Madam Shao only pushed the door open after hearing Feng Che’s reply. Seeing her daughter squeezed together with him on the couch in the outer room, she asked suspiciously,
“Why aren’t you two sleeping in the room? What are you doing here?”
“Mother-in-law, Doctor Shi said earlier that I could massage my legs before bed.”
Feng Che did his best not to let his gaze fall on the patch of delicate, pale skin at the back of her neck.
“Gao Zhi was helping me massage them just now.”
“Why couldn’t you massage them on the bed?”
Madam Shao frowned.
“The bed is larger, but there aren’t as many candles there. Unlike the outer room, it isn’t brightly lit, which makes it less convenient for the massage.”
Even Gao Zhi was impressed by that explanation.
Clearly, being well-read wasn’t only useful for scholarly pursuits. A learned man was also remarkably good at making up excuses.
“Mother, it’s so late. Why did you come back?”
Gao Zhi quickly changed the subject.
“I saw how exhausted you all must have been from the journey, so I had some calming soup prepared. Drink it and you’ll sleep better.”
Madam Shao handed them each a bowl, but she still couldn’t help nagging.
“You’re not even staying a few more days. You’re leaving tomorrow.”
“If you miss me, Mother, I can come back often.”
Gao Zhi blinked at her.
Madam Shao glared at her unhappily.
“Then, Prince Huai’an, please take good care of my daughter. She has always cared more about other people’s feelings than her own. Don’t let her go cold or hungry, and don’t let her suffer any grievances.”
When she said the last sentence, her gaze landed meaningfully on the young man.
“If anyone makes my daughter suffer, I won’t let him off.”
Gao Zhi’s nose stung when she heard this. She pouted.
“Mother, you make it sound as though someone could bully me.”
Madam Shao couldn’t bear to see her daughter looking like that. She reminded the two of them to go to bed early before leaving.
“Are you upset?”
Feng Che asked softly.
“No.”
Gao Zhi took a deep breath.
“I just feel that my mother has had a hard time.”
【Raising a child to adulthood is incredibly difficult.】
【Mother-in-law must have poured her heart and soul into raising A-Zhi to become the person she is…】
Feng Che lifted his eyes. Because of what had just happened, Gao Zhi was still sitting extremely close to him.
His thigh was pressed against the small of her back. The warmth of her body seeped through the thin fabric, and his numb leg seemed to be struck by an electric current in an instant, the tingling traveling through his bones straight to his heart.
【So soft.】
【So slender.】
【I really want to…】
Gao Zhi turned her head in confusion. Seeing the obscure emotions surging in his eyes, she noticed his gaze and hurriedly looked away.
“Mother-in-law has left. You can get up now.”
The way he said it made it sound as though she had deliberately been clinging to him.
Even if Gao Zhi had that thought, she hadn’t planned on throwing herself at him so quickly.
Slow and steady.
She really wanted to see what sort of spectacular scene would unfold when this rigid, wooden mountain finally lost control of himself.
The next day, Madam Shao and Gao Zheng saw Gao Zhi and Feng Che off.
Watching their daughter poke her head out of the carriage window and wave goodbye, Gao Zheng couldn’t help rubbing his eyes. His voice choked with emotion.
“Seeing A-Zhi like this reminds me of when she was little and went to her maternal grandfather’s home.
“The little thing couldn’t even tell east from west and was always following me around, calling me ‘Daddy’ over and over. Every time, her voice was sweeter than the last.
“How did such a tiny little girl become someone else’s wife?”
The more Gao Zheng spoke, the sadder he became. He buried his face against his wife’s shoulder and burst into tears.
“What if my precious girl suffers after marrying him? She’s so strong-willed. What if she hides it from us?”
Madam Shao was speechless.
“I’ve discovered that your ability to catch on can be frighteningly slow sometimes.”
Gao Zheng stared at his wife blankly.
“Huh?”
“When you insisted that Feng Che fulfill his engagement back then, why didn’t you think about the possibility that A-Zhi might suffer?”
Madam Shao glared at him.
“Well… I watched A-Che grow up, so naturally I trusted him.”
Gao Zheng sniffed.
