Chapter 188
Chapter 188: Madam Bai Hears the News of His Death
On the way back in the carriage, Luo Ning kept talking with her brother about Prince Yong.
Luo You envied his calligraphy, his drill ground, his subordinates, and how he casually hung a precious long spear at the edge of the drill ground as if it meant nothing.
As for Luo Ning, she envied the luxury of Prince Yong’s manor. The late emperor had almost wanted to give half of the national treasury to Prince Yong’s household.
He had been made a Prince of the Blood when he was only three months old. The estate he lived in now had probably been built under the late emperor’s own eye by the Ministry of Revenue.
It carried all the late emperor’s hopes for his beloved son.
“Big Sister, once you marry in, can I come visit you at the Prince’s Manor every month?” Luo You asked.
“You can,” Luo Ning said.
“Great,” Luo You said.
When he thought of the Duke of the Realm’s manor, Luo You’s happy mood dimmed a little.
His sister might not be able to enjoy a peaceful life there.
“I will work hard. In the future I will stand up for you,” Luo You suddenly said.
Luo Ning could not help laughing.
She did not need to ask. She understood what had flashed through Luo You’s mind in that instant.
“All right,” Luo Ning encouraged him.
The two of them went home.
The next morning, the dawn mist was like thin frost. The air was a little colder than the day before. Luo Ning dressed warmly and went to her grandmother’s West Main Courtyard.
She told her grandmother about everything.
“The two Concubine Meis are gone, and Qiu Shi Dong is dead. I feel much more at ease now,” Luo Ning said.
These past few days, Grandmother had been on a vegetarian fast.
When Luo You was put in jail, she had made a vow to the Bodhisattva, asking the gods to bless Luo You with peace and safety.
Now she had to keep her vow.
While she was fasting, she did not ask about anything outside and only devoted herself to worship.
So she did not even know that Qiu Shi Dong had died.
“Bodhisattva bless us, ancestral spirits bless us,” Grandmother murmured, almost in tears. “That man is finally dead.”
Feelings also surged in Luo Ning’s heart.
She did not dare be too pleased, but the lightness in her heart could not be faked.
“Grandmother, please take good care of your health. One day we will have five generations under one roof,” Luo Ning said.
Grandmother wiped the dampness from the corners of her eyes and said: “Then I would really have to live to a hundred.”
“What is wrong with a hundred?” Luo Ning said.
Grandmother did not spoil the mood. She followed along with Luo Ning’s words and nodded: “Then I will live to a hundred.”
Breakfast was still a vegetarian banquet. Grandmother had a good appetite and ate a little more.
Luo Ning ate with her.
“Madam Bai will not amount to much. Her spirit is weak, and we are all guarding against her. Only Bai Ci Rong is left,” Grandmother could not help bringing this up again at the table.
“I want to keep her around for a while,” Luo Ning said.
“I am just afraid she will become a handle against us,” Grandmother said.
“Grandmother, the Marquis of Jian Ning’s manor wants to send her into the palace,” Luo Ning said.
Grandmother’s expression turned shocked: “What if she is favored?”
“I have made preparations ahead of time in the Imperial Palace. The Empress Dowager already knows about this, so it will be hard for her to win favor. But with the Qiu Shi Dong case in front of us, if the Marquis of Jian Ning’s manor ends up in conflict with us, they will do their best to protect Bai Ci Rong. They will treat Bai Ci Rong as a weapon and turn her against us. That might actually help me and the prince a great deal,” Luo Ning said.
“Can you be sure about this?” Grandmother asked.
Luo Ning shook her head: “No. I am betting on good fortune.”
“Then I will invite another Bodhisattva statue and ask it to bless you with that good fortune,” Grandmother said.
Luo Ning laughed.
She did not stop her or say anything discouraging, only helped however she could. Grandmother really was the best person in the world.
Even Luo Chong Ye only learned that day that Qiu Shi Dong was dead.
The murder case was a secret of the Imperial Court, and the talk in the streets was only that “the Duke of the Realm seized Prince Jiang’s hot spring villa and drove a broker to death.”
Even in death, Qiu Shi Dong’s name was not mentioned. Of course, it was not really a secret. People the case did not concern simply had no interest in him and could not be bothered to talk about him.
A rat in the gutter could not see the light of day even in death.
