The courtyard fell deathly silent, with only Xiang Lan’s trembling lips and her little face on the verge of cracking.
The phrase “as if struck by lightning” manifested very concretely on her. She even suspected that she had just hallucinated.
Xie Shuo…
Chu Chu’s younger brother?
That was the general’s most favored concubine! How dared her young miss cheat on the general and seduce the younger brother of his beloved concubine?
Xiang Lan’s mind spun dizzily. For a moment, she could not tell whether her young miss betraying the general was more serious, or giving her body to Xie Shuo was more serious.
Yet both things had happened at the same time.
Heavens, it would have been better to strike her with a bolt of lightning for a quick end. She did not want to live anymore.
Crickets chirped lightly in the courtyard, and the air was filled with the refreshing scent of grass and trees.
This should have been a leisurely evening for lounging in the courtyard, eating ice, and napping, just like the past few days. It would have been most comfortable to set out some fresh, sweet seasonal melons and fruits and read a storybook.
Unfortunately, Xin Yi’s body ached and felt exhausted now, her legs sore and swollen, her skirt wrinkled and unwearable.
She had no mind to soothe Xiang Lan’s heart, which was on the brink of shattering. She merely instructed her once more to prepare the contraceptive broth, then walked stiffly toward her own room.
Once inside, she lit the lamp first, drank the cold tea from the table clean, and only then went behind the screen to change clothes.
The ruqun on Xin Yi was already soaked with sweat, and not just sweat—it felt sticky and uncomfortable. She undid her inner garment, then her waist-tied ru skirt, hissing in pain now and then when she tugged at her wounds.
It was only when she removed her undergarments that she noticed the obvious bruises on her knees.
Actually, upon seeing this, Xin Yi’s expression remained fairly normal, for she thought that given how out of control the other party had been last night, it was already good that there was no broken skin.
It was not until she discovered that the snowy tender bend of her leg was soaked in a patch, with more still trickling down, that her expression froze instantly.
Chaotic and indecent images flashed through her mind at once, yet she could not recall exactly how many times it had happened. Perhaps because she had fainted for most of the latter half of the night, she did not even know when it had stopped.
After waking, she had only wanted to separate from him and had not noticed these things at all.
She had forced herself to walk back regardless, and fortunately, the night was dark and deep with no one seeing. Otherwise, she would have truly lost all face.
Xin Yi sat tensely on the edge of the couch. Moments later, she simply took a nearby inner garment to wipe it clean. Anyway, these clothes could not be worn anymore, so she let it serve one last useful purpose.
Hatefully, she had no strength left in her body. She wiped for a good long while before barely cleaning it up. But as soon as she stood, it started again.
“…”
She had no choice but to call Xiang Lan to fetch water for her bath.
By the time she finished all the fussing, she was so sleepy she could barely keep her eyes open. With her hair still slightly damp, she collapsed onto the couch and fell asleep.
Thus, Xiang Lan discovered that her young miss was so exhausted she did not step out of the courtyard for two or three days, staying obediently in her room to rest.
By the end of the third day, her walking posture finally seemed normal.
She did not know if it was her imagination, but she felt that the amorous charm in her young miss’s brows and eyes was even more pronounced than before, like a drooping silk crabapple fully bloomed.
Her young miss had always been busty with a slender waist and skin white as mutton-fat jade. Now, as she lay on the beauty couch fanning herself with a round fan, a faint sheen of fragrant sweat on her skin, she was all the more tantalizing.
Xiang Lan increasingly felt that Xie Shuo was detestable. Moreover, it might not even have been her young miss who seduced him first. It was very likely that he had taken the initiative, perhaps even using some method to coerce and force her.
Was he not skilled in Miao Frontier gu arts? He even raised so many strangely shaped Gu Insects in the courtyard—they all looked creepy. Could it be that he coveted her young miss’s beauty and had planted some deadly Love Gu on her!
Otherwise, why would her young miss, who had always cared so much about wealth and glory and wanted to become the general’s wife again, suddenly get together with him?
The more she thought, the more plausible it seemed, until she could not help asking, “Young Miss, could it be that Xie Shuo planted gu on you? This servant heard that the Miao Frontier has a kind of Love Gu. Once planted, it makes one fall in love.”
Xin Yi: “…”
When she had deliberately angered Xie Shuo, she had indeed begged him to plant a Love Gu on Xiao Cheng Ce for her, but he had refused.
Seeing Xiang Lan’s suspicion and guessing what was going through that little head of hers, she pondered for a moment, then could not help laughing. “Is not Xie Shuo pretty good? Could it be that you think he is not as handsome as Xiao Cheng Ce?”
Was this a question of handsomeness? This was about her having caused a huge disaster and being about to meet her doom!
Xiang Lan was so worried she wanted to cry. She could only earnestly persuade, “If Young Miss has not been afflicted by the Love Gu, then you should sober up. You and Xie Shuo absolutely will not have a good end!!”
“Of course there will be no result.”
The woman on the couch covered her brow with the fan in her hand, her tone still casual, her red lips twitching slightly. “Otherwise, would that bowl of bitterly awful contraceptive broth not have been drunk in vain?”
