Recently, Princess Consort Qinghua had developed a taste for beating people, with Huan watching the punishments by her side. The more stubborn the victim, the more she wanted to make them wail and beg. Only their agonized screams and pitiful state could satisfy her. Once her initial craving was sated, she would suddenly lose interest. The Liu household staff had learned of this perverse habit, and whenever they incurred her wrath, they would scream as if dying to appear utterly miserable, hoping to end the punishment quickly.
This method had always worked, but today was different. Princess Consort Qinghua was beating Liu Chang’s servants, with his favorites suffering the worst. No matter how loudly they screamed, she didn’t even flinch. She demanded they reveal where Liu Chang’s new son was, threatening to beat them to death if they didn’t confess.
This endless torment prompted some who couldn’t endure it, along with those who served in Lady Qi’s chambers and had some influence, to secretly send word asking Lady Qi to intervene. Lady Qi, who could no longer bear to listen, had no choice but to come with the support of her maids to stop the beating. However, she was met with a barrage of harsh words from Princess Consort Qinghua.
Lady Qi couldn’t help but laugh coldly, “Even the Empress doesn’t dare to ask you to pay respects anymore, yet you still won’t restrain yourself. The birth of a child is a joyous occasion. What reason do you have to be angry? Is it that you can’t bear children yourself, so you won’t allow others to? Forget about having sons and daughters – even if it were just little Huahua, have you given birth to half a child for me to see?”
“You’re such a good person. Apart from that ungrateful wolf Liu Chang, where is your daughter Huahua? Can you show me half of her? You can’t bear children yourself, so why don’t I see you letting others have children?” These words stirred up a hornet’s nest. Princess Consort Qinghua threw a cup of strong tea in Lady Qi’s face, then turned to order her servants, “Beat them harder! If they die, I’ll take responsibility!”
So when Liu Chang returned, Lady Qi was also causing a scene. She refused to let anyone change her clothes or wipe her face, insisting on going to Prince Wei’s mansion with her head and face dripping with tea to ask Prince Wei and his wife to judge the situation. Meanwhile, Qinghua was like a starving tigress, desperate to tear Liu Chang apart to vent her anger.
Leaving the house in such a state would likely mean never being able to go out again. Liu Chang was furious but didn’t stop Lady Qi. “I’m too ashamed to go, but you can, Mother. If the Prince and Princess want to intervene, it would be good to resolve this difficulty for me.”
He still cared about face, but Lady Qi was past such concerns. If she had to endure another half year like this, she wouldn’t survive. She felt a heart-wrenching pain for her poor Qi’er. Lady Qi immediately said, “If the Wei Prince’s household isn’t ashamed of raising such a daughter, what do I have to be ashamed of? It won’t disgrace you; if anyone’s disgraced, it’s Old Liu! He’s the one who brought in this troublemaker.” Why should Old Liu enjoy the peace while she and Liu Chang suffer? She promptly ordered a carriage prepared and set off for Prince Wei’s mansion.
Liu Chang rubbed his forehead and turned to see Qinghua, who was furiously trying to grab Qiushi for questioning. He discreetly shielded Qiushi and calmly said, “I’m right here. What exactly do you want? Come at me!”
Qinghua stopped, her beautiful eyes now filled with anger and malice. Her cheeks flushed red, and the veins on her forehead throbbed visibly. After a few heavy breaths, she pointed a trembling finger at a pile of shredded, glittering fabric in the mud nearby and snarled, “Liu Shu, explain this to me. Who are these congratulations for? What are they celebrating? A new child? As the mistress of this house, how come I know nothing about it? Do you have any regard for me at all?”
Liu Chang looked at her with a calm, pitying, and superior gaze. “Of course, they’re congratulations for me, for the birth of my child. I’m the only heir in my family, and I’m not getting any younger. Qi’er is dead, and you can’t bear children. I had to find a solution. Otherwise, with no one to inherit the family business, all this wealth and status would be gone in a few decades. Even a village woman understands this principle. Surely you, with your noble birth, must understand.”
“You, you bastard!” Why couldn’t she have children? Didn’t he understand? Tears nearly fell from Qinghua’s eyes, but she desperately held them back. She raised her hand to slap Liu Chang’s face.
Surprisingly, Liu Chang didn’t dodge. He took the slap without retaliation, looking at her coldly and speaking calmly, “You’ve lost your composure. You have a noble status, and our marriage was decreed by imperial edict. No matter who bears a son or daughter, they would still have to call you mother. No one can surpass you in this regard, don’t you agree?”
Qinghua had hoped he would fight back fiercely as before, that they might scratch and bite each other, and perhaps some of their old feelings might resurface. But… seeing Liu Chang’s cold eyes, hearing his emotionless tone, and observing his motionless stance, she suddenly felt the urge to laugh. And so she did, laughing loudly, “Liu Shu, well done! You’ve outdone yourself!”
