Chapter 29

Chapter 29 But Yuli knew full well that her mistress truly no longer intended to keep her. It was only out of regard for their time together as mistress and servant that she was still thinking of paving a way for her future. If she failed to appreciate this kindness, she would likely be completely cast aside by her mistress. She wept—partly out of grievance for herself, partly out of reluctance to part with Xie Run, and partly out of unwillingness to give up the wealth and splendor of the Prince's residence. In the mere three-plus months since she had followed Xie Run into the residence, the food, clothing, and amenities she had seen were already the finest she had ever encountered in her life. Once she left the residence, she feared she would enter an entirely different world. She cried all the way until evening, when a sudden knock came at the door. Yuli paused, hastily wiped her face dry, and asked, "Who is it?" Xiaoci's voice sounded from outside, "Sister Yuli, it's me." Yuli slowly rose and went to open the door. During the days she had been barred from serving Xie Run up close, she often hid in her own room feeling wronged. Dantao, Xiaoshu, and Xiaoci would all come by to offer a few words of comfort, occasionally bringing her dinner. So hearing Xiaoci's voice came as no surprise to Yuli at all. When Xiaoci came in carrying the dinner, she looked at Yuli as if she wanted to speak but hesitated. Yuli pretended not to notice. She was too proud to let Xiaoci see that she had been crying, so she urged Xiaoci to leave quickly. Xiaoci pressed her lips together, then suddenly asked, "Has Sister Yuli suffered some injustice?" Yuli shot Xiaoci an indignant glare. "What nonsense are you talking? Within Linxuan Pavilion, who could possibly give me any grievance?!" Even though Yuli knew she could no longer serve Xie Run, she still considered herself one of Xie Run's old hands, unlike latecomers like Xiaoshu and Xiaoci. For that reason, she didn't think much of the two of them, and her words naturally carried little courtesy. Xiaoci was momentarily choked by Yuli's words. Given her timid, reticent nature, she ought to have slipped away quietly at this point. But Xiaoci acted against her usual character and sat down on the chair. "I heard everything my mistress said to Sister Yuli today." Yuli immediately stood up, her eyes fixed on her. "What do you mean by that?!" After the last incident with the leaked soap formula, both Yuli and Dantao knew that a spy lurked close to their mistress. Unfortunately, they had investigated for a long time without finding any leads. Hearing Xiaoci's words, suspicion immediately arose in Yuli's heart. Xiaoci raised a hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, revealing an Imperial Green jade bracelet with rippling emerald luster on her wrist. Yuli exclaimed in shock, "Where did you get that bracelet?!" A bracelet of such fine quality would be rare even for Xie Run after becoming Concubine Consort. How could Xiaoci, a second-rank maidservant, possibly have access to something like this? Xiaoci smiled shyly. "This is a reward from my mistress for handling matters well." Yuli gave a cold snort. "Your mistress is certainly generous! But for one who betrays her master and forgets kindness—how dare she even use such a person?!" Xiaoci replied unhurriedly, "As long as the work is done well, such fine things will keep coming without end. That's the benefit of following a generous mistress." Yuli let out a derisive scoff, unimpressed. Xiaoci continued, "You'll be leaving the residence in a few days. At least for now you can still touch one—later on, you probably won't even get a glimpse." Yuli's expression darkened. Xiaoci shook her wrist with a light tsk, flaunting it blatantly. "But I can not only touch it—I can wear it on my wrist. I have several more fine items like this in my room. My mistress also said that when I marry in the future, she will certainly prepare a generous dowry for me, and will never disgrace the dignity of the Prince's residence." "Speaking of which, I almost forgot—how much dowry can Mistress Xie give you?" Xiaoci looked at Yuli as if watching a good show. Having spent several months in Linxuan Pavilion, Xiaoci had long since secretly figured out Yuli's temperament. Proud and arrogant yet petty-minded, vain yet covetous of wealth. With a personality like Yuli's, one had to flaunt things right in her face to provoke her. Sure enough, Yuli's eyes locked onto the Imperial Green bracelet on Xiaoci's wrist, and the jealousy and envy in her heart rose irrepressibly to her face. She knew full well that Xiaoci was sowing discord, trying to get her to betray her mistress. But the wealth before her eyes was dazzling, and she faced being sent out of the Prince's residence... All of it silently challenged her loyalty. The candle flames flickered, the orange-yellow light half-shrouded in shadow. Yuli's voice, hoarse from crying, asked, "What does your mistress want you to do by sending you here?" Xiaoci spoke in soft, gentle tones. "Sister Yuli. In terms of looks and beauty, though you can't compare to Mistress Xie, you far surpass Mistress An. Mistress An was merely favored by the Prince for one night and happened to conceive his child—now all sorts of fine things are being sent to her courtyard..." Xiaoci had observed Yuli for so long, and naturally knew that Yuli looked upon Concubine An and Concubine Fang with considerable disdain. Shock and temptation flickered in Yuli's eyes. "Are you asking me to..." "Mistress Xie is now pregnant, and by custom, she should arrange for someone close to her to attend to the