Against the Current - Chapter 290

Chapter 290 - Reluctance (Part 4)

The Jiang grandmother and granddaughter bypassed the mica and rosewood large floor screen, only to see four maidservants—Shuoran, Xiaojuan, Lingqing, and Xuening—standing with hands lowered at the bedroom doorway. Huashan led the two of them inside, where Xianglan sat upright on the bed. Her phoenix hairpins were half-removed, with a few longevity pins worn in her hair. She wore a grayish-purple gauze, turquoise and gold-shimmering, four-season embroidered eight-treasure blouse, and a pale gold cloud-patterned dark green skirt, looking nothing like someone confined to bed with an illness.

As soon as Jiang Xiyun entered the room, she caught the scent of heavy medicinal fumes, causing her to involuntarily frown. Seeing the two enter, Xianglan made to rise, but Huashan quickly stepped forward to support her. Madam Jiang said, "No need to trouble yourself, no need. Sit quickly."

Xianglan sat back down and instructed Xiaojuan to fetch tea. A thin layer of sweat had already beaded on her forehead, and Huashan hurried to pull out a handkerchief to wipe it, but Xianglan stopped her, shook her head, and said, "You may leave. I have a few words to speak with the Elder Yi Niang and Jiang Fifth Miss." Huashan and Xiaojuan then withdrew.

The room fell silent. Xianglan first looked at Madam Jiang, then turned her gaze to Jiang Xiyun. She truly was an exceptionally beautiful girl: her skin was like packed snow, her dark hair like a cloud with a few strands straying at her temples, and her face resembling an unblossomed flower bud. Her eyes were red from recent crying, which instead lent her a delicate, pitiful charm.

Jiang Xiyun also scrutinized Xianglan closely. She saw that Xianglan wore no face powder, her complexion was haggard and pale, and her cheeks carried a sallow, sickly tint with a faint greenish tinge. Yet her pair of eyes appeared all the more startlingly bright, and her lips possessed not a shred of color, pressed together in a tight line. On either side of her lay autumn-fragrance-colored brocade pile bolster pillows and similar items, yet she leaned against none of them.

Madam Jiang closed her eyes in silence, while Jiang Xiyun stared at Xianglan for a moment, then quietly asked, "I wonder what business Xianglan Sister has in inviting us grandmother and granddaughter here? How is your health? Have you taken your medicine?"

Xianglan said calmly, "Jiang Fifth Miss, take a sip of tea first. Having cried for so long outside just now, I fear your throat is dry. Being able to turn your tears on and off at will is truly no small feat."

Madam Jiang opened her eyes abruptly. Catching the sarcasm in those words, Jiang Xiyun was not overly annoyed; she actually picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said, "Pre-rain Longjing—the tea is quite good."

Xianglan gave a slight smile. Waiting until Jiang Xiyun put down her teacup, she slowly continued, "The commotion outside just now was simply too loud. Cooped up in this room, I caught a few snippets of it, and I must say I truly admire Jiang Fifth Miss. You can act and sing better than the performers on stage, knowing the truth of everything in your heart yet pretending to act naive and cute to win favor. We ordinary folk can only bow in comparison."

Jiang Xiyun never expected Xianglan to speak such words. Taken aback for a moment, her gaze turned dark and difficult to read. Chen Xianglan had always been as good as deaf, playing dumb to everything and swallowing her anger like bean curd even when bullied to her face. Yet every single word just now carried a blade, pressing her step by step. Under normal circumstances, she would never tolerate a concubine getting the upper hand over her, but right now, she was inside Lin Jinlou's courtyard... Suppressing her temper, Jiang Xiyun put on a blank, bewildered expression and asked Xianglan, "Xianglan Sister, what are you talking about? I don't understand."

Xianglan let out a cold laugh and glanced at Jiang Xiyun. Her gaze held three parts disdain, six parts pity, and one final, indescribable meaning as she said with a calm expression, "You don't understand? Very well. Since Fifth Miss still refuses to be honest, I can only ask someone to come out and have a proper chat with you." With that, she turned her face slightly and said, "Come out."

With the rustle of pearl curtains, a young maid of about twelve or thirteen stepped out. She looked sharp and clever, with her hair styled in double buns and wearing a half-new silver-red vest. She stepped forward, knelt before Xianglan, kowtowed, and addressed her as, "Yi Niang."

