Qingyi Pavilion
Ye Li sat quietly in her room, examining the bank notes recently delivered from Prince Li’s mansion. A cold smile flickered across her delicate face. So Prince Li and Ye Ying had been involved for over a year, and during this time, he had taken antiques worth seventeen thousand taels from Shende Hall without paying a single tael.
“Miss, this Prince Li is truly shameless!” Qingshuang stood behind Ye Li, fuming. Originally, Prince Li had been known throughout the capital as a handsome man, and Qingshuang had held some expectations for his future brother-in-law. Yet this blind fool had broken off the engagement with her miss, ruining her reputation. As if that wasn’t enough, he dared to take her miss’s possessions without payment – truly shameless!
Ye Li turned and handed the bank notes to Qingshuang, saying with amusement, “You shouldn’t speak such words. If someone overheard, I couldn’t protect you.” Qingshuang stuck out her tongue sheepishly, hunching her shoulders as she replied, “I know Miss would never abandon Qingshuang. Besides… who would overhear anything in our courtyard?” Qingyi Pavilion was the smallest and most remote courtyard in the entire Ye mansion, with barely any servants. Apart from a few rough-working maids, Miss only had her by her side. Compared to Ye Ying’s multitude of servants, her miss’s situation was so modest she didn’t even match up to a concubine’s daughter.
“Miss, why did you let Madam Wang off so easily today?” Remembering Madam Wang’s pale face and unsteady appearance, Qingshuang felt both satisfied and unsatisfied.
Ye Li smiled faintly, “Madam Wang is the mother of Noble Lady Zhao from the palace, and Fourth Sister is the future Princess Li. Do you think Grandmother and Father would side with me against her?”
After careful consideration, Qingshuang dejectedly lowered her head, muttering, “The Old Madam and Master are too biased.” Indeed, even though they made Madam Wang return several tens of thousands of taels, her miss hadn’t seen a single coin of it. Ye Li patted her and said with a smile, “Don’t worry, with Madam Wang’s tens of thousands of taels, at least I can take away all of Mother’s remaining dowry. Compared to Mother’s dowry, those tens of thousands don’t amount to much.”
Qingshuang nodded, feeling even less favorably toward the Ye family. The Ye family originally had weak foundations – if it weren’t for the support of the Madam’s dowry these years, how could they enjoy today’s glory? Yet look at how her miss had lived these years! Truly worse than wolves and dogs.
Worried her words might sadden her miss, Qingshuang quickly changed the subject, “Oh right, Miss, this morning Madam Ye mentioned that you have too few people by your side. Should we add a few more? It might not look good when you enter Prince Dingguo’s mansion in the future.”
Ye Li frowned slightly. She was well aware that she had few people around her. Previously, Ye Li had enjoyed peace and hadn’t cared much about not having people following her around. However, if she was to be married, it would indeed be a problem. She could disregard Madam Wang because she was confident Madam Wang couldn’t do anything to her, and she wouldn’t live in the Ye mansion forever. But after marrying into Prince Dingguo’s mansion, she couldn’t be so casual anymore. Rubbing her temples in thought, she said, “Later, go tell the steward that I need to select some maids for my courtyard.” Qingshuang nodded in agreement, “What about the elder female servants…”
“Don’t worry about that. A few days ago, Aunt mentioned she would send over Governess Lin and Governess Wei, who originally served Mother.” When Mother passed away, Ye Li had just regained her memories and fallen seriously ill. During that time, Madam Wang had taken advantage of the situation to stir up trouble and had beaten and driven out Nurse Su, Mother’s wet nurse, from the mansion. By the time Ye Li had recovered enough to learn of this, only Governess Lin and her wet nurse, Governess Wei, remained of Mother’s original servants. Ye Li naturally understood Madam Wang’s intentions and knew that in her condition at the time, she couldn’t protect these people, so using the excuse of Mother’s death potentially distressing Grandmother, she sent Governess Lin and Governess Wei back to the Gu family. Over these years, the mansion had been filled with Madam Wang’s people, and Ye Li, not wanting to deal with it, had preferred having fewer people around her.
Qingshuang’s eyes brightened as she smiled, “The Aunt thinks of everything.” Having arrived later, although she had never met Governess Lin and Governess Wei, she had occasionally heard Miss mention them. They had been the Madam’s confidants and would naturally be on Miss’s side.
Having resolved the issue of maids and governesses, Qingshuang happily began planning for Ye Li, “There are only two months until the wedding, and the dowry sent by the Madam and Old Madam probably isn’t even half as generous as Fourth Miss’s. We should have the shops send over their best items, and buy more from various places. Ah… and Miss’s wedding clothes and the fabrics for the dowry…”
Ye Li sat to the side, smiling as she watched Qingshuang excitedly making calculations, her thoughts drifting to distant places. In her previous life, she had never dreamed she would one day sit in a maiden’s chamber awaiting marriage like a proper young lady. Although she had long known about Prince Ding’s various defects, Ye Li hadn’t been too concerned. In this era, marriage was never something women could decide for themselves, and Ye Li had never held any expectations for love. Being able to spend a lifetime in peace and mutual respect would be a kind of happiness too. However… Prince Dingguo’s mansion… Thinking of Prince Dingguo’s transcendent status in Da Chu, she couldn’t help but furrow her brows.
“Third Miss, Concubine Zhao requests an audience,” a small maid respectfully announced from outside.
Ye Li was surprised by Concubine Zhao’s sudden visit but nodded, “Please show her in.”
Moments later, Concubine Zhao swayed in with her willow-like waist. She gave Ye Li a slight curtsy, “This servant pays respects to Third Miss.”
Ye Li set down the bracelet she had been playing with and smiled warmly, “Concubine Zhao, please rise. What brings you here at this hour?” She casually observed the alluring woman before her. Concubine Zhao had entered the mansion less than a year ago but had deeply won Minister Ye’s favor. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have dared to speak as she did at Old Madam’s place today. Ye Li noticed her wearing a peach-red dress with a plain silk ribbon at her waist, her hair simply styled in a side bun, with tasseled vermillion hairpins swaying gently by her face, every movement full of charm. No wonder she had gained Minister Ye’s exclusive favor so quickly after arriving. Whether compared to Madam Wang, who had borne two daughters and a son and was gradually losing her beauty, or even Ye Ying who was known as the first beauty, she possessed an extra measure of allure. It was only a pity she had come too late, as Madam Wang’s position in the mansion was already deeply rooted, and even more unfortunate was her lowly birth.
Concubine Zhao was an extremely clever woman, so she never dared underestimate this inconspicuous Third Miss. Aside from the Xu family behind Third Miss that everyone had to consider, this Third Miss herself had in mere days not only recovered all of the Madam’s dowry but also made Madam Wang suffer a heavy loss today. Thinking of Madam Wang’s appearance – so angry she could spit blood yet unable to act on it – Concubine Zhao felt a surge of satisfaction.
“This servant begs Third Miss to show me a way to survive,” Concubine Zhao knelt on the ground and pleaded softly.