Chapter 218: Was It Broken?

That Young Madam was the most embarrassed, for she had said such horrible things in others’ mansion and was caught red-handed by an elder. She blushed and lowered her head. In her hand, she twisted the handkerchief. She had come to realize that she was only a spectator, and it was wrong for her to intervene in the matter.

She took a step back and gave back the ground to Di Fenglan and the Qin sisters. She took a deep breath and suppressed her anger, which was nearly out of control.

She looked at Qin Wanru with vigilance.

Unconsciously, she had let the Second Miss not only play with her emotions but also provoke her.

“Father, the Second Sister borrowed a plate from me, and it is now broken. However, when I lent it to her, I had reminded her that this was a gift from the royals. She had to be careful. She said she would only use it for one day, but now it is broken. What’s to be done about this?”

When Qin Huaiyong came over, Qin Yuru heaved a sigh of relief, and immediately went up and pushed all the blame onto Qin Wanru.

She and Madam Di had an agreement, and she claimed that she borrowed Qin Wanru. Even if Qin Wanru did not want to admit it, the plate was broken at her place. There was no way Qin Wanru could escape from the matter. Even though their father was fond of Qin Wanru, he had to sacrifice her this time.

Breaking a royal gift was equivalent to being unfaithful to the royal family, and their father cannot bear such responsibility.

“A royal gift?” Sure enough, Qin Huaiyong’s expression changed, and his eyes fell on the pile of debris.

“Yes, it is a royal gift, it was a betrothal gift from my mother to my cousin. She gave it to my cousin and aunt and told them that it was a royal gift. However, now Second Miss broke it. She even refused to admit her mistake and wanted to push the blame onto my cousin and aunt. This is a life or death matter, how can my aunt and cousin bear it!”

Di Fenglan went forward immediately.

“Is this real?” Qin Huaiyong’s expression was glum as he looked at Qin Wanru solemnly.

“Father, this is not true!” When Qin Huaiyong looked at her, Qin Wanru calmly answered.

“How is it not true? Not only did I see it, but everyone in the yard saw it. When we came over, the things in your house were smashed. Could it be our fault instead?” Qin Yuru screamed.

Upon hearing her words, Qin Huaiyong’s expression got worse, the veins on his forehead popping out.

Qin Wanru remained calm, and her expression did not fluctuate a little. She walked to the side of Qin Huaiyong and bowed, stood up straight, and pointed at Qin Yuru. “Father, when I came back from my mother’s place, she gave me some pastries that were made in her small kitchen. When I had walked halfway, Meiyan, who was next to Big Sister, knocked down the pastries. Then she sent me a similar plate of pastries as an apology. She said that the big kitchen followed what Mother usually ate.

“The pastry was fragrant and attracted a cat that broke the plate and shredded the two brocades. Then Big Sister came over with Miss Di and this lady, accusing me of breaking the royal plate. Then they said that I tore the brocade from Rui’an Great Elder Princess. The cat that escaped earlier seemed to be the one that Mother brought back from Duke Yong’s Mansion!”

Qin Wanru strained her eyes, as sharp as a knife. “I wonder why are there so many coincidences that happened in our mansion. Even if I have committed a crime, at my age, Father would still be punished for not educating me properly. Father has just become an officer and is about to ride the crest of his career, but already someone tried to set him up!”

Everything that happened showed that someone was trying to set them up. They wanted to harm not only Qin Wanru but also Qin Huaiyong.

If that were the case, this would no longer be a dispute between the mansions, but a fight in the royal court.

Qin Huaiyong was concerned about his career, and he would certainly pay attention to anything related to his career.

When she heard these words, Qin Yuru knew she was in trouble. She panicked and hurriedly said, “Father, don’t listen to her nonsense. No one is going to harm you, how could it be related to you…”

Qin Wanru sneered and interrupted Qin Yuru’s words. “Big sister, do you not understand, or are you just pretending? Father has just arrived in the capital and took on an important role. A lot of people were jealous of him. Your marriage into Duke Yong’s Mansion was only settled after Father was appointed the job. Isn’t that enough to explain the importance of his job?”

Di Fenglan’s mouth shivered, she felt awkward and bit her lips. The reason why her mother agreed to the marriage between Qin Yuru and her big brother was because of her uncle-in-law.

“Uncle, ignore all this nonsense. Whether someone wanted to frame you or not, someone has to take on the responsibility in such a situation. You can’t take everything by yourself. The crime of being unfaithful to the royals, there is no way you can handle it!” Di Fenglan reacted fast. She quickly brought back the topic after a moment of awkwardness.

