Chapter 10: Intent of Revenge
Xue Sui unfolded the plain paper and slowly read it.
On it were names of people who had long been lurking in the Xue Mansion, including guards, maids, and cooks. Many of them were ordinary outer members who received aid from the Old Mausoleum Swamp and provided it with information, but they did not know the secrets of the Old Mausoleum Swamp, nor did they necessarily know each other’s identities.
But Aunt Jinshu was an inner sect steward of the Tianshu Sect, and the Tianshu Sect was in charge of intelligence, so she knew everything clearly.
“Old Madam, First Master, Second Master, and Third Master all have our people by their side… In the courtyards of the young masters and young ladies, we are also arranging as much as possible…”
Xue Sui had been an Imperial Envoy for three years.
She had placed scouts in the Xue Mansion.
But it was not she who arranged for Jinshu.
After handing over the Imperial Envoy’s token, she had no intention of deploying them.
Xue Sui glanced at her and lit the paper in the incense burner, “What else did Senior Brother Tianshu do?”
“Prince Duan’s Mansion,” Jinshu said, “The Sect Master has given the order that whether it’s the kitchens, stables, or accounting office and guards, we will find any opportunity to place our people inside to look after the young lady…”
Jinshu looked around to ensure no one was present and lowered her voice slightly.
“If you ask me, young lady, there’s no need for all this trouble. If you want to kill a few people without anyone knowing, the Old Mausoleum Swamp has plenty of ways…”
Another one who liked fighting and killing.
As expected, she was from the inner sect of the Old Mausoleum Swamp.
Xue Sui smiled slightly, staring at the ashes flying from the burner, a layer of gloom settling in her eyes.
“Aunt, do you know that death is not the most difficult thing to endure? A life worse than death is the greatest suffering. To lose one by one those you care about; for all you cherish to turn into bubbles; for all you are attached to to turn into ashes; for all you hope for to end in despair.”
She smiled again, “To see the vermilion gates fall, to see the grand mansions collapse, to see their families scattered and their homes destroyed… isn’t that more interesting?”
Aunt Jinshu looked at her serious expression and breathed a long sigh of relief.
“This servant understands why the young lady wants to go to Prince Duan’s Mansion.”
She didn’t want her enemies to die peacefully and comfortably; instead, she wanted to take everything from them and make them suffer unbearably. This was easy for ordinary people, but too difficult for those people. Because they could rally thousands of followers, they almost possessed the empire and could do whatever they pleased.
Even in death, they would receive a grand burial, enjoy all the honors, and even be remembered in history…
“They were noble people in life, and they are noble people in death.”
Xue Sui shook her head, “Aunt, that is not what I want.”
Jinshu said, “When I came, I was worried that the young lady was too young and would need to learn some cunning to survive in the prince’s mansion. Now, it seems I don’t need to teach you.”
Xue Sui smiled, “Aunt, please arrange for me to see Senior Brother Tianshu.”
The forces of the Old Mausoleum Swamp were divided according to the Big Dipper Seven Sects.
Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, Tianquan, Yuheng, Kaiyang, and Yaoguang each managed their own affairs and had their own divisions of labor, which was extremely rigorous.
The seven sect masters were all Xue Sui’s senior brothers and sisters. The one who understood her best was Senior Brother Tianshu, who was in charge of intelligence, and he was also the kindest to her…
But this time, her opponent was too powerful.
She shouldn’t let the Old Mausoleum Swamp be implicated…
–
Qing Lan Courtyard.
The maids and servants all lowered their heads, not daring to breathe loudly.
“Sixth Young Lady is too bullying.”
“First Madam, you must uphold justice for this old servant.”
“This old servant has served First Madam for so many years and has been treated kindly by First Madam. Who in this mansion, from top to bottom, dares not give First Madam some face…”
Nanny Liu had been crying for half an hour, but Fu Shi had been listening indifferently. When she spoke too loudly, she even instructed Xiugu to close the door, preventing the sound from spreading.
“Why did you provoke her? Granny Fang said she’s a lunatic.”
“First Madam!” Nanny Liu was astonished. Her swollen face, which had been slapped, looked particularly dramatic. “This old servant couldn’t stand her being so disobedient, not even putting First Madam in her eyes…”
“Alas!” Fu Shi sighed, “The Master and Old Madam have sent word to serve her well and not to ruin the mansion’s reputation.”
Nanny Liu looked at First Madam in confusion.
Last night she was grinding her teeth, wishing she could skin Xue Liu alive, and today she has become a virtuous and loving legal wife?
“If this little vixen isn’t disciplined properly, she might ride all over First Madam…”
“Hmph!” Fu Shi gave her a light glare, “Just bear with it. The Master’s reputation is important. If anything happens to her, wouldn’t it embarrass the Master?”
Nanny Liu still couldn’t figure out the details. “How can a concubine’s daughter affect First Master’s reputation?”
The room was filled with Fu Shi’s confidantes, and Nanny Liu was a wet nurse who had watched her grow up. If there was no explanation and she was just allowed to be bullied by Xue Liu, no one would be convinced.
Fu Shi thought for a moment and had to explain, “My elder brother sent word this morning, asking me to restrain myself. Recently, the one in the Eastern Palace has been throwing tantrums from time to time, and at a time when Prince Duan is rectifying and reforming, he seizes any handle to attack him relentlessly. The Master is also helpless…”
First Madam’s anger had subsided.
At first, she thought Xue Qingzhi was standing up for Xue Ji and her daughter, but now she knew it was out of fear of the Eastern Palace…
“Who is His Highness the Crown Prince? Everyone in Shangjing knows. If you run into his path, you’ll lose a layer of skin even if you don’t die.”
Nanny Liu touched her face in distress, groaning in pain, “First Madam is right… But you can’t let her be so lawless.”
