The servant in the room calculated the time she would get up and prepared hot water and handkerchiefs in advance, dried the clothes she was going to wear, and waited in the outer room.
When the old lady's voice called out from the inner room, the maids and servants would go in with washbasins and spittoons, and carry clothes and shoes to serve.
The old lady was particular that one must keep everything neat and tidy even when not leaving the house. In the words of the old duke, one must be ready to meet the emperor at any time.
After putting on her clothes, the old lady sat in front of the dressing mirror and let the skillful maid comb and tie her hair. According to her request, every strand of hair had to be straight and flat without any hair sticking up.
After she had combed her hair and put on a headband, the maid brought her a jewelry box and asked her to choose.
The old lady looked into the box, picked up a jade brush and was about to put it on her head when the young lady suddenly rushed in from outside, called out "Mother" in a sad voice, knelt down at the old lady's feet, and burst into tears on her knees.
The old lady was frightened by her and her hand trembled, and the emerald jade hairpin fell to the ground and broke into two pieces.
The maids were also startled.
"What's going on?" The old lady was three parts unhappy and seven parts worried. She frowned and looked at her daughter-in-law who was crying and shaking.
It was the first time she saw her eldest daughter-in-law lose her composure like this. She thought something big must have happened, so she waved her hand to signal everyone to leave.
The maids and servants hurriedly packed up their things and retreated silently.
The door closed and the old lady asked again, "What happened?"
"Mother!" Sheng Qingyun raised her tear-stained face and choked up, "I found Jinping, I found Jinping."
The old lady was stunned by what she said. She held her shoulders and asked, "Are you sleep-deprived? Jinping has been back for many days. Have you forgotten?"
"No, mother, no..." Sheng Qingyun's tears fell like beads from a broken string, "The one I found was not Jinping. My Jinping is still outside and hasn't come home yet."
The old lady's heart skipped a beat, and she stopped her in a deep voice: "Keep your voice down. How can you talk nonsense about this? Jinping was brought back by Xian'er after he personally confirmed it. How could he be wrong?"
"But he made a mistake." Sheng Qingyun said, "The Jinping he brought back was a fake. We were deceived again."
Over the past twelve years, countless people with various purposes have come to the Duke's Mansion with their children to recognize their relatives. They have been deceived and spent countless money in vain. They thought that Jinping had finally returned this time, but they didn't expect to be deceived again.
"What's going on? Tell me first." The old lady didn't believe it in her heart, but seeing her daughter-in-law crying, she had to ask about the whole story before making a judgment.
Sheng Qingyun choked up and told her mother-in-law the whole story, from the first time she saw Xiu'er till the time when the secret guards brought Xiu'er's adoptive mother back from Hongou Manor. She recounted everything in detail.
The old lady had no idea that her daughter-in-law had done so many things in private without telling her. When she heard that the secret guards had brought all the people back, she was shocked and felt that her daughter-in-law's behavior was too ridiculous.
"Even if you have doubts, you shouldn't have rashly brought people into the house before you figured out the truth!" The old lady scolded, "You thought you were foolproof, but how could you know that there are no spies on the other side of the wall? What if you find out you made a mistake in the end? How will you explain to Jinping that she has already returned, but you are still secretly looking for someone? Isn't it obvious that you don't trust her?"
Sheng Qingyun listened to her mother-in-law's scolding without arguing, but just shed tears silently.
She had indeed not thought through what her mother-in-law said, but she knew she would not be wrong. As soon as she saw the girl, her heart began to beat wildly. She was sure that she was her biological daughter, the flesh and blood that fell from her body.
Seeing her crying so bitterly, the old lady sighed and said, "Well, even if it's true as you said, that girl is real, have you ever thought about how to deal with Jinping now? We held a grand welcoming banquet for her at the beginning, announcing to the world that she is the real Princess Jinping. And there is one more important thing you must not forget. Yesterday, the Empress came to ask for Jinping's hand in marriage on behalf of the Crown Prince, and gave such a big night pearl as a gift. It was agreed that the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Imperial Observatory would ask for the marriage proposal in the near future. Are you going to tell the Empress that this Jinping is a fake?"
Ever since Sheng Qingyun heard the report from the secret guard, he had been completely bewildered. He only wanted to bring his daughter back as soon as possible and didn't care about anything else. When his mother-in-law reminded him, he suddenly remembered that the Queen had been there. He was shocked and froze on the spot.
Yes, if the current Jinping is fake, how can I explain to the Queen Mother? Telling the truth is a crime of deceiving the emperor, and not telling the truth is also a crime of deceiving the emperor. Either way, I will lose my head!
If I had known this, I would not have let Jinping take the Queen's night-shining pearl yesterday.
