Chapter 37: Seen Through?

  That was a dagger as black as coal, so ugly that it didn't even have any luster, and its surface seemed to be uneven. A young master like Gong Sunjin usually liked shiny daggers, preferably with an exquisite scabbard inlaid with gems, which would match his status. How could someone as brainless as him possess something so good?

  A Xuan Tie dagger, still unopened, in other people's eyes this thing may be worthless, but in Qin Dai's eyes, it is a truly priceless treasure.

  What a great thing, it's really good stuff, unfortunately, there is no opening. Qin Dai'er repeatedly played with the treasure in her hand, the more she looked at it, the more she liked it. She didn't know what kind of person made this dagger, and if she had the chance, she would definitely get to know him well. Where did he find such a hard-to-find thing? It's really a great thing. She found that this good thing was even more exciting, and she couldn't sleep anymore. Thinking about it, she pondered what name to give to this dagger.

  Qin Dai thought for half a day and could only think of "Cold Edge" as a suitable name.

  This dagger now had a name of its own - Cold Edge.

  Now she just wants to live a peaceful life, but this dagger is following her and it's likely that from now on it will be dark and gloomy! Qin Dai Xin had never thought that wishes are beautiful, but they must be achievable. At the moment, she only thinks about collecting Cold Edge, but doesn't think of many other things. Except for Cold Edge, all other things were put back by Qin Dai Xin, carefully packaged these unsightly things, and then sent the well-packaged cloth package to the house beam, Miss Qin San only then took Cold Edge and slept with a full heart.

  The next morning, after Qin Dai Xin had just finished breakfast, she heard a little maid coming to report that the eldest lady had come to visit. This eldest lady, of course, was none other than Lin Qing Yue.

  Qin Dai Xin had always thought that everyone in the mansion should be avoiding her, given Fang Wanru's identity, and no one would come at such a sensitive time. But this person not only came, but also happened to be Fang Wanru's daughter-in-law.

  She wouldn't turn away anyone who came to her door, no matter what their intentions were. Qin Dai's heart was racing as she hastily instructed Ruyi to welcome them in. Before long, the curtain was lifted, and Lin Shi led her personal maid, Ying'er, into the room.

  "Sister-in-law, please sit down." Qin Dai let Ruyi help take off Lin Qingyue's cloak and had her pull along the maid Yinger to go eat sweets. She knew that Lin Qingyue came to find her with something to say, otherwise why would she appear at this time? But she never thought that Lin would tell her such news.

  "Are you saying that Big Brother is going to marry a concubine?" Qin Dai's heart was somewhat unbelievable, not because she believed that Qin Zichen would have the quality of being faithful and unchanging, but rather why Lin Qingyue would tell her this, and even specifically told her. Was it just that she was feeling anxious in her heart and wanted to find someone to confide in?

  She wasn't someone who easily trusted people in her past life, and after coming here, she had been plotted against multiple times, so she wouldn't easily trust others. Although at the Jia residence, Lin's eyes showed concern, making her think that this woman might be somewhat different from the rest, but that didn't mean she would believe her. Her concern was perhaps just about the reputation of the Qin residence!

  Lin Qingyue's face revealed some helplessness, and she took a sip of tea, saying: "Actually, I knew it would come to this eventually, but I didn't think it would be so soon."

  Yes! They got married, but it's only been a little over a year. However, Qin Dai thought that this was not the issue of time at all. Men, regardless of ancient or modern times, how many are truly devoted? Just look at Qin Zongwen, he is just a local gentry, yet he has five or six women, and Qin Zichen is his eldest son, doesn't he learn from his example?

  Looking at Qin Dai's slightly resentful gaze, Lin Qingyue's eyes dimmed a few shades and whispered: "I'm not a petty person either, I know this matter can't be stopped. If it was your brother who liked her himself, I wouldn't have any opinion if he took her in." Before she married into the family, there was already someone in his room, although it was just an unnamed servant girl for sleeping, but after all, no woman would be happy to "share" a husband with someone else.

  "Isn't it because the eldest brother has taken a liking to her?" Could it be that it was arranged by the family again, is it because the elder sister hasn't gotten pregnant yet? Having children is a big deal, in the eyes of the ancients, they would hate for women not to be like mother pigs, giving birth twice in three years. People without children, especially those without sons, wouldn't even be able to enter their ancestors' graves after death.

  "She is the daughter of the Qi family." Lin knew that her father-in-law was a man with great ambition, on one hand he wanted to expand and strengthen the Qin family business, on the other hand he hoped his own daughter could marry into a prestigious family as a daughter-in-law, all for the sake of benefits. What method could be faster than marriage alliance?

