Such a sensible woman was quite reassuring, but for some reason, hearing her say this, Shen Zaiye felt a tiny twinge of heartache, as thin as a strand of hair.
She was intelligent, so she saw through many things and knew that he had never placed her in a particularly important position. Understanding this, yet still serving him wholeheartedly by his side, wasn’t that rather disheartening?
Pursing his lips, Shen Zaiye stood up, “The palace will be preparing for the Emperor’s outing in the next couple of days. You should make your preparations as well.”
“Yes,” Taohua agreed with a smile.
After he left Zhengchun Pavilion, Jiang Taohua sat back on the soft couch and took several deep breaths.
With wolves in front and tigers behind, how could one live peacefully in such a situation?
With Madam Meng gone, the household had been quiet for a while. The few concubines and servants who had previously allied with Madam Meng didn’t dare to come out of their rooms. As one side waned, the other waxed; naturally, Madam Qin’s faction became quite arrogant.
“I heard there’s a spring hunt, and the Emperor has asked all civil and military officials to bring their families,” Qin Jieyu said with a smile, bringing forward a set of new clothes for Mei Zhaoxue to see. “How about wearing this?”
Mei Zhaoxue frowned, looking at her, “Are you really unaware or just pretending? The Lord said he would take Lady Jiang.”
“Who knows who will go until the day of departure?” Qin Jieyu smiled, leaning closer to her and asking softly, “You are the official wife. Are you going to let Prince Jing see you being overshadowed by a concubine, unable to even show your face?”
Feeling displeased inwardly, Mei Zhao Xue didn’t show much emotion on her face. She only said, “This is unavoidable. Even if Lady Jiang is just a concubine, she’s still a princess of Zhao. It’s reasonable for the lord to take her out.”
“If you think like that, then in the future, Lady Jiang will attend various banquets in your place, meet the Emperor on your behalf, and gradually take over the management of this household. It would all be reasonable,” Qin Jieyu shook her head. “What should be yours, you must not yield an inch. Once you give in, I’m afraid all that’s yours will fall into her hands.”
The room was quiet for a moment. Finally, Mei Zhaoxue looked up at her and asked, “What do you have in mind?”
Qin Jieyu giggled a couple of times, then leaned down to whisper in her ear for a while.
At Wenqing Pavilion.
Gu Huairou had been confining herself to her room under the pretext of recuperating, not daring to go out. Although she had escaped one crisis, she still felt uneasy.
She couldn’t be sure if the people in the household knew nothing, but after waiting for so many days, there had been no other news.
Could it be that she had fooled them all?
“My lady!” Yue Tao ran in from outside, her face looking very unpleasant. “Miss Qin is here.”
Her heart skipped a beat, and Gu Huairou frowned, “What is she here for?”
Just as she finished speaking, Qin Jieyu stepped into the inner room, her expression extremely serious. “Lady Gu, something terrible has happened!”
Her hand tightened slightly, and Gu Huairou frowned as she looked at her, “What has happened that requires you to come and deliver the message personally?”
Qin Jieyu seemed hesitant to speak, looking back at Yue Tao and the other maids.
After a moment of hesitation, Gu Huairou waved her hand, “All of you, go out.”
“Yes.”
As the door closed, the worry on Qin Jieyu’s face became unconcealed. She looked at Gu Huairou with a strange expression and said, “News just came that Madam Meng has committed suicide by swallowing gold in the Meng household.”
“What?” Gu Huairou was shocked, her face turning pale. “Is she dead?”
“She’s gone,” Qin Jieyu sighed. “After all, we were sisters in the same household for many years. When I first heard the news, I was frightened too. Now the Meng household is suppressing this matter, not daring to make it public. Only a few people know.”
Taking a few sharp breaths, Gu Huairou covered her chest, her eyes unfocused as she murmured, “It was just being sent back home after being divorced, how could she be so desperate…”
“You say it so lightly,” Qin Jieyu dabbed her handkerchief and looked at her reproachfully. “If it were you, being sent back to your maiden family for attempting to murder your husband’s child, could you bear it? Moreover, she harmed the Prime Minister’s child, so she must have been severely reprimanded by her family. Although…”
Her tone changed, and Qin Jieyu suddenly smiled eerily, glancing at Gu Huairou, “Although she didn’t harm the lord’s child.”
A chill ran down her spine, and Gu Huairou looked up at her in shock, her voice tense, “What do you mean by that?”
“Let’s not beat around the bush,” Qin Jieyu looked down at her abdomen and snorted lightly. “I know clearly whether there was ever the lord’s child in your belly. I thought it wasn’t a big deal, just a means of vying for favor, so I didn’t think to tell the lord. But now that a life has been lost…”
Taking a sharp breath, Gu Huairou looked at her in shock, “How do you know?”
“The world is full of such coincidences. The doctor from Xuanhu Hall that you bribed to come into the household that day, I know him too,” Qin Jieyu smiled coquettishly, adjusting her hair. “Do you understand now?”
Gu Huairou’s whole body trembled, her eyes full of panic as she looked at her, “What do you want?”
