"When I passed by the plum garden just now, I saw Baoqi muttering something in the courtyard. Looking closer, I heard him saying bad things about you."
Ji Wushang smiled; there was no end to the bad things he was saying. "Anything else?"
"Aunt Bai is about to make her move." Yue'er looked at Ji Wushang, "However, she's not targeting you..."
"ah!"
Before Yue'er could finish speaking, a scream was heard outside!
Ji Wushang suddenly stood up. "What happened?"
"Aunt Xie is in trouble." Yue'er looked at Ji Wushang with a slight nervousness. Ji Wushang immediately understood that Aunt Xie was probably doomed! She had been in power for so long, which had already aroused jealousy, and now Aunt Bai would definitely not let her go.
"Let's go take a look." Ji Wushang put on his robe and came out of the inner room with Yue'er, where they saw Zhu'er and Xian'er.
"Go take a look," Ji Wushang ordered, and then immediately headed towards Xie Garden.
The Xie Garden was already packed with people. Servants outside looked up and wondered what was happening inside, while their master was inside.
Ji Wushang told Zhu'er and the others to wait outside before going inside.
Upon entering, they saw Aunt Xie kneeling disheveled under the bed, and beside her, a burly man with his clothes half-open.
Ji Dingbei was furious, his eyes blazing with rage. "What else do you have to say?"
Aunt Bai, heavily pregnant, stood to the side, a slight smile playing on her lips, but her words sent chills down one's spine: "I never imagined that Sister Xie would do such a thing."
"My lord! I am innocent! I did not do it, I did not betray you, I am innocent! Please, my lord, investigate!" Aunt Xie cried and kowtowed as she spoke, her whole body looking disheveled.
At this moment, Aunt Qin squeezed in from outside. Seeing this scene, she immediately recalled the incident of seeing Su Meier having an affair at the Right Prime Minister's residence a few days ago, and her face turned pale.
"Sister Xie, the master has always treated you well, so why did you do such a despicable thing? Alas, as your older sister, I feel ashamed just watching!" Aunt Bai glanced coldly at Aunt Qin, then turned her gaze to Aunt Xie.
Aunt Qin trembled. This vile woman had actually framed Aunt Xie! Wouldn't she be next?
"Sister Bai, what makes you say that Sister Xie is having an affair? This man, judging from his appearance, is not good-looking at all. How can he compare to Master? Is someone framing Sister Xie?" Aunt Qin stepped forward and said coldly.
Aunt Xie was somewhat taken aback. Was Aunt Qin helping her?
"Master, I am innocent! I am innocent! I was just doing the accounts when, unexpectedly, a dark-skinned man suddenly came in and drugged me with sleeping potion, and that's how I ended up like this!" Aunt Xie cried out.
At this moment, Aunt Bai secretly gave Li Qiang a wink.
Upon receiving this, Li Qiang immediately laughed, "Sweetie, why do you need to explain so much to others? We've already done so much, haven't we been carefree every day? If things are exposed today, so be it. Perhaps when we reach the underworld, King Yama will remember our feelings and decree that we be husband and wife in our next life!"
"You, you're talking nonsense, you're talking nonsense!" Aunt Xie cried out and tried to hit the man, but the man just smiled, grabbed her arm, and kissed it!
Ji Dingbei was furious!
"You two, you scoundrels! Guards! Drag her out and beat her to death!" Ji Dingbei was furious, his anger surging. This was his woman, and she had been violated by this man who had just appeared out of nowhere! Ji Dingbei stepped forward and kicked Li Qiang hard in the chest. Li Qiang fell backward, crying, "No, don't kill me!"
That's when he started to panic?
But how could Ji Dingbei give him the chance! He drew his long sword from his waist and thrust it towards the man's chest! Instantly, blood splattered everywhere!
Ji Wushang was stunned. This person hadn't even had a chance to speak before being killed by his father. And that Aunt Xie...
Li Qiang couldn't believe it. Didn't they agree? Aunt Bai said she wouldn't die! How could Ji Dingbei kill him! His eyes remained open, staring at Aunt Bai. Aunt Bai smiled sarcastically. "It's best not to believe what women say! Especially women like me!"
Ji Wushang glanced at Bai Yiniang, just in time to see her sarcastic smile. Bai Yiniang immediately composed herself, looked at Ji Wushang, and quickly stepped forward to stop Ji Dingbei, "Master, please don't be angry, please don't get upset! Anger will harm your health!"
"Hmph!" Ji Dingbei roared, "Get out of my way!"
Aunt Bai listened and stood to one side.
Aunt Xie was dumbfounded. How could she be exonerated when the man was dead? She looked blankly at Aunt Qin, who also looked helpless. She hadn't expected Ji Dingbei to be so angry.
Ji Wushang stood there and stepped forward. "Father, I feel that this matter still needs to be investigated."
