Full House Spring

Chapter 75 The overall situation has been decided
Among all the people present, only Nanny Xie cared the most about the old lady's life and death, while everyone else was still immersed in the anxiety of the turbulent political situation.

Song looked at the old lady with complicated eyes. No matter how much Lu Jianxing had wronged her, the old lady was always on her side. When she first married into the Duke's Mansion, the old lady not only did not make things difficult for her, but also happily handed over the power of the household to her.

Looking back now, the old lady probably knew why Lu Jianxing married her, so she reminded her tactfully. However, she was kept in the dark at that time and could not hear the hidden meaning at all.

She took a step forward and said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, Madam, Doctor Zhong will be here soon..."

As soon as she finished speaking, the errand girl came back, panting and crying:
"Mammy, Doctor Zhong is not in the mansion. He went out to collect herbs yesterday. The waiter said that he will not be back until tomorrow at the earliest."

Luo Madam became anxious upon hearing this. She raised her voice and said:
"Why didn't Doctor Zhong report to the government before leaving the house? Which doctor would dare to go out to see patients at this critical moment? This person is so unruly."

If anything happens to the old lady, the family will inevitably be divided. How can this be possible if she hasn't used the name of the Duke's Mansion to find a good marriage for her daughter?

At this moment, the two daughters-in-law were really anxious. Xia Li couldn't bear to see the old lady suffer, so he whispered, "Doctor Zhong, do you have any medicine? Ask the servant to find some heart-saving pills for the old lady to take. She should be able to hold on until tomorrow to see a doctor."

Song's eyes lit up. The old lady's lips were purple, so the heart pills should be effective. She pointed at her maid and said, "Go find the servant to get the medicine. Bring me all the ready-made medicines."

The maid took the order and ran out, bumping into Lu Lingyan who had just entered the yard. Lu Lingyan looked fierce and asked, "Are you in a hurry to reincarnate?"

The maid fell to the ground, huddled and dared not move. Song's eyes flickered and she said, "Hurry up and get the medicine. Don't delay."

Lu Lingyan raised his eyebrows, looked around at everyone, looked at Lu Jianxing lying on the ground, clicked his tongue twice, walked up to the old lady and said gloatingly:

"Grandfather, your eldest son died with his eyes open. Are you in pain?"

The old lady looked at him with her eyes slightly narrowed, breathing heavily, trying to hear what he had to say. However, Aunt Xie felt something was wrong and wanted to step forward to stop him, but was pushed away by Lu Lingyan. If Xia Li had not caught her in time, she would have fallen to the ground.

Lu Lingyan's eyes revealed a deep hatred, like a sharp sword pointing directly at people's hearts. He leaned over and approached the old lady, saying sinisterly:

"Nothing that happened in this palace escaped your eyes. You knew who was suffering and who was in trouble, but you turned a blind eye to it and allowed your beastly son to do evil."

Song's heart trembled when she heard this, and a heavy haze quickly gathered in her eyes. She stopped and did not move forward. Lu Jianfeng pretended to say:

"Lu Lingyan, what nonsense are you talking about? How can you talk to your grandmother like that?"

Lu Lingyan turned around and looked at him fiercely, as if he would attack at any time. He said in a cold tone: "Be patient, we will settle our accounts slowly."

Lu Jianfeng shrank his neck in fear. He always felt that this boy was sinister and evil, so he didn't dare to provoke him. Seeing him shut up, Lu Lingyan turned to look at the old lady and mocked:
"The old ancestor was indeed far-sighted, but it's a pity that his son did all kinds of things that damaged his virtue. He deserved his fate today. You must want to know who killed him, right?"

He leaned close to the old lady's ear and told her the truth about Lu Jianxing's death in a very low voice. How could the old lady bear such shock? She looked at Song with eyes wide open, and suddenly raised her hand to pinch Lu Lingyan's neck tightly, as if she wanted to strangle him to death.

This sudden change came unexpectedly. Before everyone could react, the old lady spat out a mouthful of blood, her hands fell down weakly, and she was actually angered to death.

Song's hair stood on end when she was stared at by her. Seeing her miserable state, she hurried forward and cried, "Mother, mother, what's wrong with you? Where is the medicine? Why haven't you brought the medicine yet?"

Her voice seemed to turn on some kind of switch, and the others came to their senses and gathered around. Lu Lingyan was pushed aside but didn't get angry. He watched coldly as the maid brought the heart-saving pill but couldn't get it into her mouth. The old lady was dead.

Before the court had even decided who was superior, two lives had already been lost in the Duke's Mansion, and they were the two most powerful people in the mansion. Xia Li felt that it was too dramatic.

Although she didn't know what really happened, she saw clearly the look in the old lady's eyes as she stared at the eldest lady before she died. She was afraid that the Song family had also contributed a lot to this. When Master Yan San went crazy, he really didn't care.

