Chapter 254

Chapter 254: The Grand Matron, Exhausted in Mind and Body

Xin An left with easy poise, while Tang Gang felt stifled. He had taken only two steps when a harsh shout sounded behind him; turning, he saw that the bodyguard who had made the arrest the previous night had returned, escorting a man dressed in black.

The bodyguard reported: “Marquis, we caught one. We will begin the interrogation at once.”

Tang Gang said, voice cold: “This Marquis will question him personally.”

The man in black was pushed inside, and the gates of the marquisate closed slowly. Neither the bodyguards nor the household had publicized that Tang Rong was beaten the previous night, so the news had not spread.

In contrast to the hush blanketing the marquisate, Ying Hui Street was especially lively today. From early morning, gongs, drums, and firecrackers thundered at the entrance of Wan Yuan Trading House; clerks shouted their patter, and passersby stopped to watch the bustle.

Xin An’s carriage waited at the corner where three roads met, with a clear view of the shop. Many customers were choosing goods; the busy clerks smiled as they bustled about, and an even longer queue formed at the flower-card draw. The clerk handing out eggs could hardly catch her breath.

Two cheerful women hurried past the carriage one after the other, chattering as they went toward Wan Yuan Trading House: “Quickly now, I hear their goods all come from Lin Prefecture, good quality and good prices.” Another added with delight: “Sister-in-law from the Zhang family got five eggs and drew a cake of scented soap. That soap really is fragrant.”

A maid murmured at Xin An’s side: “Young Madam, the carriage across the way is from the Liao family.”

Xin An lifted her eyes and saw Madam Liao waving to her before alighting and coming over. Xin An lifted the curtain, smiling as she invited: “Sister Xu, come up.”

Madam Liao climbed into the carriage with a laugh, saying: “You chose an excellent opening day; it is lively. I think this business will work.”

Xin An answered with a pleased squint: “The margins are not small and the stock is abundant. Plenty of people are buying, which naturally means profits.”

Madam Liao concluded with confidence: “This festival season we will surely make a handsome sum.” She praised Fang Da as remarkable, saying: “A chief steward of this caliber is hard to find. That your father could bear to assign him to you shows how highly he values you.”

Xin An replied with quiet satisfaction: “My father treats me beyond reproach.” She added that she was already looking for a new shopfront: “But a location this good and this large is hard to come by.”

Madam Liao soothed her: “No need to rush. We will take our time.”

Both were in excellent spirits. Madam Liao regarded Xin An as an ideal business partner and wanted to join forces on more ventures. Before, without any backing, they could already make money; now with support behind them and silver in hand, there was no reason they could not earn more.

Madam Liao wished to hold some properties not belonging to the Liao family; Xin An had the same idea. Once they voiced it, the two clapped hands on the spot and went straight off to a place with a fine environment suitable for a long talk.

They talked until afternoon, then agreed to dine together before returning.

Madam Wang was very busy today. Using last night’s incident as leverage, she dealt with quite a few people, then went to Tang Rong to curry favor and handed Auntie Cai over to him for disposal as he saw fit. She also went, as if nothing were amiss, to comfort Tao Yi Ran and to express trust and expectations toward Auntie Liu.

For Auntie Liu, this was a turn from darkness to light. She had also been involved in last night’s matter and had thought she could not escape, yet not only was nothing traced back to her, she was even given authority that allowed her to suppress Auntie Cai in one stroke. Before Madam Wang had even left Chun Hua Courtyard, the joy in Auntie Liu’s eyes could no longer be contained; she did not notice the cold smile at the corner of Madam Wang’s lips.

Having finished these things, Madam Wang’s mood was rather good. After settling her expression, she went before the Grand Matron and dabbed away tears. Skilled at advancing by retreat, she even took the initiative to propose sending Tang Mo and his wife to live apart.

