Once Mrs. Lu left, Song Ci cast a faint glance at Nanny Gong.
"You see, does she really need me to make a decision for her? Her adulterous husband betrayed her, yet she can still muster the will to plan for his reassignment. It’s just the two of us old bones here overthinking things."
Mrs. Lu returned to Plum Garden with a blank expression and sat down. The more she thought about it, the more ashamed and aggrieved she felt, and she lay on the kang table sobbing.
Nanny Zhou lifted the curtain to come in and sighed when she saw this.
After crying for a moment, Mrs. Lu wiped her eyes and said coldly, "Nanny, later have Mu Tou make a trip to Shanxi, and tell him to be sharp and find out every detail about the situation in Datong Prefecture for me."
Nanny Zhou said, "It’s not that I don’t want my boy to make this trip, but Madam, Mu Tou is a familiar face. Many people in Datong City know him, and to avoid anyone hiding the truth, should we perhaps send someone unfamiliar?"
"I can’t trust anyone else. Have him disguise himself. Once he enters the city, find someone new to inquire for him, and discreetly investigate himself. By combining the two, he can discern whether the information is true or false." Mrs. Lu replied coldly.
Nanny Zhou, seeing her expression, agreed.
"Did you mention it to the Old Madam?" Nanny Zhou asked tentatively, seeing her displeasure.
Mrs. Lu shook her head, "Even Young Master Qing hasn’t explained the matter, and I can’t see anyone. How do I know if this is valid? If it’s not certain, wouldn’t mentioning it be making a fool of ourselves?"
She paused and sneered, "Even if I mentioned it, Nanny, do you think she would make the decision for me?"
Nanny Zhou choked on her words.
"Not being the biological one means not being the biological one. There’s always a barrier, and no matter how cordial she appears to the third house, it’s just maintaining a facade. How could she truly be so magnanimous!" Mrs. Lu gritted her teeth, "She didn’t like me from the start, and if it weren’t for Young Master Qing pleading with the old master back then, I fear I wouldn’t have even set foot in the Song Family. Tell me, would she genuinely stand up for me? She probably laughs at me behind my back instead!"
Song Ci: Looks like you’re letting paranoia get the better of you.
"Madam, the old servant thinks the Old Madam is open-minded now and shouldn’t be as you think." Nanny Zhou said tactfully.
Mrs. Lu chuckled coldly, "Even if she is open-minded, dislike is dislike. A humble concubine-daughter-in-law like me can’t possibly catch her eye."
This was just getting into a dead end.
Nanny Zhou, a truly faithful servant, counseled, "Madam, don’t worry. You are the legitimate wife, after all, with both a son and a daughter, and you have an Imperial Decree in your favor. Who can surpass you? Moreover, you are back in the capital, getting along well with the other Madam. Instead of fretting whether the Third Master has other intentions, wouldn’t it be better to firmly grasp your own authority? Madam, the children still rely on you!"
Mrs. Lu felt a chill in her heart.
"As the official wife, who is genuinely kind and pleasant to a concubine? You have gained the favor and support of the two Madams, and as fellow official wives, they stand with you in solidarity. And the Young Master and Miss, being legitimate heirs, get along well with the elder brothers and sisters. Madam, you have no reason to panic. Even if that little wretch surnamed Bai enters the house, even if several come, they can’t threaten your or the two Young Master’s and Miss’s status, can they?"
"Madam, at the moment, anxiety and anger are useless. It’s essential to keep everything you should within your grasp—that is the foundation for you and the Young Masters’ and Miss’s survival."
There was one more thing she didn’t say, that wasn’t today’s situation already foreseen when they left back then?