Chapter 21 (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
Chapter Twenty-One
Lin Rong was so shocked today that she huddled in a corner, motionless, like a wooden doll.
Fortunately, Pei Zan knew she had nowhere to escape and did not continue to make things difficult for her.
The carriage traveled for a whole day, and Lin Rong dared not move her buttocks until they ached.
While Pei Zan was resting with his eyes closed, she carefully lifted the window and peeked out at the situation outside the car.
As darkness fell and night descended, towering pines and cypresses stretched as far as the eye could see. The cries of birds and beasts echoed through the mountains, sharp and terrifying. A sense of desolation welled up in Lin Rong's heart; they had clearly already left the city.
Lin Rong pondered how she should escape, but she couldn't ride a horse, and she couldn't rent a carriage or ferry, making it virtually impossible for her to escape Pei Zan.
But Lin Rong touched the small pouch in her arms, where she still had her last three taels of silver. With gold and silver on her, she could still escape if she got the chance.
Perhaps Lin Rong's kneading of the jacket was too distracting, Pei Zan opened his eyes in the dim light. His masculine aura was sharp. He slightly lifted his eyelids and quietly glanced at her.
After a long while, Pei Zan reached out to her, spreading his large palm: "Do you have any money on you? Take it out."
Upon seeing this, Lin Rong felt as if she had been struck by lightning.
She never imagined that a wealthy young master from a prominent family, or a high-ranking official with immense wealth, would ask a commoner like her for money.
Isn't this just thugs and scoundrels?!
Lin Rong had already witnessed Pei Zan's heinous act of killing people with a knife, so no matter how despicable his behavior was, she was no longer surprised.
Lin Rong covered her clothes, offering a slight resistance: "If I say I didn't..."
Pei Zan scoffed coldly: "Do you want me to search you? Hand it over honestly, and I might allow you to leave a coin to buy a bag of candy."
When Lin Rong thought about how Pei Zan had been so ruthless as to explore her private parts just to find out if she had menstruated, she no longer dared to gamble on Pei Zan's conscience.
Lin Rong felt a lump in her throat. Reluctantly, she reached into her pocket, took out two taels and nine mace, and handed them to Pei Zan.
Lin Rong was terrified of the murderous demon before her, but she knew that she had no money and that in the future, let alone escape, she would have difficulty even leaving the mansion.
Lin Rong bit her lip and made a futile struggle.
"Young Master, if I become your concubine, will the household not provide me with a monthly allowance?"
You know, even the concubine of the second branch of the Pei family receives a monthly allowance of two taels of silver. Surely the Grand Commander wouldn't be so stingy?
But this was the first time Pei Zan had kept a concubine, and he hadn't thought that far ahead.
Pei Zan seemed to find it amusing, looking at her with great interest: "How many do you want?"
After listening, Lin Rong suddenly felt no more back pain or leg soreness, and she even had more energy to speak. She sat up straight, cleared her throat, and glanced at him furtively.
“It’s not much.” Lin Rong discussed with Pei Zan, “The second wife of the Pei family, Aunt Zhou, receives two taels of silver a month, and she also receives gold and silver rewards and red envelopes during festivals… If the young master thinks it’s too much, one tael of silver is fine, or even five qian at the very least, would that be alright?”
When Lin Rong was a head maid in Yuchen Courtyard, she earned four qian of silver a month. She had never seen a lot of money, but she felt that now that she had become a concubine, her monthly salary should be increased.
Having more money makes it easier to plan an escape.
However, she still couldn't understand Pei Zan and was completely unaware of his wicked and evil nature.
Pei Zan listened for a while, then calmly declined, "No."
"What do you mean...nothing?" Lin Rong asked incredulously, wishing she had misheard.
Pei Zan's lips twitched slightly: "Every family has its own rules. The Governor's Mansion does not give concubines a monthly allowance."
Lin Rong's initial burst of energy vanished in an instant.
Pei Zan leaned lazily against the brocade couch, lightly tapping the low table next to it, which was used to place documents, with his fingertips. "Why are you thinking about money? Don't tell me you're planning to run away?"
Lin Rong shuddered and said timidly, "How could I... I was just thinking that if I had some money, it would be easier to smooth things over between the different courtyards in the mansion, and I also need to take care of the maids and servants in the mansion."
Lin Rong had been a servant, and she knew that even the unfavored concubines in the mansion had to bribe their way into the public kitchen if they wanted a hot meal.
Sometimes, Lin Rong would feel sorry for the old women and would rush to deliver their meals, just so they could have a hot meal.
Pei Zan didn't take it to heart: "You're overthinking it. Old Feng will take care of training your servants. There's no need for your family to worry about such a small matter."
Although Pei Zan said so, Lin Rong understood that how could a master possibly understand a servant?
She knew all too well the difficulties of being a concubine in a high-ranking family.
Take Aunt Zhou from the second wife, for example. She was once favored and honored, but after the second wife gave her a bowl of medicine that would prevent her from having children, she could no longer have any offspring.
As time went by, the second master found a new love, and she was immediately forgotten. Even when she wanted to eat crabs in the autumn, she had to ask Granny Zhao to pawn her hairpins in order to buy two. She lived a life worse than the maids in the outer courtyard.
Pei Zan is only willing to speak a few words to Lin Rong now because he has just won her over and she is still new to him. In two years, when Pei Zan's wife enters the household and more beautiful maids and concubines come to live with him, a country girl like Lin Rong will definitely be discarded like trash and thrown into some remote corner.
She might not even be able to afford a salted duck egg to go with her porridge.
Fallen out of favor and penniless, she was trapped and died in a grand mansion – this was the life of Lin Rong.
Lin Rong was overcome with grief, and her face showed a look of utter despair.
