Chapter 363

Chapter 363 Granny Zhou’s Account of the Past

Qu Moying asked calmly, “Tell me, what exactly happened?”

“Lady, I didn’t want to talk about this because it was related to Madam’s reputation, but I have to say it now. At that time, the one who was supposed to be engaged with Minister Liu was Madam. The two families had already agreed on their marriage. Minister Liu had even seen Madam and expressed his satisfaction. But when they were about to get engaged, Duke Qi’s Mansion suddenly took a fancy to Minister Liu.”

Granny Zhou was so angry that her face turned red. She still felt uncomfortable about this matter and was indignant for the sake of Little Yue.

Qu Moying asked in surprise, “He had seen my mother? But I heard my mother had seldom seen any outsiders before getting married.”

“It was a coincidence. At that time, Minister Liu was only a scholar who came to the capital for the imperial examination. He stayed in Yue Mansion for a few nights. One night, he accidentally saw Madam. He was amazed by Madam and stood under the wall for half a night. Then he proposed to Yue Mansion. He said that he would marry Madam after he passed the imperial examination with a high grade. Old Master Qu did not agree immediately but said to Minister Liu that they could talk about it after Minister Liu passed the examination.”

“Later, he passed the imperial examination and sent someone to propose the marriage again. Old Master Qu was very satisfied, and Madam also agreed. They even accepted the betrothal presents from the Liu Family. However, at this time, Duke Qi applied for an imperial edict to let Minister Liu marry his daughter. Madam could only marry someone else, so she chose Second Master, who also passed the imperial examination at that time.”

Granny Zhou told the whole story and then sneered, “I don’t know why they are so shameless. Not only did they snatch Madam’s marriage, but they even want to deal with you now. How dare they do such a thing? Madam’s tragedy was all caused by them.”

“Them? Who else?” Qu Moying gently bit her lips.

Granny Zhou said disapprovingly, “Other than Duchess Qi, who else could it be? Duchess Qi and Mrs. Liu must have approached Duke Qi together to ask him to help Mrs. Liu get the marriage. Otherwise, how could a man like Duke Qi care about such a trifle?”

Qu Moying was silent. She gently plucked the strings of the qin. Listening to the elegant and familiar music could always calm her down.

But right now, she could not calm down.

Granny Zhou’s narration of the past made her understand some things she could not figure out previously, but she also had some new doubts now. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Did the matter of Eunuch De Fu looking for the purest girl really have nothing to do with my mother? Was it really just a coincidence?”

“It was an episode that happened so many years ago. But it was restarted, and the fire almost burned on me.”

“Was County Lady Jingyu behind this? Or was there someone else behind it?”

“Is there someone I don’t know egging on Qu Mingcheng and lending support to him? If not, how could a person like Qu Mingcheng approach someone with a high status like Eunuch De Fu? He couldn’t even know about Eunuch De Fu by himself alone.”

As long as this matter had something to do with Qu Mingcheng, Qu Moying could not treat Qu Mingcheng as an ordinary scholar or an ordinary young master of a noble family.

Qu Moying knew this very well.

Although Minister Liu was forced to marry Mrs. Liu because of the imperial edict, they were said to be a really loving couple for so many years. Minister Liu only had two concubines, and that happened many years ago. It could be said that Minister Liu was a very self-disciplined person. He loved Mrs. Liu very much. In other words, he and Mrs. Liu was indeed a loving couple.

Mrs. Liu did not give birth to a son, so Minister Liu only had a son born by one of his concubines. It was unknown whether this concubine was the dead one or the other one who was still alive.

This concubine-born son kept a low profile. It was said that this son was good at studying and was probably older than Qu Mingcheng.

Mrs. Liu only gave birth to a daughter, Liu Jingyu.

“Does Duke Qi dote on Mrs. Liu very much?” In the sound of the music, Qu Moying suddenly asked, but she did not stop playing the qin.

“Yes, I heard that Duke Qi dotes on Mrs. Liu the most, even more so than his two sons.” Granny Zhou nodded and felt rather resentful towards Duke Qi, “If Duke Qi hadn’t asked for a bestowed marriage, Madam wouldn’t have married into Qu Mansion, and she wouldn’t have…”

At this point, Granny Zhou could no longer continue. Her voice choked with sobs. In her opinion, all the tragedy of Little Yue was caused by Duke Qi’s Mansion.

“If Duke Qi hadn’t asked for the bestowed marriage, Old Master Yue would not have chosen Second Master for Madam in a fit of anger. If so, Madam might still live safe and sound now.”

Qu Moying pressed her hand against the strings and felt the vibration of the strings. Hearing Granny Zhou’s words, she suddenly looked up with her watery and unfathomable eyes, “Why? Why was my grandfather so anxious? Even if Minister Liu married someone else, there should be someone else.”

“I don’t know about this. I only know that Old Master Yue was really anxious at that time. He asked someone to send the list of the scholars who had passed the imperial examination. After reading it, he chose Second Master. Then, he sent someone to ask about the intention of Qu Mansion. After a few days, the marriage was arranged. The wedding ceremony was also done in a hurry, so much so that Madam’s wedding clothes were directly bought from a clothing shop.”

