The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 21 - 20
Chapter 20
On the same evening, Bai Lijun, who had fainted and lost consciousness since morning, woke up with a slight dizziness, puzzled about when she had passed out. However, when she began to recall the events from earlier, her beautiful face immediately turned pale.
She had someone help her change her clothes before heading to Auntie Yang’s room located at the far left end of the quarters, instructing the servants following her to wait outside while she entered alone.
As soon as she stepped into the room, she was enveloped by a strong herbal scent, causing her to lift her sleeve to cover her nose while thinking that by such a pungent smell, Auntie Yang’s injuries must be quite severe.
Bai Lijun walked past the curtain into the innermost bedroom and saw Auntie Yang lying face down on the bed, her back covered with severe wounds, every inch of her skin looked quite dreadful. Yang Sui was sitting beside her, applying medicine to those wounds.
"Such severe injuries..."
Bai Lijun lowered her sleeve and murmured, unable to believe what she was seeing. She sat down on the edge of the bed and gently reached out to touch the injuries.
"Ouch!"
Auntie Yang cried out the moment the cool fingertips touched her wounds, causing a sharp pain to shoot through them.
"I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Auntie Yang,"
Bai Lijun quickly withdrew her hand and apologized with a look of guilt in her sorrowful eyes, causing Auntie Yang to feel a pang of heartache. She comforted her, "It’s alright, Young Miss, don’t worry."
When they were alone, Auntie Yang reverted to calling her ’Young Miss’ as she had done since Bai Lijun was a child, which Bai Lijun didn’t mind at all. She even preferred it, as Auntie Yang’s familiarity and affection gave her comfort, reassuring her that regardless of what happened, she could always rely on Auntie Yang.
Even though Bai Lijun had married out of the Bai family, Auntie Yang insisted on following and staying by her side, showing her genuine care and goodwill.
"Let me do it. I’ll apply the medicine for Auntie Yang myself."
Bai Lijun spoke to Yang Sui, taking a jar of medicine to apply on the wounds of the person on the bed herself, while engaging in conversation, "Auntie Yang suffered these severe injuries all because of me alone. If I hadn’t sent her to Qingyun City, she wouldn’t have encountered all these misfortunes.”
“Don’t blame yourself, Miss. Please, consider that this servant is just unlucky,” Auntie Yang consoled. She disliked seeing her mistress in sorrow. Her mistress always suited smiles best.
“Even so, what should we do next, Auntie Yang? We’ve lost the dowry of that woman, and now the remaining treasures of the Mu family have been plundered as well. It seems our Mu family will now be just a grand manor with nothing inside.”
Bai Lijun couldn’t help lamenting. The financial situation of their residence was already dire, and now this calamity had befallen them. Would the Mu family not be dragged down into the mire?
Without wealth, there would be no strength to develop and elevate the family!
It seemed the Mu family would encounter a dire situation from now on...
Auntie Yang paused to think of a solution before deciding to speak, “Actually, there is a way out, Young Miss.”
“Hmm?” Bai Lijun turned to her with curiosity, prompting Auntie Yang to continue, “I remember that a few months ago, someone from the Bai family sent a letter to you, didn’t they?”
“You’re not suggesting I agree to their proposal, are you?”
Bai Lijun’s eyes widened, her face tensing. Her natal family, the Bai family, was something she wanted nothing to do with!
Understanding her mistress’s stance, Auntie Yang explained further, “Please hear me out, Miss. They contacted you because they seek your help to request Mu Patriarch to use his influence to ensure Third Master Bai can secure a position in the capital. Why don’t we seize this opportunity for our benefit?”
“What benefit could there possibly be? That family will only cause me troubles!” Despite her disdainful laughter and disgust reflected in her eyes, Bai Lijun still listened as Auntie Yang elaborated.
“They will definitely bring benefit to us, Young Miss. The Bai family has been in trade for generations, and now with Third Master Bai entering civil service, even if it’s just a chief position in a small district, that district happens to be a bustling port town.”
“Given the Bai family’s greed and self-interest, they will undoubtedly use his position for corruption to amass great wealth. Since they’ve reached out to you for help, just accept it, but ensure there is a quid pro quo. Just signal your agreement, and they would readily comply out of their own interest.”
After finishing, Auntie Yang revealed a cunning smile. Bai Lijun, following the train of thought, finally grasped the intended meaning and saw the underlying opportunity in the proposal.
“What Auntie Yang means is to turn the Bai family into a source of wealth for us, right!?”
“Yes, Miss, consider it a mutually beneficial trade,” Auntie Yang nodded and continued.
