Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Rong’er was worried that a mere verbal retelling of the farce wouldn’t be vivid enough, so she even dragged Lian’er over and acted it out several times.

But when she still failed to make me laugh, the fiery excitement in her eyes finally dimmed. She looked at me carefully and said, “If you don’t like hearing about this sort of thing, Miss, then this servant won’t bring it up again.”

“It’s fine. I have to know what’s happening in the front courtyard if I’m going to guard against the unexpected.” Leaning against the table, I casually picked up a silk fan and propped my head on it. “They are my family, after all. I’m not laughing at them only because I’m preserving the last shred of merit I have left.”

“Buddha, please forgive me for holding back my laughter.”

In the end, Liu Kuangzhi was not thrown into prison. Father’s acquaintances at court pulled some strings for him, and two hours later, Liu Kuangzhi was sent back.

But because of it, Father now owed someone an enormous favor. On top of that, he had beaten someone else’s beloved son and yet refused to take out even five hundred taels of silver to smooth things over. The Ministry of Personnel official felt Father had gone too far in bullying him, and he now held a deep grudge against Father.

For Father to remain as neutral as he had before would probably be difficult now.

By the time Liu Wanqing realized how serious the matter was and understood what a huge mess she had caused, her face instantly turned pale with fright.

She hurriedly sent a maid out of the manor and, in the end, managed to return the buyao hair ornament before Liu Kuangzhi and Father came home.

That night, when she appeared before Father and Liu Kuangzhi, she was already dressed entirely in plain white. Her usually charming face had not a trace of powder or rouge, and only her tear-filled eyes were especially red and striking.

The moment Liu Wanqing saw Father, she knelt, pressing her forehead to the cold floor tiles. Her tone was pitiful beyond measure. “Wanqing knows she has committed a grave mistake and nearly ruined Elder Brother’s future. From now on, I will often wear plain clothes and no longer adorn myself, so that I may always remember today’s fault and make amends to Elder Brother and Father!”

After that performance, more than half the anger on Father’s face dissipated.

At the very least, Liu Wanqing had not been possessed by greed to the very end.

Liu Kuangzhi’s expression, however, remained poor. He was still immersed in the rage of nearly being imprisoned, and in the face of Liu Wanqing’s apology, he merely gave a muffled flick of his sleeve and made no response.

Liu Wanqing could be considered to have escaped disaster, though the monthly allowance for her courtyard would be cut off for the next half year.

In truth, that was no great hardship for her. She had no silver, but Xiao Liu did.

As long as she made up a few more lies about being mistreated in the manor, then clutched her handkerchief and wept softly to Xiao Liu, Xiao Liu would empty out his own family estate if he had to, just so his Sister Wanqing could continue sleeping on brocade and jade, dining on delicacies, and being the purest, most carefree girl under heaven.

As for what the old madam in his household thought about Liu Wanqing spending Xiao Liu’s money so naturally and lavishly before she had even married in, I had no way of knowing.

But that was a matter for later. That very night, Wang Mama from Mother’s courtyard knocked on my courtyard gate, saying Mother’s headaches had flared up and she could not sleep at night, so she wanted to see me.

So I loudly told Rong’er to hurry and invite Wang Mama in. By the time I finished shouting that one short sentence, I had already coughed and wheezed five times and vomited blood twice.

When Wang Mama opened the door, what she saw was me draped in a single thin garment, bracing myself weakly against the doorframe as I coughed up blood.

The plain handkerchief in my hand was already more than half stained red, and drops of blood were dripping from one corner of it.

Wang Mama opened her mouth, but for a long while, no words came out. In the end, she left in a rather crestfallen manner.

I did not go to see Mother. Instead, Mother began worrying about me.

The next day, she had a great many tonics packed up and arrived with maids and servants in a grand procession.

She wanted to see me, but I was unconscious and did not want to see her.

Having grown used to the rare flowers and precious treasures in Liu Wanqing’s courtyard, Mother looked around my courtyard, which was plain to the point of absurdity aside from the large lotus pond surrounding it. Somewhat angered, she said, “Why is Wenyu’s residence arranged so simply? Could it be that you wicked servants have taken advantage of my child’s illness to bully her?”

Lianrong Su, Guihua Gao, Lürou Huoshao, and Mapo Doufu immediately dropped to their knees in unison, crying out that they had been wronged and that the courtyard arrangements had all been made according to my own wishes.

Mother knew that among them, Rong’er was the closest to me, so she ordered her forward to state the case.

Rong’er wiped away a full handful of tears, took several deep breaths, and only then began speaking in a tragic, miserable tone. “All these years, Miss has managed the household accounts. She knew the manor’s savings were thin and that there were often times when monthly allowances could not be matched. In order for Master and Madam to eat and drink well, and so the young masters and Young Miss would not suffer any grievances, Miss practically deducted her own entire share and used it to supplement every courtyard in the manor.”

As Rong’er spoke, she choked back a sob, her voice growing more sorrowful. “Last winter, in order for Young Miss to have the warmest silver-thread charcoal to burn, Miss did not even allocate charcoal for her own room. She only left some for us servants. She herself froze through the entire harsh winter like that, and her body began falling ill at the start of spring. Now, after being provoked by the matter between Young Miss and Young Master Xiao, she truly cannot hold on any longer!”

Rong’er was outside spinning wild tales, and I listened from inside, gradually furrowing my brows.

She was exaggerating too much. Even I was starting to pity myself.

After all, my body was actually quite resistant to the cold. Shangjing’s winters were not particularly cold either, so it was perfectly possible to get through winter without burning charcoal.

Mother, however, looked as if she had suffered a devastating blow. She staggered three steps back, and tears began falling in streams. “How could this be? My child…”

Seeing this, Wang Mama knew Mother’s current state was no longer suitable for staying here. With a wave of her hand, she dismissed the group consisting of Lianrong Su, Guihua Gao, Lürou Huoshao, and Mapo Doufu, then supported Mother as she left.

The moment they left through the front, the courtyard gate was shut behind them by those four in perfect unison.

I sat up from bed with the quilt bundled around me and high-fived them one by one.