Chapter 39: Chapter Thirty-Nine

Winter had passed, and the late spring chill was the coldest. Girls who liked to dress well had already put on their spring clothes; as the saying goes, thin spring clothes mean the spring days are the coldest, and the wind blowing on the body feels like a knife cut, so much that even clothing cannot block it.

All the servants in Cheng Lingyan's courtyard had been replaced; the newly cultivated personal maid was someone she had won over after spending a considerable amount of her own private money.

Cheng Lingyan resented Lu Bao'er in her heart; if not for her, Cheng Lingyan would not have ended up in this situation, which provoked Old Lady Su into genuine anger.

At this moment Cheng Lingyan recalled the good qualities of the maid Hong Su, whom she had sold away; if Hong Su were still around, when she cried out hungry at night, the little maid would always find a way to get her favorite pastries.

Unlike now, when ordering someone to the kitchen requires the excuse that Old Lady Su has slept and the kitchen servants dare not light a fire for fear of disturbing her, thus shutting her up. It's a pity—Old Lady Su gave her a chance, but she failed to protect her own servants; she cannot blame others for being ruthless.

Cheng Lingyan had been confined to her quarters for a month before she could finally go out for a breath of air. She was extremely vexed, and sitting in her own sedan chair she intended to go to the Gold and Jade Pavilion to pick out some fashionable, fun ornaments.

For a young lady from a great household like her, the shopkeeper would not let customers stand and pick items; instead, they would summon an attentive hall attendant or maid to escort them to an upstairs private room, where the shop's treasures would be carefully displayed.

Accustomed to being fawned over when out, Cheng Lingyan strutted upstairs feeling pleased with herself. In the private room she drank a cup of tea, tried on several sets of headwear, and finally ordered a set of hairpins crafted with the inlaid kingfisher feather technique, featuring gourd-shaped pine stone set in a welded base.

Cheng Lingyan was about to leave when a maid suddenly said to her, "Miss, something's wrong."

"What's the matter to cause such panic?" Cheng Lingyan asked, frowning displeased.

The maid gave her a look, signaling Cheng Lingyan to send away the idle people on both sides of the private room, then said, "Downstairs there is a woman who keeps insisting she wants to see you!"

Cheng Lingyan pouted: "It's just a woman; couldn't we just send someone to drive her off? I am the maternal granddaughter of the Princess of Qingping—does she get to see me whenever she wants?"

"But..." the maid's expression looked off; she hemmed and hawed for a while before saying, "But this woman quietly told the servant that she recognizes the goldfish-shaped birthmark on your abdomen!"

Cheng Lingyan startled, knowing that for a lady of an official family, birthmarks and moles must be kept strictly confidential by her personal maid and wet nurse, not leaked in the slightest, precisely to prevent ruffians from deliberately using these private marks to slander the lady's purity and spread rumors of an illicit relationship.

In other words, how could anyone besides Cheng Lingyan's personal attendants know about the birthmark on her abdomen? This woman has some background; she must not be allowed to spout nonsense outside!

Cheng Lingyan was not completely foolish about this; she quickly had the maid summon the woman inside. The woman was called Wu Cuizhen, and upon seeing Cheng Lingyan she suddenly raised her voice, wailing: "Oh son! My poor son! Mother has searched for you with great hardship!"

Cheng Lingyan jumped, stammering: "What nonsense are you spouting? I am the eldest daughter of the main house of the Cheng Clan, and also the maternal granddaughter of the Princess of Qingping—why are you shouting nonsense outside? Aren't you afraid the wind will tear your tongue, letting the officials arrest you and throw you in jail?"

Seeing her own daughter treat her this way, Wu Cuizhen felt bitter anger. Previously she had too many children; she had sent her youngest daughter away, receiving a chest of silver and jewels, and at the time she thought the deal was extremely profitable.

Actually, if the family were a bit more ruthless, they would surely have killed Wu Cuizhen to silence her, avoiding future trouble. But Old Master Fu is a kind-hearted man; spending money to take someone's daughter is already damaging to his passive virtue, so he would not harbor such relentless intentions.

Wu Cuizhen was fond of gambling, having brought her husband under control. When she took the pearls and jade to pawn, she discovered that those pearls and jade belonged to the Fu family.

How many Fu families could there be in the capital? Surely it must be the one belonging to the Princess of Qingping? Thinking this, Wu Cuizhen's thoughts began to race.

She was waiting for the Fu family to raise her daughter for her; once the girl grew up, she could use her to pressure Cheng Lingyan, to make her mother keep quiet. If they gave her real gold and silver, Wu Cuizhen promised not to spread even half a rumor.

Today she truly managed to get a hold on Cheng Lingyan—since she is her biological daughter, providing for her mother's old age and burial is not excessive, is it? What's wrong with taking a bit of her money? If she refuses to acknowledge the debt, Wu Cuizhen will let everyone know that Cheng Lingyan is an impostor, and see how she can still enjoy blessings in the Fu household!

---------------------Side Note---------------------

Tomorrow it goes live~~The crooked neck of Deng Deng is: Dear Grass Lamp Master

You can come find me to play~

Then, if everyone subscribes when it goes live, there will occasionally be bonus updates~~

I've said many times that Deng Deng's book is set in an alternate world, so everything in this era is decided by Deng Deng.

Some readers complain they can't afford salt, who says ordinary people in ancient times couldn't afford salt? They must be poorly informed.... Moreover, Deng Deng's era is an alternate world!

Seeing this really affects my mood; from now on I'll just block them directly! Deng Deng also wants to happily finish writing this book—if you think something's wrong, you can go complain about illogical fluff elsewhere; no need to complain here, it's really annoying....