The Grand Secretary’s Pampered Wife

Marquis Gu quickly ordered a thorough investigation on Yao shi’s poisoning.

According to the two servant girls, the medicine was boiled and brought by Wet Nurse Fang. Because they were sent away by Wet Nurse Fang to deliver something to Gu Jinyu, nothing was clear to them afterwards.

"Summon Wet Nurse Fang!" Marquis Gu commanded in a cold voice.

After a while, a servant came back to report, "Reporting to Lord Marquis, Wet Nurse Fang is gone!"

Marquis Gu's big hands clenched into fists.

Soon, he remembered that Wet Nurse Fang still had a niece in the villa. He asked, "Where is that servant girl named CuiCui? Bring her to this Marquis!"

"Yes!" The servant quickly accepted the order and went out.

Wet Nurse Fang didn't take CuiCui away in order not to attract attention.

When CuiCui realized that something seemed to have gone wrong, she hurriedly packed up her things and tried to leave. Unfortunately, she was a step too late, and the guards of the villa ended up catching her.

Only when she was brought to Marquis Gu did she know that Yao shi was poisoned.

Who was the poisoner? She could easily guess with her toes that it was Wet Nurse Fang.

CuiCui plopped on her knees and trembled. She said, "Lord Marquis, please spare this servant’s life! It wasn’t this servant! This servant doesn’t know anything! This servant is accused unjustly!"

Marquis Gu replied, "Accused unjustly? Then this Marquis will ask you, why on earth did the Marchioness faint all of a sudden?"

CuiCui stammered, "It’s... It’s..."

Marquis Gu sneered, "Very well, it seems that keeping that tongue is useless, might as well pull it out!"

CuiCui's body shook all over. She hastily said, "This servant will confess! This servant will confess everything! Wet Nurse Fang... Wet Nurse Fang made this servant do it! She asked this servant to say what this servant accidentally heard and deliberately let Madame overhear it!"

Marquis Gu's heart tightened as he asked, "What did you say exactly?"

CuiCui said in trepidation, "This servant just said... just said... that the young miss is not her own flesh and blood... That she is a result of a mixed-up..."

"Bitch!" Marquis Gu was so angry that he broke the tea cup in his hand!

CuiCui prostrated on the fragments of the tea cup, so that her hands were bleeding, but she dared not move away at all. She begged, "Lord Marquis, spare this servant... Wet Nurse Fang forced this servant..."

Marquis Gu was worried that such a thing would happen, so he never dared to tell Yao shi the truth. He would rather never recognize the child for the rest of his life than cause Yao shi to have any mishap!

And yet, despite his carefulness, these two wretched servants revealed the truth to her!

He snapped, "Her Madame treats her well! Why did she do that?!"

CuiCui replied while sobbing, "This servant doesn't know... Aunt... No... Wet Nurse Fang... She had this servant do things... but never allowed this servant to ask why... so this servant doesn't know why she harmed the Madame... If this servant doesn't listen to her, she will order her nephew to beat this servant to death! May Lord Marquis judge clearly, what this servant said is all true!"

"Oh, you listen to her more than this Marquis and the Marchioness. Why? Are her words imperial decree?" Marquis Gu wasn’t in his current position for nothing. How could he not tell that CuiCui's words were just half-truths?

It was true that Wet Nurse Fang instructed her, but her prodigal ambition was even more true. If she didn't covet the benefits that Wet Nurse Fang promised her, how could she work for Wet Nurse Fang?

Thinking that he wouldn’t get anything out of her, Marquis Gu waved his hand in disgust and said, "Drag her down and beat her to death with the punishment rod."

"Lord Marquis, spare this servant! Lord Marqui——"

The guards didn't give her a chance to beg for mercy, directly blocking her mouth with a rag, and then they dragged her to carry out the execution without any trace of politeness.

The guards surrounded all four directions of the villa to catch Wet Nurse Fang. At night, they finally discovered the trace of Wet Nurse Fang. Unfortunately, Wet Nurse Fang had hanged herself in a big tree.

