Chapter 36 036 Who Benefits?

Chapter 36: 036 Who Does It Benefit?

Qin Yan did leave, leaving her alone in the room to plow through the work. He didn't disturb her. Dinner was also eaten alone in the study; Qiao Wanyue had no time to mind him, and she herself didn't eat much that evening.

She woke up hungry in the middle of the night and had Zhu Qing bring some snacks to tide her over before going back to sleep. Qin Yan was woken by her and threw off the covers to get out of bed.

"Eating in the middle of the night will cause indigestion."

Qiao Wanyue nodded, indicating she understood, but her stomach was growling and she couldn't sleep well.

"I'll eat a little less, otherwise I won't be able to sleep." She asked him, "Why are you awake?"

The room had a charcoal fire burning, much warmer than outside, but she was still a bit chilly without clothes. She had only worn a nightgown when she got out of bed, not even throwing on a robe. Qin Yan fetched a garment for her and considerately draped it over her shoulders.

"I heard you." Actually, it's because the spot next to me felt empty. Even sound asleep, I'd still wake up.

Qin Yan brushed it off. Seeing she hadn't eaten enough, he asked again, "Didn't you eat enough at dinner? Or were you too troubled by the account books to eat?"

Her long hair was loose, falling to her waist, swaying with her movements like a dance, her posture alluring.

"Neither, I just suddenly got hungry."

She finished eating, brushed her hands together, and wiped them, then asked Qin Yan, "Is the household purchasing handled by one person or several?"

"Several people. They have clear division of labor and are handled by the steward. Have you encountered a problem?"

Qiao Wanyue propped herself up and leaned in a little closer. "And is the purchasing done once a day or once every few days?"

Qin Yan chuckled lightly. "You can just ask the steward about such trivial things, or you can figure it out from the account books."

"I was just asking." She raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like you're not too clear on it either."

Qin Yan nodded. "I'm really not clear."

If he knew every little detail, the household stewards could just pack up and go home.

She was only asking; before she did, she had guessed that Qin Yan wouldn't know much. His mind was on court affairs, not on the household. Qiao Wanyue tidied up and prepared to sleep, but once in bed, she had no drowsiness.

She looked up as Qin Yan got into bed, moving over a little. Her eyes were so bright, she hardly seemed ready to sleep.

Qin Yan asked her again, "Are you sure nothing's wrong?"

If just looking at account books does this to you, how will you ever sleep when you manage the household?

"Nothing's wrong, go to sleep."

The man was like a furnace. Once he got in, she couldn't help but draw close to warm herself. Qin Yan considerately held her, and she squirmed in his arms, twisting and turning until she found the most comfortable position.

His body, already tense, was ignited by her movements. His embrace tightened abruptly. "Don't move."

Qiao Wanyue indeed dared not move. That thing pressing against her belly was no joke—when it gets crazy, it could make her beg for mercy. But she wasn't in the mood tonight.

Qin Yan thought of her recent fatigue. They hadn't done it for several days, and now with her moving about, he was having trouble holding back.

Just as he was about to stir, Qiao Wanyue said, "I won't move, and neither will you."

Qin Yan let out a soft laugh, and the agitation slowly subsided. "Alright."

After who knows how long, the person in his arms finally fell asleep, but Qin Yan was still wide awake. He pressed his lips into a thin line and very gently slipped out of bed to take a cold shower, or else the fire tonight wouldn't go out.

-

The Qin estate was large and prosperous, so it had even more account books than other households. Qiao Wanyue spent several days reading through them all.

Her eyes were sore by the time she finally sorted everything out.

The room was quiet, the table covered in account books. Qiao Wanyue tapped her fingers on the desk, looking troubled. Hong Mei watched her for a while—a long while—and the mistress was still in the same expression and posture.

Seeing this, Hong Mei asked, "Madam, is something on your mind?"

She hummed in acknowledgment, then came to her senses and looked outside. Only Zhu Qing was out there. Qiao Wanyue beckoned Hong Mei closer and said, "There's no record of medicinal herbs being purchased in the household. So where does the tonic I often drink come from?"

Hong Mei looked puzzled, pondered this, then her expression shifted sharply and she analyzed, "Could it be leftovers from a few months ago?"

That was possible. She had looked through the accounts; the kitchen's purchases were recorded daily, while other expenses were logged after purchase. Take Mother Yang's recent medicine, for example—they bought only what was needed, never buying more than necessary or buying randomly.

So what about the tonic she often drank? Was it not recorded?

Qiao Wanyue thought it unlikely. Mother Yang had said herself it was a fertility tonic. Such a thing couldn't go unrecorded. Besides, if you buy too many herbs at once, they might get damp.

There couldn't be something fishy, could there?

After a moment's thought, Qiao Wanyue instructed Hong Mei, "Go and bring me all the account books from the last two months. If the steward asks, say the account books are giving me a headache and I want to look at previous months for reference."

"Understood, I'll go now."

Hong Mei turned and left. Qiao Wanyue waited anxiously in the room. About two hours later, Hong Mei came back carrying a pile of account books.

She carried them herself, sweating heavily, and before catching her breath said, "Madam, here are the past three months."

Qiao Wanyue flipped through them casually. The dates and handwriting looked correct—should be genuine.

