Chapter 130 Who is the real culprit?
Qiaoyun looked puzzled at Shu Huan and asked, "Second young mistress, are you feeling sick? Do you want to invite a doctor over?"
Invite a doctor over? Ji Danqing had just left!
Shu Huan shook her head. She looked at Qiaoyun again and felt a bit dejected.
Qiaoyun was already the queen of gossip in this courtyard. Basically, if she (SH) had something to ask her (Q), there was always an answer. However, there were some things that even she (Q) didn’t know, who else could she (SH) ask?
A name suddenly jumped into her mind…
Old maid Ding!
Oh, that's right, she (D) was an old worker in Gu household. She (SH) should ask her (D) about these old affairs!
Shu Huan put down the teacup. She got up, straighten her clothes, and took a deep look at Qiaoyun.
Qiaoyun immediately understood what she (SH) meant and said, "Don't worry, second young mistress. This one's mouth knows only to eat and drink."
She did feel assured! She found that after giving Qiaoyun the cold shoulder for a period, this maid suddenly became a little more quick-witted. At least much she smarter than before. It seemed that Liangchen had really lectured her (Q).
Shu Huan nodded and didn’t speak anymore. She just called Shang Xin to go out with her.
Things hadn't been clarified yet. If it accidentally got leaked out, it would cause an uproar at Gu household. So, if she went out to check things and needed to take someone, she would take Shang Xin who had no foundation here. She (SX) basically didn’t know the anyone here.
Shu Huan didn’t know where old maid Ding stayed at after returning to the residence. After she went out, she casually called out a passing maid and told her to call old maid Ding over. She pretended to take a walk with Shang Xin and randomly walked around nearby. Unconsciously she walked to somewhere with Lonicera japonica shrubs and stopped there. The petal heart was white and slim and combined with the green leaves, it was very pleasant to see.
Shang Xin smiled, "I see that there's a lot of this kind of flowers in the residence. It's indeed pretty. Second young mistress can draw it next time!"
"Good." Shu Huan smiled. In fact, Lonicera japonica is commonly known as honeysuckle. She used to see the sun-dried ones. She liked its light sweet aroma and often made tea out of it. However, the sun-dried honeysuckle looked really ugly.
As the two were talking, they suddenly heard someone smiling behind them and asked, "Is second young mistress looking for me?"
Since old maid Ding had been rewarded a few times by Shu Huan, her attitude towards her (SH) had been respectful and obedient. If you didn’t know better, people might regard her (D) as a very kind old maid and wouldn’t thought that she (D) had such fierce methods.
Speaking with such people, you had to be careful and cautious.
Shu Huan restrained herself from asking the question and smiled faintly, "Today, I saw third young miss at eldest young mistress's place. She's much more haggard than before. Concubine Chen left her (GX) so young and she (GX) has to endure it all alone. Thinking that she's also pitiful, I want to send some food and clothing to her. I just don’t know what she likes. I don’t know who to ask, so I have to call you to ask about it."
"Second young mistress has a good heart." As soon as old maid Ding heard this, she smiled and said, "But if I have to say, it's better to avoid unnecessary trouble. Third young miss looks pitiful but she has third young master to take care of her. She won’t lack food and clothing. You don’t have to worry. Besides, despite that third miss is quiet and isn't very talkative, she's in fact quite prideful. Even if you deliver it, she may not accept it. Your kindness would be in vain then."
When Shu Huan mentioned these things, she originally wanted to lead her (D) to lament over Gu Xuan's past, and then quietly led the discussion to concubine Chen. Who had thought she ignored it and mentioned Gu Xiren instead…
"It's getting late. Why are you still here?"
Gu Xiren words suddenly appeared in Shu Huan's mind. His face was cold and proud, whereas Gu Xuan's was frightened and timid. At that moment, she (SH) felt that the brother and sister didn’t get along as if Gu Xuan was Gu Xiren's little tail. She (GX) did only what she was told. Compared to the maids, she had even less judgements….
As Shu Huan was thinking that, old maid Ding looked at her and said, "Second young mistress?"
"Ah!" Shu Huan came to her senses and concealed herself, "Something just came to my mind, but thinking carefully, I can't recall it anymore."
Old maid Ding understood, smiled and said, "This is a common thing. Old madam used to be like this. When she talked to me, she often forgot what she wanted to say next. It can only be said that second young mistress has to worry about too many things. It's time to take a break and rest."
