Chapter 24

It was raining heavily during the Dragon Boat Festival. Ever since the rain started during the Palace Banquet, the capital was enveloped in a dense and overcast downpour for several days.

“Miss Lin.” The person dashed through the courtyard and stashed away the rain gear that she was wearing along the shaded corridor. She flicked the water off her body and smiled at Lin Wei Xi, “Miss Lin, Shizi Fei is looking for you.”

Wan Xing looked at the rain outside, and stared at the messenger with distrust, “It’s still raining, why would Shizi Fei ask for our Miss right now?”

“This slave also doesn’t know. It’s possible that she has something important to say to Miss Lin.”

Lin Wei Xi stood up from the reclining chair when she heard this and said, “Since it’s important, then let’s go.”

Wan Xing hurried to retrieve Lin Wei Xi’s cloak from the inner house. She flattened out the creases on Lin Wei Xi’s clothes, as she mumbled to herself, “Miss caught a bit of a cold after she returned from the palace and she has to go out into the cold wind today. Don’t cause Miss to fall ill.”

“Wan Xing.”

Wan Yue secretly pinched Wan Xing and quickly pulled her away. Lin Wei Xi glanced indifferently, tightened her cloak, and walked out.

The rainwater rolling off the eaves looked like silver strings from afar. Lin Wei Xi walked through the sheltered corridor. Even though the eaves sheltered her from the rain, the edge of her clothes was completely drenched.

In the central room, Gao Ran was talking to a well-dressed old female servant. When she saw Lin Wei Xi enter the room, she waved at an area further behind her, “Miss Lin, you’re here. You can head inside and take a seat first. There are still some things that I haven’t finished dealing with. Miss Lin, please wait a moment.”

Lin Wei Xi glanced at that woman sitting in the hall and walked in without saying a word.

When the female servant saw Lin Wei Xi walk in like that without so much as a word, she flicked her gaze at Lin Wei Xi’s back, lowered her voice, and said to Gao Ran with a frown, “Shizi Fei, what’s wrong with this one. The Prince gave her some face because he owes a favour and she takes advantage of this! She’s managed to trick the Prince because she speaks well in front of him, but behind his back, she dares to disrespect Shizi Fei.”

“Granny Sun, let’s stop saying that.” Gao Ran’s voice became more serious as she said, “She’s the only daughter of a hero and her father died to save the Prince. It’s inevitable that she’ll be a little antisocial. It’s fine for you to say this to me, but you absolutely mustn’t repeat this outside.”

“Shizi Fei, you’re really too benevolent.” Granny Sun wrung her wrists and whispered something under her breath again. Only then did she rub her hands and bring up another matter, “Shizi Fei, what should we do about purchasing the kitchen supplies… “

Lin Wei Xi sat on a soft cushion. Separated by the wooden partition, she could faintly make out what Gao Ran and Granny Sun had been whispering about, and the matter of purchasing kitchen supplies after that. Even if she hadn’t clearly heard what was said in the beginning, Lin Wei Xi could guess that it was definitely nothing good. Granny Sun wanted to show off her wits and flatter Gao Ran for personal gain. This was nothing she hadn’t seen before.

Now that she was talking about business, Gao Ran no longer lowered her voice. Lin Wei Xi sat there listening on and off, and got the general idea. Granny Sun complained about how difficult life was, how exhausting it was to work in the kitchen, finally bringing Princess Consort Shen into it. When Granny Sun opened her mouth, she could speak extremely well. Based on her words, it seemed like she was a wholly devoted servant, cautiously conscientious and enduring hardships for the sake of the residence. But because she’d unfortunately offended the previous Shizi Fei, and because the previous Shizi Fei was also eager to plant her own people in the residence, she’d removed Granny Sun and her family from their position of purchasing kitchen supplies. Although Granny Sun still worked in the kitchen, it wasn’t an important job. She couldn’t even tend to the stove. It was nothing more than a facade.

After Granny Sun finished speaking, she burst into tears and cried. The maids also felt distressed listening to what she’d said. Gao Ran sighed and said, “I understand your devotion. You’ve been old for many years, and you’ve been a servant in the Prince Yan Residence since Mother-in-law was alive. There’s naturally no need to doubt your loyalty. Even if you don’t mention your hard work over the years, I won’t treat you and your family badly because Mother-in-law favoured you.”

