in2ebook Chapter 170 Is it really your family's secret recipe?
Chapter 170 Is it really your family's secret recipe?
"If you don't know how, then learn." Qin Yizhen glanced at her and gestured to the maid beside her to help her up. "The ground is cold, and you are pregnant, so don't kneel."
"Yes......"
After being helped to her feet, Aunt Yuan became much more docile and stood up properly. She was no longer the seductive woman who had tried to cling to anyone and take a few puffs of her perfume.
Qin Yizhen said, "Since you have entered the manor as a concubine, you should behave yourself. If the mistress is kind and can tolerate you, behaving yourself will allow you to live a peaceful life. If the mistress is intolerant or there is competition for favor in the inner quarters, you can use some methods, as long as you do not harm anyone, that is also acceptable."
"You should never do anything to harm others. If you can do it once, you will definitely do it again. No matter how capable you are, if you walk by the river often, you will eventually get your shoes wet. One day, you will suffer the consequences and send yourself to hell."
Aunt Yuan's expression changed slightly, her fingers digging tightly into her cuffs. She wanted to say something, but when she thought of Pei Yutang, who could protect her, being taken away and flogged, she immediately dared not utter a sound.
She had seen the princess from afar before, and had discussed with others the romantic affair between the princess and the Marquis of Pingxi. She had even used many metaphors to describe the princess's appearance.
Only now that I've gotten closer do I realize what it means for royal dignity to be inviolable.
The dignified heir of a noble family, she only said "disrespectful to the princess," and she ordered him to be tortured and beaten at will.
Offending someone like that is a crime; even nine lives wouldn't be enough.
Aunt Yuan felt a little scared.
I should have behaved better when she came in.
"Aunt Yuan," Qin Yizhen called out to her.
"I...I am here." Aunt Yuan came to her senses.
"I have been asked by the Min and Pei families, and today I would like to ask you two questions. Are you willing to tell me the truth?"
"Of course I'm willing."
"I'm glad you're willing." Qin Yizhen looked at her quietly, then added, "But you'd better promise that everything you say is true. If you dare to lie or deceive me..."
Qin Yizhen's gaze fell smoothly onto her stomach.
Aunt Yuan felt the baby in her belly move and became very uneasy.
Qin Yizhen said, "You are pregnant, so I naturally won't do anything to you. However, this child will eventually be born. If all else fails, Prince Pei can take your place. Do you understand?"
Aunt Yuan bit her lip, feeling resentful: "Is the princess going to side with the Min family?"
"That is indeed my intention," Qin Yizhen said frankly. "However, no matter how biased I am, justice will always come first. If it was something you did, I hope you will admit it truthfully. If it wasn't something you did, you don't have to admit it."
“Justice always comes first…” Aunt Yuan murmured twice, then suddenly let out a sneer.
There may be justice in the world, but not everywhere.
It's like... there are always dark corners in this world where the sun can't shine, dark and damp, never able to see the light.
Seeing that she was standing there somewhat dazed, Qin Yizhen instructed the person next to her, "Bring a chair over so she can sit down and talk."
Aunt Yuan also felt a little uncomfortable standing. Seeing that Qin Yizhen didn't seem to be faking what she said, she sat down. But when she sat down, her gaze towards Qin Yizhen became somewhat complicated.
Qin Yizhen looked at Madam Min, letting Madam Min ask the question herself. She had been talking too much and her mouth was dry, so she didn't want to speak anymore.
Madam Min nodded and then asked Aunt Yuan, "Is it true that Prince Pei said he saw Siyue hit you, which is why he hit Siyue back, causing you to lose your child?"
"Of course it's true."
"But Siyue said that you provoked her first, and in her anger, she attacked you."
"Madam Min, you're mistaken," Concubine Yuan refused to admit. She touched her belly and said, "There was some misunderstanding between my sister and me, and we did have a quarrel, but it wasn't me who grabbed her hand and made her hit me..."
Aunt Yuan had ill intentions, but it was Min Siyue who struck first.
Madam Min frowned: "But I heard that you already knew Siyue was pregnant, which is why you angered Siyue and tried to kill the child in her womb."
Aunt Yuan paused, thought for a moment, and said, "Madam Min, you are blaming me even more. I am not a doctor, how could I know whether my sister is pregnant or not? Not to mention me, no one in the entire household knows that my sister is pregnant, how could I possibly know?"
This is something that Aunt Yuan can deny. No one knows about it, and she insists that she doesn't know anything. Her argument with Min Siyue was also a coincidence. Therefore, it is indeed impossible to determine whether this was her fault.
At most, the blame can be placed on Pei Yutang. Pei Yutang should not have laid a hand on his wife without distinguishing right from wrong, which led to all the subsequent events.
Madam Min frowned again, but having no evidence, she had to move on for now. After thinking for a moment, she asked again:
"I heard from Prince Pei that you are a kind-hearted person. Seeing that my Siyue has not been able to conceive, you obtained some ancestral secret recipes and gave them to Prince Pei to take back and cook for Siyue to help her conceive as soon as possible. Is this true?"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and her pupils contracted slightly.
"It's...it's true..."
She personally handed the medicine to Pei Yutang and instructed him not to tell Min Siyue, but only to say that it was a medicine obtained from an old gentleman outside. Pei Yutang was a witness to this, so she couldn't deny it even if she wanted to.
Madam Min pressed further, "Is it truly your family's secret recipe?"
Aunt Yuan: "..."
"Is it really a good medicine for health and fertility?"
"..."
Aunt Yuan opened her mouth, but didn't know how to start.
The ancestral secret recipe is certainly not a secret recipe passed down through generations, nor is it a good medicine for health and fertility.
If she admits "yes," then there's something wrong with the medicine, and she's lying. If she says "no," then she gave the medicine to Pei Yutang, who then brought it back for Min Siyue to take, which is equally malicious.
Whether she admits it or not, it seems she can't escape this fate.
Seeing her hesitation, Qin Yizhen asked, "What's wrong? Haven't you figured out how to say it?"
Madam Min sneered, "Since you can't make the decision, then let our Min family make it. Bring me the medicine."
As soon as Madam Min finished speaking, a maid came up with a tray, in the center of which was a celadon medicine bowl containing a thick brown liquid.
When Aunt Yuan saw the bowl of medicine, her face changed drastically: "Madam Min, what are you trying to do? You mustn't do anything reckless! I'm carrying the Pei family's child, you..."
"This lady will naturally not act recklessly." Madam Min looked at the Earl of Changyang and his wife. The Earl of Changyang closed his eyes, while his wife looked anxious and flustered.
"Do you remember this medicine? This medicine is made from the medicines you brought back for Prince Pei. Since you think it is a good medicine to nourish the body and help with fertility, then drink this bowl of soup."
"However, I'll make this clear from the start: you prepared this medicine yourself, brewing it under the watchful eyes of everyone. If anything happens to the child in your womb, it's your own fault, and has nothing to do with the Min family..."