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Time Travel: The Noble Family-Chapter 537: List of 205
Chapter 537: List of 205
Three days after Madam Tang’s marriage, Yueyao returned to the Lian family.
When Yueyao went to see Lady Mo, she found Lian Dongfang there as well, his face showing a deep solemnity. She silently sighed, fearing Xiang Wei’s suspicion might indeed be true.
Lian Dongfang glanced at Xiang Wei, his expression unreadable, and after Yueyao paid her respects, he asked, "How has your stay been at Ma’s Mansion during this period?"
Yueyao nodded and replied, "Yes, quite good. My cousin and my cousin-in-law both treat me very well." It was not necessary to mention again how much Ma Chengteng doted on her; everyone knew that already. By saying that Ma Peng and Zhuang Ruolan also cherished her, she also gave Lian Dongfang something to consider.
Lian Dongfang’s face indeed grew darker as he looked at Xiang Wei behind Yueyao and asked, "Is this maid the one you got from Marquis Jingning’s Residence?"
The excuse Yueyao used was the same one she had told Lady Mo before, "Third Miss of the Luo Family saw that I liked her and gave her to me to use."
Lian Dongfang frowned looking at Xiang Wei and asked, "What can you do?"
Without blushing or panting, Xiang Wei said, "My needlework is quite decent." Although Yueyao was cautious around Dongfang, Xiang Wei was not afraid of him.
Yueyao explained, "Xiang Wei has already been freed from servitude; she is now a free person." Xiang Wei being a free person would make it more convenient for her to act, and she would not be controlled by Lady Mo and the others.
Lady Mo coldly watched Yueyao lie without batting an eyelid; she had been investigating Xiang Wei’s background for the past two months. The doors of Marquis Jingning’s family were tightly shut; she could not send anyone in, so she inquired about Xiang Wei’s background through the Bai family contacts. The results were startling: there was no maid named Xiang Wei in Marquis Jingning’s Residence, and there was not one by that name on the maid roster of the Summer Mountain Villa either. Xiang Wei’s identity was quite exceptional, and Lady Mo was not suspicious that Xiang Wei was of unknown origin. After all, coming from Marquis Jingning’s Residence guaranteed her background was clear. But perhaps Xiang Wei really was, as Maternal Aunt Su said, one who hid her talents deeply.
Lian Dongfang had also heard Lady Mo mention this before and glanced at Yueyao, whispering, "I heard that you sent away your personal maid and have no maiden to serve you intimately by your side. Here, I have a steady maid named Cui Bai; I will give her to you."
Yueyao’s heart skipped a beat; this was clearly an attempt to place someone to watch over her. She was unwilling and promptly said, "Great Uncle, I have already promoted Xi Yu and Xi Juan to first-class maids. I dare not take someone meant to serve you personally."
Lian Dongfang clearly had no desire to waste words with Yueyao and directly said, "A gift from an elder cannot be declined. If I give her to you, you must accept her."
Yueyao knew Lian Dongfang was determined, and unless she wanted to openly break with him now, she had no choice but to accept the maid named Cui Bai. Yueyao said, "Since Great Uncle has bestowed her, how can Yueyao dare to refuse?" Her words carried a tinge of sarcasm.
Lian Dongfang’s face turned cold, but he said nothing.
Lady Mo saw a hint of amusement flicker in her husband’s eyes. With this incident, her husband had completely lost all fondness for that disrespectful girl; even if she acted against Yueyao, her husband would surely not object if he found out.
Yueyao, along with Cui Bai, returned to Begonia Garden. Yueyao did not introduce Cui Bai to everyone; she handed her over to Nanny Hao and entered the study with Xiang Wei and Xi Yu.
Yueyao looked at Xi Yu and, after a long pause, said, "As I have said in front of my uncle, from now on, you will be my first-class maid."
Xi Yu had also been in the main room just now and naturally had heard these words. Xi Yu knelt on the ground and replied, "Miss, please command me as you see fit."
Xiang Wei’s lips curled upwards as she spoke for Yueyao, "What the Miss means is, having been promoted to a first-class maid, you must do your duties well. And remember, always stay alert."
Having understood Xiang Wei’s words, Xi Yu looked up at Yueyao and said, "Miss, I have been by your side since I was sold to the Lian Mansion at the age of six. Miss, forgive my presumption, but I no longer have any kin. In my heart, you are the only family I have, and even at the cost of my life, I would never do anything to betray you."
Xiang Wei, observing the firmness at the bottom of Xi Yu’s eyes, gave Yueyao a nod.
Only then did Yueyao speak, "Xi Yu, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but rather..." Yueyao paused and let out a heavy sigh, saying, "In the past, Lady Mo wanted to plot against my wealth, and now my Great Uncle also seeks to scheme for the relics left by my father. Xi Yu, my position in the Lian family has become precarious."
Xi Yu was momentarily stunned. Still, in her eyes, her mistress was only Yueyao, so she was not afraid that Dongfang’s dislike of Yueyao would implicate them. Instead, she was worried that Dongfang might harm Yueyao. Xi Yu asked, "Miss, could it be that the Great Master sent Cui Bai over just to watch you?"
Xiang Wei looked at Xi Yu with new respect, not expecting this maid to be so quick-witted, getting to the heart of the matter so quickly.