Granny Sun clapped her hands with tears in her eyes when she heard this, “being able to hear this from Shizi Fei, this old slave is willing to die immediately!”

“Please don’t say that without rhyme or reason. Why would you provoke inauspiciousness for no reason at all by talking about living and dying.” Gao Ran rebuked. She flipped through the register and said, “Since it was just a misunderstanding, then you really were wronged by Sister Xi when she pushed you to the brink. In my opinion, your family should come back to manage the purchasing of the kitchen supplies. You’re familiar with the vendors at the wet market and I can be at ease giving you the responsibility of the purchasing.”

Granny Sun was overjoyed at the unexpected news and immediately knelt down to kowtow, “Thank you Shizi Fei.”

Lin Wei Xi slowly blew the tea in her hands. When she heard this, she shook her head and smiled. Granny Sun truly was glib. Gu Cheng Yao had also been tricked by such sweet talk before.

Granny Sun had indeed been an old servant for many years, but who was to say that old servants were all loyal? The more complicated and intertwined the servants became with each other, to the point where some started their own families, the more likely they were to do unsavoury things. When Lin Wei Xi checked the accounts last year, she found that the kitchen was in serious debt. All the money had actually gone to this wicked slave. This old woman relied on the fact that Lin Wei Xi was newly married and didn’t understand the account books, so she tampered with the ledger to fool her, and was thoroughly scolded when Lin Wei Xi uncovered her trickery. At that time, Granny Sun also pretended to be devoted and climbed the ranks using Princess Consort Shen, because he’d served the Consort before. This was what gave her the confidence to run rampant and indulge in unbridled corruption in the inner courtyard. Back then, Lin Wei Xi couldn’t stand to watch it any longer and immediately threw their entire family out of the kitchen. If she hadn’t considered her mother-in-law’s face, how could Granny Sun still keep an idle job in the kitchen.

Some time passed since then, and Gao Xi died of illness. Granny Sun looked at the vacant position and started trouble by telling her tragic story. Gao Ran also wasn’t clear-headed and she actually believed it, restoring Granny Sun to her original position.

Gao Ran actually didn’t really have to believe in Granny Sun’s excuses, but Granny Sun looked humble and sincere. Even if a person with such an appearance had her own selfish motives, she wouldn’t be a particularly wicked person. Granny Sun had only been punished by Gao Xi previously because of a discrepancy between the purchased items and the money, and Gao Ran felt that Gao Xi had been making a fuss over nothing once she flipped through the ledger.

Managing a household was like being an executive manager in her previous life. One couldn’t expect everyone to have a clean record, and could the people in the purchasing department really not have an ounce of greed? That was impossible. So when Gao Ran saw that there weren’t any major problems with the ledger, she revoked Gao Xi’s punishment. Gao Ran sighed over Gao Xi. One could tell that she was a noble lady from a prestigious family who was known to be raised by the Princess Royal herself, but how could she not even have an ounce of emotional intelligence? She only knew how to criticize her subordinates and demanded that they not make any mistakes. No wonder she ended up like that, dying with everyone in the residence thinking she was bad. Who was to blame if she didn’t have the emotional intelligence?

Gao Ran was in a good mood, as if all the regrets from her previous life had been resolved in this one. She was now a rich and beautiful noble lady from a prestigious family who could step on anyone she wanted. As soon as she “graduated” from her maiden family, she became an “executive manager”. Gao Ran had no doubt in her emotional intelligence and could definitely get along well with everyone. So it seemed that she’d been held back by her social status before transmigrating, otherwise she wouldn’t have been worse off from those rich daughters of large family conglomerates.

Gao Ran walked briskly into the room. She still hadn’t forgotten that she had trouble sitting in there. She smiled and sat opposite Lin Wei Xi, and repeatedly apologized, “there are endless trifles that need to be dealt with every day and I worry that I won’t be able to finish it. It’s rude of me to keep Miss Lin waiting.”