Liu Chang turned his head to look at her, his eyes unreadable. “I’ve always been like this, Qinghua. You just never understood me. I’ve never had any appetite for those who try to step on me. Don’t you understand that?” When he had genuine feelings for her in the past, she treated him like a weed to be trampled at will. When she finally realized his worth, she still treated him as something to be plucked or stepped on as she pleased. She trampled him, so he trampled her back. What was wrong with that? Even when he disliked He Mudan and thought she wasn’t good enough for him, he never considered marrying Qinghua. Couldn’t they have just maintained their mutual attraction without commitment? But she didn’t understand; she always wanted to keep him under her foot. How could he allow himself to be trampled for a lifetime?
Qinghua’s eyes were filled only with hatred. “Liu Shu, I’ll drag you down with me! If I can’t be happy, you won’t find contentment in this life either!” As long as the Wei Prince’s household existed, he wouldn’t dare do anything to her. Even if she bore another man’s child, he would have to grit his teeth and raise it as his own!
Liu Chang acted as if he hadn’t heard. He walked over to the pile of shimmering fabric that Qinghua had shredded, picked up a piece, and held it up to the light. He shook his head gently. “Such fine fabric, what a waste.” He narrowed his eyes slightly. “If I remember correctly, nothing this exquisite has been seen in the capital before. It might be a bit too flashy for you, but…” He smiled meaningfully. Then he began to pry out the pearls that had been trampled into the mud. “What beautiful pearls. They can still be used after washing. The spices, though, are a real shame.”
He crouched on the ground, intently picking up the pearls, and called Qiushi over. “What are you standing there for? Come and help me collect these.”
Qiushi, trembling under Qinghua’s murderous glare, walked over on shaky legs.
Princess Consort Qinghua stared at the master and servant earnestly picking and cleaning pearls on the ground. Suddenly, she lost all interest in the people still groaning under the punishment rods. She sneered, “A bastard’s offspring will never be acceptable, no matter what. Have as many as you like.” With that, she swept her sleeve and left with her entourage.
Liu Chang cast a faint glance at the group of people who had been beaten to wailing but hadn’t betrayed him. He said appreciatively, “Reward each of them with five lengths of brocade. Their medical expenses will be covered by me. Clean these pearls, add some good fragrances and delicate ornaments, and send them to Yonghe Ward.”
Qiushi was startled but softly agreed. He suddenly felt sorry for the pair of sisters in Yonghe Ward, who had barely begun to enjoy their good fortune before disaster struck.
Liu Chang brushed the dust off his clothes and stood up, gazing at the golden-rimmed clouds on the horizon for a long time. Just as Qiushi thought he would stand there indefinitely, he suddenly turned and walked into the house, saying, “Let me know when the old madam returns.”
Liu Chengcai, having likely caught wind of the situation, claimed to be on night duty and didn’t return home. So when Lady Qi returned, instead of pulling his beard, her first act was to smash all the inexpensive items in the room to pieces. Liu Chang sat on the couch with his legs crossed, quietly watching her smash things until she was gasping for breath and nearly collapsed from exhaustion. Only then did he step forward to support her. “Stop smashing things. These are our possessions. If we break them, we’ll have to spend money to replace them. Wouldn’t that just cause more distress? It’s not worth it.”
Lady Qi wanted to laugh but ended up crying instead. Prince Wei had claimed to be away, and his wife said she was ill. When the Crown Princess received her, she only had one light remark: “Qinghua is already married. If she misbehaves, it’s up to you as her mother-in-law to discipline her. We have nothing more to say.” Then she had someone bring medicine for Lady Qi. Was it the medicine she lacked that brought her to the Wei Prince’s mansion? If she could control this imperial daughter-in-law, would she have come here with tea stains on her head to humiliate herself? Lady Qi almost smashed the medicine box in front of the Crown Princess.
He had known it would end this way. Liu Chang patted her shoulder intermittently. “It wasn’t entirely useless. In the future…”
“What about the future?” Lady Qi’s eyes lit up. “If you don’t come up with a better solution, our family line will end.”
But Liu Chang didn’t continue. He said calmly, “Our family has lost face, but so has theirs. This marriage was decreed by the Emperor, and Father hasn’t committed any offenses recently. He will sympathize with his old minister.”
Lady Qi felt a glimmer of hope. “Yes, yes, if this continues, even His Majesty will feel it’s a disgrace to the imperial family. Surely he won’t let the Liu family line end?” With her mind made up, she finally noticed that half of Liu Chang’s face was swollen. There was no need to ask; it was Qinghua’s doing. She felt a surge of heartache and anger.
But Liu Chang said, “It’s nothing. I’m not in pain.” He wished she had hit him harder.
The night passed uneventfully. The next day, Liu Chang went out to work with his half-swollen face. Yesterday’s events had already spread like wildfire. Some sympathized with him, others mocked him, but he showed no reaction to either, pretending not to hear as he focused on waiting for Princess Consort Qinghua’s next move.
Sure enough, before evening, news arrived.