Chapter 84 - 84 The County Magistrate's Silent Approval
84 The County Magistrate’s Silent Approval
Although Liu Wangshi’s eyes were somewhat unfocused and she could not accept this reality, she still remembered that she could not alert the enemy, so she kept her voice as low as possible.
“Madam, the medicinal soup you usually drink and the medicinal baths you take are all handled by one person, or are there many people you can come into contact with at will?”
Mo Ruyue had come over to treat Liu Wangshi’s illness every day a few days ago, so she had a preliminary understanding of the population allocation of the county magistrate’s family.
There were many servants and maids in the house. There were two maids in charge of serving Liu Wangshi, and each concubine was assigned a little girl to serve them. In addition to Chen An, there was also a coachman, a cook, and two other servants in charge of cleaning.
In total, there were eleven people. If it were not for the fact that the county magistrate had an official position, he might have some gray income in private. Otherwise, with his salary, he would not be able to support so many people.
Liu Wangshi seriously thought about it and said, “Previously, Mei Xiang had always been in charge. After all, she was a servant I brought over to serve the master before she became his concubine. However, a few days ago, she suddenly sprained her waist and lay in bed for a few days. It was my servant, Chun Yu, who was in charge. Could it be…”
When she thought of this, her eyes suddenly filled with hostility.
If there was really someone who could tamper with her medicine, it would be Chun Yu. There were only a few people in the house, so it couldn’t be someone from the outside who sneaked in every day to tamper with it, right?
Now that she thought about it, there might be a reason for Mei Xiang’s waist injury. Perhaps it was to make it easier for him to attack her.
The more Chen Wangshi thought about it, the more she felt that it made sense. Her teeth creaked from gritting, and she wanted nothing more than to drag Chun Yu in and ask her for an explanation.
“Madam, you have to think carefully. Is Chun Yu the only one?”
Mo Ruyue reminded her again. However, although the county magistrate’s house had eleven people, it was much easier to investigate when compared to those noble courtyards that easily had hundreds of people. If there were no accidents, it should be that maid called Chun Yu.
“I can’t be wrong, it’s her!”
Liu Wangshi said through gritted teeth. She had already determined that Chun Yu was the criminal.
“Then, Madam, please call her in for questioning. If you can still find the medicinal herbs, I can concoct the antidote as soon as possible to save Madam from more suffering.”
It wasn’t that Mo Ruyue had to look at the herbs to make the antidote. It was just that with the herbs, she didn’t have to worry so much and could just prescribe the right medicine. After all, there were many reasons for skin allergies now. If she didn’t look at the herbs and had to check them one by one, it would be very troublesome.
Liu Wangshi immediately called Chun Yu in alone, and before she could even kneel, she threw the bowl of medicine at her.
“Little slut, speak! Why do you want to harm me!”
Chun Yu was caught off guard and was hit right on the head. A cut was made on her forehead and blood gushed out, instantly dyeing half of her face red.
“Madam, please spare me! This servant doesn’t know what you’re talking about. How could this servant dare to harm you? I wouldn’t dare!”
Chun Yu was only a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, and she was seeing stars from the impact. However, she still held on and did not dare to faint. Instead, she desperately cried out for her innocence.
“You don’t dare to harm me? Hmph, do you really think that I’m sick not in my body but in my brain?”
Liu Wangshi coldly snorted. Her eyes were cold, as if she could not see the blood flowing from Chun Yu’s forehead.
“Do you think that I can’t do anything to you as long as you keep your mouth shut? Let me remind you, your indenture is still in my hands. If I want to, I can deal with a slave who betrayed her master and no one will dare to say anything. When the time comes, I will sell you to the brothel. Let’s see how long you can keep being stubborn. ”
As soon as she finished speaking, Chun Yu was so scared that her face turned pale. She didn’t care about the injury on her forehead and frantically kowtowed to Liu Wangshi, begging for mercy, “Madam, this servant is begging you to show mercy! Please don’t sell this servant to hook-railing yard. This servant really wouldn’t dare to harm you, really wouldn’t dare!”
Liu Wangshi saw that she was still being stubborn even at this point, so she simply didn’t say anything more. With a sneer, she shouted to the outside, “Mei Xiang, go and bring out Chun Yu’s indenture!”
“Madam, Madam, please spare me! I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you everything!”
When Chun Yu saw that Liu Wangshi wasn’t threatening her and was about to get serious, she was instantly scared out of her wits. She crawled a few steps to the side of the bed and wanted to reach out to grab Liu Wangshi’s hand to beg for mercy.
“Don’t come over, your dirty blood will dirty my bed again!”
Liu Wangshi shrank back into her bed and looked at Chun Yu’s face full of blood in disgust. Mei Xiang’s voice came from outside the room, “Madam, are you asking me to get Chun Yu’s indenture?”
Liu Wangshi stared at Chun Yu and coldly said, “This is your last chance. If you don’t tell me the truth, then you don’t have to say anything.”
Chun Yu was already scared out of her wits. She knelt down and took two steps back. She repeatedly kowtowed to Chen Wangshi. “Madam, this servant was also forced. They said that if I didn’t follow their orders, I would be quickly kicked out of the house. After that, they couldn’t guarantee what would happen to this servant.”
“Who is it?”
The first person that came to Chen Wangshi’s mind was her other concubine, Man Niang. She was a delicate-looking girl that she had brought back from the outside. She had a weak and quiet personality and was easy to manipulate. However, it was hard to say if she was just pretending to confuse Chen Wangshi.
However, she also thought of Mei Xiang for a moment, but that thought was fleeting. After all, they had grown up together. Mei Xiang had been by her side since she was six years old, so she should not betray her.
“He… I, this servant, don’t dare to say. If I say, I’m afraid I’ll even lose my life.”
Chun Yu once again began to cry and beg, as if she was very afraid of the person who had ordered her to betray her master.
“If you don’t tell me, then you’ll be better off dead.”
Liu Wangshi did not care about Chun Yu’s life or death. She only wanted to know who was scheming against her behind her back.
“Madam, it’s… It’s Constable Liao who told me to do this! This servant, this servant has no choice but to obey!”
Chun Yu’s answer was completely out of Liu Wangshi’s expectations, but it didn’t surprise Mo Ruyue at all. She almost subconsciously furrowed her brows, realizing that this was probably a trap targeted at her.
However, she had never thought that the magistrate would actually lay a hand on his first wife just to trick her into coming over.
She didn’t believe that Constable Liao would bypass the county magistrate to act on his own. That man was a meticulous person and would never leave himself a way out. Therefore, the disaster that befell the Liu Wang clan was the tacit approval of the county magistrate.
Mo Ruyue was lost in her thoughts and didn’t notice that Liu Wangshi had inadvertently glanced at her and taken in her expression.
Liu Wangshi subconsciously shifted her gaze, but her eyes narrowed.
She couldn’t figure out why Constable Liao would suddenly instruct her maidservant to harm her. However, that glance just now made her feel like she had seen a flower in the fog and suddenly understood it.
If the old master had taken a fancy to the widow, everything would make sense!