“Yes, A-Che is a good boy. I shouldn’t worry so much.”
Watching her husband comfort himself after only a few words, Madam Shao could only shake her head.
Perhaps her judgment wasn’t that great either.
At the Prince Huai’an’s residence, they had barely entered when an official from the Ministry of Revenue came looking for Feng Che, saying there was government business to discuss.
Gao Zhi returned to her courtyard to rest. After lunch, she immediately hurried to Wen Xing Courtyard, where the two children lived.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, she saw a medicine bowl that had gone cold sitting on the stone table, with two or three tiny insects floating in it. Four elderly matrons were gathered around the table playing leaf cards, calling out bets. When one of them got excited, the old woman’s callused yellow foot even stepped on the embroidered Shu brocade pillow decorated with pine and bamboo that was being used as a cushion.
Gao Zhi remembered that pillows of this quality were normally reserved for the masters of the household.
In other words, this was Wen Yan and Wen Ting’s pillow.
“Once we finish this round, we have to go reheat that boy’s medicine. It was ordered by the master of the main residence. Not a single dose can be missed,” one of the matrons mentioned.
“What’s the rush? Yesterday, that little bastard complained that the medicine was too hot. Today, we let it cool down before bringing it over. That’s exactly what he wants.”
The matron who spoke was an old servant of the Lian family, surnamed Qian. Madam Xi had personally sent her to serve Wen Yan and Wen Ting.
“That woman in the main residence isn’t loved by the Prince. They’ve only been married a few days, and he’s already moved out. She puts on a respectable front every day, but who doesn’t know she’s nothing more than an abandoned wife?
“Besides, do you really think she cares about those little bastards? Her fiancé, whom she waited years for, had children with another woman. Anyone else would be furious enough to die.
“But this Gao woman can certainly endure it. Do you believe that even if we starved that little bastard to death right in front of her, she’d only praise us for it?”
Chan Yi was about to rush forward when Gao Zhi raised a hand to stop her.
In the past, Gao Zhi would never have been able to swallow such an insult. Chan Yi had no idea what had happened to her mistress. After getting married, even her temper seemed to have softened.
“Don’t go too far. At least they’re the Prince’s flesh and blood,” another matron said.
Madam Qian snorted.
“Their birth mother might have been some lowly Liao slave girl. The Lian family has suffered how much disgrace because of these little bastards? Who really cares about them?
“They’re like that, and so is that Gao woman.”
“Come to think of it, perhaps our young lady would be much more favored after marrying him than that Gao woman.”
The other matron was surnamed Tong, and had been sent by Madam Gu.
Tong shi laid down her cards with a look of disdain.
“Did you see her practicing swordsmanship in the courtyard this morning?
“She was born a fine young lady from a respectable household, yet instead of behaving like one, she insists on practicing with swords and weapons. What man could possibly like that?
“The Prince spends all day working alongside a bunch of men. Then when he returns to his room and lies in bed, there’s another man there too. Isn’t that torture?”
A faint change appeared in Gao Zhi’s eyes.
Tong shi had just mentioned Lian Qiao.
The reason Gao Zhi had no impression of Lian Qiao in her previous life was because Lian Qiao had married and left the household early, not long after Gao Zhi entered the Eastern Palace. She had heard that Lian Qiao had married into some remote and humble household.
Given Lian Qiao’s family background, that marriage was clearly an unequal match.
There was probably more to it than met the eye…
“Shut up! You’re not allowed to slander Mother!”
Wen Yan came out of the room. He had apparently just woken from his afternoon nap. His hair was disheveled, and he hadn’t even put on his shoes as he angrily came out to rebuke the matrons.
Perhaps because he was so furious, the boy’s eyes were red. He looked as though he was hurt on Gao Zhi’s behalf by the vile things they had said about her.
“The young master is awake.”
Madam Qian immediately put on a smiling face, as though she hadn’t been gossiping about him moments ago.
“I just let the medicine cool down a little. Please drink it while it’s ready.”
“How is he supposed to drink that?”
A cool, calm female voice sounded from outside the courtyard.
The several matrons instinctively turned to look.
The very person they had just been discussing was standing silently at the doorway.
