Chapter 137: Get to the Bottom of It

Lady Xue walked in the direction she had just glimpsed, following the path etched in her memory. The Duke of England’s estate was a prestigious family of official lineage with deep, tangled roots and a multitude of male members serving in the government. In these respects, it far surpassed the Jiang family, the maternal clan of the Empress Dowager.

The Xue clan was renowned for its literary prowess; their ancestors once held the prestigious reputation of having five scholars in a single household. Over time, their fortune and longevity continued, ultimately securing the hereditary title of the Duke’s estate.

The Jiang family, however, was quite different. While they lacked prominent civil officials in the imperial court, they produced a steady stream of military commanders among their sons. Jiang Lan’s father—the illustrious Heir Jiang, Jiang Jie—was a rare example of a Confucian general. With a record of brilliant military achievements and the merit of having supported the founding emperor’s rise to power, many of the younger generation had also followed the path of the sword. Perhaps for this reason, while the Jiang clan flourished in number, the men often perished on the battlefield. The remaining sons were raised by widows and orphans, though in recent years, a few promising scholars had finally begun to emerge. Yet, perhaps due to that innate spirit of blood and battle, the Jiang clan remained the most unified group in all of Jiankang.

The Xue clan was vast, and although the Duke of England’s estate was not the direct line of the main branch, it continued the family tradition of branching out. The estate itself housed five households: the first, second, and fourth branches were of legitimate descent, while the third and fifth were born of concubines.

Compared to the third branch, the fifth was far more privileged. The mother of the fifth master was a cousin of the Old Duke, and the two had shared a deep affection. The reason Old Madam Wang always managed to shield Lady Xue, no matter how great her mistakes, had much to do with her own early experiences.

Although Old Madam Wang was born a daughter of the prominent Wang clan, she was not as distinguished as her cousin from the main branch. At the time, the Xue clan had intended to seek a marriage with that very cousin for the Old Duke, who was then the heir. Unfortunately, the Old Duke—a noble heir in his own right—did not catch her eye; she had set her heart on a candidate preparing for the spring imperial examinations. A promising scholar was hardly a rare sight in the Wang family, where they were as common as pebbles. Yet, Lady Wang was determined to marry this scholar, who would eventually become the current Chancellor Gu.

Though the Xue clan failed to secure a bride from the main branch, they were still determined to marry a daughter of the Wang family. By then, most of the girls of suitable age were already betrothed. In the Wang household, a girl coming of age was something families fought over; it was hardly a matter that would fall to the Xue clan as an easy pick. Yet, whether by fate or misfortune, one young lady was available: the seventh daughter of the Wang family, whose fiancé had died just before their wedding. She was the woman who would become the current Old Madam of the Duke of England’s estate.

Thus, Lady Wang (the seventh daughter) married into the Duke’s estate. She had grown up with many siblings and cousins, and her parents were deeply devoted to each other, so she had no experience with the common household strife of concubines vying for favor. Only upon arriving at the Duke’s estate did she learn of the decadent and licentious nature of the nobility.

To ensure the continuation of their lineage, every branch of the Xue family kept numerous wives and concubines; the number of illegitimate children was impossible to track. Her husband was, in fact, one of the better ones. He had no concubines before marriage, only a few maids provided by his mother, whom he dismissed immediately upon his wedding.

Within two months, she was pregnant. Lady Wang initially felt quite happy, but no sooner had the news arrived than her mother-in-law helped her husband take in a niece from her own family as a concubine, even holding a banquet to give her face. Feeling aggrieved, Lady Wang tried to confide in her husband, but he was neither kind nor understanding. Though he offered superficial comfort, he grew increasingly distant, eventually reducing his presence to nothing more than his marital duties. Once he was dressed, he acted like a stranger; the bond between them became paper-thin.

As for that cousin-concubine, whether it was due to poor health or other reasons, she saw no results despite being with him night after night. Conversely, Lady Wang, who had been ignored after the birth of her first child, went on to bear several legitimate sons and daughters. It was only after a housemaid had been elevated to the rank of concubine and bore a son that the cousin-concubine finally became pregnant. The child she produced, though handsome, was frail, like a sickly kitten, and barely survived.

The second master of the second branch disliked study, preferring to specialize in trade, and was, in fact, the wealthiest among the brothers. The third master, though born to a maid elevated to concubine status, was the most upright and righteous of the brothers; he now held the fourth-rank position of Left Assistant Censor-in-Chief and was a good friend of Yan Jin. The fourth branch was the youngest son of Old Madam Wang; he was several years older than the current Lady Xue of the Yong’an Earl’s estate, but only half an hour older than Jiang Lan’s mother. Indeed, Lady Xue—Jiang Lan’s mother—was the twin sister of the Fourth Master of the Duke’s estate. The fifth branch was born to that cousin-concubine so doted upon by the previous Duke, and he was the last of that generation in the Duke’s household. The Fourth Master had used his connections to secure a post outside the capital years ago, and with his departure, the vast estate remained largely occupied by the rest of the family.

Lady Xue tiptoed along the path. She had been crying for a while, and she was determined to catch her eldest brother; she could not let her carefully prepared appearance go to waste today.

"Lady Gu’s eyes looked suspicious earlier. She must have gone behind my back to see my brother, trying to stop him from helping me. It is not as if she hasn't done such things before," Lady Xue whispered to herself.

If Lady Gu had been nearby to hear this, she surely would have wanted to discard her husband, Xue Zuo. *What kind of sister is this! You created this mess, you can clean it up yourself.*

At that moment, Lady Xue encountered her personal maid, who was returning in a rush while carrying a box of pastries. "Huan’er, did I not tell you to keep watch at the gate? You were supposed to find an excuse to report to me the moment the Duke returned. Why did you actually go to buy pastries? Who is watching the gate now?"

The maid was breathless from running and took several moments to find her voice. "My Lady... I saw with my own eyes that the Duke was escorted down by his friend, Master Wu. Looking at the sun, it must have been a quarter of an hour ago."

"What were you doing before that?" Lady Xue was furious, feeling the girl had nearly ruined her important plans.

Terrified, the maid hurried to explain. "My Lady, that is not how it happened. I intended to return and report to you first thing this morning. But halfway there, I was intercepted by Mother Fang. I made up an excuse that I had accidentally lost some money and was going back to beg for your forgiveness. That old woman is cunning; she immediately shoved a pouch of silver into my hand, saying it was for the sake of the relationship between the two estates, and that she feared something would be noticed. I had no choice but to take the money and rush to buy the items. I never imagined the shop would be so crowded, so I had to pay extra for convenience."

"Money is a trivial matter; missing the main event is what matters," Lady Xue muttered. "No wonder Mother Fang was whispering to my shrewd sister-in-law earlier. I felt something was off. To think they really conspired to keep me from seeing my eldest brother, and sent that second nephew of mine—a young man with no rank and no experience—in his stead!"

Growing more incensed by the second, Lady Xue lowered her fan. "Impossible! Today, I must get to the bottom of this!"