Four Seasons Brocade – CH 149

Chapter 149 ☆、

Yuan-Chun’s hands and feet moved swiftly and cleanly. She delivered a chop to the Fifth Prince’s neck, and he fell completely silent.

As for the four rough old women lying on the ground, they were now quietly unconscious.

Chi-Jin had dealt with Zeng Xiuzhi and her maid in the same way.

Ah Wu took a deep breath and told herself to calm down, to calm down. She remembered why she had come to this courtyard. She told Yuan-Chun to open the door and let in Zi-Shan and Zi-Yi, who were anxiously jumping up and down outside.

“Help me change my clothes,” Ah Wu said coldly.

Zi-Shan and Zi-Yi looked at the person lying at their feet and followed Ah Wu into the room without daring to breathe, helping her change her clothes.

Ah Wu frowned, thinking about the two outside. She simply could not swallow this insult. If Yuan-Chun had not been there, and they had succeeded, Ah Wu would have been clenching her teeth in anger, her jaw trembling. Just thinking about it made her want to vomit.

Ah Wu called Yuan-Chun to her side and whispered, “Is there any way to make the Fifth Prince a eunuch for life?”

Ah Wu knew what a eunuch was. Men without proper manhood could enter the palace to serve the mistresses. Although Ah Wu did not know how they became without manhood, as long as they achieved their goal, it was fine.

Yuan-Chun looked up at Ah Wu. She had not expected her mistress, who looked like a goddess, to be so ruthless. However, she felt no sympathy for the Fifth Prince. Yuan-Chun despised men who bullied women.

Seeing Yuan-Chun nod, Ah Wu ordered her to do it. Zi-Shan hesitated, saying, “Your Highness, is this really appropriate? He is, after all, the Fifth Prince.”

Ah Wu had never taken the Fifth Prince seriously. He had already suffered under the Longqing Emperor, and under Chu Mao, he would fare even worse. If she did not act ruthlessly today, Ah Wu’s reputation would be ruined. Even if nothing had actually happened between them, if the Fifth Prince went around making a scene, Ah Wu’s life would be over.

After much thought, Ah Wu realized this was the only way to vent her anger while forcing the Fifth Prince to swallow his pride.

“I will not offend others unless they offend me,” Ah Wu said coldly.

“Then what about Lady Zeng?” Zi-Yi asked.

Ah Wu’s beautiful eyes were filled with malice as she gritted her teeth and said, “She wanted to ruin my reputation, did she not? Let her taste the bitterness herself. Have Yuan-Chun strip her naked and send her to the outer courtyard where the male guests rest. So eager to share the master’s burdens; let her go and serve the guests for the master and share some of the burden properly.”

Upon hearing this, Zi-Shan was somewhat relieved, but Zi-Yi, Yuan-Chun, and Chi-Jin, standing nearby, finally realized that this seemingly angelic mistress was more ruthless than anyone else.

“After she’s finished serving, Zi-Yi, go and tell her something for me so she knows what she cannot say carelessly.” Ah Wu was confident that Zi-Yi would satisfy her.

The Fifth Prince quickly awoke in excruciating pain, staring at Ah Wu in panic, gasping, “What did you do to me?”

Ah Wu sat in a chair, calmly observing him. “You should know better than I do.”

The Fifth Prince’s face turned deathly pale. “You wretch, how dare you!”

“Fifth Prince, you should think it over yourself. Should we let the Emperor know what happened today and that the Fifth Prince will be impotent from now on, or should we just pretend nothing happened?” Ah Wu smiled gently, a smile that, in the Fifth Prince’s eyes, was more terrifying than a demon.

Even if the Fifth Prince, Chu Qin, were completely brainless, he knew that if the Longqing Emperor knew he had become a eunuch, he would have no hope of ascending the throne. Although he would no longer be a man, he still had two sons and was not childless. Weighing the pros and cons, the Fifth Prince gritted his teeth and said, “You wretch, I will not let you get away with this!”