Seeing her composed expression, Madam Qian guessed that she probably hadn’t heard what they had been saying.
“Mother!”
Wen Yan hurried over and bowed.
Madam Qian casually tossed aside her cards and greeted Gao Zhi with a smile.
“Why has the Princess Consort come? The two young masters had gone to rest earlier, so we old women were waiting for the medicine to finish boiling. We played a few rounds of cards to keep ourselves awake.”
The moment she heard this, Gao Zhi knew Madam Qian was an old fox.
“Take a look at that medicine yourself. What have you let it become?”
Tong shi exclaimed,
“We meant to put it beneath the tree to let it cool down. We never expected it to attract insects.”
“We old servants are getting on in years, and our eyesight isn’t as good as it used to be. Thankfully, the Princess Consort has such sharp eyes.”
Madam Qian’s skill at flattering people was polished to perfection.
“I’ll go brew another bowl right away.”
“No need.”
Gao Zhi glanced at Chan Yi.
The latter stepped forward and swept Madam Qian’s legs out from under her, knocking her to the ground, then seized both of her arms.
“What are you doing, Princess Consort?”
Madam Qian’s eyes widened.
Gao Zhi walked straight toward Wen Yan’s room. Sure enough, these old matrons from the Lian family had been doing everything carelessly when it came to the children.
The pillows on the bed were nowhere to be seen. In their place were thick winter quilts piled up on the bed. Sleeping under them in the current sweltering heat would probably leave the children covered in rashes.
There was a thick layer of dust covering the bed frame, wardrobe, and writing desk. Clearly, the room hadn’t been cleaned for several days.
“When we originally sent several maids over to help arrange the courtyard and serve the two young masters, these women from the Lian family stopped them, saying that they were the ones serving the boys and that it would be more convenient for them to handle everything themselves.”
Bai He shook her head as she inspected the room.
“Who would have thought they were simply going through the motions?”
Gao Zhi’s heart sank further and further.
She had assumed that the people the Lian family sent over wouldn’t cause any problems, which was why she hadn’t checked on them herself. Looking back now, she realized how careless she had been.
“Princess Consort, look!”
Gao Zhi heard Bai He cry out and immediately turned to look.
Several dishes sat on the table, half of them made up of extremely spicy pickled vegetables. There was some kind of tea in the cup, and Wen Yan had already drunk half of it. Yet there was still a spiderweb inside.
“I clearly instructed the small kitchen that the young masters have weak spleens and stomachs and absolutely cannot eat spicy food. I told them to prepare light dishes. Why is the table covered in pickled vegetables?
“And these dishes look like what the servants eat. They’re far too crude.”
Bai He was right. With one glance, Gao Zhi knew that these women had switched their own meals with Wen Yan’s.
When Madam Qian had used Wen Yan’s pillow as a cushion earlier, Gao Zhi had already guessed that these old women hadn’t come to serve anyone. They had come to enjoy themselves as though they were the masters of the household.
“What a bunch of bastards.”
Bai He had always been mild-tempered, but even she couldn’t help cursing.
“At first, Princess Consort, you even sent several maids over to help arrange the courtyard and serve the two young masters. The people from the Lian family stopped them all. Now it’s obvious they only did that so they could do whatever they pleased.”
“What are you doing, Princess Consort? I am an old servant of the Old Madam!”
Madam Qian shouted from outside.
Gao Zhi came out with a cold expression. She glanced at Bai He, who immediately slapped Madam Qian across the face, startling Wen Yan into running over to Gao Zhi.
“Mother…”
“You have some nerve.”
Gao Zhi’s voice was low and stern.
“Wen Yan is your master, yet you dare treat him this poorly. Have you all grown tired of having your heads attached to your bodies?”
Madam Qian instinctively argued back.
“We didn’t!”
“You didn’t?”
Gao Zhi grabbed her by the back of her collar and dragged her to the doorway.
“Open your dog eyes and look carefully. The spiderweb in the teacup, the dust piled up in every corner, and those dishes.
“Are you blind, or do you think I am?”
Wen Yan bit his lip tightly and stared at Gao Zhi in astonishment.
During the time he had spent with Gao Zhi, he could feel that she genuinely cared about him.
