Chapter 313

Mr. Hu, thinking of the unconscious Grand Secretary Yu, glanced at the chaotic scene of Madam Yu and the others, then looked at Lady Fei, whose face was ashen but whose eyes flashed with determination. After a moment of deliberation, he said in a low voice, "That man surnamed Guo is a jinshi of the Dingchou year."

Lady Fei's face changed drastically.

If the other party were an ordinary commoner, then in a case of a civilian suing an official, regardless of whether they were in the right, they would first receive twenty strokes of the cane upon entering the yamen. Many would die under those twenty strokes before even getting a chance to speak. Thus, even with a blood feud, ordinary people would not easily sue an official. But if the other party were a jinshi, they would be qualified to sit in the hall and be heard. Without serious injury, if the first suit failed, they could file a second; if the second failed, a third. If dissatisfied with the county's ruling, they could appeal to the prefecture; if dissatisfied with the prefecture, to the circuit... Some, for the sake of pride, would even appeal all the way to the Court of Judicial Review. Even if the defendant was in the right, being sued layer by layer like this would ruin their reputation.

Seeing that she understood the gravity of the situation, Mr. Hu regarded her with somewhat higher esteem. After thinking it over, he lowered his voice and said, "Concubine, you should advise the Madam later. It would be wise to make preparations early."

"Thank you for your guidance, sir." Lady Fei's voice trembled as she performed a curtsy to Mr. Hu.

Mr. Hu clasped his hands in salute and left the side room.

Lady Fei helped Mama Shu carry Madam Yu to the nearby arhat couch, wiped her face with a cold cloth, and Madam Yu slowly regained consciousness. She searched the crowd for Yu Huaian: "Depu? Where is he now?"

Yu Huaian quickly stepped forward and said in a low voice, "I'll go find the eldest young master right away."

Madam Yu nodded and instructed him: "Tell him to come back quickly. Say that the old master has fainted."

Yu Huaian acknowledged and left.

Madam Yu then noticed Lady Fei bringing over a cup of hot tea. She couldn't help asking, "Where is the eldest young mistress?"

Everyone's gaze turned toward the large kang by the window.

Lady Fan was sobbing softly against Mozhuan's shoulder.

Madam Yu felt a surge of inexplicable anger. She picked up the teacup Lady Fei had handed her and hurled it at Lady Fan: "What are you wailing about? Depu isn't dead yet! The good fortune of our Yu family has been cried away by you!"

Lady Fan couldn't dodge in time, and the full cup of hot tea splashed onto her. The back of her hand was scalded red, yet she didn't dare make a sound. Suppressing her grief, she wiped away her tears.

Mozhuan's eyes reddened at the sight.

Madam Yu was still not satisfied: "Your father-in-law lies unconscious, your mother-in-law is bedridden with illness, and all you know how to do is cry. Didn't your mother even teach you how to serve tea and water?"

Lady Fan felt bitter inside but quickly rose and personally brewed a fresh cup of hot tea for Madam Yu.

Madam Yu then told her to go see whether Yu Huaian had returned: "Now that Depu has matters to attend to, you don't even show any concern!"

This was normally the business of maids and servants, yet she was being ordered to do it—an obvious display of displeasure. On top of that, she was being branded with the accusation of being cold toward her husband, and she couldn't say a word in her defense.

Lady Fan's face turned pale as she went to the outer courtyard.

Madam Yu then summoned Lady Fei for a conversation: "That Madam Min... what do you think of her?" Her tone was noticeably gentler than when she spoke to Lady Fan.

Lady Fei was momentarily startled, then smiled bitterly: "Madam, you may not know, but I'm caught between the eldest young master on one side and the eldest young mistress on the other. If I get close to Madam Min, I wrong the eldest young mistress; if I keep my distance from Madam Min, I wrong the eldest young master. So I have no choice but to play the blind fool—I deliver whatever the eldest young master entrusts to me and leave immediately. How would I dare speak more with Madam Min?"

