Chapter 27: The Death of a Maid

Doctor Li chuckled and said, “What’s this, you don’t even know your own leg is broken? What did you think happened—just a minor injury?”

Xue Jiaoyue’s heart sank, her face turning pale.

Xue Yang’s expression was equally frightened. “No one told me my leg was broken! Isn’t it just a sprain?”

Doctor Li scoffed, “A sprain? It was smashed and broken, right before our eyes!”

Xue Yang recalled how, after his fall, Xue Jiaoyue landed heavily on him. His hands and feet trembled with anger—or perhaps from pain.

“Jiaoyue!” Xue Yang called out, louder than he’d ever spoken to her. He had always doted on this daughter, from the moment she was born. But how could she treat him so? Not only had she broken his leg, she’d lied, claiming it was only a strained muscle.

He had always disliked the look of splints and had ordered the servants to remove them, but a broken bone without a splint—wouldn’t that cause permanent disability? What was she thinking? Had he been mistaken all along—was she not as obedient and sensible as he’d believed?

Xue Jiaoyue had never seen her father like this—or rather, she had, but only when he was angry with Xue Fanzhi, never with her. Terrified, she took two steps back, then turned to flee, her signature move. “Father, I didn’t mean it…”

Xue Yang was used to this trick—she always used it on others, but now it was directed at him. It made him grit his teeth in anger, yet he didn’t know what to do.

Before Xue Jiaoyue could reach the door, a matron in charge hurried in and announced, “Master, Madam, I have urgent news!”

This was the stewardess from Xue Yang’s study, his wet nurse’s niece, older than Xue Yang by a few years and highly trusted by him.

She was never so flustered, so Xue Yang knew something bad must have happened. “What is it?” he asked.

The woman hesitated, then said nothing. Xue Yang told Lady Jin to show Doctor Li—the outsider—out. Once Doctor Li left, Xue Jiaoyue, eager to hear the secret, stopped running.

She overheard the stewardess whisper, “Yunluo has jumped into the well!”

Xue Yang and Xue Jiaoyue were both shocked. Only Lady Jin felt a secret relief—Yunluo was her rival, and her death was no loss.

Of course, Xue Jiaoyue had insulted Yunluo that morning. So, despite her surprise, she felt a pang of anxiety.

...

Yunluo was Xue Yang’s personal maid, favored and trusted by him. Her death instantly eclipsed all other matters in the household; everyone spoke only of Yunluo.

And, of course, of Xue Jiaoyue.

Xue Yang’s courtyard was not sealed tight; before Yunluo jumped into the well, Xue Jiaoyue had insulted her, saying her waistband was loose—several people heard it. Then Yunluo committed suicide. Understandably, most believed Xue Jiaoyue had driven Yunluo to her death.

But Yunluo had no family—only a cousin who’d visited her five years ago, then disappeared. So, even though people knew Xue Jiaoyue was involved, no one could speak up for Yunluo or seek justice for her.

However, the third and fourth branches of the Xue family sent representatives.

Both branches had daughters. The third branch had only one granddaughter, Fifth Miss. The fourth branch had several: Second Miss, Third Miss—both married—Fourth Miss, already betrothed, and the most beautiful, Sixth Miss, who was still waiting for a promising match. There were also Twelfth and Thirteenth Misses beneath her.

The fifth branch had Eleventh Miss, but the lady of the fifth branch did not come forward.

The matriarchs of the third and fourth branches went to see Old Madam Xue, demanding that she punish Xue Jiaoyue. After all, for a young lady to drive a servant to suicide would taint her reputation, affecting the marriage prospects of all the other daughters.

Old Madam Xue, of course, had no desire to let Xue Jiaoyue off easily, but with Xue Yang shielding her, she was reluctant to discipline Jiaoyue. So, when the matriarchs came, she said, “Everyone has their own household now—especially the third branch, which is already outside the five degrees of kinship. If you’re truly worried about marriage prospects, you could simply move out of Black Robe Alley.”

Each branch had its matriarch, and both were outside the five degrees of kinship.

But in recent years, both branches had declined, lacking strong heirs and relying on the main and second branches for support. Especially the third branch: though considered gentry, none studied or entered officialdom, pursuing merchant business instead. They needed Xue Qiu’s protection—Xue Qiu, though childless and unrestrained by a wife, was extremely respectful to Old Madam Xue, his elder sister-in-law.

So, when Old Madam Xue scolded them, the matriarchs dared not protest.

Still, the third branch’s matriarch was bold and insisted, “It’s too late to move out now. Our daughters’ reputations have already been damaged by Seventh Miss. Since the main branch failed to discipline her, even if you won’t punish her, you should compensate us for our losses.”

She glanced at the fourth branch’s matriarch. “What do you think, sister?”

With so many daughters, the fourth branch would surely agree.

...

The fourth branch’s matriarch had once been exceedingly spirited, but after losing a legitimate son and giving birth only to daughters, her family’s decline left her unable to hold her head high among the clan. She became pragmatic.

She didn’t demand as much as the third branch, but was equally displeased. “Elder sister, Seventh Miss really needs proper discipline. She’s still young, yet her words are so vicious—hardly befitting a well-bred lady! Money isn’t the issue, but reputation—this time, the main branch has truly done wrong.”

The Xue family lacked deep heritage, but they didn’t restrict girls from studying. When Xue Yang’s wife was alive, he had spent heavily to hire palace matrons for etiquette and teachers for literature and painting. Xue Fanzhi studied with her uncle, but Xue Jiaoyue, though beautiful, disliked learning and preferred clever tricks. Lady Jin was illiterate and unable to teach her.

Old Madam Xue had never approved of Jiaoyue—it was only Xue Yang’s favoritism.

Being reprimanded by her sisters-in-law was a first for Old Madam Xue. She’d previously avoided meddling in Xue Yang’s affairs, but now she could not ignore it. She sent someone to fetch Xue Jiaoyue for punishment.

Yet, while Xue Yang had been furious at Jiaoyue for injuring him, he soon relented. He merely confined her upstairs as a show of discipline, with no real penalty.

Seeing Xue Yang so obstinate, Old Madam Xue gave up, letting the third and fourth branches make a fuss.

Both branches disliked Xue Yang’s unreasonable ways, so while they wanted to stir trouble, they avoided him, and Old Madam Xue refused to receive them.

The three factions were at an impasse, and the matter would likely fade away unresolved.

Xue Fanzhi heard that Jiaoyue was confined upstairs because she’d been jumping about, disturbing Fanzhi’s rest. She asked Hongxiao what was going on.

Hongxiao, a family-born maid with her ear to the ground, told her about Jiaoyue driving Yunluo to suicide.

Xue Fanzhi was surprised. In her previous life, Yunluo had not died this way. Then, Yunluo had escaped as a runaway slave, killed by barbarian soldiers heading north. But that was three or four years later, and no one knew why she fled, or why she went north.

This time, even less was known.