“This…” Ding Wu looked troubled, “Her husband is thousands of miles away in the capital. Now it’s freezing cold outside, with ice stretching for thousands of miles. How could he possibly make it here?”
Third Madam said, “Don’t try to fool me. Wang Daxia is one of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and I’m well aware of what the Embroidered Uniform Guard does daily. I’ve done similar work in your capital—collecting intelligence and sending it back to my own country. Everyone serves their own master.”
“Furthermore, as a married woman, and newlywed at that, Doctor Wei couldn’t possibly suddenly come to the border asking you to return to the country just for the sake of you, her sworn brother. I suspect she came along with her husband who was carrying out a mission and happened to arrive in Datong. Wang Daxia must be among the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s hidden agents at the border. Perhaps right now, he’s in Feng City.”
“If I had known this earlier, I wouldn’t have had my guards capture her at the city gates and bring her back. Following her along the route, she must have had someone to escort her back to Datong. I suspect the escort was Wang Daxia.”
What a clever Third Madam! Except for guessing the wrong contact person, she was right about everything else!
Ding Wu’s mind was in turmoil, yet he struggled to remain calm while thinking of how to respond.
If Wang Daxia were to come to the Khan’s court now to take Wei Caiwei away, it would definitely expose the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s hidden agents in Feng City, and the intelligence network that the Red Makeup Rouge Shop had worked so hard to establish would be disrupted.
But if Wang Daxia didn’t come, Wei Caiwei would face punishment from Zhong Jin Khatun.
What to do? Ding Wu was caught in a dilemma—on one side was national interest, on the other was his sister’s safety.
Wei Caiwei spoke up: “This matter was caused by me alone and has nothing to do with my husband. I’ll bear the responsibility for my crimes alone. Since the Khatun knows I married Wang Daxia, she should be well-informed about developments in the capital, with intelligence being sent to the Khan’s court. She should also know that I delivered the current Emperor’s Crown Prince and two princesses, and I’ve been responsible for regulating Imperial Noble Consort Li’s health. When women give birth, they’re half-lying in a coffin. I volunteer to remain in the Khan’s court to care for the Khatun during her delivery.”
What a devoted wife who protects her husband. Third Madam touched her swollen belly and looked at Wei Caiwei with amusement. “The first time I met you, I felt you were different from others. You were a suspect in the double murder case of Commander Chen and his son. Wang Daxia entrusted you to me, asking me to help you escape the capital, yet you went against the current and voluntarily walked into the trap, going to the Embroidered Uniform Guard to clear yourself of suspicion so you wouldn’t have to live a lifetime hiding and running.”
“Later, I heard rumors about your affair with Commander Lu of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Not long after, you publicly paired up with your neighbor Wang Daxia. Even when Sect Leader Zhao Quan invited Wang Daxia to a banquet, he had to invite you along as well. You two were so affectionate at the painted boat banquet that even the singing girls and dancing girls at Red Sleevesæ‹› could hear it through the screen and blush with embarrassment. At that time, I found it strange because Wang Daxia was only playful and fun-loving, disliking worldly constraints. Though he appeared unconventional on the surface, he wasn’t actually a lustful or romantic person. How did he become a different person when he met you?”
“Thinking about it now,” Third Madam’s gaze moved between Ding Wu and Wei Caiwei, “all of this was a carefully calculated game within a game. The scandalous rumors about you, Commander Lu, and Wang Daxia’s threesome; Wanhuo Trading Company suddenly falling into the fake banknote lawsuit; Ding Wu and Wang Daxia appearing like divine soldiers from heaven to resolve Wanhuo Trading Company’s lawsuit; the overnight destruction of both major White Lotus Sect strongholds—Wanhuo Trading Company and Red Sleevesæ‹›; Ding Wu being imprisoned in the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s prison as a suspect of colluding with the White Lotus Sect and suffering torture; Ding Wu’s defection from his homeland to join the Khan’s court—all were one performance after another.”
Ding Wu immediately knelt down, tearing open his clothes to expose the horrific scars on his back. “Your servant was whipped and humiliated by the Embroidered Uniform Guard. My father was imprisoned in the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s prison for ten years in darkness and died of illness. These are iron-clad facts, not acting. My loyalty to the Khan’s court is as clear as the sun and moon, without the slightest disloyalty.”
