“Why would the wangfei specially send you a whole box of books? Does she think your manners are lacking?”
As soon as Eunuch Lin left, Xie shi’s sharp tongue returned.
Gu Jiu kept her expression calm. “I don’t know.”
“Then hurry and open it, let’s see what kind of books they are.”
Gu Jiu lightly shook her head. “If taitai has nothing else to say, I’ll return to my room to read.”
Xie shi grew furious, slamming the table. “I told you to open the box and see what’s inside, didn’t you hear me?”
Gu Jiu looked at her with a half-smile. “Taitai, this is a gift from the wangfei. Naturally, it’s for me to handle as I see fit.”
“You’ve turned the heavens upside down! Do you not even recognise me as your stepmother anymore?” Xie shi shouted, jabbing her finger at Gu Jiu’s nose.
Gu Jiu lowered her head with a faint smile. “Since taitai is the official wife, shouldn’t you at least act like one? Always scolding and cursing, if outsiders overheard, they’d think we were enemies, not family.”
“Impudent!”
“I wouldn’t dare. I’m only speaking reason. Da bomu, thank you for helping entertain Eunuch Lin today. I’ll take my leave.”
Zhang shi inclined her head. “Go on.”
Gu Jiu gave a slight bow, then carried the box out of the flower hall.
Xie shi’s face twisted with rage. “Stop right there! I didn’t give you permission to leave, how dare you!”
But Gu Jiu ignored her and walked off.
Xie shi panicked. “Stop her, quick! This is outrageous! Has all your training gone straight to the dogs?”
The servants glanced at one another, but none moved.
Er guniang was destined to marry the imperial grandson. How could they risk laying hands on her? Xie shi must be out of her mind.
In the brief hesitation, Gu Jiu was already gone, leaving not even a shadow behind.
Xie shi nearly fainted from fury. She pointed at Chun He’s nose and cursed, “Even you dare disobey benfuren’s orders?”
Chun He quickly knelt. “Please, taitai, calm down! That gift came from the wangfei herself. How could nubi dare touch it? That would be offending wangfei niangniang.”
“Rubbish!” Xie shi roared.
Zhang shi, however, looked relaxed. “Dimei has been losing your temper far too often lately. Should I summon a physician? At this rate, you’ll age very quickly.”
Xie shi froze, hastily touching her face. “Do I look old?”
Zhang shi gave her a half-smile. “If this continues, you’ll look seventeen or eighteen years older than Bai yiniang.”
“Impossible! How could I look older than Bai yiniang? Dasao, don’t spout nonsense.”
Xie shi’s face shifted uneasily. She protested loudly, but deep inside unease crept in. Could it be true that she was looking much older?
Zhang shi continued serenely, “At our age, those who often lose their tempers usually have health problems. Irritability accelerates ageing and harms the body. Those with calmer, more cheerful temperaments look seven or eight years younger than their peers. If you don’t want to look older than your own husband, you’d better rein in your temper, smile more, and ease your heart.”
Xie shi opened her mouth, but when she remembered Zhang shi’s words, she swallowed her anger. She forced a milder tone. “Dasao misunderstands. I don’t have that bad of a temper.”
Zhang shi smiled faintly. “Since Bai yiniang gave birth to a son, just count how many times you’ve lost your temper. Everyone looks wrong in your eyes, and you curse them all. If that’s not a bad temper, what is? Anger harms the liver. You should take care, lest you fall ill.”
“You–” Xie shi almost snapped again, but remembering Zhang shi’s warning, she forced herself to hold back. “You’re right. Anger harms the liver. I’ll try to control myself better.”
Zhang shi nodded in satisfaction. “As long as dimei understands, I’m relieved.”
Back in Zhilan Yuan, Gu Jiu set the box on her desk but didn’t open it right away.
Qing Zhu asked, “Won’t guniang take a look?”
Xiao Cui muttered, “Taitai really goes too far. Even the wangfei’s gift to you, she insists on inspecting. And always scolding you like that, just because you’re not her own daughter, she thinks she can treat you any way she wants.”
