Chapter 404 - 396: Failure
Lin Youning and Sister Hong were having a good conversation, and even without taking a break at noon, they didn’t feel tired. However, at the Marquis Mansion, they had to part ways when they reached the passage of Yingshui Courtyard. Sister Ran, seeing Sister Jian and Sister Hui walking together, didn’t say much and left first.
Sister Hui, seeing Sister Ran leave, lowered her head and quietly asked, "Did you find it?"
Sister Jian looked troubled, "Sister Ran was with me, and we didn’t even get into the front courtyard."
After hearing this, Sister Hui nodded, "I understand now."
Sister Jian looked at Sister Hui, hesitant to speak.
Sister Hui understood and smiled, "Don’t worry. I made a promise to you. Regardless of the outcome, I will help you and I will not break my word."
Sister Jian, a little embarrassed, lowered her head, "Then, thank you, third sister."
"Elder sister, there’s no need to be courteous. It was me who sought you out in the first place. I should be the one to thank you." Sister Hui returned the courtesy, "I have troubled you today. In the future, if I need your help, I will come to you."
Sister Jian nodded haphazardly and then left.
She hoped that Sister Hui would not need to seek her out again.
After all, if such a situation were to happen again, she didn’t know if she would have the courage to go through with it.
She never imagined that Sister Hui would ask her to steal something from the East Mansion, specifically instructing to steal letters or commonplace items from the study if she came across any.
However, Sister Hui never specified exactly what to steal.
Had it not been for the extremely enticing conditions offered by Sister Hui, Sister Jian would never have agreed.
She was older than Sister Hui, and Mrs. Dong didn’t bother with their marriage arrangements. The grandmother entrusted it to her father, but as a man, how could he possibly understand these matters? When Sister Hui approached her asking if she would be willing to marry into the Zhou Mansion, she was swayed.
Zhou Wu was the youngest son of Zhou Daer. She had seen what he looked like—a man of noble bearing, mainly because she could marry in as the legal wife.
With her status as a concubine’s daughter, having such a marriage arrangement was already very satisfying.
Initially, she didn’t believe Sister Hui’s words. It was only when Sister Hui said that the Eldest Prince’s concubine was mediating for her that she believed it. Dong Poming was marrying the Eldest Prince as a concubine, and with the prince’s power, it would be easy to mediate for Zhou Wu.
The main reason for agreeing was that there was no specific instruction on what to steal, just vague mentions.
Upon returning to her courtyard, Sister Jian found Aunt Lv waiting, with Sister Ran gloatingly standing at the side. She immediately knew that Sister Ran had tattled on her.
Aunt Lv’s face was stern, "What are you helping Sister Hui with?"
Sister Jian looked at Sister Ran, and Aunt Lv urged Sister Ran out. Although unwilling, Sister Ran still left, leaving only the mother and daughter in the room. Aunt Lv began, "Speak."
Sister Jian recounted the events from start to finish, "...Aunt Lv, rest assured, nothing panned out, and nothing was done."
Aunt Lv grimaced, "Hmph, you think no one was watching when you went to the East Mansion? Let me tell you, don’t be so naive. If it were so easy, why didn’t Sister Hui do it herself? Who is Zhou Wu? The brother of Consort Zhou; how could he marry a concubine’s daughter as his legal wife? Do you think just because Sister Hui said so, you can believe her?"
"Sister Hui couldn’t do it, but I haven’t done anything either, so it didn’t cost me anything." Sister Jian was rather open-minded about it.
Aunt Lv scolded her as a fool, "You might think it cost you nothing, but you’ve offended someone. Do you not realize that any random person can’t just walk into the study at the East Mansion? Luckily, Sister Ran stopped you. If someone from the East Mansion had caught you, what would you have done? This time, you should really thank Sister Ran. Your father is currently leaning towards the East Mansion, and here you are, causing trouble with them. Don’t forget that your current marriage prospects are all handled by your father."
Sister Jian turned pale, "Mother... Mother..."
For a moment, she couldn’t find the words to argue back.
Aunt Lv stood up, "I thought you were more stable than Sister Ran usually, but why do you always cause trouble like this? First, it was Wu Xueqin, you helped her, now it’s this incident, always making such startling moves."
Sister Jian stood there in a daze, not coming to her senses until the little maidservant beside her gently nudged her. Only then did she realize Aunt Lv’s and Sister Ran’s laughter was growing distant in the courtyard. Sister Jian lowered her head and tightly twisted the handkerchief in her hands.
She didn’t understand. Despite Sister Ran causing more trouble than she did, why did Aunt Lv always seem to favor Sister Ran?
Meanwhile, after returning to her room, Sister Hui was no longer as calm as before. After pacing a few circles in the room, she asked for writing materials. After writing a letter and sealing it, she handed it to the head maidservant beside her, "Deliver it to the Dong Mansion and hand it to Grandmother."
The maidservant carefully accepted the letter and left.
Sister Hui stared blankly out the window. She wasn’t sure if what she was doing was right. But since Grandmother wrote asking for her help, she had no other options. Her cousin also wrote to her, saying that the Dong Mansion was going through a very difficult time. Although her cousin didn’t say it directly, he was indirectly begging her.
If her grandmother didn’t have no other choice, why would she ask for her help?
They didn’t specify exactly what they needed to take, which made it even more difficult for her.
At the East Mansion, Mrs. Liu Sr. and others didn’t leave until after dinner. Lin Youning invited Mrs. Gu Sr. to stay at the mansion, but Mrs. Gu Sr. refused. Over the years, she hadn’t stayed at places on this side, except for temples.
Gu Yifeng noticed Sister Ning’s concern and smiled, "Then I’ll escort Mother back."
Lin Youning nodded.
Only then did Mrs. Gu Sr. realize that Sister Ning felt guilty, making her feel warm inside, "You silly girl."
Although it was just one sentence, Lin Youning knew that Aunt was happy inside. Watching her older brother escort Aunt away, Lin Youning finally returned to the main house.
"It’ll be November soon. You should pick an auspicious day for your wedding. After all, even after you’re married, you’ll still be in the mansion, so it won’t delay anything," Lin Youning said, calling over Shanmoi and Hailan to talk.
Hailan smiled, "I’ll listen to the young lady. Whichever day the young lady thinks is good, please choose it."
At this moment, Shanmoi blushed, though she didn’t say it outright, clearly feeling shy.
Lin Youning laughed, "Alright then, when the Marquis returns, I’ll discuss with him and choose a day for you."
Only then did Shanmoi recount the conversation she overheard accidentally during the day. Lin Youning paid it no mind, "Things that are left in the study for anyone to take are unimportant. Even if they enter the study, it won’t matter. Besides, who’s to say they went to the study in the front courtyard? Don’t worry about this."