Third Madam now suspected everything. “Zhou Yu beats Huang Gai—one willing to strike, one willing to take it. It’s just a ruse of self-injury. Your scars are real, and I admire your perseverance and courage. As for your father… making a living person appear dead isn’t exactly Doctor Wei’s specialty?”
Seeing that Ding Wu was about to be dragged into this as well, Wei Caiwei became anxious. “Wang Daxia and I fell in love long ago. The affair with Commander Lu was fictitious, just for show. That Dragon Boat Festival, when Brother Ding was captured by Yan Shifan, I had to save him and reluctantly acted with Commander Lu. Of my two relationships, only the one with Wang Daxia was real. We went through hardships and it took seven years before we could marry. True love is hard to break. Finally, lovers became spouses, and we didn’t deceive the world.”
After hearing this, Third Madam felt an inexplicable sourness in her heart. “Is that so? If everything you say is true, and Wang Daxia has deep feelings for you, he should come to the Khan’s court to find you regardless of everything.”
Third Madam said to Ding Wu: “You may go. When Wang Daxia can’t wait for his wife any longer, he’ll naturally come to you, his brother-in-law, to inquire. You tell him that if he wants to take his wife back, he should come to the Khan’s court to find me. If he doesn’t come, his wife will remain in the Khan’s court and be my imperial physician for life.”
Just as Ding Wu was about to speak again to clear himself, Third Madam continued: “Leave your entry and exit pass to the Khan’s court. From now on, unless summoned, you may not enter or leave this place.”
Third Madam suspected Ding Wu. Though she had no evidence and everything was speculation, she was the most noble woman in the Khan’s court. She didn’t need evidence. Trust without doubt, doubt without use—she couldn’t continue to let him freely enter and leave the Khan’s court while suspecting him.
This was the greatest crisis Ding Wu had faced since his “defection.” He removed the rhinoceros horn pass and presented it to Third Madam with both hands. “Words are useless. Your servant will prove his loyalty through actions.”
Third Madam pointed at Wei Caiwei with the rhinoceros horn. “What if I asked you to kill her to prove your innocence?”
Wei Caiwei’s fingers hidden in her sleeves were nearly twisted off from tension.
Ding Wu replied: “Your servant would not harm his sworn sister. Though when your servant suffered whipping and interrogation in the Embroidered Uniform Guard prison, I did resent her for not rescuing me in time, it was the Embroidered Uniform Guard who whipped me, not her. It wasn’t she who imprisoned my father for ten years. She has never done anything to harm me, nor anything that threatens the Khatun. No matter what, your servant would never hurt her.”
“Very good.” Third Madam nodded. “You truly are a sworn brother with feeling and righteousness. Since that’s the case, don’t go to the Privy Council anymore starting tomorrow.”
Third Madam cut him down blow by blow, stripping away all of Ding Wu’s official positions. Though beautiful as a celestial being, she also possessed thunderous methods.
Ding Wu was expelled from the Khan’s court, and Wei Caiwei was like sitting on pins and needles. The banquet was left with only two women.
Wei Caiwei thought about how to salvage the situation and said: “Now I’m no longer the powerless street doctor of the past. Imperial Noble Consort Li trusts me. Even without summons, I can enter the palace and move freely through the court. I cut the current Crown Prince’s hair myself. With my abilities, I could completely help my sworn brother restore his past status as a high official’s son. No matter how I persuaded him, he refused to agree to return with me, determined to stay in the Khan’s court and serve Third Madam.”
“But…” Wei Caiwei smiled mockingly, “Third Madam doesn’t trust his loyalty, believing that those not of our kind must have different hearts. She expelled him from the Khan’s court and stripped him of his official position based on groundless accusations. His devoted heart was ultimately misplaced! This is actually good—after a small test, my sworn brother should change from being devoted unto death for the Khatun to becoming truly disheartened. He should see his situation clearly. A Han person can never truly gain trust and has no future here with the Khatun.”
Third Madam’s face turned cold. “Are you mocking me for lacking tolerance? Don’t forget, you’re now my prisoner. Your life and death depend on my single thought.”
