Reborn: Femme Fatale First Daughter

Chapter 488 At the Mo Manor and Auntie Qing’s Change

Having a grandmother who doted so much on her was such a great feeling!

Mo Xuetong chatted with the Old Madam for a while before leaving. She did not stay in the Fu General Manor for too long as she still had to visit the Mo Manor. She had to let her father know that she was safe.

She left the Old Madam’s courtyard in a hurry and took a path along the garden. She could not help but glance at a secluded corner. She would find out what happened in that courtyard. However, it would not be through her grandmother. She had come today just to let her grandmother know that Mingguo Manor bore enmity against the Fu General Manor. That was all. She did not want to cause further trouble and hurt her grandmother.

“Who is that?” She turned to look at a tall pavilion. There was a well-dressed and beautiful woman in it. Mo Xuetong frowned slightly. She knew everyone in the Fu General Manor but had never seen this beautiful woman before.

“She is Second Madam’s niece, Miss Yun Ya. I heard that something happened in her family, so she came to live with her relative here. She’s staying in the manor right now.” The maid who sent Mo Xuetong out answered carefully.

Second Aunt’s niece? The girl had only been here for about a month. Mo Xuetong looked at the beautiful girl’s bright clothing from afar. Thoughts ran through her mind and a hint of darkness flashed through her eyes. She stopped there and said to the maid, “Go back and tell Grandmother that I met Miss Yun Ya while walking around in the garden and we are chatting.”

“Yes.” The maid did not know what Mo Xuetong was going to do but still left obediently.

Mo Xuetong brought Mo Ye with her and approached the pavilion silently. When she reached the side of the pavilion, Miss Yun Ya, who was looking into the distance with her head turned to the side, still did not see them. Her maid, however, saw Mo Xuetong. Mo Xuetong glared at her coldly as she was about to speak and she immediately cowered to the side and did not dare to make a sound.

Yun Ya held a jade pendant in her hand. There was an exquisite tassel hanging under the jade pendant. The knots on the tassels were unusual and were only done in the palace. It was impossible to see such knots outside the palace. Given that it was joined to the jade pendant, one could tell that the jade and the tassel were both extraordinary items.

“This jade pendant is so beautiful!” Mo Xuetong suddenly said warmly with a sweet smile.

The sudden sound shocked Yun Ya. She quickly kept the jade pendant. She had been admiring the scenery here and had felt a little melancholic for some reason. As such, she took out the jade pendant, thinking that no one would walk by at this time. Furthermore, even if someone were to approach, the maid would remind her. She did not expect someone to suddenly appear and that her maid would not be aware either.

Fortunately, the jade pendant did not mean anything.

The girl looked up and the beautiful girl in front of her made her eyes light up. The girl was elegant, gentle, and charming. There was an inexplicable charm that resided on her beautiful little face. Her eyes shone brightly, as clear as water. The girl seemed very amiable. However, while Yun Ya did not know who she was, she could tell by the girl’s disposition that the girl was no ordinary person.

She smiled and hurriedly explained, feeling awkward, “It’s nothing special. My mother gave it to me, which is why I treasure it.”

Mo Xuetong’s gaze landed on a knot on the tassel that peeked out from the girl’s sleeve. The smile on her lips grew even more gentle.

“This is Consort Xuan.” The little maid behind Yun Ya finally had the opportunity to gently remind the girl.

Consort Xuan? Yun Ya immediately reigned in the charming expression in her eyes. She curtsied, saying, “Greetings, Consort Xuan.”

“Dispense with the ceremony. Since you are Second Cousin’s cousin, you are mine as well. Have you gotten used to staying with Grandmother?” Mo Xuetong changed the topic gently with a slight smile.

“Many thanks, Consort Xuan, for your concern. It is great here. The Old Madam, Auntie, and Uncle, all treat me very well.” Yun Ya said sweetly, relaxing when she saw that Mo Xuetong did not continue asking about the jade. One could tell with one look that she was a gentle and reserved person.