Lin Wei Xi ignored Gao Ran’s insincere apology; she clearly knew that Gao Xi was already dead and the Prince Yan Residence had nothing to do with her anymore, but her hard work was being ruined. She felt it was a pity and couldn’t help but warn her successor, “Shizi Fei handed over the position of purchasing the kitchen supplies to them only based on their side of the story. Isn’t that rather imprudent.”

Oh! She actually wanted to criticize her authority and the way she managed the household. Gao Ran looked at Lin Wei Xi with an unsmiling smile, “This is a domestic affair of the Prince Yan Residence, so Miss Lin doesn’t have to worry herself about it, right?”

Lin Wei Xi scoffed lightly and her eyes wandered, too lazy to look at Gao Ran and warn her again.

Gao Ran thought that she’d won and her mood improved. Her voice also rose, “Miss Lin, you’re already sixteen years old this year. You were born early in the year, so you can be considered seventeen then◇.”

◇

Lin Wei Xi raised his eyebrows, “What do you mean?”

“What can I do other than help Miss Lin with this matter?” Gao Ran smiled and said, “Now that you have finished observing filial piety to your father, you can no longer justify delaying your marriage. You haven’t gotten engaged even though you’re already seventeen and you’ll be eighteen by the time you finish the traditional marriage rituals and enter your husband’s household. To tell the truth, you’re already a little old. If you don’t hurry up, you’ll be too old to bear a child.”

Lin Wei Xi would never expect these words to come from Gao Ran. If she guessed correctly, wasn’t the world that Gao Ran came from before transmigration very tolerant of a woman’s age when she married? Lin Wei Xi really didn’t anticipate that a person who had transmigrated to ancient times would actually be more obsessed than her, an ancient Chinese woman, with marriage and having children. So what if she hadn’t been engaged at seventeen? What could Gao Ran do about it if she decided not to marry her entire life?

Lin Wei Xi was disgusted by these words. She grew impatient and she coldly said, “You called me over on a rainy day just for this? If there’s nothing else to say then I’ll leave first.”

Gao Ran blocked Lin Wei Xi, still smiling, and stared at Lin Wei Xi motionlessly, “Does Miss Lin really not want to marry in order to pray for your father, or do you harbour thoughts about the Prince Yan Residence?”

Lin Wei Xi’s expression completely iced over, with no smile on her face. Her black eyes glowed, and for a moment they looked like heated pearls steeped in ice water, icy and blazing, “Shizi Fei, pay attention to what you say.”

“Is Miss Lin actually angry?” Gao Ran smiled as she took a sip of tea and covered her lips, “my mistake, I shouldn’t have revealed a girl’s thoughts. After all, what girl doesn’t yearn for love. Miss Lin’s countenance is just right and it makes sense to fall in love at first sight with a young and handsome man. It’s just that Shizi is already married, Miss Lin.”

Lin Wei Xi sneered, and looked at Gao Ran with the same unsmiling smile, “I know, and it’s his second marriage.”

Gao Ran stiffened at her words before she quickly adjusted her expression to conceal her loss of self-control, “even if I’m his second wife, I officially married him as his consort and am also the main wife. But to have a shady relationship with a married man while the legal wife is well and alive, is to have illicit sexual relations without a matchmaker, a third wheel trying to compete.”

“You talk like you only met Gu Cheng Yao after your older sister died, so you can say that to yourself.” Lin Wei Xi noticed Gao Ran’s gaze and met it head on, even lightly raising her eyebrows, “What, am I wrong? Then why were you already married to your older sister’s husband not one month after her death?”

Gao Ran had been criticized until she couldn’t take it any longer. She took a deep breath and found that she really couldn’t show off her argumentative skills when dealing with Lin Wei Xi, otherwise Lin Wei Xi would anger her to death! Gao Ran immediately changed the subject and said, “then let’s do what Miss Lin wants. You’re witty, and honest people like us can’t speak like you. But Miss Lin is already so old and has long since reached a marriageable age. Miss Lin can’t deny this, right? You’re a Lin and we are the Gu family. According to reason, it’s not our place to worry about your marriage. But after all is said and done, you live in the Prince Yan Residence and originally didn’t have any status. If you’re still not married after ending your filial piety, I’m afraid people will talk about our Prince Yan Residence.”

Lin Wei Xi coldly looked at Gao Ran, “shut up. Who gave you the guts to slander my reputation?”

