Chapter 61 Chapter 61 It’s better than letting him know that she is a killer...
When I thought of this, I thought of the daylight.
But the Duke has not returned yet.
Jasmine had her meal alone, washed up, and went to bed, and she never came back.
The Duke hadn't had much to do. His duties were either at court or at the garrison. His Majesty, mindful of his hard work defending the border for over a decade, hadn't given him much to do since his return.
He goes to the same place every day, and only occasionally helps His Majesty with some shameful tasks.
So he had nowhere to go, but he didn't want to go back to the Duke's Mansion to face his concubine's dazzling smile, so he could only wander around the street with his horse.
It was the middle of the night and only one pub had its lights on, with only one customer inside, drinking with his back to the door.
The Duke tied up his horse and stepped inside.
From under a table next to the guest, he called out, "Boss, bring two jars of wine."
The boss was exhausted, as he hadn't sent one customer away when another came. But since the customer had come to his door, he couldn't afford to offend him, so he had to put on a shy smile and offer him wine.
"Enjoy your meal, sir."
The Duke nodded, and when the boss disappeared, the customer opposite happened to turn his face towards him.
The two looked at each other.
"Master?"
"Chun Li?"
The two looked at each other in silence, feeling a little awkward.
His grandfather was here, how could he drink alone? Chunli had no choice but to stand up, swaying a bit before walking over to sit next to his grandfather.
The Duke simply wanted to drink alone, but a trusted subordinate had something he couldn't help but ask. So, he asked, "Why are you drinking alone here? What's going on?"
How could Chunli dare to speak out his true feelings? The general would surely persuade him in righteous words that a good man should not be so concerned about matters between men and women, but should put the greater cause first.
After a long pause, Chun Li replied, "My family has arranged another marriage for me, and I'm worried I won't be able to accompany the general to guard the border."
The Duke patted his shoulder soothingly: "It's okay. If you leave a son or daughter, I will help you persuade your family."
"Thank you, sir. By the way, sir, why are you here at this time? Wouldn't your aunt be worried if you didn't go back?"
The Duke was silent for a moment. Is Auntie worried about him?
Indeed, the aunt always showed that she cared about him. She would wait at the gate every day and make shoes and socks for him.
But now, he had to admit that this was just his aunt pretending.
How could he, a dignified Duke and a general guarding the border, say such words to express his anger to a concubine?
The Duke said, "Your Majesty has arranged something, and I couldn't think of a suitable solution, so I came out for a walk."
Chunli: "What a coincidence."
"Um."
The two of them stopped talking and just lowered their heads to drink.
Chunli: Shancha, what should I do with you? What do I have to do to get you to agree to my marriage? For you, I've rejected marriage proposals time and time again. For you, I'm even willing to fight my family. Why won't you trust me?
A beautiful face with a charming smile appeared in the swaying wine in the glass, but when the beautiful woman looked at him, she immediately became cold and distant.
Chunli didn't dare to look anymore, he raised his head and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.
The Duke looked at the wine cup and drank it in one gulp.
"The imperial concubine said that she has me in her heart and loves me, so she won't allow other women to get close to me. It seems that your concubine doesn't have you in her heart."
Your aunt doesn't have you in her heart.
She was just pretending.
Pretending to deceive the Duke.
The Duke didn't understand why he became so sad.
Duke: "Stubborn, I've long seen through your hypocrisy. But I've always been prepared to accept you as you are. Why do I feel even more sad now?"
How can I let you know? Should I let you know at all?
You'll definitely laugh at me when you find out. You're such a wicked person.
...
Hazy and drowsy, Jasmine heard heavy breathing and the strong smell of alcohol. She woke up with a start and saw a familiar figure standing by the bed. She patted her chest again.
"Master, why did you come back so late? I have been waiting for you for a long time. Are you hungry? I will ask someone to bring you food right away."
The aunt got out of bed, but was pulled back onto the bed by her grandfather.
