“Young ladies, today’s lessons conclude here. You are dismissed.”
In the Pei family school, after the female teacher departed, the maids sitting in the final row hurried forward to their respective young mistresses to help them pack away their brushes and ink.
Only one person sat perfectly still.
The young woman kept her eyes cast down, not daring to make a single unnecessary movement, trying her best to minimize her presence.
It was only when the crowd in the schoolroom had fully dispersed and silence returned that she finally stood up. With cautious movements, she began to pick up the discarded drafts from the tables.
To others, these were merely scraps used for practice, but to Xie Zhi, they were the most precious of treasures.
“Braving the wind and rain… so that is how it is written…”
Xie Zhi picked up a sheet of calligraphy, murmuring to herself.
But in the next moment, a sharp voice rang out:
“How bold! Li Chun, you actually dare to steal the calligraphy drafts of the Xianzhu and the young mistresses! If our Xianzhu hadn’t left behind an earring, we wouldn’t have known you were so audacious!”
Xie Zhi turned around instantly and saw several maids escorting Yuyang Xianzhu back into the room.
A maid snatched the papers from Xie Zhi’s arms and presented them to Yuyang as if seeking a reward.
“Junzhu, please understand. This servant felt it was a waste for the calligraphy used in class to be thrown away, and so…”
Panic flared in Xie Zhi’s heart, and she immediately knelt on the ground to explain.
“Hmph, even if they are unwanted, there are dedicated servants to burn them. Since when is it your turn to handle them? If you learned the handwriting and forged letters or the like, the consequences would be endless!”
The maid shot her a glare and continued her interrogation.
The summer heat was stifling, yet cold sweat broke out on Xie Zhi’s face.
“This servant had no such intention. I have no books and only wished to see how the characters mentioned by the teacher were written. I truly have no thought of harming the Xianzhu.”
Yuyang, already irritable from the heat, grabbed the stack of papers and hurled them at Xie Zhi’s head.
The papers scattered all around Xie Zhi, a few fluttering down to rest near Yuyang’s feet.
“Li Chun, do you have no shame at all? You clung to my third brother to enter the Houfu, and when he was sent on an external assignment, you managed to get into Grandmother’s courtyard. I don’t know what Grandmother was thinking, letting a maid who has already lost her purity sit in on the masters’ lessons. Who are you trying to disgust?!”
Xie Zhi remained prostrated on the ground, silent. Her face burned with stinging humiliation.
She wanted to explain that she was a pure woman and that she did have a sense of shame, but she knew no one would believe her.
“So you like to steal knowledge? Fine. Today, I shall show some mercy and teach you how to learn! Men! Make her eat every single one of these papers!”
As soon as Yuyang finished speaking, two maids stepped forward to pin Xie Zhi down, while another grabbed the papers from the floor and began stuffing them into Xie Zhi’s mouth.
Startled, Xie Zhi struggled desperately and cried out:
“Xianzhu, this servant admits her fault! But I am, after all, a person of Chunhuiyuan. You could simply inform the Old Madame and let her handle it. There is no reason for you to use such private punishment!”
Though she was pinned and unable to move, her gaze remained firm.
In such a wretched state, no one would have guessed that half a year ago, she was still a lady of an official’s house—
She was Xie Zhi, the daughter of the former Yangzhou Cishi, Xie Jinhuai.
Though her mother had died young, her father had been indifferent, and she was often mistreated by his concubines and her half-sisters, she had at least managed to reach her coming-of-age ceremony in peace.
However, six months ago, a series of smuggling cases broke out in Yangzhou, involving massive sums of money that raised great suspicion.
When the news reached the capital, His Majesty was incensed.
Three days later, the Xingbu Shilang, Lord Pei, personally traveled to Yangzhou to investigate the case under imperial decree.
Pei Du was young and accomplished, possessing thunderous methods. Even though the local powers had been entrenched for years, protecting one another and putting on a grand show of innocence, he quickly saw through their tricks and dragged the mastermind into the light.
That mastermind was her father, the Yangzhou Cishi Xie Jinhuai.
Xie Jinhuai was sentenced to beheading, the males of the family were exiled, and the females were reduced to Jianji status, never to be cleared.
Back then, if she hadn’t used certain means to follow the presiding judge—the Xingbu Shilang Pei Du—back to his manor, she might truly have lost her purity by now.
But Pei Du…
He was best not mentioned.
At this moment, hearing her words, Yuyang’s fury flared:
“You still dare to talk back? I’ll see to it that you’re properly disciplined today!”
She strode forward, but unexpectedly stepped on one of the calligraphy papers on the floor.
The paper was smooth to begin with. Yuyang’s foot slipped, and she fell straight toward Xie Zhi!
Her wide sleeves accidentally knocked over an inkstone on a nearby table. The ink splashed all over Yuyang’s neck, staining more than half her clothes black, and a few droplets splattered onto Xie Zhi’s cuffs.
