Chapter 115
Chapter 115: Could It Be That He Has to Take Responsibility?
At the winter banquet, she should have replaced Jiang Zi Tang as the foremost talented lady.
But in the end, the new heroine and Xie Xuan Yong joined forces to trap her, leaving her on the brink of death.
Fortunately, the system descended and restarted the plot, giving her a chance to live—but also forcing her to sacrifice her reputation and dignity.
Now, her name was in ruins, not a shred redeemed. Compared with the version of her in the plot who was celebrated nationwide for her talent and pursued by countless scholars and heroes, her persona had collapsed beyond repair.
The system: “…”
[Fine, the host can handle it herself. I hope you complete the task soon and avoid the pain of lightning punishment.]
With that, the system entered a dormant state. Su Qian Xue ignored it, already plotting her next move.
She had arranged for someone to steal that little baby to divert the Yun family’s full attention.
If the baby went missing, the Yun family would certainly search for her with all their strength. This way, they would have no time to target her, giving her the chance to slip away and complete her mission.
But now, the little girl had been found in less than half a day, and the Yun family hadn’t been held up as she imagined.
This meant they would soon have time again to watch her and move against her.
No, this wouldn’t do. For the mission’s sake, she had to come up with another plan.
Returning to the present, Su Qian Xue went to her desk, spread out paper, and wrote two letters in a flowing hand. After sealing them, she called for her maid.
“Xiao Xiang, find someone to deliver one of these letters to Prince Qi, and the other to Pei Yu of the Pei clan.”
“Yes, miss.”
The maid respectfully accepted the envelopes and soon turned to leave.
Watching her go, Su Qian Xue’s gaze flickered slightly. That Pei Yu had taken such advantage of her—it was about time she put him to good use.
Before nightfall, both Mo Yuan Hao and Pei Yu had received her letters.
Prince Qi’s manor.
Mo Yuan Hao broke the seal, scanned the letter quickly, then took it to the candle flame to burn it to ash.
“Go tell the people from the Grand Commandant’s manor that I agree. Tell Su Qian Xue to wait for me—at the appointed hour, I will personally visit the Su residence to see her.”
“Yes.”
Once his confidant left, Mo Yuan Hao rubbed his brow and stared at the ashes in the basin. His mind drifted to the two books he had received that day, and a dark gleam passed through his eyes.
Whatever that woman held must never fall into the hands of those with ulterior motives.
If it did, it could shake the Mo family’s throne—and that, he would never allow.
Meanwhile, at the Pei clan.
Hearing that Su Qian Xue had sent a letter, Pei Yu’s brows furrowed tightly, his handsome features shadowed by irritation.
Why would that woman suddenly write to him?
Could it be she wanted him to take responsibility?
That day, it was he who had arranged to meet her first, and then that accident had happened—and worse, it had been spread far and wide. Given her noble status, if she truly wanted him to take responsibility, he couldn’t refuse.
But his heart already belonged to someone else. How could he marry her?
In the days since, he had done all he could to investigate the drugging incident, but found nothing. By the time he returned to her after sending Su Qian Xue off, the tea they had drunk had already been switched out.
Even the remaining tea in their cups had been replaced—and, of course, the replacement contained no drug.
When he went to confront the teahouse owner, the man bit back, accusing him of causing trouble. And the serving boy who had brought their tea had vanished completely—Pei Yu searched the entire teahouse without finding him.
Every time he thought of it, Pei Yu’s anger surged.
It was outrageous—insufferable!
With uneasy hands, he opened her letter and saw line after line of neat, delicate calligraphy in small-flower script.
He blinked in surprise. The woman whom the world called a brainless waste could write with such skill?
Her hand was on par with, if not better than, Jiang Zi Tang’s.
Drawing his focus to the contents, he read quickly, and the weight in his heart eased.
Thankfully, it wasn’t a demand for marriage.
But why would she ask him to do this?
Could it be she knew of his feelings for Sister Yao?
But he had never told anyone—not even Sister Yao herself. How could this woman possibly know?
Or perhaps she didn’t know at all, and merely wanted to break up Sister Yao and Prince Qi because she herself was infatuated with the prince?
After some thought, he still had no answer. Pei Yu shook his head and sighed softly.
Forget it. Whatever the truth, whatever her motive—this worked in his favor, and he welcomed it.
“Tell the messenger that I’ll do it, but the matter is serious and will require careful planning.”
“Yes.”
Duke Ning’s manor.
Two days of harsh interrogation had yielded no name for the mastermind. In a fit of anger, Yun Wan Ye decided to kill one as a warning to the others.
He put aside Yun Wan Ning’s heart voice about the “good” black-clad man, ignoring who that might have been, and casually killed one of the prisoners. He hung the head in the dungeon to intimidate the rest.
Still, no useful information came forth.
Whether their tongues were simply too hard or they truly knew nothing more, it was impossible to press further.
After consulting Yun Zheng, Yun Wan Ye left the black-clad leader alive as bait, and had the rest executed.
Peace Keeping Courtyard.
Yun Wan Ning lay by the window, watching Madam Yun sort through account books, and her thoughts drifted to her wet nurse.
