Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 190 Secretly Accusing
Before the grand banquet even began, everyone was out enjoying themselves and making friends. Tan Li was busy chatting and exchanging pleasantries with his old friends, subtly and overtly asking them to introduce him to business partners or high-ranking officials, hoping to give the Tan family's business a new lease on life. Tan Anfu, on the other hand, seized the opportunity to sneak into the tea room where Old Madam Shentu was.

This teahouse is built along a winding corridor, connecting to the west courtyard of the prefect's residence. It is spacious and secluded, and you can see the flowers adorning the garden by opening the window. The teahouse is furnished with many screens and tables, scattered around. Many ladies from noble families bring their unmarried daughters here to find peace and quiet, and also to look for handsome young men outside.

Shen Tu Zhuo and Tan Huai Ke each had their own invitations, so they couldn't take up the Shen Tu family's place at the banquet. Therefore, Old Madam Shen Tu brought Shen Tu Ji along to accompany them. At this moment, Shen Tu Ji leaned against the window, feeling somewhat bored. She wanted to go to the courtyard to join in the fun and broaden her horizons, but was afraid her mother wouldn't agree. So she changed her approach, saying, "Is my sister-in-law here too? I bought some fabric at the Zhiyun Cloth Shop last time, and I wanted to ask her how to make clothes."

The old lady knew exactly what she was thinking. She took a sip of tea and said, "She's busy right now, so please sit down and relax for a while..."

As they were talking, a timid voice called out from the side: "Madam Shentu, we've finally found you."

The old lady raised her eyes and nodded slightly: "Madam Bao, you've also come to the banquet?"

The tone was flat, seemingly devoid of any emotion, but to Tan Anfu it felt like a knife stabbing into her heart. What kind of "Madam Bao" was she? The small merchant family of Bao had no right to attend such occasions. If she wanted to get in, she had to rely on her family. Using the title of "Madam Bao" only made her seem inferior to others.

Despite her resentment, Tan Anfu remained calm and composed, as if she were very familiar with them, and casually sat down on the futon next to Shen Tu Ji. Shen Tu Ji secretly pursed his lips and leaned closer to the window.

Seeing her hesitation, the old lady asked, "Is there something you need, Madam Bao?"

Tan Anfu looked around, deliberately half-covering her face and whispered, "Just now I was listening to music with my grandfather in the east courtyard, and I ran into Lord Shentu in the corridor. After that, I saw him heading towards the main house. I guess he was going to see His Highness Prince Qin."

"Hmm," Madam Shentu replied absentmindedly.

“It’s nothing, but Lord Shentu was bumped by the servant who was bringing tea and snacks and left in a hurry. That’s when I saw this on the ground…” Tan Anfu took something out of her sleeve and handed it to the old lady.

The old lady took it and looked at it, saying calmly, "Thank you for returning it, Madam Bao."

Shen Tu Ji said nonchalantly, "Isn't this my second brother's jade pendant? How could you be so careless as to drop it on the ground like this?"

Tan Anfu frowned: "I recognized this as the jade pendant of the Shentu family, so I quickly picked it up. Since I couldn't find Lord Shentu for the time being, I had to come to find the old lady. But there is something else, and I don't know if I should say it."

"Go ahead and speak." This was clearly a well-prepared move, and the old lady wanted to see what she was really up to.

“Madam, please look. This tassel attached to the jade pendant is brand new; it must have been changed recently.” Tan Anfu lowered her voice even further. “Changing tassels is common, but the shimmering beads on it are a bit off. A few days ago, I went to talk to my sister about the family's situation, and I unexpectedly saw…saw…”

"What did you see?" Shen Tu Ji asked anxiously.

"I saw a string of similar serpentine beads on my sister's desk," Tan Anfu said cryptically. "The Tan family has also been in the business of serpentine beads from the Western Regions. Beads from different origins and batches vary greatly in quality. I can tell that the serpentine beads on my sister's bracelet and the ones on Lord Shentu's necklace are probably from the same source."

"What do you mean by that, Madam Bao?" The old lady snorted coldly and placed the jade pendant on the table. "Really? Let me see!" Shen Tu Ji hadn't reacted yet, but was curious and quickly picked it up to examine it closely. "It's really beautiful. This jade pendant is crystal clear and cool, it's of the best quality. It's hard to find one like it in the entire Hexi Four Counties."