This conversation ended with Xin Yi repeatedly changing the subject.
But she did not expect that in the following days, Xiang Lan would nag her a little every three days and a lot every five, being extremely persistent. At the same time, she began urging her in every way to leave the general’s mansion, as if delaying a few more days would get her caught and drowned in the pond.
Xin Yi plugged her ears and pretended not to hear.
Goose Water Courtyard was similarly lively.
The maids all knew their lady was in a good mood because the general had recently gone to Treasure Pavilion to order two sets of the most expensive hair ornaments and jewelry just to please Madam Chu Chu, then sent his personal page hurrying over with them.
Such favoritism was truly enviable.
When they gossiped enviously in private, they inevitably mentioned that Bai Xinyi from the mansion who was clearly out of favor.
They heard that the general already loathed her to the extreme and had even instructed the steward mammy to halve the allocations for her courtyard’s food, clothing, and daily needs, clearly making her life difficult. Compared to their Madam Chu Chu, one was in the heavens, the other underground.
The nearby maids chimed in, their tones contemptuous. “Exactly. In my view, Bai Xinyi is all big breasts and no brains, a seductive vixen born to entice men.”
“But she has not succeeded in seducing anyone. After all this fuss, she still cannot compare to a single finger of Madam Chu Chu.”
Another maid wanted to join in, but her peripheral vision caught a shadow and she immediately stopped.
The others followed her gaze and inexplicably tensed up too, swallowing. “Y-Young Master Xiao Xie…”
They all felt an indescribable fear toward this youth from the Miao Frontier, perhaps because of his gu arts or perhaps because of those cold, quiet, emotionless ink-black eyes.
They always felt that if they accidentally met those eyes, a chill would run down their backs.
Especially now, his eyes held a thick malice, and when he looked at them, it was as if he were sizing up ants he could casually crush.
Thus, the maids who had been gossiping bowed their heads one after another, not daring to relax until he had passed.
Xie Shuo entered the side room and saw Chu Chu fiddling with Gu Insects.
As a descendant of a great Miao Frontier clan, she naturally knew gu arts too, though not as talented as Xie Shuo with his Snake Clan bloodline.
Moreover, ever since following Xiao Cheng Ce back to the Central Plains, she had rarely fed these things.
She only played with them occasionally when the mood struck.
When she saw Xie Shuo enter, she immediately beckoned him to sit.
Then she closed the small tangwood box containing the venomous centipedes and opened a larger jewelry box, taking out two plain jade hairpins. She smiled and said to him, “Shi Bi sent over too many ornaments. A Jie cannot wear them all, so I picked two that are not too feminine to give to A Shuo.”
Xie Shuo showed no reaction after hearing this. His gaze lingered on the jade hairpins for several seconds before he lifted his head and looked at her again.
Then he shook his head, meaning he did not need them.
Chu Chu did not insist upon seeing this. Instead, she instructed a maid to fetch two bowls of milk custard from the small kitchen, then gave one to her little brother.
She could not resist taking a spoonful first before explaining to him with leisure, “This is chilled sugar-steamed milk custard. The taste is extremely fresh and delicious. A Shuo, try some.”
Her gaze drifted over, landing on Xie Shuo opposite her with a smile.
The youth’s gloomy, refined face was slightly lowered, his lips a deep red. His Miao Frontier attire made him seem all the more pure and innocent, ignorant of worldly matters.
This time, Xie Shuo did not refuse. He took the bowl of sugar-steamed milk custard from the maid and quietly tasted two bites.
The custard filled the bowl, looking very appetizing, topped with soft honeyed red beans. It felt warm and creamy like snow, melting in the mouth.
As Xie Shuo ate the custard, he suddenly thought of that woman’s flushed, sweat-dampened face that night. He had eaten it just like this then too.
Only, at that time, he had been more greedy, more eager to continue without tiring.
The main difference now was that no one made coquettish, resistant sounds while he ate, no one struggled to tug at his raven hair.
Thus, a faint smile suddenly tugged at his lips, though the curve was very slight.
It was the first time Chu Chu had seen him smile, and she was stunned. “What is A Shuo thinking of to be this happy?”
Xie Shuo reined in his emotions upon hearing this, his expression returning to indifference.
Moments later, he set down the bowl with two bites taken and responded in sign language: “Nothing.”
The night was cool as water. A gentle breeze blew through the window lattice, and faint moonlight spilled through the diamond-patterned window onto the bed.
It shone on the cool bamboo mat and the tassels hanging from the bed curtains.
After many days, Xin Yi was once again startled awake from her sleep.
But this time, it was not Bamboo Leaf Green that woke her, but its master.
Moonlight illuminated the youth’s handsome brows and eyes. The instant he was pushed away from her neck hollow, the red cord and silver bell at the end of his raven hair jingled softly.
After a brief daze, Xin Yi even suspected she was dreaming, for she truly could not associate the words “climbing into bed” with the current Xie Shuo.
Her gaze fell to his lower body, and she silently breathed a sigh of relief: Good.
Though his behavior tonight was abnormal, at least he was not in heat—no snake tail had emerged.
