The Chinese new year's eve was destined to be a troublesome day!
Moreover, the first day of the new year was not as quiet and simple as that in the past.
It was widely spread that in new year's eve, His Excellency in duke's manor drank too much in the palace and got driven out of the palace. Besides, it was said that he had improper relations with First Miss Mo and tried to rape her. But First Miss Mo didn't agree so that the carriage got out of control and knocked on a tree when they fought against each other.
When they fell down from the carriage, First Miss Mo picked up a chip of porcelain which was next to her hand and stabbed His Excellency hard with it. It resulted in His Excellency's damaged face and coma. If he hadn't been saved by a passenger, he might have been stabbed to death by this tough first miss.
Everyone felt surprised that it was actually not Mo Xuemin's fault, but all blamed her because the one who hurt her
Mo Huawen stood by the opening of the gate, although he was the last person the duchess expected to show up – it should have been the old madam, surrounded by servants and maids. The duchess was amazed by his improper behavior. After all, Mo Huawen was a man and shouldn't greet her at the gate. Those who didn't know the truth might think they were having an affair for him to greet her warmly in person. Mo Huawen's wife was dead and he could get married again, but duchess wouldn't marry anymore . Besides, in order to help his son become a duke, she not only couldn't get married, but also had to act faithfully. She definitely couldn't have improper relations with a man outside of Duke Zhenguo's manor. She couldn't imagine Mo Huawen would humiliate her like a rascal. Was this supposed to be done by a third-class official? "Let's go back to our manor!" she said through gritted teeth. She held the nanny's hand and hurried into the
Mo Xuemin arrived in a short period of time, dressed in plain clothes without any rouge on her face, which made her more pitiful and delicate than in her usual luxuriant garments. Before words could be spoken, she knelt in front of Mo Huawen's writing desk and cried on the ground, her sleeves covering her face. Mo Xuemin cried painfully and aggrievedly, which seemed very innocent."Father, I, I... really don't know what happened. I just wanted to go to the market to buy some rose pastries. I knew you liked them and would be happy to see them on your desk in the morning. But I, I just suddenly passed out on the carriage. When I woke up again, I found His Excellency Sima lying beside me with blood all over his body..." On the way here, Mo Xuemin had thought the whole thing through. Although the nanny at the back entrance had been Auntie Fang's confidant, the nanny wouldn't keep the secret now that Auntie Fang lost her power and Mo Xuemin was no
Sad crying filled the study and then Mo Yufeng appeared by the door. After he got in, he knelt down by Mo Xuemin obediently and begged miserably with them. "Father, please forgive the first sister. What happened yesterday was an accident. She just intended to do something for you, but no one could imagine Sima Lingyun was so shameless."Mo Yufeng was Mo Huawen's only son and Mo Xuemin's elder brother by blood. If Mo Xuemin really became Sima Lingyun's concubine, Mo Yufeng would never be proud in front of others; even his career would be affected. No matter how angry he was, he couldn't see Mo Xuemin being sent into Duke Zhenguo's manor. Now the accident was known by all, everybody knew Mo Xuemin was almost raped by Sima Lingyun. It's not bad that Mo Xuemin struggled against him, which distanced her from the rumor in the palace. However, Mo Xuemin was forced to stay at Duke Zhenguo's manor for a whole night yesterday, which was not good news. Thinking about
Lan Xinru didn't come here to find Mo Xuetong, and she had planned the exact time of her arrival. She told her maid to ask the servant to watch Mo Huawen in order to know when he would come to Qingwei Garden. She even cooked for his daughter in person and hurt her hand.It was unknown whether Mo Huawen tried to evade Lan Xinru on purpose. But when Mo Huawen went to greet Old Madam, Lan Xinru was not there. Lan Xinru would only stay at Mo Manor for a few days and didn't have many chances to meet Mo Huawen, which made both Old Madam and Lan Xinru worried, so Old Madam came up with this idea.Old Madam's suggestion was to let Lan Xinru cook the millet congee and bring it over to serve Mo Xuetong carefully, which must be gentle like treating her own daughter. But Lan Xinru had a different idea – she came a bit late on purpose and served the porridge to Mo Huawen, himself. She had intended to show Mo Huawen her injured finger to make him care for her more.
Mo Huawen didn't stay at Mo Xuetong's yard for too long before he left. On one hand, he had to greet Old Madam. On the other hand, he couldn't say anything intimate with Mo Xuetong in the presence of others. He told Mo Xuetong to have a good rest and then left for Old Madam's yard. Lan Xinru and Mo Xueyan told Mo Huawen that they were also about to greet Old Madam and followed him. Seeing her father’s impatience, Mo Xuetong smiled and asked someone to accompany them to the door. Mo Yu saw them out, turned around and said angrily, "Miss, this Miss Lan is disgraceful to follow the master like that. She didn't look a bit like an unmarried woman. Even we maids are more dignified than her." She had long felt uncomfortable about Lan Xinru. She said she’d come to see Mo Xuetong, but in fact, she had been throwing eyes at Mo Huawen. When Lan Xinru noticed he hadn’t drunk the congee, she had reminded him to eat, and almost took over the chopsticks to
It was not that Old Madam felt bad for Mo Xuemin. If the two daughters of the Mo Manor could only become concubines, then Mo Xueyan, whom she doted on the most, who was the daughter of a businessman, would not be able to marry well. They had come to the capital so that Mo Xueyan could go with Mo Xuemin to the banquet. There, she would be able to gain knowledge or perhaps find a good marriage. However, she did not expect Mo Xuemin to keep getting into trouble. Even if her reputation was not ruined, it was not stellar. If she let Mo Xueyan follow Mo Xuemin around, it would drag down Mo Xueyan's reputation. It would not be appropriate for Mo Xueyan to follow Mo Xuetong around, either. Firstly, Mo Xuetong had just come to the capital and her health was poor. She did not know many people in the capital and usually needed someone to take care of her. Where would she find the energy to introduce Mo Xueyan to good people? Furthermore, while Mo Xuetong was young,
The daughter from Luo Xia's family? Lan Xinru was no match for that! And, if the Old Madam from the General Manor had decided on the matter, Mo Huawen could not be considered to have been in a secret relationship.The Old Madam glanced at the sachet angrily. She did not reach out to take it and said coldly, "This matter has only been mentioned; it is not official. Even though the Old Madam's niece would not be bad, you have to ask around more about it. This embroidery work is only alright and cannot compare to Xinru's skills. You had better think about it again. It’s better to marry someone you already know than marry a total stranger. Get married while I am still here and consider it as fulfilling one of my wishes." "Yes, Mother, I will consider it!" Mo Huawen said respectfully.The Old Madam was so angry, she dismissed him from her yard. "Aunt, you must help me! " Mo Huawen had only just left the Old Madam's room when Lan Xinru
Compared to the chaos at the Duke Zhenguo's Manor, the Palace was much calmer.In the morning, the Fifth Princess of Changping Palace clutched her dizzy head and got up with the help of her palace maids. She stretched lazily, and after she was done washing up, the maid in charge, Huanyue, helped her to rub her hair dry with a dry towel. The weather outside was very good. Soft couches filled with cotton were laid out at the southeastern corner of the garden in the palace, where there was plentiful sunlight. Two tall, marble screens were placed on the northern and western sides to block out the wind. It was already near noon, and the sun shone warmly from above. The Fifth Princess leaned against the couch and chatted with Huanyue about the events of the previous night.The Fifth Princess still did not know what happened outside the palace, but knew how odd the incident last night was, especially after receiving a letter in the morning.