"Dead?" In the study, Marquis Gu wore a cold expression on his face.

Huang Zhong was a martial arts practitioner. He lacked muscle when it came to word fights and scheming, but it was a different story when it came to examining people's corpses. He had been amongst a pile of corpses, and he had witnessed countless deaths. How could he not see that Wet Nurse Fang was hanged on a tree after she was killed?

Marquis Gu looked dignified as he said, "So... she was silenced?"

Huang Zhong did not dare conclude that her death was to silence her, but he was sure that Wet Nurse Fang was murdered.

Marquis Gu was silent for a long time before speaking again, "This Marquis understands. These days, you have to step up the security of the villa. With the exception of Grannie Fang, everyone else around the Marchioness shall be dismissed."

"Yes!"

Marquis Gu went to Yao shi's room.

Grannie Fang stayed in the room despite being ill herself; her complexion didn’t look well.

Marquis Gu said to her, "Go and have a rest. You don't have to come over tonight."

Grannie Fang didn't step down immediately, but paused and said boldly, "Lord Marquis, must you take Madame back to the capital?"

"What's the matter?" Marquis Gu asked.

Grannie Fang said earnestly, "This servant knows that Lord Marquis dotes on his wife, but I'm afraid that in the whole Marquis Estate, no one will welcome Madame back except Lord Marquis."

Marquis Gu clenched his fist and said, "She is this Marquis’ wife, this Marquis will take care of her, so you don't need to worry about that!"

“Lord Marquis...”

Marquis Gu's eyes were like a torch as he declared, "I won’t let anything happen to her again!"

Grannie Fang didn't refute any more. She bowed to Marquis Gu, saying, "This servant will take her leave."

Marquis Gu blocked the news of what happened within Yao shi's courtyard, keeping even Gu Yan and Gu Jinyu from knowing about it.

An hour later, Yao shi woke up slowly.

Marquis Gu sat by the bed, took her hand and asked softly, "Are you awake? Do you feel unwell somewhere?"

Yao shi shook her head weakly and looked at him intently, asking, "Where's the child? Where is my child?"

At this point, Marquis Gu had nothing to hide. He squeezed her hand tightly and took a deep breath and said, "She was just here, right here in your room."

Yao shi got excited at once.

Marquis Gu, fearing that she would faint again, grabbed her shoulders and said, "Don't get excited and just hear me out first. She's fine. I've already found her. I'll take you to see her when you get better. "

Yao shi said without thinking, "I'm better!"

Marquis Gu said, "I know, I know, but it's already late today. If you go there now, you will also disturb her rest. Tomorrow morning, I promise to take you there."

It was only then that Yao shi lay back on bed.

She looked at him puzzled, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Marquis Gu fell silent.

Yao shi frowned, "You don’t want to recognize the child?"

Marquis Gu panicked that he felt his heart and liver shiver. His great desire for survival led him to make a decisive decision between confession and lying, "No way! Don't think too much! She is my own flesh and blood. How could I not want to recognize her? It's just... I've already made a mistake once, and I don't want to be wrong again."

Marquis Gu told Yao shi about the medicine supplement matter.

"...I didn't want to tell you until I got her blood and mixed it with Yan'er’s. But Yan'er gets along with her very well. I think Yan'er wouldn't like her so much if they weren't connected by blood."

Yao shi looked stunned and asked, "Yan'er has seen her too?"

Marquis Gu nodded slowly, "…Yes, she is the little medicine girl in the Rejuvenation Hall."

"Is there a portrait of her?" Yao shi couldn’t wait to see her daughter.

Marquis Gu hesitated, "This..."

"Please, Lord Marquis." Yao shi begged him for the first time.

Just for the sake of that stinky girl’s portrait? Marquis Gu didn’t feel good a bit in his heart.

But Marquis Gu still went ahead and painted. It seemed that he could never refuse Yao shi no matter what.