I'm already a concubine, who wants to fight with you?

Chapter 177 Weighing the pros and cons
No matter why the emperor granted the marriage, Xie Fei was, after all, his concubine sent to him by order.

Even if the Pei family doesn't like it, they can't do anything.

Unless she did something that was against the will of heaven, the Pei family would report it to the emperor and punish her.

In this way, at least the responsibility lies with the Xie family and has nothing to do with the Pei family.

Just as Yuan San expected, after the old lady came back from the Buddhist temple, she really put the blame on Xie Fei.

In the hall, in front of the Miao family, the old lady ordered someone to bring in several maids who had served the Miao family.

These people were tortured and cried out to admit that they were instructed by Xie Fei to drag Miao away and drown her.

Xiao Shirong listened from the side, neither refuting nor fanning the flames, just waiting for the old lady to deal with it alone.

In fact, at the beginning, she also thought about putting the blame on Xie Fei.

But Xie Fei was too "cunning". She had confronted him countless times over the past few months. Whether it was punishment overtly or framing him secretly, whether it was horse banditry or framing him up, this woman always managed to get away with it.

Xiao Shirong's biggest rival right now is the Miao family, and she doesn't want to involve Xie Fei.

Otherwise, if this woman points out the flaws in the plan, it would be a waste of time and effort to find out the cause of Miao's death.

Xiao Shirong's plan did not include taking action against Xie Fei right now.

But the old lady obviously wanted to convict Xie Fei of the crime.

As soon as the maids "confessed", Xie Fei was immediately brought to the hall.

She knelt down in the hall with her head held high and her chest puffed out, and said in a sonorous voice, "I have never had any intention of harming Miao, let alone actually harming her. If the Pei family insists on pinning the crime on me, it will be useless even if I talk until my lips are worn out."

In front of the Miao family, the old lady twisted her Buddhist beads and said, "The servant has already confessed. It's useless for you to be stubborn. Now, I can only send you to the Marquis' Mansion and let the old lady make the decision."

This should have been the fourth room's private matter, but Miao was sent by the old lady, and the old lady was unwilling to bear the sin of murder, so she simply sent the person over and let her be dealt with as she pleased.

They still needed to wait for a reply from the Marquis' Mansion, so Xie Fei was first locked up in Songyueju.

Neither Mother Liu nor Fu Yu were allowed to come in to see her and were each imprisoned.

At night, Yuan San avoided the guards and climbed in through the window as if he was familiar with the place.

Xie Fei was pacing back and forth in the room. When he saw Yuan San, he frowned and asked, "Is the old lady crazy too?"

Not only do they involve her, but they also want to hand her over to the Marquis' Mansion for punishment?
The Marquis' Mansion sent Miao here because they were hoping something would happen to her so that they could control the fourth wife.

Isn't the old lady handing a knife to the Marquis' Mansion this time?

Yuan San said: "Xiao Shirong has caused a big disaster. The only way to get rid of Xiao Shirong is to drag you into the water."

Although it is possible to frame other concubines, if Xie Fei can be eliminated in one fell swoop, wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?
So it wasn't the old lady who was crazy, but Xiao Shirong was getting crazier and crazier. In order to help her deal with the aftermath, this was the only solution.

Xie Fei said: "This is troublesome. With the pressure from the Marquis' Mansion, I am afraid I will really be the scapegoat."

What kind of evidence does the Marquis' Mansion need to deal with a concubine?
Moreover, the title of "marriage granted by the Emperor" is not very effective in front of the Marquis's Mansion.

After all, Xie Fei was only sent by the emperor to vent his anger, not out of genuine love. It was hard to say whether the emperor even remembered that she existed.

As for that old marquis, he is the uncle of the present emperor in terms of seniority, and he has made many outstanding contributions to Dajing, so he is a person with real military power.

Although the Marquis's Mansion is only the title of Marquis, in terms of actual power, it is greater than many dukes or even princes who are in name only.

Xie Fei frowned and walked around the room again and again, still unable to figure out how to get out. Seeing that she was really worried, Yuan San whispered: "Marquis' Mansion..."

"Don't talk," Xie Fei stopped him, "My mind is really confused right now, and I feel like I'm trying to figure something out. Wait until I figure it out before you talk."

Yuan San sighed, walked forward, held her down, turned her around, and led her to sit on a chair.

Then he poured another cup of hot tea.

"Just listen to me slowly, don't be impatient."

Xie Fei took a deep breath and managed to calm down.

Yuan San then said, "The old lady is in charge of the inner house of the Marquis' Mansion, and the old Marquis never pays attention to these trivial matters. The old lady looks kind but has a cold heart, and she has always been dissatisfied with the fourth house. If you just pretend to be pitiful and beg her, she will not be soft-hearted at all."

Xie Fei did not ask why Yuan San knew so much about this, but only asked, "What does this have to do with my exoneration?"

Yuan San said: "Miss, you are very smart. Why do you think the old lady sent Miao here and joined forces with the third house to force the fourth house for Miao's sake?"

Xie Fei vaguely guessed, "People outside say that the old lady treats her children equally, but I think she only cares about her legitimate son."

"There are differences between the palm and the back of your hand. How can it be completely fair to your biological son and your illegitimate child?" Yuan San's eyes behind the mask were dark and deep, slowly brushing away the messy emotions in Xie Fei's heart.

Xie Fei analyzed: "Is it to annex the fourth house? Not really. Could it be that there is another unknown reason?"

The fourth wife is an orphan and a widow, but the inheritance left by General Pei is not small. The land and shops alone are enough to squander for many years.

But the Marquis's Mansion is already wealthy, so they would not resort to so many crooked means for such a small amount of private property.

So this old lady actually hated the illegitimate sons and that's why she tried every means to destroy them?

Xie Fei pondered over it and slowly understood what Yuan San meant.

"I am just a concubine. If they overthrow me, it will not cause any loss to the fourth house. This is not what the old lady wants. So when the time comes, I just need to insist that it was Xiao Shirong who did it, and the old lady will side with me?"

Yuan San's eyes showed undisguised approval, "The girl is really insightful."

Xie Fei still couldn't laugh, he just thought it was ridiculous.

If a concubine killed someone out of jealousy, the news would at most become a topic of conversation after dinner, just like two mad dogs biting each other, and no one would be interested.

The fact that the wife, who had no children, brutally murdered her pregnant concubine would have been a hot topic of discussion in any dynasty.

For the Pei family, if a concubine died or the mistress was imprisoned, which side would have more rumors? And which side would suffer a greater loss?
If the old lady wants to destroy the fourth room, she must start with Xiao Shirong.

Xie Fei figured it out, and he felt relaxed all of a sudden. All his previous depression and anxiety disappeared, and he even laughed wildly, slamming the table.

She smiled like a reverting gorilla, her former elegance and grace completely disappeared without a trace, even Yuan San, who knew her best, was stunned.

"Girl, don't go crazy too."

Xie Fei had laughed enough and covered his face with one hand, his tone unable to hide the sadness.

"If we really keep fighting like this, I'm really afraid that I'll become a madman who kills people without blinking an eye."

Yuan San looked at her and promised softly, "No."

He would never let Xie Fei become what she said.

(End of this chapter)