Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 124
Chapter 124 - Xie Jingyu Angered into Illness
Yun Chu smiled.
"Filial piety? A sincere heart?" She scoffed. "An'er's enrollment quota for the Imperial Academy came from the Yun family, Ping'er's position as a princess consort was fought for by me, and the very prestige of your Xie family is maintained entirely out of my private dowry... Everything that you, Xie Jingyu, were incapable of achieving, you accomplished only by relying on me. They should naturally be filial to me! Yet the reality is that I exhausted myself paving the path for them, while they joined hands with you to deceive me for four years. If someone handed you that kind of filial piety and sincerity, would you want it? How could it possibly not leave a bitter taste in my mouth?"
"You—you!"
Xie Jingyu only felt a sharp stab of pain in his chest.
Immediately afterward, his brain suddenly felt as though it were bursting apart. Darkness fell before his eyes, and he crashed heavily onto the carriage floorboards.
When he next regained consciousness, he was lying on his own bed. He instinctively tried to prop himself up to sit, only to discover that his left hand refused to respond with any strength at all.
A wave of sheer panic swept through his entire body.
He raised his head and saw Yun Chu sitting beside his bed.
For reasons unknown, seeing her calm, unrippled face stirred an inexpressible sense of dread deep within his heart.
"The physician said that you drank quite a bit of alcohol, which triggered a sudden surge of anger and stagnant blood flow, leaving your left hand temporarily paralyzed." Yun Chu picked up a bowl of medicine and held it out. "You should rest at home for the next few days; I've already had someone submit a leave of absence for you."
Xie Jingyu forcibly tried to lift his left hand, but no matter how hard he strained every ounce of strength, it could not rise even a fraction of an inch.
Yun Chu instructed the maid beside her to prop him up, placing the medicine bowl directly into his hands. "The physician said you must strictly avoid flying into a rage, and your emotions must not experience any drastic fluctuations."
Maintaining a peaceful state of mind might allow him to live a little longer.
If he were to be angered into unconsciousness by her again like today, his constitution would likely fail to survive it.
Xie Jingyu wanted to open his mouth and speak, but his throat hurt fiercely, failing to produce even a sound. He could only watch helplessly as Yun Chu turned and walked away.
Once outside, Yun Chu lowered her voice: "There's no need to send any more medicine over in the future."
She intended for Xie Jingyu to slowly waste away and sicken to death, rather than dying suddenly from poison...
Tingshuang nodded in acknowledgment.
As she reached the door, she saw Old Madame walking over tremblingly, leaning on her cane. Lady Yuan had also hurried over, grabbing Tingshuang and demanding, "How is Jingyu? What did the physician say?"
"The physician said the ailment was brought on by drinking too much alcohol. He just drank his medicine and fell asleep," Yun Chu said. "Old Madame and Mother should not go inside and disturb his rest."
"Why did he suddenly fall ill? His constitution has always been robust, and he's never fallen sick before," Old Madame said, nearly frantic with worry. "If I had known, I wouldn't have let him go to the Yun family."
Lady Yuan chimed in, "General Yun only returned to the capital after five years apart. As a son-in-law, how could he not go? We can only blame him for lacking restraint with his cups."
"The physician said it's nothing major," Yun Chu stated. "I would like to find a time to let the children formally pay their respects to their maternal grandfather."
Old Madame had just heard Xie Shi'an mention that Yun Chu had not brought them to see their maternal grandfather. Hearing about this, she had actually felt quite uneasy inside, but because Jingyu had suddenly fallen ill, she hadn't pursued the matter further.
With Yun Chu proactively bringing it up now, she finally felt somewhat more at ease. "That is only proper. When do you suppose your father will be free?"
"My dad said that every child registered under my name must be seen by him individually," Yun Chu raised her eyes. "Including Wei'er."
"That—that might not be entirely appropriate." Old Madame's fingers tightened around her cane. "With Wei'er's current state, your father probably won't be pleased seeing him. Let's just drop it."
"Since he is a child registered under my name, he is my dad's maternal grandson, and my dad also wants to find a good path forward for Wei'er." Yun Chu smiled slightly. "Wei'er has been reflecting on his actions at the estate for so long that he should be much more sensible now. I'll make arrangements to have him brought back."
Lady Yuan immediately nodded. "Yes, yes. Wei'er can't just be allowed to ruin his life like this. Since my in-law is willing to care, we might as well take him to be seen."
Yet Old Madame constantly felt an ominous premonition lingering in her heart.
