maidservant

Chapter 8: Fire in the Firewood Room, Lady Hangs Herself

When the Lord entered that day, he saw his wife sleeping on the innermost couch of the Qiangong bed, wearing only her nightgown, with Su Qi lying on the platform at her feet.

The lady’s bed was big, so even if Su Qi was not on the couch, he was lying inside the bed.

It was heard that the lady kept crying out for justice, but the master did not give her a chance to continue. He locked Su Qi in the woodshed and tortured her severely.

As Gan Tang squatted by the well, scrubbing clothes, the soapnut water suddenly began to foam. A late spring breeze, carrying a burning smell, blew past her ears. She stared at her reflection in the water, lost in thought as she pondered the events of the past two days. Suddenly—

"Hurry! There's a fire in the woodshed!"

Gan Tang dropped the wooden pestle and ran to the east courtyard, her skirt brushing against the still-dry bloodstains on the stone steps. Those were the marks left when Su Qi was dragged into the woodshed. Dark red lines of blood snaked through the marks where his dark suit had rubbed against the blue bricks.

The flames had already licked the beams of the house, and the smell of burning flesh wafted through the thick smoke.

"Step aside!"

The servant knocked her shoulder away, and the well water spilled from the bucket, steaming into a white mist in the firelight. Gan Tang stumbled back, watching the charred wooden beams collapse with a loud bang, sparks splashing onto her scarlet gauze skirt.

Everyone was busy putting out the fire, and now that it was out, they were all sitting in the yard, exhausted, when they suddenly heard a heartbreaking cry:

"lady--!"

A shrill scream pierced the night sky. As Gan Tang followed the crowd toward Yuheng Courtyard, she felt a sudden sharp pain on her wrist—Miss Yu's hand was clutching her tightly.

The thousand-crafts bed in the main hall was still in its original state, the white silk hanging from the gilded curtain hook swaying gently in the draft. On the lady's plain white nightgown, the last stroke of the word "zhen" had a long bloody tail, just like the red ink mark that the master had written on the invitation when the fifth concubine entered the mansion.

"Don't move!" The master's voice was like ice.

The Fifth Aunt suddenly collapsed to the ground, her golden hairpins clashing against the blue bricks, revealing a hint of blue on the tip of her head. She hated the Madam, hated her for taking her dowry like a vampire, which was her foundation and her greatest value.

But she didn't want the lady to die, she just wanted her to live out her life alone...
The third concubine pushed through the crowd, and the new jade bracelet on her wrist reflected the candlelight, casting a green light on the lady's pale face: "Why do you have to do this, sister?" Before she finished speaking, the master suddenly raised his hand, and the white jade ring brushed against her earlobe, bringing out a drop of blood.

"Is it you? Or you?!" The master pointed at the third concubine, and suddenly pointed at the fifth concubine. Everyone was silent for a long time.

That night, Gan Tang shook out her soaked skirt in the side room. Black ash fell from the scorched hem of her clothes.

After three drum beats, Miss Yu suddenly woke up. Gan Tang held her and tried to soothe her, but she could smell a strange sandalwood scent in the room. But when he took a closer look, it didn't smell like sandalwood either. After a while, he felt sluggish and weak, but Miss Yu fell asleep again.

Thinking that maybe Third Aunt was afraid that Miss Yu would be frightened during the day, she lit some sleeping incense, and Gan Tang also fell asleep.

But at this moment, the strange diamond-shaped mirror reflected the figure outside the window. Su Qi pointed his sword at Madam Zhou and said, "Tell me! What did you add to the Madam's incense burner that day?"

Gan Tang covered his mouth, his eardrums aching from the beating of his own heart. Moonlight leaked through the window.

Nanny Zhou died, not from a sword wound. When the guards in the mansion shot Su Qi, they also shot Nanny Zhou to death.

----

The master ordered that Madam Zhou be buried with great honor, but only a blood-stained bodice was placed in the coffin.

When the white flag fell over Yuheng Courtyard, the horse's hooves of Su Jia's eldest son crushed the morning dew.

Gan Tang and other maids were kneeling in the mourning hall to add lamp oil. They saw that the master had a new jade pendant on his waist, which was not given by the third and fifth concubines.

Yan Zhen was dressed in plain mourning, her face stained with tears, and the offering plate hit the altar table, making a crisp sound.

"Master Su, please look." The master lifted the white silk covering the body, revealing Madam Zhou's purple face. "This wicked slave has harbored a grudge for years and even added Ecstasy Powder to Madam's incense burner."