Qing Mei added, “Taitai has been in a bad mood ever since Bai yiniang gave birth to a son.”
Xiao Cui huffed. “Then she should take it out on Bai yiniang. Why on our guniang? Luckily, guniang has a strong temper; otherwise, taitai would torment her to death.”
Gu Jiu smiled. “Don’t bother with taitai. She’s just reached menopause; at that age, everyone looks unpleasant to her.”
The maids blinked.
Qing Mei asked curiously, “Guniang, what’s menopause?”
“When a woman grows older and her monthly cycle stops, her body changes. During that time, she becomes irritable and moody. That’s what we call menopause.”
“What? But taitai is only in her early forties. Isn’t that too soon?” blurting Xiao Cui.
Gu Jiu chuckled. “Some women experience it earlier, some later. It can last for months or years. For someone with a naturally short temper like her, early onset isn’t strange.”
“So being irritable even causes this kind of harm…”
The maids looked as if a new world had opened up to them.
Gu Jiu leaned back in her chair. “Haven’t you noticed? Taitai’s face has turned sallow lately; she looks far more haggard than she did back at New Year.”
Qing Mei said: “Now that guniang mentions it, nubi remembers. When I saw taitai today, she really didn’t look as spirited as she did during the New Year. She looked rather weary.”
Gu Jiu let out a mocking laugh. “She’s only tormenting herself. She brings the suffering upon her own head.”
After all, Xie shi already had two sons. Even if Bai yiniang bore a son, it would never threaten her position. And yet Xie shi sulked and stewed all day long. Bai yiniang remained untouched, while she herself grew sick with anger.
In the end, Xie shi had only herself to blame. If she truly couldn’t tolerate Bai yiniang, she should have been decisive in the first place and never allowed her through the gates.
Instead, she pretended magnanimity and permitted her entry, while secretly scheming and stirring up petty troubles every day. Wasn’t she exhausted?
Gu Jiu thought to herself: When I marry Liu Zhao, I certainly won’t allow him to take concubines. If he refuses to respect her wishes and insists on bringing one in…
Heh, it would be simple.
Once she bore a son and had an heir, she would simply kick Liu Zhao aside. Whether he lived or died after that would no longer matter. As long as her son stood, the wang fu would belong firmly in her hands, for her son alone.
As for Liu Zhao? Better dead than alive. If not dead, then he could get as far away as possible.
Gu Jiu’s thoughts were clear.
She couldn’t choose her marriage, but she would pour her efforts into living the life on her terms. As for men, just another creature with two legs. She had no need to treasure one.
Once he had served his purpose, the man could be cast aside.
Of course, she could never voice such thoughts aloud. They were far too shocking, liable to terrify people.
At that very moment, inside the palace, while presenting himself before the emperor, Liu Zhao suddenly felt an itch in his nose. He rubbed it discreetly. Could it be that someone was cursing him behind his back?
He didn’t need to guess. It was surely Gu Jiu.
Liu Zhao frowned slightly. Just what was this woman saying about him now?
Far too impudent.
Clearly, he ought to move up the wedding date, marry Gu Jiu sooner, and teach her the proper way of honouring her husband as heaven.
…
Inside Zhilan Yuan, Gu Jiu opened a peachwood box. Inside, sure enough, were a few volumes of the classics.
She let out a soft “hmm?” in surprise. Why would the wangfei send me books of classics? Shouldn’t it be something like The Admonitions for Women instead?
She flipped through them, but something felt off. The box was rather deep, yet three or four books completely filled it. That didn’t make sense.
Suspicious, she emptied the box. Just as she expected, it had a secret compartment.
Carefully opening it, she found a dagger inlaid with glittering gemstones.
“Waaah…”
The maidservants gasped in unison.
What a precious dagger. No, more precisely, what precious jewels.
Its hilt was studded with emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and amethysts. The scabbard was also inlaid with gems of every colour.