Qin Huaiyong scanned the people one by one, and his expression turned cold and solemn.

Under his gaze, Qin Yuru, Di Fenglan, and the lady involuntarily lowered their heads. Only Qin Wanru kept smiling as if she didn’t know that she had caused such a big disaster.

An idea flashed through Qin Huaiyong’s mind, and his look got a little gentler. “Wanru, did you really break the royal gift?”

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“Father, how would I dare to do so!” Qin Wanru answered.

“Nonsense, Qin Wanru. This is the royal gift from our mansion!” Di Fenglan shouted, her face turning red with fury.

“Miss Di, the two mansions will have a marriage soon, and we will be relatives. If we get into trouble, what can you gain from it? Why did you try so hard to frame my father? Yujie, take the plate here. I want to ask Miss Di why she is trying to push all the blame onto us indiscriminately. What does she want? Is Duke Yong’s Mansion not satisfied with my big sister?”

After Qin Wanru made her command, Yujie entered the inner room and carefully took out an exquisite plate. Then she respectfully presented it to Qin Huaiyong.

“Father, please take a look. This is the plate that Meiyan, who was a servant of Big Sister, passed to me. Nanny Zheng felt this is a royal gift and asked me to keep it. If not, this plate would have been broken, and I wouldn’t be able to explain it because Big Sister and these two ladies happened to be here and witness it!”

Qin Wanru remained calm as she explained it.

Qin Huaiyong took the plate and walked to the window, examining it in the light. When he saw the symbol from the palace, he heaved a sigh of relief.

If the plate were broken, it could not be explained, just like Qin Wanru said.

He looked at Qin Yuru sternly. “Yuru, what is going on here?”

“I…” Qin Yuru couldn’t believe what she had heard. She took a look at Di Fenglan, and said in a trembling voice, “Father, let… let me take a look!”

“How is there another plate?”

“You better take a closer look!” Qin Huaiyong sneered and handed the plate to Qin Yuru.

Qin Yuru’s trembling hand took the plate and held it in the light. According to the method that Madam Di taught her, she took a closer look. She almost lost hold of the plate, which was indeed a royal gift.

Her gaze fell on the broken pieces on the ground. “What are those then?”

“Big sister, I don’t know what you think, but you are my big sister, and we are family. Even though we had held some grudges against one another, it is only a matter between us. It was only a small argument. We are both young girls who did not see eye to eye, but it was no big deal. How can you do such things? If this plate were really broken, do you think the responsibility would not fall on our father?”

Qin Wanru spoke calmly, her eyes full of disappointment.

Qin Yuru took a look at Di Fenglan and back at Qin Huaiyong again. She couldn’t utter a word. She pointed at the pieces on the ground and then at Qin Wanru. Her legs wobbled and she fainted.

Qin Huaiyong quickly caught the plate, but he ignored Qin Yuru. He looked at Qin Yuru disappointedly. He could tolerate a selfish daughter, but not a stupid daughter.

Mei Xue reacted fast. She grabbed hold of Qin Yuru in a hurry, took a step back and shouted, “Miss, Miss!”

Qin Huaiyong ignored Qin Yuru. Staring at Di Fenglan, he asked sternly, “Is this plate a betrothal gift from your mansion?”.

“Yes… it belongs to our mansion…” What happened had surprised everyone. Di Fenglan had yet to recover from the shock and stuttered her reply.

“Wasn’t it a sure thing to break the plate? At that time, she could say anything she liked. Why was that plate still intact!”

“Is your mansion not satisfied with us? So you did this?” Qin Huaiyong coldly waved his sleeves. “There is no use talking to you. I will speak to Duke Yongkang. I wonder what have I done for you to frame my mansion!”

Qin Huaiyong was furious this time. He had no politeness in his words. That killer instinct he gained from the battlefield leaked from his icy voice. Di Fenglan and the other Miss turned pale. They retreated a few steps and stabilized themselves.

The suffocating killing instinct of military commanders from the battlefield was not something that two noble Misses could withstand.

“Oh… Uncle, this is really a betrothal gift from our mansion!” Di Fenglan stuttered and tried to put on her best smile. “Fortunately, Second Miss had changed the plate. However, she did not mention it, and we thought that… the plate was broken!”

Di Fenglan didn’t know what she was talking about. Everything happened too fast and she was still in a daze.

“Father, look here!” Qin Wanru took a step forward and pointed to the plate in Qin Huaiyong’s hands.

Qin Huaiyong looked at the place where Qin Wanru pointed. His expression changed. He immediately understood everything when the bits and pieces were put together. He banged on the table hard, and a corner of the table fell…