Against the Current - Chapter 36

Chapter 36 - Making a Scene

Madam Qin’s gaze was icy and piercing. "Mistress Huan, what else do you have to say? Are you going to claim that you didn't leave the peach juice, and that this maid made it all up out of malice to frame you?"

Cao Lihuan sobbed with her shoulders convulsing rhythmically. "She framed me because... because..." Because she had ordered Sishun to ruin Xianglan's chastity. But how could she possibly voice such a confession aloud?

Sporting an expression of profound grievance and "disbelief," Xianglan glanced at Cao Lihuan and wailed to the heavens, "May the Old Matron judge fairly! I swear I have never slandered Mistress Huan. If the Old Matron does not believe me, you can search Mistress Huan's sachet; that little porcelain jar containing the peach juice should still be inside. That porcelain jar is adorned with enamel-painted glaze and is one of Mistress's most treasured possessions. It is normally used to hold facial care pills and never leaves her side. Even if she filled it with peach juice today, she wouldn't have been willing to throw it away."

Quick as lightning, Madam Qin stepped forward, snatched the sachet from Cao Lihuan's waist, and unfastened it to search through it. Sure enough, she pulled out a shoulder-shaped enamel-glazed vial. Twisting open the cap immediately released a sweet fragrance of fresh peaches.

Old Matron Lin took a sniff, her expression turning utterly frigid.

Cao Lihuan went limp, collapsing sideways onto the floor.

A wave of triumphant satisfaction washed over Madam Qin, feeling as though half of the grievances suffered by her daughter had just been avenged. She cast a glance toward Old Matron Lin, who exchanged a look with her and wearily waved a hand.

Madam Qin gave a slight nod and was just about to speak when Cao Lihuan suddenly let out a piercing shriek of tears, crying, "Old Matron, why won't you ask for the reason behind all this?" She pointed an accusing finger directly at Madam Qin. "It was the Eldest Cousin-in-law who treated me with contempt first!"

Madam Qin furrowed her brow, while Cao Lihuan wept, "I went to attend the banquet, yet the Eldest Cousin-in-law introduced all the other sisters and even Song Tanchai to the distinguished guests, completely bypassing me alone. Even though I know my family has fallen on hard times and that I have incurred the Eldest Cousin-in-law's displeasure, it wasn't out of vanity that I wished to contend for attention—under the watchful eyes of everyone there, how could I possibly bear such humiliation and save face? That was why a fire of resentment brewed inside me, and I... I..."

Madam Qin maintained a cold silence, but Wang Shi, burning with extreme anger, chimed in with a sarcastic taunt, "My, aren't you quite the schemer? So it turns out that when you realized you couldn't sink your claws into our Ting, you set your sights on finding some wealthy household to become someone's concubine instead?"

Hearing this, Cao Lihuan wept even more bitterly, fixing Old Matron Lin with a pitiful, mournful look. Madam Qin shook her head silently, thinking to herself that it was no wonder Wang Shi never won favor with her husband; after all these years, her muddled brain hadn't grown a single shred sharper. Stepping forward, she argued, "Following your twisted logic, because you weren't introduced to a few wealthy guests, you were fully justified in secretly harming the Second Miss? That means your act of harming someone still makes you the wronged party?"

Seeing that Cao Lihuan was about to interrupt, Madam Qin cut her off firmly, "Not only did you resort to vile and underhanded methods to cause harm, but you also lied repeatedly. When you could no longer maintain those lies, you tried to shift the blame onto someone else—is that also supposed to be understandable?"

Taking another step closer, she continued, "You have a betrothal agreement awaiting your marriage, yet you harbored greed for wealth and status, plotting in secret while completely disregarding your reputation—is that too considered understandable? For all this time, you have eaten from the Lin family, drunk from the Lin family, and lived under the Lin family's roof. If you held even a tiny shred of gratitude in your heart, how could you ever have brought yourself to commit such deeds?" Madam Qin lowered her gaze to look down at Cao Lihuan. "You arrived late when the banquet commenced, which already displeased several distinguished guests; that was why introductions were delayed, with the intention of presenting you to them once the banquet had concluded."

Mournfully weeping, Cao Lihuan pleaded, "I was wrong! It was all my fault! Old Matron, Cousin-in-law, please spare me!"

A profound clarity settled over Old Matron Lin's mind as she slowly spoke, "How is the west side courtyard looking? Have the ring-girl's belongings been packed? If everything is ready, have her sent away before the hour of you."

Wailing in utter despair, Cao Lihuan threw her arms around Old Matron Lin's legs, crying out, "Old Matron, please spare me! Please spare me! I will never dare do it again, I will be completely obedient from now on..."

Old Matron Lin shook her head. "If you take your leave peacefully now, perhaps on the day of your wedding, the Lin family can still contribute a modest dowry for you."

Cao Lihuan broke down in loud, uncontrollable tears, glaring viciously at Xianglan as though she wanted to tear her apart and devour her alive.

Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that her painstakingly crafted schemes, executed step by step with meticulous caution, would ultimately be utterly destroyed by a spineless, timid little maid from whom she couldn't even extract three words if she beat her!

How she hated her! How could she have been so blind as to always assume that cheap little wretch was a complete fool, entirely ignorant of the world and ready to be molded or crushed however she pleased!

