Four Seasons Brocade – CH 151

Chapter 151 ☆、

“His Highness’s rules are strict; the number of maids in each courtyard is fixed. I dare not presume to act on my own. I appreciate the Old Madam’s kindness.” Ah Wu’s refusal was relatively tactful, using Chu Mao as a shield to save face for the Old Madam.

However, everyone knew this was just an excuse. What mistress of a household did not even have the right to add a couple more maids?

“Ha, everyone says one should not refuse a gift from elders. Since becoming a princess consort, does Sixth Lady not even respect the Old Madam anymore?” the Second Madam chimed in.

Ah Wu glanced at the Second Madam, then turned to the Old Madam and said, “Second Aunt, I refused precisely for your sake. What grandmother would be so eager to send a maidservant to her granddaughter less than six months after her marriage? If word got out, it would damage your reputation. Those who do not know the situation would say you are meddling in your granddaughter’s private affairs, showing no concern for someone who is not your own.”

Seeing the Old Madam’s rising anger, Ah Wu continued, “Besides, even Empress Tian in the palace is not pressuring His Highness about having children. Why should you be in such a hurry, Grandmother?”

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Ah Wu’s affected tone made it clear to everyone present that this Princess Qi probably did not care about the Old Madam or the Duke of Anguo’s mansion at all.

“You little brat, Sixth girl! Just because you’ve become a Prince’s consort, you’ve become unfilial and disrespectful, daring to contradict your grandfather and grandmother! If you were to advance any further, would you not disregard even your in-laws?” the First Madam declared, immediately labeling Ah Wu and the Fourth Prince as unfilial. If this got out, Prince Qi would likely lose even more favor with the Emperor.

Ah Wu could not bear such an accusation. “Aunt, what do you mean? When have I ever contradicted my grandfather? I’ve always been extremely respectful to my grandmother. On holidays and her birthday, I’ve always been the first to offer my respects. Even the Emperor would accept my advice. Today, I am only thinking of my grandmother’s reputation. Besides, I am also thinking of the safety of the Duke of Anguo’s mansion.”

Ah Wu did not hesitate to expose the Old Madam’s cunning intentions. “Now, Grandmother has used her granddaughter as an excuse to send people to the residences of all three princes. We family know that Grandmother is doing this for her granddaughters’ own good, to prevent them from being seen as jealous and unvirtuous. But what will outsiders think?” Ah Wu paused and continued, “However, since Aunt said I even talked back to Grandfather, I suppose sending these maids was also Grandfather’s idea?”

Even if the Duke of Anguo was muddle-headed, he would not dare to do this so openly. Upon hearing Ah Wu’s words, the Old Madam’s expression changed.

“Fine, fine. Since you are ungrateful and jealous by nature, this old woman cannot stop you. Just do not expect me to help you anymore. Do not think that becoming a Prince’s consort means you’ve risen to the top.” The Old Madam feigned heartache and disappointment.

“A married daughter is like water spilled from a cup. How could Ah Wu dare to come back and trouble Grandmother and Aunt again?” Ah Wu said firmly.

“Sixth Sister, why say such hurtful things? We are both new brides; I know your pain. But Grandmother is only doing this for our own good. Even without these two maids, surely we’d have plenty of these things too?” Fifth Lady Rong looked at the two pretty maids with disdain. “But things from our own household are always better than those sent by outsiders, do you not think so?”

“Yes, it’s just another plaything, Sixth Sister. Quickly apologize to Grandmother. How could things have come to this between our own grandmother and granddaughters?” Fourth Lady Rong also advised.

Now both the good cop and the bad cop were on stage. Ah Wu smiled at Fifth Lady Rong and said, “Fifth Sister is truly virtuous and generous; I cannot compare.” Ah Wu then stepped forward and curtsied to the Old Madam. “Grandma, please do not upset yourself. If you insist that your granddaughter take those two girls back, I will comply. Even if there’s not enough room for them, I can assign them to be cleaning maids in the courtyard; I doubt His Highness will care much.”

These words angered the Old Madam so much that she collapsed onto Nanny Lei, causing everyone in the room to rush forward in a flurry, repeatedly calling out, “Grandma, Grandma!”

Seeing that the Old Madam’s face was still quite rosy, clearly feigning fainting, Ah Wu could not bear the blame for making her grandmother faint, so she had to continue the act. She pretended to dab her eyes with her handkerchief and said in a tearful voice, “Grandma, Grandma, please do not frighten your granddaughter! Grandma insists that I take them both back to serve His Highness. I will obey, Grandma; please take care of your health.”

The First and Second Madams rolled their eyes. She should have done this earlier! Making everyone in the room act like this was exhausting.

In the end, the Old Madam and Ah Wu were evenly matched. The old lady herself was unscrupulous, willing to use any underhanded trick, and Ah Wu, as the younger generation, always suffered. Of course, the Old Madam was also furious with Ah Wu and would probably think twice before making a foolish move next time.

