Mrs. Mei's Survival Diary - Chapter 13

Chapter 13- Using Schemes

Under Rong Yinshuang’s instructions, Uncle Bao went to Mei Mansion again on the tenth day after Zhao Qian fell into madness.

Zhao Qian did not see him. After hearing the news, Uncle Bao asked the servant who brought him the message to tell Zhao Qian that he got some news about the house and there was no time to delay.

After waiting for a long time, finally, Uncle Bao got the chance to meet Zhao Qian.

When they reached the second room’s terrace, the maid urged Uncle Bao to stay there for a while. Then he led him to a room.

There was Zhao Qiao with a sick look, and her head was wrapped in a red scarf.

A Taoist talisman for exorcising ghosts was now perched in a Buddhist shrine. Beneath the Buddhist shrine were cotton balls and beautifully arranged wooden fish beads.

Uncle Bao secretly observed the surroundings and found out the inside of the mansion was no better than the outside.

Zhao Qian’s status had increased, but she still had to avoid taboos in the mansion and let the maids pull her. The thin curtain was in front of the soft couch where she was resting. She supported her sick head and asked tiredly, “What’s the matter? Tell me. What happened to the house…?”

When he heard what Zhao Qian had asked him, Uncle Bao quickly sprang up. In response, he said, “Madam, there have been rumours that the house is haunted ever since you fled in fear that day. I’m seeing less and fewer folks these days. I am concerned that if things continue this way, this house won’t actually sell, even if you are willing to pay a higher amount.”

Uncle Bao seemed to be able to see Zhao Qian through the gap in the curtain.

After hearing what the man said, Zhao Qian stood up and asked in surprise, “What? How can outsiders know?”

The old man shook his head while replying, “I don’t know, but everyone knows it.” Add… and there are some people spreading some news.”

Zhao Qian was furious. “Say.”

After receiving the instruction, Uncle Bao quickly added, saying, “There are certain rumours that are not favourable for Madam. Do you remember the person who once visited the house but had only offered two hundred taels? Wailang Yuan? I’m not sure if he’s merely spreading those nasty rumours and defaming Madam in an attempt to get the house at a low price.”

Once more showing signs of nervousness, Zhao Qian asked, “What kind of rumours are you talking about?”

As Uncle Bao didn’t reply, the curtain in the room suddenly opened, and Zhao Qian’s face, full of guilt and anger, came to Uncle Bao’s vision.

“Keep talking.” She pointed at the old man and ordered.

“He said… he said that Madam has caused a life lawsuit in the house, and the ghost of the person who was killed is still there, so the house is haunted.”

When Zhao Qian heard the phrase “life lawsuit,” her expression became blank. She was surprised for a moment before fully sitting up on the plush couch, patting its edge, and yelling, “Nonsense! How might I become entangled in a lawsuit that could end my life? Does he possess any proof? Why would he malign me in such a way?”

“Of course I know Madam is innocent,” Uncle Bao said in a low voice. “He slandered Madam, saying that he is going to report it to the government, and then Madam will still be tortured to death by various interrogations from the Yamen.”

Holding back her rage, Zhao Qian pressed her forehead, giving the impression that she had a severe headache, and she questioned Uncle Bao, “What exactly is he going to accomplish, then? Will he report to the authorities so they may take me into custody or what?”

“This servant doesn’t know that. But when I inquired about him, I got to know that as soon as they came to the capital, his mother and wife became at odds with each other, so he wanted to buy a house for his old mother. He happened to hear about the lady seeing ghosts, so he might have such dirty thoughts.” Uncle Bao looked at Zhao Qian’s expression as he spoke. “According to me, if that man is in a hurry, just let him report to the official. After all, Madam has never done anything evil. Even if the Yamen inquires, they won’t be able to find out anything, so as not to give that bastard an advantage.”

“…” Zhao Qian was silent for a while, staring blankly in front of her. After a long time, she suddenly came back to her senses, sighed, and said to Uncle Bao, “Avoid causing problems. Give him the house he desires. In any case, it is just to keep his mother there. It’s better for him if it’s less expensive. Cherry, go get the deed. Hurry. To avoid disaster, sell it to two hundred taels.”

Uncle Bao’s eyes shifted as Cherry entered the inner chamber. He stepped forward and said to Zhao Qian, “Madam, that old bastard is not considering two hundred taels now. He wants to bully us. He said he was willing to pay a hundred; otherwise, he would report it. That’s why I came to report it even though Madam is ill. That person was really too much. We can’t suffer this. Don’t talk about it…”

“Shut your mouth!” Zhao Qian interrupted Uncle Bao’s kind reminder and said to him coldly, “What do you know? What are you talking about?”

“…”

After getting scolded, Uncle Bao lowered his head without talking.

When the maid brought the house deed, Uncle Bao quickly drew two contracts that were exactly the same. Uncle Bao completed draughting the contract and handed it to Zhao Qian.

