Matriarch Rules, Scumbag Begs - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Culprit in the Capital

The officials entered the mansion, causing a commotion,

Such a big disturbance, but the little guy in Shen Qiuci’s arms was still not crying or fussing, he was even giggling at her nonstop.

Shen Qiuci winked at him, and then called the wet nurse over to return the child to her,

“These two days, Xue Xiao’niang probably won’t have time to return to the mansion, can you take care of him alone?”

The wet nurse hugged the child tightly, responding repeatedly:

“Yes, yes! Please rest assured, Eldest wife, the young master has been taken care of by this servant since birth, and even at night, it’s this servant who soothes him to sleep, he’s used to this servant.”

“Does Xue Xiao’niang not take care of him?” Shen Qiuci asked.

The wet nurse looked uncomfortable,

“…After giving birth, Xue Xiao’niang wanted to maintain her figure and didn’t want to take lactogenic medicine or food, so her milk wasn’t enough, and the young master was fed by this servant. Moreover, at night, Xue Xiao’niang often accompanies the young master, and as for soothing him to sleep… she doesn’t have time.”

For a biological mother to be able to do this, it’s quite rare.

Shen Qiuci waved her hand, signaling the wet nurse to leave.

After the people left, Xia Shang pouted and said:

“When the eldest miss was pregnant, the fetus was stable at first. But just six months into the pregnancy, after drinking some medicine to stabilize the fetus, she had a miscarriage…”

“It wasn’t until later that it was discovered that Xue Xiao’niang had mixed a large amount of raw Pinellia ternata into the fetal stabilizing medicine, which is something that pregnant women can’t touch.”

“After the incident, Xue Xiao’niang knelt outside the young master’s door, crying bitterly, saying it wasn’t intentional, claiming that the Pinellia ternata was originally used to make medicine for the Old madam to treat her wind-phlegm cough, but it accidentally got mixed into the eldest miss’s fetal stabilizing medicine.”

“Such an explanation sounds like nonsense to anyone, but the Heir and the Old madam believed it. They just gave Xue Xiao’niang a few lashes, and then cold-shouldered her for two months, and that was the end of it.”

As Xia Shang mentioned the past, she became more and more resentful, her eyes reddening with anger:

“Now that Xue Xiao’niang is locked up, why should the young miss treat her child well? We could…”

She glanced at Shen Qiuci’s face, and the rest of her words were swallowed.

Shen Qiuci looked at her, her tone calm:

“Whoever makes a mistake should bear the consequences themselves. I won’t let Xue Xiao’niang off, but I won’t take out my anger on an innocent child because of her mistakes.”

Her dark brown eyes were shrouded in a layer of gloom, emitting a cold, eerie light:

“There’s still a long way to go, and her retribution is yet to come.”

Xia Shang gazed at the person beside her,

Her skin was porcelain-white, her eyebrows and eyes were like a painting, and her calm and steady demeanor made her temperament seem particularly cold and detached.
It seems that, apart from their style of handling matters, the second miss in front of her was almost identical to the eldest miss.

Shen Qiuyu and Shen Qiuci were twin sisters, and they had a very close relationship since they were young.

Later, however, the Shen family encountered some changes.

General Shen, as a border guarding general, had been fighting against the Zhu Yin and Nan Man countries for many years, and therefore offended many foreign tribes.

When Shen Qiuci was eight years old, one day while out on a trip, she was unexpectedly kidnapped by Zhu Yin bandits.

When General Shen defeated Zhu Yin and found the bandits who had kidnapped Shen Qiuci, he learned from their mouths that his daughter had already been killed and cooked alive to vent their anger.

Everyone thought Shen Qiuci was dead, but just two days ago, she returned to the Shen mansion safe and sound!

Madam Shen was naturally overjoyed to see her “rise from the dead”,

But at that time, Shen Qiuyu, due to being bedridden for many years, had become emaciated and was on the verge of death.

The day after Shen Qiuci returned to the mansion, Shen Qiuyu passed away.

