Free Web NovelChapter 88: Chapter 88
Chapter 88
"As for me, I don’t think it’s sufficient. Even if you claim that the bandits targeted the soldiers more than the villagers, if given a choice, they would likely choose to harm the soldiers as you assert. However, the pot used to cook the porridge was monitored by all of you every step of the way, and no one else approached it except for you. Doesn’t that make you appear to be in collusion with the bandits?"
Liu Sun said, her expression remaining serious.
"T-That’s still true..."
"So, what should we do? If an investigation finds that we mishandled the ingredients, wouldn’t we face severe consequences?"
"What should we do to make people not think we did it?" They discussed anxiously until one woman spoke up as if she had just thought of something important.
"Wait a moment. In this case... if it was only us preparing the food, we wouldn’t be able to escape suspicion. But if..." She narrowed her eyes, expressing an obvious gaze of a winner.
"If what?" The friends asked, confused. Thus, they saw only a smile appearing sinisterly.
"What if we weren’t the only ones there? What if someone else was lingering around? If that person called themselves ’Mu Tian’ and was secretly investigating Eldest Young Miss Qin during that time? Perhaps... we could use her."
Hearing this, everyone suddenly remembered that such an event had indeed occurred. This Mu Tian, whoever she was, had come to inquire about what kind of person Eldest Young Miss Qin was. She seemed to have a grudge against Yueqian. Thus, the girls had eagerly shared many tales about Yueqian, enjoying themselves.
In this case... if they pinned the blame on her, who would know the truth?!
She was just a commoner; whether she lived or died, she was worth less than a servant!
The name that was mentioned excited many of them. It seemed they had just remembered that such an event had occurred. They recalled that on the day they were busy preparing food for the soldiers and villagers, a villager had approached them, trying to test if she could ask them questions.
At that time, they didn’t know what the woman’s name was. As they chatted, she eventually asked for information about Yueqian when she was still in the capital. Her eyes were filled with jealousy, and because of the evident displeasure she displayed, the women who knew stories about Yueqian from her time in the capital told Mu Tian about those stories animatedly.
The woman frequently joined in with her own comments. For instance, when they recounted that Yueqian was a rude woman who dared to insult people openly without respect for seniority, the other also added her own tales of Yueqian’s villainous deeds.
When they found out that Yueqian had arrived here and showed no respect for her husband’s relatives, even insulting his grandparents, they were even more excited to talk. Eventually, they learned that the woman was "Mu Tian," an aunt of Mu Heng. In fact, Yueqian should have addressed her as Aunt, but instead, she had shown no respect and had even barred her from interfering with her family.
When she had money and food, she drove the Mu family away, keeping everything for herself and her husband. This wickedness was such that even women from the capital were wary of her. Considering all the proper customs, Yueqian failed in every single one.
Typically, women like them, when married into their husbands’ families, would at least show some respect to their husbands and families. She was utterly failed in the principle of filial piety. Under normal circumstances, the husband’s family could reclaim all the property they had given because Mu Heng’s family and Yueqian did not show any filial piety towards them.
Mu Tian also mentioned that Yueqian had come from the capital with plenty of money and land. Therefore, even if the land and property were taken back, she wouldn’t be distressed. Of course, Mu Tian didn’t mention that the money and land acquired by Mu Heng’s family had been seized long before he married this dreadful wife.
The true story was never told by Mu Tian. She only spoke of things that wouldn’t trouble her and would earn her some sympathy.
Certainly, the people from the capital believed her because of Yueqian’s longstanding bad reputation. They enjoyed conversing with her, but that didn’t mean they liked Mu Tian herself.
This two-faced woman, who spoke so pretentiously, was just a poor villager. Her breath, body odor, and the dirty clothes she wore made her appear like a beggar compared to their own household servants.
Thinking about this, they secretly compare it to Yueqian’s household. Her husband was a descendant of these poor villagers, yet their skin was good, and they dressed cleanly without any foul odor. When close, they even smelled a unique pleasant scent, which intrigued even them.
Of course, these women knew it was all because of Yueqian. The wealth she brought must have bought them several sets of clothes and perhaps even perfume.
It was a pity Yueqian was not their friend. Otherwise, they might have asked to buy the recipes for the fragrances she used or inquired about where she got them so they could purchase some for themselves.
Back to the current situation, after trying to think of a way to save themselves, they remembered that they had a pawn they could still use, and the other was just a common villager.
"That woman is bad mouthing but foolish. Her selfishness might be useful to us," one of the women said, recalling Mu Tian’s mannerisms.
Her shifty eyes made them hate her, but now she seemed the most suitable person to be the stepping stone for them to cross the fire.