“Slander? If Miss Lin really doesn’t have any intentions towards Shizi, how could you drag your feet and refuse marriage talks?” Gao Ran’s expression also turned cold, “you wish to eye someone else’s husband, but I don’t wish to be schemed against by you. I’ve already discussed this with Madam Qian. The second Qian young master is of the right age and has yet to marry. Normally, this kind of marriage is too good to be given to someone like you, but the second Qian young master took a fancy to Miss Lin’s beauty. What a wonderful story of an ideal couple. In any case, Madam Qian isn’t picky about your family background and status. After reporting this to the Empress Dowager, the Qian family will send someone to exchange the eight-character cards.”

Lin Wei Xi’s eyes widened when she heard this, “What did you say? The second Qian son?”

The second Qian son was famous for being a hedonist in the capital. He slept around with prostitutes, didn’t study, and had no skills. He could only be described as a useless waste of space. What Lin Wei Xi held in contempt the most was this kind of licentious man-child who relied on his parents for money and power. Be it before or after her rebirth, she couldn’t stand this kind of person, but Gao Ran had actually gone behind her back and agreed to the Qian family’s marriage proposal?

“Yes, he’s the Empress Dowager’s nephew and the di son of the Qian family, the emperor’s maternal family. This marriage is actually really unexpected. In the end, you’re the one who’s climbing the social ladder. The fact that the second Qian young master doesn’t care about family status, and wants to marry a poor girl like you, is already a great blessing.” After she finished speaking, she glanced at Lin Wei Xi’s face. It went without saying what she meant. Lin Wei Xi had relied on her body and beauty to climb the ranks, and it was the main wife of the Empress Dowager’s nephew at that. She should just be content with her situation!

Lin Wei Xi got so angry that she actually calmed down. She asked, “You said that the Qian family will exchange the eight-character cards after informing the Empress Dowager. Does this mean you’ve already given them your word?”

“That’s right! It’s such a good marriage. If you let this opportunity slip away because you’re being pretentious, then you will definitely regret it.”

“My goodness, you racked your brains in order to marry up into a noble family, but others look down on that. When did you agree? What did you say to the Qian family?”

“He’s the Qian family’s young master, so just be content.” Gao Ran sighed impatiently, “If you’re thinking of going to the Princess Shou Kang Residence to ask for help, then I advise you not to waste your effort. Princess Royal Shou Kang doesn’t have any sons or descendants and she can’t even protect herself, so there’s no way she’d ignore the face of Empress Dowager’s maiden family. Listen to my advice. It’s already your good fortune that you can climb up the social ladder just from marrying into the Qian family, and as a main wife at that.”

Lin Wei Xi’s eyes burned bright with fire and ice, “Gao Ran, you really have no shame. Who do you think you are to decide my marriage? You relied on dishonest practices to marry your brother-in-law, and now you’re using your say as the main wife to advise others to climb the social ladder using a man. You’ve truly disgraced the Duke Ying Residence.”

This sentence poked at Gao Ran’s sore spot and she immediately looked displeased, “Don’t take advantage of my weakness. I gave you some face out of consideration for Father, but did you really think I’m afraid of you? I am a lady of the Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Shizi Fei, but you’re nothing more than a commoner. I’m educating you as someone of the same generation, but you’re seriously shouting and quarrelling with me. You really don’t have any decorum.”

“You clearly know what kind of person the second Qian son is, and you still agreed to it in private. If you do something so heartless, are you not afraid that people will criticize you once they find out?”

Gao Ran sneered disdainfully, “Are you going to complain to Prince Yan again? Then go ahead and let everyone see whether or not this marriage is a good match and whether or not I’m doing this for you. Lin Wei Xi, you have such lofty ambitions but you’ll fail and die young. If you wish to compete with me, there’s no point in doing that. I’m the Prince Yan Shizi Fei and will become the Prince Yan Consort someday. My eldest son will be a future first-rank Prince and my other di sons will receive the title of second-rank Prince. My children and grandchildren will become imperial nobles and receive the worship of the masses. The Grand Secretary can be replaced, but royalty cannot. As long as they don’t rebel, they’ll be nobles for their entire life. But what do you have? An empty Marquis title and a pretty face. Even if you use your beauty to marry up, your husband is nothing more than the son of an official, and his promotion will depend on his circumstances and the emperor’s favour. Everything one does is for the purpose of serving the Emperor. I am part of the imperial family but you’re just a servant. Not just you, but your children and grandchildren are doomed to failure and will never compare to my descendants.”