Prince," Xiaoci's voice was full of seduction. "Sister Yuli has been utterly loyal to Mistress Xie—why shouldn't it be you? If someday Sister Dantao were to serve the Prince, would Sister Yuli truly be content with that?" Xiaoci stopped at just the right point. Seeing Yuli's shocked expression shift into contemplation and inner struggle, she left with satisfaction. That night, Xie Run attended to Prince Jing as he changed clothes, and the two were about to retire to bed. Suddenly, a commotion broke out outside. Prince Jing couldn't help but frown. "What is all this noise about?! Don't they know your mistress is pregnant?!" Xie Run was equally bewildered. Dantao hurried in, not even knowing how to broach the subject. It was Xie Run who spoke gently, "Has something happened?" Dantao sighed. "Mistress, you'd better go see for yourself." With the Prince present, she didn't know how to say it. Xie Run had no choice but to change clothes again. Prince Jing followed behind her with a furrowed brow. The moment they reached the main hall, Xie Run saw Yuli with one hand yanking Xiaoci's hair while kicking her to the ground with the other—a thoroughly ferocious sight. Xie Run: "..." She turned around in a daze and looked at Prince Jing beside her. Prince Jing watched the scene expressionlessly, then casually pulled Xie Run behind him to shield her. Immediately after came Yuli's frenzied outburst. "You ungrateful little wretch who betrays your mistress!" "You can't keep yourself in line, and you even egg me on to crawl into the Prince's bed! Have you looked at yourself in the mirror to see what you are?" "Even if my mistress doesn't favor me, what business is it of yours? Do you need to stir up trouble behind everyone's backs?! Your mistress spends all her time on sneaky, underhanded schemes—does she really think everyone else is the same?!" Yuli kicked Xiaoci as she spoke. Xiaoci was in a sorry state, covering her face and dodging to the side. Yuli continued to curse. "Even if I, Yuli, am stupid, I would never betray my mistress! A beast like you, with your heart elsewhere while your body serves here, deserves to be struck by lightning!" "Your mistress is even worse—scheming against mine all day long, doing every kind of wicked deed. Aren't you afraid of retribution falling on your descendants for generations to come!" Xie Run couldn't help but cough twice. "Yuli!" Even a fool could see what was going on in this scene. Xiaoci's mistress was likely someone from Prince Jing's harem. If Yuli were allowed to keep cursing, she would soon be cursing at Prince Jing himself. Hearing Xie Run's voice, Yuli froze, her eyes instantly turning red as she knelt on the ground. Before Yuli could speak, Xiaoci, as if just snapping back to her senses, immediately cried out, "I beg my mistress to seek justice for this servant!" "Tonight, Sister Yuli suddenly burst into this servant's room, grabbed me and started beating me without a word, and even searched my room everywhere..." Xiaoci wept pitifully, revealing her scar-covered face. "She insisted that this servant had betrayed her mistress, and dragged me here in the middle of the night to disturb my mistress and the Prince." When Yuli heard the word "Prince," her expression faltered, as if her mind went blank for a moment. Since she had stopped serving at close quarters, she hadn't been aware of Prince Jing's visits to Linxuan Pavilion. Her outburst tonight came from being unable to contain the anger in her chest, and she had also wanted to deal with the menace Xiaoci posed before leaving the manor. She hadn't expected Prince Jing to be staying here. As fierce as she had been in disciplining Xiaoci, the moment she met Prince Jing's dark, deep eyes, her momentum instantly dissolved. Yuli: "This servant greets the Prince and my mistress." Xie Run could see that her bluster masked fear, and sighed. "Yuli, what are you doing at this late hour? Has something happened?" Only after Xie Run's words did Yuli snap back to her senses. She immediately pulled three items from her bosom. An Imperial Green jade bracelet, a string of round, full pearls, and a pair of two-finger-wide Cloisonné bracelets inlaid with gemstones. Even within the manor, these three items were extremely rare. Yuli suppressed her fear of Prince Jing. "Xiaoci overheard my mistress and this servant speaking today. When she brought my evening meal, she deliberately showed off her newly acquired bracelet, saying it was a reward from her mistress for her capable service. Afterward, she urged this servant to betray my mistress and crawl into the Prince's bed... This servant would never be a beast that betrays her mistress. I beg my mistress to seek justice for this servant!" "These three items were all found by this servant in Xiaoci's makeup case!" Xiaoci had hidden things so well precisely because she was extremely cautious—she would never have kept such valuables in her makeup case. In truth, Yuli had followed Xiaoci the whole way and caught her red-handed. Yuli took the opportunity to beat Xiaoci, then dragged her here to lodge a complaint before Xie Run. She wanted to accuse Xiaoci, and the bracelet on Xiaoci's wrist was the natural evidence of her crime. Now that both witnesses and evidence were present, Xiaoci knew she could hardly argue her way out and could only kneel and cry out that she was wronged. Xie Run's head ached listening to it. Prince Jing caught a glimpse of her rubbing her temples from the corner of his eye, and displeasure rose in his heart. There were many tricks for competing for favor in the harem, and planting spies everywhere was hardly uncommon. But everyone did such things