Upon hearing this, Ah Wu knew the Fifth Prince had agreed. Ignoring him, she turned to Chi-Jin and said, “Send the Fifth Prince out through the back window.”

It was truly unfortunate for the Fifth Prince. Normally, he was always surrounded by attendants and protected by others. But today, blinded by lust, he thought Ah Wu was just a weak woman with no strength and that he could easily subdue her with a few rough maids. He could not bear to let such beauty be seen by his uncouth men, which led to him being alone and making a grave mistake—a mistake he now deeply regretted.

No sooner had the Fifth Prince been thrown out than Ah Wu had Zi-Shan open the door and calmly walked out. Just as she rounded the wall and peered through the wooden fence, she saw a handsome couple admiring plum blossoms under a tree across the way.

“Sixth Sister!” the beautiful woman called out upon seeing Ah Wu. It was none other than Fifth Lady Rong.

Ah Wu walked forward happily.

The man beside Fifth Lady Rong also greeted her, “Fourth Sister-in-law.”

This was the first time Ah Wu had observed the Sixth Prince so closely. The Sixth Prince bore a striking resemblance to Consort Xiang: handsome, elegant, and simply dressed, with a slight smile playing on his lips. If one did not know his identity, they might easily mistake him for a refined young nobleman.

Ah Wu was not sure if their presence here was a coincidence, but she remained skeptical. She smiled and said, “Fifth Sister, what a pleasant occasion!”

“I felt a little nauseous during dinner, so His Highness accompanied me for a walk. The smell of perfume in here was too strong,” Fifth Lady Rong said coquettishly, wrinkling her nose, eliciting a soft, affectionate laugh from the Sixth Prince, Chu Yu.

This was the first time Ah Wu had seen Fifth Lady Rong display such a delicate, girlish side, showing how well she had adapted. Ah Wu was happy to see the two of them so affectionate. Rather than Herui being comfortable, she would rather Fifth Lady Rong be in a better position. Although the two had had their disagreements, they were all trivial matters, nothing serious.

“Sixth Sister, where did you come from?” Fifth Lady Rong asked.

Ah Wu smiled helplessly. “While watching the opera, the little maid got so engrossed that she spilled tea on me. I came to change my clothes.” She paused, then added, “I will not disturb your enjoyment of the plum blossoms any longer.”

After Ah Wu left, Chu Yu glanced thoughtfully at her retreating figure. Beauty was naturally less alluring to him than power, but he had to admit that such a beauty was indeed enough to make his fifth brother swoon. He had clearly seen his fifth brother enter the courtyard, yet this fourth sister-in-law had emerged unscathed. Chu Yu was truly impressed. He knew his fifth brother quite well; he had thought he could witness a good show and catch a pair of lovers, but instead, they had escaped.

“Your Highness,” Fifth Lady Rong called softly beside Chu Yu.

Chu Yu turned his head and heard Fifth Lady Rong playfully scold, “Your Highness, are you also captivated?”

Chu Yu pinched Rong Wu’s nose. “Naughty.” But his gaze swept past her and landed on another face. A thousand pearls could not compare to her eyes; ten thousand peonies could not rival her beauty. They were sisters from the same household, but compared to her, the woman before him paled in comparison.

Ah Wu returned to her seat. Someone asked her where Lady Zeng was. Ah Wu simply shook her head and said that Zeng Xiuzhi had led her away, and no one pressed her for details.

The play had not ended when Zi-Yi and Yuan-Chun returned. Ah Wu rose to take her leave and returned to Prince Qi’s mansion.

“When I took Lady Zeng there, I saw the second young master of the Marquis of Jianning’s residence, under the influence of alcohol, making advances towards a maid. So I took Lady Zeng to his room,” Zi-Yi whispered.

Ah Wu frowned, then remembered that the second young master Zi-Yi had mentioned was none other than Fourth Lady Rong’s husband, Huang Zhongyan. Ah Wu sighed; this situation was truly complicated.