Even if one ignored the dagger itself, the jewels alone were worth a fortune.
Gu Jiu drew the blade. Its surface was dull, lacking lustre, seemingly unworthy of such lavish adornment.
She raised it, pondering, then gave the corner of the table a light chop.
With a crack, the corner splintered and dropped to the floor.
Such sharpness startled her.
“Bring me a strand of hair.”
Qing Mei plucked two hairs from her own head and twisted them together. “Guniang, try it with these.”
Gu Jiu nodded, swung the blade, and the hairs fell apart instantly.
“Waaah…”
The maids gasped again.
“This dagger is too sharp! There’s probably nothing it couldn’t cut through.”
Delighted, Gu Jiu smiled broadly. “Fetch a stone. I want to see if this dagger can split one.”
Wang Yi volunteered immediately: “Allow me to fetch it.”
“Make it a small stone, not a big one,” Gu Jiu cautioned, worried Wang Yi might drag in a boulder from the garden.
Soon, Wang Yi returned with a stone the size of two palms, heavy enough. She set it on the ground.
Gu Jiu, eager to test, lifted the dagger and struck down hard.
Crack! The stone split cleanly in two.
Another round of astonished cries filled the room.
“To cut hair with a breath, and even split stone, this dagger truly is sharp!”
Gu Jiu was overjoyed, unable to put it down.
Then Qing Zhu spoke up: “But why would the wangfei send guniang a dagger?”
Yes, why indeed? Such a gift hardly made sense.
Gu Jiu chuckled. “This gift didn’t come from the wangfei. It was merely sent in her name. In truth, it was from Gongzi Zhao.”
“What? This was a gift from Gongzi Zhao?”
“Does that mean it’s a token of betrothal from Gongzi Zhao to guniang?”
“How peculiar! Other men send jewellery and ornaments, but he sends a dagger. Does he expect our guniang to use it to kill someone?”
Gu Jiu laughed again, her brows curving in delight. “But I do like this gift. A string of jewels might make me happy for a moment, but nothing compares to this dagger’s meaning.”
Privately, she thought: Liu Zhao is rather perceptive. He must have guessed I’d appreciate it, which is why he sent it through Eunuch Lin.
But how could he have seen through her like that?
Qing Mei nodded. “It’s plain to see, guniang truly loves this gift.”
Gu Jiu toyed with the dagger, reluctant to let it go. “I never expected Gongzi Zhao to send it under the wangfei’s name. Luckily, I didn’t open the box back in the hall. If I had done so before taitai, there would’ve been no hiding such a thing.”
Several maidservants were all chattering at once.
Gu Jiu, however, sat upright at her desk, thinking to herself: should she return the courtesy and write Liu Zhao a reply letter?
Writing a letter was easy; delivering it was hard.
She wasn’t sure her letter could reach Liu Zhao smoothly. She worried that once it reached the Wangfu’s gatehouse, it might take a detour straight into the hands of the wangfei instead.
After much thought, Gu Jiu finally gave up the idea of writing.
If there was a chance to meet Liu Zhao in the future, she could thank him in person; it wouldn’t be too late.
Liu Zhao left the palace and returned to the wangfu.
He first went to the East Courtyard. Seeing Lin Shuping, he immediately asked, “Did you deliver the item?”
Lin Shuping bowed and replied, “Reporting to gongzi, the gift has already been personally handed to Gu guniang.”
Liu Zhao nodded, hesitated for a moment, and asked, “Did she like it?”
Lin Shuping felt troubled. How was he supposed to answer that? Better to just be honest.
He bent slightly and said, “In front of the two taitai of the Gu household, Gu guniang did not open the wooden box. But I think she should like it.”
Liu Zhao frowned. “So you didn’t tell her that the wooden box held something more?”
Lin Shuping tensed up immediately. “Gu guniang is so clever, she will surely discover the secret inside the box.”
Liu Zhao gave a cold snort, neither agreeing nor denying.