Jiang Xiyun looked closely, and her complexion instantly turned as white as snow—this was precisely the little maid who had been kicking a shuttlecock outside the tearoom while Chunling was brewing the medicine! Jiang Xiyun's eyes widened, her heart instantly leaping to her throat as if she were about to vomit, and a cold sweat broke out across her back.

Xianglan said, "Tell the Elder Yi Niang of the Jiang family and the young miss everything you saw with your own eyes."

Zhaolu straightened her posture and spoke in a crisp voice, "This servant was kicking a shuttlecock outside the tearoom today while Sister Chunling was inside brewing medicine for Yi Niang. Not long after, Dan Miss and Xi Miss arrived. They were extremely warm with Sister Chunling and went inside the tearoom to sit. Sister Chunling offered them tea, but Xi Miss drank only a couple of sips before coming back out. She stood facing the tearoom window, coaxing Sister Chunling to stand at the doorway and talk, while Sister Chunling stood with her back to the door. At that moment, Dan Miss stood up, walked over to the medicine-brewing stove, lifted the lid, and shook several pills out of her sleeve. Since I was standing off to the side, I saw the whole thing clearly. Xi Miss watched Dan Miss shake the pills in with her own eyes, yet she pretended not to see, chatting and laughing with Sister Chunling while darting quick glances into the room every now and then. My heart grew anxious, wondering what had been added to the broth, so I flew up and kicked the shuttlecock right through the window, startling Dan Miss so much that one of the pills rolled out of her sleeve and under the five-drawer cabinet. Sister Shuoran later ordered this servant to find it and hand it to the imperial physician, who said it was a lineage-destroying pill meant to cut off descendants."

Xianglan's face remained utterly tranquil. Fixing her eyes on Jiang Xiyun's face, she raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, "And then?"

"Then, thinking that the medicine had just been brewed and wouldn't be given to Yi Niang immediately, I hurried off to find Sister Shuoran. But when I rushed back, Yi Niang had already taken the medicine..." Zhaolu bowed forward to kowtow. "By heaven and earth, ghosts and spirits, in broad daylight! If this servant has spoken half a falsehood or fabricated any of this to stall, may sores break out in my throat, and may I suffer a thousand calamities and die a wretched death!"

Hearing these words, Jiang Xiyun's heart hammered like a war drum, and her legs grew weak. She had always been exceptionally clever, calculating and infallible in all her plots, and had never imagined there could be a loophole or miscalculation. A wave of panic seized her. Suddenly, a fit of violent coughing rang out, and Madam Jiang's face flushed crimson as she coughed loudly and uncontrollably. Jiang Xiyun hurriedly stepped forward to soothe her grandmother's breath, thinking to herself, Grandmother is old and frail; I must not let her worry over me to this extent. No matter what, this matter must be smoothly covered up. Regaining her composure, she murmured words of comfort, fed Madam Jiang a few sips of tea, and turned her head to look at Xianglan.

Xianglan's expression remained serene as she said to Zhaolu, "Understood. You may withdraw."

Zhaolu kowtowed once more, stood up, and left.

Tear tracks still stained Jiang Xiyun's face, and her bright eyes brimmed with fresh tears. Her voice was mournful, though her expression now carried a trace of guarded caution as she said to Xianglan, "What does Xianglan Sister mean by this? I never colluded with Fourth Sister to harm you. Must I cut open my heart with a knife to prove it? I..."

Before she could finish, Xianglan had already stood up. Swaying slightly on her feet, she felt an indescribable, agonizing cramp in her lower abdomen, as if fresh blood were once again beginning to trickle down. Forcibly suppressing it, a fine film of sweat broke out on her forehead. Step by step, she walked forward, her spine held perfectly straight. The dangling pearls of the large phoenix hairpin on her head swayed rhythmically, and the gold-thread embroidery on her garments shimmered faintly. The cautious, timid demeanor of the past was completely gone, replaced instead by a commanding and dignified aura—not put on for show, but seemingly born of her very nature.

Jiang Xiyun felt as though her heart was about to leap out of her chest.

