Chapter 81: Chapter 81: A Big Deal with Immense Profit
The three of them—mother and daughters—knew this wasn’t a good time to talk. They were relieved to see that Xiao Wu was all right.
Ji Qingwu did not linger at the entrance for long.
After she left, Si Hai stared at the wutong tree before him, silent and unmoving.
A moment later, the door to the room opened. Someone emerged and walked toward the courtyard gate.
Si Hai turned to look and saw it was Ji Qingwu’s young maid, Lan Zhi. With a trembling hand, she held out a pale yellow porcelain box.
"My lady said the ointment inside works wonders on flesh wounds. She asks that you please use it, my lord."
Sanchuan was about to refuse, but Si Hai took it directly in his palm.
After the maid scurried away, he stuffed the porcelain box into Sanchuan’s robe and said, "This is what she should have done in the first place."
The whip marks covering his body were all because of her, after all.
Sanchuan warned him sternly, "How many times have I told you? If you do this again, those whips will be on your back soon enough."
Si Hai turned his head away resentfully and continued staring at the wutong tree.
Dinner at Wutong Garden was also served in her room.
Lan Zhi said, "Sister Chunhua, from Mrs. Qiao’s side, brought this over herself. She said they made your favorites: crispy pig ears, shredded pheasant with pickled greens, and milk-skin flatbreads."
Ji Qingwu opened the food box. The aroma was tempting, but on the bottom layer, there were no milk-skin flatbreads—only a few large, round, stiff-dough mantou.
She raised an eyebrow and broke open a mantou. Just as she expected, there was a "filling" inside.
Wrapped in oil-proof paper was a note, written in plum blossom small regular script, detailing what she had seen and heard at Cining Palace that day.
Mrs. Qiao had learned her daughter had been bullied. The more she thought about it after returning to Anju Garden, the angrier she became. She specifically sent word of Ji Changyan’s punishment to let her daughter vent some of her frustration.
After reading it, Ji Qingwu burned the note. She lowered her gaze, watching as the flames turned it to ash.
She found herself to be frighteningly cold-blooded, feeling not an ounce of pity for Ji Changyan.
’He deserved to die. Murdering an Imperial Censor is a major crime, a grave offense that could implicate the entire family.’
’Besides, he was the one who insulted me first, who gave me that aphrodisiac. The slightest mistake could have been fatal. No one’s life should be treated so cheaply.’
’A death like this is exactly what Ji Changyan deserved.’
Ji Qingwu stared at the flames for so long that her vision filled with a sea of orange-red. It was as if the fire had burned its way into her heart.
’But it wasn’t enough,’ she thought. ’As long as Prince Yong’s covetous desires remained, there would be endless trouble in the future.’
The tree wishes for calm, but the wind will not subside.
’Prince Yong is the Empress Dowager’s own son and the Emperor’s younger brother, but so what! I will sever the roots of this tree.’
*
The case of the murder of former imperial censor Yan Zongrang was closed within three days.
The perpetrators were none other than Ji Changyan and five of his men. All six confessed.
Ji Changyan remained imprisoned in the Imperial Prison. Rumor had it that his life was being sustained with potent restorative medicines. Those not in the know thought the Emperor was showing mercy outside the law, giving him special treatment because he was from the Empress Dowager’s maternal family.
However, the incident did not implicate the rest of the Ji Family; only Ji Changyan was prosecuted. This caused the officials of the Imperial Censorate to hold a great deal of resentment toward the Ji Family and the Empress Dowager.
Prince Yong called in sick for several consecutive days, claiming to be recuperating in his Prince Mansion.
During morning court, Duan Mingfeng was promoted by the Emperor from Vice Envoy to Chief Envoy of the Imperial City Department. Li Chengxun was also promoted one rank, but he had even greater news.
His marriage to Princess Qingyun was now on the agenda, with the Imperial Household and the Guanglu Temple jointly handling the arrangements for the Princess and Prince Consort’s grand wedding.
Meanwhile, Ji Qingwu’s confinement was also lifted.
That very afternoon, she hurried over to Duke Zhongyong’s Mansion.