“Indeed.” Tan Anfu simply stated frankly, “Such precious serene beads, one person used them to make beaded bracelets, and the other used them to make jade pendants. Anyone who didn’t know better would think they were tokens of love between the couple. Madam, look at the craftsmanship of these pendants. I wonder who was so ingenious, using gold and red brocade thread from the Weaving Cloud Cloth Workshop and tying them into a ruyi knot.”

Even Shentu Ji understood this time, and immediately blurted out in surprise, "You mean my second brother and sister-in-law..."

The old lady sternly stopped him: "Ji'er! Stop talking nonsense!"
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Tan Anfu continued to fan the flames: "The widowed sister-in-law and her brother-in-law... are not exactly a shocking matter, but I'm afraid that you, Madam, are still in the dark and haven't made any plans yet. If others use this to make a big deal out of it in the future, it will not only affect the reputation of the Shentu family, but Lord Shentu's career will also be criticized, which would be a great loss."

The old lady snorted, "Madam Bao is really kind-hearted. Not only did she happen to find my son's jade pendant, but she also happened to see the same string of beads at my daughter-in-law's house. I'm sorry to trouble you to come all the way here to tell me. However, this is a family matter of the Shentu family, and it is not for outsiders to make irresponsible remarks."

"I..." Seeing that she hadn't achieved the result she wanted, Tan Anfu decided to go all out. She stopped lowering her voice and pretended to be incredulous, saying, "Madam, I thought the Shentu family had always been upright and disciplined. Are you really going to sit idly by and watch those two, uncle and sister-in-law, engage in such an illicit affair?"

“My daughter-in-law is your own sister. I don’t know why you would deliberately slander her in front of me.” The old lady put away the jade pendant and said indifferently, “I came here to find some peace and quiet, but I have to be disturbed for no reason. If Madam Bao has nothing to do, please find another place to enjoy yourself.”

Tan Anfu gritted her teeth and said with a sneer, "Since Madam is unwilling to listen, and things go wrong later, don't blame me for not warning you."

The old lady closed the window and drank her tea, ignoring her completely.

After she left, Shentu Ji said uneasily, "Mother, my sister-in-law and second brother wouldn't really..."

The old lady sighed: "Whether it's true or not, our Shentu family is going to lose face at this grand banquet today."

"How could that be? Didn't we get our second brother's jade pendant back?" Shentu Ji also lowered his voice. "What kind of love token is this 'Se Se Pearl'? There's no proof."

"Rumors and gossip, what proof do we need? Zhuo'er runs to that side courtyard every day, how innocent can they be? Do you really think I'm senile? I locked the gate before but couldn't stop her, what could I do?" the old lady said. "Do you think this Madam Bao is really giving me a kind reminder? The Tan family and Tan Huai Ke have a grudge over the shop dispute on Huaqi Street. They probably want to use this opportunity to ruin her reputation, make her lose the support of the Shen Tu family, so that they can sacrifice their own flesh to pave the way for the Tan family to participate in the selection of imperial merchants."

"What... what should we do? Putting aside my sister-in-law's reputation, my second brother has just become an official and is carrying heavy responsibilities. Isn't this going to smear the entire Shentu family?"

The old lady lowered her eyes and thought for a moment before saying, "She came to me intending to use me to secretly punish Tan Huai Ke. Seeing that I am not falling for her tricks, she will probably try to cause trouble later. Let's put aside the incestuous relationship between uncle and sister-in-law for now; the Shen Tu family cannot afford to lose face like this. Ji'er, go find your sister-in-law and tell her about this, and see how she responds."

Shen Tu Ji hurriedly got up to look for the person.

A moment later, Shentu Ji ran back to the tea room, panting: "Mother, my sister-in-law asked me to pass on a message to you. Whew, she said—"

At that time, Tan Huaike calmly replied with a smile: "I am grateful to Aunt Jun for her understanding and righteousness. I have long planned that no matter what tricks my elder sister comes up with, I will not let her tarnish the reputation of Shentu Mansion."
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Next chapter: Why is the eldest sister-in-law so self-righteous?