Zhao Yushu sat bolt upright in bed. “Mother, quick! Gather up everything you own that’s worth money!”
In her previous life, the confiscation had come without warning. The entire Zhao household had been convicted, and Zhao Yushu was still ill. Before she could prepare anything, she had already been thrown in prison.
Now that fate had given her a chance to be reborn ahead of time, even if she had only two days, she would not sit by and do nothing!
“W-what?” Concubine Liu was caught off guard by the sudden interruption. Tears clung to the corners of her eyes, and she looked at a loss.
“But those things are all I have for my old age…”
“Mother, just listen to me. What do those things matter? If you do as I say, I’ll take care of you for the rest of your life. I’ll make sure you live to a hundred!”
As she spoke, Zhao Yushu jumped off the bed with a thump. Back then, Prince Jin had taught her some basic martial arts and self-defense in order to train her.
Though her body was still that of a fifteen-year-old, her soul was no longer. Her movements were decisive and brisk, without a young lady’s demure grace.
“Hey, you girl! What are you doing? Walk properly!”
Zhao Yushu had no time to worry about her manners. In a flurry, she gathered up the things on the dressing table.
A fragrant-wood comb, a plain silver hairpin, colorful stone earrings, rouge that was almost used up, and a box of scented powder with only half left.
After all these years at Zhao Residence, these were just about the only fine things she had to her name.
Everyone said First Madam treated her well, but whenever Zhao Yushu received jewelry or hair ornaments, First Madam would take them back a few days later, claiming that Zhao Yushu was too young to know how to store them and that the servants might steal them. She would take them back quite legitimately, under the pretense of keeping them safe for her.
But this time, Zhao Yushu had been bedridden and unconscious ever since she fell seriously ill, so First Madam hadn’t yet had the chance to take away the box of jewelry she’d given her before the Spring Flower Banquet.
Zhao Yushu briskly scooped it all up and shoved the whole lot into Concubine Liu’s arms.
“Mother, take these too. Go find someone right away, and pawn them along with your valuables. Turn everything into banknotes!”
Concubine Liu remained where she was. “What’s gotten into you today, child? What kind of madness is this?”
At fifteen, a girl was in the very bloom of her beauty. Zhao Yushu’s hair hung loose, and although she still looked a little ill, her face was as lustrous as jade, her peach-shaped eyes bright and glistening.
“There’s no time to explain. Mother, if you love me and want me to have a good life from now on, hurry and sell everything. Bring back the banknotes.”
Concubine Liu was still somewhat baffled, but she decided to do as Zhao Yushu asked.
“Fine, fine. Let’s just say I’m doing it to make you happy.”
As she spoke, she took out the valuables she had accumulated over all her years at Zhao Residence and placed them together with the things Zhao Yushu had given her.
Compared with Zhao Yushu, who had little money, Concubine Liu had a much larger hoard.
She had been the most favored of all the concubines at Zhao Residence for years. Censor Zhao liked her beauty and gentleness, so he had given her many rewards.
Box after box of jewelry came out. The sunlight flashed off the gold so brightly that Zhao Yushu had to squint.
Thinking that in her previous life all these things had ended up in someone else’s hands, while her mother had debased herself for medicine that cost less than ten copper coins a bowl—and lost her life—made Zhao Yushu’s heart ache.
Seeing Zhao Yushu standing to one side, staring at her jewelry boxes, Concubine Liu assumed she was taken with the pretty hairpins too.
She couldn’t help giving a smug smile, then leaned close to Zhao Yushu’s ear and whispered:
“Pretty, aren’t they? Whenever I buy things, I make a point of choosing youthful styles. They don’t suit my age now, but after the new year, once you’ve had your hair-pinning ceremony[1]A traditional Chinese coming-of-age rite for girls, often held around age fifteen, marking their entry into adulthood. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3735805_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3735805_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); and are married, they’ll be just right for you. They’ll all be your dowry then.”
At her words, Zhao Yushu’s heart ached even more.
She drew a deep breath and held back the urge to cry. Then she carefully looked over every set of hairpins and earrings in the jewelry boxes once more, even reaching out to touch them. Only then did she pull her hand back without hesitation.
