Chapter 702 - The Cautious Nanny Qing
Mo Xuetong came out just in time. She boarded an inconspicuous horse carriage that had been parked by the side earlier. Then, her carriage went in the same direction as Concubine Yun’s carriage. The ordinary horse carriage that was painted with oil was not eye-catching at all, and looked exactly the same as the other horse carriages on the streets. Without a powerful family’s sign, no one knew that noble Consort Xuan was sitting inside.
Of course, Concubine Yun was also in the similar carriage today!
Concubine Yun’s horse carriage ran into another horse carriage on the streets. When the two horse carriages passed by each other, Mo Ye could see clearly from where she was sitting that the two people inside were taking a look at each other. Concubine Yun, who was dressed as a maidservant, looked happy and waved at the person in the other horse carriage.
The people in the carriage did not ask her carriage to stop. She seemed to only say something to Concubine Yun before the two carriages separated and headed in the opposite direction.
“My Lady, which carriage shall we keep an eye on now?” Mo Ye asked anxiously when she saw that the two horse carriages parted ways.
“Keep an eye on the carriage of King Ning’s Manor according to the original plan.” Mo Xuetong thought for a moment and looked up deeply at the carriage passing by her own carriage. There was an old maidservant sitting in the carriage, and Mo Xuetong could not see her clearly.
“Yes.” Mo Ye nodded and understood.
It was unforeseen to see Concubine Yun outside the Mo Manor. Since it was unforeseen, it was not proper for them to change their previous plan. Mo Ye was a secret guard, so she naturally knew that changing their plan in a hurry would not benefit them. Moreover, it would cause them to be in a flurry. Just now, she was flustered because of the appearance of more than one enemy.
As she thought that as a secret guard who had been groomed in this aspect since she was young, her performance was inferior to that of Mo Xuetong who was younger than her and looked even weaker, she admired Mo Xuetong even more. Her expression grew even more respectful to Mo Xuetong. The things that Consort Xuan had done had all been considered carefully. By contrast, she appeared a little more impetuous.
The carriage turned around lightly and naturally and slowly followed the carriage ahead, along the road they had come from. The carriage ahead slowed down several times, and their carriage still moved forward slowly and steadily. Only then did the people in the carriage from King Ning’s Manor remove their doubts and get back on track.
Mo Xuetong’s horse carriage stopped at Fragrance House. Mo Lan put a curtained hat on her head and a little maidservant helped her off the horse carriage. The coachman stood by the side, curtsied respectfully, and then still waited by the horse carriage!
Mo Xuetong entered the shop naturally. As the shop had already received the message, the waiter who was waiting there hurried over happily when he saw Mo Xuetong coming. “Welcome, madam, have you made a reservation? If you haven’t, we still have private rooms upstairs. There are only a few rooms left.”
“Our madam has already made a reservation,” the maidservant replied cleverly.
“Madam, please come upstairs.” The waiter put a towel on his shoulder and quickly led Mo Xuetong upstairs with a smile.
The carriage of King Ning’s Manor also arrived. The person in the carriage saw that the carriage stopped in front of them, and that a madam came down with only a little maidservant. As the madam was dressed in bright clothes, her clothes were not gorgeous. She should be the madam of an ordinary family instead of a big shot. Nanny Qing, who was sitting in the carriage, breathed a sigh of relief.
Originally, she suspected that the person in the carriage was deliberately keeping an eye on her, so she asked the carriage to slow down. To her surprise, the person in the carriage really came to Fragrance House for dinner as well, so she was half at ease.
Fragrance House was a restaurant, so it was normal for people to come here for dinner.
She had come out personally today because she was indeed a little anxious. Therefore, she had made a trip personally as soon as she received a letter from Auntie Qing. However, she had always been careful. Even though there was nothing unusual about Mo Xuetong’s horse carriage, she felt uneasy when she saw that the horse carriage had been following behind hers.
As such, she grew more and more careful. She only relaxed when she saw that Mo Xuetong walked into the restaurant with the help of her maidservant and heard that she had already booked a private room. Then, she got off the horse carriage and led her two maidservants into the restaurant.
A waiter had already come over and asked her the same questions politely. Then he also took her upstairs to a private room. They had already booked a room as well.
After entering the room, Nanny Qing sat down and frowned uneasily. Somehow, she always felt uneasy today.
It was a wonderful surprise for her to meet Concubine Yun of King Xuan’s Manor earlier on the way. But now, she was a little flustered, as if something was about to happen.
Concubine Yun used to work in the Empress Dowager’s palace, so Nanny Qing naturally knew her. Not only did she know Concubine Yun, but Concubine Yun had also asked Nanny Qing to report to the palace about what had happened in the past. Concubine Yun used to stir up trouble in the back courtyard of King Xuan’s Manor. Even Consort Yu in the palace had once used this way to send her subordinate, Concubine Xiang, to King Xuan’s Manor.
Consort Yu stood on King Ning’s side at that time, and she was pregnant with his child. Therefore, it was easy for her to ask the Empress Dowager to arrange for her people to enter King Xuan’s Manor. Everything about Concubine Xiang was carried out under Consort Yu’s order. However, unexpectedly, she made a fool of herself in the end. At that time, the Empress Dowager was pushing the boat with the current as she wanted to see what Consort Yu would do.
If things went well, it would only benefit her, so she had asked Concubine Yun to cooperate secretly.
However, so many things happened in King Xuan’s Manor later, and the whole manor was tightly guarded. There was no way for Concubine Yun to come out. This time, she pretended to be a maidservant to come out. There must be something wrong. How could Nanny Qing not worry about it? The Empress Dowager was also very anxious. The marriage between the Southern Barbarian Lands and the Qin Kingdom almost went wrong. How could the Empress Dowager not be annoyed?