Zhao Qian signed it without saying anything.

After the matter was settled, Uncle Bao left the mansion.

Uncle Bao went to the Taoist temple outside the city to find Rong Yinshuang, handed her the contract and house deeds, and happily reported the situation to her. “Madam, you are so good at predicting things. It seems Zhao Qian has done something wrong. She is willing to take such a big loss. But if the news about the house being haunted has been spread, who will pay special attention to what happened in the alley?”

After drinking a cup of water to quench his thirst, he continued his words, “I originally thought of giving her two hundred taels, but when I thought about how Madam had spent an extra hundred taels of silver in order to trick her into entering the house, I lowered the price. The price of one hundred taels was cut in half again. It was just a chance, but Zhao Qian gave up her intention to raise the price and agreed.”

After reading the contract, Rong Yinshuang closed it and asked Uncle Bao, “What’s weird? She is naturally reluctant to stir up problems because she committed a crime.”

“Madam, you mean, Zhao Qian had really done something horrible at that house? Uncle Bao asked surprisingly.

Rong Yinshuang nodded silently and said, “The second master took Qiu Rong to that house. Who knew that Qiu Rong was pregnant? Zhao Qian was afraid of endangering her status, so she killed Qiu Rong, her child, and Qiu Rong’s parents, so she felt guilty and was afraid that this matter would be revealed and cause trouble for her.”

Uncle Bao looked at Rong Yinshuang in shock. After a long time, he exhaled heavily and cursed, “I thought she was just a bad woman, but I didn’t expect she was a vicious woman. She killed four people, is that all? Madam? Why don’t you report it to the official and let her be sentenced to death? Such a vicious woman is unforgivable.”

Rong Yinshuang looked at the indignant Uncle Bao and sighed quietly. “You forgot that Zhao Qian’s uncle works at the Minister of Punishment. Qiu Rong’s family died tragically, but they were just a small family in the countryside. They had no background and no conclusive evidence. Who would reverse the case for them?”

Uncle Bao sighed as he realised that Zhao Qian did have an uncle in the Ministry of Punishment. ‘There are a lot of injustices in the world, but we are unable to stop them.’ All he could do was sigh and wave the issue off. “Oh. If I had known it sooner, I would have demanded more money from that nasty woman through blackmail.”

With a smirk, Rong Yinshuang remarked, “How is this blackmail? The contract was signed in black and white.” After saying that, Rong Yinshuang took out another one hundred taels of silver and said to Uncle Bao, “Please give these one hundred taels to Zhao Qian. When the house is sold, I will recoup the cost, and we will split the rest 50-50. How about it?”

After hearing this, Uncle Bao was stunned and waved his hand decisively, “No, no, no, I don’t want a 50-50 split.”

Rong Yinshuang was surprised. “How much does Uncle Bao want?”

Reassured that Rong Yinshuang had misinterpreted him, Uncle Bao got up, waved his hands, and exclaimed, “I don’t want much. I have spent a great deal of time with the oldest young master and have always been given preference. How can I still desire you orphans and bereaved mothers now that the eldest young master is no longer with us? I plan to sell the house, but I’m not interested in keeping any of the proceeds.”

Rong Yinshuang knew that Uncle Bao was a good person, but she didn’t want him to suffer a loss, so she said, “How can this be done? Uncle Bao is still willing in our crisis. It’s a great kindness to help us. If I ask you to run around in vain again, even my husband will blame me. What’s more, don’t you want to work in the Mei family? You need money to go out alone.”

Uncle Bao continued to wave his hands, but as soon as he realised they couldn’t leave together, he hastily packed up the contract and house deed, grabbed the 100 taels of silver, turned around, and departed. “You are too foreign, Madame. I have some savings and have travelled with the youngest master for a number of years, so don’t worry about me. I’ll handle housekeeping. With the years of knowledge under my belt, I should be able to get a decent price for it. Just wait for good news.”

“…”

Before Rong Yinshuang could respond, Uncle Bao hastily left the temple. With a sigh and a silent compliment, Rong Yinshuang turned to face the old man’s departing back. ‘This world still contains a large number of good people.’

Rong Yinshuang made some meals in the kitchen while she gazed at the sun, recalling that she had promised Qiu Rong’s ghost that she would bury Qiu Rong’s and her parents’ bodies appropriately. She let her two kids eat first. She then went to a coffin shop and purchased three pine coffins, one of which was a coffin-within-a-coffin, specifically designed to bury pregnant deceased women.

The three pine coffins cost Rong Yinshuang a full twenty taels of silver. She simply gave the shop thirty taels and asked them to go to the cemetery outside the city to perform a routine ritual tomorrow morning. The owner of the coffin shop saw the silver and said nothing. Just agreed.

After making these decisions, Rong Yinshuang went to the city to buy some digging tools and then returned to the Taoist temple and waited for nightfall.

End of chapter 13

Have a nice day!