The Double-Chapter 459 - 147: Master and Servant_4

"Miss..." Hai Tang was stunned, then became agitated. She asked, "What’s wrong with Miss?!"

Jiang Li frowned, "You don’t know?"

"I don’t know!" Hai Tang asked earnestly, "What happened to her exactly?"

When Hai Tang and Du Juan left the Shen residence, Xue Fangfei had not yet died; she was only under house arrest for having an illicit affair. Xue Fangfei had driven them away out of suspicion that the two maids had stolen valuables, banishing them from the residence and ordering them never to return to Yanjing City.

Hai Tang and Du Juan felt deeply wronged at the time, but Xue Fangfei had never been that harsh before. The long-standing bond between master and servants shattered in an instant, which saddened Hai Tang. But after they left Yanjing City and time passed, Hai Tang gradually calmed down, and she understood. Xue Fangfei had been protecting them. Had she and Du Juan stayed in the Shen residence, they would have eventually incurred Mother Shen’s wrath.

Since their young mistress wanted them to survive, Hai Tang and Du Juan had no choice but to endure the pain and struggle to live. Now that Jiang Li suddenly mentioned Xue Fangfei, Hai Tang had a foreboding feeling in her heart.

Jiang Li looked at her and said, "She’s dead."

Hai Tang staggered, nearly unable to stay seated, and collapsed to the ground. Jiang Li reached out to steady her. Hai Tang then looked at her, but her expression was still dazed, and she asked, "How... could it be? She was fine when I left..."

"After the affair was discovered, Xue Fangfei lost all face and soon fell gravely ill. Eventually, she succumbed to her illness," Jiang Li paused and said, "That’s the official story."

"What do you mean?" Hai Tang immediately grasped the implication in Jiang Li’s words.

"What I mean is, Xue Fangfei’s death was no accident, nor did she die from a grave illness. She died because someone killed her, just like the affair she was blamed for was a setup."

Hai Tang looked at Jiang Li, her expression shifting between defensive and excited. She asked, "How do you know her affair was a setup?"

"How I know is not important, but you should be clear. You were Xue Fangfei’s personal maid. You know best whether she had an affair or not," said Jiang Li.

Hai Tang clenched the teacup on the table tightly: "She didn’t have an affair."

Jiang Li looked at her: "I know."

"Why are you looking for me," Hai Tang asked, "and why are you telling me this? What’s the benefit for you? If you want my life, just take it, I don’t care. If you intend to use what you know for unspeakable goals, I advise you to abandon the thought. I won’t do anything," Hai Tang asserted.

Jiang Li didn’t answer, just looked at Hai Tang with a smile.

After a while, Hai Tang asked nervously, "What are you doing?"

Jiang Li shook her head: "I’m just very moved. Xue Fangfei was lucky to have you. No wonder she went to great lengths to send you and Du Juan away."

Hai Tang was startled: "You knew?" Her voice began to tremble, "Back then... she deliberately banished us, didn’t she? She never really wronged us, did she?"

Although Hai Tang had guessed this to be the case later, she had never been able to let it go. Now that Xue Fangfei was dead, this question would never be answered, but hearing it from Jiang Li’s lips brought a glimmer of hope, as if it could bring closure.

"Yes." Jiang Li calmly looked at her, "She knew that she would face dangers everywhere in the Shen family, and even your lives would not be spared. Only by driving you out could there be a sliver of hope for survival. If she told you the truth, you would never leave, insisting on dying with her. It was better to be cruel, to make you give up hope and leave Yanjing City for good, to save your lives."

Dumbfounded, Hai Tang listened, and soon, tears streamed down her face. She murmured, "I knew it... I’ve always known."

"But," Jiang Li asked the question she wanted to ask, "I know that back then, there wasn’t just one maid—there was also one named Du Juan. Why is it only you now? Did you go separate ways along the journey, or was there another plan?"

Hai Tang bowed her head: "She’s dead."

Jiang Li’s heart clenched as if seized by a hand, struggling to breathe. Although she had anticipated this outcome, hearing it spoken by Hai Tang still made it hard to accept.

The liveliness that once surrounded her had left one by one, as if nothing had been left behind. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