Chapter 10

Chapter 10

“Save her, quickly!”

It felt as if a hand had suddenly yanked me up from the bottom of a lake.

It was Xiao Qibai’s voice, laced with anxiety and rage. “If you cannot save her, this Prince will have you all buried with her!”

It had to be an illusion.

I opened my eyes.

Yet, I found that he was truly there.

Outside the courtyard, separated by a single window, the broker woman was trembling with fear.

“Your Highness, please calm your anger. She is being saved…”

…

“The bleeding has stopped!” the witch doctor announced joyfully.

The broker woman rushed in immediately. She inspected the skin on my back, her expression one of delight.

“Amitabha, I thought you weren’t going to make it.”

During the process of tattooing the Lotus Mark, the wound had bled severely.

They all thought I was going to die.

“Your Highness, Ah Fei is fine now,” the broker woman hurried out to report. “This Lotus Mark is exactly the same as the one on Miss Song. It looks incredibly lifelike.

“Would Your Highness like to come in and inspect the goods?”

Xiao Qibai nodded and walked toward the door.

Each of his footsteps thudded, and my heart tightened with every sound.

Suddenly, Xiao Qibai paused.

He whispered, “Hong…”

The moon-white gauze curtains in the room cast my shadow.

The figure was blurred, yet it still… looked like an old acquaintance.

I froze, cold sweat silently seeping out.

“Your Highness, her name is Ah Fei.” Thinking Xiao Qibai had misremembered my name, the broker woman quickly reminded him with a smile, “Ah Fei, His Highness has rewarded you with a thousand taels of silver. Why haven’t you thanked His Highness yet?”

“Ah Fei… thanks Your Highness for your great kindness.”

My voice was coarse and grating.

In the reflection, Xiao Qibai’s shoulders silently relaxed.

It wasn’t Hongxiu.

The famous opera star of Jiangling City cherished her voice above all else.

I was even more cautious every day, never touching ice or sugar, and taking medicine at the slightest sign of a cold.

I would never allow my voice to become this raspy.

She was merely someone with a similar figure.

Xiao Qibai’s mind was set at ease, and his voice grew cold:

“The smell of blood is too strong inside. This Prince will not enter.

“I will see her once her wounds have healed.”

Having said that, he left indifferently.

Once he was gone, I breathed a sigh of relief, only then breaking into a heart-wrenching cough to spit out what was in my mouth.

Just now, to prevent Xiao Qibai from recognizing me.

In my desperation, I had held a mouthful of iron filings.

The wound on my back was a mask of pain.

The broker woman helped me up.

“On the sixteenth day of the third month, at the hour of the rat, go to the side gate of the Song Manor. A maid will lead you inside to prepare for the reception of the Imperial Consort’s envoys-do you understand?”

“I understand.”

Upon returning to my room, a young performer came forward. “Sister Hongxiu, Prince Yu was here.”

My heart tightened as I asked, “Did he find out I was gone?”

“No, he didn’t come in. He was called away by Miss Song’s people.” The boy was angry. “He used to act so devoted, but now it seems he’s a better actor than any opera singer.”

I smiled and pinched his cheek, telling him to watch his words.

Xiao Qibai didn’t come to see me again.

It was said that Song Wanrong had fallen ill, and he had summoned every physician in the city to her side.

As a result, when I developed a high fever that night, I couldn’t even find a single doctor.

My back felt as if a furnace was pressed against my skin. I was delirious with pain, thinking hazily:

Is it because I stole Song Wanrong’s fate as the Demon Consort that Heaven is punishing me?

The troupe leader discovered I was sick and sent someone to request Xiao Qibai.

He wanted Xiao Qibai to visit me so he could take the opportunity to recommend two new young starlets for Prince Yu to patronize.

Who would have thought the messenger wouldn’t even be able to get through the gates of the Prince’s Mansion?

“Prince Yu is accompanying Miss Song and says he will not see any visitors.”

No matter how slow the troupe leader was, he knew I had fallen out of favor.

Unwilling to spend money on a physician, he locked me in my room.

“I’m afraid Hongxiu has contracted consumption. Don’t go near her, lest you all get infected too.”

I was left to fend for myself.

In my bouts of unconsciousness, during the most difficult moments, I vaguely heard a small dog barking nearby, nudging me with its warm head.

It was Heidou.

“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid,” I said. “I’ll be better tomorrow.”

The flesh on my back had finished healing. I lay flat on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.

When I woke up again, a cool cloth was on my forehead, and a bowl of medicine sat by the bed.

The door was no longer locked, and the scent of hot porridge wafted in from outside.

The troupe leader entered carrying a food box, his face full of fawning smiles.

“Hongxiu, you’re awake? Prince Yu came to see you last night…”

I shoved him aside, stepped over the fallen food box, and bolted out. The troupe leader seemed to be shouting curses, but I didn’t care-

My little dog was gone.