Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 297 It wouldn't have failed otherwise

"How could he fail at this?" Jin said with a sneer. "Isn't Xie San usually quite fierce towards respectable women? This time he can't even subdue Lu Ying, who is weak as a chicken?"

"That's not how it is!" Upon hearing this, the old woman took two steps closer to her. "Xie San did indeed go inside, and unsurprisingly, he succeeded. But the person inside wasn't the Third Young Mistress. We've been watching the door the whole time, but for some reason, the Third Young Mistress has already left!"

"Gone?" Madam Jin frowned. "Where did she go?"

"We do not know where the Third Young Mistress has gone."

Jin paused for a moment, then casually rolled up the scripture she had written: "Who was the person Xie San encountered? Go and think of a way to calm this matter down."

"But Grandma, the other party—"

"Enough!" Madam Jin's face darkened. "No matter who it is, do you think they would dare to make trouble over such a trivial matter and cause trouble in the royal Taoist temple?"
"If you dare to do that, then kick them out!"

The opportunity she had meticulously planned was supposed to be foolproof, but Lu Ying actually left!

It's a pity to leave, but it's just a wasted trip, and there's no other impact.

Xie San was led there by her people and did not know that he had fallen into a trap set by others, so he would not be implicated.

As for the person Xie San mistakenly identified, whoever she is, regardless of whether her reputation has been tarnished or not, she's just unlucky. We can't let her cause a scene, lest someone discover our secret.

"Grandma!" The old woman, who had been keeping her composure, blurted out, "That's no ordinary person, that's the eldest young mistress of the Shen family!"

"So what—what?" Just as Jin finished speaking, the words "Shen family" were mentioned. "Who are you talking about?"

"It's the eldest daughter-in-law of the Shen family, the eldest daughter of the Lu family who was sent to the Shen family by the master and mistress after much scheming!"

Jin's angry expression froze: "How could it be her? What's she doing here?!"

Didn't they just say they saw Lu Ying enter that room with their own eyes? It's one thing to mistake someone else, but how could they be so blatantly wrong?
"...Quickly, go and invite the Taoist priest!"

She had barely steadied herself when a commotion erupted outside the door. She hurried to the window, pushed it open, and looked out. Outside the courtyard gate, which the old woman had opened, the young Taoist priests were hurrying about, while the worshippers were walking toward the lotus pond, chattering amongst themselves as they went!

She quickly turned to the old woman and asked, "What exactly happened?"

"This servant saw with her own eyes that the Third Young Mistress entered the room by the lotus pond, and then, following Grandmother's instructions, lured Xie San inside."

"Not long after the door closed, the window was pushed open, and there was a commotion inside. Then the guards hidden in the courtyard broke through the window and entered. The angry shouts of the eldest young mistress of the Shen family came out!"

"They've captured Xie San! The young mistress of the Shen family ordered him to be interrogated and even sent someone to find the Taoist priest in charge, wanting to hold him accountable for this matter!"

Jin's face twitched upon hearing this!

The small house by the lotus pond was surrounded by layers of worshippers. Lu Jia sat upright in the house, looking coldly at Xie San, who was already pressed to the ground:

"So he is the son of the Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial. Since he comes from an official family, he should have some dignity."

"How is he any different from a beast if he gets lustful just by seeing a respectable woman?"

"You call yourselves scholars!"

"Guards! Bring me writing materials. I want to personally write a memorial of impeachment and send it to the palace. I want to see if the Emperor will allow such a family to be corrupt!"

Her voice was loud and clear, full of energy, and everyone in the courtyard could hear it clearly. Xie San was so frightened that he couldn't even speak, and could only kowtow repeatedly to the ground.

The Taoist priest in charge, who rushed over upon hearing the commotion, bowed to Lu Jia to apologize while scolding the Taoists to investigate where Xie San got the audacity to cause trouble at Baiyun Temple.

Jin mingled into the crowd, watching Lu Jia being surrounded by a group of imposing and valiant guards from afar, her lips pressed tightly together.

She had met Lu Jia once or twice before and had heard a lot about her clashes with the Jiang family. Even though the girl was not stupid, in Jin's eyes, she was powerless and ineffective, like a paper tiger.

But the aura she exuded before her did not resemble that of a pawn being used by the Yan family; it was as if she had a powerful backer behind her!

Under the scorching sun, she felt itchy from head to toe.

The person they offended was the young mistress of the Shen family, Shen Qingzhou's wife, and Baiyun Temple could not possibly be vague about it.

Compared to the Shen family, what is a mere Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial?

Therefore, the Taoist priests would definitely seize Xie San and ask him about the cause and effect. And how could the old women not leave any trace when they were seducing Xie San?
If Xie San were to explain the whole story, there would definitely be flaws in his explanation!
In that case, we might be about to give ourselves away!

She turned around and asked, "Where is the Third Young Mistress?"

"Someone just saw her at the other end of the lotus pond!"

Madam Jin glanced into the courtyard: "Since you all saw the Third Young Mistress enter this room, others must have seen her too. Do you know what to do?"

The old woman paused slightly, then immediately nodded.

Jin took a deep breath and relaxed her clenched teeth.

How Lu Ying left is unknown, but the old women wouldn't be wrong, nor would they dare to be wrong, so Lu Ying must have been here before!

The reason they came here was naturally for the two sisters to meet.

The sisters meeting was nothing special, but Lu Jia's arrival was kept secret from everyone. Xie San was not going to make a mistake, but no one expected that there was another Lu Jia in the house!
It's not that Xie San has chosen the wrong person, but the wrong person is Lu Jia!

From the Yan family's perspective, Yan Shu and his wife were still counting on Lu Jia to play a role in stealing clues from the Shen family. They had gone to so much trouble to get her in, and now that they had angered her and caused a mishap, they would inevitably incur the wrath of Yan Shu and his wife!

If this girl were to switch sides again and ruin the Yan family's plans, he would be in even worse shape!
From Shen's perspective, Lu Jia is, after all, the young mistress of the Shen family. If she is schemed against and offended, the Shen family will not turn a blind eye for the sake of their reputation!
In addition, there is a Tier 6...

Yan Shu had finally managed to ease tensions with Lu Jie a couple of days ago, and if this were to happen—

Jin was in a real predicament!
Fortunately, Lu Ying was present. Since she hadn't left any evidence against herself and no one knew that it was Jin Shi who did this, she decided to let Lu Ying take the blame first!

Just as Jin finished her scheme, Lu Ying arrived at the other end of the crowd.

She wasn't unmoved by Lu Jia's suggestion, but Lu Jia's biggest reliance right now was Lu Jie, and Lu Jie didn't seem like he would unconditionally protect her. If Lu Jia's revenge went wrong, it was hard to say what kind of fate she would ultimately suffer.

Lu Ying has nothing now, how can she easily trust a defenseless person?
She walked halfway around the lotus pond, gradually making up her mind. Just then, she saw a commotion breaking out, and it was in the very house where she and Lu Jia had stayed before. How could she not come?

"Grandma! It turns out that this Xie fellow came straight here without knowing the young lady's identity, yet he started being rude as soon as he entered!" Yingzi reported the whole story she had learned.

Lu Ying frowned: "You started being rude the moment you walked in?"