She spoke in a soft, reasonable tone: “A great tree must spread its branches. The second lad is married now and has his post; he can be counted as having made his own way. Establishing his own household should not be a problem. Though there will be talk for a while outside, it is better than the constant unrest in the residence.”

Then she added faintly: “It is hard to be a stepmother; I am truly frightened.”

[If not for Tang Rong being the one who stood to benefit behind the scenes, would a mere stewardess dare to frame the masters of the house?] Now the Grand Matron truly had a splitting headache. Although she had suspected from the start that Chun Hua Courtyard had staged a setup, when the truth was uncovered, her heart still chilled. She also understood Madam Wang’s purpose in saying these things, so she cut her off: “No one is to speak again of moving courtyards or splitting the household. No one in this residence is to say it.”

If they truly split, how would people outside talk about the marquisate? Tang Mo was the legitimate son, not some inconsequential concubine-born child.

“This old woman will give both you and the second lad an accounting for this matter; you must wait a little longer.”

“Mother, you speak too strongly,” Madam Wang said as she rose slowly. “Your daughter-in-law feels faint and would like to lie down for a while. Mother’s complexion is not good either and you should rest more.”

Once she had left, the Grand Matron sighed. She was, in a word, exhausted in mind and body.

At such a time, an elder could only hope that one of the two brothers would step forward to calm the matter, whether by apologizing or by being magnanimous and not pursuing it. Someone needed to take a first step back, to lay down a stairway for the other to descend. Yet at present, one harbored anger and the other lay in bed unable to rise, and they had thrust the problem onto her.

If she forced Tang Rong to admit fault, it would confirm that he had ordered servants to frame his stepmother and his own brother. That would be a grave stain. But if she let this pass in feigned deafness and blindness, when the conflict between Madam Wang and her daughter-in-law had already reached this point, that road clearly could not be taken.

She issued a quiet order: “Go and fetch the Marquis.”

At that moment, Tang Gang kept his face dark and said nothing. They had interrogated the man in black for half a day and learned nothing. He was the type who took money to avert disaster; once he accepted his fee, he did as the employer instructed and did not concern himself with who the employer was. That was the rule.

Steward Zhang stepped forward to report: “The man in black said the employer bore a grudge against the Heir Apparent, and also mentioned ‘the first and the fifteenth.’ The Heir Apparent should be able to guess who it is.”

With a stormy face, Tang Gang went to Chun Hua Courtyard. Tang Rong had awakened early that morning, but after waking he spoke to no one and would see no one, his gaze frighteningly cold.

He listened to Tang Gang’s words, thought back for a long while, and at first wanted to say it was Tang Mo. Only Tang Mo remained as a final suspect. But in the end he said it was Zhu You, because he had only ever sent men to thrash Zhu You.

Tang Gang’s eyes narrowed as he reasoned aloud: “In that case, it is Duke Xiang?”

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Duke Xiang had always believed that the peril surrounding Zhu You was tied to the beating he received from the marquisate’s bodyguards. It was entirely possible the duke had taken revenge.

Tang Rong did not want to say more. More words were useless.

Seeing his dispirited, defeated state only added fuel to Tang Gang’s smoldering anger. He immediately had the man in black delivered to the residence of Duke Xiang.

After taking only one sip of tea to quell his temper, he went before the Grand Matron. His mood was foul to begin with, and at her words his anger surged again: “Must we pursue it to the bitter end and make it so humiliating?”

The Grand Matron looked at him with an expression that said more than words: “When you smashed a teacup, did you not consider how humiliated your daughter-in-law would be?”

She pressed him, voice low and sharp: “Her father-in-law flinging a teacup at her. If that spreads, how do you expect people to see her? Across the whole capital, she would be the first. What heinous, unforgivable sin do you claim she committed?”

Men governed the outer, women the inner. Even a father-in-law dissatisfied with his daughter-in-law had no precedent for confronting her directly. Matters within the household were for the woman in charge to handle. But Tang Gang did not think he was wrong; he only insisted that Xin An lacked virtue and a broad heart.