“The Bai family, as of now, is likely wealthier than many nobles in the capital. If they have to spend a hundred thousand taels of gold to secure a future for Third Master Bai, they will surely hasten to offer the money to us immediately, Young Miss.”
Bai Lijun received the confirmation, her eyes gleaming with a hint of malice. Now in dire need of funds and with the Mu family facing a crisis as well, this option seemed not so bad after all!
If she could persuade her husband to find a less significant governmental position in the capital for her half-brother in exchange for a large sum of money, the Mu family could alleviate their financial woes for some time.
Moreover, she could also personally request additional funds from the Bai family to secure private assets for herself and her daughter to use in the future.
It seemed to be beneficial in every way!
“Yet, I still do not wish to be involved with those despicable people...” Bai Lijun complained, her face expressing unease.
Although the Bai family was her natal home, it was a place unworthy of consideration, filled with repulsive, selfish people.
The Bai family had been engaged in trade for so long that they had amassed significant wealth. Originally, she was the eldest young miss of the legitimated Furen in the Bai family. However, the filthy actions of her father and her mother’s younger sister, her biological aunt, led her mother to die of grief.
The wicked woman, who shamelessly became her brother-in-law’s concubine, later married to be the Furen, replacing her deceased elder sister, and acted as if nothing had happened!
Since then, Bai Lijun’s nightmare began, making every day in the Bai residence feel like hell. There was not a single day she didn’t dream of escaping from the despicable Bai family!
Until many years ago, she met Mu Cui Ming, a man who had his Furen already, but she didn’t care. She just wanted to be by his side, to escape the Bai family for good.
After Bai Lijun did everything to marry into the Mu family, she cut off all ties with the Bai family, until today, when she had to associate with them again...
Seeing the turmoil in her mistress’s expression, Auntie Yang reached out to grasp her delicate hands, comforting her, “I’ve troubled you, Young Miss. But this time, you won’t be at a disadvantage like before, I assure you.”
“Really, Auntie Yang?”
Bai Lijun asked softly, appearing as vulnerable as her younger self, a pitiful child from a house resembling hell on earth. Auntie Yang’s heart clenched at the sight.
“Yes, Young Miss, this time it will be our turn to get back at the Bai family, to make them pay for what they have done to us!”
After discussing with Auntie Yang to find a solution to their troubles, Bai Lijun returned to her quarters in good spirits, her beautiful face always adorned with a smile.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Yang Sui entered to instruct the staff to brew the medicinal herbs as prescribed by the doctor, intended for Auntie Yang’s consumption. While overseeing the preparation, Yang Sui suddenly felt stomach pains and excused herself to attend to her needs.
There were only a few servants left in the kitchen. A fifteen-year-old servant, tasked with stirring the herbs, exchanged knowing looks with another servant preparing kitchen utensils across the room. That servant clumsily dropped her utensils, pretending it was an accident.
“Auntie, I wasn’t careful and dropped the kitchenware. Where should I fetch a replacement?” she asked the cook with an apologetic demeanor.
“Sigh, be more careful next time! If it weren’t for the fact you’re a newcomer from Qingyun City, I’d have sent you to work in the laundry by now,” the middle-aged cook scolded before taking the new servant to the storage room.
With the kitchen temporarily empty, only the young servant continued stirring the pot. She cautiously scanned her surroundings before discreetly pulling out a packet from her sleeve and pouring a fine powder into the pot, mixing it thoroughly.
“Be more attentive from now on. Even if you are a new servant from the Mu Manor in Qingyun City, I won’t spare you if you err again."
A warning voice echoed from near the kitchen door. The servant quickly hid the packet back into her sleeve and resumed her task as if nothing had happened.
When the two returned from the storage room, while the cook was reprimanding another servant, the medicine-stirring servant caught the eye of her accomplice and nodded subtly, indicating their plan had succeeded. A secretive smile flickered on her lips.
Soon, Yang Sui returned, having finished her business, with the properly brewed medicine. She poured it into a bowl to serve Auntie Yang immediately, oblivious to the peculiar exchange between the two servants.
Both young servants, who had recently arrived with Auntie Yang’s carriage convoy from Mu Manor in Qingyun City to serve the Mu household in the capital, were actually operatives sent by Mu Yingying for a covert mission in the capital!
Besides their regular duties, these servants were assigned by the young miss to stealthily administer a certain powdered medicine to Auntie Yang for her to consume daily. But what was the intended effect of this concoction, only Mu Yingying knew...
Western Wing House, Mu Manor.