  "Govern your household?" Is he some kind of high-ranking official?

  Lin said, "How could Third Sister forget? The Qis are imperial merchants with business all over the world. In our Great Yong Dynasty, there are four great families: 'East Li, West Zhou, South Chu, and North Qi.' This 'North Qi' refers to the Qi family!"

  Qin Dai Xin wouldn't know about these things, although she occasionally reads travelogues and the like, but has never seriously tried to understand them. It seems that this Qi family is quite influential.

  "So that's to say, big brother was forced into it?" Qin Dai made an effort to look like she was interested in gossip, but actually her heart was yawning repeatedly. She had no interest in these things at all.

  In ancient times, people's recreational activities were scarce. The ladies of the boudoir had nothing to do but talk about trivial matters in their daily lives, and it seemed that there was no other way to dispel boredom. When the nominal elder sister came to her door to pour out her heart, she must have been suffering from having no one to confide in, feeling suffocated in her heart, and only then did she come to her.

  "It's not necessarily so." There are implications in his words, but they are not explicitly stated, and there is a hint of mystery.

  Qin Dai's heart was puzzled, waiting for her next words.

  "Na Zhi's daughter is said to be a fairy-like person, not only beautiful but also a rare talent. She is good at doing business and has a knack for it. Such a woman, even if she was asked to marry by the master on behalf of her husband, however..."

  Although she didn't finish what she was saying, Qin Dai's heart had already guessed it. Alas! Poor ancient women, indeed taking their husbands as heaven, even complaints were spoken so euphemistically.

  "Sister-in-law, you're also a talented woman, are you afraid of her?" Ah, it's sad, being an idiot isn't that easy to pretend...

  Lin Qingyue didn't speak for half a day, only suspiciously staring at Qin Dai Xin, making the hairs on her back stand up. Although she wasn't emitting any dangerous signals, it still made Qin Dai Xin feel uncomfortable, as if she was under several spotlights, with no place to hide and nowhere not being illuminated.

  "Sister-in-law, what's wrong with you? Why are you looking at me like that?" Just pretend if you have to, as long as it doesn't bother me, what does it matter being a little white (innocent) anyway.

  Lin Qingyue changed her expression from earlier and calmly said, "I'm feeling annoyed in my heart and just wanted to find someone to talk to, but I didn't think that Sanmei was still just a child, how could she possibly understand my troubles."

  "Is it wrong for me to chat with my sister-in-law?" Qin Dai's heart despised herself, and such childish words could actually be spoken.

  Lin Qingyue's face had returned to its usual appearance, but Qin Dai could see that she was still a bit different, seemingly lacking some confidence...

  "It's not that it's bad, it's just that this problem ultimately can't be solved by you or me. Actually...” She paused for a moment, then continued seriously: “A woman's life is just about finding something to rely on. Family background, wealth, these external things, what use are they?"

  Is she advising herself to give up on the Jia family? Isn't the situation clear enough? Everyone thinks that Third Miss Qin has already lost, even if it's not a crushing defeat, there's no chance of turning things around.

  Lin Qingyue gazed at Qin Daihe's small face, forcing out a smile that even she herself hadn't noticed. A hint of doubt flashed in the girl's eyes, and she swore that she absolutely hadn't misseen anything.

  Thinking of Qin Dai's behavior in the Jia Mansion, Lin Qingyue suddenly had an urge to burst out laughing. The self-proclaimed clever Qin family was deceived by a little maid?

  "Third sister." Lin Qingyue said with a hint of meaning: "Actually, I've always wanted to tell you that the head of the Qin family, on the surface is the public, but in reality it's not so."

  Qin Dai's heart secretly raised an eyebrow, amazed at how quickly she changed the subject.

  Everyone knows that it's the mistress who is in charge, but no one wants to break the news. There are many clever people in the mansion, but they are only small-minded. Truly intelligent people not only won't show off, but will even hide themselves, so when dealing with big matters, they can surprise others unexpectedly.

  Qin Dai Xin smiled and asked: "What did sister-in-law say? I don't understand."

  Lin Qingyu stood up and said, "If you want to truly protect someone, you need to have enough power. How can one person possibly succeed? When you have the right, money, and power, others will not dare to touch your loved ones. It's like this for marriage, and it's also like this for life." After finishing speaking, she didn't look at her again, turned around and walked out of the house, calling out to Da Yutou who was following behind, and the two master and servant returned to their own residence.

  When Lin Qingyue sent her back to the house, she saw her master with a profound and mysterious expression, with a calculating smile on his lips, which made her hair stand on end and she couldn't help but shiver.

  It's really interesting.

  Qin Dai's heart smiled silently, and finally, a figure emerged from the Qin Mansion.