Xie Shuo was also gazing at her intently.
The woman on the couch must have felt hot at night; she wore only a very light goose-yellow band across her chest, her two smooth, slender shoulders exposed. Everywhere the eye fell was snowy white.
Her band was loosely tied. Beneath her waterfall of raven hair, her powdered neck and plump bosom were visible. Her bewitching eyes now gazed at him with slight bewilderment, as if she had not expected his late-night visit.
Once she confirmed something, she let out a very soft breath of relief.
Then the tension on her face softened too. After hesitating a moment, she leaned over and hugged him, as naturally as when she had pushed him away earlier. “A Shuo.”
Xie Shuo seemed to nestle into a ball of soft, fluffy cotton—warm, silky, and carrying a faint fragrance.
But he could not help associating it with—a long time ago, on a certain night, when she had gone to the study to seduce Xiao Cheng Ce, she had hugged him just like this.
She had nestled into his embrace, called him Shi Bi in a flirtatious tone. Then, with flowing glances, she had hugged his arm and acted coquettish, leaning in with a smile as sweet as orchids, asking why he would not look at her.
Now, he and Xiao Cheng Ce had swapped positions. And on that night when he had lost control in heat, he had even been Xin Yi’s husband.
Xin Yi did not know what he was thinking, but she could confirm that he had long realized she had drugged his tea.
Yet she did not plan to apologize. Instead, she struck first to gain the advantage. “That day, I did not intentionally drug you. That medicine was originally meant for Xiao Cheng Ce. It was all because you rushed out and ruined my plans, so we are even. You have no reason to hold it against me for that.”
“Moreover, after that time, you made me ache for several days. Even bathing was uncomfortable. In the end, I am the one who lost out more.”
Xie Shuo listened to her sophistry, even her twisting of right and wrong, but did not feel particularly angry.
He lowered his head and lightly bit her outstretched lotus-root arm, then heard the startled cry he wanted.
Bamboo shadows swayed in the courtyard ahead.
Candle tears dripped. The bed curtains beside the couch swayed too.
Xin Yi did not know how it developed to this point, but by the time she reacted, the youth had already succeeded.
She uncontrollably let out some sounds, her skin burning hot and flushed red. Her vision blurred completely, and only when fragrant sweat soaked her cheeks did she whimper and tug at the red cord and silver bell tangled in the end of his raven hair.
She cried when she felt good.
She cried when she truly could not endure it.
By the time the clouds dispersed and rain ceased at last, Xin Yi did not even have the strength to pant. Everywhere ached terribly.
Seeing that he had no intention of tormenting her further, her heart gradually relaxed. Perhaps because her body was too tired, she fell asleep not long after.
She thought she could sleep until she woke naturally, but she did not expect to be woken again in the latter half of the night.
Xin Yi opened her eyes amid an extremely bizarre sensation. Despite her efforts to bite her lip, a moan still escaped. Then she saw the youth’s black hair buried between the folds of her skirt.
When the other party sensed her struggle and lifted his head.
A handsome, fair face bore faint traces of red. His eyes were like dots of lacquer, his lips glistening with subtle moisture.
Then he suddenly smiled lightly at her.
Though utterly silent, Xin Yi was certain she saw the curve at the corner of his lips—very shallow, exceedingly beautiful.
This was the first time she had seen Xie Shuo smile.
……
Dawn broke, faint sunlight piercing through the clouds.
Servant girls had already begun sweeping various parts of the General’s Mansion, but this dilapidated courtyard remained quiet and cold.
In the early morning, Xiang Lan pushed open the door, holding a copper basin and silver comb as usual, intending to attend to her miss with washing and dressing.
Her miss sometimes lingered in bed, but she rose at fixed times most days.
Unfortunately, just as she stepped over the bluestone steps to the door, hoarse moans and cries from a woman came from inside the room. In moments, she recognized them as her miss’s voice.
In fact, she instantly understood what was happening inside.
The copper basin in her hands clanged to the ground.
That voice abruptly cut off.
After several seconds of silence, it turned into more restrained, suppressed sobs, while the other strange sounds continued, intermittent and covert.
Xiang Lan snapped back to her senses, wishing she could burrow into a crack in the ground.
Blushing furiously, she snatched up the copper basin and fled far away. Only after confirming she could no longer hear those fatal sounds did her panicked heart settle.
After the time it took for two incense sticks to burn, that door finally opened.
Xie Shuo emerged, carrying the dark gold satin bedding in his arms.
He still wore the attire of a Miao Frontier youth, but his black hair hung loose, accentuating the beauty of that gloomy, handsome face.
Xiang Lan hesitated for a long while before approaching. The thought of him so recklessly entangling with her miss stirred some resentment and annoyance in her.
Yet she remembered her duty as a personal maid and reached out to take the bedding from his arms.
Xie Shuo dodged her calmly.
Clearly, he had no intention of letting anyone else handle it.
Xiang Lan grabbed at empty air and glanced down instinctively. Only then did she notice the bedding’s surface seemed soaked, several dark wet patches staining the dark gold satin.
Anyone could tell how excessive he had been with her miss.