"Eldest Sister, I’ve come to check your pulse for you!" Ji Qingwu had just entered Ninghua Hall when her cheerful voice carried into the inner room.
Ji Qingrong, who was leaning against the couch, quickly pushed Lu Juan away and hastily straightened her clothes and hair.
Chun Xing hadn’t mentioned that her eldest brother-in-law was home. By the time Ji Qingwu entered, the two had already separated, so nothing seemed amiss.
But perhaps because of her own recent experience with kissing, upon seeing her eldest sister’s flushed face and her red lips, glistening and slightly swollen, she knew exactly what the two of them had been doing.
Of the three people in the room, two of them felt guilty.
Ji Qingwu was caught, unsure whether to advance or retreat. She pursed her lips, not daring to look at them. ’The door was wide open, and in broad daylight, too. I really didn’t expect...’
In a spot her fifth sister couldn’t see, Ji Qingrong reached out and pinched Lu Juan.
Lu Juan merely raised his eyebrows, his expression relaxed and tinged with a hint of satisfaction.
He spoke up, "Xiao Wu is here. You two sisters can talk. I’ll head to the study to handle some business."
Seeing her eldest brother-in-law leave, Ji Qingwu instantly felt more at ease. She walked over and sat down on a red-lacquered round stool.
She asked, "Eldest Sister, how have you been feeling lately? Have you had any discomfort?"
Ji Qingrong smiled. "You’ve only just been released from your confinement, and the first person you visit is me. How could I possibly be unwell?"
Ji Qingwu leaned in, first taking her pulse. Then, based on the stage of her pregnancy and her physical constitution, she meticulously adjusted the prescription.
Then, she asked, seemingly offhandedly, "Eldest Sister, I remember you mentioned last time that you have a close friend who is also having difficulty conceiving and wanted me to see her?"
Ji Qingrong’s gaze froze. She had mentioned this in passing right after she became pregnant and hadn’t expected her fifth sister to remember it all this time.
But after the outrageous incident of Ji Changyan trying to deliver her to Prince Yong’s bed, it was difficult to bring up the matter again.
That close friend of hers...
Ji Qingwu’s eyes were clear as she asked, "Eldest Sister, I was so stifled these past few days. I have nothing to do right now, and medicine is a benevolent art. Helping those in need brings me joy as well."
"That dear friend of mine... you met her at the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet." Ji Qingrong studied her sister’s expression and said, "It’s Princess Yong, Tao Wanxin."
Tao Wanxin was the eldest legitimate daughter of an elder. She was proficient in the four arts—zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting—and her talent and grace were considered the finest among the women of Lin’an City.
But after marrying Prince Yong, she became a caged bird. No one ever heard her compose any more breathtaking verses.
Prince Yong spent his days carousing and debauching, and he already had more than twenty concubines in his mansion. Ji Qingrong could imagine what kind of life Tao Wanxin was living. What woman would enjoy sharing her husband with others?
Furthermore, although Tao Wanxin held the honored status of a Princess Consort, she had yet to give birth to a legitimate son. The Empress Dowager had long been displeased and had permitted a concubine to bear a child before the official wife.
Prince Yong’s Mansion already had a son by a concubine. The concubine who bore him held a position in the mansion that was by no means lower than that of the childless Princess Consort.
Ji Qingwu lowered her eyes, hiding the dark glint that flashed within them. She replied, "Princess Yong is a pitiful person, indeed."
Ji Qingrong sighed as well. "Xiao Wu, though I feel sorry for Wanyin, you are my own sister. You shouldn’t go to Prince Yong’s Mansion again."
"Eldest Sister, could you perhaps invite Princess Yong to meet somewhere else? Meeting outside should be fine."
Ji Qingrong thought for a moment. It wasn’t a bad compromise, so she agreed.
She immediately sent a maid to deliver an invitation card to Prince Yong’s Mansion, inviting Tao Wanxin to offer incense and pray at Hanshan Temple the next day.
As for this Princess Yong, what Ji Qingwu wanted to discuss with her was a "deal" that promised immense returns.
