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Yu Dong promptly went to the nearby tables to find Qi Xiangyu.

Qu Qiuyan continued along with the maid, taking several turns until they reached a small courtyard. The courtyard gate was slightly ajar. Pushing it open, they discovered a graceful lady standing in the middle. The wind gently lifted the hem of her skirt, adorned with delicate golden orchid embroidery, giving her an air of elegance and nobility.

It was none other than Liu Jinyu, who had left the table earlier on a pretext.

Her head was tilted slightly upward, exuding an air of arrogance. Her gaze fell upon Qu Qiuyan, faintly tinged with mockery.

Qu Qiuyan’s heart skipped a beat, but she composed herself and approached slowly. She bowed to Liu Jinyu and said, “County Lady Jingyu.”

Though she felt somewhat aggrieved inside, believing herself to be on par with Liu Jinyu in terms of status, her humble background was indeed a disadvantage. Liu Jinyu held the position of County Lady, while Qu Qiuyan held nothing.

If only she had the same status as Liu Jinyu, she would naturally be the esteemed Princess Crown. Liu Jinyu’s superiority was merely in terms of status.

“Lady Qu, aren’t you going to say something?” Liu Jingyu’s gaze passed over Qu Qiuyan’s face before she asked in a measured tone.

“What do you mean, County Lady Jingyu? I’m afraid I don’t understand.” Qu Qiuyan stood upright, raising her head with a look of bewilderment.

Although her heart was in turmoil, she needed to regain her composure at this moment. She couldn’t allow Liu Jinyu to discover anything.

“The matter concerning the sachet.” Liu Jingyu didn’t have the inclination to beat around the bush with Qu Qiuyan. If it were Qu Moying in front of her, she might have used some tricks. However, Qu Qiuyan didn’t impress her much.

With no other bystanders around, Liu Jingyu wasn’t in the mood for pretenses.

She had already inquired about the incident and, upon learning the truth, it infuriated her to the point of almost spitting blood. What was originally a well-planned scheme to frame Qu Moying had unexpectedly devolved into this. Even without anyone pointing fingers at her, people now had reason to suspect her.

Liu Jingyu keenly sensed that this was even worse than pointing a finger at her and asking, as she couldn’t even defend herself and could only watch as the other ladies looked at her with peculiar glances. And she couldn’t even bring it up herself.

Liu Jingyu had never felt so humiliated before, hating herself for almost losing control and wanting to slap Qu Qiuyan right then and there.

How could this matter be related to her? Was it intentional on Qu Qiuyan’s part, or was it orchestrated by Lord Jing?

She had initially intended to strike a blow against Qu Moying by using Qu Qiuyan’s hand. But unexpectedly, the tables turned, and she ended up getting punched in the face.

And it was so painful that she couldn’t even speak.

“What do you mean, County Lady? I don’t understand.” Qu Qiuyan insisted, trying to hold her ground.

“What do I mean? Lady Qu, do you really not understand? Wasn’t it you who prepared the sachet? How come you don’t know about it now?” Liu Jingyu said coldly, revealing Qu Qiuyan’s involvement.

Qu Qiuyan grew anxious. How could Liu Jingyu know about this? But she still maintained a strong front and said, “What are you implying, County Lady? I still don’t understand!”

“Don’t you understand? Should I bring that maid here? It was you who sent your maid into the flower hall earlier. At that time, the maid from Duke Qi’s Mansion, who was about to return, saw the scene and got scared. She reported it to me.” Liu Jingyu explained, emphasizing each word as she looked at Qu Qiuyan.

Qu Qiuyan took two steps back, her face turning pale. She never expected that Qing Ju’s actions had been witnessed by the maid. And that maid hadn’t even shown up, but had gone straight to report it to Liu Jingyu! If it weren’t for Liu Jingyu’s revelation, she would still be in the dark.

“Are you scheming against me, County Lady?” Qu Qiuyan wasn’t foolish; she quickly grasped the underlying meaning, including the maid who happened to be present. If it weren’t for what that maid said, she wouldn’t have known that the adjacent flower hall was meant for a men’s banquet, let alone enter it.

She had thought it was all a coincidence, but she never imagined that it had fallen into Liu Jingyu’s scheme long ago.

“Lady Qu, you’re hilarious. How could I scheme against you? I merely learned about this matter, but I was afraid it would tarnish Qu’s reputation, so I made that maid keep quiet. How did it end up as me scheming against you? Third Lady Qu, what I want to know is why my name is on your sachet. Could it be that Lord Jing is behind this?”

Liu Jingyu’s expression softened as she saw Qu Qiuyan’s panic, with even a hint of a mocking smile on her face.

In her eyes, Qu Qiuyan would never dare to actively plot against her unless Lord Jing was involved.

Everyone knew that Lord Jing and the Crown Prince were at odds. Although they appeared to get along on the surface, secretly they both wished to take a bite out of each other. Moreover, at that time, she had the impression that Lord Jing was actually interested in her, but she had hesitated and didn’t give him a clear answer, causing them to miss their chance.

Now, her relationship with Qu Qiuyan, as well as her connection to these two individuals, represented her future position and would be different for each.

Previously, she had only considered Qu Qiuyan as Qu Moying’s sister, but she had overlooked the past relationship between Qu Qiuyan and Lord Jing.

The Crown Prince and Lord Jing not only vied for the throne but also had their personal conflicts. Both sides tried their best to tarnish each other’s reputation, which made sense.