Madam Shen was at a loss, and in her grief, she wanted to inform the Marquis’s mansion about the matter, but Shen Qiuci stopped her.

She said she didn’t believe that her sister’s death was an accident, and she wanted to take her sister’s place and enter the Hou’s mansion to…
One reason was to investigate the truth, and the other was to protect the Shen family, which had no male heirs, so that the Marquis’s mansion wouldn’t take advantage of their situation.

Somehow, Xia Shang felt that this time, when she saw Shen Qiuci again, although her appearance hadn’t changed, she was very different from when she was younger.

She couldn’t hide her doubts and couldn’t help but ask:

“Back then, the Zhu Yin bandits said they killed you to vent their anger, and everyone thought you were dead. Now that you’re safe and sound, we’re naturally happy. But I don’t understand, since you were fine, where did you go for all those years?”

Shen Qiuci’s gaze fell on the soft snow outside the window, and she didn’t speak for a long time.

Many things, the more people knew, the more risk there was, and she didn’t want to mention it again.

The sky gradually darkened, and dense clouds covered the moon, not a single star could be seen.

The cold night wind picked up, blowing snowflakes against the doors and windows, making a frightening sound.

After dinner, Shen Qiuci saw the servants starting to get busy and nervous.

The west gates of the Marquis’s mansion were heavily locked, and guards were added inside and out. In the courtyard, the servants were holding sticks, patrolling vigilantly,

The atmosphere was tense, as if they were facing a great enemy.
“It’s cold at night, young miss, be careful not to catch a chill.”

Xia Shang closed the slightly open window and prepared water to serve Shen Qiuci for washing up.

Shen Qiuci asked her, “What’s going on outside?”

Xia Shang lowered her voice:

“You’re not aware, miss, but recently, there’s been quite a bit of unrest in the capital. The Fang family and the Zhang family, two prominent families, have had two murders in a row.”

“Oh?”

“The murders both happened at night, and the eldest sons of the Fang family and the Zhang family were all killed in their own mansions without anyone noticing, their throats were slit.”

“The killer was very skilled, one knife wound was fatal, like a ghost. After the people were killed, the killer also carved the words ‘Tian Ji¹’ on their faces with a knife, and left a bundle of camellia flowers stained with blood beside their pillows.”

As Xia Shang spoke, she couldn’t help but shudder, and instinctively tightened her clothes:

“The yamen has issued a wanted notice, but these two cases don’t have any eyewitnesses, so it’s going to be hard to solve.”

“Because the victims were all noble and high-ranking officials, the noble families in the capital are panicked. So the Marquis’s mansion is also on high alert at night, fearing that if they’re not careful, they might be the next to suffer.”

She saw Shen Qiuci’s eyes flash slightly, and she was afraid that she would scare her mistress at midnight, so she quickly changed the subject:

“Actually, you don’t have to be afraid, miss, there are so many guards and soldiers guarding outside, and this servant will also sleep under the corridor to keep watch for you at night, nothing will happen.”

“No need.” Shen Qiuci smiled calmly, “You’ve been tired all day, go back to your room and rest well.”

Xia Shang asked doubtfully: “Aren’t you afraid, miss?”

Shen Qiuci looked up at her, her dark brown eyes reflecting the candlelight, bright and captivating:

“There are so many male guards outside, one more or less won’t make a difference. Go quickly.”

Xia Shang was still worried, but she couldn’t persuade Shen Qiuci otherwise, so she reluctantly left.

In the room, Shen Qiuci stared at the brightly burning candle on the table,

The wax dripped down the candle, layer upon layer, solidifying at the base of the candlestick, resembling a blooming white camellia flower.

She thought of Xia Shang’s question earlier, whether she was afraid or not,

Hmph, of course she wasn’t afraid.

Because the culprit the court wanted to arrest…

She stood up,

Coldly smiled, and extinguished the candle.

—
Tian Ji¹ – 天机- mystery known only to heaven, inscrutable twist of fate or simply top secret