A Mysterious Gift

Lady Liu whispered a few instructions to her daughter, then left with her attendants.

The surprise in the inner courtyard ended on a sour note.

The guests in the front courtyard had nearly finished eating when they saw the Fifth Princess stride straight out of the Marquis's Residence, her face dark.

Then they saw the people from the Minister's Residence hurry after her.

No one dared say a word. To preserve the dignity of the Marquis's Residence, they waited to leave the banquet in accordance with proper etiquette.

Liu Wan remained composed. She gently pinched little Wanwan's cheek. "You've had to suffer."

[I haven't suffered at all, not at all... If not for Mother, today would have been the male lead's one-month celebration. Mother is so clever. Wanwan loves you...]

Little Wanwan sucked her thumb and gazed eagerly at her mother.

She's so beautiful. If only I could be that beautiful when I grow up.

A mother this beautiful deserves a better father!

No, a better husband.

Xie Jin'an changed his clothes and hurried out of the inner courtyard to see the guests off.

Just then, a small figure dressed in bright yellow appeared, giving him a terrible fright. "C-Crown Prince!"

"Shh!" The young Crown Prince had only one eunuch beside him, who signaled for Xie Jin'an not to make a fuss.

"I was passing by and came to deliver something to the young lady of the Marquis's Residence on behalf of an elder!" Xia Qianlin's youthful face bore the solemnity and majesty innate to members of the Imperial Family.

Though he was only seven.

Xie Jin'an bowed as he led the way. Fortunately, Liu Wan was still holding the baby in the front hall, and the child had already fallen asleep.

The moment they saw the Crown Prince, everyone hastened to kneel in greeting.

Xia Qianlin stopped them. "There is no need for formalities. I will leave shortly."

With that, he took out a Dragon-Pattern Jade Pendant and handed it to Liu Wan. It was made of exceptionally rare black jade. "This is a one-month celebration gift for Miss Xie from an elder of mine. Be sure to keep it safe."

Liu Wan accepted it. The jade was still warm!

"Which elder of the Imperial Family sent such a precious gift?" Liu Wan asked in surprise.

"Just keep it safe, madam. Do not inquire into the reasons behind imperial affairs." Having said that, Xia Qianlin turned and left.

Xie Jin'an had not even had time to curry favor with him. His eyes were filled with shock.

The small figure climbed into a carriage, which stopped again in a secluded spot. He called out, "Imperial Uncle! The jade pendant has been delivered."

A corner of the curtain on another carriage was gently lifted, revealing a man with exquisite features and an indifferent gaze. "Sorry for the trouble, nephew."

The inner courtyard of the Marquis's Residence was already in chaos.

Xu Rourou knelt in Charity Hall, her face swollen from the old madam's slap. The old madam pointed at her with a trembling hand.

"You vile woman! I gave your child such a precious imperial gift, and this is how you flaunt it everywhere? Do you realize how terribly you've harmed the Marquis's Residence?"

Xu Rourou's eyes reddened, and fear had drained all strength from her body. "Old Madam, it wasn't me! Someone pushed me into the water. And Huai Shan-I don't know why that girl Yinliu brought him out either! Old Madam, I never meant to harm the Marquis's Residence!"

She had come from the countryside and had never witnessed any grand occasions, much less understood all these rules.

Had she known there were so many noblewomen outside, she would not have gone out even if someone beat her to death.

Yinliu was also scared witless. "Old Madam, I heard Young Master Huai Shan crying terribly, and his whole body was red. I didn't know what to do. The other maids said I had to take him to his wet nurse, so I..."

After hearing this, the old madam's legs gave way, and she sank into a wooden chair. She looked at Xu Rourou. "If you had behaved yourself and stayed in your room, how could anyone have pushed you into the water?"

Xu Rourou covered her face, unsure whether she should speak.

"Speak!"

"I heard that someone would fall into the water, so I planned to go out and have a look..."

The old madam's expression darkened, and she dismissed all the serving women and maids in the courtyard.

Only Mama Qing remained.

"Who told you these things?" Mama Qing asked Xu Rourou coldly.

Xu Rourou struggled to remember. At the time, she had been preoccupied with her own grievances and had overheard maids talking outside the window.

The Marquis's Residence was so large. How could she know which maids they were?

She had fallen into someone else's trap!

No wonder the old madam was furious.

"I don't remember, but I have always been of one mind with you! I was framed too. They deliberately said those things... for me to hear..."

Xu Rourou's explanation grew incoherent as she crawled forward and clung tightly to the old madam's legs.

"For Huai Shan's sake, I will absolutely stand on your side, Old Madam..."

The old madam lost her grip on her cane, and it fell to the floor! A chill crept up her spine.

The Fifth Princess's chastity was at stake.

That was far more serious than the matter of the jade beads.

Not only had someone learned of all this, they had even staged such a scene. If-if anyone let a word slip...

The Marquis's Residence would be finished...

Mama Qing hesitated. "Old Madam, could it have been the mistress..."

"Impossible. She cannot possibly know the relationship between Huai Shan and Rou Rou. Besides, she has always understood the greater good. She and the Marquis's Residence are branches of the same tree. She would never harm it."

The old madam turned it over in her mind. Having ruled out Liu Wan, who knew nothing, she could not think who had laid this trap.

Fortunately, the scheme had not succeeded. As for the maid she had arranged to push the Fifth Princess into the water, disposing of her would suffice.

Mama Qing understood and withdrew.

Someone came in from outside to report, "Old Madam, the heir has arrived!"

"Why is he so late? Couldn't he have left Wan'er to see off the guests in the front courtyard?" the old madam asked.

"Grandmother, the Crown Prince came!"

The old madam's legs trembled. "Could it have been because of..."

The matter of the Fifth Princess? Or the jade beads?

"He came to deliver a gift to Wanwan and left right afterward!"

The old madam breathed a sigh of relief. "Even the Crown Prince values this little girl so highly? Liu Wan's family is truly formidable. It seems she can save the Marquis's Residence. Yes, she must have a way."

Back then, the marquis had been imprisoned for a crime, leaving the Marquis's Residence teetering on the brink of collapse and its inner household in utter turmoil. Only after they sought the hand of Liu Wan, the legitimate daughter of the Ministry of Rites Minister's Residence, and she married into the family with a gold death-exemption token did the marquis have the chance to petition to go to war and prove his innocence.

Minister Liu had only agreed to marry his daughter into the family because the marquis had once saved his life.

Liu Wan was now the mistress of the household. Surely she would not stand by and watch the Marquis's Residence, which she had painstakingly restored to order, suffer another calamity.

With the Crown Prince backing that little girl, they could no longer lay a finger on her. To protect Huai Shan, the old madam would have to get Liu Wan to intervene.

"Go and bring Wan'er here," the old madam said.

Xie Jin'an pressed his lips together, cast an indifferent glance at Xu Rourou on the floor, and left without looking back.

Xu Rourou collapsed limply onto the floor. She had gained nothing yet. Was she already going to be disposed of?

Just then, Yinliu came in again with Xie Huaishan in her arms. The child was crying terribly.

"Old Madam, Nurse Xu, nothing will soothe Young Master Huai Shan. He even vomited the milk he was fed just now, and a rash has broken out all over his body. What are we to do?"