Lin Wei Xi stood motionlessly as she glared at Gao Ran, her eyes blazing, while Gao Ran actually looked at her with a smile. That’s right, what could Lin Wei Xi do even if she was angry? Gao Ran was the Prince Yan Shizi Fei and there were few people in the capital more noble than her. What could a single weak woman like Lin Wei Xi do?

She fixed her gaze on Gao Ran and without a word, stood up, raised the curtain forcefully and left. The beaded curtain tinkled as the beads collided with each other and Ning Fu frowned when she saw this, stepping forward to say, “Shizi Fei…”

“It’s all right.” Gao Ran reached out to stop Ning Fu, smiled, and shook her head, “she can use this as an opportunity to vent her anger. Don’t let her rudeness bother you, and return to your job.”

Ning Fu complied and left quietly. Gao Ran looked at the curtain of rain outside the window and mumbled, “the rain has gotten heavier… “

Lin Wei Xi walked briskly into the rain without looking back. The rain dispersed into white mist when it hit the ground, enveloping the entire corridor. Lin Wei Xi walked at the edge of the corridor, her steps so hurried that half her clothes were soaked a short moment later. Wan Yue hastily chased after her, trying to drape a cloak over Lin Wei Xi’s shoulders, “Miss, your body is weak and you can’t get caught in the rain.”

Lin Wei Xi felt agitated and she said frigidly, “Don’t follow me. Leave me alone for a while.”

“Miss!” Wan Yue wasn’t deterred by Lin Wei Xi’s coldness. She disregarded the rain and rushed to Lin Wei Xi, forcibly stopping her to fasten the cloak on her, “Miss, even if you’re unhappy, you can’t make things difficult for your body! You had a bit of a cold when you left. If you get caught in the rain and stay out in the cold wind again, who knows how much you’ll suffer when you return.”

Wan Yue forcibly pulled her back. Lin Wei Xi tried to shake her off but to no avail. She struggled a few times, and her mind gradually calmed down as she did so.

Punishing her own body because of someone else’s mistake was the stupidest way of handling the situation. Lin Wei Xi stopped struggling and let Wan Yue wrap her up in the cloak.

Seeing Lin Wei Xi finally calm down, Wan Yue let out a breath of relief. After tidying Lin Wei Xi’s collar, she stepped down and stood quietly behind Lin Wei Xi, listening to the pattering rain outside the corridor together with her.

Gao Ran wasn’t wrong. She was indeed despicable, but what could Lin Wei Xi do about her? Lin Wei Xi wasn’t worried at all about the marriage with the Qian family. It was difficult to go through with a marriage, but it was too simple to destroy it. As long as she refused to marry or decided to become a nun, could the Qian family force her to marry into the household? But if she did this, Lin Wei Xi would live half her life in loneliness and poverty while observing Buddhism.

What Lin Wei Xi really cared about was what Gao Ran said next: that the Duke and Marquis households could be beheaded, but Imperial Princes would remain throughout the ages. A first-rank Prince’s eldest di son would automatically become the Shizi and inherit the title someday. All the other di sons would be conferred as second-rank Princes while the di grandson would be conferred as a General. The Princes could only progress and not regress. As long as the Prince had a son, the titles of first-rank and second-rank Prince would be passed from generation to generation. So Gao Ran wasn’t wrong. Prince Yan had reached the pinnacle of power. Even the emperor had to rely on Prince Yan, and the Prince Yan Residence would only receive glory for generations with no end to their descendants.

Gao Ran could only do this because others were unable to do anything to her. Even if Lin Wei Xi resolved the problem temporarily, did she have to tolerate the situation and allow Gao Ran to maliciously scheme against her?

Yet, if she couldn’t stand it, what could she do to Gao Ran!

Lin Wei Xi stood for a long time in the corridor until the edges of her skirt were drenched with rain. Wan Yue watched anxiously, “Miss, since it’s pouring and windy, let’s head back first!”

