jdhmnovel Chapter 125: Slave's Fraud
Chapter 125: Slave's Fraud
Meng smiled and said to Old Lady She and Xie Qian, "Lan Zhao is about to be betrothed to someone. When she becomes the mistress of the house, she will have to take care of all the affairs of the mansion. It's a good opportunity for her to learn how to be a housekeeper from me. Mother, husband, what do you think?"
The old lady thought about it and felt that what Meng said was not bad, so she nodded. Since the old lady had agreed, Xie Qian did not object and said, "Lan Zhao, just listen to your mother."
Feng Jia bowed and said, "Lan Zhaoquan will follow mother's arrangements."
After saying that, she made an excuse that she had something to do and left with Qingshu. At the last moment before leaving, she turned back to glance at Xie Shubai who was sitting at the table.
The man stood up straight, listening attentively to what Meng said, with a respectful smile on his face, and there was nothing unusual.
Feng Jia withdrew his gaze and walked out of the room without changing his expression.
Later, Feng Jia took Qingshu to get the jewelry. When they were about to return home, the coachman suddenly tightened the reins.
Qingshu and Fengjia looked at each other, then lifted the curtain and asked, "What happened?"
"Miss, the carriage hit someone." The driver reported tremblingly.
"Why are you so careless?" Qingshu scolded with a frown.
The driver wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "Miss, I am not excusing myself. That person suddenly rushed over from the road and I was unable to dodge... Don't blame me!"
"You're still trying to quibble!" Qingshu said angrily.
"Okay, let's go down and take a look first!" Feng Jia interrupted the two of them, lifted the curtain, and walked down.
This place is remote and there are not many people coming and going. The three people walked to the side of the carriage and saw a person lying on the ground, and they didn't know whether he was dead or alive.
Feng Jia wanted to go up, but Qing Shu held her back and said, "There are many scammers like this in the capital. They often come after wealthy families like ours and bump into the sedan chair themselves, then insist that it was us who hit it. Plus, this place is remote and there are no witnesses. We won't be able to explain it later. Girl, let's report it to the police first!"
Feng Jia thought for a while, then looked at the coachman. The coachman understood and nodded immediately, saying, "I'll do it right away!"
However, before he had taken two steps, the lifeless man lying on the ground suddenly groaned and stretched out his hand as if to grab something. Qingshu immediately opened his arms to block Feng Jia behind him, his eyes alert.
The person said with a weak breath: "Miss, Ninth Miss...save this servant..."
The voice was somewhat familiar. After a pause, Qingshu hesitantly called out, "Xiao Shi?"
Xiao Shi slowly got up from the ground and banged her head against the ground, making a loud bang: "Ninth Miss! It's me!"
It turned out to be her, Madam Liu's daughter.
Originally, Xiao Shi was in high spirits in the Xie Mansion. She had Madam Liu as her backer and was favored by the Sixth Young Master. She applied perfume and powder on her face every day and dressed up beautifully. She was more decent than some of the unfavored concubines in the mansion.
But now Xiaoshi, who was lying on the ground, was wearing a gray linen dress with patches all over it. Her face looked haggard and worn, as if she had not eaten a full meal for a long time. Her cheeks were sunken and her eyes were as dry as a deep well. However, she actually showed a little vitality of a 20th-century girl.
He is completely different from what I imagined.
"Didn't you go back to your cousin in the countryside to get married? Why are you here, looking so miserable?" Feng Jia said.
The hatred in Xiao Shi's eyes was not concealed: "Ninth Miss! Those are all lies made up by the Madam! She hates my own mother, Aunt Liu! My mother died, but she still couldn't get rid of her hatred, so she took it out on me, coaxing the Prime Minister to whip me, and then dragged me into the beggars' den... I am just like this, just like this... wuwuwu!"
"This lady really doesn't treat us servants as human beings!" Qingshu's eyes showed a bit of pity.
"What happened next?" Feng Jia asked.
Xiao Shi wiped her tears and said, "Later, I escaped at the risk of my life! But my lowly documents are still in the hands of the Madam. I dare not say that I am a servant in the Prime Minister's Mansion, for fear that the Madam would find out and send people to torture me again, and I would become a black household without a name!"
"No place is willing to take in an illegal household, so I can only do odd jobs washing clothes for others," Xiao Shi raised her hands, her fingers were rough and covered with thick calluses, "but washing clothes can hardly support my life, and I often go hungry, and I have become like a half-human..."
"Miss Nine! Please save me!" Xiao Shi crawled to Feng Jia on her knees, hugged one of her legs and said, "Miss! If you don't save me, I will starve to death! I know that my mother caused you to fall into the water and always opposes you, but it was all ordered by the eldest lady, so we have to obey!"
