Chapter 157

Chapter 157: Preventing Miscarriage Nanny Zheng was not someone who appeared frequently at County Princess Rongjia's residence, so when the County Princess learned that Qiushuang Zhai was summoning people, she was momentarily taken aback. Upon arriving at Qiushuang Zhai and seeing Nanny Zheng lying prostrate on a wooden bench, barely breathing, County Princess Rongjia finally remembered who Nanny Zheng was. "What is Sister Cui doing? If one of my people has committed an offense, shouldn't I be the one to handle it?" County Princess Rongjia entered the room with a displeased tone. "That statement of yours is incorrect, County Princess. If Nanny Zheng had done something wrong within your courtyard, then you should indeed handle it. But she embezzled the Marquis's household funds, so that falls under my jurisdiction." Cui Lingrong smiled faintly. "Nanny Zheng kept insisting on summoning you and Zhuqing here. I don't know what she meant by that, but the evidence is conclusive. It can't be that she was acting on someone's orders, could it?" "How is that possible?" County Princess Rongjia immediately retorted. "Her embezzlement is her own affair. How could it possibly implicate me?" "Having the County Princess say that is enough." Cui Lingrong hadn't finished speaking when a sudden shriek rang out—it was Zhuqing. Nanny Zheng caught sight of Zhuqing and finally began to plead, "Concubine, save me! I did it all for your sake!" At that moment, County Princess Rongjia stepped out and asked Zhuqing what was going on. These past few days, Zhuqing had been clinging to the Marquis, using her pregnancy as an excuse, and County Princess Rongjia had been looking for an opportunity to reprimand her. Seeing her aunt beaten to such a state, Zhuqing hastily said, "Could there be a misunderstanding? I only asked my aunt to buy me some food. That shouldn't warrant a beating like this, should it?" "Not warrant it? Do you know how much money your aunt embezzled?" Cui Lingrong walked out with a cold laugh. "In just over half a month, she embezzled over seventy taels of silver. Zhuqing, did you really eat that much?" A concubine's monthly allowance was only two taels of silver, with food, clothing, and daily expenses being separate expenditures of the Marquis's household, not counted within those two taels. Because Zhuqing was pregnant, Song Shulan had supplemented her with money without deducting half. If Zhuqing had eaten that much, Cui Lingrong would next interrogate what she could possibly have eaten to cost so much money. Zhuqing looked at the Eldest Young Madam, then at her aunt, and finally her gaze settled on County Princess Rongjia. They were all people of Wutong Yuan. When beating a dog, one must consider its master. Since the County Princess was right there, she should say a few words on their behalf. But County Princess Rongjia didn't look at her. Instead, she said, "Zhuqing, just tell the truth. Did you eat that much, or did your aunt embezzle the money? If you ate it, then you can eat even more than Old Madame and I. Do you really think that just because you're pregnant, you're the Queen Mother of the West?" "Your servant..." Zhuqing was momentarily at a loss for words. If she distanced herself from the matter, she feared her aunt might betray her. She could only wish that the Eldest Young Madam had been crueler and simply beaten her aunt to death, so she wouldn't have to worry about any lingering consequences. Zhuqing thought it over and finally gritted her teeth and said, "To answer the County Princess and the Eldest Young Madam, your servant did eat some, but... but your servant is just one person with one mouth. How could I possibly eat that much silver's worth?" Hearing this, Nanny Zheng was incensed. She raised her head with great difficulty and said, "Has the Concubine forgotten? I am... I am your aunt! You and..." "Eldest Young Madam, your servant was merely being greedy for a moment, but I absolutely did not go overboard!" Zhuqing, afraid her aunt would say more and expose the truth, quickly knelt down and spoke loudly. Cui Lingrong was still studying Zhuqing when County Princess Rongjia said impatiently, "Isn't this just a trivial matter? Sister Cui, don't summon me over for everything next time. I don't have that much leisure time. Oh, and let me congratulate you, Sister Cui. Your younger brother is quite capable—he actually managed to get into the Duke of Dingguo's household. Well, he is in business after all, eloquent and charming." "In that regard, the County Princess truly cannot compare to my younger brother." Cui Lingrong mocked County Princess Rongjia's unpleasant manner of speaking. County Princess Rongjia was stunned for a moment before realizing she'd been insulted. She immediately turned to glare at Cui Lingrong. Chen De's Wife quietly reminded her that they were in Qiushuang Zhai, and only then did County Princess Rongjia leave in a huff. When Zhuqing learned that her aunt was to be sent to the country estate, she thought for a moment and then said, "Eldest Young Madam, Nanny Zheng is after all my aunt. Though she has committed an offense, would you allow me to see her off?" Cui Lingrong said that was fine. Zhuqing then directed two maidservants to carry Nanny Zheng back. Nanny Zheng was already in pain, and the maidservants were not careful with her, causing her to howl in agony the entire way back. By the time they reached her room, she was drenched in cold sweat from the pain. "Zhuqing, your wings have grown now. You don't care about family anymore. I've met with misfortune today, and you didn't even say a single word of plea on my behalf. Without me in the Marquis's household acting as your eyes and ears, do you think you can go far here?" Nanny Zheng gasped, gritting her teeth and glaring at Zhuqing. But Zhuqing replied, "Aunt, when you used my name to embezzle money, why didn't you think about protecting my reputation? You're the one with real skill—you actually managed to make the Eldest Young Madam's people believe you. But Aunt, things have come to this. We can't both be saved, can we?" Nanny Zheng let out a snort. "You're just confused with anger right now. If we're both implicated, who will help you in the future? And your two children?" Zhuqing brought over a cup of tea. "Aunt, think it over carefully. Isn't what I'm saying reasonable?" "But you shouldn't have refused to say even one word for me! At Qiushuang Zhai, you couldn't wait to distance yourself from me!" Nanny Zheng was furious. If Zhuqing had spoken up for her, perhaps she wouldn't have to go to the country estate. But Zhuqing hadn't said a single word. Zhuqing explained, "Auntie, you're speaking nonsense again. If I didn't care about you, why would I come here now? Don't overthink things. Instead, you should think more about my younger cousins—they still have to make their way in the Marquis's household." Hearing this, Nanny Zheng knew it was a threat. She could now see Zhuqing's true colors clearly—she was a selfish person who would never help her. For the sake of her two children, she had no choice but to avoid arguing with Zhuqing. Nanny Zheng regretted more and more that she had ever suggested to County Princess Rongjia to bring Zhuqing over from the Rong Prince Mansion as a bedchamber maid. She had thought it would bring wealth and fortune, but instead it brought bad luck. "Concubine, you should also remember that protecting your pregnancy is the most important thing right now. Last time, Sidei even asked about you," Nanny Zheng said, not one to be easily intimidated. "Well then, since I'm in this state, I won't trouble you further. You may go." Mentioning her younger brother was meant to remind Zhuqing that if she dared to mistreat her children, Nanny Zheng also had leverage over her. Zhuqing feared this most and didn't dare clash head-on with her auntie. She could only force a smile and say, "Fine, I'll come again tomorrow to see you off, Auntie." On the other side, Cui Lingrong was speaking with Nanny Qiu. "Nanny Qiu, don't you think there's something off between Zhuqing and her auntie?" "There's definitely something between the two of them," Nanny Qiu said. "I sensed it too. Though I don't yet know what it is, their words both hinted that they share secrets—or hold leverage over each other." Cui Lingrong thought for a moment. "Go look into it. When Nanny Zheng leaves, go to the city gate and give her something. See if you can coax some information out of her."