MFURCC -Chapter 35 Self-Directed and Self-Performed

“Your Highness, we found something!”

The man spoke as he stepped inside.

At this, everyone’s expressions changed.

Second Madam instinctively looked at Ruan Yunzheng.

Between the two of them, they were the “suspects” in everyone’s eyes.

She hadn’t poisoned Liuzheng, so the only possibility was Ruan Yunzheng.

Thus, in Second Madam’s eyes, there was even a trace of pity.

Ruan Yunzheng noticed this and sneered inwardly.

Pity her?

She should pity herself first!

Yet her face remained calm, showing no reaction.

“What did you find?” asked Prince Su.

The man knelt on one knee, presenting a small teapot.

Prince Su picked it up and sniffed it, frowning.

“It’s Aconitum.”

He had been poisoned by Aconitum before and remembered the smell.

The matriarch immediately asked, “Where did you find it?”

“It was in…” the man hesitated, unsure whose courtyard it was.

Madam Shu, following the matriarch’s orders, had gone along with Prince Su’s men.

She spoke for him: “It was found in Second Madam’s room, tucked under the corner of the table, inconspicuous.”

But ironically, it was precisely because the teapot was hidden under the table corner that it aroused suspicion.

They picked it up and sniffed—it wasn’t ordinary tea; it had a faint, almost imperceptible herbal scent.

Ruan Yunzheng looked up toward Xianghe outside.

Xianghe sent her a smile, and Ruan Yunzheng understood everything.

Her tension finally melted away.

This girl wasn’t bad—she was clever.

With an incident like this in the mansion, if she wanted to clear her name, she had to find a scapegoat.

And Xianghe had found one for her.

Her judgment was good; she had chosen a capable accomplice.

The matriarch’s face suddenly changed.

She knew Second Madam was domineering, but she hadn’t expected that she would truly dare to poison Liuzheng!

“Second daughter-in-law! What do you have to say for yourself?” the matriarch said sternly. “What wrong did Yao Yao ever do to you? She even saved your life! And now, just because she didn’t give you enough time to finish your revenge before coming down the mountain, you hold a grudge so deep?”

Second Madam’s eyes widened, disbelief written all over her face.

“No… it’s not mine… I didn’t do it!”

At first, when she saw the teapot, she hadn’t paid it any attention.

There were far too many teapots like this in the mansion.

But when they said it had been found in her room, panic set in.

“This is impossible! It’s slander! I never poisoned her! Why would I do such a thing?!”

Prince Su narrowed his eyes.

“Are you saying someone from my men framed you?”

“I… I meant no harm. But I really didn’t poison her! Aconitum—I’ve never even seen it! Someone must have deliberately hidden it under my bed! That person, perhaps, is the one who really poisoned her, Your Highness!”

Second Madam knelt and kowtowed repeatedly.

Elder Master, Ruan Baizheng, and Ruan Baizheng’s fifth younger brother, Ruan Mingzheng, quickly followed suit.

“Your Highness, she would never dare poison anyone! She wouldn’t even kill a chicken normally, how could she poison Liuzheng?”

“Yes, Your Highness! My mother is being framed! She’s innocent!”

Ruan Baizheng wept as she pleaded with her grandmother: “Grandmother, my mother may sometimes speak incorrectly, but she would never poison anyone. I’ve been with her all day; she had no chance to poison anyone.”

The matriarch rubbed her temple, annoyed by their shouting.

She turned to Liuzheng.

“Yao Yao, what do you think?”

Liuzheng stood from her chair and walked before Second Madam in front of everyone’s gaze.

“Aunt, I don’t understand—what have I done to offend you?”

“Not only did you spread false rumors to my parents, saying I offended the Duke’s family, which led to me being locked in the wood storage—but you even poisoned me!”

“I originally asked you all to descend the mountain because I sensed the slope might collapse, causing a mudslide. And indeed, a mudslide occurred.”

“Do you hold such a grudge against me just over a piece of jewelry between you and my fourth sister?”

“Aunt, when I call you aunt, do you consider me family?”

As Liuzheng spoke, her eyes reddened, her expression a mix of grievance and fury.

Though seemingly accusing, she also revealed the reason behind Second Madam’s malice.

“I didn’t!” Second Madam grabbed Liuzheng’s skirt and said, “When leaving the inn, I only saw the Duke’s maid trying to strangle you. I ran away for fear of being implicated… I didn’t know that the Duchess hadn’t miscarried, nor that the Duke held no grudge against you. I never intended to spread false news, nor to harm you!”

Liuzheng stepped back two paces, and Second Madam’s grip missed.

She watched Second Madam quietly.

She would not forget—in her previous life, it was Second Madam who recommended the maid Banxia to Ruan Yunzheng.

Banxia had been her maid before she went to the frontier.

In her darkest moment, Banxia came to her, deceiving her into believing she could secretly pass messages, leading Generals Pan Hong and Pan Zhan’s deputies to rescue her.

She believed her and prepared to escape with Banxia.