Madam Yu was quite surprised and wanted to ask more, but a young maidservant ran in: "Madam, the old master has woken up!"

"Really!" Madam Yu's face lit up with joy. Lifting her skirts, she rushed toward the study.

The maids and matrons all followed in a flurry.

The imperial physician re-examined the pulse, wrote a prescription, instructed that he rest quietly, and then took his leave.

Madam Yu hurriedly ordered someone to decoct the medicine, then solicitously asked whether he felt any discomfort anywhere, whether he'd like a cup of hot tea, whether he wanted to eat something—without mentioning Yu Jingxiu at all, for fear that her husband would again be overcome with rage and faint.

Grand Secretary Yu then asked about Yu Huaian.

"I sent him to find Depu," Madam Yu said, carefully watching her husband's expression.

"That's good," Grand Secretary Yu nodded slightly. "I happen to have something to ask him." Then his expression turned stern: "I have something to tell you."

Mama Shu quickly led the serving maids and matrons out of the room.

Grand Secretary Yu said in a low voice: "That man surnamed Guo is merely a minor county magistrate's assistant. Because the Min family's fortunes declined, he wanted to break off the engagement—this shows he's a man who forgets loyalty for profit. He doesn't have only this one son, yet for this son's sake, he dares to sue Depu at the Court of Judicial Review. There must be someone behind this. After much thought, I can think of no one other than Zhao Ling..."

"How could this happen?" Madam Yu's face turned ashen. "It's been so long since that matter, and they've been living well. We haven't provoked them. Why is he still clinging to this so relentlessly?"

"Don't complain just yet," Grand Secretary Yu said in a low voice. "Let me finish speaking."

Madam Yu gave a soft "mm" and quietly looked at Grand Secretary Yu.

"That Zhao Ling, since he dares to instigate that surnamed Guo to file a complaint, he must have solid evidence. We won't find any loopholes there. Our only option now is to get through to the Court of Judicial Review..."

Madam Yu's brow twitched as she listened. "You mean... bribe the people at the Court of Judicial Review?"

Grand Secretary Yu nodded slightly, lowering his voice even further. "How much silver do we have at home?"

"We have bank drafts totaling thirteen thousand four hundred fifty taels," Madam Yu said.

"Too little," Grand Secretary Yu said. "Find a way to scrape together thirty thousand taels."

With her husband having a plan at this critical moment for her son's life, Madam Yu took a deep breath and said, "I understand. I'll go gather the silver now."

Grand Secretary Yu nodded and instructed Madam Yu, "Ask Mr. Wu to come over."

Madam Yu acknowledged with a "yes," and from outside the door came Yu Huaian's voice: "Master, Madam, this servant has returned."

His voice carried a note of panic.

Hearing this, both Grand Secretary Yu and Madam Yu felt their hearts sink.

"Come in and speak!" The moment Madam Yu finished speaking, Yu Huaian rushed in.

"Master, Madam, something terrible has happened." He shouted, drenched in sweat. "The eldest young master has been taken away by the people from the Court of Judicial Review..."

"What did you say?" Grand Secretary Yu was utterly shocked.

Madam Yu's body went limp, and she couldn't even speak.

"It's true." Yu Huaian said with a mournful face. "Not only was the eldest young master taken to the Court of Judicial Review, but Madam Min and all the maidservants and matrons around her were taken as well. I heard that the one who was ordered to hire the killer was Madam Min's wet nurse..."

"That wicked wretch!" Grand Secretary Yu was both furious and frantic, nearly passing out from the shock.

Madam Yu came to her senses and clutched tightly at Grand Secretary Yu's sleeve. "Weren't they supposed to summon him for questioning first? How did they suddenly arrest him and throw him in prison? This must be Zhao Ling's scheme. If he could bribe that surnamed Guo, he could certainly bribe the jailers as well." At this point, she shuddered and pleaded bitterly with Grand Secretary Yu, "Husband, you must save Depu!"

