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墨書 Inktalez
"This ghost may not have been brought by Madam, but it is definitely related to her," Xing Ruyi said, pulling at the corner of her mouth. "The Nursemaid saw the ghost after Madam entered the household? Madam became ill and blind after she came in. Third Young Master was injured, Shallow fell into a coma, and all of this happened after Madam's arrival. Could it be that all of this is merely a coincidence?"
"Although all these events occurred after Sister-in-law entered the household, there is no necessary connection between them. Since Sister-in-law came in, she has rarely left the courtyard she shares with my elder brother, so Jingliang does not believe these matters have anything to do with Sister-in-law."
"Su Erge misunderstood; Fox Demon did not mean that. In this series of events, Madam is also one of the victims, so Fox Demon’s thoughts are quite the opposite of yours, Su Erge."
"What does Ruyi mean?"
"Someone has been doing things behind the scenes, and these actions are likely aimed at Madam. I once asked Liu Er if the household was peaceful after Madam's death. Liu Er told me that after Madam died, there were no more rumors of hauntings in the house, except for Shallow's coma."
"Ruyi, you might be overthinking this; our Su Residence has never had those kinds of chaotic matters." Su Jingliang said, secretly relieved.
"Perhaps Su Erge is right; there may indeed be no connection between these events." Xing Ruyi said, lowering her head. "Fox Demon’s trip this time was just to accompany her husband back home, and she didn’t bring many medicinal herbs. So I need to trouble Su Erge to go out and help Fox Demon purchase some; Shallow's illness requires careful nurturing."
With that, she took out a piece of paper written slowly and handed it to Su Jingliang.
Su Jingliang didn't even glance at it and simply accepted it.
"Rest assured, Ruyi; these medicinal herbs will be delivered by noon at the latest!"
"Thank you for your trouble, Su Erge!"
"Not at all; it should be us from the Su Family who are troubling you, Ruyi." Su Jingliang added after a slight hesitation, "As for what was just said, please keep it between us. My elder brother will be back soon. He is deeply devoted to my Sister-in-law; while these words may not mean much, hearing them from someone so devoted could lead to unnecessary thoughts."
"Don't worry, Su Erge; since Fox Demon just called you out here, these words are only between us."
"This is good!" Su Jingliang finished speaking and took his leave, heading out to buy medicine.
The fox squinted, "You were deliberately talking to Su Jingliang, weren't you?"
"No, I just called him out a moment ago. If I didn't chat a bit, it would seem strange," Xing Ruyi said playfully, making a face. "It's about time. If there really is something in this courtyard, it should have come out by now."
"If Bell knew you used the Soul-Calling Incense on her Sister-in-law, she might never recognize you as Aunt Ruyi again," the fox shook its head. "Be careful later. Although we learned from Si Niang that the thing isn't malicious, the mind of a ghost is always hard to guess. Using the Soul-Calling Incense to lure her might not be something she would willingly accept."
"Whether she likes it or not doesn't matter. Since she dares to cause trouble in this courtyard and has even targeted Si Niang, she should be aware that she could get punished."
Xing Ruyi was very protective, especially towards those she cared about; when it came to defending them, she could be quite unreasonable. The fox sighed and decided to let her be. After all, with itself around, that ghost wouldn't be able to stir up much trouble.
Upon returning to the room, Xing Ruyi couldn't help but shiver slightly.
Seeing this, the fox pulled her into its embrace and then instructed Li Mao, who was waiting outside, to fetch a thick cloak for Xing Ruyi from the carriage.
Inside the room, Bell had already fallen asleep at the head of the bed due to the effects of the Soul-Calling Incense. Si Niang's breathing was also very steady; it seemed she hadn't experienced any nightmares this time.
As the fragrance of the Soul-Calling Incense grew stronger, the shadow that had suddenly appeared in the room became clearer and ultimately took on the appearance described by Si Niang that morning. It was a somewhat aged face with features oddly distorted, looking unnatural as if influenced by some external force.
Xing Ruyi thought carefully; yes, it resembled those images one sees when pressing their face against glass. The ghost saw Xing Ruyi and the fox and was initially startled before slowly stepping back two paces. "Are you mages sent by my sister? I beg you, don’t take me! I have never gone back on my word to her; I haven't told anyone about those things. I just want to get out of here!"
"Sister? Are you referring to Su Family's Fourth Sister, Su Qianqian?" Xing Ruyi hadn't expected things to progress more smoothly than she imagined; she hadn't even asked any questions yet, and this Old Ghost had revealed so much already.
The Old Ghost nodded and stepped back again, seemingly wanting to escape.
"We were able to draw you out, so we are quite confident that you won't escape. Therefore, it would be best for us to sit down and have a talk. Oh, one more thing, I am not the sorcerer that Su Qianqian hired; I am just a passerby who happened to be passing through here and has no connection to your Su family. The reason I called you out is that you frightened my family last night, so I need to ask you some questions. Of course, I am quite a warm-hearted person, so if you have any difficulties that are hard to speak of, you can share them with me. If I'm in a good mood, I might be able to help you. Hmm? Nursemaid!"
