Qionghua was confused, but she still chose to respect Mu Jinyuan.
"Yuan'er requests that you send for a matron from the palace to examine me. It is easy enough to beat Zhou Zi'an to death, but that would not clear me of his slanders. On the contrary, it would be exploited by those with ulterior motives to say we are abusing our power, which would do more harm than good."
Qionghua was a straightforward person, but she was not stupid; she had merely been so intent on helping Mu Jinyuan vent her anger that she had overlooked the implications. Reminded, she suddenly realized her mistake. "That is perfect. Mother Zhou is a veteran from the palace who has served me for years. She is the most discerning when it comes to such matters regarding women."
Mu Jinyuan turned to Mu Bingwen, her tone icy. "Father, please call for the matrons of the household to examine me along with Mother Zhou, so that no one can wag their tongues and claim that the Noble Consort is deliberately shielding me."
The latter part of her sentence was directed at Mu Jinxia. This time, she would absolutely not allow herself to be sold out while remaining oblivious.
Mu Jinxia dared not show her true feelings, but inwardly, she wished she could tear Mu Jinyuan into a thousand pieces. Her scheme had utterly failed.
Mother Zhou and the two matrons from the Mu Mansion finished their examination of Mu Jinyuan quickly. Before the Noble Consort, they dared not lie, and their answers were unanimous: Mu Jinyuan remained a maiden.
Seeing this, Zhou Zi'an turned to run, but he was seized by the Noble Consort’s personal guards and taken to the magistrate’s office. Mu Jinyuan’s reputation was finally cleared.
Mu Bingwen immediately changed his tune, smiling as he attempted to smooth things over. "This Zhou Zi'an is truly bold and reckless, slandering my daughter like this." He walked over and reached for Mu Jinyuan’s hand. "My daughter has been wronged."
Mu Jinyuan looked at him with indifference and shook him off. She had noticed the questionable nature of her father’s attitude just moments before. Beside them, Mu Jinxia was grinding her teeth in hatred; her flawless trap had been broken by Mu Jinyuan.
"Yuan'er has been frightened. Why don't you come back with me to recover, and I will send you home once your mother returns from her pilgrimages?" the Noble Consort looked at Mu Jinyuan with affection.
This was her first time at the Mu Mansion, yet she found Mu Bingwen to be a pathetic creature, and that Mu Jinxia, with her sharp, ferret-like face, was truly repulsive. She had never heard Mu Jinyuan’s mother complain about anything, but upon arriving, she felt the Mu Mansion was a place that knew no peace. It seemed that Mu Jinxia’s status in the house was even higher than Mu Jinyuan’s.
"Noble Consort, this matter is not over yet," Mu Jinyuan’s words startled Mu Jinxia. "I beg my aunt to do me one more favor."
Qionghua was more than happy to help. She raised her hand, was helped into the seat of honor by Mother Zhou, and gave Mu Jinyuan a reassuring look. "Do whatever you wish, Yuan'er!"
After suffering such a great grievance, she certainly could not let it end here.
"Noble Consort, what status do you hold? The misunderstanding has been cleared, why cause such a stir?" Mu Bingwen said impatiently.
A stir? Regarding her chastity, it was nothing more than a "stir" in her father's eyes!
Ignoring Mu Bingwen’s agitation, Mu Jinyuan ordered Chunxing, "Go and call all the maids, matrons, and chore boys from my courtyard. Not a single one is to be left behind."
"Miss, why are you calling them all here?" Chunxing asked, puzzled.
Mu Jinyuan’s gaze shot toward Chunxing like a sharp blade. The maid dared not ask another word and hurried off to summon the others. Previously, her mistress had always spoken in a soft, gentle voice, never blaming anyone even when they made mistakes. She had treated Chunxing like a sister; she had never seen such a look in her mistress’s eyes before.
Before long, all the servants from Mu Jinyuan’s courtyard were gathered in the main hall. Men and women, old and young, stood in two full rows—nearly twenty people in all.
"Miss, everyone is here," Chunxing said after checking to make sure no one was missing, then stood by Mu Jinyuan’s side.
"You stand over there too," Mu Jinyuan glanced at her.
The servants looked at one another in surprise. Chunxing was Mu Jinyuan’s personal maid, and they usually followed her arrangements. They had rarely seen Mu Jinyuan put on a cold face, and they had never seen her looking as murderous as she did now, her face frozen like ice.
"Yes..."
Mu Jinyuan’s frigid gaze swept over the servants standing before her. Her red lips parted, and she spoke slowly: "Today, I was framed by a villain who possessed my personal undergarments and knew of the red mole on my body. It could only have been leaked by someone close to me."
"Everyone in my courtyard is a suspect. As for who it is..."
Mu Jinyuan’s gaze was bone-chilling, making the servants shiver. They all fell to their knees at once, denying everything. Chunxing kept her head down, biting her lip. Mu Jinyuan had truly changed.
"Noble Consort, lend me your guards. These people will not tell the truth unless they suffer a little."
The Noble Consort adjusted her headpiece. "Beat them hard. These ungrateful dogs!"
The guards accompanying the Noble Consort were carefully selected, each a master of martial arts; their blows were heavy. The wails in the courtyard rose one after another, and soon blood was being drawn, yet Mu Jinyuan did not even blink. She needed to see the true faces of these people with her own eyes.
In her past life, she had been a fool. In this one, she would eradicate those who harmed her, one by one!
With the Noble Consort present, Mu Bingwen dared not speak despite his dissatisfaction. But this panicked Mu Jinxia. If they kept beating them like this, no one would be able to hold out. What if...
"It’s Chunxing! I saw it! It was Chunxing who took the Miss's clothes. She colluded with an outsider to frame the Miss!" a small, thin maid finally broke under the pressure.
Chunxing was terrified. "It wasn't me! Miss, do not believe her! I have served you since I was a child, I have never had any disloyalty toward you. How could I frame you and destroy your reputation?"
"That night, my stomach was upset. When I got up in the night, I saw you holding the Miss's undergarments and sneaking them into your robes!"
"I didn't! I didn't!"
"Chunxing, it really was you." Mu Jinyuan had already suspected Chunxing, but hearing another person identify her still brought a sharp pain to her heart.
Chunxing gave a bitter smile, knowing it was useless to say anything more. "Miss, you suspected me from the very beginning, didn't you?"
"At the Spring Banquet, the wine I drank... you were the one who poisoned it."
"Why?" Mu Jinyuan asked, confused. "Was someone ordering you to do this?"
Seeing the situation turn sour, Mu Jinxia realized she could not let Chunxing open her mouth to implicate her. With that thought, she moved quickly toward Chunxing. "To think it was you, you dog of a servant, harming my sister! You deserve to die!" Mu Jinxia pulled a hairpin and lunged at Chunxing.
However, Mu Jinyuan was faster. She drove a dagger directly into Chunxing’s chest, and bright blood splattered everywhere.
"You!" Mu Jinxia was sprayed with Chunxing's blood, and terrified out of her wits, she collapsed to the floor. What she feared more, however, was the look on Mu Jinyuan’s face—it was like that of a vengeful ghost crawled up from hell, absolutely terrifying.
"You killed her?" Mu Bingwen was stunned. Was this really the Mu Jinyuan he knew?
"Sister Xia is right. Such a servant who betrays her master and plots against me deserves to die!" Mu Jinyuan lightly wiped the blood from her hand and smiled. "However, there is no need for Sister Xia to dirty her hands with my servants."
"Throw the body to the mass grave!"