"Even now, does Fifth Miss still intend to play the part of Dou E?" Xianglan's voice was cold and clear. Looking down at Jiang Xiyun, she said, "I know what Fifth Miss was thinking. It is nothing more than murder with a borrowed knife... True, you did not explicitly collude with Jiang Fourth Miss. Let me guess... You knew Fourth Miss possessed this medicine, and you knew she was always envious of you and harbored ill intentions toward you. So you planted the idea, using open and hidden provocations to stoke Fourth Miss's jealousy until she was driven to use the poison and frame you. Afterward, Fifth Miss simply went with the flow, accompanying Fourth Miss to Changchun Hall and deliberately engaging Chunling in conversation so Jiang Fourth Miss could slip the drug in. Just now in the main hall, Fourth Miss's words slyly hinted that you were the mastermind, which conveniently cleared you of suspicion of colluding with her. Am I right or wrong?"

Jiang Xiyun's face turned completely white. She jerked up to her feet, parting her lips to speak, but before she could utter a sound, Xianglan stepped forward. Being slightly taller, she lowered her gaze to lock onto Jiang Xiyun's eyes. "Fifth Miss truly harbors a marvelous scheme. Today, Eldest Master and your brother personally paid a visit to ask the Duke of Zhenguo to act as matchmaker. Once the official matchmakers step in, this marriage is as good as sealed in iron unless the Lin family wishes to completely tear ties with the Jiang family; otherwise, there is zero chance the match will fall through. Fifth Miss considers herself peerless in beauty and adept at winning favor, believing that once you marry in, you will have a hundred different ways to coax your husband's heart back. Furthermore, Fifth Miss had long since figured out my temperament, assuming I am weak and calculating. By going with the flow to cut off my descendants, you planned to make me rely on your whim for the rest of my days, forcing me to fawn over you, curry favor with you in all things, and lack the courage for a furious outburst or the backing to fall out with you—leaving me with no choice but to swallow my insults and endure a life of compromised submission?"

At this point, Xianglan paused. She suddenly couldn't help letting out a soft, mocking laugh—a laugh that sent a dragging pain through her lower abdomen, while cold sweat and tears rolled down her face together.

Jiang Xiyun was utterly dumbfounded. She had never anticipated that Xianglan could unravel her calculations with such pinpoint accuracy. Still putting up a desperate front, she stammered, "I did not, I didn't... That is not how it happened..." She felt a slight tug at her sleeve and turned her head to look—Madam Jiang's breathing had grown increasingly heavy as she watched her, giving a nearly imperceptible shake of her head.

Jiang Xiyun instantly steadied herself, reined in her emotions, took a deep breath, and said coldly, "Absurd nonsense. You have lost your mind." But she saw that Xianglan's smile had vanished. Her peach-blossom-like face wore a detached expression, yet those clear, autumn-water eyes narrowed slightly as they locked directly onto her!

Jiang Xiyun suddenly found the gaze in those eyes terrifyingly intense—like a naked, unsheathed sword whose piercing murderous intent had already broken past its scabbard! Startled, she involuntarily took half a step back.

Xianglan pressed forward by a step, bringing her face so close to Jiang Xiyun's that their noses were nearly touching. Raising one hand, she slowly tucked a stray lock of hair from Jiang Xiyun's temple behind her ear, causing Jiang Xiyun to shrink back in fright. "Fifth Miss, your schemes were spun with such brilliant precision that you calculated nearly everything. You got rid of a potential threat, preserved your pristine reputation without a ripple, and made Chunling and Dan Miss take the fall. As for me—having been manipulated by your hand from start to finish—even if I discovered the truth later, I would still have to be endlessly grateful to you for the rest of my life, thanking you for your magnanimity in taking me in and granting me a foothold in the Lin family... To harbor ten thousand scheming thoughts at such a tender age, employing methods so vicious and cold-blooded—in all my two lifetimes, I have never seen an inner-court woman surpass you. Tsk tsk, what a pity, what a shame—you simply miscalculated one crucial thing."

Jiang Xiyun jerked her head up. Xianglan stepped back slightly, a trace of bitter satisfaction playing on her lips as she smiled softly: "Your miscalculation is that you plan to marry into the Lin family and generously bestow your favor upon me as the Eldest Mistress—I! DO! NOT! GIVE! A! SINGLE! DAMN!"

Jiang Xiyun stood frozen in shock, staring blankly at Xianglan as if looking at a raving madwoman.