Second Madam Hsieh's face turned green and pale by turns. Looking at Serena Feng's calm expression, the more she stared, the more she felt Serena was mocking her.
The thought of having bent over backwards to please an orphan, only to be repaid with such humiliation, made Second Madam Hsieh angrier the more she dwelled on it. Suppressing her fury, she pointed to the main doors and barked, "Someone, see the guest out!"
Serena Feng didn’t care at all. She took the jeweled hairpin from her hair, set it on the table, picked up her medicine chest, and walked out. She’d never planned to make friends with anyone from the House of Duke Zhen—Second Madam’s tantrum suited her just fine.
The people of the House of Duke Zhen want to play the victim after acting shamelessly, but that depends on whether she lets them.
Serena Feng had barely left when Old Madam Zhen got word that she and Second Madam Hsieh had parted on bad terms. The old lady was so furious she fainted, "That idiot Second Madam! She has no sense at all. Even if you dislike Serena Feng, you should wait until this storm blows over before picking a fight!"
Turning back to look at the plaque inscribed with the four characters for House of Duke Zhen, Serena Feng let out a cold laugh.
The House of Duke Zhen really knows how to bend and stretch. For the dignified Old Madam to lower herself and reconcile with a junior like her is no small feat. But the lower the estate bows, the more it reeks of hidden schemes.
She had ruined Lady Bianca of Wu’an, wrecked the House of Duke Zhen’s daughter’s marriage prospects—there was no way the estate would let her off so easily. This show of weakness was just a stopgap; once they found an opening, they’d crush her without mercy.
Once an enemy, always an enemy. She didn’t believe in turning foes into friends.
Just as Serena Feng was about to get on the carriage, Caleb Wang came galloping over on horseback, rushing toward her in a panic: "Serena Feng!"
He really was the kind of person who could warm your heart. Serena Feng stood her ground, waiting for Caleb Wang to catch up.
Caleb Wang swung off his horse, drenched in sweat and looking nothing like the refined, elegant young lord he usually was.
"Did something happen?" Serena Feng asked with concern.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that? Are you alright? Did anyone from the House of Duke Zhen give you trouble?" Caleb Wang looked righteously indignant, as if he'd storm inside if Serena gave him the word.
"What could possibly happen to me?" Serena Feng handed Caleb Wang a clean handkerchief.
"As long as you're fine. I heard from Evan Zhou that you went to the House of Duke Zhen, and I nearly had a heart attack." Caleb Wang wiped the sweat from his forehead, finally relaxing.
"I only came to the House of Duke Zhen to treat a patient. Why are you all making such a fuss? If they want to come after me, they'll do it in secret. If I died inside their estate, they'd be the ones in trouble."
"What do you mean, making a fuss? Serena, you have no idea how terrifying that old witch at the House of Duke Zhen is. She kills without leaving a trace." Caleb Wang made a scary face to prove his point.
"You mean Old Madam Zhen, right?" Serena Feng got serious for a moment—Old Madam really was a force to be reckoned with.
She’d only paid attention to the men of the House of Duke Zhen before; she hadn’t looked into the women of the inner courtyard at all. After what happened at the Marquis of Jinyang’s estate, Serena Feng understood—women in this world were formidable, and you could never afford to underestimate them.
"Old Madam? She was just a lowly concubine who got promoted. Only in a chaotic household like the House of Duke Zhen would you see something so disgraceful—letting a mere concubine become the head matron. What a humiliation." Caleb Wang sneered.
In the eyes of the great families, what the House of Duke Zhen did was utterly shameful.
Men could enjoy beauty and keep as many concubines as they liked, but to break the rules for a woman? Unthinkable.
To promote a concubine to wife—such a thing would never be allowed in the great houses. A concubine was just that, a plaything who could never step into the spotlight.
"How did it happen?" Serena Feng thought of that imposing Old Madam, secretly clicking her tongue. A mistress becoming the main wife—impressive.
Don’t underestimate a mistress getting promoted. In ancient times, a mistress was just that—never allowed into the ancestral records, no matter how favored. Once you became a concubine, you’d be crushed by the legal wife forever, forced to pay respects and follow her rules every day. Want to be promoted? Try again in your next life.
"Let’s talk in the carriage." Caleb Wang pulled Serena Feng up beside him. After all, gossiping about someone’s family right outside their gate wasn’t very polite.
As soon as they got in, before Serena Feng could ask, Caleb Wang started spilling the beans: "That old witch from the House of Duke Zhen really is something. She was just a song courtesan, sent up by a lower official as a gift for the old Duke Zhen."
The old Duke Zhen doted on her for a while, but soon forgot about her—no matter how beautiful, a woman is just a novelty to be played with a few times. But this woman had brains and guts; when he was about to lose interest, she pulled every trick in the book and won his attention back. She wasn’t his only companion, but she did earn herself some standing.
It wasn’t long before that old witch got pregnant and had a son—but as an illegitimate child, nobody cared. Then something happened in the estate: several young ladies and gentlemen started dying one after another, including her own son.
In five years, six children died in the estate. In the sixth year, even the legitimate heir was killed, and the original wife fell gravely ill. No matter how hard the old Duke Zhen investigated, he found nothing.
In the end, he had no choice but to invite a high monk to perform rituals. The monk said the original wife's fate was cursed—doomed to destroy sons and husband—while the old witch's fate was auspicious, destined to bring prosperity to husband and sons.
It was obvious something fishy was going on, but the old Duke Zhen was a fool. He sent his original wife to a temple to recuperate and let the old witch take charge of household affairs. Strangely enough, once the wife left, the estate was peaceful, and the old witch gave birth to four sons in six years. She really did bring prosperity.
"The House of Duke Zhen is deep waters." Serena Feng’s scalp tingled as she listened.
That old lady who'd just held her hand and smiled so kindly—she could even kill her own son. You couldn't blame Serena Feng for thinking so; anyone would, after hearing Caleb Wang’s story.
Seeing Serena Feng’s frightened expression, Caleb Wang shot her a look of disdain. "That’s nothing. The best part’s still to come. They say when the original wife was sent to the temple, she was pregnant and gave birth to a son."
But the wife was afraid someone would harm her son, so she waited and waited. When the child turned five, she finally sent word back—only, as soon as the message went out, the old Duke Zhen suddenly felt guilty and went to visit his wife, only to "catch" her in the act of adultery.
"What? Adultery? Wasn’t that a death sentence for the wife and her son?" Serena Feng cried out. That was a vicious move.
Thinking about it, the person who set her up to embarrass herself on her wedding day was almost kind in comparison—at least they hadn’t tried to ruin her body. If she’d been stripped naked, she’d have had no way to live.
"Don’t make such a fuss. This kind of thing happens all the time in the capital. You know all about the Marquis of Jinyang’s scandal—those women will do anything for status." Caleb Wang rolled his eyes at Serena Feng, about to call her naïve when the carriage suddenly stopped.
"What’s going on?" Serena Feng and Caleb Wang snapped to attention at the same time.
It seemed like every time they shared a carriage, something happened...
Serena Feng lifted the little window by the carriage, and saw a grand procession on the main avenue heading toward the palace, banners emblazoned with a huge 'Su' character.
Serena Feng’s mouth formed a perfect O.
Su?
Su Wan is here?