The Fourth Lady

When Murong Jingxuan looked to Su Jiashi, he smiled, "Just now, I heard that the Su's fourth miss was injured. Fortunately, I just happened to be passing by with my imperial physician, so we came to see what's wrong."

He turned to Chonglou next to him with a smile, "This the Imperial Physician Court's Chonglou. He's the Imperial Physician Court's young and promising imperial physician. If the fourth miss has any aliments, Chonglou will know at a glance."

Hearing Murong Jingxuan say this, Su Jiashi looked to him with a bit of relief. She faced Chonglou and nodded her head, "Doctor, please see what's wrong with Yan'er for me."

Chonglou walked up next to Qingyan and took her pulse. He frowned.

Seeing him like that, Su Jiashi asked with a worried look, "Sir Chonglou, could it be that Yan'er was poisoned by something, which is why she's like this now?"

Chonglou looked to Murong Jingxuan that was standing to the side, and Murong Jingxuan permitted him to speak. Chonglou faced Su Jiashi with a bow, "Old madam, fourth miss isn't poisoned, but rather was cursed by witchcraft."

When Su Jiashi heard this, she took a step back and held onto Yunxiang next to her for support, "How could that be? How could the Su manor have this kind of harmful act?"

When Chai Yiyun heard this, she schemingly glanced to Deng Yan kneeling on the floor, "Mother-in-law, I heard that Deng Yiniang is skilled in witchcraft, do you think it's Deng Yiniang's fault that the fourth miss became like this?"

"Mother*, you can't slander like that! Yiniang is definitely innocent." Su Qingxue look to Chai Yiyun angrily, but was welcomed with a slap across the face from Chai Yiyun.

(*TN: She calls Chai Yiyun 'mother' because she is the legitimate wife of her father, while her own biological mother is a concubine, so she has to refer to her as Yiniang.)

"I'm the one talking here, since when was it your turn to speak!" Chai Yiyun berated Qingxue with a glare.

Seeing the handprint on Su Qingxue's face, Deng Yan's heart ached. She looked towards Su Jiashi with a distressed look, "Old madam, I've never harmed fourth miss before, please old madam, you have to believe me."

"I wonder if old madam is willing to hear my opinion on this?" Looking at the two, Murong Jingxuan appropriately spoke out.

He'd heard from Qingyan that Deng Yan had already sided with her. It is also because of her willingness to cooperate that this scene was able to be played out.

When Su Jiashi looked to Murong Jingxuan, she sighed. "What does Shizi suggest?"

Murong Jingxuan grinned as he turned to Chonglou, "Chonglou, do you have any ideas?"

Chonglou looked to Su Jiashi with a bow, "Old madam, fortunately I've studied geomancy techniques for a few years. If we can find the cursed doll, then we can definitely save fourth miss's life."

As Su Jiashi listened to Chonglou, she took in everything he said as facts. Looking to him with an urgent look, she said, "Then we'll do as you say."

Looking like he knows what he's doing, Chonglou began calculating with his fingers while nodding and shaking his head. The crowd watched his behavior in confusion.

"Old madam, I'm afraid there isn't just one cursed doll." Chonglou looked to Su Jiashi and said in a serious tone, "If we can't find that doll, in less than an hour, the fourth miss will die."

Upon hearing this, Su Jiashi couldn't care less about anything else. She grabbed onto Chonglou's arm, "Doctor, then why don't you quickly save my Yan'er."

"Yes." Chonglou walked up next to Murong Jingxuan and whispered something in his ear.

As Murong Jingxuan listened to him, he instinctively frowned, "Old madam, this matter could have a wide effect. If we go with Chonglou's plan, we will probably have to search the entire Su manor." Su Jiashi listened to watch Murong Jingxuan said and added, "Then hurry up and go search."

Right at that moment, they heard the officials of the Capital's Magistrate arriving. When the Magistrate officer saw Su Jiashi, he politely greeted her. After telling her their reason for coming, he turned towards Murong Jingxuan.

Murong Jingxuan also explained the reason why the Magistrate officials were here, before agreeing to let the Magistrate office search the Su manor.

From Su Qingyan's Yingshuangyuan, the Magistrate officials found 10 cursed dolls, and undoubtedly on those curse dolls' backs were Qingyan's eight characters of birth*.

(*TN: This is traditionally one's birth data used for astrological purposes; it combines the year, month, day, hour, heavenly stem, and earthly branch.)

And lastly, they found in Chai Yiyun's yard a few deformed dolls. Amongst them was one that looked like it was just completed today, and on all those dolls' backs was also Su Qingyan's eight birth characters. Seeing those dolls being uncovered, the servant girls also were confused at the matter. Although they were spies for the other yards, they'd never really harmed the fourth miss before. Yet, why did things turn out like this now?

The one that was most surprised was Chai Yiyun. Chai Yiyun knew very well in her heart that she'd clearly thrown all those dolls into Deng Yan's yard, yet why were they being found in her yard. And now, with both witness and physical evidence all present, she simply had no room to refute.

"Chai Yiyun, you sure are great!" Old madam said as she struck her with the cane. That blow caused Chai Yiyun to kneel to the ground, "Why didn't you curse me to death as well!"

Chai Yiyun's head was spinning from the blow. She flusteredly bowed her head to the ground to ask for forgiveness, "Mother-in-law, you have to believe me! I really didn't try to harm the fourth miss. Someone's definitely framing me."

Listening to Chai Yiyun's words, Su Jiashi once again struck her with the cane, "All the evidence is already placed before our eyes, how can you still not admit to it!"

Chai Yiyun silently bore the pain of the cane striking her body, "Mother-in-law, I really am innocent."

Su Jiashi threw all those things at her face, "Look, all these dolls have Yan'er's eight birth characters on them. Since you're so heartless to curse Yan'er to death, why didn't you curse me to death too."

As soon as Su Yan and Su Ming returned to the manor, they heard what happened, and Su Yan thus immediately rushed to old madam's Meixiangyuan. Just as he entered the yard, he saw both Deng Yan and Chai Yiyun crying on the ground.

"Greetings mother...."

Before Su Yan could finish speaking, Su Jiashi had already smacked him with her cane. "Look at what kind of wife you've married, to think she would want to kill my grandson and granddaughter." When she thought of this, Su Jiashi apologetically turned to Chonglou, "I wonder if you can take a lot at my grandson as well?"

Chonglou firmly nodded, and seeing him agree, Su Jiashi immediately let someone carry Su Qingcong over. Chonglou took his pulse and reluctantly replied, "Old madam, the young master is fine for now, he merely ate something that caused him to sleep. He'll probably wake by tomorrow."

Upon hearing this from Chonglou, Su Jiashi felt a bit relieved. Leaning on her cane, Su Jiashi walked over next to Chai Yiyun and kicked her, "You disgrace, tell me why you would want to curse my grandson and granddaughter to death!"

Chai Yiyun looked to Su Yan who was standing to the side, "My lord, you have to believe me! I really didn't have the fourth miss and the young master, I really didn't."

When Murong Jingxuan saw this, he smirked, "Then should we also pretend that the dolls found in third madam's yard never existed!?"