quietly. Even when someone was caught serving two masters, they were quietly dismissed—never causing such a commotion as was happening in Linxuan Pavilion. Prince Jing looked down on Xiaoci, but his impression of Yuli was not good either. Could someone so impulsive and hot-tempered truly serve Xie Run well? Now that the matter had come to light, Xie Run did want to punish Xiaoci, but with Prince Jing present, she couldn't easily speak her mind. She asked softly, "Prince... how should this matter be handled?" Prince Jing was not a patient man, and he would show no mercy to a servant like Xiaoci who betrayed her mistress. "Since this Xiaoci cannot serve properly, have the Princess Consort send her off to one of the estates." Then he cast a meaningful glance at Yuli. "This maid of yours is loyal, certainly, but far too rash. I doubt she can serve you well." In Prince Jing's eyes, even the most serious matter was not worth disturbing his mistress at this hour. Xie Run was still with child. If anything went wrong, the heads of those two wouldn't be enough to pay for it. Xie Run sighed. "My Prince, it's easy enough to dismiss someone, but if this matter gets out, I fear it will damage Yuli's reputation." She had heard clearly just now—Xiaoci had actually encouraged Yuli to climb into Prince Jing's bed! If Xiaoci were simply punished, with three people spreading rumors, by tomorrow it could become gossip that Yuli had tried to climb into the Prince's bed and been caught by Xiaoci, and that Xie Run had dismissed Xiaoci only to protect her own people. Prince Jing frowned. "What do you want to do?" Xie Run glanced at Xiaoci, and in a moment's thought, a plan formed. She slowly bowed to Prince Jing. "Your concubine has failed to govern her household strictly, and theft has occurred within the estate. I beg the Prince to mete out punishment." Xiaoci, kneeling on the ground, jerked her head up. "This servant did not steal! This servant did not!" Prince Jing only cast a casual glance, and men sent by Eunuch Shian had already stepped forward to gag Xiaoci's mouth. This was in accordance with Xie Run's intent—to define the night's events as theft. Xie Run took the opportunity to say, "Yuli, the night is already deep. Whatever needs to be said can wait until tomorrow." Yuli received the signal from Xie Run's eyes and withdrew with perfect obedience and alacrity. Xie Run and Prince Jing returned to the bedchamber. Only when they were alone among their own people did she dare to speak. "Your concubine sincerely begs the Prince to punish me..." As she spoke, Xie Run's peach-blossom eyes seemed to be veiled in a mist of water, speaking yet holding back, carrying a silent seduction. Fingers as fine as mutton-fat jade hooked onto Prince Jing's sash. Prince Jing: "You are being presumptuous..." The words carried no authority whatsoever. Xie Run was not the least bit afraid; she even curled a faint smile, her peach-blossom eyes arching like crescent moons. Prince Jing couldn't resist. He raised his hand and rubbed her crimson lips, smiling with an ambiguous air. "In ancient times there were Mo Xi and Bao Si; today there is Suisui. This Prince is fortunate indeed." Xie Run gently bit her teeth. "I'll take that as the Prince praising me." From these words, one could tell Prince Jing was ambitious. Mo Xi and Bao Si were women of kings who lost their kingdoms. If she were like Mo Xi and Bao Si, then was Prince Jing a king? Prince Jing half-leaned against the bed, languid. "What did you mean by what you said just now?" Xie Run confessed frankly, "Since becoming pregnant, your concubine has been cautious day after day, yet I never expected to still be schemed against without even knowing it." A faint smile lingered on Prince Jing's face, as if he might lose his temper at any moment, yet also as if nothing truly concerned him. Xie Run knew his dogged temper and said without changing expression, "Yuli has a hasty disposition and is not suited to remain in the Prince's estate. Your concubine has already selected a good match for her, to be arranged by her family for a grand and proper wedding—this would honor the bond between mistress and servant. Yet I never expected someone would nearly exploit the gap..." "Your maidservant was loyal in protecting her mistress—why should I punish you?" Prince Jing smiled carelessly. Xie Run tugged at his hand again, speaking seriously. "Your concubine begs the Prince to punish me, and also begs the Prince to protect me." Prince Jing raised an eyebrow, finally showing some interest. Xie Run: "If tonight's matter spreads, there must be some explanation." "Your concubine thinks—why not let the Prince go along with the current? Be angry with me, and tomorrow no longer come. The day after, the Prince departs for Mizhou, and will likely not return for half a month..." Hearing this, Prince Jing was so irritated he laughed. "What do you take this Prince for?" Prince Jing was genuinely a bit angry, feeling that Xie Run was being somewhat audacious. She even wanted him to put on a play with her. Prince Jing: "Are you truly not afraid that this Prince, once angered, will never set foot in Linxuan Pavilion again?" Xie Run opened her peach-blossom eyes, speaking with complete candor. "Does the Prince wish to hear the truth?" Prince Jing knew that what Xie Run was about to say might not please him, yet he still flicked his sleeve. "Speak!" "Your concubine now holds a hostage—I need not worry that the Prince will not come in the future." Xie Run smiled as she touched her belly, with a hint of playfulness. "So long as the Prince comes to see me, I will always find a way to keep him here."