mother about what Nan Shiying had said.
"Mother, there's something I've been unsure whether to tell you or not, but..."
"What is it, just say it!"
"Then Mother, you must promise me to be mentally prepared and not to let your emotions fluctuate too much, thus harming your health." Nan Yujin was afraid that what he was about to say might cause Madam Wang's old illness to relapse, so he gave her a heads-up.
"Okay, I promise you!" Madam Wang nodded. Her intuition told her that she had to hear what was coming next.
Nan Yujin looked at Madam Wang and said, "Mother, have you never suspected Yuqing's death?"
"Boom~"
As Nan Yujin finished speaking, Madam Wang felt a thunderclap in her mind. Suspect? Of course she suspected it, but what could suspicion do? After Yuqing died, all the testimonies stated that Yuqing had forced Nan Shiying to jump into the lake, and in Nan Shiying's resistance, they both fell into the water.
In the end, Nan Shiying fell ill, while her Yuqing, alas, passed away.
This was a pain that would forever haunt her.
Madam Wang looked up, her eyes seemingly bloodshot with traces of red. She stared fixedly at Nan Yujin, her voice, which seemed to drift into the air, sounded as if it were seeping out from between her teeth, "So, there was someone else who killed your sister, wasn't there?"
Nan Yujin, like Madam Wang had moments before, nodded and shook his head. "Nan Shiying told me that Yuqing was not killed by her, but I can't be sure if she's telling the truth or not!"
"Nan Shiying, Nan Shiying..."
A strange smile appeared on Madam Wang's lips, "That bastard came looking for you, didn't she!"