“Sell them! Don’t keep a single one!” she said, steeling her heart.
“You don’t like even one of them…”
A trace of hurt crossed Concubine Liu’s face. She gave Zhao Yushu a reproachful look, and she was so captivating that if Censor Zhao had seen her, his heart would have melted; he would have sent her another generous allowance to spend.
But all Zhao Yushu could think of was her mother’s death in her previous life, during the confiscation and exile: battered and bloodied, her face bruised beyond recognition, lying beneath a white cloth.
“Mother, if you really love me, trust me and sell all of them. We’ll suffer for a while, but sooner or later I’ll repay you a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand times over!”
She had lived two lifetimes and knew she was capable of it. Concubine Liu didn’t know that. To her, Zhao Yushu was simply making a grand promise.
Yet Concubine Liu broke into a radiant smile, laughing so hard she swayed. Then she gave Zhao Yushu’s shoulder a playful smack.
“You child! Why weren’t you this sweet-tongued before? I gave birth to you, so of course I’m supposed to love you. These things were yours to begin with. Take them all if you want—who asked you to pay me back?”
That very day, she took the valuables to a pawnshop outside and exchanged them for nearly three thousand taels in banknotes.
As a concubine, she was not supposed to show herself in public, so she was careful when she went out and concealed her identity. No one knew what she had done.
Zhao Yushu waited for her in Concubine Liu’s room. Fortunately, whenever she fell ill, First Madam used the excuse that colds were contagious to keep the maids from attending her at close quarters. That was why Zhao Yushu could do all this openly now.
By the time Concubine Liu returned, the sun was setting, and half the sky was dyed orange.
Zhao Yushu hurried forward a couple of steps. “Did it work?”
Concubine Liu waved the maids away, pulled her into the room, and took a thick stack of banknotes from inside her robe.
“It did. What do you need so much money for?”
Zhao Yushu took the banknotes. She knew that if she told anyone she had died and been reborn, they would think she was raving—or that some demon had possessed her.
So even though Concubine Liu was her own mother, Zhao Yushu couldn’t tell her the truth, for fear of frightening her.
She could only be vague. “After tomorrow, you’ll understand.”
Then, clutching the banknotes, she hurried out.
Concubine Liu didn’t stop her. She only called anxiously after her, “You little rascal, slow down! Watch your step! You’ve only just recovered—don’t overdo it and fall again!”
Zhao Yushu walked away with her back to her mother. Hearing those words, she couldn’t help the slight curve of her lips.
So this was what it felt like to have someone care for and cherish you. The thing she had spent her whole previous life longing for, without ever receiving, was something she had already had all along—without even knowing it.
A trace of coldness flickered through her smiling eyes. She had suffered for one lifetime already. Since Heaven had seen the injustice done to her and granted her a second chance, this time she would protect everything she cared about with all her might. No one would take it from her!
Clutching the banknotes, she hurried to the high wall by the outhouse in the rear courtyard.
She took a deep breath, ran at it from a distance, and easily vaulted over.
Zhao Yushu sauntered out of the alley and looked around. Following the location she remembered, she entered a clothing shop.
When she came out again, the pretty young girl was gone. In her place was a frail, delicate young man.
Before long, she entered a slave brokerage, a place that primarily dealt in the buying and selling of people.
Most of those inside were slaves who had no hope of surviving otherwise and were willing to sell themselves.
As soon as Zhao Yushu stepped in, a plump, smooth-faced young attendant came forward with a welcoming smile.
“Well now, young master! Good fortune to you. What kind of fine goods are you looking for today?”
This was Zhao Yushu’s first time in a place like this in her current life, but in her previous one she had bought plenty of slaves to serve as Prince Jin’s death warriors. She was already well practiced at dealing with people.
She strode over, swung a leg over a stool, and lifted her chin slightly. Lowering her voice, she spoke with easy confidence.
“Enough chatter. Bring out every one of your Black Cudgels. This young master wants to inspect them!”
The attendant’s eyes lit up even more when he heard her use the underworld term, though he still put on a show of reluctance.
“Well, we do have Black Cudgels here, but as you know, they’re hard to come by, so the price…”
Smack—
References[+]