He picked up a brocade bag with his fingertips and poured out a vermilion pill. "This has been tested by Imperial Physician Zhang. When heated, it turns into smoke."

The pill rolled to the tip of Su Jia Dalang's boot, and the moment it broke into powder, a bitter apricot smell rose up.

The third concubine sobbed at the right time: "After Su Qi was captured that night, the old man committed suicide out of fear of punishment." The third concubine was very sad. She cursed several times in a row and cried out of breath.

Gan Tang looked at her, his sadness genuine, his anger feigned. However, his true feelings were probably more of a sense of reluctance and guilt towards Madam Zhou.

While offering sacrifices, Su Jiadalang suddenly bent down to pick up a piece of broken porcelain. It was a fragment of secret color porcelain. "I heard that your family has added a lot of celadon recently?"

"Yes, yes, there are several boxes of excellent quality in the mansion. Uncle, please go and take a look. If there is anything that catches your eye, you will be happy to accept it."

Yan Zhen knelt under the moon-shaped gate of Yuheng Courtyard, her white skirt wet with morning dew.

She stared coldly at Su Jia Dalang, her uncle, with hatred surging in her eyes, which were similar to her mother's.

When Su Jia Dalang turned around, the jade pendant on his waist hit the camphorwood box. The word "Su" was engraved on the jade pendant, which was exactly the same as the one worn by his mother when she was alive. It reminded Yan Zhen that this person was indeed her uncle.

The next day, Su Jia Dalang returned with six boxes of porcelain.

The memory of the death of the Madam and Nanny Zhou seemed to have been erased in the mansion, and even the copper bells under the eaves no longer rang.

The master began to neglect the Third Concubine. Gan Tang often saw her playing the zither alone in the corridor, her blue skirt stained with dust after the rain.

The fifth concubine went crazy. She held an empty porcelain bottle and muttered to herself all day long. The tips of the golden hairpins in her hair had rusted.

The fourth concubine took over the affairs of the mansion. All matters, big and small, were handed over to her to handle. The fourth concubine never fought or competed, and the master was very confident in her.

After going through so much, the master just wanted peace in the harem and no more trouble. After all, the affairs of the court were already giving him a headache.

"The Right Jinwu Guard has been replaced by Prince Jing's men." Yan Zhen traced the character "Jing" on the rim of a celadon cup while sipping tea in the main hall. The master frowned, looking at the official uniform hanging in the room. The python pattern on the hem was stained with ink and had not yet been cleaned.

When Gan Tang was refilling his tea, he caught a glimpse of the memorial on the desk that read "deficit in grain transport", with the word "查" written in red ink so strong that it could be seen through the back of the paper.

Yan Zhen asked, "The Crown Prince's position should still be secure, right?"

The lord remained silent.

That day, the Third Aunt summoned Miss Yu to the warm room. Gan Tang, who was waiting behind the screen, heard her say, "Do you still remember the herbs your mother taught you? Camphor dissipates when heated, and bitter apricot..." Her voice suddenly choked with sobs.

Gan Tang knew that the wife's death was related to the third concubine. The strange fragrance in Yuheng Courtyard that day, Zhou Mama being held hostage by Su Qi, and the exaggerated smile of the fifth concubine when she brought the box that day.
However, the development of the matter was beyond Third Aunt's expectations, especially the death of Nanny Zhou.

A few months later, Gan Tang saw the third aunt standing alone by the well, her skirt, which had been shimmering in the rain, looking white in the firelight.

Gan Tang's hands, which were counting copper coins, paused.

The monthly salary for a second-class maid should have been eight cents, but today she only received four cents.

The copper coin was covered with the newly minted verdigris, and it was scorching hot in the palm of my hand.

"I heard that the lady's funeral cost a thousand taels." Gan Ju from the Fourth Concubine's Courtyard squatted by the well to wash clothes, and the soap water was foaming with fine foam. "Just that golden nanmu coffin alone..."

　Sending Mandarin Ducks

　　Su Qi's swordsmanship is the best among all the heroes, and his childhood sweetheart has deep feelings for him.

　　It is difficult for people of different social status to be together, and there is a heavy sense of sorrow in the Shangshu Mansion.

　　The love has not been severed and the hearts are still thinking of each other, the courtesy and morality still exist and the chastity is still preserved.

　　But rumors have tainted her body, and she is now telling the heavens about her sorrow for both of her deaths.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)