Trembling all over from violent spasms of weeping, Cao Lihuan shrieked, "Old Matron, do not drive me out... I—I would rather die!" With that, she scrambled to her feet and lunged headfirst toward the wall.

Startled, Madam Qin reached out in a desperate grab, managing only to catch the edge of Cao Lihuan's sleeve before her grip slipped as Cao Lihuan wrenched herself free. Panicking, Xianglan sprang forward with outstretched arms to block her path. Staggering heavily, Cao Lihuan slammed straight into her. With a sharp gasp, Xianglan was knocked backward against the octagonal floral plant stand beside the wall, sending the Chinese flowering crabapple planted in its celadon pot crashing to the floor where it shattered into pieces. Propelled by the force of the collision, Xianglan toppled backward and hit the floor hard.

Hearing the commotion from inside, several maids and matrons rushed into the room in a single bound. Struglling back to her feet, Cao Lihuan wailed, "I refuse to live anymore!" and made another dash toward the wall. The older women hurriedly swarmed forward to wrap their arms around her from all directions, shouting, "You mustn't!"

Cao Lihuan’s desperate attempt to end her life appeared entirely genuine as she thrashed and fought with all her might, crying and making a scene while flailing her arms. One matron grabbed her around the waist from behind, lifting her feet off the floor as she kicked and flailed wildly. Tears and snot streaming down her face, her hairpins and jade ornaments scattering across the floor in disarray, she shrieked at the top of her lungs, "If you're going to drive me out, you might as well grab a rope and strangle me right now so I can die with some dignity!" Then she screamed, "I would rather dash my brains out against this wall than be driven out in this humiliating, unexplained manner!" How could she possibly bear to walk away from the boundless, sky-high wealth of the Lin family just like that!

It had been many years since Old Matron Lin had witnessed such a spectacle, and she sat completely dumbfounded, trembling all over with fury. Striking the table of the kang heavily with her palm, she pointed and scolded, "This is... utter madness! Pure, unadulterated madness! Cough, cough, cough..."

Wang Shi was thoroughly enjoying the show, but seeing that Old Matron Lin's coughing fit had grown severe, she hurried forward to pat her chest and smooth her breathing, a lingering smile still tugging at the corners of her lips as she remarked, "What is the Old Matron getting so worked up for? Just treat it like watching a grand theatrical play, Huan—" Before she could finish her sentence, she caught Old Matron Lin glaring daggers at her and sheepishly clamped her mouth shut.

In the midst of the chaos, Cao Lihuan managed to wrench a hairpin from someone's hair and instantly moved to stab it into her own throat. Everyone shrieked in unison, "She's going to kill herself!" Multiple hands lunged forward to wrestle the hairpin away from her grip.

Overwhelmed by panic, Old Matron Lin struggled to catch her breath, sending Wang Shi into a frantic flurry of shouts: "Someone, hurry and call a physician! Quick, fetch the Old Matron's medicine!"

The room instantly descended into absolute pandemonium.

Brows furrowed tightly, Madam Qin barked, "Someone hold her down immediately! Can't you see the Old Matron's health is acting up!"

Crystal clear in her mind that Cao Lihuan would never be able to stage a comeback after this, Xianglan stepped forward and grabbed Cao Lihuan's arm. Lowering her voice to an absolute whisper right beside Cao Lihuan's ear, she said, "Save your breath, Mistress. Do you really think that by staging a suicide attempt, cracking open your head, or drawing a bit of blood you can force the Lin family to let you stay and recover? I'm afraid the Old Matron, Eldest Madam, and Second Madam all despise you to the core. Believe me, even if you were to pass out cold right this second, the people of the Lin family would simply wrap you in a straw mat, toss you onto a carriage, and ship you straight back home without a second thought."

Cao Lihuan’s face, already flushed beet red from screaming, instantly turned a dark shade of purple. Whipping her head around, she locked eyes with Xianglan, whose gaze was a chilling mixture of amusement and crystal-clear sharpness. It was then that she realized this seemingly docile, obedient little fool possessed a pair of piercing, perceptive eyes that saw right through her, leaving her nowhere to hide.

Consumed by a hatred so fierce she wanted to tear the flesh right off Xianglan's body, Cao Lihuan found herself completely immobilized by the surrounding matrons, leaving her zero room to thrash about. Continuing in a soft, gentle tone, Xianglan murmured right into her ear, "Things have already reached this point; you might as well preserve a shred of your dignity... Besides, Mistress should never assume everyone else is a fool, nor should she disbelieve in the retribution of the underworld... It's not that retribution won't come; the appointed hour simply hasn't arrived yet!"

At that moment, Madam Qin roared, "Will someone haul her out of my sight right now!"

Seizing the opportunity, Xianglan released her grip. The matrons grabbed Cao Lihuan by her arms and dragged her forcibly toward the exit. She managed to let out a couple of loud wails before someone slapped a cloth gag over her mouth.

Turning her head to watch Cao Lihuan's retreating figure being dragged away, listening to the chaotic din echoing through the room, a profound sense of numbness washed over Xianglan's heart—

Had Cao Lihuan truly just been driven away like this?

Had she just managed to escape the fiery pit she had been longing to flee from every waking moment? Why did it all feel like a surreal dream?

And if so, what on earth would become of her own future?