“What do you mean by that, County Lady? I don’t understand. Are we discussing the matter of the sachet or the note? You said the sachet was mine, but what about the note? I heard that there was also a note inside the sachet. Who prepared that?” Qu Qiuyan bit her lip and persisted, “And as for the topic of Lord Jing, I’m even more confused. How did we end up involving Lord Jing? What are you implying, County Lady?”

Qu Qiuyan had her reasons for gaining Lord Jing’s favor.

There were some things that she had figured out now. Although the sachet was prepared by her, the note inside it was not. The contents written on it were not her doing. If she hadn’t figured out where the note came from earlier, what else was there to not understand now?

She was just a pawn, and County Lady Jingyu had left a contingency plan.

Besides County Lady Jingyu, who else knew that she made Qing Ju drop the sachet?

“Lady Qu, why don’t you talk about the words on the sachet? Do you think I would frame myself?” Seeing Qu Qiuyan’s reaction, Liu Jingyu furrowed her brows. She realized that she had inadvertently implicated Lord Jing earlier. She became slightly annoyed, as Qu Qiuyan had steered the conversation off track.

She had to keep Lord Jing’s suspicions to herself and not expose them.

“I still don’t understand.” Qu Qiuyan continued to feign confusion. However, deep down, she became more frantic because of these words. With this piece of information, nobody would suspect Liu Jingyu. After all, who would use their own reputation as a raft? Women, especially those from prestigious families, knew how crucial their reputation was.

They always presented themselves with utmost grace, fearing even the slightest blemish on their reputation.

Liu Jingyu didn’t dare, and she didn’t dare either. Could it be that she wasn’t the one behind all this? But besides her, who else knew about her actions? Did her actions catch the attention of many?

“Lady Qu, don’t you understand yet? May I ask what you and the young master Yongning conspired? I heard that you even stopped him for talking. Then, when your sister appeared, you ignored him and left, leaving her alone. If it wasn’t for my cousin, perhaps other people would have seen a secret meeting between your sister and the young master Yongning.” Liu Jingyu spoke sternly.

Just now, Liu Jingyu had already found out about Qu Moying’s encounter with her cousin.

Connecting the cause and effect, Qu Qiuyan’s plan became clearer.

“Lady Qu, I really don’t understand. Since you planned to plot against your sister, why did you drag me into the trap? Or did you think that harming one wasn’t enough and wanted to harm one more?” Liu Jingyu took the upper hand and slowly walked forward with an astonishing aura.

Qu Qiuyan stepped back involuntarily. At this moment, she was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

How did Liu Jingyu know about this matter? Considering that she should not have been at the mansion at that time, how did she know everything? How was she so clear about it, even explaining the details explicitly?

If it weren’t for the unexpected turn of events, all of this would have been straightforward. But where did it go wrong? Why was it in the current state? Shouldn’t Qu Moying’s reputation have been completely ruined by now?

“Lady Qu, please tell me what was really going on.” Liu Jingyu said, stopping a couple of steps away from Qu Qiuyan, her voice filled with mockery.

“County Lord Jingyu, are you truly innocent?” Qu Qiuyan, cornered, had retreated to the entrance of the courtyard. Finally managing to stand her ground, she clenched her teeth and questioned in return.

“Whether I’m innocent or not, you know the best, do you?” Although Liu Jingyu’s face still wore a smile, her gaze turned icy, accentuating the mockery.

“I don’t understand what you mean.” Qu Qiuyan replied cautiously.

“Are you trying to force me to reveal the truth to everyone, or are there others involved in this matter? Do you know but choose not to disclose it?” Liu Jingyu’s voice grew stern.

In fact, she also suspected another possibility. Someone else might have intervened and tampered with Qu Qiuyan’s sachet. But she needed to ask Qu Qiuyan about it.

Suddenly, something flashed in Qu Qiuyan’s mind. She covered her mouth with her handkerchief and let out a scream, “Qu Moying…”

Yes, there was another person, Qu Moying! There weren’t so many inexplicable turnarounds in the world. After battling with Qu Moying for so long, Qu Qiuyan would no longer underestimate her. She hadn’t considered it before because she thought the most likely suspect was Liu Jingyu. This was the Duke Qi’s Mansion, and Qu Moying was unfamiliar with it.

But what if Liu Jingyu herself was also implicated? Other than Qu Moying, Qu Qiuyan could not guess who else it was.

Wasn’t Qu Moying the one who would benefit the most from this situation?

The voice was suddenly interrupted as the courtyard door behind them was forcefully pushed open. The Duchess Qi, accompanied by Qi Xiangyu and Qu Moying, stood behind the door. Several maids and servants from the mansion stood closely beside them.

Both inside and outside the courtyard, everything suddenly became quiet. It felt as if only the wind was blowing, carrying a slight chill. Autumn had arrived, and indeed, it was cold.

“Grandmother.” Liu Jingyu was the first to react. She took two steps forward, her face softened with concern. “Why have you come here? Has someone said something to you? I just wanted to investigate the matter that implicated me today. I apologize if I have disturbed you, Grandmother. It’s entirely my fault!”

Her attitude was impeccable, and her face carried a hint of guilt. It seemed as though she genuinely felt remorseful.

Observing her exaggerated behavior and seeing Duchess Qi’s facial expression ease slightly, Qu Moying sneered inwardly. This County Lady Jingyu really knew how to play her cards right. Even if Duchess Qi overheard some of the previous conversation, by coaxing her like this, she immediately became more friendly.

Indeed, a biological granddaughter was different from an outsider like herself.