The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 1)

Chapter 123 - Inserting a Needle

In just three days, the Princess of Zhennan visited for the second time. Old Lady Song recalled the fire at the Marquis's family estate last night. Though she had prepared herself, she still felt uneasy, and her expression was somewhat distant.

Sure enough, after only a few exchanges, the Princess of Zhennan, looking worried, asked about the fire at the Marquis's family estate, "What happened? How could such a big fire break out out of nowhere? It's been years since such a major fire occurred in the capital, and I couldn't help but worry for you. That night, the smoke was visible from the imperial city..." She restrained her anxiety and initiated a conversation with Old Lady Song.

Lady He, the wife of Duke Ying's heir, kept craning her neck to look outside, her anxiousness practically showing on her face.

Fortunately, after hearing the Princess's words, she snapped back to reality and forced a smile to interject, "That's right. There was a curfew last night; otherwise, the young master would have come over to see if he could help... Thank Buddha, I heard there were no casualties?"

The First Lady nodded, feeling somewhat relieved, "Exactly! Thank the Buddha, it's a relief no one was hurt."

"That's the only good fortune amidst the misfortune," the wife of Duke Ying's heir said, hands clasped together. Yet she did not inquire about the cause of the fire; instead, she sighed with worry, "The other day, your family came to our estate to report mourning, saying that the second lady had passed away... We intended to send a condolence note, but then we heard there was no funeral hall set up?"

Such a precedent had never occurred in the capital. Aside from the Duchess of Chengguo and the recently deceased matriarch of the general's family, who had been buried simply without any memorial hall, other noble ladies always followed the established customs. The two of them were in a unique situation, given their connections to a scandalous family.

Old Lady Song had long prepared her response and effortlessly blurted it out, "Ah, who can say otherwise? I don't know if it's because of some bad luck lately, but things have been happening in the estate one after another... The second daughter-in-law got smallpox; we consulted a geomancer, and it was said she was under some kind of curse that conflicted with our ancestral tomb's feng shui. Where can I appeal this? Our late lord was strict about rules, personally went to ask the Astronomical Bureau, and they also said her fate was bad, which would affect her children. So, after discussing with the Li family, we simply decided to keep everything as simple as possible..."

It was indeed rare to see noble ladies pass away in such a shabby manner.

However, both the Princess of Zhennan and the wife of Duke Ying's heir were clever women. Upon hearing this, they didn't display any curiosity but instead smiled in agreement, "That's true; if the feng shui is bad, it will bring misfortune to future generations. It really cannot be taken lightly."

Lady He seized the moment to glance at the Princess, her face still maintaining a strained smile, but her heart was even more anxious. With Li Shi's death, regardless of whether the funeral was held or not, her children were expected to observe mourning and wouldn't be able to go out to socialize.

As everyone was chatting, suddenly the curtain outside was lifted, and Song Chuyi stepped in slowly.

Her walk was different from that of ordinary young ladies; although her movement was as graceful and pleasant as theirs, her steps held a steadiness and propriety that seemed to promise the bright flowers awaiting her in the future.

The Princess of Zhennan momentarily overlapped her image with that of the past Cui Shi, suddenly realizing how the Cui family members always walked with their backs straight and their spirits high.

"Come here!" she reacted first. After Song Chuyi performed her greetings, she quickly pulled her in front of her and said with a smile, "It's been a few days since we last met, and you seem even more ethereal."

The wife of Duke Ying's heir also laughed teasingly, "Yes, she is getting more and more beautiful. No wonder our girls are thinking about her after she returns."

Song Chuyi glanced around and noticed that her fourth and fifth sisters were absent, leading her to suspect ulterior motives. These two noble ladies couldn't have come just to see her; with so many young ladies at home, why would they specifically request to meet her?

Song Chuning sat on a long bench in the corridor, tilting her head to see the lively birds flitting about opposite her, yet her expression showed not a hint of joy, only indifference and coldness.

Cuiqiao hesitantly approached and replied, "Miss, Nanny Yu has been confined in Taoran Residence... The sixth young lady just went to interrogate her this morning. The Princess of Zhennan and the wife of Duke Ying's heir have just arrived; she's only just come out now."

Song Chuning absently played with a leaf in her hand, crushing it until her fingers were stained with green juice, yet she didn't care. She turned her head slightly, revealing a hint of a smile.

That smile didn't reach her eyes, making Cuiqiao too afraid to look further, lowering her head and saying nothing.

"You go to Taoran Residence," Song Chuning said, her fingertips red and blistered from squeezing, yet she felt no pain. She turned to Cuiqiao and stated, "It's so hot right now, and Nanny Yu hasn't changed her clothes all night. You need to take her a set of clothes."

Cuiqiao didn't want to go. Previously, her mistress asked Lushan to deliver peaches to Nanny Yu, and Nanny Yu burned down Songtao Courtyard. Now her mistress asked her to deliver clothes to Nanny Yu... She didn't dare to imagine what would happen after she delivered them.

However, Song Chuning's gaze was fixed on her, making her every thought feel exposed. She could barely hold back tears and finally, under Song Chuning's cold stare, responded with a hesitant "yes."

Song Chuning watched her run toward the main house and turned her gaze to the trembling Cui Guo standing nearby, "Keep an eye on her. If she doesn't go... then you go instead."

That person, Song Chuyi, was no longer the foolish and easily deceived girl she remembered. Since she had gone to interrogate Nanny Yu, she surely knew how to get to her to talk.

On the surface, Nanny Yu seemed loyal, but her true motivation was rooted in money and power. There might be some genuine feelings involved, but she would never ask her children to sacrifice themselves alongside the Li family. By this time, she might have already spilled the beans to Song Chuyi.

Yet, Song Chuning felt no panic at all. Even if Nanny Yu's weak points were in Song Chuyi's grasp, ultimately, it was still up to her whether she lived or died.

As long as Nanny Yu was dead, there would be no evidence to implicate her. Nanny Yu was the one who had been seen setting fire to Song Taoyuan; she was the one who truly deserved to die.

And all of this, if there were no witnesses, what connection did it have to her?

As for Song Chuyi... it was only a matter of time. Now that the mask had been torn off, it made no difference. She didn't believe that her dreams would lead her to lose to Song Chuyi, nor did she believe that Song Chuyi could break free from that dream and achieve rebirth. In this world, only phoenixes could be reborn from fire. Could Song Chuyi be worthy of that?