Chapter 250

Chapter 250

Meanwhile, Madam Bai sat before the dressing table in her rooms, removing her makeup. Only one trusted maid remained with her. When the maid reported that Shen Si had sent people to retrieve Baihe’s body, Madam Bai stared silently at her weary, unadorned reflection in the mirror.

Nor had she expected the Master to plead with Shen Si on Madam Luo’s behalf. She had long since ceased to care, or so she thought, yet a faint pain still pierced her heart.

Watching Madam Bai’s expression, Nanny Zhang murmured, “Perhaps Concubine Luo woke and said something to First Master?”

“Didn’t they say he lost his temper after returning and punished the servants in her courtyard?”

Madam Bai remained silent. Her scheme had been intended to kill two birds with one stone: diminish Madam Luo’s place in the Master’s heart and leave the Old Madam suspicious of Ji Hanyi over the mounted bandits. Either way, Madam Bai would emerge the winner.

Yet the result had not been entirely satisfactory.

Madam Luo mattered more to the Master than she had imagined.

Ji Hanyi was also steadier and calmer than expected. She did not simply follow the current and demand blood. Nor did the Old Madam seem to harbor any lasting misgivings about her.

Madam Bai gazed darkly at her reflection, then glanced at Nanny Zhang. “Do not mention this again. Make certain everything concerning Baihe is dealt with cleanly.”

Nanny Zhang nodded quickly and whispered in her ear, “Rest assured, Madam. Baihe died willingly.”

Madam Bai leaned her head back against the chair and sighed. “What a waste of a chess piece.”

Massaging her shoulders, Nanny Zhang said, “Baihe belonged to Duke Rong’s Residence. It was her good fortune to die for Madam.”

Baihe had once been a household-born servant of Duke Rong’s Residence. Not long after Madam Bai married into the Shen Residence, Concubine Luo gained the Master’s favor. Madam Bai arranged for Baihe to be sold to a broker, erasing her original identity, then bought her back as though she were a new servant and planted her beside Concubine Luo. More than ten years passed without Baihe ever being used. Now, after a single assignment, she was dead-and had accomplished very little.

Madam Bai rubbed her brow. She was about to pray for Shen Changling before the incense altar when a maid announced First Master’s arrival. Her face went still. She dismissed every attendant, then slowly rose and leaned wearily against the cushions on the arhat bed.

As soon as Shen Su entered and saw her reclining there, he walked over. “Do you know what happened in the residence today?”

Madam Bai glanced at him but said nothing.

Shen Su had always respected and treated her considerately. She was nobly born, had devoted herself to him through the years, and managed the residence capably. Though her manner was colder than usual, he thought little of it and sat beside her.

After a moment, he continued, “Mother summoned me today and scolded me over the rumors circulating these past two days. She said I had failed to keep my courtyard in order and feared we had also offended our sister-in-law.”

“I will have to rely on you more these next few days. Visit Mother and our sister-in-law often. Do not let discord arise in the residence.”

Shen Su took the soft hand resting at her waist, lowering his voice. “I know you have always handled such matters well.”

Only then did Madam Bai open her eyes. She looked at Shen Su without expression and said quietly, “I did it.”

Shen Su froze. It was only after she repeated herself that he understood. His expression changed violently, and he sprang to his feet, pointing at her in anger. He meant to berate her, but at the sight of her face, he restrained himself. “You… how could you…”

Madam Bai met his gaze calmly. “How could I do such a thing?”

Confronted by those placid eyes, Shen Su fell silent.

Reclining again, Madam Bai spoke slowly. “I was the legitimate daughter of the Eldest Branch of Duke Rong’s Residence. The household may have been declining, but our ancestors won great merit, and the family still had deep foundations. My elder brother was a regional commander with troops under his authority. If you had not been adopted into Mother-in-law’s line, you would have remained merely the son of a concubine. I could never have married you.”

“But you were adopted at seventeen and became Mother-in-law’s only son. She was already advanced in years, so my father eagerly pursued the match. It was not you he valued, but the status of the Shen Residence.”

Shen Su had never heard her speak this way. Throughout their marriage, Madam Bai had conducted herself impeccably. His colleagues envied him for having such a capable wife, and he had always counted himself fortunate.

But what she said was true. Whatever its present decline, the ancestors of Duke Rong’s Residence had once campaigned beside the Late Emperor. Their merit remained, and theirs was still a great clan. As the legitimate daughter of the Eldest Branch, Madam Bai had been raised in luxury and honor.

