Chapter 38: Loyal Servant or Accomplice?
Bowl after bowl of medicinal soup went down, and Xiao Li felt as if she were being pickled in bitterness.
’Is that damned old man Ning Song sure he isn’t torturing me on purpose?’
Xiao Li was very weak now, but it wasn’t without its benefits.
After coughing up mouthfuls of blood in a fit of rage, she was left weak, but at least she hadn’t succumbed to her illness.
She had no desire to be entangled in those sickening, unbearable emotions again.
’It was frustrating that she couldn’t kill Liu Xueyin with her own hands, but did they really think that was enough to break her? To drive her to despair and make her collapse?’
’It wasn’t nearly enough.’
’There was always a solution. She refused to believe this world didn’t have a bug.’
’She couldn’t kill Liu Xueyin, but did that mean no one else could?’
’The female lead is the center of a story, but what about the male lead? He’s just as important. And since Prince Chen was always abusing Liu Xueyin, could he be the one to kill her?’
Xiao Li sat in the third-story pavilion. She loved her solitude. She had always been a loner and had no desire to deal with this world’s NPCs. Nothing was more comfortable than being by herself.
A gentle autumn breeze swept by, carrying away the last of the sweltering summer heat. She closed her eyes. In that moment, it felt as if she were the only person in the entire world—the only thing that was real.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
The sound of footsteps drifted up the stairs. They didn’t stop at the third-floor landing, continuing all the way to the top.
Qian Hui came up carrying a bowl of medicine. "Princess," she said with gentle concern, "it’s time to take your medicine."
Xiao Li was lounging lazily against a bolster pillow. She slowly turned her head at the words, her calm gaze falling upon the nanny who showed such concern for her.
"I’ve made it clear. No one is to come up here without my command."
Qian Hui’s expression stiffened, and she glanced at Xiao Li with a hint of resentment. "Princess, are you pushing me away?"
She set the bowl of medicine down, her voice laced with sorrow and grievance. "You were only seven years old when I was assigned to your side. All these years, I have cared for you meticulously, with only your best interests at heart. I have always considered myself the person who dotes on you most. We should be the closest of all, but now you’re always pushing me away. Have I done something to earn your displeasure, Princess?"
Xiao Li remained silent. She wasn’t the original Princess Xuanyang, so it wasn’t a matter of dislike or pushing her away. It was just that Nanny Qian always acted like an elder and loved to lecture. Xiao Li didn’t want to listen to her nagging, so she usually just ignored her.
It was the same now. She didn’t want to explain herself, but Nanny Qian just kept staring, her eyes full of silent accusation.
Xiao Li felt a surge of irritation, but her tone remained calm. "Are you blaming me, Nanny?"
Qian Hui’s expression shifted. "How could I ever blame you, Princess?" she said with false sincerity. "I want nothing more than for you to be well." But her words still carried an undercurrent of resentment.
Xiao Li stared at her, her gaze deep and unreadable, not saying a word.
Not understanding why, Qian Hui began to grow uneasy under that stare. She let out an awkward laugh and quickly changed the subject.
"I suppose you really were angered by the Prince Consort. You were acting so strangely the other day, I almost didn’t recognize you. Now I see the truth... you still haven’t been able to let the Prince Consort go."
"What married couple doesn’t argue? After the fighting is done, life must go on."
"The Prince Consort already came back to make amends, which proves he’s truly sorry and wants to live a good life with you. I heard his injuries have mostly healed. Princess, why don’t you go apologize in person and bring him home? A woman, you see, ought to be gentle and considerate, virtuous and magnanimous. Otherwise, how can she get by?"
Xiao Li had already been feeling irritated, but listening to this spiel nearly made her suffocate. There was no doubt in her mind—this was exactly how Nanny Qian used to persuade the original princess.
No wonder the original princess had been so gentle and considerate, always trying to please Lu Yanzhi in every way possible.
It wasn’t necessarily wrong; considering the original princess’s personality, it was actually quite normal. It was Xiao Li who couldn’t accept it. She could accept dying a horrible death, but she would never, ever debase herself to please a man who didn’t love her—especially not Lu Yanzhi.
But there was no point in sharing these thoughts with a close-minded old nanny. Her gaze fell to the bowl of medicine. She picked it up, sniffed it, and just as she was about to drink, the scene struck her as strangely familiar.
Back when she had been a helpless observer trapped inside Princess Xuanyang’s body, Qian Hui had brought medicine to the princess just like this, her face a mask of heartache and pity as she tearfully promised she would find a way to rescue her.
Whether she had actually tried to help the original princess was another matter entirely. But all those doses of medicine to stabilize the pregnancy... it seemed Qian Hui had delivered every last one.
It was precisely because this was her closest, most trusted nanny that the original princess drank bowl after bowl. She had wanted to abort the child, but she had unknowingly been drinking medicine to stabilize the pregnancy instead.
At the time, Xiao Li had been completely consumed by the original princess’s despair and madness. The torment had been so great that it had never occurred to her to question whether Nanny Qian had ulterior motives.
’Thinking about it now, why was it always Qian Hui who visited the original princess?’
’Lu Yanzhi had everyone around the princess under his control, so why did he periodically allow Nanny Qian to see her?’
’Qian Hui readily agreed to get an abortifacient for the princess, yet always delivered medicine to stabilize the pregnancy. Qian Hui always said she would find a way to help the princess escape her misery, but every visit was just a repeat of the same script.’
’It was all a calculated act to string Princess Xuanyang along, to give her a sliver of hope and reduce her suicide attempts.’
’So, was Qian Hui a loyal servant, or was she a traitor in a loyal servant’s skin who had actually defected to Lu Yanzhi’s side and become his accomplice?’
’After all, the story Lu Yanzhi and Liu Xueyin spun was so moving, they probably even believed it themselves.’
’Liu Xueyin said the child was innocent. Lu Yanzhi said he would raise it as his own.’
’They did everything in their power to protect the child, and they cared for the maddened Princess Xuanyang without ever abandoning her. As someone who knew the child was a product of sin, would Nanny Qian have found Lu Yanzhi truly magnanimous? Would she have been moved by Lu Yanzhi’s ’deep affection’ and self-righteously helped him placate that ’confused’ mad princess?’
The medicine slid down her throat, its bitterness lingering.
"Hong Yue."
The patter of footsteps ascended from downstairs, stopping a few steps from the top. "Your servant is here."
At this moment, Xiao Li could only see a silk flower on top of her head.
Compared to Qian Hui, Hong Yue and Lan Yue were far more loyal. When the original princess had discovered the affair between Liu Xueyin and Lu Yanzhi, she hadn’t screamed or caused a scene. Instead, she had waited for the right opportunity to finally contact the two of them.
The two maids had taken the Jade Pendant the original princess gave them, pawned it, and hired an assassin. The assassin failed. They then tried to poison Liu Xueyin, but Hong Yue was beaten to death on the spot, while Gu Ling dragged Lan Yue before the original princess and flayed her alive.
These two maids weren’t the sharpest, but their loyalty was absolute.
"Come up."
Hearing the command, Hong Yue came the rest of the way up the stairs and crouched before Xiao Li. Her almond-shaped eyes were filled with an obedient, eager-to-please gaze.
Xiao Li reached out, hooked an arm around her neck to pull her closer, and whispered a few words in her ear.
Hong Yue looked surprised, but she didn’t offer a single word of protest. Instead, she answered with a serious expression, "I will do as you command."
Seeing her reaction, Xiao Li couldn’t resist pinching her cheek. "Such a good girl."
Hong Yue instantly blushed. She wasn’t a child, but the princess’s doting tone was impossible to resist.