Wen Lingrao raised her teary eyes to look at the Emperor, sobbing as she said, “Your servant does not dare to have any other extravagant hopes; I only ask that Noble Consort Xi give your servant an explanation.”
Upon hearing this, Noble Consort Xi panicked: “Your Majesty, I am wrongly accused!”
“Shut up.” The Emperor glanced at her, his gaze chillingly cold.
Noble Consort Xi shivered and dared not speak again.
Wen Lingrao continued, “Your servant has suffered such a great fright and sustained injuries; in the future, recuperating and taking medicine will cost money. Furthermore, the items in my home that were smashed also need to be compensated.”
As she spoke, she took a piece of paper from her sleeve and held it up with both hands.
“This is the list your servant has compiled; I humbly request Your Majesty to take a look.”
The Emperor took it and read it, his eyelids twitching.
It was written clearly:
Mental distress fee: 30,000 taels.
Medical expenses: 20,000 taels.
Property damage compensation: 30,000 taels.
Loss of income: 20,000 taels.
Total: 100,000 taels.
Additionally, two shops under the name of Noble Consort Xi’s maternal family were to be given as extra compensation.
The Emperor looked up at Wen Lingrao.
Wen Lingrao blinked, her face full of innocence.
The Emperor then looked at Noble Consort Xi.
Noble Consort Xi’s face had already turned as white as paper.
“Your Majesty!” she shrieked, “She is asking for the impossible! I am wrongly accused!”
Upon hearing this, Wen Lingrao began to cry again: “Your Majesty, your servant is not asking for the impossible. Your servant has truly been wronged. Look at this clothing I am wearing; it has been torn. Look at the injuries on my face. If you do not believe me, you can summon an Imperial Physician to take a look.”
The Emperor felt a headache coming on from her crying and waved his hand: “Enough, enough, stop crying.”
Wen Lingrao immediately stopped, though she was still sniffling.
The Emperor looked at her and then at the list, lost in thought.
Noble Consort Xi grew desperate and crawled forward on her knees: “Your Majesty, those two shops belonging to my maternal family are my younger brother’s lifeblood; they cannot be given away! Your Majesty!”
Just as the Emperor was about to speak, Wen Lingrao suddenly spoke up.
“Your Majesty,” her voice was soft, “your servant has an impertinent request.”
The Emperor looked at her: “Speak.”
Wen Lingrao said, “Your servant dares not keep this compensation for herself. I am willing to donate it all to the Imperial Treasury to contribute a meager effort to the imperial court.”
As soon as these words were spoken, the Emperor was stunned.
Noble Consort Xi was also stunned.
Wen Lingrao raised her head, looked at the Emperor, and blinked.
That look clearly conveyed: Your Majesty, you understand.
The corners of the Emperor’s mouth slowly curled upward.
He understood.
This cousin was not seeking compensation at all; she was sending money to him.
100,000 taels of silver and two shops—while ostensibly paid to her, she was turning around and donating it to the treasury. If that wasn’t going into his private coffers, what was?
As for Noble Consort Xi’s maternal family?
The Emperor glanced at Noble Consort Xi, his gaze indifferent.
What did the family of a concubine count for, anyway?
He picked up the list, read it over once more, and then set it down.
“Cousin,” he said, “you have been wronged.”
Upon hearing this, Wen Lingrao’s eyes reddened again, and she lowered her head.
The Emperor looked toward Noble Consort Xi, his voice turning cold: “Noble Consort Xi, you indulged your servants to commit violence and seize the property of a noble lady. What crime should you be charged with?”
Noble Consort Xi shuddered, knocking her head against the floor repeatedly: “Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!”
The Emperor waved his hand: “Considering your years of service, I will deal with this leniently. Just as my cousin said, those two shops belonging to your maternal family shall be compensated to her. The 100,000 taels of silver must be paid in full. You have three days to gather the funds and deliver them to the Changning Marquis estate.”