“What for?” Lin Wei Xi suddenly moved. She smiled softly at the rain; her face was snow white, her lips vivid red, but her eyes were apathetic and terrifying. It shook one to their core to see her stand amidst the grey downpour.

Wan Yue was alarmed and astonished, her heart beating fast. She heard Lin Wei Xi ask with the kind of calm that one would have if nothing had happened, “What time is it?”

“It’s almost 5pm.”

She smiled when she heard this, turned around, and left without even saying where she was headed. Wan Yue instinctively felt a little scared, but worried when Lin Wei Xi was by herself, so she could only hurry after her.

The guard outside the study stared forward with rapt attention and didn’t slack off just because it was raining. His eyes suddenly focused and he looked at the person in surprise, “Miss Lin?”

Lin Wei Xi had run the whole way, and her skirts were now completely drenched. Even her hair hadn’t been spared from a light sprinkle of rain. Several locks of unruly hair stuck to her forehead and temple, making her skin look even more snow white’s. She was astonishingly beautiful.

“Is Prince Yan inside?”

“The Prince is in.” The guard looked at Lin Wei Xi in hesitation. Lin Wei Xi raised his eyebrows, “am I not allowed to enter?”

“Of course not! It’s just that you’ve been drenched by the rain, Miss Lin. Do you need a servant to help you tidy up first?”

“No need.” seeing as the guard had no complaints, she strode inside. Gu Hui Yan’s study was located inside a separate courtyard. Because of the rain, it was much more peaceful.

Gu Ming Da was startled when he saw Lin Wei Xi, “Miss Lin? How did you end up so drenched? Miss, please wait a minute. I’ll call a servant girl over… “

A clear and melodious voice could be heard from the inner room. Perhaps it was because he hadn’t spoken for a while, but his voice was a little deep, “What’s the matter?”

Lin Wei Xi didn’t know why, but her eyes grew sore and she quickly walked in the direction of the voice, “Your Highness Prince Yan.”

Gu Hui Yan emerged from the study and saw Lin Wei Xi. At first, he was astonished, but he then lowered his gaze, “What happened? Who’s supposed to be serving you and why did she let you get caught in the rain?”

Wan Yue kept her head down and immediately went down on her knees when she heard this. Lin Wei Xi stopped Wan Yue, her dark eyes focused on Prince Yan intently and stubbornly, “It’s not her fault. Prince Yan, I have something to tell you.”

Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi, her eyes telling him that she wouldn’t leave until she had achieved her goal. Gu Hui Yan sighed and said, “everyone leave.”

Gu Ming Da stepped down and closed the door without a word. Lin Wei Xi stood there and saw Gu Hui Yan turn around and head inside. She hesitated. Prince Yan’s study was filled with classified documents and she wasn’t sure if she could enter. Before she could think about it further, Gu Hui Yan came back out with a piece of white silk in his hand, “The hot water is outside, so wipe your hair first. You know your body best. What you want to tell me can wait until later, but if you fall sick because of overexertion, you’re the one who will suffer.”

Lin Wei Xi took the white silk and tried to recall what it was called when a beautiful young girl at the prime of her youth dried her hair indecently in front of a man. Seeing that she hadn’t moved, Gu Hui Yan asked calmly, “do you not want to?”

“Silk can’t absorb water. Even if you want me to dry my hair, you should’ve given me a cotton cloth instead.”

Gu Hui Yan felt truly helpless, “alright. I’ll have one ready for you next time.”

But thanks to this interruption, Lin Wei Xi was no longer agitated. After thinking about it carefully, her mind became clearer, “Prince Yan, I have something to tell you.”

“I haven’t forgotten.” Gu Hui Yan didn’t take this matter to heart. He returned to his desk, held up his sleeve, and held the brush before dipping the brush in ink, casually saying, “tell me.”

“You promised me before that if I had anything I wanted, you’d do as I asked as long as it didn’t cross the line?”

Gu Hui Yan answered as he wrote, “en.”

Lin Wei Xi held her breath, “Your Highness, don’t you need a wife?”

The brush in his hand trembled and the letter he’d been writing to Zhang Xiao Lian was instantly ruined.

Gu Hui Yan raised his head and looked at her with meaning in his eyes, “what did you say?”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om