Hua Mei snorted and turned into the room, her birth mother Concubine Liu following behind her, saying, "Eldest Miss, don't be so angry with your father. There's some truth in what he says. He only scolds you because he cares—"
Hua Mei glared. "What truth? He's just tormenting me. Why doesn't he send those legitimate daughters of his to be someone's concubine? You all know how I suffer in that household, yet you only gossip."
Concubine Liu sighed. "What can we do? If your father hadn't gotten into that trouble, you'd be the proper lady of a well-off family by now. Every day I worry about how that formidable woman in Master Lin's household might bully you..." She began wiping her tears.
Hua Mei, initially impatient, softened at the sight of her mother's tears. "Enough, enough. Just knowing my hardships is enough. At the slightest trouble, all you do is cry. If you had any backbone, I wouldn't be in this state." The words only made Concubine Liu sob harder. Hua Mei sighed and pulled her onto the bed. Seeing no one around, she lowered her voice. "Stop crying, Mother. Maybe my good days are yet to come. I was born a jewel—I shouldn't have been made into some lowly Bedchamber Attendant."
Concubine Liu froze, then beamed as she stared at Hua Mei's belly. "My child, are you with child? That would be wonderful news! Even if it's a girl, the Lin family would surely promote you to Concubine."
Hua Mei frowned. "You just don't understand!" She turned and lay down on the bed.
For a while, nothing happened.
In the middle of the night, Hua Mei grew increasingly hot in her sleep. Groggily, she pushed Xi Que beside her to fetch tea. Half-asleep, Xi Que poured half a cup of cold tea from the table. Turning back, the teacup slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor as she screamed, "Fire! Fire!"
The shout jolted Hua Mei awake. She scrambled out of bed and saw raging flames surrounding them. The two shrieked, waking the entire household as they rushed toward the door, pulling and dragging each other. Fortunately, the fire at the entrance was weak, and the family made it to the courtyard. Hua Mei stared—the room she had been in was now engulfed in thick smoke.
In her panic to escape, she had forgotten the account book still inside. She lunged back toward the fire, but Concubine Liu grabbed her. "My child! What are you doing?"
Hua Mei struggled. "Let go! Stop making things worse!" Breaking free, she was caught again by Xi Que, who clung to her waist, weeping. "Miss, the fire's too strong—don't throw your life away! No matter how important that thing is, is it worth your life?"
Hearing this, Hua Mei stopped struggling and stood frozen, as if struck dumb.
In her heart, Hua Mei knew—this fire was meant for her.
She had thought returning home would solve everything, but she had underestimated Zhao Yuechan's fury. Now, the woman wanted her dead. Hua Mei shuddered. She had underestimated Zhao Yuechan, but now she was in too deep to retreat.The neighbors all rushed to help put out the fire, which burned until nearly dawn before finally extinguishing. The entire house was nearly consumed, but fortunately, there was no wind that night, preventing the flames from spreading to other homes. Hua Mei carefully searched through the ruins and eventually found the account book in a chest. Most of it had been burned away, with several pages turning to ash at the slightest touch. Only a few partially intact pages remained, still bearing Zhao Yuechan’s signature and seal.
Gritting her teeth, Hua Mei carefully wrapped the remaining pages in cloth and tucked them into her bosom, thinking to herself, "Until the very end, the outcome is still uncertain. I refuse to believe I can’t overcome this obstacle!"
Now, to tell of another matter.
Zhao Yuechan, bold and reckless, had instructed Qian Wenze to set the fire, promising him a hefty sum of silver. Qian Wenze, a scoundrel steeped in vice, truly burned Hua Mei’s home to the ground. He sent a few ruffians to investigate, and they reported back through the side gate to Ying Shuang: "The house was completely gutted—nothing was left. When Hua Mei ran out, she wasn’t carrying anything."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuechan let out a long sigh of relief.
Ying Shuang brought over a freshly stewed bowl of chicken soup and said with a smile, "Madam can finally rest easy. You haven’t been eating or sleeping well these past few days."
Zhao Yuechan took a spoonful of soup and replied, "Indeed. Without that evidence, it’s a dead end. It’s just a pity that little wretch Hua Mei escaped so quickly." After a pause, she added, "While things are going smoothly, have my cousin bring the human trafficker tomorrow. Once that little bitch is sold off, there’ll be no more headaches." Ying Shuang quickly agreed.
Early the next morning, when the sky was still dim and stars twinkled on the horizon, Xianglan was curled up in a corner, half-asleep. Suddenly, the door opened, and two matrons entered. Without a word, they gagged Xianglan, bound her hands, and dragged her out. Terrified, Xianglan struggled desperately but couldn’t break free. She was hauled to a secluded back gate of the estate, where a tall, pale-faced young man stood waiting—none other than Qian Wenze.
Xianglan trembled uncontrollably. Qian Wenze lifted her chin with his folding fan, examining her with a lecherous gaze. "Tsk, tsk, poor thing. Your face is in such a wretched state," he remarked. He had expected to see a stunningly beautiful maid to take back and enjoy, but instead, he found a girl with a face so bruised and swollen it was barely recognizable, her hair a tangled mess. His interest waned instantly. He waved his hand and called out to a man standing nearby, "Sun Laoqi, come here."
Sun Laoqi was a pimp from the Yihong Court, plump and round with a thin mustache, exuding a shrewd demeanor. Hearing Qian Wenze’s summons, he scurried over eagerly.