"You? How do you know I am Nursemaid?"
"Very simple. Because the only missing old woman from the Su residence is the Nursemaid of Su Qianqian, who has vanished without a trace. In this world, how could there truly be someone who is alive but never seen and dead but never found? If someone is alive but never seen, it means they are hiding. You are the Nursemaid of the Su family and also the wife of the former steward of the Su residence. Your children are likely working in the Su family as well, so I can't think of any reason for you to hide away or even distance yourself from the Su family.
As for being dead but not found, it is likely that your body has been hidden by a Killer. Since your spirit appears here and just now wanted to leave this place, I suspect that your body must be concealed by the murderer here. This room has a courtyard and is considered a relatively special existence in the Su residence; although it is a guest room, hardly any guests stay here throughout the year. Whoever hid you here must be someone from within the Su family. Am I right?"
Nursemaid nodded slightly.
"Alright then, can you tell me how you were harmed? Is your incident related to Su Qianqian?"
Nursemaid hesitated for a moment and then shook her head.
"Don't worry; what we discuss today will not be known by others. Besides, you've already been harmed; can you still expect that murderer to spare your family or children? If she had any intention of letting you go, you wouldn't be standing here talking to me, would you?"
Nursemaid lowered her head, lost in thought. Xing Ruyi glanced at the guiding incense, which had already burned down significantly. Once this incense burns out, finding Nursemaid again may not be possible.
"Are you worried about Su Qianqian? If so, there's no need because her current situation isn't much better than yours. She is in a coma and has yet to wake up. The reason my family and I are at the Su residence is due to your second young master's request to treat Su Qianqian. Of course, it is I who will treat her; whether she gets better or to what extent is entirely up to me. So, Nursemaid, can you rest assured now?"
"My sister is in a coma?" Nursemaid was slightly taken aback and opened her somewhat deformed mouth: "I know who harmed her; it was Third Young Master!"
"Su Jingrui?" Xing Ruyi's eyes dimmed.
"My sister has always liked the eldest young master. Ever since Madam entered the house, she has been very unhappy and often asked me privately how she could make the eldest young master dislike Madam. I advised her not to have such thoughts; although she is not the biological child of the master and mistress, she was raised in the Su family and grew up there as well. The sibling relationship between her and the eldest young master cannot be changed by anyone else. But my sister simply wouldn't listen."
“Isn't Su Qianqian the child of Master Su and his wife?”
“That's right! She was bought by Master from outside. I remember it was during my sister's third anniversary. Oh, my sister is my original sister, who is also Master’s cousin, the former Madam of the Su Family. Because Master betrayed her, she chose to take her own life. Even during the Rebirth Night, her soul did not return; she left very decisively.
However, Master still had feelings for his cousin and would visit her grave every year. That year, many places suffered disasters. On his way back to the Su Family, Master encountered a poor mother and daughter. He felt pity and gave them some silver, but the mother refused the silver and begged Master to take her infant girl away, even if it meant bringing her back to our household as a maid; it was better than starving to death with her.
Master was initially unwilling, but when he saw the infant girl's face, he softened. The infant girl resembled his cousin very much, especially her eyes. Master had married one wife and taken a concubine afterward, all of whom bore sons; he happened to lack a daughter, so he brought the infant girl back to raise as the Fourth Sister of the Su Family. I don't know if it was Master's deliberate arrangement, but Shallow Sister not only grew to look more like his cousin but also shared some similarities in temperament and got along well with that courtyard. Although Madam pretended not to care, she still had some reservations about her.
“Could it be that Shallow really has some connection to your deceased cousin?”
“There shouldn't be any; it's just a coincidence! We were all present when my cousin hanged herself. Although we didn't go inside, Master carried her body out. At that time, Master was particularly heartbroken and sad; he personally handled all of my cousin's funeral arrangements, and even Madam could not interfere or get involved. Because of this incident, my cousin's maternal family cut ties with the Su Family; it wouldn't make any sense for them to send an infant girl over.
Moreover, Madam actually suspected Shallow's origins; she once secretly called me over to inquire about it, and I told her the truth. Madam even sent someone to investigate the woman who gave Shallow to Master back then, but since it was a year of famine, we couldn't find out whether that person was still alive or had already passed away.
“Su Qianqian looks more and more like your cousin; there is a possibility that your Master deliberately wants her to resemble his cousin exactly because he is nostalgic and secretly hopes that person is still alive.”
“Listening to you makes that seem possible. Since Husband doesn't like my sister, after Master brought her back home, I took care of her. At that time, I had just given birth to our son, so I also served as Shallow's nursemaid. Usually, it was Master himself who taught her etiquette and how to read; this kind of treatment was something none of the other three young masters received. Therefore, Shallow is quite favored in the household.
“What about you? Since Su Qianqian is favored in the Su Family, your status as her nursemaid should also be quite special. Moreover, even if she likes her elder brother and is not Madam Su's biological child, what does that have to do with your situation?”
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