But he had never imagined that Gao Zhi would actually offend the Lian family’s matrons for his sake.
Although he was still young, he knew that the Lian family’s attitude toward Gao Zhi, a new bride who had only recently married into the household, was important.
Yet she didn’t care about any of that…
Madam Qian swallowed hard. She had thought that because the Prince neglected this Gao woman, even if she saw Wen Yan in such miserable circumstances, she would only be pleased.
She had never expected Gao Zhi to stand up for Wen Yan.
“Princess Consort, we old servants are getting on in years, and our minds aren’t as sharp as they used to be. We didn’t clean the room properly and weren’t careful enough. That was indeed our fault…”
“Getting on in years.”
Gao Zhi sneered.
“Perfect. Then have them dragged outside, given thirty strokes each, and sent back to the Lian family.”
Madam Qian’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“You’re going to beat me? I’m an old servant of the Lian family. I’ve served Madam since she was still a young lady!”
“Matron Qian, are you trying to determine whether this abandoned wife has the nerve to beat you?”
Gao Zhi looked down at her coldly.
“Privately gossiping about your master is enough reason for me to beat you to death, and it still wouldn’t be excessive.”
Hearing this, Matron Qian’s heart felt as though it had fallen into an abyss, turning utterly cold.
Gao Zhi had heard everything they had said.
She could only turn pleading eyes toward the boy beside Gao Zhi.
“Master Yan, I have sincerely served you from the bottom of my heart. Please, you must save me.”
“…”
Listening to the matron’s pleas, Wen Yan remembered how Madam Qian and the others had mocked and ridiculed him ever since he had been at the Lian family residence.
Whenever he couldn’t eat the food they prepared, they would make sarcastic remarks aimed at him. Their eyes had been like knives stabbing straight into his heart.
The boy’s small body trembled. His eyes reddened as he clutched his sleeve and listened to the old woman plead for mercy again and again.
“Mother… I… I’m fine. Maybe we should…”
Wen Yan didn’t want Gao Zhi to become the target of the Lian family’s resentment because of him. He tugged at her sleeve.
“Don’t…”
“Take them away.”
Gao Zhi refused to let the matter go. Instead, she took Wen Yan’s hand.
“Mother is here. You don’t have to be afraid.”
Wen Yan froze.
He had heard those words from his birth mother too.
On the day his father died, his mother had cried until she was soaked in tears. Holding the three of them in her arms, she had repeated those words again and again.
But before his father’s seventh-day memorial had even arrived, his mother had already hanged herself.
If it hadn’t been for Uncle Feng Che… no, his father, the three children would have died beneath the enemies’ blades long ago.
Now, hearing Gao Zhi say those words, Wen Yan could no longer hold back his tears. They came pouring down as he threw himself into Gao Zhi’s arms.
“Mother…”
That single word broke Gao Zhi’s heart. She carried him into the room and signaled to Chan Yi and Bai He to deal with the others.
“Murder!”
“We’re servants of the Lian family! Aren’t you afraid of offending the Old Madam and Old Master?”
“Help!”
Their screams rang throughout the courtyard, while Gao Zhi simply continued gently patting Wen Yan’s back.
“It’s all right. Mother is here.”
“…”
The person who came to visit Feng Che that day was the Vice Minister of Revenue. After discussing the officials under investigation, he handed Feng Che an invitation, saying that Minister Xiang Hou of the Ministry of Revenue would be hosting a banquet at Luanfeng Yin in a few days and wanted to invite Feng Che to discuss flood control.
The host had ulterior motives.
The Vice Minister of Revenue had probably come today specifically to deliver this invitation.
Feng Che also wanted to know what exactly the other party was plotting, so he accepted.
He had barely seen the man out when an elderly matron rushed into the courtyard, her expression frantic.
“Prince, save us! The Princess Consort, the Princess Consort is killing people!”
A coldness instantly spread through Feng Che’s eyes.
“What?”
“You must go and see for yourself. The Princess Consort is at Wen Xing Courtyard.”
The old matron knelt on the ground, trembling.
“The Princess Consort has caught several matrons from the Lian family and is having them beaten. Someone’s going to die!”