When she tried to ponder it closely, however, she could not figure out where this premonition stemmed from, and could only chalk it up to overthinking.
Yun Chu returned to her courtyard.
She had someone fetch brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone, and began writing down the major events that were about to happen in the Yun family. Since they weren't all monumental milestones, she occasionally scrambled the chronological order.
It mattered little, however, so long as the events were on the verge of occurring; her primary goal was to make her family believe in that dream.
As for why she chose not to claim she had been reborn, it was simply too bizarre and unbelievable. Even she herself had taken several days just to accept that reality.
While she was writing, Tingshuang walked in to report, "Madam, the manservant sent to investigate the Marquis of Xuanwu has returned."
Yun Chu paused the tip of her brush and folded the paper away properly. "Send him in."
The manservant walked into the hall with a bowed waist and spoke respectfully, "This servant pays his respects to Madam. Per Madam's instructions to investigate the Marquis of Xuanwu, this servant actually managed to uncover some things."
Yun Chu gestured for him to continue.
Ever since discovering that the man on her wedding night was the Marquis of Xuanwu, she had begun arranging people to keep a close eye on that wretched scoundrel.
He had stolen her purity and still expected to walk away scot-free—in his dreams!
"After tailing the Marquis of Xuanwu for over ten days, this servant finally discovered that he actually maintains another courtyard tucked away in Toufu Lane in the western district of the city—a small, two-courtyard compound. After offering quite a few favors to the neighboring matrons, this servant learned that two women are actually living inside, and both of them address the Marquis of Xuanwu as 'husband'!" The manservant lowered his voice. "This servant surmises that these two women have no inkling of the Marquis's true identity; they likely reside in that courtyard under the status of the Marquis's equal wives. I heard that one of them is even pregnant, looking about five or six months along."
Yun Chu sneered.
The outside world constantly praised the Marquis of Xuanwu for deeply loving his wife, maintaining a pristine inner courtyard without a single concubine. There wasn't a woman in the entire capital who didn't envy the Marchioness of Xuanwu.
Men who constantly hung their love for their wives on their lips were the most nauseating creatures of all, on par with Xie Jingyu's disgusting nature.
It was hardly surprising that the Marquis of Xuanwu behaved this way, because the Luo family not only held high official standing but also immense wealth, relying on the Luo family's funds to maintain the facade of a declining marquisate.
If there were anything the Marquis cared about above all else, the first would naturally be the most precious asset of the Qin family—the hereditary title meant to be passed down through generations.
The second would likely be his children.
Risking offending the Prince of Pingxi just to protect his own child showed that, in this regard, he was at least somewhat better than Xie Jingyu.
She only wondered whether he cared more about his heir or his out-of-wedlock son...
Yun Chu tapped her fingers rhythmically against the tabletop and instructed, "Find an opportunity, while the Marquis is visiting that small courtyard, to lure Lady Luo over to that place."
With that, she tossed a money pouch across the table.
The manservant's face beamed with delight. "Madam, rest assured; leave this matter entirely to this servant."
As the manservant withdrew, Yun Chu remarked, "He seems quite quick-witted and reliable in his work. Increase his monthly stipend."
Tingshuang jotted this task down.
"Oh, that's right." A faint smile touched Yun Chu's lips. "This morning at the Yun residence, Yu Ke's mother approached me, mentioning she wanted to propose a match. Tingshuang, what are your thoughts?"
Tingshuang had still been pondering how many copper coins to add to the manservant's raise, and upon abruptly hearing these words, her fair face instantly flushed crimson.
She recalled how, when Madam was staying at the Yun residence a while ago and she had remained by Madam's side to serve, that man had come looking for her every single day, bringing either rouge or hairpins.
She could easily afford her own rouge and hairpins; what had truly made her heart skip a beat was that day by the lakeside when he had draped his cloak over her shoulders...
Yet once married, she would no longer be able to remain by Madam's side to serve. If she had to choose between the two, she would rather not marry at all.
"If you marry Yu Ke, you will manage the hot spring estate for me." Yun Chu could easily read through her internal struggle and spoke up. "Since the Prince of Pingxi and I are running it jointly, I need someone trustworthy to reside at the estate. Tingshuang, you are the most suitable candidate."
Tingshuang's eyes instantly lit up.
After getting married, although she could no longer stay by Madam's side, becoming a matron would allow her to manage external affairs, enabling her to assist Madam even more.
So it was true that one could have their cake and eat it too.
With a slightly blushing face, she nodded in agreement.