Luo Chong Ye spent his days drinking and chatting with old friends, so he only found out now that it had been him.
He came to look for Luo Ning on purpose and asked: “Is this true?”
“Yes,” she said.
“Heaven Above has eyes,” Luo Chong Ye said in joy, his whole face flushed.
Luo Ning was speechless.
[Heaven Above has no eyes. I was the one who took revenge,] she thought.
She did not tell Luo Chong Ye.
He could not keep anything to himself, not like Grandmother, who was so careful. If she told him now, he might sell out Luo Ning at the wine table tomorrow.
“A’Ning, I have to drink a cup,” Luo Chong Ye said.
When people met happy events, their spirits rose.
“Go ahead, Father,” Luo Ning said carelessly.
Luo Chong Ye stood up, feeling as if Luo Ning had sent him off like a junior.
He left in a huff.
After walking out of Wenqi Courtyard, he turned and went to look for Madam Bai.
These days Madam Bai had been taking medicine and felt groggy all the time. She ate and slept, then woke only to eat and sleep again. She looked a bit fatter, but it was really because she was badly swollen.
When she looked at people, there was no strength in her gaze.
“How long do you plan to keep me locked up?” she asked Luo Chong Ye coldly.
“You want to go out? Let me tell you some good news. Your brother’s friend, your lover, he is dead,” Luo Chong Ye said.
Madam Bai frowned.
“He was scared to death by the Duke of the Realm. For such a coward, and yet you liked him. Your eyes must have been blind,” Luo Chong Ye said.
Madam Bai seemed unable to believe it, yet she felt he had no need to lie about this.
Her expression was blank.
After a long time, her lips finally trembled: “Impossible…”
“You should believe me. Maybe he will visit you in a dream at night and ask you to burn some paper money for him,” Luo Chong Ye said.
After he finished speaking, he turned and left.
Madam Bai stared blankly for a long time before she went mad.
She wanted to get out.
She wanted to find Qiu Shi Dong and see him with her own eyes. The man she had held in her heart for half of her life was finally about to be reunited with her. How could he be dead?
The Luo Family’s servants did not allow it.
Madam Bai made a huge scene and even shouted that she would slit her wrists.
A maidservant went to tell the Second Madam.
The Second Madam came to tell Luo Ning and asked: “What should we do?”
Luo Ning had just finished practicing with her whip. Even in the early winter weather, sweat showed faintly on her forehead.
She casually wiped the sweat away with her sleeve and said in a light tone: “Aunt, give her a dagger. Tell her to cut deeper. If she does not cut a vein, she will not die.”
The Second Madam was silent.
She did not do that.
If she really gave Madam Bai a dagger, Madam Bai probably would not dare cut her own wrists, but she might hurt someone else.
So the Second Madam only ordered people to watch the East Main Courtyard closely and not let Madam Bai come out.
The Third Madam even came to watch the drama.
The eldest young madam, Madam Wen, had been “sick” these days. They said she had caught a chill and was afraid of passing it to others, so she would not let anyone visit her.
“Mother, why not send Sister-in-law to the country estate? With her living in the East Main Courtyard, she has brought bad luck to this whole house,” the Third Madam said to the Old Madam.
Old Madam said: “A’Ning is about to be married. It is not suitable to make changes now.”
Madam Bai would not amount to much. They could just let her make a fuss.
However, the family had underestimated Madam Bai.
They had also underestimated how devoted she was to Qiu Shi Dong.
In order to get out and see Qiu Shi Dong, she secretly sent a maidservant in the middle of the night to find Luo You.
Luo You’s wet nurse did not know what to do.
“After all, she is your mother. You cannot just ignore her. But the Lord Marquis…” she said.
“Being soft-hearted hurts others and yourself. That is what Big Sister said. Why does my mother want to see me? She clearly wants to make me look bad from both sides. I will not go. Tie up this maidservant and send her to Aunt,” Luo You said.
After this trouble, Madam Bai’s spirit grew even worse. She even ate very little.
Old Madam sent one of her own trusted old maidservants to sit in the East Main Courtyard and keep watch.
“She must not die and delay A’Ning’s wedding,” Old Madam said.
She also scolded Luo Chong Ye: “You cannot hold your temper. You only care about making yourself feel better and do not think about the bigger picture at all.”
Luo Ning had spent all her effort to save this family, yet no one helped her. One by one, they only dragged her down.