Aunt Xue glanced at the box in Jade's hand, and felt a trace of jealousy in her heart.
The madam and the eldest lady all gave good things to Aunt Lian. They were really partial, but she never got any good things from them.
Su Qingyu ignored Aunt Xue's unhappy look and led the people to Aunt Lian's Ruyi Pavilion.
When she entered, Aunt Lian was doing needlework, and Su Shunci was also learning embroidery.
Su Qingyu stepped forward to look at Su Shunci's needlework, but Su Shunci directly covered her needlework and said, "Sister, don't look at it, my embroidery is ugly."
The little girl looked embarrassed and hid the embroidered bandage behind her back.
Su Qingyu couldn't stop laughing, and told Jade to put the things down, and then said to Aunt Lian: "This is the donkey-hide gelatin given by my cousin. Auntie has worked hard these days, so she needs to replenish her health."
"You have taken care of my mother these days, and your body has lost weight."
Aunt Lian hurriedly refused and said, "Young lady, you should take it back. This thing was sent to me and was wasted. You can take it back and recuperate Madam."
Su Qingyu shook her head and said: "My mother has a lot of supplements. Since they are for my aunt, I can eat them with peace of mind."
"My aunt ordered the people below to make this. It is made with high-quality ingredients. My aunt will eat it herself, don't use it as a reward."
Aunt Lian nodded and said, "Hey, I remember what the eldest lady said. I will keep it for myself and not give it to others."
Before leaving Ruyi Pavilion, Su Qingyu winked at Su Shunci, and Su Shunci nodded slightly.
The two sisters had a tacit understanding.
After leaving Aunt Lian, Su Qingyu went to Ziwei Garden.
Mrs. Lin can already get out of bed and walk around. She is playing with some plum blossoms on the table and carefully inserting them into the plum vase.
"Mom, you'd better lie down for a while." Su Qingyu stepped forward and held Lin's arm and said.
Mrs. Lin turned around and touched Su Qingyu's cheek, and said lovingly: "How can I lie down all the time? I have to move my arms and legs."
Su Qingyu supported her half-relying on the big Kang by the window, with two large gold-threaded pillows behind her.
"Mom, I remember you mentioned that I had an older sister who died at birth, right?" Su Qingyu asked tentatively.
Lin was stunned for a moment, then sighed and said, "Your sister is two years older than you, and she happened to catch up with the turmoil in the first year of Xuande."
Su Qingyu looked carefully at Lin's expression and found that there was nothing but sadness.
She asked again: "Have you seen your sister? Is she pretty?"
Hearing this, Mrs. Lin's eyebrows showed a loving smile, and while recalling, she said: "She is very beautiful, pink and tender, not like a newborn child at all."
"This matter is fate. It happened that there was a chaos in the capital that day, and your grandfather and your father were not in the house. The rebels rushed into anyone's house in the city and killed them without hesitation. We were frightened when we heard about it."
"I put half of the guards at your grandmother's Songhe Hall, and the rest of the guards were posted at the entrances of the Marquis' mansion. Maybe I was too nervous, so I suddenly gave birth prematurely."
"When I woke up, the child had already expired. Fortunately, Su Lian was by my side at the time. She was so frightened that her face turned pale."
Sulian is Aunt Lian's maiden name.
"It's all about mother's incompetence. Your sister was born prematurely, and so were you."
Su Qingyu quickly comforted Mrs. Lin, "Mom, don't say that, I'm not doing well."
"I was just a little weak when I was a kid, but I'm better off now."
Speaking of this, Su Qingyu's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
My sister was born prematurely, why did her mother say she didn’t look like a newborn? Aren’t premature babies always thin and small?
Su Qingyu thought of what Su Shunci said, and her heart became more solemn and uneasy, but she didn't dare to show any clues on her face.
Seeing Mrs. Lin's lonely expression, Su Qingyu teased her and joked a few more words before returning to Bishui Pavilion with a complicated mood.
Throughout the afternoon, Su Qingyu was restless.
What happened on that night eighteen years ago?
What does Aunt Xue mean? What does Aunt Lian know?
Fortunately, Aunt Xue did not disappoint her, and she really had a crooked mind about the box of donkey-hide gelatin.
In the evening, Su Qingyu had just finished dinner when Su Shunci ran in.
"Eldest sister, Aunt Xue...she...went to find my aunt."
Su Shunci was panting and speaking intermittently. But his expression was obviously anxious, for fear that Su Qingyu would be late.
Su Qingyu stood up after hearing this and walked out quickly, with Su Shunci trotting behind.
In the Ruyi Pavilion, the maid guarding the courtyard had been driven away by Su Shunci, and the entire courtyard was silent.
Su Qingyu walked quietly to the door of the main room and listened to what was going on inside.
First came Aunt Lian's voice, with a pleading tone, "You can't take away this donkey-hide gelatin. The eldest lady has ordered me not to give this thing away."
Then I heard Aunt Xue snort coldly, "It's okay if you don't give it to me. I'll go find Madam and ask for it."
"If Madam knew what she had given birth to back then, she would have scared herself to death."
"And the Marquis and the old lady, what do you think will happen if they know the truth?"
Immediately afterwards, there was Aunt Lian's choking and pleading voice: "Stop talking, can you stop mentioning this matter? I will give you whatever you want, I beg you, please don't tell anyone."
Su Qingyu frowned, it seemed like there was something inside that even her mother didn't know about. And Aunt Lian silently endured Aunt Xue's threats for the sake of her mother.
Aunt Xue continued: "It's okay if I don't tell you. You can go to Madam tomorrow and tell me that the eldest young master should be made the heir apparent."
"I promise you, as long as the eldest young master becomes the heir, I will never mention this matter again."
"If the eldest young master cannot become the heir apparent, I will not make it easy for the madam. Then you can just wait to collect the body of the madam."
After a long time, I heard Aunt Lian say: "I promise you, you can also take this donkey-hide gelatin."
Immediately afterwards, there was the sound of the box opening and closing.
Su Qingyu pulled Su Shunci and Feicui and hid behind the curtain in the East Room. It wasn't until Aunt Xue left the Ruyi Pavilion that a few people came out from behind the curtain.
Su Qingyu signaled Feicui and Su Shunci to wait here, and she entered Aunt Lian's bedroom alone.
When she entered, Aunt Lian was sitting on the ground, her whole back leaning against the edge of the bed, her eyes empty.
Su Qingyu came closer, gently helped her up, and said, "Auntie, I heard everything you said. What's going on?"
Aunt Lian was helped to sit on the edge of the bed. When she looked up and saw Su Qingyu, the tears that had stopped burst out again.
He covered his face with both hands and cried uncontrollably: "It's my fault, I'm sorry, madam."
Su Qingyu took out her handkerchief and wiped the tears from her eyes and cheeks.
"Auntie, you can tell me what's going on. I promise not to tell my mother."
"Now that I know the truth, I can still think of a way to prevent Aunt Xue from threatening you again."
"What happened that night eighteen years ago?"
Su Qingyu spoke very softly, and Aunt Lian's sobs gradually became quieter.
Maybe it was because she was too tired from carrying this matter for so many years, or maybe Su Qingyu said not to tell Mrs. Lin to give her peace of mind.
Aunt Lian clutched the wet brocade handkerchief and spoke in a daze.
"Eighteen years ago, Madam gave birth prematurely and gave birth to...a crow."
