The daily routine of the mistress of the Hou family training her husband

Chapter 115: Underhanded tactics
"If you have something to say, why didn't you say it to your father-in-law just now? Instead, you invited me to go alone now." Xu Shuhe said with a cold face.

The servant seemed even more respectful. "Some things are hard to say in front of the master, otherwise the master will be more worried. This matter concerns the Third Young Master, and you, Madam, will definitely want to know."

"What's the matter?" Xu Shuhe asked.

"The county magistrate is investigating the private property of the Third Young Master's subordinates." The servant whispered, "If there are any loopholes in the tax payment, the serious case is that they will lose their heads."

Hearing this, Xu Shuhe's face suddenly turned grim.

Seeing this, the servant said again, "Madam Third Young Master, please move."

Xu Shuhe wanted to go, of course, but just as he was about to leave, the servant stopped Xinyue and said, "It's enough for the Third Young Master's wife to go alone. It's better not to let other people hear about this."

"I'm afraid it's not right for my fourth brother's uncle and his wife to meet alone at night," Xu Shuhe said coldly.

Xinyue also stuck close to Xu Shuhe, staring at the boy with a vigilant look on her face.

"Don't worry, Madam Third Young Master. Your maid can wait at a distance. I will be here too. Fourth Young Master will see you in the pavilion. The surroundings are clear and you can see clearly even if you stand at a distance. There will be no misunderstanding." The servant said respectfully.

Xu Shuhe thought for a moment before turning to look at Xinyue, "Don't worry, I'll be back soon. You wait here with him."

As she said this, her eyes seemed to glance twice into the night behind Xinyue, and then she took the lantern from Xinyue's hand and went alone to the pavilion the servant pointed to.

When she was about to get closer, she saw a tall figure walking into the pavilion from another direction. It looked like Chen Xun, who must have just come from Chen Huaiqian's place.

Keeping a bit of vigilance in his heart, Xu Shuhe walked slowly into the pavilion. Just as he was about to speak, he found that the other party turned around, and it was not Chen Xun, but a strange man with a handsome face.

Xu Shuhe had an impression of this person. He was an actor named Qin. He had bought clothes from her store many times and could be considered an old customer.

Just as she was wondering, the actor suddenly came over and hugged her.

"Madam San Shao, you are here. I have been waiting for you here for a long time!"

"How dare you!" Xu Shuhe shouted angrily, taking a few steps back to avoid him. "How did you get in? Why are you waiting for me? Come on, tie up this pervert and send him to the government!"

She shouted loudly, but there was no movement around her, not even Xinyue's voice could be heard.

While Xu Shuhe was on guard against the actor named Qin, he looked back and found that the place where Xinyue had just stood was empty.

At this moment, the actor pounced on them again, bringing with him a sweet fragrance that made people dizzy.

"What happened to Third Young Master's Madam today? If you hadn't sent someone to ask me to come, how could I have come here to wait for you? You don't have to pretend anymore. This is not our first time, and no one will see us. The bed has been made in the side room. I will do my best to make Young Master happy today."

Xu Shuhe stepped back repeatedly. She was smelled by the man and felt a little uncomfortable. She immediately threw the lantern in her hand at the man, then picked up her skirt and ran away.

The actor named Qin also reacted quickly. He dodged sideways and reached out to grab Xu Shuhe's clothes.

But he never expected that Xu Shuhe had pulled out a hairpin at some point and held it in her hand. When she saw him coming, she raised her hand and stabbed him. Blood came out immediately and the man screamed in pain.

At this moment, Meixiang came running out from the darkness, shouting at the top of her lungs.

"Someone, come, catch the thief, there's a thief in the house!" After arriving at the scene, he protected Xu Shuhe behind him and stared at the person opposite him with vigilance in his eyes.

The actor's hand was stabbed and he was in pain. He just wanted to run away, but Meixiang made such a big noise that servants came rushing over and caught him without much effort.

Soon, the lights in the Chen family's house were on. When Chen Huaiqian and Chen Xun rushed over after hearing the noise, Xu Shuhe already had the actor's confession in his hands.

"Fourth brother, you are a scholar after all, but you are capable of such despicable means. I really underestimated you."

When he saw Chen Xun, Xu Shuhe started with an impolite mockery, with anger in his tone and a cold look in his eyes.

The father and son who had just arrived had livid faces, and Chen Huaiqian even pursed his lips tightly, unable to speak.

Xu Shuhe sneered, "I wonder why my father-in-law would go to all this trouble, inviting me to chat in the evening and promising to divide the family. It turns out that he wanted to trick me into drinking the tea with dirty stuff in it, and then accuse me of cheating. If this gets out, I'll be labeled as a vicious woman who is unfaithful to her husband, cheating on her husband's family."

"Third sister-in-law, calm down. There may be a misunderstanding here."

Chen Xun was about to speak when he was interrupted by Xu Shuhe.

"Misunderstanding? I went to see this actor today, but it was your servant who personally invited me. My maid Xinyue was knocked unconscious by your servant. If I hadn't been careful and asked Meixiang to follow in secret, when this happened, all the servants around the pavilion were sent away by you, and no one came to catch the thief. Wouldn't I have been humiliated by the thief?"

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Finally, he looked at Chen Huaiqian again.

"I guess my father-in-law would never tamper with the tea. I guess it was my fourth brother who did it. It's a pity that the tea is so expensive that I can't afford it. I didn't dare drink it at all."

As he spoke, he twisted one of his sleeves with one hand, and water dripped down.

Yes, today Chen Huaiqian invited her to drink tea. She felt something was wrong, so she was cautious. She spit out the first mouthful of tea into her handkerchief, and then spit out the rest of the tea by covering her face.

Fortunately, the clothes I wear nowadays are loose and thick, so it can’t be seen.

Xu Shuhe was really glad that he was alert this time. Otherwise, according to the actor's words, there was a lot of stuff in the tea, and according to the time limit, he would have had an attack when the two met. His hands and feet became weak, and he couldn't speak, so he would be at the mercy of others.

Chen Xun's face turned dark, and his voice immediately turned cold.

"Third sister-in-law, please don't spit blood at me. Father has already agreed to divide the family, so why should I do this? Are you directing and acting this out yourself, trying to blackmail father and gain more family property?"

"Then I really have the ability to predict the future. I calculated that my father-in-law would agree to divide the family today, and I even planned this trip in advance?" Xu Shuhe's face was a little sarcastic. "Whatever you are thinking, just give up. This confession is in duplicate. My mother has already left the house with the other confession and the actor. Fourth brother is going to take the imperial examination, and I think he doesn't want to ruin his reputation."

As soon as these words came out of his mouth, Chen Xun felt as if someone had grabbed his neck. Anger surged in his heart, but he didn't dare to open his mouth easily. He even felt a little regretful.

Why did he get involved in this mess, causing himself trouble?

Scholars value reputation. In today's imperial examinations, grades are certainly important, but the court also checks the background and reputation of officials when selecting them. If this matter became known to everyone, his reputation would be ruined.

Compared to him, Chen Huaiqian was more anxious. Now he only had this one son who was still safe and sound, so he immediately asked for help.

"Third brother's wife, please don't do anything rash. This is all my fault. This is all my idea. It has nothing to do with the fourth brother. I was blinded by greed. Please don't go out and say anything. It's not easy for the fourth brother to study for so many years!"