Noble Consort Xi collapsed on the ground, unable to utter a single word.
Wen Lingrao raised her head, looked at the Emperor, and revealed a grateful smile.
“Your servant thanks Your Majesty for upholding justice.”
The Emperor looked at her and smiled as well.
“You are too kind, cousin.”
…
When the news reached the Changning Marquis estate, it was already afternoon.
Wen Lingrao had not yet returned, but what she had done in the palace had already spread throughout the entire estate as if it had wings.
The old gatekeeper was the first to know.
He was sitting at the gate of the estate basking in the sun when a young eunuch came to pass on a message, saying that the Marquis’s heir’s wife had received rewards in the palace today, and he should inform those inside to prepare to receive them.
The old man heard this and did not recover for a long time.
“Received rewards?” he asked, “What rewards?”
The young eunuch said: “A hundred taels of gold, twenty rolls of silk, and a set of head ornaments.”
The old man’s mouth hung open as he stood there stunned.
The young eunuch left, but he remained dazed.
Once he snapped back to his senses, he ran inside, shouting as he ran: “Has the heir’s wife returned? The heir’s wife has received rewards in the palace!”
With this shout, the entire estate was stirred.
The servants gathered together, chatting and whispering.
“Is it true? Did the heir’s wife receive rewards?”
“Rewards from the palace—can that be fake?”
“What did the heir’s wife do to get such grand rewards?”
“I don’t know, haven’t heard.”
An old woman who worked in the kitchen, being better informed, lowered her voice and said: “I heard that today in the palace, the heir’s wife slapped Noble Consort Xi right in front of the Emperor.”
The people around her gasped.
“Slapped a Noble Consort? Wouldn’t that be a death sentence?”
“Death sentence? She slapped the Noble Consort and still got rewards. The Emperor rewarded her personally.”
“My heaven…”
A younger maid didn’t believe it and curled her lip: “That can’t be, right? The heir’s wife has a temperament where she usually doesn’t even speak loudly in the estate—could she really slap a Noble Consort? I don’t believe it.”
A senior nanny nearby glanced at her.
“What do you know?” she said, “The heir’s wife is hiding her true self. If she really loses her temper, who could stop her?”
Just as they were speaking, there was some commotion outside.
“The heir’s wife has returned!”
The servants quickly scattered, returning to their own positions, heads lowered, yet their eyes couldn’t help but peek toward the entrance.
Wen Lingrao walked in from outside, followed by two palace maids carrying the items that had been bestowed upon her.
She had changed into casual home attire, her face calm and devoid of expression—nothing different from usual.
Yet this time, no one dared to think of her as the Wen Lingrao they once knew.
There were seven or eight servants in the courtyard—some sweeping, some watering flowers, and others who had stopped in their tracks. When Wen Lingrao walked past, they all lowered their heads in unison, not daring to let out a breath.
Wen Lingrao did not stop her pace, but after walking a few steps, she suddenly halted.
She turned her head to look at the servants.
The servants lowered their heads even further; several of them began to shake at the knees.
Wen Lingrao looked around and spoke.
“Why are you all standing here?” she asked, her voice sounding just as it always did.
No one dared to reply.
Wen Lingrao waited for a moment, but she didn’t make things difficult for them; she turned her head and said to the palace maids behind her: “Put the things down.”
The maids placed the items they were carrying onto a table in the courtyard.
Wen Lingrao walked over, fished out a purse from the pile of rewards, which contained some loose silver. She weighed it in her hand and beckoned to the servants.
“Come here.”
The servants looked at one another; none dared to move.
Wen Lingrao was not impatient and just waited.
After a while, a bolder old woman moved over first, and the others followed, one after another, until they were standing before her.
Wen Lingrao took the silver out of the purse and stuffed a piece into each of their hands.
“Take it,” she said.
The servants held the silver, stunned, not knowing what to say.