Chapter 81
Foundation

After receiving the items, Song Wan and Heng Zhi walked into the main hall. With the Old Madam and Mother Jiang absent, Song Wan was the highest-ranking person in the inner courtyard.

From time to time, younger members of the family came forward to greet her, and she responded to each one.

The person she most wanted to see had already arrived, so Jiang Yan, no longer interested in entertaining the children, retreated behind the sandalwood screen, watching Song Wan with restrained affection.

Before long, a maid from the outer courtyard reported that Duan Yiting’s sedan chair had arrived at the Marquis Mansion. The main hall fell silent as Song Wan led everyone outside to greet him.

After a short wait, a small sedan chair was carried in from a distance. When it stopped, everyone bowed their heads in greeting.

Song Wan saw a pair of black official boots emerge from the sedan, followed by a slightly high-pitched, hoarse old man’s voice: “Get up. What are you all standing around for?”

The voice was grating, but no one dared to show any reaction.

Duan Yiting stood in front of the sedan, with a young eunuch quickly stepping forward to support him. Jiang Xingjian stood beside him, looking respectful.

Given Duan Yiting’s unpredictable nature, they had to be cautious in their hospitality.

Song Wan adjusted her shawl and stepped forward to stand beside Jiang Xingjian.

Duan Yiting glanced at her, then briefly looked at Jiang Yan, who seemed almost invisible, before withdrawing his gaze. No one knew the purpose of his visit, so they didn’t dare to speak. Only Lin Jiayue, standing at the end of the line, looked at him with wide eyes, but the sharp-eyed eunuch quickly noticed her.

Lin Jiayue blinked in surprise before lowering her head.

“Grandmother has been unwell recently and couldn’t come to greet you, Eunuch Duan. Please forgive her.”

“No matter.” As soon as he finished speaking, Duan Yiting turned and sat back in the sedan, shouting, “Return to the palace.”

Instantly, everyone in the Marquis Mansion was stunned.

Jiang Xingjian’s face turned pale, while Song Wan frowned slightly.

Duan Yiting was over sixty years old and hunched over, but why were his feet so unusually large? She had only seen a few men in her life, apart from her father, brothers, and Jiang Xingjian, so she had no basis for comparison.

Pushing aside this strange thought, Song Wan pinched her shawl, wondering if it had worked.

Jiang Xingjian hurried after him, seemingly wanting to explain, but he couldn’t catch up even in the outer courtyard.

The entire mansion was on edge, but Song Wan felt a sense of relief.

“Eunuch Duan is always so unpredictable, Marquis. Don’t worry.” Qing Wei, a former palace maid responsible for court banquets, had dealt with Duan Yiting before. She knew that although he was capricious, he had rarely caused harm in recent years, so she reassured Jiang Xingjian.

“Thank you for the advice, Aunt.”

“You’re welcome, Marquis.” Having helped manage the household affairs recently, Qing Wei had a good impression of Jiang Xingjian and was willing to offer comfort and advice.

“Since Eunuch Duan wanted to visit the Old Madam, he must have some connection with her. Perhaps you should ask her; you might find some answers.”

Jiang Xingjian found this reasonable and dismissed everyone before heading to Fuhe Hall alone.

At the entrance to Fuhe Hall, Mother Jiang stood blocking the door, not letting him in.

During this period, Mother Jiang had been taking care of the Old Madam, and no one else in the mansion had seen her. Today, Mother Jiang repeatedly blocked Jiang Xingjian, arousing his suspicion.

“Mother, are you hiding something from me?”

“What are you talking about?” Mother Jiang avoided Jiang Xingjian’s gaze, her eyes darting around.

“Eunuch Duan suddenly came today, and when he heard he couldn’t see Grandmother, he turned and left. I want to ask Grandmother if she has any connection with Eunuch Duan; otherwise, I have no peace of mind.”

Mother Jiang sighed. “How could I not know if the Old Madam has any connection with Eunuch Duan? Our mansion wouldn’t have been nearly emptied in recent years if she did. You don’t know how we managed when the harvest was poor on the estate a few years ago.”

Mentioning Duan Yiting, Mother Jiang was full of resentment.

In recent years, Eunuch Duan had been extorting money, whether out of senility or greed. Every year, the Marquis Mansion sent thousands of taels to Duan’s residence, but they never saw him. Every festival, the steward would visit Duan’s residence, only to be told to leave the gifts and go.

Two years ago, she thought Eunuch Duan didn’t care about the Marquis Mansion, so she secretly stopped the payments. Within three days, Jiang Man sent a message saying she was being harassed by eunuchs in the palace, asking if she had done something wrong.

That rootless old man had no descendants, so what did he need all that money for?

Mother Jiang was so angry that her teeth hurt, but she didn’t dare to voice her thoughts.

Jiang Xingjian, however, was tired of his mother’s roundabout way of speaking. He knew her temperament all too well.

Forcing open the door to Fuhe Hall, Jiang Xingjian strode in. He was shocked by what he saw.

“Grandmother, Grandmother.”

The Old Madam’s eye sockets were sunken, and her eyes were cloudy. Hearing her grandson’s voice, her dry eyelids barely moved, showing no reaction.

“What happened? Why didn’t you call the imperial physician?” Jiang Xingjian lifted the Old Madam’s quilt, revealing a skeletal frame. The once slightly plump old lady was now nothing but skin and bones.

Lifting her up, Jiang Xingjian was about to call for the physician when he heard two rough, gravelly sounds from the old lady’s throat.

With red eyes, Mother Jiang said, “Do you think this was my idea? She instructed me to do this.”

Tears streamed down her face as she pressed a handkerchief to her eyes. “You just joined the Shen Shu Camp. If she dies now, you’ll have to return home for mourning. The position you just secured will be lost. When the mansion was in turmoil, your sister pleaded with the Emperor for a long time but couldn’t get you out of the Shanglin Garden.”

“Now that you’ve been assigned to a position with military power, the Old Madam is overjoyed. How could she allow herself to drag you down?”

“Her health has been failing for a long time. The mansion’s physician has been using animal medicine to keep her alive, but she’s already gone.”

“The physician said that once the medicine stops, she will…”

“She treated me like her own child. Do you think I can bear to see her suffer like this?” Mother Jiang sat on the bed, crying hysterically.

“But what else can we do? You married a wife who didn’t care about anything and took a concubine who only caused trouble. The mansion has no people and no money. The profits from the ice and rouge shops aren’t enough to bribe Eunuch Duan and the Empress even once.”

“Eunuch Duan needs to be bribed, and so does the Eastern Depot. If you lose your position at the Shen Shu Camp now, what will happen to our mansion? The Old Madam said that the century-old foundation must not be destroyed in her hands.”

Jiang Xingjian’s face was ashen. He clenched his fists, his voice hoarse. “So Grandmother will be kept like this indefinitely? How long will this go on?”