The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 1)

Chapter 64 - The Escaped Slave

Song Chengru immediately understood what his granddaughter meant. He held back his anger and let out a cold laugh before asking, "Who gave you this item?"

"It was Nanny Qiu, who serves Fifth Sister." Song Chuyi lowered her eyes and thought for a moment before adding, "That nanny is rather peculiar. She doesn't behave like a servant in front of Fifth Sister, but more like an elder. I've even seen her pinch and slap Fifth Sister on several occasions."

"That nanny used the excuse that Fifth Sister wanted to thank me for helping her out before, and she gave me this bracelet. She even urged me several times to wear it. At first, I didn't think much of it, but after she repeatedly insisted, I took a closer look when I got home and broke out in a cold sweat."

She didn't expose Song Jie. No matter what, she couldn't believe that Song Jie truly wanted to harm her. However, Song Chengru was far too astute to overlook any details. Due to Fifth Lady, he had already grown distant from the children of the fifth household. If he found out that Song Jie had been used as an intermediary, he might become even more estranged from Song Jie, making Song Jie's life even harder.

For Fifth Lady Wang to allow such a person to remain by her own daughter's side showed that she truly didn't consider herself part of the Song family. She didn't even see her own children, who carried Fifth Master's bloodline, as her own.

With such a mother, how innocent were the children of the fifth household!

Song Chengru came out to see Old Lady Song, his expression dark. "That woman can no longer be indulged. It's simply outrageous!"

Old Lady Song, having been his wife for many years, immediately understood who he was referring to. She sighed deeply, a trace of reluctance on her face, and hesitated. "I too have lost all hope in her. But on the one hand, she is still the mother of several children, and on the other hand, she has Empress Dowager Rongxian backing her. Just on New Year's Day when we went to the palace, the Empress Dowager even asked how she was doing. If not for the Emperor's involvement, she would have long brought her into the palace."

Wasn't what happened with Prince Tai enough to make Empress Dowager Rongxian give up?

If it weren't for the Empress Dowager, the Fifth Lady would have died a dozen times by now in Song Chengru's eyes.

Suppressing his overwhelming rage, he recounted how Nanny Qiu had given forbidden items to Song Chuyi. He was still shaken: "Thankfully, she targeted Xiao Yi. If it had been any of the other girls, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

Even so, Old Lady Song couldn't help but gasp in shock. "What?!"

She suppressed the fear rising in her heart and carefully examined the bracelet in her hands, over and over again. Sure enough, she noticed the inscription inside, marking it as belonging to the Duke of Cheng's family. She grew furious, breathing heavily. "That woman truly has no conscience! Our Song family has treated her with nothing but kindness, and Fifth Son has never spoken a harsh word to her. How can someone's heart be this black?"

Song Chengru sneered, "After all, she was raised by Empress Dowager Rongxian. Who knows what goes on in her mind? Back then, who in the entire capital would dare take in such a troublesome person? Many knelt before the Empress, begging with tears to refuse her. But we took her in for the sake of the Duke of Cheng's family. Not only does she not show gratitude, but over the years, she's come to treat us as enemies. Truly, it takes all kinds of people to make the world. She can't be touched, but every one of the servants around her must be replaced. Not a single one left behind!"

Old Lady Song didn't dare delay and agreed immediately. Then she remembered Nanny Qiu. "That nanny can't stay either."

She always knew when to act. That Nanny Qiu had delivered the bracelet and urged Song Chuyi to wear it, indicating she knew at least part of the scheme. No matter how much she knew, such a person could not be left behind as a future threat.

Song Chengru nodded in satisfaction and added, "Warn Fifth Son. Tell him to stay away from Wang Shi's rooms from now on. Also, replace all the servants attending to the children with our own people. Their upbringing will now be entrusted to the eldest daughter-in-law."

Old Lady Song now wished for her son to distance himself from Wang Shi as much as possible. Who knew if she might suddenly lose her mind and turn her schemes against him, putting the entire family at risk?

She immediately set to work, instructing Nanny Huang to handle it personally, without delegating to others. "We've given the Empress Dowager face for all these years. If she still wants to pursue this, I'll go and bash my head in at her Changning Palace! Let's see how she explains that to the world!" Her anger was boiling over, and now even Empress Dowager Rongxian was earning her resentment.

Seeing that her face had turned pale with rage, Song Chengru gently massaged her back, smiling as he teased her. "Look at you! After all these decades, whenever something important comes up, you still lose your temper like this. Is it really that serious? Do you think the men of our family are all dead?"

Old Lady Song felt a bit better, sipping the tea he offered her before sighing, "Thank goodness it was Xiao Yi..."

"That little girl is quite something. She'll go far," Song Chengru nodded in agreement. "She's destined for greatness. It's a shame she's confined to the inner courtyard. With her knowledge and insight, if she were a man, she'd undoubtedly be the pillar of our Song family's future."

Old Lady Song, sensing the old man's bias against women, was about to argue when Nanny Huang rushed in. "Old Master, Old Lady, Nanny Qiu has escaped!"

Song Chengru and Old Lady Song exchanged shocked glances. In unison, they exclaimed, "What?!"

"We sent people over, but Fifth Miss's attendants said the nanny left the house this morning and hasn't returned since. We went to her room and found that she had packed up her belongings and left."

Such perfect timing!

Song Chuyi had just come out of the study and was also taken aback upon hearing this.

Song Chengru immediately gave orders to Nanny Huang. "Go inform the eldest daughter-in-law that the roof tiles on the main courtyard of the fifth household are in need of repairs, and she should take her people to thoroughly inspect Fifth Lady's residence. As for Fifth Lady, for the time being, she will stay with the Old Lady."

"Exactly!" Old Lady Song quickly called over Lin Hai and said, "I trust you. Don't let me down. Take people and carefully inventory all of Fifth Lady's dowry and furnishings. Seal everything up and store it in the family's warehouse for now."

Nanny Huang and Lin Hai both realized something was amiss and, without delay, each set off to handle their respective tasks.

"Grandfather, we need to inform the Yingtian Prefecture immediately," Song Chuyi quickly added, "Our household has a runaway servant!"

This matter couldn't be concealed. If their suspicions were correct and Prince Duan was colluding with the FIfth Lady, Wang Jinshi, then Nanny Qiu might very well be fleeing to Prince Duan.

By labeling her as a runaway servant now, in the future, she would carry that stigma. Any time she encountered an official, she would be punished with a hundred lashes of the rod before being questioned, making her words far less credible. Prince Duan, with his keen instincts, would realize that Nanny Qiu had been exposed and would no longer consider using her for anything.

Song Chengru nodded in agreement. He quickly wrote a letter and instructed Lin Hai to deliver it to the Yingtian Prefecture. He also used this opportunity to conduct a thorough inspection of all the servants in the fifth household, detaining anyone connected to Nanny Qiu.