"Did the steward say anything?"

"He asked, and I made myself sound useless. Then he readily handed them over."

Qiao Wanyue pursed her lips and couldn't help but smile. Sigh, getting the account books was tough, but that was normal. Mother Yang was the matriarch, married into the marquis household for years with great authority. If she so much as said a word, Qiao Wanyue probably wouldn't have gotten them.

Without dwelling on it, Qiao Wanyue opened the account books from previous months and began to study them carefully.

Hong Mei poured her a cup of hot tea and withdrew, closing the door. She happened to see Zhu Qing about to enter and shook her head, signaling her not to disturb.

Zhu Qing nodded, followed Hong Mei, and whispered, "Madam is working so hard; I hope she doesn't exhaust herself."

"Exhaustion is the least of it—let's hope she isn't being set up."

Hong Mei said meaningfully, and added in a low voice, "Let's keep a close watch lately and don't slip up."

Zhu Qing caught the implication. Something was about to happen. Whatever it was, they would do their utmost to help the mistress.

"I understand."

Then they each went about their business.

Qiao Wanyue stayed in the room the whole time. Hong Mei went in a few times to add tea and charcoal and brought in meals. By evening, Qiao Wanyue finally stretched and stepped out for some fresh air. Qin Yan hadn't returned yet, so she ate dinner alone.

She didn't eat much, lost in thought. After a few bites, she had the food cleared away.

Qin Yan came home late that night, and she was already asleep when he got in. When she woke the next morning, he had already left for court.

Qiao Wanyue felt the space beside her; the bedding was cold, meaning Qin Yan had left early. They hadn't seen each other for two days. Strange—she wasn't used to it.

Zhu Qing brought water in. Qiao Wanyue put on her shoes and got out of bed, saying, "Later, have the purchasing steward come over."

"Yes."

After breakfast, Qiao Wanyue sat in the room waiting. Before her was a messy mountain of account books, with ink and brushes scattered everywhere.

When the steward entered, he didn't look at her first but at the table. Seeing the pile of account books, he frowned at first, then relaxed. She noticed his expression, blinked, and remained calm.

"Steward Li, you've come at just the right time. These account books are making my head spin and giving me a headache."

Steward Li bowed slightly. Hearing this, he glanced up and said, "Madam, if there's anything you don't understand, please speak freely."

"It's nothing major. They say you never know the cost of living until you run the household. The old lady spends three hundred taels on bird's nest each month, and the second and third branches of the family each spend two hundred taels. So much silver, quite an expenditure."

She said, pretending to be distressed, then paused for a moment before asking, "By the way, how much do my tonics cost each month? Surely not a few hundred taels too?"

At her words, Steward Li's expression froze slightly, showing a hint of hesitation. Qiao Wanyue naturally noticed. She said nothing, waiting for Steward Li's response. After a long pause, Steward Li stammered out nothing coherent.

She smiled and looked at him, saying, "Does it cost that much?"

"No."

Steward Li glanced outside and said, "Your and the Marquis's tonics are purchased by the old lady's side. Nanny Liu said that your health is too delicate for the lower staff to handle, so the old lady handles it."

"Oh, so that's how it is."

Qiao Wanyue's expression relaxed. She continued, "Mother's people are meticulous. Leaving the purchasing to them couldn't be better."

Then she asked a few more trivial questions to put him at ease before letting Steward Li leave.

As soon as he was gone, the young lady's face changed abruptly. She stared coldly at the account books. So that's why there was no record of medicine purchases—because there were none.

Red Plum came in, closed the door behind her, and asked how it went.

She lifted her delicate face and asked Red Plum, "Red Plum, tell me, if something happened to me, who would benefit the most?"

Red Plum was shocked and took a moment to think it over. Who would benefit the most?

The Marquis didn't have any concubines, let alone children. Red Plum thought for a long time but couldn't figure it out. "I don't know."

"What if something happened to the Marquis? Who would benefit?"

Red Plum was confused, then her eyes went wide. "The second young master."

Qiao Wanyue shushed her, telling her to keep her voice down so no one else would hear.

-

The moon was high, and all was quiet.

Qiao Wanyue had been waiting for Qin Yan to return, wrapped in her blanket and sitting on the bed. When she heard footsteps, she suddenly jumped down and ran toward the door.

"Marquis, you're finally back."

Qin Yan opened the door and was almost knocked over by the ball of blanket. Recognizing her by scent, he looked her up and down and chuckled, "Why are you all wrapped up like that? Why aren't you asleep?"

"Waiting for you." Her long eyelashes fluttered up and down, cute and full of life. "We haven't seen each other in days."

What she meant was they hadn't spoken, not just seen each other.

Because of her words, the man's heart raced, like a young boy's, so happy he couldn't wipe the grin off his face. He wanted to hold her and never let go.

That's what Qin Yan thought, and that's what he did. He scooped up the round bundle and carried her to the bedside.

"Now that you've seen me, what do you want to do?"

Dressed impeccably, a refined scoundrel—that described Qin Yan perfectly. He missed her, wanted to kiss her, hold her, cherish her, but wouldn't say it himself, waiting for her to speak instead.

She was bold too, saying whatever came to mind.

"I want to kiss you. Can I? If not, put me down."

"You can. Anything you want."