Fu Shi put down her hand warmer and smiled faintly, “To deal with a little vixen, why do you and I need to act personally? There will naturally be those who are sensible and eager to earn merit.”
Nanny Liu gritted her teeth inwardly, knowing that this beating was in vain.
Everyone in the room sighed, saying that the eldest young lady had brought back a disaster.
As they were talking, a servant reported from outside the curtain.
“First Madam, Princess Consort Duan has returned. Her carriage has arrived outside the main gate…”
–
Prince Duan had been married for many years without a son, which greatly worried Consort Xiao in the palace.
The current Emperor had five adult imperial princes. Except for the Crown Prince, who had just come of age last year and was not yet married, the rest were all married.
The Emperor valued descendants greatly, believing that many children brought much fortune. The continuation of descendants was the foundation for stabilizing the empire and the state, and it concerned the fate of the nation.
Prince Duan was the most favored imperial prince, but after he established his mansion, despite having one Princess Consort and two Consorts, he only had one daughter, not a single male heir.
Without a male heir, he was inevitably at a disadvantage among the imperial princes.
Consort Xiao had long wanted to select some beautiful palace maids from the Imperial Harem and send them to her son to expand his household and have many descendants, but each time Prince Duan blocked her with the excuse that “matters of offspring should be left to fate.”
This time, her daughter-in-law took the initiative. When she went to the palace to pay her respects, she mentioned her own sister…
Consort Xiao agreed to everything and immediately discussed a date for taking a concubine.
What was originally a happy occasion, however, the news from the palace inexplicably spread out that day.
As a result, several prominent aristocratic families in the capital secretly submitted the birth dates and portraits of their daughters to Consort Xiao.
The Crown Prince was unruly and detested by the Emperor. The Empress, backed by the Xie family, was naturally frail. If it weren’t for the ancestral laws, the Eastern Palace would have long since changed its master.
But weren’t ancestral rules made to be broken?
In private, a group of officials loyal to Prince Duan believed that he was the true ruler of the world, it was only a matter of time.
If their daughters gave birth to the eldest son for Prince Duan, they would be great contributors.
Consort Xiao naturally understood their intentions. To contend with the Empress and the Crown Prince, Prince Duan’s reputation for virtue alone was not enough.
She also needed to rely on a large number of people.
Consort Xiao did not carefully examine the portraits of those women. She summoned Princess Consort Duan, gave her a lecture on “the greater good,” and then gave her instructions.
“Accept them all. When Huan’er’s birthday comes, bring them into the mansion together.”
Xue Yuechen was quite angered.
Bringing Xue Liu to her side was to ward off disaster and misfortune, a last resort.
She hadn’t expected that by opening this door, those people would take the opportunity to send their daughters into the mansion.
Xue Yuechen suppressed her anger, used the excuse of returning home to visit elders, and led her servants and maids back to the Minister’s Mansion in a grand procession.
Upon receiving the news, First Madam rushed out to greet her without even having time to change her clothes.
Mother and daughter met, exchanged pleasantries, and then went together to Shou An Courtyard to pay their respects to Old Madam.
Old Madam Cui had not seen her eldest legitimate granddaughter for a long time. She held her in her arms, showering her with affection and concern. After a few words, Xue Yuechen’s tough exterior crumbled, and she tearfully confessed to Old Madam and First Madam.
“Two Consorts are already enough to cause annoyance. Now there will be five more. One of them is the youngest legitimate daughter of the Vice Minister of Personnel’s family. According to Consort’s wishes, she will be a concubine upon entering the mansion…”
In a prince’s mansion, besides the Princess Consort, Consorts, concubines, secondary wives, and concubines were all considered concubines, not the mistress of the household.
Fu Shi said, “You are the Princess Consort. What are you afraid of?”
Xue Yuechen silently shed tears, “What use is being the Princess Consort? I still have to watch the inner chambers constantly take in new women.”
Princess Consort Duan was beautiful and intelligent, with a reputation for virtue, but what woman in the world would willingly push her own husband into another woman’s bed?
Fu Shi fell silent, and the atmosphere in the room became somewhat heavy.
Old Madam Cui personally peeled an orange and handed it to her.
“My dear granddaughter, calm your anger.”
Fu Shi could only advise her, “The Prince is a man of great ambition and is not concerned with the inner chambers. You should also broaden your horizons.”
Xue Yuechen understood her mother’s meaning.
If Prince Duan were to ascend the throne in the future and become Emperor, with his three palaces, six courtyards, and seventy-two consorts, could she get angry about all of them? Moreover, Li Huan was not a man who indulged in lust. Yesterday, Consort Yuan came to pay her respects and complained in front of her that she hadn’t seen the Prince for a long time.
Old Madam Cui and Fu Shi took turns comforting her.
But Xue Yuechen felt as if she had swallowed a fly, unable to spit it out.
She asked Fu Shi, “Where is Sixth Sister?”
Ever since she decided to bring Xue Liu back, Xue Yuechen had been uneasy.
“Ten years have passed, I wonder what Sixth Sister looks like now? Will she catch the Prince’s eye?”
Fu Shi’s face darkened, and she remained silent.
Old Madam Cui, however, smiled and gestured to a maid.
“Go and inform the young ladies of each household that Princess Consort Duan has returned to the mansion to visit her family and that they should come to pay their respects. The young masters are all studying, so do not disturb them; they can come after their studies.”
The maid replied with a smile, “Yes, Old Madam.”
Second watch. Dear readers, please leave more comments and interact. Your encouragement is needed.
Xiao Zhao: Kill? Kill? No orders today?
Xue Sui: Persuade with virtue, we must persuade with virtue.
Nanny Liu, who was beaten: I believe you, you ghost.
