The Cannon Fodder and Villain’s Happy Ending

Since being reborn, she has not been without setbacks. However, she was able to clear those obstacles each time and turn them into successes.

It was only after Qin Gui appeared that everything went wrong for her. Qin Gui really was her star of calamity…

She listened in a daze as Mrs. Su told Madam Qin everything about what happened in the palace, then watched as Madam Qin’s gaze switched from heartache to disappointment.

“Grandmother,” Qin Xin got on her knees and knelt down beside Madam Qin, muttering, “I was wrong…”

She clung onto Madam Qin’s knees and looked blankly at her.

Madam Qin looked at Qin Xin and remembered when she accidentally broke a vase as a child, she also looked at her like this, and she could not help but feel soft.

Madam Qin let out a long sigh and reached out to touch the top of her hair, mixed feelings gushing in her heart.

“Let’s put this matter aside for now, Grandma.” Qin Gui interrupted their loving moment. “I think that we should settle my mother’s dowry first so that I can explain to the empress tomorrow.”

“Dowry?” Madam Qin came back to her senses and asked, frowning, “What about the dowry?”

Qin Xin’s heart jumped and she quickly said, “Grandmother, I…”

Qin Gui knew that Madam Qin was soft-hearted so she did not plan on giving Qin Xin any chance to argue, much less wasting time on the matter. She interrupted her directly and said, “Grandmother, Yunguang confessed that Second Sister gave her ten thousand taels to seal her mouth.”

“Grandmother, you said previously that the dowry was misappropriated by Second Sister so as to subsidize the household spendings, so where did she get the ten thousand taels from?”

“There are seven items missing from the treasure, namely a jade bowl with a gold lid and dish, a Li Shuizhi plum blossom painting, one century ginseng, a jade paperweight, a jasper seal, an azure-glazed flower goblet, a golden necklace with eight inlaid treasures, and a gold and jade bracelet. The total value of these objects amounts to about four thousand taels. Does the household require this much silver to subsidize it?”

Qin Gui stroked her sleeve and said, “Grandmother, if it is only to subsidize the family spendings, then Granddaughter won’t say anything about it. After all, us three siblings are using the family’s money as well, so we can accept it even if we had to subsidize more for the household.”

“But if my mother’s dowry was used to seal Yunguang’s mouth, then Granddaughter will have to argue about this matter.”

“Am I right, Second Sister?”

Qin Gui looked condescendingly at Qin Xin. That look was hateful enough to make Qin Xin bite her lip hard.

Madam Qin slowly lowered the hand that was stroking the top of Qin Xin’s hair.

She looked at Qin Xin in a daze, and with some difficulty, forced her voice through the gaps of her teeth, “Is it true what your Third Sister said?”

“Grandmother…” Qin Xin’s heart went cold with fear.

SHe could not lose the protection of her grandmother again, otherwise, she would only suffer even more difficulties in the marquis’ household.

Qin Xin knew that Qin Gui had the upper hand now, so she couldn’t argue this.

Qin Xin knelt on the ground and began sobbing, “Grandmother, it’s all Granddaughter’s fault! Granddaughter was the one who was blinded by foolishness and asked Yunguang to speak for her sake in front of the empress dowager. Granddaughter also gave ten thousand taels of silver to keep her mouth shut. It was Granddaughter who lied to Grandmother.”

Qin Xin was only focused on Madam Qin and completely ignored that Qin Zeyu, who was sitting at the side, was looking expressionlessly at her, dark pupils filled with disappointment.

Qin Zeyu finally believed that what his Big Brother said was true. It was Second Brother who bribed Yunguang to slander his Third Sister as a calamitous star and even sealed her mouth with money she’d stolen from Mother’s dowry.

It was Second Sister who lied to him.

Qin Zeyu’s lips were tightly pursed. He forced himself to remain seated and to watch with his own eyes, listen with his own ears!

“Grandmother, it’s more than that!”

Qin Gui’s voice drew Qin Zeyu to look at her. Qin Gui stood elegantly with her hands down, calm and relaxed, smiling lightly as if the girl who was chasing him with the scabbard was a completely different person.

Qin Zeyu’s eyes drifted off for a moment and he suddenly felt a vague pain in his back where he was beaten by Qin Gui. A hint of grievance surfaced in his heart. Third Sister really beat him too hard!

Qin Gui was still talking. “In addition to the items pawned from the treasury, when I checked the accounts, I found that in the past three years, there was a shortfall of a total of about six thousand taels of silver.”

Six thousand taels?! Mrs. Su was shocked. This damned girl actually dared to trick her!