However, Mo Xuetong was reminded of Yun Yiqiu, someone she had not thought of for a long time, when she looked at Yun Ya.

It was not because they shared features but it was because they seemed to have the same characteristics. They were both soft and gentle. It was a coincidence that they both had the surname “Yun”.

“Miss Yun, did something happen to your family?” Mo Xuetong asked, concerned.

The maid had not spoken in detail earlier and did not say what happened to Yun Ya’s family. For someone to send a girl to live with her relatives, it would have to be because her parents have both passed away. However, Mo Xuetong remembered that Luo Mingzhu had mentioned her aunt and uncle not long ago. She did not say that they met with an accident.

Yun Ya’s expression turned bitter at that. “Something happened at home and I had to leave... There’s a family with a playboy for a son. He keeps pestering my family for some reason. My mother sent me to the capital to live with my aunt for a while to avoid him. I wonder how my mother is doing.”

Then, she teared up, making her look very pitiful indeed.

Even though she did not say much, the meaning was clear. She had no choice but to come here. Mo Xuetong comforted her gently, “Your parents will be fine. If you are worried, you can ask Second Uncle to send his man there to ask around. Since there is such a family there, they must not be allowed to grow too arrogant and hurt others.”

“There’s no need for such trouble. Mother said that the matter will abate after a while. She will come to the capital personally to pick me up and also meet up with Auntie.” Yun Ya looked up at Mo Xuetong with a smile. However, there was a distant look in her eyes.

It could be because this was their first time meeting. They were not very close and it was a little awkward.

Seeing that it was getting late, Mo Xuetong did not say anything else. She stood up and bid Yun Ya farewell and left, taking Mo Ye with her.

“Mo Ye, go and investigate what happened to Miss Yun Ya.” Mo Xuetong ordered softly after getting onto the horse carriage.

“My Lady, are you suspicious of this Miss Yun Ya?” Mo Ye had seen how Miss Yun Ya behaved earlier and did not think that there was anything strange about her.

“You Yuecheng said he found out something to do with what happened to Mother back then. If he found out about this earlier, he would have used it already. He only mentioned it now because he just found out about it. It proves that there are clues to the whole incident. He only discovered them not long ago. Perhaps about a month or so ago. Isn’t that a coincidence?”

A hint of a smile grew on Mo Xuetong’s lips. There was a faint mocking glint in her clear eyes. This was just one reason. The other reason was that jade pendant. That jade pendant was no ordinary item. The tassel on it was knotted using a technique only available in the palace. This was another point of suspicion.

There were two different tassel knotting types that were popular in the palace right now. The male tassel had one knot while the female tassel had two. However, those who did not understand or were not observant would not be able to tell. The tassel on the jade pendant that Yun Ya was holding belonged to a man.

She had only come to the capital not long ago and had not attended a single banquet. Where did she get the jade pendant and tassel which originated from the palace?

“Shall I send someone to Miss Yun Ya’s hometown to check?” Mo Ye asked.

“No need, she wouldn’t have come all the way to the capital alone. There must be some servants who are close to her. You can start investigating these people.” Mo Xuetong said with a slight smile. She could not find it in herself to pity the seemingly weak and pitiful Miss Yun Ya.

Since she had no choice but to enter the capital because she was being forced to marry, an ordinary girl might not cry all day, but she would definitely be worried about her parents back home! Miss Yun Ya seemed only concerned about the person who gave her the jade pendant. It must be someone she loved. She did not miss her parents at all and did not seem pitiful at all.

She seemed even more so like someone who did not know her place!

The horse carriage arrived at Mo Manor and Mo Xuetong had to enter to let her father know that she was well. The servants saw that it was Mo Xuetong and hurriedly brought her to Xu Yan’s.