"Place it."
Jasmine thought he was just sleeping. After all, there were still two hours left before the master had to go to court.
Who knew it would never stop.
Mainly it stinks!
Jasmine was reminded of a long-lost scene. She tilted her head.
The Duke was disappointed and stared at his concubine in a daze.
Jasmine felt something, and despite the discomfort, she hugged her grandfather's neck and offered herself to him.
The Duke gave her a gentle push, and the concubine rolled directly onto the inner bed. The Duke also turned over and lay flat on the bed.
"Go to sleep."
Jasmine felt that her master was acting strangely today. Feeling uneasy, she groped her way over and asked, "Does this servant dislike you, Master?"
"Did I ever mention the word dislike?"
Jasmine's heart skipped a beat. Oh no, she had let the cat out of the bag.
"I was wrong. But I swear, I really don't dislike you." Jasmine knew that if this problem was not solved today, it would become an obstacle to communication between her and her master in the future.
So she said frankly, "It's because I was bullied in the past. My parents wanted to marry me off to a widower and a deadbeat in the village, and whoever offered the highest bride price would marry her. My father was cruel and accepted both families, and then forced me to give my body to them. They sneaked into my bed in the middle of the night. Since then, I've been afraid of the smell of alcohol and the sound of heavy breathing."
My aunt's voice became increasingly shrill and confused.
The Duke had never heard her mention this before, and was startled when he heard it suddenly. Then he reacted and hugged his concubine in his arms.
"It's the same with me. No matter how hard I push, I can't get away. No matter how hard I try, I can't escape."
"It's okay, I'm here!"
The concubine was struggling. The Duke quickly stripped off his dirty clothes. He raised his arm and sniffed himself.
The aunt curled up into a ball, so he simply tied her up with a quilt and hugged her: "It's okay, I'm here to protect you!"
Jasmine had never dared to cry before, but now that she had finally spoken it out, she burst into tears.
She cried and said, "I'm afraid. I'm afraid that Master will despise me and drive me away. That's why I dare not say it. I have never dared to say it..."
"I will never dislike stubborn people."
He doesn't mind.
Jasmine leaned in his arms, tears streaming down her face, but she couldn't help but curl her lips.
She couldn't escape, being a slut was better than him knowing that she was a murderer.
The Duke didn't say anything else, but just hugged his concubine tightly with his strong arms.
Neither of them noticed that there were two people standing at the door not long ago.
The two new concubines, who were dressed exquisitely and planned to come early to serve the Duke, never expected to hear a shocking secret.
How could the two dare to stay any longer? They looked at each other and left on tiptoe.
The Duke carried his aunt to take a bath. In the past, his aunt would rub his back, but this time he helped her wash her hair and body.
His technique was clumsy and his palms were a little stiff, but his movements were very gentle.
The Duke couldn't think of anything else at the moment. He just focused on helping his aunt finish washing. He wanted to carry his aunt to bed, but she refused.
The Duke had no choice but to take his bath next to his concubine. The tub was not small, but his concubine insisted on squeezing him in.
The Duke recalled His Majesty's words: "Your concubine has no feelings for the Duke."
Looking at his aunt clinging to him, he felt that what His Majesty said might not be true.
The Duke finally understood why his concubine was always frightened. It turned out to be because of this.
All girls in this world care about their chastity, so it is normal for the aunt to be afraid that he will dislike her.
Before leaving, the Duke whispered firmly in his concubine's ear, "Everyone cares, but I don't. Jian'er is always the best."
Jasmine nodded happily, reluctantly letting go of her grandfather's hand.
After getting up, Jasmine took the two concubines to tour the entire Duke's Mansion, thinking that the old lady had introduced them to the people in the mansion, but she heard them say that no one had done so.
Jasmine had no choice but to introduce them to the two of them as they walked, starting from the main room and continuing to the fourth room, including the kitchen and the doorman.
