Xie Zhi hurriedly stood up to hide, but she had barely taken two steps when Pei Du pushed the door open again, followed by County Mistress Yuyang.
County Mistress Yuyang was Pei Du’s half-sister, the only daughter of Princess Dengguo. She had been doted on since childhood and was granted the title of Xianzhu by The Sage at birth.
Raised in indulgence, she was proud and arrogant, looking down not only on her sisters in the household but also treating servants with harshness, often resorting to beatings or scoldings.
Upon learning that Xie Zhi had not obediently accepted her punishment, she was so furious that she immediately came looking for her.
“Brother, she stole many handwriting drafts. What if she forges the handwriting and uses them to spread rumors? What’s worse, when I punished her, she actually ran away. You must stand up for me!”
Yuyang’s face flushed red with anger, and even the two gold phoenix hairpins with dangling pearls on her head shook chaotically.
Xie Zhi stood quietly in place, not uttering a word.
“From now on, Li Chun is not to set foot in the family school again. If she disobeys, you may punish her as you see fit.”
After a moment of contemplation, Pei Du finally spoke:
“Also, what happened to your neck? This is improper! Did you not absorb the ink into your mind but instead pour it all over yourself?!”
“No, Brother, we can’t let her off so easily!”
Yuyang glanced at the ink-stained neck that couldn’t be washed clean, her expression sour, still dissatisfied.
If she were to let Xie Zhi off so lightly today, who in the household would ever take her seriously again?
“I have many matters to attend to today and cannot spare time to indulge your mischief.”
As Pei Du spoke, he strode out, “Changming, prepare the horses!”
He left in haste, with Yuyang trailing closely behind, “Brother, take me with you! I want to enter the palace too!”
Their voices gradually faded into the distance, and only then did Xie Zhi in the room let out a sigh of relief.
…
The Old Madam, being of advanced age, retired to bed exceptionally early. As dusk had just settled, Chunhuiyuan grew quiet.
Xie Zhi returned from Yangshantai and lit a small lamp in the side room when she suddenly saw Nanny Zhou enter, smiling at her and saying:
“You’re back so late. I thought the young master would keep you at Yangshantai.”
Hearing this, Xie Zhi felt even more embarrassed.
She supposed that once Pei Du returned, he would explain everything clearly to the Old Madam. By then, her situation would likely not be as comfortable as it was now.
After casually making up a few words to see Nanny Zhou off, Xie Zhi walked to the bed, crouched down, and retrieved a wooden box from beneath it.
Inside were layers upon layers of handwriting drafts, all taken by Xie Zhi from the family school when the others had finished their lessons.
The rough drafts made by the noble young ladies during their lessons, when pieced together from over a dozen copies, could roughly reconstruct the content taught by the tutor that day.
Combined with Xie Zhi’s memory of eavesdropping on the lessons, she could grasp about seventy to eighty percent of the material.
However, today’s drafts had been taken away, so Xie Zhi could only rely on the dim candlelight to review the content from the previous days over and over again.
The Old Madam did not wish for those around Pei Du to be illiterate and unfit for public appearances, yet she also would not allow Xie Zhi to study as meticulously as the noble young ladies in the family school.
After all, she was merely a maid; it was enough for her to have a superficial understanding, just enough to avoid being utterly dull when interacting with the young master.
But Xie Zhi was not content with this. She wanted to learn more.
Earlier, in Yangzhou, the Xie family had its own family school, and the female tutor often taught everyone that women, like men, must study to gain knowledge and clarity of mind.
Xie Zhi deeply agreed with this.
However, at that time, due to being neglected, she was not sent to the family school by her father until she was thirteen. By the time the family was raided and their property confiscated, she had only studied for a little over a year in total, and there were still many characters she did not recognize.
Therefore, she could only study secretly in this manner during the late, quiet hours of the night.
In truth, she knew this was wrong. Although the practice sheets had been discarded by others, taking them without permission was still theft—a violation of the ethics taught in books.
Thus, when the Xianzhu confronted her, Xie Zhi felt no resentment, only overwhelming shame.