Xu Yan was already quite heavily pregnant and since the weather was quite hot, she felt rather lazy to move around. When she heard that Mo Xuetong was visiting, she got up hurriedly. However, Mo Xuetong arrived before she emerged from the room and went up to help her with a smile. She said, “Mother, you are so heavily pregnant; why are you getting up? You’d better sit down.”

Xu Yan wore a light green dress with flowers embroidered on it. Her hair was combed neatly and she was not wearing any hair accessories. She looked plain but elegant. Even though her stomach was quite distended, she seemed comfortable and in good spirits. It was evident that she was doing well in Mo Manor.

She smiled when she heard Mo Xuetong’s concerned words. “I heard that the lockdown on your manor ended today. Old Sir is very happy about it and wanted to visit you later. I didn’t expect you to come before Old Sir returns. How are you doing? Did you encounter any difficulties? I heard that the women in the back courtyard caused a commotion. Are you okay?”

Mo Huawen was in charge of the security of the capital. He got information really quickly about what was happening in each family.

Mo Xuetong helped Xu Yan to the couch as she spoke with a smile, “I’ve caused you to worry. It’s actually no big deal. The women in the back courtyard didn’t cause that much trouble.”

“How is it no big deal? Women deal with the matters of the back courtyard all their lives. I heard that His Highness has the most women in his back courtyard out of every manor here. Find an excuse and get rid of some of them. Otherwise, they will just cause trouble in the manor. Look at what happened to the other two King’s Manor.”

Xu Yan was talking about King Yan’s Manor and King Chu’s Manor.

One of their Second Consort had tried to elope with another man and the King had impregnated a maid.

The other had a Consort who caused his Second Consort to miscarry and the Consort tried to kill the Second Consort. All of these were matters of the back courtyard.

The two of them did not mention Mo Xueqiong. Like Mo Xuetong, Xu Yan did not like the mean-spirited Mo Xueqiong. This was especially since she had not dragged the Mo Manor into the scandal when she tried to frame Mo Xuetong this time. If it had been proven that Mo Xuetong was involved in the scandal, the Mo Manor would have gotten into trouble.

The royal family would not allow their reputation to be tarnished. They would push the blame onto Mo Huawen no matter what and Mo Huawen would become the scapegoat of the entire matter.

Mo Xuetong smiled and said, “We do have to clean up the manor. There are some restless people in the back courtyard.”

“Ask His Highness for his opinion before you clean up the back courtyard lest you annoy him.” Xu Yan instructed worriedly. She did not doubt Mo Xuetong’s intelligence as well. However, the women of the back courtyard belonged to King Xuan. Furthermore, King Xuan had always been an arrogant person, so Mo Xuetong should be careful not to create an even bigger mess.

Mo Xuetong nodded and replied,” Don’t worry, Mother. I will consult His Highness first. What about the back courtyard here? Did anything happen?”

She was asking about Auntie Qing. Mo Xueqiong had caused a huge scandal and died an dishonorable death.

Xu Yan knew what Mo Xuetong was asking about and she harrumphed coldly. “That person is not concerned about her daughter but her son. She naturally cares more for her son than her daughter.”

Mo Xuetong blinked her smart and watery eyes in confusion.

A maid served tea and Xu Yan pushed the cup to Mo Xuetong. She waved her hand and most of the maids left. Only her personal maid stayed behind.

“Auntie Qing is very close to Mo Yufeng lately. She sends anything good she gets to Mo Yufeng. I heard that she even sent a beautiful maid over and asked the maid to serve Mo Yufeng well. She’s just sending one of her people to stay by his side.”

“Auntie Qing and Elder Brother are very close?” Mo Xuetong grew even more confused. Her long lashes fluttered, hiding the suspicion in her eyes. Why would the two of them become so close?

In the past, when Auntie Fang was in charge of household matters, she had oppressed the other two Aunties. The two aunties did not have any sons and could not fight Auntie Fang. They did not dare to say anything in front of her. However, Mo Xueqiong and Mo Xuemin had never gotten along, and one could tell that the relationship between Auntie Qing and Auntie Fang was poor from that.