Chapter 589 Keep the Door Unlocked, I’m Also Going Out for a Walk!
“Qing’er has gone over there. She seems to be very satisfied with Qing’er. I saw Qing’er come out with her face wreathed in smiles just now.” Yujie reported in a low voice. She had received a hint from Qing’er when they exchanged glances just now.
“She’s short of hands at the moment, so it’s good for her to draw a maid of mine over to her side. Besides, Qing’er was sent by my maternal grandma to serve me. In any case, Qing’er is my trusted maid. She could definitely get twice the result with half the effort if she sends someone I trust to check on me!” Shao Wanru said while curving her mouth into a beautiful arc to show an elegant and indifferent smile.
“What does the First Miss intend to do?” Yujie asked nervously.
“She won’t send my maid on a mission before knowing her better. Of course, she will do that at a critical moment! Just wait and see!” Shao Wanru said inadvertently.
“Well, tonight…” Yujie asked hesitantly.
“Let’s wait and see tonight!” Shao Wanru said casually with a smile and a trace of gloom across her eyes. Shao Yanru was waiting for her good show of meeting Chu Qing in secret or sending a letter to Chu Qing, while she was waiting for Shao Yanru to go out tonight.
Based on his deep affection for Shao Yanru, how could Qiu Yu let go of such an opportunity? Shao Yanru was waiting for her show, while she was waiting for Shao Yanru’s show…
“First Miss, an official surnamed Qiu from the Ministry of Justice came to ask you to go over there for an inquiry about what happened today!” Qing’er wiped her sweat off, came in, and reported to Shao Yanru.
“Qiu Yu?” Shao Yanru asked with a frown.
“Yes, it seems to be him. The Ministry of Justice sent him to ask you to go over there for an inquiry!” Qing’er nodded and said.
Shao Yanru frowned in displeasure. She did have something to tell Qiu Yu, but it was better to say it in private. Why did Qiu Yu come to take her over there in such a big way? It actually had nothing to do with her. He should turn to Shao Wanru!
Why did he directly turn to her? What did he mean by asking her to go over there for an inquiry? She did have something to tell him, but she couldn’t say it in front of others. In particular, Qiu Yu turned to her at such an improper time. Why did he turn to her instead of turning to Shao Wanru?
“Did he turn to my Fifth Sister?” Despite her displeasure, Shao Yanru said, while maintaining a gentle smile.
“Yes, but the Fifth Miss instructed Sister Qu Le to say that it’s no big deal and tell Lord Qiu to handle it by himself,” Qing’er replied.
Of course, it was no big deal. It was just an accident, where no one had been injured. At present, it was Qiu Yu who was nervous. It seemed that Qiu Yu intended to please her by handling the case strictly, but it was not what she wanted to see.
“Go and tell them that since my Fifth Sister doesn’t think it a big deal, just let it go!” Shao Yanru thought for a moment and said.
“Yes, I’ll go to tell them right away!” Qing’er said, turned around, and ran out. When she opened the door, she saw two people at the door. One of them was an ordinary official of the Ministry of Justice, and the one standing behind him was Qiu Yu.
When Qiu Yu saw Qing’er come out, his eyes lit up. He winked at the man he brought here. The man hurried forward and asked with a smile, “What did the First Miss say?”
“First Miss said that it’s no big deal and told Lord Qiu to handle it by himself!” Qing’er said to the man outside behind the half-closed door.
“Doesn’t the First Miss have anything else to say?” Qiu Yu continued to ask and waved at his subordinate, reluctant to leave. His subordinate stepped back and gave him the place at the door.
“Uh… I’m afraid it’s inconvenient for the First Miss to meet you…” Qing’er hesitated for a moment, looked up and down at Qiu Yu, and did not dare to refuse him directly.
Was the First Miss afraid that their meeting would be noticed with too many people around?
Qiu Yu was overjoyed and hurriedly said, “Go and report to the First Miss that it’s fine if it’s inconvenient for her to come over now. Please ask if she could come over at night and tell me about the two old maids. The Fifth Miss has sprained her ankle, so it’s inconvenient for her to go out. If the First Miss leaves it to me, I don’t know how to handle it!”
He meant that now there were only two Misses from Duke Xing’s Mansion on the mountain. Since her younger sister had an accident, Shao Yanru should certainly take full charge of the case. Moreover, the Fifth Miss had told him to handle it by himself.
He accepted the trivial case because of Shao Yanru. Now that he hadn’t achieved his goal, he was naturally unwilling to leave. If he missed such a chance to get close to his beloved girl, he would probably have no other chance in the future.
The transfer order from the Ministry of Justice had arrived. In a few days, he was going to leave the Yuhui Nunnery with the rest of the officials of the Ministry of Justice. After that, it would be uneasy for him to meet the First Miss Shao again. So he had to meet the First Miss Shao today in any case, and it would be best if he could figure out how she felt for him.
If she had the same feelings for him, he would send someone to her mansion to ask to marry her after he returned!
“Uh… the First Miss rejected it just now…” Qing’er said with an embarrassed look.
“She rejected it a moment ago. Now please go to make it clear to her. What happened between the First Miss and the Fifth Miss could be minor or significant!” Qiu Yu said coldly with a straight face.