"What are you investigating! Humph!" Ji Dingbei turned around, "Take the letter of divorce back to your Xie residence tomorrow!" With that, he stepped out.
Aunt Xie stood frozen like a wooden statue. Ji Dingbei actually wanted to divorce her? And what Xie family! A few years ago, the Xie family, which used to sell cloth, fell into decline, and she had no choice but to be brought into this mansion as a concubine! Now that she had been divorced and returned to the mansion, would she ever have a chance to see the light of day again?
"Hehe!" Aunt Xie laughed, pointing at Aunt Bai, "Bai Aomei, I curse you with my life, I curse you to never have a peaceful life, and for all eternity, may the men of your descendants be slaves for generations to come! May the women be prostitutes for generations to come! You have won today, but I curse you, I curse you to die a horrible death!" With that, she suddenly rushed towards the wall on the left!
Suddenly, with a loud thud, her head exploded, and blood splattered all over the ground! Aunt Xie fell to the ground, blood gushing from her mouth.
Ji Wushang and Aunt Qin were shocked and had no time to react before they saw this scene!
Aunt Bai trembled as she heard Aunt Xie's curse, but unexpectedly, the next second Aunt Xie slammed her head against the wall!
Ji Dingbei had just stepped outside when he heard Aunt Xie speaking sharply inside. He stopped, but heard nothing. However, he did hear the heavy thud of her hitting the wall at the end! Startled, Ji Dingbei turned back and rushed into the inner room. He immediately stepped forward and supported Aunt Xie's upper body, looking at the blood gushing out of her, at a loss for what to do.
"I...I didn't...I didn't..."
"I believe you." Ji Dingbei could only manage to squeeze out these words at this moment, feeling helpless.
"Take care of... take good care of... Sisi, I, I only have, only have left..." Aunt Xie's head drooped before she could finish speaking.
Ji Dingbei looked at the woman in front of him and roared, blaming himself for being too easily angered!
Aunt Bai was still thinking about the curse, feeling a chill run down her spine. Ji Wushang stood before her, saying, "Aunt Bai, are you satisfied now? You forced Aunt Xie to her death, isn't that great? From now on, you can help Father manage the inner quarters."
"No, no, no, I didn't, I didn't force Aunt Xie to her death!" Aunt Bai panicked, kneeling down and moving towards Ji Dingbei. "Master, master, I didn't force Sister Xie to her death! She couldn't think straight!"
Ji Dingbei put down Aunt Xie's body, stood up, and looked coldly at Aunt Bai, "Then why did you say those sarcastic things to provoke her back then?"
"This concubine, this concubine..." Aunt Bai's eyes darted around, finally finding an excuse, "This concubine has always spoken her mind. This concubine didn't know the details, but she just said it directly. This concubine, this concubine will definitely speak less in the future, speak less!"
"Before Sister Xie died, she cursed Sister Bai. Hehe, I don't know what to say. Master, if you look closely, you will see many things you never imagined." Aunt Qin was not afraid of angering Ji Dingbei at this moment, and said such words, and then knelt in front of Ji Dingbei.
Aunt Qin's words implied that Ji Dingbei was not reasonable or fair enough.
Ji Dingbei was taken aback. After all, family scandals shouldn't be aired in public, and besides, Aunt Bai was carrying his child... He couldn't very well kill her, could he? Also, the curse just now was probably something Aunt Xie said out of resentment... Whether it would come true or not, they would only know later. Besides, wouldn't the children born to Aunt Bai be his own offspring? This... Aunt Xie actually cursed him too?
As Ji Dingbei thought this to himself, he couldn't help but feel less pity for Aunt Xie.
"That's enough for today. I don't want anyone to bring this up again! Guards, Aunt Xie has died suddenly. Place her in a coffin and bury her in the ancestral grave. A reward of one thousand taels of gold and silver will be given to the Xie family as a consolation. From now on, Fu'er will be in charge, with Ao Mei assisting her!" Ji Dingbei finished speaking and left immediately.
The attendant, Yue Shisi, responded from the side.
As the people left, the two head maids, Biyu and Wanglian, rushed over crying. Aunt Qin shook her head and then ordered the servants to take the maids away and settle them down, and to deal with the matter at Xie Garden.
Ji Wushang glanced at Aunt Bai, who was secretly pleased with herself. She watched Aunt Qin busy and wanted to laugh out loud!
"Is Aunt Bai feeling alright?" Ji Wushang suddenly stepped forward and asked.
Aunt Bai took a step back upon hearing this, determined to give birth to this child!
"Thank you for your concern, Miss. I usually take some medicine to prevent miscarriage, and I'm fine!" Aunt Bai squinted her small eyes. "I'm tired, so I'll take my leave first. Sister Qin, I'll leave things here to you!"
Ji Wushang hummed in agreement, then watched her leave. "Auntie, you must be careful!"