[It’s been two whole days and Nanny hasn’t shown herself once.]
[Mother hasn’t even mentioned her—what’s going on?]
[Has something happened at home? Or is it really connected to me being kidnapped?]
Her frown deepened.
Hearing her heart voice, Madam Yun froze briefly over the ledger.
The wet nurse and her entire family were already dead.
They had been taken hostage to force her into stealing the baby.
For their sake, the nurse had endured the guilt and smuggled the child out, handing her to the kidnappers. But the villains had not kept their promise—instead, they slaughtered every innocent in her family, and even the nurse herself.
In truth, the Yun family had brought disaster upon her.
If they had never hired her, she might have been poor, but at least her family would still be alive.
So even though she had helped take Yun Wan Ning, Madam Yun felt no hatred—only guilt.
It also made her realize: they must never again hire a wet nurse from a common family.
The Yun family had too many enemies; any nurse they hired could be used against them.
The best solution was to purchase a bonded servant—someone without family ties, living within the manor and rarely leaving, with no weaknesses to be exploited.
Having decided, Madam Yun returned to her accounts.
By midday she finished, massaged her temples, and stacked the ledgers neatly for the steward.
Then she walked over, picked up Yun Wan Ning, and said: “Little Fourth, there’s something I forgot to tell you these past few days.”
[Eh, Mother has something to tell me?]
[Let me think—it must be about Nanny. But why tell me? I’m just a baby.]
[Oh, right—Mother always liked talking to me about things. Probably someone told her talking to babies helps their brains develop.]
[Yes, that must be it.]
Madam Yun: “…”
She had barely spoken when Little Fourth had already spun out a whole explanation.
[Go on, Mother, I’m listening.]
[Why did you stop? What are you thinking about?]
Yun Wan Ning waited quietly, but Madam Yun remained silent for a long moment, lost in thought.
Finally, she said: “Little Fourth, Nanny’s family has matters to deal with, so she can’t keep nursing you. I’ll have to find you another.”
“Ah, such a pity my own milk is insufficient, or I wouldn’t need to go through the trouble.”
Hearing her heart voice, Madam Yun quickly decided to hide the truth about the deaths. Nanny had always been gentle and caring, and Little Fourth had been fond of her—if she knew the truth, she would be heartbroken.
She was still so young; in a few years she would forget. Better to spare her the grief.
Yun Wan Ning’s little face drooped.
[First I get kidnapped, then Nanny suddenly “has trouble at home” and quits—too coincidental. There’s something behind this.]
[Could it be Nanny really was involved in my kidnapping? And then silenced?]
Her eyes widened slightly, and even Madam Yun felt her heart skip.
This child was too clever—give her even the faintest clue, and she could piece together most of the truth.
[No, Nanny was kind. But if she was threatened…]
[She was from a poor family, with in-laws, a husband, and children. Her own newborn had died, which is why she took the job.]
[The Duke’s manor is well guarded; those bumbling fools could never sneak in. The only way to take me was through Nanny.]
[Since she was hired help, not a servant, she could freely come and go, with leave to visit home. They must have learned her identity and threatened her.]
[If so, she’s probably already dead. Even if the kidnappers spared her, Father wouldn’t have.]
[Oh no, I’ll never see her again… I even wanted to give her a gold bangle when she left.]
“Waa…”
She burst into tears.
[Even if she was the one who took me, it was because we dragged her into this. After all the milk she fed me, I only brought her death. I’ll feel guilty forever…]
[Wait, what else did Mother say?]
[Oh, right—she said she’d find me a new nanny.]
[No! I don’t want one. I don’t want to cause another death. If Mother’s milk isn’t enough, she can give me goat’s or cow’s milk. I’m not picky.]
[But how do I tell her? Dream entering? No, too suspicious if too often. I’ll just cry.]
[When the new nanny comes, I’ll cry loudly and refuse to be held or fed by her. Mother knows me—she’ll understand.]
“Why is Little Fourth crying? Let’s see if you wet yourself.”
Madam Yun sighed, remembering every word of her heart voice. She set the baby down to check the diaper.
“Huh? Dry. And you just fed, so you can’t be hungry.”
[Mother, I’m just sad about Nanny’s death. Please, no new nanny.]
Madam Yun: “…”
Fine, no nanny then.
She’d just buy a milk goat—it was cheaper and easier than hiring a bonded servant.
“All right, no more crying. If you keep it up, you’ll break Mother’s heart.”
[Okay, I’ll stop. If I keep crying for no reason, she’ll just worry.]
She sniffled, then reached out her tiny hands to gently touch Madam Yun’s face in silent comfort.
With her eyes red and pitiful yet still trying to comfort her, the sight made Madam Yun’s heart melt. She took the little hand and kissed her palm.
“Our Little Fourth is so sensible—Mother says stop, and you stop right away.”
Yun Wan Ning blushed at the praise.
[Well, I do have my past life’s memories—it’s only natural I’m sensible.]
[Oh right, why hasn’t Sister come to see me today? Didn’t she say she would? Did she forget?]