He, who worked in the Ministry of Justice, looked stern and fierce when keeping a straight face. Qing’er was terribly scared by him so that she ran into the courtyard without saying anything.
How bold could an inferior maid be? He could make her do as he wished by scaring her!
“He insisted on meeting me?” Shao Yanru asked with a gloomy face and managed to suppress her anger after taking a light breath. She had intended to instruct Shuqi to go over there stealthily at night after Shuqi came back. Now it seemed that Qiu Yu would not leave until he met her.
His subordinate was at the door now, and he probably would not leave without a definite answer from her. If it was seen by others, it would tarnish her reputation.
No, she decided that she couldn’t let the official from the Ministry of Justice wait at the door.
She got up and stood still after walking around the room twice. When she glanced at Qing’er and was about to talk, she suddenly stopped. She hadn’t fully trusted the little maid yet. Of course, apart from whether she trusted Qing’er or not, she was afraid that her smart Fifth Sister would know it and do something against her.
So she couldn’t instruct Qing’er to pass on a message directly.
She turned around, walked up to the window, picked up a writing brush, and wrote something. After drying the paper off, she folded it into a small note, handed it to Qing’er, and said, “Give this note to the official from the Ministry of Justice and tell him to pass it to Lord Qiu.”
The case officers of the Ministry of Justice had a set of rules, so the official would never peek at a note. Moreover, since Qiu Yu had brought him here, he should be trusted by Qiu Yu.
Meanwhile, Shao Yanru was not worried about Qing’er’s betrayal. It was just a note, which Qing’er couldn’t see, unlike a message, which Qing’er could definitely hear.
At the very least, even if Qing’er saw the note, she wouldn’t be able to read it. Could an inferior maid be able to read?
While Qing’er was walking out of the room, she quickly unfolded the note in her hand, looked at the words on it, and then folded it in her palm with composure. After that, she went to the door of the courtyard.
Shao Yanru stood by the window and saw Qing’er walk to the door of the courtyard submissively. The half-closed door of the courtyard prevented her from seeing what was going on outside, but she could vaguely hear Qing’er talk to a man. Soon she saw Qing’er come in, close the door and come over in a hurry to report to her.
Only then did she sit down in the chair. It was impossible for Qing’er to see the content of the note along the way.
“Miss, I’ve passed the note, and the man has gone!” Qing’er came in and reported.
“I see. You can leave now!” Shao Yanru waved her hand at Qing’er and said calmly.
“Yes!” Qing’er said respectfully and left. When she reached the door, she slightly raised the corners of her mouth and turned to leave.
Shuqi came back at about dinner time. After entering the room, she saw Qing’er come in cheerfully with a hamper before she reported to Shao Yanru. She couldn’t help looking at Qing’er in surprise. It was still early for dinner. Qing’er behaved in quite a flattering manner.
Seeing Shuqi here, Qing’er acted properly. After handing the hamper to Shuqi, she retreated to the courtyard and continued working as an inferior maid without fighting for anything. Nevertheless, as a third-class inferior maid now, she could not fight for anything even if she wanted to.
Shao Yanru was very satisfied with Qing’er’s being sensible.
After Qing’er left, Shao Yanru asked, “How is it going?”
“Rest assured, Miss. Everything went well!” Shuqi came over with the hamper and said as she took out the dishes.
“Go with me to meet Qiu Yu tonight!” Shao Yanru said and nodded, feeling a little relieved. She had felt uneasy recently. Although she had done this before, she was still a little worried.
“Miss, it’s better not to meet Lord Qiu. He seems to…” Shuqi peeked at Shao Yanru. Seeing that Shao Yanru was not angry, she said in a low voice, “I think he seems to have some feelings for you!”
“I must get rid of the two old maids. It seems that Qiu Yu is unwilling to get rid of them without my word!” Shao Yanru said in distress. Of course, she did not want to have any connection with Qiu Yu. However, if she did not get rid of the two old maids, they were very likely to be used by Shao Wanru.
Even if it was not very likely, she was still worried. She had to deal with it as soon as possible, so as not to cause more trouble.
She had thought that she just had to send Shuqi to talk with him, but judging from Qiu Yu’s attitude, she had no choice but to show up in person.
She had written down where and when to meet on the note. After meeting Qiu Yu at night, she intended to make it clear to him that it would be inconvenient for her to meet him in the future.
As the night became dark slowly, Shao Yanru came out of the main room slowly with Shuqi. Unexpectedly, they met Qing’er. Seeing Qing’er’s flattering and joyful smile, Shao Yanru stopped and asked, “Has my Fifth Sister gone to sleep?”
“First Miss, the Fifth Miss has gone out for a walk and hasn’t come back yet!” Qing’er reported with a smile.
Shao Yanru showed a trace of complacency. As she expected, Shao Wanru failed to remain indifferent and probably had gone to meet Chu Qing. The person sent by Prince Yue probably had been watching over her long before. As long as the person saw her meeting Chu Qing in secret, the person would inevitably catch them tripping.
Her foot injury? Damn it!
“Leave the door unlocked. I’m also going out for a walk!” Shao Yanru said with a smile. Since she was going over there to have a look, she should be able to come back earlier than Shao Wanru. When Shao Wanru was caught meeting Chu Qing in secret, she must have returned to the yard!