Linlang did not recognize her. Seeing her about to climb into the carriage, she quickly stepped forward to stop her.
"My young mistress is indisposed. Madam, please find somewhere else to attend to your needs."
"Presumptuous! Do you know who I am? I am from the Marquis's estate..." The Third Concubine's words suddenly stopped. She couldn't finish her self-introduction.
Su Yunmo frowned in surprise.
Given the Third Concubine's personality, it was rare for her to be so 'humble' and not use the Marquis's prestige to threaten people regardless of time or place, as she was today.
The sounds of pursuit grew louder, and a group of people rushed out of the alley.
As soon as they saw the Third Concubine, they shouted threats and quickened their pace.
The Third Concubine's face turned pale. She dropped her usual airs and pleaded, "Let me up, quickly! If you save my life, I will surely repay you!"
Su Yunmo glanced at the pursuers, her eyes flickering.
Were they from the Marquis's estate?
It would benefit Lin Zequ to have the Marquis's servants chasing the Third Concubine. She had always been favored by that man, so what was the fuss about now?
The little dumpling pondered for a moment, then raised her eyebrows. "What benefit would I get from saving you?"
The Third Concubine was penniless at the moment, and her promise of 'repayment' was just a casual remark. She was surprised that Su Yunmo would actually ask such a question and blurted out,
Seeing this, Su Yunmo shrugged helplessly. "Then there's nothing I can do."
She looked up at Linlang. "Let's go, back to the manor."
Linlang nodded, jumped into the carriage, and was about to shake off the Third Concubine.
Seeing the group of people approaching, the Third Concubine could no longer care about anything else.
"I know you have a grudge against Lin Yuning. Although she is now the Crown Princess, I cannot help you get rid of her. However, I entered the Marquis's estate long ago and know many things about it."
Su Yunmo felt that the things she mentioned were already known to her. In essence, they were just old grievances and minor squabbles, nothing significant.
Seeing her mistress looking uninterested, Linlang flicked her whip, ready to leave.
The Third Concubine suddenly shouted, "I know Lin Zequ's weakness. He killed his own wife!"
Su Yunmo was stunned for a moment, unable to immediately figure out who she meant by 'wife'.
Linlang had long known Su Yunmo's connection to the Marquis's estate. Through their conversation, she guessed the Third Concubine's identity and was the first to react.
Her eyes widened in shock. "Are you saying that the little princess of Southern Xinjiang was murdered by Lin Zequ?"
The Third Concubine was somewhat surprised that a mere maid knew about the Marquis's wife, but it was clearly not the time for her to care about such things.
The servants from the Marquis's estate had arrived and were pulling the Third Concubine back.
Closing her eyes, the Third Concubine shouted, "If you save me and take me back, I will tell you everything I know!"
Su Yunmo, just recovering from her shock, gritted her teeth and said word by word, "Linlang, bring her to me!"
She had to question her about this matter in detail!
Linlang was already prepared and waiting for her mistress's command. Hearing Su Yunmo's consent, she flicked her whip and acted.
She did not get out of the carriage but instead whipped the group of lackeys to the ground. Then, she flicked her whip again, coiling it around the Third Concubine's waist, and pulled her onto the carriage.
With the next whip strike, she lashed the horse's back. The horse reared up, and they quickly broke through the encirclement.
The servants from the Marquis's estate wailed on the ground, unable to catch up.
Soon, the carriage stopped in front of the General's manor.
Su Yunmo jumped off the carriage, her face grim as she walked towards her courtyard.
Linlang was responsible for pulling the Third Concubine, who had narrowly escaped death, from the carriage and following Su Yunmo.
Upon returning to the room, Linlang threw the woman onto the ground and closed the door behind her.
A charcoal stove burned in the room, making it very warm.
As the Third Concubine's body gradually warmed up, she felt as if she had come back to life.
Su Yunmo sat in a chair, looking down at her, and said word by word, "Tell me in detail about what you just said!"
Having escaped from her pursuers, the Third Concubine felt she had been given a new lease on life. She lost the urgency of her earlier plea and regained her haughty demeanor.
She stood up, brushed the dirt off her clothes, and snorted, "Since I've entered your General's manor, I am a guest. If you want to know the details, shouldn't you at least pour me some tea and offer me a seat?"
Su Yunmo's eyes narrowed dangerously.
Linlang stepped forward, pushed the Third Concubine to her knees, and suddenly drew the short knife from her waist, slamming it onto the ground.
The knife directly severed the Third Concubine's little finger on her left hand.
"Ah!" The Third Concubine screamed and collapsed to her knees, wailing and begging for mercy.
Su Yunmo allowed the scent of blood to fill the room, a hint of red flashing in her eyes. "I have very little patience right now. You'd better tell me what I want to know as quickly as possible!"
The Third Concubine was startled by her blood-red eyes and dared not play any more tricks. Clutching her severed finger, she quickly said, "I'll tell you, I'll tell you."
Su Yunmo gave Linlang a look.
Linlang took out some styptic powder from her懷 and sprinkled it on the wound. Then, she roughly tore off a piece of cloth to bandage it, preventing her from fainting from blood loss and delaying the interrogation.
After finishing, Linlang retreated to the side to wait.
The Third Concubine knelt on the ground, knowing that this young maid, despite her age, was not to be trifled with. She obediently said, "I saw Lin Zequ kill the wife with my own eyes."
"When the wife married into the estate, I was already serving in the manor. At first, the Marquis treated her very well, and I was even jealous of her because of it."
"I used many methods to compete for his favor, openly and secretly staying with the Marquis behind the wife's back, trying to regain his affection. But as time went on, I realized that the Marquis did not truly like the wife."
"He seemed to be constantly searching for something that the wife had brought from her family."
The Third Concubine paused, frowning. It had been too long, and she couldn't recall the name of the item.
Su Yunmo took a deep breath and said word by word, "The Glazed Lock."
"That's right, the Glazed Lock!" The Third Concubine suddenly remembered and looked at the little dumpling in surprise. "How do you know?"
Su Yunmo slammed the table heavily. "Continue!"
Startled, the Third Concubine quickly continued, no longer dwelling on other matters.
"At first, the Marquis only tried to subtly extract information from the wife. But after the wife's daughter was born, their relationship gradually became estranged."
"At that time, the wife often went to the palace to talk with a certain consort. Whenever the Marquis's wife went out, he would sneak into her treasury and rummage through things."
Su Yunmo narrowed her eyes.
It seemed that Lin Zequ had kept her mother's belongings back then precisely to find the Glazed Lock. However, he probably never expected that the Third Concubine would steal those belongings and sell them.
Otherwise, so many things wouldn't have happened later.
As for the consort who talked with her mother, it was most likely Ye Jingyu's birth mother.
The Third Concubine continued, "One time, the wife returned early and caught the Marquis in the act. The two of them then had an argument."