But before leaving the courtyard, she was discovered by Ruan Changzheng.

Ruan Changzheng hadn’t intended to truly kill her, but because of Banxia’s deception, fearing the news would eventually leak, Ruan Changzheng ruthlessly killed her.

If not for that, she would still have had the chance to send the message out and be rescued.

Second Madam had completely cut off that hope, indirectly causing her death.

That debt would be settled today.

“Aunt, now that both witness and evidence are present, won’t you admit it? If you confess, I can overlook it in light of our family ties…”

“I truly didn’t! Why would I admit to something I didn’t do? Even if you report me, I would still say the same!” Second Madam shouted.

Ruan Baizheng glared at Liuzheng through tears.

“Ruan Liuzheng, is it because I spoke of your faults at the Changfu Inn that you held a grudge and intentionally framed my mother?”

“Fourth Sister!” Ruan Mingzheng tugged at Ruan Baizheng, “Don’t speak nonsense!”

“I’m not speaking nonsense! It must be so! She… ah!!”

Before finishing, Ruan Baizheng suddenly felt a dull pain on her lips.

She reached up and found her lips swelling.

“Who! Who hit me?!”

She looked around, but no one appeared to have moved.

Liuzheng noticed that Prince Su had slowly withdrawn his sleeves.

“….”

A prince using such a method to silence someone?

For some reason, Liuzheng felt a bit like laughing, though she suppressed it.

“Who was it…”

Ruan Baizheng still wanted to find the culprit, but the matriarch intervened: “Silence! Do you even know what time it is? Ming, take your fourth sister out!”

“Yes.”

“No! I won’t go! My mother is innocent!”

Second Madam also cried: “I am being framed!”

But no one listened.

Ruan Baizheng was taken away, and Second Madam was also seized.

How to handle them, the matriarch hadn’t decided yet.

Prince Su spoke: “Reporting to the authorities would damage General Ruan and the prestige of the Ruan family. It’s better to deal with it privately.”

“Impossible!” Second Master said. “She is my lawful wife; how could we dispose of her casually?”

“Then you mean report her to the authorities?”

Second Master shuddered.

Reporting her was out of the question!

Ming still needed to pursue his career!

If handled publicly, he couldn’t even survive in the academy, let alone enter officialdom.

At this moment, Ruan Yunzheng spoke: “Grandmother, why not send Second Madam to a temple to practice and repent? She is, after all, the mother of fourth sister and fifth brother. If we deal with her otherwise… what will we say if asked? Better to say she is taking the temple’s place, praying for our eldest brother on behalf of grandmother and my mother.”

The matriarch, though not fond of Ruan Yunzheng, felt her suggestion made sense.

She could disregard Second Madam’s fate, but not the reputation and future of her grandchildren and the entire Ruan family.

After pondering, she looked at Prince Su.

“What does Your Highness think?”

Her words alone carried no weight; only Prince Su’s agreement mattered.

Prince Su looked at Liuzheng.

“General Ruan, what do you think? You are the victim; you have the right to decide her fate.”

The matriarch looked at Liuzheng with earnest eyes.

Liuzheng knew then that Second Madam could not die—not today, at least.

Her grandmother was her only genuine relative in this world; she didn’t want any distance to form between them.

Liuzheng carefully chose her words: “Third Sister’s method is good, but grandmother, if she goes to the temple, I don’t know when Second Madam will return. If she does return… I fear she will still hold a grudge against me.”

“Rest assured, unless she dies, she will not return to the mansion. Baizheng and Ming’er are also forbidden from visiting. Henceforth, it will be as if she doesn’t exist.”

Liuzheng nodded.

Second Madam loved luxury and excitement; letting her spend the rest of her days among temple lamps and ancient Buddhas might be a kinder punishment than killing her.

“Then the granddaughter will obey grandmother.”

“Good.” The matriarch agreed, then turned to ask Prince Su: “Your Highness… Yao Yao has spoken; what about you?”

Prince Su expressionless: “General Ruan has made her decision; what more is there to say?”

There was a trace of anger in his tone.

Liuzheng didn’t quite understand—why did he seem even angrier than her?

Duke Wei was also furious.

He wanted to say, “This poisoner must be executed immediately,” but even Prince Su had spoken, so he swallowed his words.

At this moment, Nanny Qian entered.

“Grandmother, I, along with Nanny Jiang, were in Third Miss’s room and found something.”

Everyone looked up.

Even the usually silent First Madam and Elder Master looked.

Ruan Yunzheng’s expression darkened.

What was this about Nanny Qian?

Wasn’t she on their side?

How did she find something in her room?

Ruan Yunzheng’s face held a faint smile, but her voice was icy.

“Nanny Qian, what did you find? Don’t tell me it’s another pot of Aconitum poison?” Her tone was full of mockery.

It was as if she was saying: if it were found, it must be a frame-up, and Second Madam might even be falsely accused.

And perhaps the one framing them both—just as Ruan Baizheng said—was Liuzheng herself, directing and performing the entire act.