"Midwife Qiao?"
The one who delivered my mother's baby—wasn't it Midwife Qiao?
Chu Ruoyin lifted the carriage curtain to step out, only to see Yuetao, her mother's maid, rush forward.
"Where did this madwoman come from, daring to slander the Duke's wife with such nonsense? Seize her at once!"
Several burly maidservants immediately charged forward. Midwife Qiao shrieked, "No, no! Help! Murder! The Duke's Mansion is killing people!"
Her shrill cries, like a pig being slaughtered, drew the attention of the neighboring noble households, who promptly sent servants to investigate.
Seeing the growing crowd, Yuetao panicked and snapped, "Are you all useless? Take the child away first!"
Two maidservants reached out to snatch the baby, but Midwife Qiao cursed, "The Chu Family goes too far! Not only did you send men to beat my son and burn down my house, but now you won’t even spare my only grandson! I—I’ll fight you to the death!"
She sank her teeth into one of the maidservants' hands, drawing a howl of pain.
The other maidservant, enraged, slapped Midwife Qiao hard across the face. The sharp sound startled the infant, whose piercing wails grew even louder.
The scene descended into chaos.
Chu Ruoyin couldn’t help but shout, "Stop this at once!"
Yuetao spotted her and hastily curtsied. "Second Miss..."
Midwife Qiao, as if seeing a savior, rushed over and clung to Chu Ruoyin’s leg. "Second Miss Chu, I beg you—please reason with your mother! This old woman swears on my life, I’ve never breathed a word about your origins! Just spare my family!"
Chu Ruoyin trembled. "What... what did you say?"
Her origins...
What was wrong with them?
Realizing her slip, Midwife Qiao quickly backtracked. "All I mean is, I’ve never revealed your mother’s secret! But if she refuses to spare us, then—then we’ll all perish together!"
For a mere midwife to dare threaten the Duke’s wife with mutual destruction...
Whatever secret this was, it was deadly—and it involved her.
Chu Ruoyin’s lips turned pale. Clutching her embroidered handkerchief, she forced herself to speak calmly. "Then... perhaps you should come inside to discuss this?"
At the very least, they couldn’t let this escalate further.
But Midwife Qiao recoiled in terror. "No! I won’t go in there! Unless she gives me her word, how do I know you won’t send men to storm my home again, like last night? Where would we turn for justice then?"
"Men stormed your home?" Chu Ruoyin frowned. "Yesterday, my mother and I attended a banquet at General Zhenbei’s estate. There was an incident, and we left very late. How could she have ordered such a thing?"
Midwife Qiao faltered but insisted, "But—but those men claimed they were sent by the Duke's Mansion! In all these years, I’ve never made enemies—who else would target us if not over your mother’s past?"
Chu Ruoyin pressed her lips together.
Someone was framing them!
Her gaze swept the crowd, and among the pointing onlookers, she spotted Little Dai—Feng Ying’s maid.
The girl didn’t even bother hiding. Instead, she met Chu Ruoyin’s glare with a smirk.
"Feng Ying!"
Chu Ruoyin clenched her teeth.
But the commotion had already spiraled beyond control.
Midwife Qiao, fearing retaliation, blurted, "Just give us some silver, and we’ll leave the capital at once! We’ll never return!"
"You dare extort us? Who do you think the Duke's Mansion is?" Yuetao hissed.
Midwife Qiao jutted her chin. "Then don’t blame me for exposing your mistress’s deeds! Do you think the Duke will keep her around once he knows?"
Yuetao’s face paled, as if struck where it hurt.
Just then, a cold, authoritative voice cut through the noise. "Oh? Then by all means, enlighten me—what has my wife done?"
The crowd parted to reveal Chu Huaishan, still in his court robes, his expression icy as he strode forward.
"Father!"
Chu Ruoyin gasped. He gave her a slight nod before turning to Midwife Qiao. "Speak. But think carefully—slandering the Duke’s wife is a crime punishable by death."
Midwife Qiao shuddered, her lips trembling, but no words came out.
With a dismissive wave, Chu Huaishan ordered, "Chu Zhong!"
The steward swiftly stepped forward, snatched the infant from her arms, and before she could scream, gagged her with a cloth before dragging her into the mansion.
"Enough," Chu Huaishan announced to the crowd. "This was merely the ramblings of a foolish woman. The matter is settled—disperse at once."
At his command, the commoners scattered. Though the noble families’ servants lingered resentfully, they knew better than to challenge the Duke’s authority.
Hidden among them, Little Dai stamped her foot and scurried back to report to her mistress.
Over tea, Feng Ying listened to the account and sighed. "What a pity. Duke Chu returned early and shielded his wife. All our efforts last night were wasted!"
Little Dai had gone to the outskirts, spending a fortune to hire men to pose as the Duke's Mansion’s lackeys.
Feng Ying set down her cup, smiling. "Patience. Chu Huaishan only suppressed this for his family’s reputation. Do you think he won’t investigate privately?"
Little Dai blinked. "But even if he uncovers the truth, as long as it’s kept quiet, how will it ruin Chu Ruoyin?"
"Who said it must stay quiet?" Feng Ying chuckled. "After today’s spectacle, do you think the Duke’s political rivals won’t seize this chance?"
Realization dawned on Little Dai. "Using others to do our work—how brilliant!"
Feng Ying smirked.
This was what Chu Ruoyin deserved for refusing to help her marry into the Yan Family—and worse, for stealing Ninth Brother’s affection.
She would make sure the girl’s name was dragged through the mud!
Back at the Duke's Mansion, Midwife Qiao’s forced entry caused such a stir that even Lady Liu from the second branch hurried over.
"What’s happened? I heard there was trouble at the gates!"
The moment she entered the hall, she saw her brother-in-law’s thunderous expression as he pointed at Lady Jiang the Younger, who was being helped in by Chu Ruolan.
"Ask her!"
Lady Jiang collapsed to her knees. "My lord, don’t listen to her lies! I never sent anyone to harm her! I swear it!"
"Oh? Then what ‘deeds’ was she referring to?"
Lady Jiang turned deathly pale, crumpling like mud.
Though Chu Huaishan’s heart wavered, the years of her mistreating Yan’er—and whatever else she’d hidden—hardened his resolve. "Chu Zhong, make her talk."
The steward yanked out the gag. Midwife Qiao kowtowed frantically. "I’ll talk, I’ll talk! Just spare this old woman!"
She knew better than to resist a man like the Duke.
"Speak!"
"Yes! When the Duchess bore her first child, she hired me and the late Physician Wu. At first, all went smoothly, but when the baby came out... something was wrong..."
The crowd tensed up as she spoke, "Does the Duke still remember? It was said back then that the child was born prematurely at seven months, but this old woman examined carefully—the baby was full-term!!"