At this point, if she (SH) wanted to bring back the discussion around concubine Chen, old maid Ding might guess her intention to inquire about it. So, she didn’t want to mention it anymore. She just smiled and took out two broken pieces of silver. She rewarded it to old maid Ding to buy something to drink and walked away with Shang Xin.
Things seemed to be getting more and more complicated.
Concubine Chen's matters hadn't been inquired clearly yet but she (SH) already unexpectedly learned of Gu Xiren and Gu Xuan's close relationship. Shu Huan couldn’t help but guess whether the real culprit would be Gu Xiren.
As for his motive, it was easier to guess than Gu Xuan's. Gu household had four sons: one of whom was weak for a long time, and the other was still young. If Gu Xitian died, according to the current situation, Gu Xiren was the only one who could directly take the position, even if he was a concubine's child. Of course, even if Gu Xuan wasn’t the real culprit but the suspicion as an accomplice might not be so farfetched. After all, she (GX) seemed to know that there was something strange in the candies.
The more she (SH) thought about it, the more dejected she became. She didn’t like to think that human nature was so selfish and vicious. She also hated those fighting and scheming against each other. She just thought that the more she came into contact with these scheming, the more her mood was overshadowed by a cloud. So, she decided not to ponder about who the killer was and tell Gu Xiran all the information she had learned afterwards to let him have a headache over them. Anyway, there was a saying that said: capable people could do more!
Shang Xin saw her (SH) frown slightly and was silent, so she (SX) couldn’t help but ask, "Second young mistress, are we going back now?"
"No." Shu Huan stabilized her mind, turned her head to distinguish the road around her, and turned to a path laid with stones, "Let's go to Red Cloud Yard."
In one day, she (SH) went to Red Cloud Yard three times, which she herself didn’t expect at all. Therefore, when Yingluo was called to the door by Shang Xin, she (Y) looked surprised and asked, "Second young mistress, did you forget something? I'll help you find it."
Shu Huan shook her head, "Is eldest young mistress feeling better?"
Yingluo sighed, "She has only eaten half a bowl of jujube porridge. Third young miss had spoken with her for a while and left only after seeing that her (F) grief had dispersed a bit. After old madam and master heard about this, they had also sent someone to comfort and console her. She thought of eldest young master, cried again, and threw up all the porridge she had eaten. She's resting now in the bed. I'm afraid that she isn't asleep yet. If second young mistress wants to see her, I would lead you in."
Shu Huan stopped her and said, "No, let her rest. I come to ask you one thing. Is the almond candy on the table there for a long time?"
Yingluo was stunned and thought about it. "It's been on the table for a month or two, but no one has eaten the candy. Most of the time, it was eldest young master who took a few pieces when he went out to tempt Shadow. That horse prefers to eat candy."
As she (Y) answered, she asked hesitantly, "Why did second young mistress suddenly ask about this?"
Finally, she found all the clues and figured out how the killer had committed the crime!
Shu Huan suppressed her emotions and barely smiled, "I was hungry and had eaten one. Not long after eating it, I felt pain in my belly. I'm afraid that this candy can't be eaten anymore after so long, therefore I come to say this. Since no one has eaten it, then it's fine."
Yingluo saw that her (SH) face wasn’t looking good, so she (Y) really believed her (SH). She (Y) panicked and wanted to find some medicine for her (SH), but was stopped by Shu Huan, "It's alright. The pain has been over for a while. I'm going back now. Don't worry and take good care of eldest young mistress."
As Shu Huan said that, she walked away with Shang Xin. But after a short walk, she suddenly stopped to tell Shang Xin, "There's a remote place in the west of the residence, where the garbage is thrown. Quietly go there. If you see the maids of Red Cloud Yard throw things there, bring it back."
Shang Xin was startled, "Second young mistress. I have only seen one maid from Red Cloud Yard and it was just now."
Shu Huan thought about it with a headache. She took a piece of candy out from her pouch and handed it to her. She said, "Then whoever throws something, you should look into it. If you see such a candy, bring it all back to me.”
Shang Xin looked carefully at the candy and nodded, "I will remember it."
Shu Huan wasn’t assured and warned her (SX), "It's best to not be discovered by other people."
Shang Xin smiled, "Don’t worry, second young mistress. I'll pay attention to it!"
As she (SX) spoke, she found her direction and went away.