The old lady was like a pillar of support in the mansion. When she left, everyone panicked. Even Lu Jianfeng was so angry that he wanted to fight Lu Lingyan. He cursed: "You little beast, you are so bold that you angered your grandmother to death. You unfilial descendant!"

Lu Lingyan dodged the attack easily. He raised a scornful arc on his lips and gloated:
"You shouldn't come and pick a fight with me now. You should think about how to keep your title in this mansion. Soon you will be nothing."

After he said this, he laughed wantonly and ostentatiously, which made others feel cold in their hearts. The mournful cries of the servants in the yard mixed with his crazy laughter seemed extremely weird.

Xia Li's attention was on Aunt Xie, fearing that she could not bear the stimulation. Fortunately, although her eyes were full of sadness, her mood was relatively calm. After Lu Lingyan left with a crazy laugh, Aunt Xie looked at Song and said in a hoarse voice:
"Madam, no matter what the situation outside is, we should also prepare for the house. The old lady has lived a decent life, and she can't die without a proper funeral."

Song wiped away the tears from her eyes with a handkerchief and said in a choked voice, "I'll go and make arrangements right away. You change the old lady's clothes first. I'll come pick her up after the funeral hall is ready."

Xia Li subconsciously wanted to step forward to help, but was stopped by Nanny Zhou. She said rather tabooly:

"Young lady, you are just a guest here now. It is not your turn to help with this kind of work. We just need to wait patiently and burn some incense for the old lady later."

Xia Li looked suddenly enlightened. She had been a slave for too long. When she heard the assignment, she instinctively wanted to do it. She almost forgot that she had been declassified. She whispered to Madam Zhou, "I know. You don't have to worry."

In any case, the old lady had protected Xia Li for so many years, and it was natural for her to be grateful to her. She watched the servants carry the old lady into the house, and Nanny Xie led Shi Mi Qian Cao and other maids into the house to serve them.

Xia Li could see fear and confusion on Shi Mi and Qian Cao's faces. They were also worried about the future. It was crucial for Lu Lingchuan to inherit the title, but he, the backbone, was nowhere to be seen. I was afraid that everyone in the mansion was in danger. Lu Qinghe's eyes were swollen from crying. Lu Jianxing's body was taken away by Song. The second master went to guard the mansion gate with the guards and had to keep an eye out for news from outside. Luo couldn't take care of anything else and only knew to protect her daughter. She thought Le Shou Tang was unlucky, so she took her daughter back to Chun Shanju. Now there were only Lu Qinghe and Lu Jiya in the yard.

Lu Qinghe held Xia Li's hand and cried, "Xia Li, what should I do? Is there really no way out for the Duke's Mansion?"

Xia Li could understand her panic and comforted her softly:
"The situation in the palace is unclear. If the Third Prince succeeds to the throne, then the Crown Prince will certainly be given important positions, and his succession to the title is a foregone conclusion. Even if the Third Prince loses... the situation won't be too bad. The Duke has passed away, and the new Emperor will not be angry with the women after he ascends the throne."

Lu Qinghe smiled bitterly and said, "My brother is quite capable, but unfortunately he has always been following our father's orders. He lacks the courage to take charge of things on his own. Regardless of whether he can inherit the title or not, I'm afraid it will be difficult for the Duke's Mansion to regain its former glory."

Xia Li didn't expect her to see it so clearly, and sighed: "As long as people can live well, it doesn't matter even if they experience some hardships. You have to cheer up."

Lu Qinghe choked up and said, "If I were a man, I could still go out and fight even if I lost my power in the mansion. But now I have no choice but to be chosen by someone to marry. It's so sad."

Lu Jiya burst into tears upon hearing this. She said in a weak voice, "Sister, there is no need to be so pessimistic. We still have our second sister. Even for the sake of our common kinship, she will not watch us fall into the mud."

Lu Qinghe was not so optimistic. Not only did the mansion not give Lu Zhiyao any help, but on the contrary it also implicated her. It was a relationship where they neither owed nor owed each other, so why should she cause trouble for herself?

Xia Li had no right to say anything. She was about to find an excuse to leave when she suddenly heard Shi Mi shouting in fear: "Madame Xie, don't..."

When Xia Li heard the voice, her legs went weak and she almost couldn't stand. Nanny Zhou hurried forward to support her. Xia Li didn't care about anything else and staggered into the house. When she stepped into the house, she saw Nanny Xie with a pair of scissors stuck in her chest. She was lying in front of the old lady's bed, smiling and reaching out to Xia Li.

Xia Li's eyes were filled with grief, it felt like countless steel needles were piercing her heart. She let the tears flow down her cheeks, she rushed over to hold Aunt Xie's hand, and said painfully: "Grandma, why are you so stupid? I promised that I would take care of you in your old age..."