Pei Zan frowned slightly: "What are you afraid of? This mansion is so large, surely it won't starve you?"
Lin Rong dared not utter such discouraging words, as they sounded like she was trying to curry favor.
She was very pragmatic; she just wanted to save more money… Lin Rong asked unwillingly, “Will the young master give me a reward during holidays?”
Pei Zan fell silent at her question.
In the past, when others presented him with beautiful concubines of all shapes and sizes, they all claimed that these beauties had been trained and were proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, like fairies who did not eat the food of this world.
Where else would you find someone like Lin Rong, who immediately asks for money, as if afraid that the Governor's Mansion will mistreat her?
Pei Zan closed his eyes slightly: "What do you want? Forget about gold and silver, there's no such rule."
Lin Rong: "What about gold and silver hairpins? And fine clothes?"
Lin Rong didn't want to be so greedy, but she was forced into this situation by Pei Zan.
Pei Zan was not stupid; after a little thought, he understood her plan.
He sneered, "I should reward you."
Lin Rong's almond-shaped eyes lit up with joy: "Thank you so much, young master!"
"Don't be too happy yet." Pei Zan looked at her coldly. "The hairpin will be stamped with the emblem of the Governor's Mansion. Even if you pawn it or send it to a silver shop to have it melted down, no one will dare to accept it. As for the brocade and fine clothes, they will be made of the best materials that cannot be bought in the south, and your name will be sewn into the lining. Even if the shopkeeper of the clothing store is bold, he will not dare to deceive the officers of the Governor's Mansion and cover up your whereabouts."
Lin Rong felt a chill run down her spine. She finally understood the inescapable trap Pei Zan had set... She was penniless and only had the rewards she had received from the Pei family. Even if she fled to the ends of the earth, as long as she dared to exchange goods for money, Pei Zan would be able to discover her whereabouts.
Moreover, there are the commoner's appearance characteristics recorded on the travel permit, which Pei Zan can check at any time. With Pei Zan's extraordinary abilities, how could he be afraid of not finding a little runaway concubine?
Lin Rong has probably really fallen into this dangerous trap.
Her heart was filled with despair and despair, utterly hopeless. She was too weary to struggle any longer, nor would she bother with Pei Zan's pretense. Lin Rong slumped headfirst into the dark corner, becoming nothing more than a lifeless, breathing corpse.
Pei Zan glanced at her, his thin lips slightly pursed: "..."
In the end, he said nothing.
Author's Note: This is Monday's update~
My darlings, the update on Monday morning was for Tuesday, so the update on Wednesday will be at 11 pm, it will be a little late.
If you feel something is off about a chapter, please don't question it right away. Give me a few chapters to fill in, otherwise it will disrupt my rhythm. I really want to finish this book as perfectly as possible. Let's all be understanding. If it's really not to my liking, we can meet again sometime. Love you all, muah!
Then Pei Zan isn't a good person. Don't try to understand his actions by conventional standards; he just thinks it's fun for now... ( )
Our Rongrong is currently in a state of "what's the use of trying"—better to live a miserable life than die (?).
Red gem dropped!
I'm recommending a new pre-order novel by Dengdeng. The male lead is a true aloof beauty, and it's basically a story about a bad ex-wife seducing her ex-husband to get back together. *cough cough*
Three Years After the Divorce - by Caodeng Daren
Spoiled noblewoman x High-class beauty
Su Chan was born into a wealthy family and was spoiled and beautiful.
One day, while hunting in the mountains, she saw a minor official from the capital region. His arms were sunburned red as he put down the yellow register of household records and went to the fields to help poor households with their farming.
The minor official's name was Rong Yunqing. He came from a poor family and his home was bare. However, he was exceptionally beautiful, with delicate features and a fair complexion.
Su Chan, aroused by his beauty, deliberately used the excuse of "falling into the water and being harassed" to force him into marriage.
As a result, the Su family was disgraced and resented their son-in-law Rong Yunqing for being despicable and lowly, almost severing ties with Su Chan.
After marriage, Rong Yunqing, due to his low rank and lack of influence, coupled with his upright and inflexible nature, suffered from suppression by political factions and was sent to Shanyang as an official.
Although Su Chan was reluctant to leave her family, she had no choice but to accompany her husband to his new post.
Those years in Shanyang were a nightmare for Su Chan.
She only realized the hardship of marrying down after she lost her life of luxury.
Rong Yunqing's salary was meager, and although he tried his best to support his wife, he still could not satisfy Su Chan.
Su Chan had had enough of wearing the same few hairpins over and over again, and only changing her clothes once every six months. After three years of marriage, she also seemed to have grown tired of Rong Yunqing's handsome face.
"I want to go back to my parents' home, and I want a divorce from you."
When Su Chan brought up the matter, Rong Yunqing was only slightly taken aback before softly agreeing.
-
Three years after the divorce, Su Chan returned to her pampered and wealthy life, and had long forgotten about Rong Yunqing.
Until one day, during a power struggle within the imperial court, the Su family made the wrong bet, resulting in the entire clan suffering misfortune and being demoted to commoners.
Su Chan fell into the dust; not only were her hair ornaments and fine clothes confiscated, but even her house was seized by the officials.
The Su family members went their separate ways, leaving Su Chan homeless. Finally, she thought of her ex-husband, Rong Yunqing, who held a high-ranking position.
That night, Su Chan put on the plum blossom hairpin that her ex-husband had carved himself, and arrived at the door with a charming smile.
"Rong Yunqing, I have nowhere to go... Can I stay at your house for a while?"
Rong Yunqing stood tall and elegant, and quietly glanced at his ex-wife.
As always, he pondered for a moment, then replied calmly, "Okay."
[Reading Guide]
The female lead is bad, and the male lead is a virgin.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