Situated toward the spacious manor’s western side, stands a secluded medium-sized residence. There were only a handful of servants in this house as preferred by its owner for its tranquility, away from the bustle.
Inside a room designated for studying scripts, two figures faced each other: one seated on a chair, the other standing with a respectful bow.
The young man, just fourteen, possessed striking features: sharp eyebrows like swords, long, slender eyes, a high bridge nose complementing his face, and well-defined lips suggesting that as he would age, he might become a heartthrob impossible for women to resist.
He sat upright, meticulously dipping his brush to write characters on paper, his demeanor indifferent.
"This servant pays his respects to the Eldest Young Master!"
The plain-looking servant knelt and showed reverence. The young man, without breaking his focus from the brushwork, inquired smoothly, "Who are you? And what brings you to me?"
The servant couldn’t help but admire the youth before him. Merely here to pay respect, yet the boy had already discerned an underlying purpose, showing no fear but asking openly.
Despite being just fourteen, he exuded a pressuring aura without much effort or words. The palpable tension he emitted made the servant momentarily anxious.
Indeed, he was Mu Gongzhen, the elder brother of the young miss!
Correct!
This servant was one of the individuals Mu Yingying sent to blend into the Mu family manor in the capital!
He was instructed by the young miss to attentively serve by the eldest young master’s side. Apart from him, there were three other operatives disguised as servants in the capital’s Mu Manor, with Uncle Wang assigned to arrange shadow guards for the protection of both the eldest young master and the eldest young miss.
The shadow guards had followed along the carriages convoy in secret, and then they dispersed to assume their respective posts around the residences of the eldest young master and the eldest young miss, remaining undetected. Their exceptional martial skills ensured even the Mu family’s regular guards could not discern their presence.
Should any danger befall the eldest young master or the eldest young miss, these shadow guards would reveal themselves instantly!
"I am Lai Feng, young master. Uncle Wang sent us to be at your service," Lai Feng reported, attributing his deployment to Uncle Wang instead of Seventh Young Miss as per her order.
Mu Gongzhen paused momentarily, setting down his brush with a slight lift of his brow. "Uncle Wang? Are you referring to him?"
He asked in surprise. Mu Gongzhen vividly remembered Uncle Wang, despite not having been in contact for several months. As a child, he often accompanied his mother to various stores in her dowry’s list, encountering and conversing with Uncle Wang frequently.
Even after his mother passed away, he kept in touch, relying on Uncle Wang to oversee his mother’s commercial interests on behalf of him and his siblings.
"If the young master doubts, please examine this,"
Lai Feng presented a scroll marked with Uncle Wang’s seal, a jade emblem familiar to Mu Gongzhen from countless prior encounters, confirming its authenticity.
Recognizing the individual sent by Uncle Wang, Mu Gongzhen’s suspicions eased. "What has Uncle Wang sent you to do?"
"With the current unrest within the Mu family, Uncle Wang worries for your and the eldest young miss’s safety, thus deploying us to ensure your protection," Lai Feng replied smoothly, concealing any hint of deceit.
Us?
Were there others as well?
Mu Gongzhen, intrigued by the mention of ’us’, sought clarification, “Are there other people besides you?”
"Yes, there’s another servant dispatched to tend to the Eldest Young Miss," Lai Feng disclosed, prompting a smile from Mu Gongzhen. If Uncle Wang took such measures due to the Mu Manor’s instability, it likely indicated Uncle Wang’s own hand in the disturbances more than anything else.
Although he was fairly confident in his own thoughts, he said nothing. He didn’t feel bad at all that Uncle Wang was causing unrest within the Mu family; on the contrary, deep down, he actually relished it. He wanted to stir the waters even more, causing greater turmoil for the Mu family!
Mu Gongzhen, overwhelmed by his subconscious musings, abruptly snapped back to reality. He was puzzled by these feelings.
Where did this hatred, this aversion, this desire to flee from the Mu Manor as far as possible, originate?
Why did he feel a bizarre joy when witnessing the Mu family’s misfortunes?
In recent months, strange feelings consistently besieged him, eroding his former self bit by bit.
Could it be related to those dreams?
Mu Gongzhen couldn’t help but think about the peculiar series of events occurring in his dreams over the past three months. At night, whenever he fell asleep, he would invariably dream of certain scenarios.
Initially, these dreams were vague and disjointed, the faces within them merely murky shadows.
However, as time passed, the dreams grew increasingly vivid. Faces became clear, and recognizable, eventually revealing that the people he dreamed about were real individuals.
Those people were no one else but the members of the Mu family!
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