"He is my son too!" Grand Secretary Yu looked at his wife helplessly. "Do you think I don't feel the pain when something happens to him?" He added, "I'm afraid thirty thousand taels won't be enough now. Find a way to gather another twenty thousand taels—fifty thousand in total. I'll go to the Court of Judicial Review."

"Alright!" Madam Yu agreed hastily. She kept her personal maidservant to attend to Grand Secretary Yu, then went with Mama Shu to take stock of their valuables.

Mama Shu said worriedly, "Pawnshops are the best at kicking people when they're down. Knowing we're in urgent need of silver, they won't give us good prices for these gold and silver ornaments."

"There's no helping it." Madam Yu looked at the ruby headdress in the box, with gems the size of lotus seeds, steeled her heart, closed the lid, and placed it with the gold ornaments to be pawned.

"Perhaps," Mama Shu said, "we should let the eldest young mistress know? She could scrape together ten thousand taels or so from her side..."

"No need," Madam Yu said. "They still need to live their lives, and we haven't reached the point of touching our son and daughter-in-law's private savings."

Hearing this, Mama Shu couldn't help muttering under her breath, "Your silver is certainly the eldest young master's, but the eldest young mistress may not be of one mind with him. Her silver isn't necessarily his..."

Madam Yu's movements in packing stopped abruptly, and her face darkened.

She slowly sat down on the edge of the kang and said, "Go fetch the eldest young mistress."

Mama Shu was taken aback for a moment before going to summon Lady Fan.

Madam Yu gestured for her to sit on the edge of the kang and told Lady Fan about Yu Jingxiu's situation, finally saying, "...We're now gathering silver to bribe the people at the Court of Judicial Review."

Lady Fan's tears had long since fallen. Wiping her eyes, she blamed Madam Min: "It must have been her instigation. Poor eldest young master—for her sake, he wouldn't even listen to his parents' words. The eldest young master's reputation was ruined by her hands..."

Madam Yu said nothing, sitting quietly and listening.

After speaking for a while, Lady Fan noticed Madam Yu's lack of reaction and quickly stopped, saying, "Mother, what did you call me here for?"

"Nothing much," Madam Yu said. "Just to let you know."

Lady Fan sniffled with reddened eyes and said, "Mother, I was wrong before. I shouldn't have been angry with Depu. Now that Depu is back, I'll live well with him and won't make Father and Mother worry about us anymore."

Hearing this, a flicker of disappointment passed across Madam Yu's brow. "Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

Lady Fan thought for a moment and said, "Mother, are you blaming me for not taking good care of Depu, for letting him reach past thirty without a child? I will in the future..."

"Let's talk about the future later," Madam Yu interrupted her, her tone carrying a hint of displeasure. "Right now the family doesn't have enough silver. See how much silver and valuables you have on your side, and let's first pool together enough to bribe the Court of Judicial Review."

Lady Fan was dumbfounded, her mouth agape, and it was a long moment before she managed to say, "I don't have much left on my end either... Zhen-jie'er's regular medications..."

"That's just to tide over the emergency." Madam Yu's tone grew increasingly cold as she spoke. "In a couple of days, Huai'an will be returning to Nanjing. Whatever you have, bring it all!"

With the matter put so bluntly, Lady Fan had no room to argue.

She softly murmured an acknowledgment and went back to fetch the bank drafts and valuables.

"Just as you predicted." Madam Yu watched Lady Fan's retreating figure, her gaze as sharp as a blade. "My silver belongs to Depu, but hers doesn't necessarily belong to Depu."

Mama Shu dared not chime in and lowered her head.

Lady Fan brought two thousand taels in bank drafts and a few pieces of jewelry that Madam Yu had bestowed upon her, explaining to Madam Yu, "I hadn't anticipated such an urgent need, and I've been rather free with my spending, so these bank drafts are all I have left. As for valuables, only the pieces you've gifted me are worth anything."

Madam Yu gave them only a brief glance before having Mama Shu take them away.