"Besides, my mother is dead and has redeemed herself! I am innocent! Ninth Miss, I have never wanted to harm you! I have even been trying to persuade my mother not to go against you! Please, please save me!"
"What's the matter with all these scars on your body?"
Xiao Shi's pupils shrank slightly, and a hint of emotion flashed across her eyes, but it quickly disappeared. She kowtowed and said, "Miss, even the laundrymen in the capital are organized into factions. I, a newcomer, cannot fit in with them. They think that I have taken away their business, and they beat me when they see me..."
Qingshu and Fengjia looked at each other, and Qingshu said, "How do you want us to save you?"
Xiao Shi's eyes lit up: "Please take me back to Xie Mansion! I am willing to follow you. As long as you give me a bite of food, I will work like a cow or a horse, even if it means death!"
Feng Jia smiled and said, "You were originally a member of the Madam's house, so you should ask the Madam for help. Why are you asking me for help instead?"
"Madam?" Xiao Shi's eyes were filled with fear and hatred. "Madam is cruel. If she knew that I am not dead yet, she would definitely find ways to torture me to death! I want to follow you, Ninth Miss! You have the best heart, please save me!"
"The best heart?"
Xiao Shi nodded repeatedly with a flattering smile on her face.
"I am a very hard-hearted person, and my methods are even more vicious than those of the eldest lady. Do you have any misunderstandings about me?"
The smile on Xiaoshi's lips froze.
Feng Jia turned and left. Xiao Shi lowered her eyes, clenched her fists, and said as if she had made a great decision: "Miss, I know a lot of the Madam's secrets. I can help you overthrow the Madam!"
Feng Jia paused, but did not look back.
Xiao Shi said, "My mother has been with the Madam for more than ten years and has done many bad things for her. As long as Miss Nine is willing to take me in, I can testify in court!"
Feng Jia finally turned around and said, "How do I know if you are lying to me?"
Xiao Shi said: "The eldest lady killed many people. Many disobedient maids angered her, so she sent my mother to drown them all in the small pond in the backyard!"
Feng Jia smiled. "We have all signed indentures. If we make a mistake, our masters have the right to decide our life and death. Even if we go to court, we will never convict Meng. Xiao Shi, you only have this little information, and you want to bargain with me? It's not that I won't save you, but you are not worthy of me saving you."
After saying this, he stood up and was about to leave.
"If servants can kill indiscriminately, then what about the masters of the Xie Mansion and the young master of the third room? Can they also kill indiscriminately?"
Feng Jia turned around again after hearing this and asked, "Are you talking about the young master of the third room?"
"In addition to the Tenth Miss, the Third House also had a young master. However, that young master was too weak. When he was three years old, he met a water ghost, was dragged into the pond, and drowned..." After a pause, Xiao Shi's eyes were slightly cold, "But there are no water ghosts in this world, it's just that people have ghosts! Miss, you should know the Third Madam's family, the Qinghe Jiang family."
"That family is as wealthy as the Chen family in Youzhou. In order to control the third wife and seize her property, the first wife asked my mother to lure the third wife's young master to the pond a few years ago and drown him alive. She also fabricated a false image of him falling into the water! This is what my mother told me herself! My mother felt guilty and was haunted by nightmares every time she dreamed of the young master crying out for justice. It was so miserable..."
"Is there any evidence?"
Xiao Shi shook her head: "The Madam is a very cautious person. She destroyed the evidence long ago. But the Madam killed someone, so the evidence cannot be completely destroyed. Girl, as long as you pay attention to find physical evidence, Xiao Shi can help you to testify in court! If she can be convicted, even if the Madam is the legitimate daughter of the Earl of Yongyi, she will definitely die!"
"This is my value! Please take me in, young lady! I don't want to live this kind of life anymore!" Xiao Shi knocked her head heavily on the bluestone road.
Feng Jia thought for a while and finally took Xiao Shi back to the Xingyuan. After Xiao Shi changed her clothes, she was taken to the Longxi Courtyard of the third room.
In Longxi Courtyard, Third Housewife Jiang was trying on new clothes. Seeing Ninth Girl coming, she wanted to go forward to greet her, but then she thought of her daughter's instructions, and her face turned cold. She said, "Ninth Girl, the mansion is busy preparing for your fourth sister's banquet. Third Aunt doesn't have time to entertain you now. You should come back in a few days..."
Before he could finish his words, a person was pushed down in front of him.
Then a cold voice said, "Tell Aunt Three what you just said to me again!"