青春期撞上更年期第1部

Chapter 1028 Find out About the Past

Without saying yes or no, she asked in reply, giving tacit consent to the status quo.

“Oh, the Marquis Xing’s Mansion is going from bad to worse without showing any improvement. Though you were a daughter in their mansion, you have married into another mansion. How could they thrust you forward to face the challenge?” Rui’an Great Elder Princess scolded with a sneer. Everything was seen as clear as crystal to her.

“Grandma, do you think I can do it?” Shao Wanru got straight to the point with her grandma, no longer needing to make every move only after mature deliberation. She loved the feeling when being with her family because she could say anything completely without scruples.

It was completely unnecessary for her to be discreet in word and deed. She could speak out whatever came to her mind. Even if she said something wrong, her grandmother would be more than willing to forgive her.

The feeling of being with family was always warm and reassuring. There was no need to talk in a roundabout way. She could say anything in her mind out loud.

!!

“You can’t meddle in this affair!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess said with a low and urgent voice. A hint of sharpness flashed across her soft eyes as she said with a snorted disgust, “The Marquis Xing’s Mansion has shifted all the responsibility onto you. Refusing to handle the matter means both you and your brother are incompetent. Also, it proves your brother is incapable of inheriting the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. As a result, the powerless Marquis Xing’s Mansion, your parents’ home, can never back you up. What a devilish trick!”

Rui’an Great Elder Princess had an intense hatred of such conduct of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion.

“But I can’t stand by. They’ve announced that they are all sick!” Shao Wanru said gently with a smile, grasping her grandma’s hand instead and shaking it like a spoiled child. “Grandma, you don’t have to worry about this. It’s not good for you to intervene. Honestly, this matter is the Marquis Xing’s Mansion’s business. If you take a hand in this matter, you will give others an excuse against yourself!”

Though Rui’an Great Elder Princess enjoyed a noble and distinguished status, she had no real power. If she meddled deep in the private affairs of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion, she provided others’ critics with a handle. It would be very unfavorable to Rui’an Great Elder Princess.

More importantly, their opponent this time was the Ruiping Great Elder Princess’s Mansion, so Shao Wanru was more reluctant to let Rui’an Great Elder Princess interfere in this family problem.

“What? How can they be so shameless?” Rui’an Great Elder Princess accused, foaming with rage. She had thought that Old Madam of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion would find a way to suppress Shao Wanru, but never had she imagined that this old bitch would be so unashamed — she threw the trouble package to Shao Wanru and walked away.

“Is she ill? It’s all show. I’ll visit her and take the imperial physician to check her up!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess was so pissed off that she was about to stand up instantly.

When Shao Wanru saw that something was going to be wrong, she quickly reached out to stop her grandmother, hurriedly trying to persuade her. “Grandma, hold on. I may not be at a disadvantage. Even if you can go there with an imperial physician, so what? Old Madam doesn’t fake illness. Because she has an old weakness, she can pretend to faint or fall ill whenever she wants. Even imperial physicians can’t find out anything about it!”

Old Madam’s old illness was real and serious. Otherwise, when Shao Wanru met her for the first time, she wouldn’t fall into critical condition.

She was old and sick, so the imperial physician couldn’t find evidence to prove she wasn’t ill. She alone could decide whether to appear healthy or not. How could she possibly have no health issues?

Rui’an Great Elder Princess was straightforward with a volcanic temper. It would be no big deal if Old Madam pretended to be ill. But if not, Rui’an Great Elder Princess might cause Old Madam to die of anger once she kicked up a row in the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. Then, it would be a disaster.

Unlike Madam Jiang, Old Madam herself hadn’t done so many vicious tricks. In other people’s eyes, Old Madam didn’t seem to be kind to Shao Wanru merely because she might not like her that much.

Her tragic fate due to bias would arouse considerable sympathy from many Old Madams in other mansions. Each mansion had many grandsons and granddaughters. How could they treat all with the same kindness? In Old Madam’s heart, the granddaughter who grew up beside her was undoubtedly different from the one who came back from outside. She didn’t deserve to die for that!

Absolutely, the others would think they persecuted Old Madam to death. If such a thing happened, her grandmother would be in serious trouble. Shao Wanru didn’t want her grandmother to suffer because of this kind of thing.

Shao Jing was shrewd and deep. Beyond that, Shao Wanru suspected that he had something to do with her father’s death. Shao Jing, who was hardhearted enough to kill his elder brother, could lay murderous hands on Old Madam and make Rui’an Great Elder Princess the scapegoat. Why couldn’t he do that?

Therefore, during such a sensitive and dangerous period, she would never let her grandmother go to the Marquis Xing’s Mansion in a burning fury.

“Then what? If she likes to be sick, let her be. In that case, she won’t instigate incidents and make trouble for us!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess was so angry that her face turned pale. “She shifts the misfortune onto you! How can there be such a ruthless person in the world?”

She hated Old Madam of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion to the very marrow of her bones. How she wished she could see Old Madam right away, pull her to the Palace and condemn her evils to the Empress Dowager.

While saying harsh words, Rui’an Great Elder Princess frantically lurched to her feet. She really couldn’t suffer indignities without a protest.

“Grandma, do you think my father and mother died in suspicious circumstances?” Seeing that she could hardly stop Rui’an Great Elder Princess, Shao Wanru rolled her eyes and hurriedly asked, grabbing the corner of her grandmother’s clothes.

Great Elder Princess’s face froze, and her lips trembled twice. Immediately, she became pale. “You… you mean that your parents were murdered?”