“Don’t be nervous. After all, we’re all people of the Prime Minister’s household. I don’t have the heart to push you to your death,” Qin Jieyu looked at her and said, “As long as you help me with something, this matter will stay buried in my stomach, and no one else will know.”
Her eyes widened slightly, and Gu Huairou’s pupils reflected Qin Jieyu’s face – the diamond-shaped mole between her brows seemed to burn, and her eyes contained a smile that sent chills down one’s spine, like a beautiful demon licking blood from her lips as she looked at her.
At Zhengchun Pavilion.
Jiang Taohua carefully selected clothes and accessories and had Qingtai go to the housekeeper to get new cosmetics. She then sat at her dressing table, carefully comparing which makeup would be more suitable.
As she was applying her makeup, Qingtai came in to announce, “My lady, Lady Gu is here.”
Gu Huairou? Taohua was startled. She turned her head to see the woman walk in with a pale face, performing a courtesy bow before her, “Lady Jiang.”
“Didn’t you just lose a child and need to recuperate?” Taohua looked at her curiously, remaining seated. “Why have you come to my place?”
Her face filled with panic, Gu Huairou didn’t care that there were still maids present. She knelt directly before Jiang Taohua, “Please save me, my lady!”
Qingtai was startled and quickly reached out to help her up, “Lady Gu, you and my mistress are of equal rank. Please don’t perform such a grand gesture.”
“All of you, go out first,” Gu Huairou looked at Qingtai and her maid Yue Tao with tears in her eyes, pleading.
Taohua pursed her lips, looked at her for a moment, then nodded to Qingtai. The maids all filed out, closing the door behind them.
“I was narrow-minded before, thinking you were against me, so I treated you that way and almost wronged you,” Gu Huairou looked up at Taohua with sincere emotion. “Now that great misfortune has befallen me, I realize you’ve always been good to me. I’ve come specially to ask for your forgiveness and to save my life!”
“What has happened?” Taohua pursed her lips. “If you want me to save you, you need to let me know the situation.”
Gu Huairou wept, crying for a good while before calming down. She got up and sat down nearby, choking out, “I was deceived by the doctor from Xuanhu Hall. He said I was pregnant, and I believed him. But it was false! You know the situation in this household. At that time, I was already in too deep and could only go along with it. I never expected that doctor to turn around and threaten me now, saying if I don’t give him three thousand taels of silver, he’ll tell the Meng family about my fake pregnancy and framing of Madam Meng! If that happens, the lord will know, and I’ll surely lose my life!”
So it was a fake pregnancy? Taohua was shocked, her eyes blinking as she stared at her.
To dare to tell her everything like this, Gu Huairou must truly be at her wit’s end. She had tried to bite her before, but now she had come to her senses.
However… Taohua smiled, looking at her strangely, “What does this have to do with me?”
If she could stay out of it, why should she wade into this muddy water? She wasn’t the Goddess of Mercy with a halo of light around her head. Gu Huairou’s life and death, from the day they became enemies, had nothing to do with her, right?
Her eyes widened, and Gu Huairou trembled as she said, “Aren’t we in an alliance? We said we were in the same boat.”
“You already jumped off this boat first. Now you want to come back all wet, and I’m afraid the boat will sink,” Taohua smiled sweetly. “Why don’t you go find another boat?”
…She’s really difficult! Gu Huairou gritted her teeth. This Jiang woman looked so gentle and harmless, but who knew her thoughts were so deep and she was so guarded against others?
“Right now in this household, only you can save me,” Gu Huairou said shamelessly as if she hadn’t heard the previous words. “I don’t trust anyone else here. Even if I had three thousand taels of silver, I wouldn’t dare to put it in someone else’s hands to send out. And I am supposed to be recuperating, so leaving the household suddenly would arouse suspicion. I’ve rarely begged anyone in my life. If you’re willing to help this time, Huairou will surely repay you generously.”
“Oh?” Taohua finally sat up straight. “How will you repay me?”
“What does my lady want?”
Rubbing her chin thoughtfully, Taohua said, “Give and take. Since I’m helping you avoid punishment this time, to repay me, the next time some misfortune falls on my head, you must come out and take the blame for me unconditionally.”
Gu Huairou hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
“Alright, since it’s a small favor, I’ll use the excuse of going out to buy accessories and ask the Madam for a pass to leave the household,” Taohua stood up and said, “Just give me the address of Xuanhu Hall.”
“Good,” Gu Huairou nodded. “But you’d better go alone, without even telling your maid. After all, this concerns my life. The more people who know, the more nights I’ll spend unable to sleep.”
“I understand,” Taohua nodded without any wariness. “I won’t even bring Qingtai. I’ll send her elsewhere when I leave the household.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, Gu Huairou took out a banknote and gave it to her, then wrote down the address of Xuanhu Hall and placed it in her hand.
Taohua accepted it, glanced at it, and then smiled as she saw Gu Huairou out, promising earnestly that she would accomplish the task today.
(End of Chapter)