“How is Lady Zeng?” Ah Wu asked.

“She is now implicated in her chastity, and that Second Young Master Huang recognized her. They are both too frightened to say a word,” Zi-Yi said, blushing. “The two of them… Yuan-Chun and I stood outside the screen. After they finished, we deliberately made some noise to startle them. Lady Zeng was terrified when she saw Yuan-Chun; I suppose she would not dare to go outside and talk nonsense.”

Ah Wu hummed in agreement. Once she calmed down, she realized how audacious she had been. If she had not known what would happen later, would she have dared to depose a prince like that? At this moment, Ah Wu especially hoped that Prince Qi would be by her side so she could spill the beans, and then she would not have to worry about the rest. Those who accomplish great things always have to be extra careful.

On the eighth day, when Ah Wu went to the Sixth Prince’s Mansion, the Fifth Prince was not there, but Yin Xuexia acted as if nothing had happened, exchanging pleasantries and laughter with Ah Wu as usual. Ah Wu knew then that the matter had been temporarily covered up.

On the ninth day, Ah Wu got up early and dressed carefully, eagerly anticipating the day to go out. However, there were rules for visiting others; arriving too early meant the host would not be ready, and arriving too late would be considered arrogant. Ah Wu was determined to be a respectful junior, so she arrived a little early.

“What’s wrong with the mistress? She seems so absent-minded this morning,” Zi-Yi asked Zi-Shan curiously. Even after such a big incident the other day, she had not seen her pacing around the room like this.

“I do not know.” Zi-Shan shook her head, but her heart was in turmoil, wondering if her Princess Consort really had something going on with that Second Master Gu. Ah Wu had not hidden the fact that she’d secretly met Gu Tingyi at the shop from Zi-Shan, but Zi-Shan did not know the details of their conversation and could not help but speculate.

Now that Ah Wu was married to Chu Mao, and Zi-Shan had finally felt some peace after seeing Gu Tingyi leave the capital, seeing Ah Wu’s state today made her heart pound again. She was truly worried sick.

When Ah Wu arrived at the Duke of Wei’s residence, none of the princesses from the three lower-ranking families had arrived, not even Gu Xihui. She was quite early.

“Aunt,” Ah Wu respectfully greeted Princess Fuhui.

Princess Fuhui nodded. To be honest, although she disliked the Fourth Prince Chu Mao and his excessively beautiful wife, the wife’s manners were impeccable, not to mention the obvious admiration on her face. Even though the Imperial Princess disliked her, she had to nod in agreement. She thought to herself, “This wife of the Fourth Prince is more pleasing to the eye than the Fourth Prince himself.”

However, the Princess still could not bring herself to like Ah Wu. Just thinking about how her son, whom she had always been so proud of, had secretly asked her to marry Ah Wu and then gone to the border for her sake made her unable to stand Ah Wu.

Moreover, Ah Wu’s excessive attentiveness made the Imperial Princess quite suspicious. Her own eldest daughter-in-law had not given her anything thoughtful for her birthday, but this nephew’s wife, somehow knowing it was her birthday, had sent an exquisitely embroidered screen with nine dragons and chrysanthemums, which was still sitting on the small table by her bedside.

Princess Fuhui coughed, and Ah Wu instinctively rose to serve her tea. The Princess took the teacup from the maid beside her, glanced at Ah Wu, who was awkwardly sitting back down, and could not help but wonder if the Fourth Prince had changed his mind and was now trying to get through to her. Thinking this, the Princess could not help but sneer.

Ah Wu sighed inwardly, knowing the Princess had misunderstood. As long as her status was below the Princess’s, she would always suspect that Ah Wu’s flattery was a calculated attempt to gain something. Only when the Princess no longer held a higher position and looked down upon her would Ah Wu perhaps understand her good intentions.

Ah Wu’s heart was more bitter than if she had swallowed gall. She and the Princess were no longer related by blood; the Princess saw Ah Wu as nothing more than a stranger, yet she could never forget her mother.