Chapter 190

Chapter 190 Yueya'er had barely stepped out when a matron came from beneath the eaves to report. "Mistress, the maidservant who attended to Fifth Young Master's former wet nurse has suddenly fallen into a well." At these words, the festive atmosphere in the room instantly dissipated. Xie Run's face returned to calm as she set Ju Zi back on the table and wiped her hands with a handkerchief. "Let's discuss this in the outer chamber." "Yes." Xie Run said to Dantao, "Stay here and watch over Taotao." Dantao's face was also full of worry. "Mistress, with the wet nurse's maidservant meeting with misfortune now, is someone trying to stir up trouble again, or are they trying to destroy the evidence?" Xie Run's brows remained composed. "I don't know. Let's go ask first." On the way, Xiaoshu said uneasily, "Mistress, I suddenly realized today that the only ones who could touch the wet nurse's food daily, besides Qiu Lu... are the young maidservants who attended to her." Xie Run's eyes were utterly calm. "Now that this young maidservant is dead, I imagine everyone will realize that." "It was only because Qiu Lu drew everyone's attention in the main kitchen day after day that the crowd turned against her." "Now the evidence is conclusive and cannot be changed." Sure enough, upon reaching the outer chamber, they heard the matron say, "This morning I went to the courtyard to draw water, and who would have thought I'd see You Zi in the well... I don't know when she fell in." "There were originally two young maidservants attending to the wet nurse, but one had been transferred to another courtyard three days ago, leaving only You Zi living in the rear room." Xiaoshu stood beside Xie Run and asked on her behalf, "Did You Zi fall in by accident, or was she pushed?" The matron shook her head. "I wouldn't know. But I asked the people around, and no one heard anything—not even a cry for help." "If it were only me who slept too soundly, then for everyone to have heard nothing... that seems unlikely..." The matron's words hinted that she suspected You Zi had been murdered. But without evidence, she couldn't speak too definitively. "Where is the wet nurse?" Xie Run spoke slowly. The matron said softly, "She's already waiting beneath the eaves." Since the polygonum multiflorum incident, Xie Run had not allowed the wet nurse to feed Taotao anymore. But the wet nurse had been diligent in caring for Taotao before, and this matter wasn't a grave offense, so Xie Run hadn't punished her and had kept her in the rear courtyard. Now that this had happened, she entered the room with a terrified expression. "Please save me, Side Consort! Please save me!" "Silence!" Xiaoshu chided softly. "The matter of You Zi has not yet been investigated. Don't speak recklessly, lest people hear and think our rear courtyard has become a place of murder for profit." The wet nurse immediately fell silent, tears streaming down her face. She lowered her voice and said, "Mistress, You Zi slept right next door to me. I heard something last night!" Xie Run couldn't help but sit up straighter. Fortunately, everyone in the room was her own people, so there was no need for excessive caution. Xie Run said, "Tell me in detail." The wet nurse said fearfully, "Ever since the young master's incident, I haven't slept well at night. Last night, as I was tossing and turning in bed, I heard a commotion from You Zi's room—as if something had fallen to the floor." "Before I could even make it out clearly, the room next door went silent." "I originally thought I'd misheard, but not long after, there was a splash from the well in front of the house. It all happened within the span of about ten breaths... I vaguely guessed that something had happened to You Zi, but I didn't dare go out. I just buried my head under the blanket and hid all night, afraid I might be next." Who would have thought that after a night of terror, she had escaped with her life? Looking closely, one could indeed see dark circles under the wet nurse's eyes—clearly she had been frightened out of her wits last night. Xie Run glanced at Xiaoshu, who gave a slight nod. "I'll send someone to investigate right away." Before long, Xiaoshu brought in a jewelry box with her people. "Mistress, this box was on the table, but it has a small chip on it—hard to notice unless you look carefully. The jewelry inside doesn't seem to be missing anything." Xie Run took one look and spotted the inconspicuous chip, along with a bit of chipped paint. The jewelry wasn't missing, which meant the perpetrator was after a life, not valuables. Xie Run lowered her gaze in thought for a moment, then said to the matron kneeling on the ground, "In a moment, go with Xiaoshu to the Green Pine Courtyard. Say that You Zi fell into the well by accident and ask the Princess Consort to send someone to handle the funeral arrangements." Xie Run then said to Xiaoshu, "When you go, quietly bring this jewelry box to show the Princess Consort and tell her the truth." "If the Princess Consort wishes to investigate, then let her investigate. If not, then You Zi simply fell into the well by accident." Though the two women were puzzled, they didn't dare ask questions and simply followed the arrangements. "I'll go handle it right away." After they left, Xie Run returned to the room and said with a calm expression, "To dispose of someone within ten breaths, it must have been a strong, physically capable... man." Dantao's mind turned at this, and she exclaimed, "It's the Prince!" Within the Prince's residence, only Prince Jing's guards could have accomplished all this without a sound. Xie Run gave a slight nod, picked up her teacup, and took a light sip. "I knew the Prince wasn't a fool. He must have uncovered quite a bit." With You Zi dead, was this matter over? No—Wan Linlang was probably hiding in her own room, trembling with fear at this very moment. Prince Jing could trace the matter back to the pomelo, which meant he could certainly trace it back to Wan Linlang as well. That he hadn't acted yet was simply because the timing wasn't right. But this debt—he was keeping a firm account of it. Xie Run said softly, "Right now it's Wan Linlang, and the next one will be Fang Yuan'er..." The Polygonum multiflorum incident that Wan Linlang had orchestrated hadn't resulted in overly severe consequences. But the tapioca powder that Fang Yuan'er had schemed to use had already claimed several lives, one of them being Prince Jing's own son. For now, she could help Prince Jing make money, and she could use her prophetic abilities to help him seize the throne, so she was safe for the moment... but what about later?