Ah Wu brought the two pretty maids given to her by the Old Madam back to her residence and handed them over to Nanny Hao, stating that they were sent by the Old Madam of the Duke of Anguo to serve His Highness and that Nanny Hao could make arrangements as she saw fit.

The two pretty maids were filled with anxiety the whole way. After witnessing that scene in the corner, they knew that their journey to the Prince Qi’s mansion would be fraught with difficulties. However, their families were all controlled by the Old Madam, and they dared not disobey.

They had not expected that what was said about the Prince Qi’s mansion was true; the rules there were extremely strict, and even the mistress could not arbitrarily assign maids, instead leaving it to the head nanny.

The next day, Chu Mao returned from Hebei. Ah Wu observed him closely; his clothes were still neat, showing no signs of travel fatigue, but a hint of weariness lingered between his brows. Relief efforts after the snowstorm were never easy. In the freezing cold, if Chu Mao had not possessed martial arts skills, he would likely have suffered from the cold himself.

Li Yanguang, who had accompanied Chu Mao to Hebei, was thoroughly chilled; his toes were red and chapped. Of course, this was relayed by the eunuch who washed his feet. Ah Wu considerately gave him a bottle of Yu Fusheng’s frostbite cream.

After Chu Mao finished washing up and changed into a clean robe, Ah Wu, ever the obsequious one, personally presented him with a teacup, saying demurely, “This is Xueya tea brought back from the other courtyard, brewed with spring water from Qingliang Mountain. Your Highness, please try it.”

Chu Mao picked up the Yaozhou kiln moon-white porcelain teacup, renowned for its “clear sky after rain and broken clouds,” took a sip, gave Ah Wu a meaningful glance, and then put the teacup down.

Such fragrant tea, yet he only took a small sip and put it down; he must be in a bad mood, Ah Wu thought to herself, so she decided to strike first.

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“Your Highness, something has been bothering me these past few days, keeping me tossing and turning at night, unable to sleep,” Ah Wu began, admitting her mistake.

“Oh, just unable to sleep?” Chu Mao raised an eyebrow.

“Your Highness knows?!” Ah Wu asked, feigning surprise. In reality, Yuan-Chun was sent by Chu Mao, and Ah Wu did not believe that Yuan-Chun’s primary loyalty would be to her.

Chu Mao did not answer, only looked at Ah Wu with a smile, a hint of sarcasm at the corner of his mouth.

Ah Wu decisively dropped all pretense and whispered, “I was furious at the time. If he…” Ah Wu looked up at Chu Mao for help.

Chu Mao picked up his tea and took another sip, which undoubtedly eased Ah Wu’s anxiety a little.

“Judging from Yuan-Chun’s words, you already noticed that Lady Zeng was acting strangely?” Chu Mao asked.

Ah Wu obediently nodded, not understanding the meaning behind Chu Mao’s question.

“Since you knew that Lady Zeng was acting strangely, you still dared to rush forward. What were you relying on?” Chu Mao asked again.

Ah Wu’s face paled, and she gave Chu Mao a pleading look.

Ah Wu’s eyes were incredibly expressive. When she pleaded for help, she was pitiful, anxious, and innocently adorable; when she begged for mercy, she was terrified, pathetic, and obsequious.

Chu Mao turned slightly and took a large gulp of tea.

Even so, Ah Wu received no pity from Chu Mao, so she could only lower her head and say, “What I relied on was Yuan-Chun, given to me by Your Highness.”

Chu Mao sneered, “You are quite honest.”

A thin layer of tears welled up in Ah Wu’s eyes.

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“So you knew it was a trap ahead, yet you jumped in without hesitation and then used Yuan-Chun to severely punish the Fifth Prince. Did you think I would definitely clean up after you and have no choice but to do so? Is that why you had the audacity to do such a thing?”

Ah Wu desperately wanted to deny it, but intimidated by Chu Mao’s imposing presence, she could not come up with any explanation.

“Moreover, I think, with your intelligence, Princess Qi, you probably already foresaw what the trap ahead was, right?” Chu Mao said with a smile, his eyes fixed on Ah Wu’s face, as if he would not miss a single expression.

Under such a gaze, Ah Wu truly doubted whether her little schemes could really deceive Chu Mao. Even the slightest involuntary betrayal on her face would ruin everything.

Moreover, Chu Mao’s question truly startled Ah Wu. Even she had not expected that she had anticipated what the Fifth Prince would do.

However, now, thinking back, Ah Wu could not deny that subconsciously she knew. Ah Wu knew very well what kind of person the Fifth Prince was, and he had coincidentally appeared before her twice when she went to the palace to offer congratulations. His unbridled and utterly disgusting gaze had long since made Ah Wu want to teach him a lesson.

She just had not had a good opportunity yet. But this time at the Fifth Prince’s Mansion, with Yuan-Chun by her side, Ah Wu was tempted. She wanted to see if there was any way to subdue the Fifth Prince, so she resolutely became curious.

“Your Highness…” Ah Wu opened her mouth to speak, but did not know what to say. Although Ah Wu thought she knew Chu Mao very well, she had never faced him directly, and she had not expected his insight to be so astonishing.