She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

The butler was terrified and uneasy, never expecting that something would happen to Madam Shen's confidante.

Madam Shen's face turned pale, revealing a fierce look.

The steward dared not look up: "This old servant will go and investigate immediately."

Shen Mingzhu stared blankly at Wei's mother, whose eyes and mouth were open, her hands clenched, and muddy water dripping from her clothes. Her belly was slightly swollen, and foam was coming out of her mouth and nose.

This was the first time she had ever seen a dead person, and just moments before, this person had been smiling at her and saying, "Miss, you are a precious jewel, while Shen Qingtan is nothing but a piece of rubble that pricks your feet. She's not even worthy of carrying your shoes, and she's not worth your attention. This old servant will protect what belongs to you with Madam, and we won't let those nobodies steal it away."

Shen Mingzhu's mind went blank, and her legs were so weak that she could barely stand. It was Wan Dong who was beside her who helped her up.

Aunt Liu and Aunt Hu were also surprised. They secretly glanced at Madam Shen, then at Shen Qingtan, who was wiping away tears with her handkerchief with her head down. There was an undercurrent between the two of them.

They suspected that there was something fishy about Shen Qingtan's identity, and they also knew that Madam Shen had set a trap for Shen Qingtan to fall into.

Unexpectedly, Madam Shen suffered a crushing defeat in their confrontation.

Their gazes fell on Shen Qingtan's slender, pale fingers, which were like a piece of flawless jade, without a trace of blood, yet they had severed one of Madam Shen's most capable arms.

"Was it you! Was it you who made Liuyue and Tingxue kill Wei Mama?" Shen Mingzhu snapped out of her daze and turned the tables on Shen Qingtan, tears welling up in her eyes: "Elder sister, how cruel you are! Wei Mama only gave you a heads-up, telling you to have two maids with you, and you slapped her as a lesson, and that wasn't enough, you even tried to kill her!"

Madam Shen was shocked, as if she couldn't believe it: "No way... Tan'er is kind and gentle, how could she kill Wei Mama who raised her?"

"Mother, if she remembered the kindness of Aunt Wei in taking care of her, how could she have slapped Aunt Wei?" Shen Mingzhu insisted that Shen Qingtan was the one who did it, her voice trembling with tears. "It's my fault, it's all my fault. If I hadn't come back, Aunt Wei wouldn't have been so worried about me suffering that she focused all her attention on me and neglected my eldest sister. If I hadn't come back, my eldest sister wouldn't have gotten into the wrong bridal sedan chair and married my sickly second brother. If I were my sister, I would definitely feel resentment... It's all my fault, it's all my fault..."

Madam Shen's maid, Lüyin, sobbed, "Even if you harbor resentment, you can't just take someone's life. Wei Mama was not only Madam's wet nurse, but she also took meticulous care of the young lady, yet she ended up with such a tragic end."

Seeing that they had set up a stage and were throwing dirty water at her, Shen Qingtan felt that it would be unreasonable for her not to cooperate and put on a show.

She raised her pale face, her eyes brimming with tears, and said, "Mother, all the people around me were taken to the Zhao residence. When Wei Mama had her accident, I was having dinner with you. How could I have had the opportunity to lay a hand on her?"

Shen Mingzhu pressed on, "You still won't admit it? Liuyue and Tingxue left halfway, and then Wei Mama had that accident. Those two unruly servants haven't returned yet, so I think they were the ones who did it!"

“Tan’er, Madam Wei is an old servant of mine. Although she is a servant, she is already family to me.” Madam Shen showed an extremely disappointed expression: “She is usually steady and follows the rules in her daily life, which is evident to everyone in the manor. I believe that her guidance to you was because she genuinely treated you as her own child, but I never expected that someone would hold a grudge against her and do such a terrible thing to her…”

At this point, Madam Shen burst into tears, choking up and unable to speak: "Your slap hurt her deeply, yet she didn't blame you at all, and even spoke well of you to me. She broke the rules, so she deserves to be punished. Please grant me a favor and let her go to the kitchen to make you a sweet cake as an apology."

“Mother, I have nothing to fear if I am innocent. I did not do it, and I will not confess.” Faced with their accusations, Shen Qingtan was calm and fearless: “Liuyue and Tingxue would never kill anyone. If they are not in my courtyard, they are probably going to get some snacks for you, Mother.”

At this moment, Liuyue and Tingxue rushed over. "Miss, I went to the carriage to fetch the pastries." Then, Liuyue handed the box she was carrying to Luyin and respectfully said to Madam Shen, "Madam, Miss remembers that you love the Jade Bean Cake from Baixiangzhai, so I specially went to buy it to present to you."

Madam Shen was taken aback and asked in confusion, "If that's the case, why didn't you take it out when you came to our residence?"

Shen Qingtan glanced at Shen Mingzhu, pursed her lips and explained, "There were too many people at the gate, so it was inconvenient for me to take it down. I originally planned to take it out for you when I returned to the manor. But then I thought that Mother would be tired and should rest by then, so I took advantage of Liuyue going to change her clothes and asked her to secretly take it back to give you a surprise. I never expected that something would happen to Mother Wei."

Madam Shen understood the meaning behind Shen Qingtan's glance at Shen Mingzhu. It was simply that Shen Mingzhu had forgotten to bring her anything, so Shen Qingtan didn't want to appear overly concerned and was taking care of Shen Mingzhu.

She moved her lips, as if she was about to say something.

The butler came over and said, "Madam, Madam Wei smells of alcohol. It's as if she drowned while drunk."

"Impossible!" Shen Qingtan was the first to deny it, deliberately using Madam Shen's words to shut her up: "Mother Wei was clearly making me sweet cakes, so how could she be drunk? Mother Wei usually does things in a proper and disciplined manner, and would never cheat or drink with others while on duty."

Madam Shen felt as if she had been slapped across the face, and she was somewhat embarrassed.

“Mother, I’ve always considered Wei Mama as family. Her disrespect towards me, acting like she’s the mistress, doesn’t bother me. I’m just worried she’ll lose her sense of hierarchy and attract the wrong attention, risking her life. That’s why I scolded her a few times, but you haven’t understood my good intentions. If she were an ordinary maid, I would have had her dragged away and given twenty lashes, then sold off.” Shen Qingtan, filled with grievance, said firmly, “My injustice is secondary; I absolutely cannot let Wei Mama die unjustly. This matter must not be tolerated.”

Then she instructed the steward, "Go and report this to the authorities immediately!"

Madam Shen's expression changed drastically. Shen Qingtan was adamant that she did not do it and even wanted to report it to the authorities. Could it be that something really went wrong?

Before she could figure it out, she saw Shen Shaoheng walking over with his hands clasped together. He said lazily, "Why report it to the authorities? A disobedient servant who doesn't follow the rules is dead, so be it. On the day my eldest sister and second sister return to their parents' home, someone in the manor has died. Wouldn't that make us a laughing stock? Everyone else covers up their scandals, but our family is doing the opposite, spreading it around."

Madam Shen's face darkened.

Shen Shaoheng glanced at Wei Mama and sneered, "I saw it with my own eyes. That old scoundrel stole some good wine and hid to drink it. The wine was so strong that she got drunk and died in the pond."

He curled his lips and said disdainfully, "Second Aunt, you're nothing but a despicable woman who deceives her superiors and pretends to obey while acting against them. Are you really going to make the precious master of this mansion pay with his life for this worthless life?"