There couldn’t be any more mistakes on King Ning’s side.
“Nanny, the concubine of the Mo Manor did not come, and she only asked a servant to send a letter.” A maidservant pushed the door open and entered. Then she curtsied respectfully to Nanny Qing and took out a letter from her arms.
These maidservants were all Nanny Qing’s confidant. She trusted them, and that was why she brought them here.
“Why didn’t she come?” There was a hint of anger in the corners of Nanny Qing’s eyes. She had come out with much difficulty. She wanted to talk to Auntie Qing in person, ask about the details of what had happened in the Mo Manor, and see if there was negligence. She had heard that Consort Xuan was not an ordinary person.
She was not as weak and helpless as she looked.
From the fact that she had forced her father’s concubine and her sister to reveal their true colors soon after she arrived in the capital. Consort Xuan was definitely not simple despite her young age.
“The old maidservant sent by the Mo Manor said that Auntie Qing was about to leave when she ran into the Old Sir of the Mo Manor. She could not leave for a while. However, she was afraid that Nanny would be waiting for her. As such, she sent a letter. Please read it, Nanny.” The maidservant handed the letter to her.
“Have you seen that old maidservant before?” Nanny Qing did not take it, but asked with a flash in the corners of her eyes.
“We have taken a look at her. It’s the old maidservant that Auntie Qing has always brought with her. In the past, when Auntie Qing came here, she brought this old maidservant with her. There were a few times when she stood guard at the door. She should be Auntie Qing’s confidant.” the maidservant answered respectfully. She had seen that old maidservant more than once. Every time, Auntie Qing seemed to trust her very much.
Therefore, the maidservant did not doubt the letter sent by the old maidservant this time.
Nanny Qing thought for a while and did not take the letter. Instead, she stood up and walked to the window. When she looked out from her position, she happened to see the door and saw another carriage beside hers. There was no sign on the carriage and the coachman was sitting in the front and chatting with several other coachmen beside him.
Everything seemed normal, and there were no conspicuous people or carriages behind them.
It seemed that she had thought too much. The older she was, the less daring she would be! Nanny Qing could not help laughing and shook her head slightly. She had not been the one who met and talked to Auntie Qing before. It was unexpected that she was not be able to see her niece when she came in person this time.
She sat down at the table again and opened the envelope. When she saw the familiar writing, the last trace of suspicion in Nanny Qing’s mind was eliminated.
Auntie Qing knew how to write. Her writing was neither very good nor bad. When it was inconvenient for her to come out before, she had sent letters. Nanny Qing was familiar with her writing.
The content of the letter was very simple. Auntie Qing only said that most of the things had been done and that those things were all placed in Mo Xuetong’s Qingwei Garden. She asked Nanny Qing to rest assured as these things were all kept secret and only she and Mo Yufeng knew about them. Nanny Qing was completely relieved this time.
Then she read the letter carefully. After reading it, a faint smile appeared on her face. She did not expect that her niece was also a smart person. She had such a perfect plan. It seemed that she did not need to give her any advice. This was good. If her niece was of great use, she would recommend her to the Empress Dowager in the future.
Then the glory and wealth of this life would also be endless.
Nanny Qing nodded and said, “Go and tell the old maidservant that everything should be done according to what Auntie Qing has planned. Ask Auntie Qing to be careful and not expose herself. The thing that His Highness promised her before will definitely be realized.”
“Yes, I’ll go right away.” The maid nodded knowingly and was going to leave.
“Wait. See if Concubine Yun has come over. If she comes over, bring her in.” She was relieved of all about the Mo Manor. But since Concubine Yun had come out in disguise and met her, she could not ignore her. If King Xuan’s Manor could be controlled, it would be of great benefit to King Ning.
“I know. I’ll go and guard outside now.” The maidservant nodded and left.
Since there were no outsiders here and Auntie Qing would not come, Nanny Qing did not need to act in a sneaky way. After sending people from the Mo Manor away, the maidservant asked the waiter to serve some dishes and ordered a pot of wine. At this time, Concubine Yun hadn’t come yet, and Nanny Qing began to drink alone.
The dishes in Fragrance House were wonderful in the capital city. Nanny Qing liked it very much. It was rare for her to come out, so she naturally wanted to have a good meal.
The dishes were served very quickly. After a while, most of the dishes that Nanny Qing ordered had been served. Because Nanny Qing’s maidservants urged the waiter with a few more words and even rushed to the kitchen to ask the chef to cook for them first, the chef made their dishes first and thus the food was served with extraordinary speed.
As it was fast for them, it would be slow for the other private rooms. It would not be a big deal if others didn’t know about it, but when the two maidservants came back with a smile, they proudly said that they had gone to the kitchen and asked the chef to make their dishes first.
Of course, she deliberately expressed that her nanny’s status was noble and that they surely couldn’t treat her like an ordinary guest. How could those ordinary customers be on the same level as her nanny?
Some people were unhappy with her words, especially when they saw that there was no dish in their private room yet, and that all kinds of hot dishes were quickly served in the private room on the side. The two maidservants who guarded the door couldn’t stand it anymore and said coldly.
Each of them thought that their own mistress had a high status. Besides, the two maidservants were bent on pleasing their mistress who had been moody. When they saw a blow of dish that they had also ordered to the private room on the side, and their mistress was about to get angry inside, a maidservant couldn’t help coming over, grabbed the tray in the waiter’s hand, and scolded angrily.
“It’s our dish. Don’t you have eyes? Where are you going?”