For a moment, the maids stood frozen, so shocked they didn’t know how to react.
“What are you standing there for? Help me up!”
Yuyang was the first to react. Looking at her neck, which was now as black as a silkie fowl, she began to scream.
The others snapped out of their daze and rushed forward to pull her up.
“Quickly, take me back to change!”
Yuyang shouted in panic, then stripped a maid of her outer garment to wrap around herself.
Thinking the Xianzhu would no longer have time to deal with her, Xie Zhi’s body relaxed slightly.
But as she reached the corridor, Yuyang called out:
“You will kneel here until tomorrow. Do you hear me?”
“This servant obeys.”
She hadn’t been kneeling long when Nanny Zhou’s voice rang out from the distance:
“Girl, how did you end up in this state?”
“Nanny, I…”
Looking at a familiar face, Xie Zhi felt a surge of grievance, her voice trembling slightly.
“I’ve been looking everywhere for you! Quickly, the Shizi (Heir) has returned from Yingzhou. The Old Madame has ordered you to go see him.”
What?
Pei Du was back?
The unpleasant memories of six months ago immediately flooded Xie Zhi’s mind, making her want to shrink back.
“But…”
“No ‘buts’. The Shizi just returned from reporting his duties at the palace. I heard he has to go to the Ministry of Justice later.”
Seeing that Xie Zhi still hadn’t moved, Nanny Zhou simply pulled her back to Chunhuiyuan.
Chunhuiyuan was the residence of Old Madame Pei. When Pei Du had brought Xie Zhi back to the manor six months ago, he had settled her there.
In the bathing room, fragrant water had already been prepared. After bathing, Xie Zhi changed into a lake-green trailing Wangxianqun. She tidied her appearance before the mirror and stepped around the nanmu screen carved with plum blossoms, saying:
“Nanny, let us go.”
With just one look, Nanny Zhou’s heart fluttered.
With a soft and graceful bearing that stirred pity in all who saw her, she was as beautiful as a lotus after the rain.
With such looks, it was no wonder that even the Shizi, who usually kept women at a distance, had been captivated by her.
…
The Changping Houfu had been a family of officials for generations, and by this generation, it was quite populous.
Old Madame Pei and the late Old Marquis had three sons and one daughter. The eldest son, Pei Xun, was the current Marquis of Changping and the father of Pei Du.
Between the various branches of the family, plus cousins, nephews, and countless servants, there were over a thousand people in the household.
One could easily imagine the vastness of the Changping Houfu.
Even so, the estate, which occupied more than half of Yongxingfang, had left Xie Zhi speechless when she first arrived.
Furthermore, because eighteen years ago Dengguo Zhanggongzhu had married Pei Xun as his second wife, the late Emperor had built the Princess’s Manor adjacent to the Changping Houfu.
The walls between the two estates had been opened up, so it was no exaggeration to say that the entirety of Yongxingfang belonged to the Pei family.
…
But as grand as the estate was, it was a source of suffering for Xie Zhi.
Under the sweltering sun, the two walked for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense before they finally reached Yangshantai, where Pei Du resided.
Yangshantai was situated on high ground. To reach it from below, there were dozens of stone steps to climb.
Intersecting paths and decorative rocks surrounded the area, and Yangshantai itself was hidden amidst lush, beautiful trees.
Having finally made the climb, Xie Zhi didn’t dare show her fatigue, but Nanny Zhou was panting. Leaning against the stone gate, she sighed repeatedly:
“Sigh! This old woman is exhausted.”
Looking at the tranquil water corridors and pavilions in the courtyard, Xie Zhi felt the urge to retreat again.
“Nanny, why don’t I help you to the pavilion in the back to rest?”
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Nanny Zhou raised her hand and tapped Xie Zhi on the head with an expression of exasperation.
“Stop dallying and go in.”
Having said that, she shed her fatigue and walked forward with brisk steps.
“Changming, is the Shizi inside?”
Nanny Zhou walked to the corridor of the main courtyard and asked the youth standing there with a sword.
Seeing her, Changming clasped his hands in greeting.
“The Master is in. Does the Old Madame have instructions?”
“The weather is hot, and the Old Madame is concerned for the Shizi. She ordered Li Chun to prepare a bowl of lychee syrup and some sugar-frosted jade peaks to bring over.”
Hearing this, Changming’s gaze bypassed Nanny Zhou and fell upon the young woman carrying the food box behind her.
This young lady now looked delicate and obedient, surrounded by a quiet and peaceful aura.
Where was any trace of the person who, six months ago, had just been rescued by the Master—covered in wounds, panicked, and trembling?
Thinking of this, Changming didn’t dare look further. He simply stepped aside to make a path.
“Miss Li Chun, please follow me.”