“Master, something’s wrong!” Mrs. Smith saw Charles Bolton frowning deeply and hurriedly bent down, almost pressing close to Charles Bolton’s ear to whisper, “An urgent message has arrived from Xuzhou—the people sent by the two marquis’ residences are already here. Luckily, Edward Collins has been waiting at the post station all along and specially went to greet them and arrange a meal for them there. It took a lot of effort to get a few words out of them. They said that previously, Madam had pleaded bitterly with the Dowager and Consort Shu for your sake, so there’s some hope for your return to the capital. They also said the Dowager misses Madam and the Eldest Miss, and wants to bring Madam and the Eldest Miss to the capital for recuperation.”

　　Hearing that there was hope of returning to the capital, Charles Bolton first jumped up from his seat in delight, but when he heard the latter part, his face instantly turned ashen. He stood there, his expression shifting for quite a while, then finally slumped back into his seat with one hand on the armrest, holding his forehead in deep thought for a long time, until suddenly a flash of inspiration struck him and he sat up straight.

　　“Little Olivia left the capital with me at the age of three, and hasn’t seen those relatives in the capital since! And although people from the capital come every year to visit her and her mother, Little Olivia is impatient with visitors—every time it’s just a mama bowing behind a curtain at her bedside and that’s it. Even at the Guiding Prefecture yamen, she’s so eccentric she never goes out, and very few people have ever seen her.”

　　Mrs. Smith immediately caught the implication in Charles Bolton’s words, her heart giving a sudden jolt, and then she hesitantly said, “Master, you mean…”

　　“Henry Bolton, that girl, was raised by Madam herself, and besides, I still have her family in my grasp. As long as we can pull the wool over their eyes…”

　　“She absolutely won’t do!”

　　Mrs. Smith blurted this out instinctively, and when she saw Charles Bolton glaring at her in displeasure, she remembered how that little girl, relying on Madam Gu’s favor, not only exposed her accounts when helping Madam Gu check the books, but also how a local wealthy family had taken a fancy to the Zhang family’s name and wanted to marry their wastrel son to Second Miss Emily Bolton, and it was this girl who blocked it in front of Madam Gu, causing her to lose out on five hundred taels of matchmaker’s money.

　　There were several other grudges like this—otherwise, why would she always badmouth her in front of the Eldest Miss Olivia Bolton, or take the opportunity while Madam was ill to stir up Master to beat her? That brazen little wretch, she deserved a life of being trampled on without name or status—how could she be allowed to turn things around!

　　Her eyes rolled, and she quickly forced a smile and said, “Master, think about it—everyone sees the Eldest Miss as a sick beauty, but what about Henry Bolton’s health? Besides, she looks nothing like Madam or you, and don’t forget her father and brother are still serving under Second Uncle Master in the army—there are flaws everywhere. And if she became the Eldest Miss, you could never get close to her again…”

　　At this point, Mrs. Smith wisely stopped talking, but Charles Bolton immediately realized and couldn’t help cursing himself for being muddle-headed. Seeing Mrs. Smith lower her head in silence, he frowned and asked, “Could it be you have an idea?”

　　“Master, the Eldest Miss is gone, but isn’t there still Second Miss?” As soon as Mrs. Smith said this, she simply continued to coax, “Second Miss and the Eldest Miss are both your flesh and blood, and they do look somewhat alike. Since they’ve never met, it’ll be much easier to fool them. Besides, Second Miss has always been timid and surely wouldn’t dare disobey you. And she’s still small and delicate, not in the best of health—just say she’s been sick all along, and that’s that.”

　　All these years, Madam Gu never cared about this concubine-born daughter—her food and clothing weren’t even as good as Henry Bolton, the goddaughter. She’d been seriously ill at the start of the year and had grown even thinner. And with Emily Bolton’s timid nature, wouldn’t she be easy to control in the future? With the leverage of Master forcing the legitimate daughter to death and turning the concubine-born into the legitimate daughter, she’d have nothing to worry about for the rest of her life!

　　Knowing that if this plan succeeded, Master would surely see her in a new light, Mrs. Smith stared unblinkingly at Charles Bolton. Seeing him nod gently after a long contemplation, she was overjoyed and added with a smile, “Besides, I came as part of Madam’s dowry, so this time I can rightfully go to the capital as well. If anything goes wrong, I can give advice at any time and make sure this act is played perfectly. As for Second Miss, once she’s promoted from concubine-born to legitimate, with the help of the two marquis’ residences, she’ll be able to marry into a family she could never have dreamed of—how could she not be willing or obedient?”

　　“Good, good!”

　　Charles Bolton’s brows finally relaxed completely, and he nodded repeatedly, saying, “That’s a good idea! Emily girl is timid by nature, so she’ll do whatever I say. As for her birth mother, she’s long dead, so that saves a lot of trouble. Just make sure to go over everyone in the household who’s seen Little Olivia and Emily girl—from Xuzhou it’s only three or four days’ journey, there’s not much time!”

　　“Yes, I’ll get on it right away.” Mrs. Smith curtsied and was about to leave, but then she carefully and respectfully said, “Should I go see Henry Bolton again, let her know her mother and brother are in Master’s hands, so she won’t dare try anything desperate? Master should make things final as soon as possible—once she’s already ruined, she’ll never dare hope to escape your grasp again.”

　　“Very well, do as you said. I’ll go see her in a while.”

Chapter Five: Life and Death (Part Two)