Aunt Bai almost fell over when she heard this eerie remark as she walked forward, but luckily Tianxiang was there to support her!
"Fine!" Aunt Bai's eyes flashed with a fierce light. She was just trying to scare her! She would definitely teach her a lesson! Aunt Xie was dead this time, and the next one would be you, Ji Wushang!
Ji Wushang seemed to sense the coldness behind him, but he didn't turn around to look, knowing that she definitely wouldn't let him go.
Aunt Qin stepped forward, "Young Miss."
"Auntie, now it's just you and Aunt Bai left." The implication was that they were the only two left in the struggle for the position of mistress.
Aunt Qin nodded, "Yes, I know. I will definitely not lose!"
Ji Wushang looked at the fire in her eyes, "I should go back now, farewell."
"Go!" Aunt Qin turned around and continued to watch the servants clean up the bloodstains on the ground. The body had already been taken away.
Ji Wushang walked along the road, with Zhu'er, Xian'er, and Yue'er following silently behind him.
Ji Wushang would sometimes look up at the sky, and sometimes look at the scenery around him, feeling nothing at all.
"Miss, if you're feeling unwell, would you like to sit in the pavilion and get some fresh air?" Zhu'er stepped forward at this moment, while Ji Wushang was looking up at the sky.
"I'm wondering if I made a mistake," Ji Wushang said. "I could have pleaded with Father; perhaps then Aunt Xie wouldn't have died such a tragic death!"
"Miss, in fact, you did plead with the master, but he was in a fit of anger and wouldn't listen to anyone. It's not your fault, nor is it the master's fault. The blame lies with those who schemed too much, calculating that the master would come and that he wouldn't listen to anyone," Yue'er said.
Upon hearing this, Ji Wushang turned to look at Yue'er. To be able to say such a thing, one must be quite shrewd.
"Then tell me, what should we do next?" Ji Wushang looked at Yue'er, his eyes slightly cold.
Yue'er immediately knelt down, "Miss, this servant believes that you should be careful."
"Get up!" Ji Wushang stepped forward to help her up. It would be best if Yue'er were used by him; if she were used by others, he would rather kill her!
"You're right, we definitely need to be careful, hehe." Ji Wushang chuckled twice, then said, "Let's deal with the rest later! Let's go back."
"Yes." The three maids nodded and followed.
A cold wind blew all night, chilling me to the bone, leaving me speechless with despair. The wind outside howled and whirred, lashing against the grass and trees as if weeping, as if lamenting.
Ji Wushang tossed and turned several times before finally falling asleep.
But it felt like only a short while later, she heard Zhu'er calling her in her ear, "Miss, Miss, it's time to get up. We're going to a banquet at the White Horse Temple. Master said we can't be too late."
"Hmm." Ji Wushang muttered, then turned over and continued sleeping.
At this moment, Xian'er came in carrying water for washing her face, and Zhu'er turned to look at Xian'er with a helpless expression.
Xian'er put down the water and silk scarf, then stepped forward and whispered in Ji Wushang's ear, "Miss, Prince Nan has arrived."
"What?!" Ji Wushang was jolted awake, jumping up as if on cue. His expression was clear, but when he saw Xian'er's mischievous grin and Zhu'er's sly smile, Ji Wushang was filled with both anger and shame. "You, you actually dared to lie to me! You dared, dared to tease me!"
"Miss, it was Xian'er who dared to try this method because she saw you didn't want to wake up." Xian'er knelt down as she spoke, "Master said we need to get to the White Horse Temple quickly; we can't wait too long."
Ji Wushang nodded helplessly, "Get up! Don't call me that anymore... otherwise, I, I!" Ji Wushang raised his fist.
Xian'er looked at Ji Wushang, stood up, and then looked at Zhu'er. Both of them smiled.
"Still laughing?" Ji Wushang said reproachfully.
Xian'er and Zhu'er suppressed their laughter as they dressed up Ji Wushang.
When they arrived at the main hall, almost everyone had already arrived. After waiting a short while, they saw that Aunt Qin and Aunt Bai had also arrived.
Ji Dingbei scanned the group and said, "Let's set off."
"yes."
The carriages set off in a grand procession towards the White Horse Temple. Ji Wushang, Aunt Qin, and Aunt Bai all sat in one large carriage. Aunt Bai's face was not pleasant; she turned her face away, avoiding looking at Ji Wushang and Aunt Qin, and her hand habitually stroked her own lower abdomen.
A flicker of disdain crossed Ji Wushang's mind as he looked at Aunt Qin and asked, "Aunt, did you stay up very late last night?"
"Yes, I'm a little tired." Aunt Qin rubbed her temples.
Ji Wushang took out a small bottle from his pocket and said, "I have some invigorating incense here. Smelling it will make you feel more alert. Would you like some?"