Lin Shuping blamed himself, regretting that he hadn’t properly grasped his master’s true intentions.
After a moment of silence, Liu Zhao asked, “Where is wangye now?”
Lin Shuping bowed and answered, “Wangye is currently at the Bixi Pavilion, listening to songs.”
Liu Zhao at once led his men to the Bixi Pavilion.
As soon as they passed through the moon gate, the sound of zithers and flutes wafted over, mingled with the languid voices of women singing.
Liu Zhao’s brows knit slightly, but in the next moment, he masked his emotions, his face blank as he walked in.
Inside the lavishly decorated hall, dancers in gauzy silk gowns swayed gracefully to the music.
Two singing girls sat to the side, singing their soft, indulgent tunes.
Behind them sat a row of musicians with various instruments before them.
Liu Zhao stood at the doorway, not entering.
The attendants saw him and hurried to report to Ning wang.
“Wangye, da gongzi has arrived.”
He pointed toward the doorway.
Ning wang opened his eyes, glanced over, and said, “Oh, laoda is here. Come in.”
Liu Zhao kept a stern face as he entered.
The dancers quickly stepped aside, not daring to block his path. The two singing girls stopped their song, and the musicians ceased playing.
“Don’t stop, keep going! Benwang is enjoying himself. Whoever dares stop will be punished.”
Ning wang shouted at them, clearly displeased.
The singers, dancers, and musicians looked at one another, caught between the wangye and da gongzi, truly awkward.
But within the fu, the wangye was supreme, so they had no choice but to obey him.
The music began again, the singing girls raised their voices, and the dancers resumed their movements, creating resplendent scenes of song and dance.
Liu Zhao, expressionless, walked forward and bowed. “Your son greets fuwang.”
“Sit, sit. Enjoy with benwang.”
“Fuwang, your son has urgent matters to report.”
“No matter what it is, later. I’m in high spirits now, not in the mood for court affairs.”
Liu Zhao’s face darkened. He sat down, but his gaze fell upon the two singing girls.
Under his oppressive stare, the two faltered, their song breaking apart in disarray.
Whimper, whimper, da gongzi’s eyes were terrifying.
The dancers also couldn’t continue, for now Liu Zhao’s gaze swept over them too.
That look, it was like being devoured alive.
With singers and dancers flustered, the musicians too lost their rhythm.
Hearing the broken melodies, seeing the chaotic movements, Ning wang erupted in fury.
“Out, out, all of you get out!”
The singers, dancers, and musicians fled as though pardoned from death.
Once they were gone, the vast hall suddenly felt empty.
Ning wang was greatly displeased, glaring at Liu Zhao. “You ruined my good mood. What punishment do you deserve?”
Expressionless, Liu Zhao said, “Today in court, Imperial Grandfather promoted Xue Gui to Vice Minister of the Secretariat.”
At this, Ning wang cursed, “Has the old man lost his senses? To actually appoint that useless fool Xue Gui as Vice Minister!”
The “old man” in his mouth naturally referred to the Emperor.
Liu Zhao continued, “Your son dares speculate that Imperial Grandfather did this deliberately, to target the Crown Prince’s faction.”
Ning wang raised his brows. “Oh? And why do you say that?”
“Has fuwang forgotten? The current Left Vice Minister of the Department of State Affairs, Xu daren, is the elder brother of Xu daren, the Crown Prince’s steward. By appointing Xue Gui as Vice Minister, it is clearly to restrain the Department of State Affairs.”
Ning wang laughed heartily. “The old man may not choose people well, but the things he does are quite good.”
Liu Zhao frowned. “Fuwang, I urge you to attend court tomorrow.”
“Benwang won’t. If I go, the old man will only scold me again.”
Liu Zhao’s eyelids twitched. “Yet Zhao wangshu and Yan wangshu are actively participating in politics.”
Ning wang snorted coldly, fixing his gaze on Liu Zhao. “So impatient, are you? Do you already wish to be a prince?”
This was a remark meant to pierce the heart.
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