Liu Sun remained silent upon hearing the other’s surname. It wasn’t until she heard that Yueqian and Mu Tian didn’t get along that she agreed to use the woman named Mu Tian.
This was because she was afraid. If Mu Tian encountered difficulties, it might affect Mu Heng, Yueqian’s villager husband. There was a chance that the issue could escalate, implicating Mu Heng as well.
If Mu Heng was implicated, once he was captured by the authorities, the Qin family would seize this opportunity to take Yueqian back to the capital easily.
In that case, there would be no chance for her to become the Young General’s principal wife. Liu Sun had to think this through carefully.
Currently, the Young General had shown no signs of taking anyone as his principal wife. Therefore, she still had time to become an outstanding woman, someone people admired, the first female noble. She still dreamed of holding a high-ranking position of a woman, titled by the emperor.
One day, when she made good deeds till they were acknowledged, it would naturally bring her more honor, and marrying into the role of the principal wife of a general would not be difficult anymore.
Liu Sun had everything prepared as she planned. Her reputation was already great; she was just one step away. She needed one significant achievement to easily become a woman of high society.
Therefore, what she needed most was time. If she could have more time, as long as Yueqian didn’t reclaim the position of principal wife, Liu Sun believed she had a chance and was the most suitable candidate.
Because of Yueqian’s previous warning, Liu Sun had to be more cautious with her plans. She couldn’t let her plans have loopholes that others could exploit.
Yueqian’s presence should remain here, as the wife of a villager, as she desired. She shouldn’t interfere with Liu Sun’s plans or become someone who could ruin them.
This was all part of Yueqian’s plan, unbeknownst to Liu Sun. Every word Yueqian had left with the story’s heroine was to make her the eyes and ears for herself. At the very least, to Yueqian, Liu Sun seemed the smartest among all the female characters.
Although sometimes not exceedingly clever, she was still considered dangerously intelligent. She wasn’t all-knowing either, since it was about manipulating a person’s mind. If she didn’t know the plotline, she might have met a worser ending. Thus, Yueqian decided not to complicate her journey by altering it, fearing it would change the course of events. freewebnøvel.com
Well, no matter how things changed, Yueqian would find a way to set them right, and Liu Sun’s cooperation was necessary at this point.
"So, are you planning to have Mu Tian confess to being at fault? The penalty would be death. Will she agree?" Liu Sun raised an eyebrow and asked.
She wanted to know the plans of others first. If they were good, she would agree. If not... she was ready to oppose them. She couldn’t let things spiral out of control.
"This Mu Tian is not a good person. She keeps talking about money over and over again. She must be a money-hungry person. Give her a few silver taels, and she would likely agree easily. Besides..., once she acts, she can’t deny it anymore. Catching her red-handed would be best."
"There is still a flaw. If she identifies who hired her, you all still have to face the consequence.”
"Then we won’t hire her directly. We’ll have a tall man do it. Afterward, we’ll pin the blame on that the tall man, saying he is in fact a notorious bandit. The bandit heard the news about the Young Geneal who wanted to eliminate them and had set up a camp in this small village. To weaken them, he hired Mu Tian to do the job." They thought through their plan carefully, and it seemed quite sound.
Liu Sun saw it would not affect Mu Heng and Yueqian. The other party had taken money from the bandit themselves. So, if there was any punishment, it would be Mu Tian who bore it alone. Therefore, she agreed to the plan.
Since this matter was quite significant and time was running short, the women sent their servants to the city to find a fearsome-looking man, who should ideally be from out of town. They instructed him to bring an intestine malfunctioning inducing poison, a potent poison that could cause diarrhea, vomiting, and even death. Of course, neither of the two knew it was poison; otherwise, they wouldn’t have accepted the job.
After giving the money to Mu Tian, the man left, returning to his caravan. He was merely a passerby, and taking such a job was so risky. However, he left no traces behind. No one in this place knew the belonging carrier like him; he came and went without speaking to or identifying himself to Mu Tian. He came, then recognized her from a drawing provided by one of the women.
Mu Tian was distinctive. When the man arrived at the village, he saw her gossiping with others at the entrance. She was the easiest to find among all the villagers. The man quickly completed his assigned task. freeweɓnøvel.com
Moreover, upon seeing the two silver taels, Mu Tian’s eyes widened. She accepted the job without asking any questions, even though she knew it was certainly illegal. Suddenly, someone hired her to sprinkle some strange powder into the soldiers’ food. If it were a good thing to do, why would they need to do it secretly and hire someone else to do it? This was clearly very suspicious, and only a fool would take on such a task.