Qian Wenze was involved with Jinfeng, a prostitute from Yihong Court, and had spent lavishly there. Sun Laoqi knew Qian Wenze had powerful backing and was not to be trifled with, so he always curried favor with him. The night before, when he heard Qian Wenze would take him to the Lin family to buy a maid, Sun Laoqi was delighted. In the past, Yihong Court had acquired maids from wealthy households—either those who had committed grave offenses and been sold off or those who had seduced their masters and were ruthlessly disposed of by the mistresses. From Qian Wenze’s hints, today’s girl was the latter. A maid who had caught the master’s eye in the Lin household must surely be exceptional in looks and figure.But now, seeing Xianglan, Old Sun Qi couldn't help but grimace. Her features were pretty, but her entire face was swollen beyond recognition. He wasn't sure if the swelling would subside. If it didn't, buying her would only be worth it for a low-grade tea house girl. Clicking his tongue, he said, "For this one... at most thirty taels of silver, and that's only because of Master Qian's face."
Qian Wenze snorted. "Old Sun Qi, you really are a slick-talking, unscrupulous one. Thirty taels for a grown girl? Even an underdeveloped little girl would cost more than that. This girl just has a wounded face—she was quite pretty before. Once the swelling goes down, even Xiao Cuixian from your brothel might not compare."
Old Sun Qi thought to himself that this gentleman was full of nonsense—how would he know what the maid originally looked like? But he somewhat agreed with Qian Wenze's argument. He scrutinized Xianglan's waist, legs, and hands, then gritted his teeth and said, "Forty taels at most. I'll still have to treat her face when we get back, and all that costs money, doesn't it?"
Qian Wenze was still dissatisfied and haggled with Old Sun Qi. Finally, they settled on forty-six taels. The old woman produced Xianglan's deed of sale, and Old Sun Qi was about to hand over the silver.
Xianglan closed her eyes. It was the first time she had been bargained over like livestock, and she felt her vision darken. Her eyes were dry, unable to shed any more tears. Clenching her teeth, she thought to herself, "If I truly end up in a brothel, I mustn't seek death—no matter what, I have to fight for a way out!"
Just then, someone spoke up: "Old Sun Qi, out shopping so early in the morning, are we?"
Xianglan turned toward the voice and saw a short, thin middle-aged man with a shrewd, calculating look, his small eyes darting around. This man, Gao Erbao, was in the same line of work as Old Sun Qi—a pimp from the Yicui Pavilion. Familiar with both Qian and Sun, he exchanged greetings with them before circling Xianglan. "How much for this girl? I'll offer sixty taels."
Qian Wenze's eyes lit up, and he withdrew the deed he had been about to hand to Old Sun Qi.
Old Sun Qi immediately panicked. "We already agreed on a price—why are you butting in?"
Qian Wenze laughed. "Don't get worked up, Old Sun. Naturally, the highest bidder wins. If you offer more than fifty, I'll let you take her."
Old Sun Qi looked at Xianglan's swollen, bruised face, then at his money pouch. He considered raising his offer by another five taels but ultimately shook his head. Sixty taels for a girl who might end up disfigured was hardly worth it—at that price, he could buy an untouched fifteen- or sixteen-year-old from a poor family, train her up, and have her earning money in no time.
Seeing Old Sun Qi fall silent, Qian Wenze smirked and handed the deed to Gao Erbao with a flourish. "Boss Gao's offer is generous—the girl is yours."
Without another word, Gao Erbao pulled out a sixty-tael silver note and placed it in Qian Wenze's hand, then took Xianglan by the arm and led her away.
Qian Wenze was overjoyed. Zhao Yuechan had already promised him whatever money the girl fetched. Tapping Old Sun Qi on the shoulder with his folding fan, he said, "Come on, I didn't sleep well last night. Let's head to your place—have Jinfeng draw me a hot bath and warm the bed. I need to catch up on my sleep."Old Man Sun quickly put on a smiling face, thinking to himself, "Making me run my legs off this early in the morning—today I'm definitely going to get that fifty taels out of your pocket!" He fawned, "Then let's be on our way, sir. You haven't visited Golden Phoenix these past few days, and our Miss Golden Phoenix has been crying for days. She even made you a new pouch..." The two walked further away, their voices gradually fading.
Gao Erbao held Xianglan's arm as they stood at the corner of the alley. Only after Qian and Sun had gone far enough did he pull Xianglan in the opposite direction. Xianglan felt her head heavy and her feet light, staggering as she walked. After crossing a short alley, they came upon a carriage parked there.
Gao Erbao rubbed his hands together and approached, bowing obsequiously. "Sir, the task you assigned is done. You see, you see... this..."
The carriage curtain was suddenly drawn aside. Xianglan focused her gaze and was shocked to see Song Ke's face appear inside.
Xianglan trembled all over, two streams of tears suddenly flowing from her eyes. Her heart felt as though a weight had lifted, yet another part of it was fiercely clenched. After this rapid succession of extreme joy and sorrow, her vision darkened, her legs gave way, and she fainted.
Thank you to yu21yu21 for the sachet, Yan Sansheng for two Peace Talismans, and damima for the Peace Talisman~~ Continuing to ask for pink votes, everyone please give your support~~ Xianglan has been rescued, and the story enters a new phase ^_^
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