Yueyao nodded and said, "Give the order down not to let Cui Bai enter my study or painting studio." Yueyao was somewhat relieved; when she had gone to Ma’s Mansion, she had already taken all her paintings with her. There was nothing left in the painting studio and even less so in the study. By saying this, Yueyao meant to make Cui Bai believe there were secrets in the painting studio and study.
Xi Yu hurriedly said, "Miss, don’t worry, I can do it."
After Xi Yu left, Xiang Wei asked in puzzlement, "Miss, why is it that your second-class maid seems to be better than a first-class maid?" Xi Yu was clearly much better than Hua Lei.
Yueyao’s expression turned melancholic as she spoke softly, "Hua Lei wasn’t like this before. She was a bit straightforward, but that was her only fault. I never expected..."
Xiang Wei realized she had said something wrong and tried to offer some comfort after thinking for a moment, "Actually, I think the Second Madam thought things through quite well. Think about it, when you leave the household, Hua Lei will surely have been matched with someone by then, and surely Xi Juan and Xi Yu will be your personal maids."
Yueyao felt that Xiang Wei had decent martial skills, but was really not good at comforting people. Yueyao managed a bitter smile before changing the subject, "Your guess was right, Uncle no longer trusts me. Judging by his actions, he seems to have already convinced himself that I have that item."
Xiang Wei nodded in agreement, "It seems so. Miss, you need to make a decision early. The Lian Mansion is a wolf’s den to you. Seeing Lady Mo’s expression, I fear she will take action against you. Miss, you have to be resolute and leave this place soon, otherwise your life will truly be in danger."
Yueyao sounded rather helpless as she said, "Without a proper reason, Great Uncle won’t let me go. Even if my maternal uncle is willing, he cannot fulfill his wish. And by doing so, we might also alert our enemies."
Xiang Wei did not quite understand Yueyao’s thoughts, "Miss, if you don’t want to stay in the Lian Mansion, why did you come back? You could have just stayed at Ma’s Mansion."
Yueyao had several concerns as she explained, "I don’t want others to think that my mother has raised a daughter disgraceful, immoral, and untrustworthy." If she stayed at Ma’s Mansion without reason and did not return to the Lian family, she would certainly be attacked, and even her parents would be criticized. Not only that, she had also promised her grandmother that she would leave the Lian Mansion without damaging its reputation.
Unable to comprehend Yueyao’s perspective, Xiang Wei initially wanted to suggest seeking help from the Marquis Jingning’s Residence if the Lian Mansion refused to let her leave. But seeing Yueyao like this, she swallowed her words. Xiang Wei then said, "As long as the Miss is determined, we can plan carefully, and there will always be a proper way." To leave the Lian Mansion without being criticized as Yueyao wished, she had to seek outside help. In Xiang Wei’s mind, that ally was naturally Bai Yi.
Yueyao nodded.
Like any other day, Yueyao practiced calligraphy in her study until it was time to retire to her bedroom. Only Xi Yu was serving in her bedroom. Yueyao said, "You can go to the outer room!"
After Xi Yu left, Yueyao found the box that Lian Dongbo had given her before his death. Yueyao had already taken out the silver note long ago and placed it elsewhere. Now, only a seal remained in the box, a seal that Yueyao had always known about, though she had thought it was her father’s private seal.
Yueyao picked up the seal and examined it closely.
The seal’s characters were in Han sealscript, reading ’Chongming’ from the top right in a down and then left pattern. The handle of the seal was quite tall, shaped like an overhanging tile. The seal was carved from white jade, its texture as smooth as congealed fat, without a single flaw, and its color pristine white, its luster dazzling to behold—a treasure among jade seals.
Yueyao mulled over it for quite some time, her head buzzing as she tried to discern the significance of this jade seal, but to no avail. She had no choice but to continue examining the box.
Yueyao inspected the box thoroughly, turning it over repeatedly, only to discover something unexpected—a hidden compartment. With some effort, Yueyao found a piece of paper inside the secret layer, covered with numbers. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
Seeing these numbers, Yueyao immediately thought of the word games Lian Dongbo often played with her. Her heart began to race—if she wasn’t mistaken, these numbers were actually the key to decoding his poems. Using the methods they used before, she could uncover the secrets hidden within the verses.
Yueyao’s study was also equipped with pen, ink, paper, and inkstone. She ground the ink herself, but once she picked up the brush, she hesitated to write. For some reason, Yueyao was worried. She could not pinpoint what exactly was troubling her, but she was hesitant to proceed.
Xi Yu gently called from the outer room, "Miss, it’s very late; time to sleep."
Yueyao snapped back to reality and replied, "You go to sleep first; I’ll practice writing a bit longer." Yueyao then applied the numerical game method she had learned from Lian Dongbo to decipher the first poem.
Yueyao hadn’t brought the poetry collection with her this time; she had left it at Ma’s Mansion. However, Yueyao had memorized all twenty-one poems from that collection.
Yueyao decoded the first poem, murmured the line she had deciphered, "Fan Jun, born in the eleventh year of Emperor Jing, a scholar from Zhangzhou, Henan, currently serving as the Left General Secretary."
Yueyao used the same method to decode the other twenty poems, each following the same format as the first—starting with a name, then birth date, and finally an official position.
The urgency shown by her great uncle that day must have been for this item, something that he was so eager and impatient to obtain couldn’t be simple.
Yueyao decoded the last poem and was stunned by the meaning hidden within. The final verse implied that these twenty people had all received great favors from the Lian family, and should trouble arise in the future, they could seek these individuals for support. The token of proof was the ’Chongming’ seal.
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