Chapter 35

Chapter 35 In her previous life, she had been defeated by that wretch Fang Yuan'er, which cost her the position of Empress and led to her miserable end. Now, seeing this mortal enemy once again, the old grudges and new grievances combined were enough to burn away all of Wan Linlang's rationality. Flames of rage surged in her eyes. Fang Yuan'er, supporting her belly and guided by Qiuxiang, entered the room. "I heard there's a new sister in the residence, so I came specially to take a look." Her gaze swept across and caught sight of Wan Linlang's eyes, brimming with hatred. Then she heard her shout, "Fang Yuan'er, what do you think you're doing?!" The familiar tone, the familiar attitude—Fang Yuan'er's body stiffened. As someone who had transmigrated into a book, Fang Yuan'er had all the imaginative leaps one would expect. Her first reaction was that Wan Linlang had been reborn. How else could one explain this resentment upon their first meeting? A newly arrived concubine daring to be so insolent toward her, a Concubine Consort? Qiuxiang suddenly snapped in a low voice, "How insolent! You dare not bow when you see the Concubine Consort?!" Fang Yuan'er waved her hand magnanimously. "Sister Wan has just entered the residence and hasn't had the chance to receive the Princess Consort's instruction. It's only natural she doesn't know the rules." Hearing these words, Wan Linlang's eyes reddened. She was actually a patient person. It was just that upon first entering the Prince's residence, with the grudges of her past and present lives, compounded by the cold reception she'd received, she had spoken without thinking. Wan Linlang lowered her head, and her expression shifted in an instant. She assumed a composed demeanor and bowed to Fang Yuan'er. "This servant greets Concubine Consort Fang." Fang Yuan'er sat down with assistance, smiling as she said, "You've only just entered the residence and have met but a few people. How did you know I was Concubine Consort Fang?" Wan Linlang replied without changing her expression, "This concubine has only just arrived and heard that two Concubine Consorts in the residence are with child. Since Concubine Consort Xie rarely leaves her quarters, I took the liberty of guessing that you are Concubine Consort Fang." "This concubine?" Fang Yuan'er laughed as if she'd heard a great joke. "With you being merely a concubine, you dare to call yourself 'this concubine'?" Her narrow, elongated eyes held undisguised mockery. She had forgotten that she herself had once behaved in the same manner. The golden hairpin atop her head swayed, casting a harsh, contemptuous light over her face. "Truly, you're nothing but a lowly physician's daughter, utterly devoid of any manners!" Wan Linlang was humiliated to the very dust by her words. Her face turned green and purple by turns. Had it not been for the patience cultivated in her previous life, she would have long since erupted into a quarrel with Fang Yuan'er. A faint taste of blood surged in her throat, and she gritted her teeth to swallow it all down. "This servant misspoke. I beg the Concubine Consort to punish me!" According to Wan Linlang's memories, Fang Yuan'er was hot-tempered and irritable, stupid as a pig. If she admitted her mistake, Fang Yuan'er would seize the opportunity to punish her severely. Thinking of her own situation, Wan Linlang actually hoped Fang Yuan'er would punish her harshly. Best if it caused a stir throughout Prince Jing's residence. If Prince Jing learned she had been wronged, he would come to see her and, in turn, punish Fang Yuan'er. Even if Prince Jing didn't come to see her, at least he would have an impression of her. The Princess Consort had always been hypocritical and would surely seek justice on her behalf. When that happened, Fang Yuan'er wouldn't gain a single advantage! As luck would have it, Fang Yuan'er was thinking the same thing. Though she wasn't as arrogant and domineering as the original owner of this body, she was still notorious in the residence for her bad temper. If she punished Wan Linlang severely today, she could go back and claim she felt unwell afterward. The Prince and Princess Consort would surely defend Wan Linlang and scold her a bit. But did she fear being scolded? As for Wan Linlang— A mere concubine who provoked a Concubine Consort into feeling unwell on her very first day in the residence. Could Prince Jing possibly have a good impression of her? Before she'd even served Prince Jing, she'd already left a bad impression in his heart as someone who stirred up trouble. Could Wan Linlang ever gain his favor? With this in mind, Fang Yuan'er's red lips curved into a smile. "Since Concubine Wan begs for punishment, this Concubine Consort shall grant her wish and teach her a proper lesson." She said to Wan Linlang, "Kneel here for two hours to reflect on your conduct." Wan Linlang bit her lip and lowered her head. "This servant obeys." Fang Yuan'er seemed to see right through her intentions, smiling meaningfully as she said to her attendant, "Qiuxiang, keep watch here and take the opportunity to explain the rules of the Prince's residence to Concubine Wan." "That way, no one can say this Concubine Consort only punishes without teaching, as if deliberately finding fault." Wan Linlang's