Aunt Xie looked at her with a distressed look in her eyes. She said weakly:

"I have been serving the old lady since I was seven or eight years old, and I have long been inseparable from her. When I was changing her clothes just now, I seemed to hear her say that she was scared, and she called me over to serve her... You have found your relatives, so I don't need to worry about you... There is not much meaning in my living alone, so it is good like this..."

Xia Li wanted to take her out of the house to live a free life, but she trapped herself and couldn't get out. Madam Xie's face lost all color. She glanced at Shi Mi and said weakly:
"If the wealth of the mansion can no longer be preserved...just give Shi Mi a place to live in peace...she is also a silly girl..."

Shi Mi was determined not to marry in her life. Once the old lady left, no one would protect her, and she was afraid that her survival would become increasingly difficult. In addition, Xia Li also needed a smart and capable maid like Shi Mi by his side. Qiao He was not up to the task. After all, Nanny Xie was still making plans for Xia Li before her death.

Xia Li held her hand tightly and nodded in agreement. Shi Mi knelt down and kowtowed in front of her, crying loudly.

After Aunt Xie arranged her funeral arrangements, she closed her eyes without any worries. Xia Li only felt a pain in his heart and could not calm down for a long time.

Since Xia Li traveled through time, except for the time when she was betrayed by Jiang Yapo, this moment is the most painful time for her. The love given by her grandma has supported her through countless hard days. Now that she has finally changed the status quo, she is no longer with us. How can she let it go?

When Song heard the news, she sighed and thanked Madam Xie for her loyalty, and then arranged for the maid to embalm her body and let her be buried with the old lady to fulfill her wish.

Xia Li watched her being put into the coffin personally. She was already dead, and she would not come back even if he cried his heart out, so he did not do anything that would cause him to lose control of his emotions.

There were constant shouting and screaming outside, and in the second half of the night, someone wanted to break into the mansion. Fortunately, the guards in the mansion were all really capable and they tried their best to guard the gate, preventing the thieves from succeeding.

Everyone in Kyoto was terrified that night. It was not until dawn that the news of the emperor's death was spread. Soon after that, the news of King Hui's ascension to the throne spread. As soon as Lu Jianfeng's door opened, he went out to inquire about the news. Now that his nephew was away, he was the only one who had to step up and take responsibility.

White banners were hung everywhere in the Duke's Mansion. Song sent servants to deliver messages to various mansions. Except for the in-laws who could not be avoided, the other mansions that did not know the truth did not send anyone to express condolences, and the mourning hall looked deserted.

Xia Li did not sleep all night. In addition to the grief over the death of her grandma, she was also worried about her second brother. After all, he was also an official appointed by the court. After the incident last night, he would probably be affected to some extent. Xia Li only hoped that he was safe, even if he had to take her home a few days later.

Song was kneeling in mourning in the mourning hall, burning paper, until Nanny Gui told her that the Second Master had returned. Then she stood up and hurried out. When she saw others, she asked anxiously, "Second brother, have you heard any news about Lingchuan? How are the Third Prince and Consort Shu?"

Lu Jianfeng said with a sad face: "The Concubine Shu was killed, the Third Prince escaped with the remaining forces, the other princes died, and Lingchuan was imprisoned and couldn't get out."

Song's face was extremely ugly. She trembled and asked, "What about my family? Are they implicated?"

Lu Jianfeng nodded with difficulty, "Now they have all been taken to prison. Many mansions in Kyoto have suffered. I'm afraid our family can't be saved either."

Song suppressed her emotions and said in a deep voice, "For now, we can only ask for help from Princess Hui. You and your sister-in-law should go to the palace with the princess's biological mother to ask for an audience. She has not yet entered the palace, so we still have a chance."

Although Lu Jianfeng's business makes money, if the Duke's Mansion is not protected, he will have no backing and his business will be swallowed up by other merchants. At this moment, he has no better idea than Song's. Luo came out from nowhere and said with an ugly face: "Let Qinghe sisters go. If that damn girl is so cruel that she refuses to see anyone, let the sisters kneel on the ground. I don't believe she is not afraid of the spit of outsiders. If we don't force her at this time, the future of the children will be ruined."

The old lady was gone, so they had to find a way to solve the problem themselves. Although Song was reluctant to let her daughter suffer, she had no other choice. She said in a hoarse voice:
"My sister-in-law, please take care of several girls and make sure they wear their veils properly so as not to lose their dignity."

Mrs. Luo nodded slightly. In times of life and death, it is right for the two sisters-in-law to work together to overcome the difficulties. Mrs. Song turned and leaned close to Mrs. Luo's ear and whispered to her that the old lady was secretly supporting King Hui.

She has been in charge of the household for so many years, and the old lady could not hide this from her, but she turned a blind eye and didn't want to interfere. Now it's time for King Hui to return the favor.

(End of this chapter)