Wei Caiwei stood up, raised both hands high, shrugged her shoulders, and imitated the dance moves from “Sea Eagle Catches Swan” they had just seen. Like a great roc spreading its wings, she danced alone, spinning in place, her skirt expanding like a drum, like a spinning top that never stops.
Wei Caiwei’s sudden dance puzzled Third Madam, who wondered if she had been driven mad by the pressure. If Wang Daxia came to the Khan’s court and saw a madwoman, what would happen then…
Wei Caiwei touched the ground with her toes and stopped spinning abruptly, turning back with a smile: “I am indeed the Khatun’s prisoner, but isn’t the Khatun also a prisoner of the Khan’s court? Did the Khatun willingly marry her own grandfather? The Khatun and I are the same—both making the best of bitter circumstances. Since we can’t escape, we might as well make ourselves as comfortable as possible in our cages. But it’s nothing more than self-deception.”
“Insolent!” Third Madam angrily grabbed her cup, wanting to throw it at Wei Caiwei, but reason made her stop when she raised it halfway.
Third Madam’s hand holding the cup showed pale blue veins, nearly crushing the horn cup. Finally, she gently set down the horn cup. “I almost fell for your provocation. If you seek death, I won’t grant your wish.”
Wei Caiwei said: “I’m not seeking death. I’m seeking cooperation with the Khatun. I am a person of the Great Ming, and the Khatun belongs to the Khan’s court. Neither of us would betray our own countries for anyone. My sworn brother is the Khatun’s most capable person, yet when the Khatun suspected his loyalty, she abandoned him without hesitation. This shows that treason is the Khatun’s bottom line.”
“Though our two countries dislike each other, neither has the ability to destroy the other. The Embroidered Uniform Guard’s actions so far have only targeted the White Lotus Sect, without acting against the Khan’s court or harming the Khatun. Moreover, we’re both women, and there are some things that only women understand about women’s suffering.”
“There’s a common saying in the Central Plains: ‘How can one who serves with beauty last long?’ Even if An Da Khan will always be infatuated with the Khatun’s youth and beauty and forever cherish her, An Da Khan is already over sixty—how much longer can he live? Our old Emperor died last year. I know the grasslands have the custom of levirate marriage. In the future, the Khatun will be inherited like an object by the eldest heir who inherits the Khan position, becoming one of many wives and concubines of her stepson. That means after being forced to marry her own grandfather, the Khatun will marry her own uncle.”
Third Madam, hearing this, was once again filled with rage and the fear hidden in her heart. “Shut up!”
Having reached this point, facing the danger of complete failure for the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Wei Caiwei decided to go all out: “The Khatun’s eldest stepson, Xin Ai Huang Taiji, is already over fifty and reportedly indulges in wine and women, with poor health. Such a person cannot live long. So when the Khatun’s eldest stepson—that is, her eldest uncle—dies, the still young and beautiful Khatun will marry her own grandson, who is also her nephew, being passed around among men like an object, unable to control her own fate.”
Wei Caiwei slowly approached the furious Third Madam: “Men think levirate marriage can best protect family assets, keeping the wealth within the family, and never see problems with such marriage customs because they are the beneficiaries. But just because things have always been this way, does that make it right?”
“They never think about how the women who remarry to their own sons or even grandsons feel, never try to understand how terrifying and tragic it is to be treated like an inheritable object. But I know the Khatun is not willing to accept this, isn’t that right?”
Author’s Note:
A women’s alliance. If you want more, you can check the comments section of the previous chapter—it’s extremely exciting, and strange knowledge has increased again. Thanks to the little angels who threw landmines or irrigated nutrient solution during 2020-10-19 02:32:512020-10-19 19:45:34
Thanks to the little angels who threw landmines: Banxia, Sonia220, Yunsheng., Qingqiu 1 each;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated nutrient solution: kylie is my baby 40 bottles; Professor doesn’t know, zz 20 bottles each; Gentle little sister, Banxia, Moon bright stars sparse 10 bottles each; 47541317 6 bottles; Xia Xiabing ice 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for everyone’s support, I will continue to work hard!