heart inexplicably sank. Since when did Fang Yuan'er have this much sense? Then she heard Fang Yuan'er add, "Also, go to the pharmacy and get some ointment for Concubine Wan. If her knees are truly injured, the Prince will be upset." Seeing how "considerate" Fang Yuan'er was being, Wan Linlang realized she had been outmaneuvered. She had punished first, then taught, and was being so thoughtful—even if this were brought before the Princess Consort, at most she'd be scolded for a minor breach of protocol. But now that she was already kneeling, she couldn't very well make a fuss and get up, could she? Fang Yuan'er had arrived in a blaze of fury and left thoroughly satisfied. Only Qiuxiang remained, watching over the kneeling Wan Linlang while gently "instructing" her on the rules of Prince Jing's residence. The hatred and rage in Wan Linlang's chest nearly burned her to ashes. Even in her previous life, when she had been abandoned by Prince Jing, she had never suffered such humiliation. She would never let that wretch Fang Yuan'er get away with this! Fang Yuan'er returned to Xiachi Courtyard, unable to contain her smile. She waved to her maidservant and said, "Go, summon the residence physician. Tell him I've had a disturbance in my pregnancy." "Tomorrow morning, send someone at first light to apologize to the Prince and Princess Consort on my behalf." Although the Prince's household now had three Concubine Consorts, two were pregnant and one was in poor health. The Princess Consort was considerate and didn't require them to pay their respects daily. She only said they should come on the first and fifteenth of each month. This was the Princess Consort's thoughtfulness, but it did deprive Fang Yuan'er of a stage for her theatrics. Otherwise, she would have put on quite a show the next morning. Fang Yuan'er wasn't afraid of Wan Linlang discovering she had swapped souls. The original Fang Yuan'er had been foolish and overbearing, perfectly capable of charging into a concubine's courtyard in the middle of the night to throw her weight around. Precisely because Fang Yuan'er suspected Wan Linlang might have been reborn, she planned to act even more arrogant and domineering to maintain her persona. Early the next morning, Xie Run had barely finished washing up when Xiaoshu eagerly told her about what had happened the night before. Xiaoshu smiled and said, "Mistress went to bed early last night and missed all the excitement at Embroidery Moon Pavilion." Xie Run let Dantao do her hair while she studied a rouge compact in her hand. Hearing this, she asked curiously, "Embroidery Moon Pavilion? Did something happen to the new Concubine Wan?" Xie Run was still somewhat wary of Wan Linlang. Xiaoshu said, "Yesterday, Consort Fang brought people to Embroidery Moon Pavilion to visit Concubine Wan. But unexpectedly, Concubine Wan didn't know her place and said something beyond her station, so Consort Fang punished her by making her kneel for two hours." Xie Run was taken aback. "Didn't know her place?" She remembered that Wan Linlang was composed and proper—the most well-known stickler for rules in the Prince's household—and was most skilled at using those rules to control others. That was how she managed to be named Consort De after Prince Jing ascended the throne. The character "De" was not something just anyone could use. And now, on only her second day in the household, she was being disciplined for not knowing the rules? That was truly rare. Xiaoshu was puzzled. Shouldn't the fact that she was made to kneel for two hours be the main point? The Princess Consort rarely resorted to punishment, and the household was generally peaceful, with incidents of higher-ranking members punishing lower-ranking ones being few and far between. Hearing about it out of the blue was somewhat unusual. Xiaoshu said, "That was a minor matter. The truly interesting part came later." Even Dantao couldn't help but lean in to listen now. Xiaoshu spoke with even more enthusiasm. "After Consort Fang threw her weight around at Embroidery Moon Pavilion, she returned to Summer Pond Courtyard and called for the household physician, claiming she'd been affected by the disturbance and her pregnancy was at risk." Xie Run and Dantao exchanged a glance. "Really or not?" Xiaoshu smiled and shook her head. "That, this servant wouldn't know. This morning when I went to fetch the meal, I heard people from Summer Pond Courtyard going to apologize to the Prince and Princess Consort." "How did the Prince and Princess Consort handle it?" Xiaoshu said, "The Prince went to see Consort Fang but didn't seem to mete out any punishment, and the Princess Consort didn't say anything either." Dantao said, "That's strange. The Princess Consort has always valued rules. Consort Fang went to Embroidery Moon Pavilion to bully someone, yet there wasn't a single word of reprimand?" Fang Yuan'er hadn't tried to hide the news, and word of what happened last night quickly spread throughout the household. Only then did Xie Run learn that after making Concubine Wan kneel, Fang Yuan'er had prepared medicinal soup for her and had even assigned her head maid Qiuxiang to teach Concubine Wan proper conduct. A strike with one hand, a sweet date with the other—no one could find any real fault with that.