But that is the Empress Dowager. If she insists on marrying Jinping as the Crown Princess, she will not be able to escape it whether she accepts it or not.
"Isn't asking for a name just like reading the horoscope? Maybe Jinping's horoscope is not compatible with the prince. Does that mean everything will be fine?" Sheng Qingyun said.
The old lady shook her head helplessly and sighed, "You have always been smart, why are you so confused today? The Queen is attracted by our family background, what does it have to do with the horoscope? Do you think she will really give up the marriage with us for something that is invisible and intangible?"
"What should I do? Should I just let my Jinping wander around out there for this?" Sheng Qingyun couldn't hold back her tears again. "Whenever I think of her being a maid out there, doing the work of serving others and suffering from the humiliation she endures, my heart aches as if it were being stabbed by a knife."
"That's what you think. Being a maid doesn't mean you have to suffer bullying every day." said the old lady.
"How could she not be angry? On the day of the welcoming banquet, the second daughter of the Chen family slapped her in the face." Sheng Qingyun couldn't help but cry out while covering her mouth. "And that second son Zhao, who is famous for his love of beauty, I don't know what he did to my Jinping!"
After hearing what she said, the old lady began to feel uneasy, thinking that her own granddaughter might be suffering and being abused outside.
"No matter what, let's confirm it first!" She stood up and said, "Let's go and meet that woman now."
Seeing that her mother-in-law had finally relented, Sheng Qingyun hurriedly supported her to the place where the secret guards had placed Xiu'er Niang, and strictly ordered the maids and servants not to follow them.
The secret guards, on the orders of Sheng Qingyun, went to ask Dr. Gao, the best doctor in the city at treating external injuries, to heal Xiu'er Niang. When Sheng Qingyun brought the old lady over, Dr. Gao had already sutured Xiu'er Niang's wound with mulberry bark thread.
Although anesthesia was used, Xiu'er's mother still fainted several times due to the pain. After the stitches were done, she looked like she had walked through the gates of hell, and her face was pale without a trace of blood.
Doctor Gao wrote a prescription and gave some instructions for precautions, then was sent out through the back door by the secret guards. Sheng Qingyun and her mother-in-law waited for a while, and only started questioning her after Xiu'er's mother regained consciousness.
Xiu'er's mother was a little dazed at first, but when Sheng Qingyun asked about Xiu'er's life experience from her own background, she realized that something was wrong.
"Who are you? Where is Xiu'er? I want to see Xiu'er..."
Song Ce also realized something was wrong, and he protected Xiu'er Niang, and asked cautiously: "Who are you? Is this the Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion?"
"This is not the Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion, it's the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion." Sheng Qingyun said bluntly, "The person who brought you here is not the guard of the second son of Zhao, but the guard of the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion."
“…” The couple then realized that they had been tricked by the guard. They looked at the two noble ladies in gorgeous and majestic attire in front of them in panic, not knowing how to respond.
"According to my guards, when you were seriously injured, you said in person that Xiu'er was the young lady of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. Is this true?" Sheng Qingyun stood in front of Xiu'er's mother's bed and asked condescendingly.
Xiu'er's mother huddled together and grabbed Song Ce's hand, feeling terrified.
She wanted Xiu'er to trace her roots back to her ancestors, but she never thought of meeting Xiu'er's family in person, because once the truth came out, Xiu'er's family would never let her go.
"You won't say it, right?" Sheng Qingyun was extremely anxious and had no patience to waste time with her. Seeing that she was very dependent on the man next to her, he turned around and ordered the secret guards, "Tie this man up for me and give him forty canes first!"
"No, don't hit him, it's none of his business..." Xiu'er's mother ignored her injuries and desperately protected Song Ce, crying, "Xiu'er was adopted by my ex-husband, and has nothing to do with him, please don't hurt innocent people."
"Whether you'll be hurt or not depends on whether you're willing to tell the truth." Sheng Qingyun said.
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you..." Xiu'er's mother said, "I originally wanted Xiu'er to recognize her ancestral roots, so there's nothing to hide. I just hope that you can show mercy and let my man go. He is really innocent."
"Xiu'er mother, you don't have to worry about me." Song Ce held her hand and said, "Since I married you, I should share the joys and sorrows with you."
Xiu'er Niang shook her head to stop him, and looked at Sheng Qingyun stubbornly: "If you don't agree, I would rather take this secret into the coffin."
Sheng Qingyun and the old lady looked at each other and nodded: "Okay, I promise you."
"Thank you, my lord!" Xiu'er Niang took a deep breath, drank half a glass of water from Song Ce's hand, and told him the secret that had been hidden deep in her heart for twelve years.
(End of this chapter)