Chapter 46

Chapter 46: Locked in the Dark Room! This was true—Jia Qingcheng had always listened to him. Pei Wuliang was quite pleased with himself. "Uncle is right. If I go to fetch her, she won't be so angry anymore." "She likes you and listens to you. You'll be more useful than this old man. But you must remind her not to speak recklessly in front of the people from Chu Wangfu!" Father Jia was still very afraid of Chu Wangfu. After all, although Prince Chu was on his deathbed, his mother was the Noble Consort of the current dynasty. Their Jia family currently had no one serving as officials in the court—they were merely ordinary merchants. If they offended the Noble Consort, the Jia family would be finished. Pei Wuliang naturally understood what Father Jia meant. If he could go and bring Qingcheng out, she would surely be deeply moved and wouldn't dare disobey him. "Rest assured, Uncle. I know what to do!" ... Inside the pitch-black dark room, Chunyan grew more and more despairing with each passing moment. This dark room was so cold—so cold that her teeth were chattering. "Miss, this servant can't take it anymore. It's so cold. How are you holding up?" Jia Qingcheng's nose was already running from the cold. At Chunyan's call, she quickly sniffled. "I'm fine. Just endure a little longer—someone will come soon." Someone? Chunyan didn't believe that. It was completely quiet outside now. Who would come? "Miss, why don't we just admit our mistake to the Old Master? That's better than suffering here." Admit her mistake? She wouldn't admit to a mistake. She had done nothing wrong, so she had no need to admit anything! "No. I'm not wrong, and I won't admit it." "But Miss, can you bear this? Your hands are already frozen stiff." Jia Qingcheng had been counting strokes of the character "正" the whole time. This was something her mother had taught her to write while she was still alive. Her mother had once said, "When you feel like things are too hard to bear, write 'Correct'."' Write it slowly, don't rush—there will surely be a turning point..." "It's fine. I'm alright!" "Miss, someone's coming." Suddenly, the sound of footsteps approaching came from outside. Jia Qingcheng heard them but remained calm, not rushing to get up. When the door to the dark room opened, a sharp voice came from outside... "Qingcheng, it's me. I've come to take you out. Come on out!" Pei Wuliang—why was it him? Outside, Pei Wuliang had brought Hu Ba along to fetch her. When he saw her nose tip red from the cold, a hint of pity stirred in him at that moment. "Qingcheng, look at what you've done to yourself. Come on, people from Chu Wangfu have arrived. I came specially to fetch you." People from Chu Wangfu had arrived? Upon learning this, Jia Qingcheng remained unhurried. "Where's my father?" "Uncle is naturally entertaining the steward from Chu Wangfu. Are you leaving or not?" Leave? Jia Qingcheng had endured half the night in here—she wouldn't leave so easily. She sat directly on the ground. "I'm not leaving. Unless you have my father come and personally ask me to go out." What? He should have Uncle come and personally ask her to leave? She must be mad! "Qingcheng, have you lost your mind? Uncle is your father—how could he lower himself to come and ask you? Haven't I already come to fetch you? Stop making a scene. My patience has its limits. Leave now, and don't keep the people from the manor waiting." Jia Qingcheng knew that Pei Wuliang had forced her to swap marriage arrangements with Song Jiaojiao in order to curry favor with Chu Wangfu and the Noble Consort. Now, he had no choice but to listen to her. "If my father doesn't come, I won't step out of this door. If the people from Chu Wangfu wait too long, they'll naturally come to the back courtyard to look for me." "What do you mean by that? Are you actually counting on the people from Chu Wangfu to back you up? Qingcheng, have you frozen your brain? Do you even know why the people from Chu Wangfu are here?" Seeing how naive she was, Pei Wuliang found it ridiculous. "Prince Chu has likely already passed away. The people from the manor came to see you only about the wedding arrangements the day after tomorrow. Who would care about a widow-to-be?" Facing Pei Wuliang's sarcasm and mockery, Jia Qingcheng pretended not to hear it. "If my father doesn't come, I'm not leaving." "You!" Pei Wuliang was furious. He knew Jia Qingcheng's temperament well—not only was she ugly in appearance, but she was also extremely stubborn. If she insisted on seeing her father, there was truly nothing he could do about it. The most urgent matter now was to keep the people from Chu Wangfu placated. What the Noble Consort had promised him absolutely could not be ruined again. He had already lost his position as imperial physician—he had to succeed with the Noble Consort. "Fine. I'll go fetch your father. Qingcheng, you've truly provoked me!" Soon, Pei Wuliang went to bring Father Jia. Father Jia hadn't expected Jia Qingcheng to dare make him come fetch her. He knew what she meant by it, but he hadn't expected her to actually dare do such a thing! He was still her own father, after all—how could she show him such disrespect? If not for his concerns about Chu Wangfu, he would never have come! "Qingcheng, what more trouble are you trying to stir up? Why aren't you going out to meet the people from Chu Wangfu?" Seeing that Father Jia had come, Jia Qingcheng stated her purpose directly. "Father, I want to take Mother's memorial tablet with me when I marry!" "What did you say?" Father Jia hadn't expected her to dare say something so unfilial and outrageous. Could it be that she already knew? "You... you know?" "If Father agrees, I'll go meet the people from Chu Wangfu right now!" "Qingcheng, you dare threaten your own father? Do you know what kind of behavior this is?" What kind of behavior? Jia Qingcheng could no longer care about that. Her mother's memorial tablet left here would only be scorned by the Jia family. Rather than that, it was better for it to accompany her to Chu Wangfu. Once Prince Chu woke up, she would beg him for a favor—a place for her mother's soul to rest in peace. Even if it were at Chu Wangfu, it would still be better than being left here to be spat upon. "If you don't agree, then I won't leave. When the people from Chu Wangfu grow impatient, they'll come looking for me. If they discover that Father dares to detain their future Princess Consort Chu, I'm afraid you won't be able to bear that responsibility." "You!" Father Jia knew that her behavior was very dangerous—carrying her mother's memorial tablet into marriage. Did she even know what that meant? "Have you asked your mother what she thinks? Does she wish to go with you to Chu Wangfu?" "Mother would surely agree. After all, she's been here all these years, and Father has never once held her in his heart—isn't that so?" Father Jia, caught off guard by her piercing words, flew into a rage born of shame. "Fine, I'll grant you this. But think carefully—once your mother's memorial tablet leaves the Jia estate, if you ever want to bring it back, I will not agree!" Come back? Jia Qingcheng sneered. Come back for what? Come back to a place where there wasn't even a proper spot to place the tablet? Even the ancestral hall she had believed would receive the tablet with incense offerings—that had been a deliberate lie they had told her. If Song Jiaojiao hadn't caused a scene at the ancestral hall that day, she would never have learned this secret in her lifetime. They had deceived her so cruelly. A husband's family so faithless and treacherous—she would never return! ... At the fourth watch, the atmosphere in the Jia family's main hall was tense. Jia Qingcheng's appearance calmed the people from Chu Wangfu. After she explained the matter of the medicine pills to the steward, he was about to lead his men away. But the steward also noticed that Jia Qingcheng was facing troubles at home, so he deliberately raised his voice, "Young Miss, if you need any help, feel free to send someone to the Wangfu. The Noble Consort and His Highness will see justice done for you." "Thank you, Steward." Father Jia forced a smile and personally escorted the Chu Wangfu party out. But after they left, Pei Wuliang grew suspicious. "Qingcheng, since when did you become so familiar with the Wangfu steward?"