Over the years, Rui’an Great Elder Princess had always had such a doubt, but it sounded incredible. As soon as Shao Wanru mentioned this, she couldn’t help thinking of her daughter, her eyes turning red. Before her daughter died, her daughter was not quite right in the head. Rui’an Great Elder Princess didn’t even see her daughter one last time before she passed away.

That day, Duke Xing’s Mansion sent someone to inform her that her daughter was dead. When Rui’an Great Elder Princess hurried to see her daughter, she only caught a glance at her daughter’s ghastly pale face drained of color in the distance. Her daughter’s lifeless body was lying there quietly. She looked completely different than when she was alive, though insane.

At that time, in the eyes of Rui’an Great Elder Princess, she was more like the gentle and stubborn daughter long ago.

With only one glance at her daughter, Rui’an Great Elder Princess fainted. When she woke up again, the lid of her daughter’s coffin had been nailed down. Rui’an Great Elder Princess didn’t dare to think about what happened next. She became so muddle-headed that she couldn’t remember everything clearly. After seeing that her daughter was buried, Rui’an Great Elder Princess became seriously ill, and her memory of that period was seriously damaged. She could barely remember what had happened at that time.

When her granddaughter raised this subject, it dawned on her that she missed her daughter. It was just that whenever Rui’an Great Elder Princess thought about her, her heart would hurt.

Tears fell unconsciously. When Rui’an Great Elder Princess watched Shao Wanru before her, she felt as if she were looking at her daughter in her memory.

“Grandma!” Shao Wanru’s eyes also turned red. She pulled Rui’an Great Elder Princess to sit down again and reached out to hold her waist, resting her head on her shoulder. “Grandma, you are the only support of Hao’er and me. If something happens to you, won’t it please those people in the Marquis Xing’s Mansion and distress us?”

Rui’an Great Elder Princess felt a throbbing pain in her heart. Her daughter in the memory, the pitiful granddaughter before her, and her grandson appeared vividly in her mind together, making her wide awake at this moment. With difficulty, she moved her lips. “Do you… do you think it has anything to do with the Marquis Xing’s Mansion?”

She was corresponding to Shao Wanru’s previous words.

“Grandma, I think it is. When my father had the accident, my Second Uncle left the capital secretly and went to the border. Childe Yan’s father had seen Second Uncle there. Later, he left there, and my father died. When my mother was found, she had been insane. After giving birth to Hao’er, she was gone forever. Since her death, Second Uncle suddenly seemed to be on excellent terms with Childe Yan’s father. This time, Childe Yan’s future was nearly ruined. I suppose my Second Uncle must also be behind this.”

Shao Wanru whispered, biting her lips to suppress the pain in her heart.

All the suspicion fell on Shao Jing alone.

“You… are saying that Shao Jing killed your father? No one knows he secretly left the capital and killed your father except Childe Yan’s father. To prevent this matter from being exposed, Shao Jing didn’t want Childe Yan, his friend’s son, to be an official in the capital city. Am I right?”

After all, Rui’an Great Elder Princess had been going through a lot. After forcefully suppressing the pain in her heart, she quickly figured out all the meaning of Shao Wanru’s words. For a time, her face turned livid with rage. She slammed her hand heavily on the table and said, “If I find out the truth, Shao Jing will have to pay for your father’s death with his life!”

“Grandma, it’s a rough guess on my part, according to the letter from Childe Yan. There is no solid evidence, but I believe it is true. I lived a good life with my father and mother when I was a child. Even after my father concealed his identity and joined the army, we were fine. How could such an awful disaster happen later? How could it be such a coincidence?”

Shao Wanru said, a trace of insidious hatred flashing across her bloodshot eyes.

If it was true, then she found her personal enemy, who should be responsible for the sufferings in her two lives.

It turned out that they wanted more than to deal with her and Hao’er. The second branch that Shao Jing led had determined to destroy his elder brother’s branch, leaving no chance for its revival! How malicious their intent was! They had no desire to leave a chance to live for her and Hao’er.

“I’ll verify what happened back then through investigation!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess gritted her teeth so hard in anger that she even tasted the smell of blood in her mouth. She would make Shao Jing pay with his life for that if it was true.

Compared with this matter, the title of nobility of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion was not that important!

What else could be more important than avenging his daughter and son-in-law’s deaths?

“Grandma, it’s best for you to investigate this matter. Many things happened a long time ago, even before I was born. So, I don’t know much about this history. Grandma, you are my mother’s biological mother. It makes sense if you want to know the truth. But we have to find a reason to launch the survey aboveboard!”

Shao Wanru said softly. Indeed, her grandma was the best choice for this case. Neither she nor Chu Liuchen was suitable.

For one thing, this matter happened more than a decade ago when they were too young to be involved. For another, Chu Liuchen might arouse the Emperor’s suspicion when anyone deliberately connected the investigation with Chu Liuchen’s background. After all, many people had been watching him closely, though Chu Liuchen wasn’t short-handed and had many subordinates in secret to do the survey.

There was another most important reason for this choice: only in this way could she free her grandmother from the dispute between the Marquis Xing’s Mansion and Infanta Yuan’an.

Her grandmother’s current situation was similar to hers, so Rui’an Great Elder Princess couldn’t stand by and watch. However, if Rui’an Great Elder Princess confronted Infanta Yuan’an’s Mansion to help Shao Wanru, it would only bring harm to her.

Shao Wanru thought that she had to further muddy the situation in the capital city so that she and her grandmother could get away.