Granny Zhou said.

“Really? Did they need to be in such a hurry?” Qu Moying frowned. She felt that this matter was too unreasonable.

Granny Zhou shook her head. “It was really hasty. I asked Madam why the haste back then, but Madam also didn’t know why. She only said it was Old Master Yue’s order, and Old Lady Yue also repeatedly told her to get married immediately.”

At that time, she was Little Yue’s private maid, so the Madam she mentioned could only be Little Yue. However, since Little Yue did not know either, she naturally had no way of knowing. She just felt that Little Yue’s hasty marriage must have something to do with the aborted engagement with Liu Family.

“Lady, I think it might be Duke Qi’s Mansion’s idea. Not only did they steal Madam’s marriage, but they also even used their power to force Madam to marry quickly because they were afraid of the unwanted result if Madam remained single.”

Granny Zhou said indignantly.

For so many years, she felt aggrieved for Little Yue every time she thought of these things. She thought it was really despicable for Duke Qi’s Mansion to do such things.

“I heard that Duke Qi was close to my maternal grandfather. Is that true?” Qu Moying looked at the strings in front of her and pressed hard with her fingers, causing her fingertips to turn pale.

“I also heard of it when I was at Yue Mansion, but that was all. I didn’t see how close Yue Mansion and Duke Qi’s Mansion were. When some important events happened, Duke Qi’s Mansion had never sent presents to Yue Mansion. Of course, Yue Mansion had never sent presents to Duke Qi’s Mansion as well. The so-called close relationship between the two mansions is just gossip. I don’t know if it’s true.” ”

Granny Zhou said disapprovingly.

Therefore, the so-called good relationship might just be intended to cover something up.

But why?

The image of Duke Qi suddenly appeared in Qu Moying’s mind. “What kind of mood did Duke Qi have when he saw me that day? With his status, he didn’t need to see me. Did he happen to think of me because I am his old friend’s granddaughter? But when I was still Ji Hanyue, why didn’t he treat me differently?”

Ji Hanyue was Elder Yue’s daughter, and Qu Moying was Little Yue’s daughter. Duke Qi’s daughter snatched the marriage of Little Yue and even forced her to marry someone hastily. Was he feeling guilty?

Originally, Qu Moying thought that by calling Granny Zhou over, she would be able to figure out many things, but now, she had more doubts.

Those things seemed to be a myth, but she felt that she had ignored something so that they were incomprehensible.

It was related to the Liu Family, Duke Qi’s Mansion, and the Yue Family of the South, and it might even be related to the matter she was facing right now.

But the clues she got were not enough to connect these things together.

“You can leave first!” Qu Moying raised her slender fingers and then slowly plucked the strings under her hands. Amidst the sound of the music, her eyes slowly became cold.

She was wondering which thing could connect all the things together.

“What did I neglect? Or is it because this key point hasn’t appeared yet, and what I have found is too superficial to connect things together?”

Granny Zhou calmed down and bowed to Qu Moying. She looked at the silhouette of Qu Moying who was lowering her head, sighed softly, and retreated.

When she came out to the corridor, she stood still and stretched out her sleeve to wipe her tears. She thought these things were unfair to Little Yue.

Little Yue had a miserable life and died alone in the end. If not for Qu Moying, no one would remember her.

Some things of the past clearly appeared in front of Granny Zhou, making her feel sad. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She made up her mind that she would not fail Little Yue’s trust. For Little Yue’s sake, she would protect Qu Moying even if she had to sacrifice herself.

She would keep the oath she made in front of Little Yue’s bed back then.

She would not hide things from Qu Moying if possible. She thought Little Yue was really pitiful. If Qu Moying was capable, she even wanted her to know those things and take revenge for Little Yue.

She had never thought that Little Yue’s death was an accident, but she was the only one who was suspicious about it now. She didn’t even mention it to Elder Yue because it involved a lot of things.

Little Yue had told her not to investigate it if she was not capable enough. Otherwise, she would die. Moreover, Little Yue also took Qu Moying into consideration.

Little Yue was the kindest, and she didn’t want her daughter to be hurt.

She told Granny Zhou to keep those things to herself if she couldn’t change the situation…

“Granny Zhou, what did lady ask just now that made you so sad?” Granny Yan’s voice sounded in her ears. These days, Granny Zhou and Granny Yan had gotten along well with each other. She knew that Granny Yan was also Qu Moying’s confidant.

Granny Zhou turned her head aside and wiped her tears with her sleeves. Then she turned and shook her head. “It’s nothing. It’s just that Lady asked about Madam’s past. Thinking of Madam… I feel bad.”

Speaking of this, Granny Zhou burst into tears again.

“Did Lady come back with an invitation just now?” Granny Yan tilted her head to listen to the music. The sound of the qin was melodious. There was not a single trace of disturbance. She could not help but secretly praise in her heart. “Although Lady was young, her temperament was extraordinary. Even Granny Zhou became so emotional. Lady is not affected, and she still plays the qin well.”

Not only Qu Moying’s bearing but also her skills in playing the qin were amazing.