Shen Su, by contrast, was merely the unfavored son of a concubine. Had he not been adopted, he could never have secured his footing in the Office of Transmission, and Madam Bai could never have married him.
Shen Su’s face went still. Moving closer, he softened his voice despite himself. “Why bring up such things now?”

“I believe you acted in a moment of confusion. I do not intend to blame you. We can continue living as before and put this affair behind us.”

“Only do not commit another act that damages the bonds within this family. Our sister-in-law is gentle and has no intention of pursuing the matter further.”

Madam Bai’s expression did not change at his soothing words. She did not even look at him. With lowered eyes, she continued, “Damages the bonds? Shen Su, in all the years since I married you, what have I ever done wrong?”

Shen Su had no answer.

Madam Bai continued slowly, “I still remember what Fifth Younger Brother was like as a child-proud, aloof, and unwilling to concede defeat. He had endless ideas and constantly argued with his tutors until both sides were red in the face. He often drove them away in fury.”

“Father-in-law was busy from dawn until night and had no time to oversee Fifth Younger Brother’s studies. You returned early from the yamen and patiently explained his lessons to him. You gave him all your patience, and he listened to you. When he was five or six, he came to your courtyard at first light to recite his lessons. Afraid of delaying your attendance at morning court, you washed and dressed half an hour earlier every day to wait for him.”

“When he learned riding and archery at eight or nine, you stayed beside him with the same unwavering care. You never showed such patience in teaching even Changqin or Changling. The injury in your leg came from saving Fifth Younger Brother.”

“I remember the day you pulled him from beneath the horse’s hooves. The Old Madam wept and made him kowtow to you. She said you had saved his life and that he must remember the debt forever.”

Shen Su sighed silently. “Why bring up things that happened so long ago?”

Madam Bai’s lips twitched. “They are not merely old stories. Since coming to the Shen Residence, you have never failed anyone in this family.”

“Then there was the year I was pregnant with Changling. The Old Madam suddenly fell gravely ill, suffering vomiting and diarrhea for over a month. I tended her day and night despite my heavy belly. I privately told you I wanted to rest, but you said that with the Old Madam so ill, how could a daughter-in-law rest? You forced me to endure.”

“You yourself braved the wind and snow to Dazhao Temple, kneeling on every step as you climbed to obtain a protective talisman for her.”

“The Old Madam recovered, but the strain harmed my pregnancy. Changling came a month early. I hemorrhaged during childbirth and nearly died.”

“The cold also settled into your injured knee. Even now, it aches every winter.”

Shen Su closed his eyes, his fingers trembling faintly.

Madam Bai studied him. “After the Old Madam recovered, she held your hand and said through tears that you had treated her better than a natural son. She said your name had been entered into the clan genealogy and you would forever be the eldest son of the Shen Family.”

Madam Bai fixed her gaze on him. “Do you still remember?”

Shen Su did not speak. He had done so much partly to secure his own future. He had not been adopted until seventeen, and Shen Si was born soon afterward. If Shen Su failed to conduct himself impeccably, his place in the residence would become awkward and precarious.

But the Old Madam had indeed spoken those words, and they had brought him comfort. By acknowledging him as the Shen Family’s eldest son and entering him in the clan genealogy, she had affirmed his identity.

For all his striving, what he sought was simply a legitimate place. Once that place was secure and his standing in the Shen Residence firm, his own birth mother could live better as well.

Indeed, he had long since moved her out and settled her in a separate house, freeing her from her former circumstances-all because the Old Madam had acknowledged his position.

Shen Su looked at Madam Bai. “What are you trying to say?”

Her face remained calm. “When Fifth Younger Brother was born, the Shen Family had not yet divided its households. He was the youngest of his generation in the clan, so everyone called him Fifth Younger Brother. But the family divided seventeen years ago. You are now the First Master of this residence. Why does Shen Si still call you Fourth Brother? If he truly saw you as family, he should call you Eldest Brother.”

Shen Su sighed helplessly. “I was adopted at seventeen. Who does not know that? Who does not know my background? Ah Si called me Fourth Brother for seven years, and I grew accustomed to it. Changling and Changqin are used to it too. Why quibble over a form of address?”

“Besides, by the generational order between Ah Si and me, Fourth Brother is not wrong. Those in the household across the way still use the old forms of address, do they not? That is what happens when a clan divides late, unlike families that separate early. Why fixate on it?”

Madam Bai sneered. “Why? Perhaps you can say I am imagining too much about a mere form of address, since the generation of Shen Si’s eldest uncle still uses the old terms. But Fifth Younger Brother has been married for less than a month, and already the Old Madam wants our sister-in-law to manage the household and intends to hand her all the authority currently in my hands. What do you make of that?”