After studying for over an hour, the candle in the lamp was nearly spent, and the characters on the practice sheets grew increasingly blurred. Xie Zhi had to strain her eyes to see them clearly.
Fatigued, she rubbed her eyes from time to time, but the more she rubbed, the more uncomfortable they became. Eventually, tears welled up, accompanied by uncontrollable sobs.
Xie Zhi dared not cry aloud, fearing she might wake Old Madam. She could only blow out the lamp and climb into bed, her tear-filled eyes fixed on the tussah silk bed curtain by the headboard, unable to sleep for a long time.
…
Early the next morning, Xie Zhi looked pale and listless, her condition so noticeable that even Old Madam could see something was amiss.
“You are quite dutiful today. There is no need for you here. After breakfast, go and attend to the family school.” Old Madam smiled as she accepted the tea Xie Zhi offered and took a sip.
“Old Madam, this servant will not be going to the family school.”
Xie Zhi took the warm towel handed by a young maid and began wiping Old Madam’s hands.
Nanny Zhou fetched a Hundred Sons and Pomegranate Blossom Ruyi Cloud-Patterned robe, which Old Madam often wore, from the cabinet. Hearing Xie Zhi’s words, she expressed some displeasure,
“Miss, this is a disappointment to Old Madam’s kind intentions.”
Old Madam was unaware of Xie Zhi’s punishment, but Nanny Zhou assumed Xie Zhi was acting out of pettiness due to the previous day’s reprimand and thus spoke to admonish her.
Upon hearing this, Xie Zhi’s expression stiffened momentarily. She set down the tray in her hands and knelt before Old Madam.
“Old Madam, this servant has something to say.”
“Oh, Li Chun, what is the matter?”
Old Madam was startled by her action and hurriedly tried to help her up.
At the same time, the beaded curtain in the outer room was lifted, and a maid approached with a smile.
“Old Madam, the Shizi has come to pay his respects.”
As she spoke, footsteps echoed from a distance, growing closer. Everyone in the room looked up, and silence fell.
Pei Du wore a dark robe with subtle patterns and a crossed collar, a gluttonous-patterned white jade pendant hanging at his waist, gleaming with a luster that marked it as no ordinary piece.
His features were refined, and though his eyes still held a coldness, in Old Madam’s presence, they lacked their usual sharpness.
“Third Son, are you not on duty at the Xingbu today?”
Seeing him, Old Madam could not conceal her delight.
Noticing Xie Zhi still kneeling before her, she patted Xie Zhi’s back and said gently,
“Look at you. Whatever you have to say can wait a little longer. Go and freshen up before returning.”
Merely being in the same room as Pei Du made Xie Zhi feel suffocated. She kept her eyes lowered but could sense Pei Du’s gaze lingering on her.
“Yes.”
Xie Zhi hurriedly rose and seized the opportunity to leave.
Only after entering the small side room adjacent to the inner chamber did she dare to let out a sigh of relief.
She sat on the bed, her gaze vacant, surveying the tiny side room.
Xie Zhi had lived in this side room for half a year. Though the space was not large, it was fully equipped, lacking nothing.
Just outside the side room was Old Madam’s inner chamber—for a maid, this was the highest possible treatment.
Sitting by the bed, Xie Zhi sighed, knowing that Old Madam would soon learn the truth and send her away.
But with Pei Du’s temperament, once he had determined her guilt, he would never return the Shenqi document to her or allow her to leave the estate.
This was also part of the agreement they had made from the beginning. Although Pei Du had rescued her from the brothel, Xie Zhi’s status as a servant remained unchanged. She could only work as a maid in Peifu to atone for her previous crimes.
Xie Zhi felt that this man was simply hopelessly rigid.
There was no reasoning with him at all.
After a while, Nanny Zhou pushed the door open and entered.
“Miss, the Shizi has left. Old Madam has summoned you.”
Her expression carried a hint of disdain, and her tone was stiff. Xie Zhi knew that Pei Du had already explained the matter to Old Madam.