Chapter 81: Enthusiasm to Help
When Qin Yining and Bingtang stepped into the Garden of Loving Piety, Qin-mama was waiting anxiously beneath the hallway roof. She quickly walked forward to meet them and spoke in a low voice, “The old dowager is keeping the senior madame company. The senior madame is still in a faint and the old dowager is extremely anxious. She’s gotten even more so with your absence.”
The old servant’s meaning were clear. “I was afraid that the doctor wouldn’t get here in time because of the distance,” Qin Yining explained as she wiped off some sweat from her brow. She turned to Bingtang to urge the girl on. “Go take a look at my mother.”
Bingtang nodded once, and broke into a trot. Qin-mama was touched by Qin Yining’s great worry. It would seem that in times of crisis, one’s own daughter is always the most useful. It didn’t seem like Miss Huining was greatly upset at recent events at Ding Manor. The old servant had also carefully asked around just now and learned that it’d been the sixth miss who’d delivered the message to the ancestral hall. The sixth miss was well known to have a long-standing friendship with Miss Huining, so the message’s true intent and mastermind were no mysteries to solve.
Qin-mama sighed. “Don’t worry, miss. The senior madame is likely just overly saddened. We have to experience all sorts of good and bad in life. Life is only complete after weathering trials and disasters, no? Don’t be sad, just comfort Senior Madame well.”
“Qin-mama speaks truly.” Qin Yining nodded and continued with a wry smile. “To be honest, I really am panicking. Although I haven’t returned home for long, my maternal relatives were the second closest group of people I had other than our own family. Now that such a situation has occurred, I don’t feel good about it either. But as a girl, there’s not much else I can do.” The two had reached the top of the stairs. “All I can think of is to comfort mother well so that she won’t be sad for long, and being a filial granddaughter to the old dowager. That’s all.”
“Indeed, miss.” The old servant nodded at the young girl’s words. She knew that Qin Yining was mature beyond her years and was in no danger of acting rashly. The old dowager had been worried that the fourth miss would do something extreme for her maternal relations. It seemed that had been a superfluous worry.
By this time, Bingtang had taken a look at née Sun, and met Qin Yining at the door with a report. “Senior Madame seems to have fainted due to extreme sorrow. We can try just having her rest well and take some calming medicine when she wakes.”
The old dowager finally heaved a sigh when she heard that there was nothing seriously wrong with her daughter-in-law. She can’t blame me for anything even though she’s fainted in front of my doors. She rearranged her face into a dark expression, “Forget it. Let her rest after taking some medicine. We can talk about the rest later.”
The old dowager didn’t want to end up saddled with the reputation of an evil mother-in-law either, but née Sun had been too offensive earlier. She had even called her an old hag! And now she couldn’t even take née Sun to task?! Well, she couldn’t very well throw a fainted daughter-in-law into the ancestral hall as punishment, could she? Not to mention that everyone knew disaster had just befallen née Sun’s family. She sure knows when to faint! She doesn’t faint earlier or later, but right at this moment! The old dowager glared at the unconscious née Sun before stalking out with a cold expression. She didn’t speak a word to Qin Yining.