Jasmine realized later that the two concubines were looking at her with a strange look. Compared to their cautious and careful manner yesterday, they were a bit disrespectful today.
Jasmine didn't think much about it and just assumed that they were familiar with her.
The eldest and fourth young ladies' wives gave the two concubines a gift before they entered the house. Jasmine thought it would be bad for her not to give one.
He counted the things in the treasure box and closed it with a "click".
She decided to go out and buy it with Shancha.
Then, by chance, I met He Congde.
Jasmine soon realized that it was not a chance encounter, but He Congde had heard about the Duke's two new concubines and was deliberately waiting for her.
Jasmine was so frightened that she looked around. Even though she didn't notice anyone staring at her, she still didn't want to pay attention to him. She said, "You don't want to wear your official robes anymore, right?"
Then he lowered his head and walked away.
After finally catching up with her, how could He Congde give up? He chased her all the way.
Jasmine knew this wasn't the way to go. She quickly walked to a secluded path, circled back and forth twice, and only stopped after confirming it was safe.
"If you have something to say, say it quickly."
He Congde: "At the court meeting today, I heard someone congratulating Duke Yan on his new concubine. Don't worry, he's not the best match for you. Whether he takes a wife or a concubine in the future has nothing to do with you. Baixiang, just remember that one day, Brother Congde will come and take you out."
He was handsome and affectionate, and he was also an official. Which young lady wouldn't be confused by him? Jasmine was filled with emotion.
But when she thought of the other face, she immediately sobered up: "I'm really good, I'm not lying to you. You know me, I'm not that easy to be bullied. You really don't need to worry about me."
He Congde didn't say anything, but Jasmine could tell from his stern face that he probably didn't hear her.
Knowing it was useless, Jasmine didn't intend to say anything more. She just asked, "I was wearing a veil, how did you recognize me?"
And he recognized her instantly. Jasmine saw him standing on the street and was about to walk past him as if no one was around, but he stopped her and called her "Bai Xiang." He Congde: "I didn't recognize you last time. So I engraved your figure and the way you walked in my heart."
Jasmine was speechless. She had thought that if the veil was too light, she could just cover it with another layer. But right now, she couldn't possibly cut off her own legs.
Jasmine asked again, "How did you know I would go out today?"
She herself didn't know about it yesterday, and only thought of it early this morning, on a whim.
Jasmine then asked, "By the way, aren't you very busy? How did you find time to come look for me?"
He Congde: "I didn't know you were going out today. I just wanted to see you. I heard that you always go to Concubine Liang's clothing store, so I waited. I was lucky, I waited for two hours and finally saw you. Today, I heard about the Duke taking a concubine, so I asked my boss for leave."
He really cares about her. Jasmine counted on her fingers, and He Congde must be one of the people in this world who cares about her.
Jasmine was in a very complicated mood.
He then added, "Baixiang, don't worry, Brother Congde will work hard. In the future, you can also visit Concubine Liang's clothing store. You can spend as much time as you want, and Brother Congde will accompany you."
...
Jasmine treated them equally and gave a hairpin to each of Aunt Fu and Aunt Xu.
The hairpin was cheap, but it was from Concubine Liang's clothing store. It was packed in a box and looked very stylish.
The two concubines thanked her, but they were not polite. They were all concubines, and they were ladies from aristocratic families, while Jasmine was just a country girl and a slut. What qualifications did she have to accept their gifts?
After seeing that there were only ordinary beads in the box, they stopped pretending.
Jasmine pretended not to notice the disdain in their eyes and continued to instruct them diligently, "...The Duke likes gentle, obedient, and understanding women. Even if you normally like to act naughty, you have to act like one."
Although the two looked down on her, she was, after all, an elder by the Duke's side. They had indeed heard what the Duke had said the other day when he was surrounded by women on the road.
The two of them confirmed that Auntie had not lied and took it to heart.
Aunt Xu asked, "Auntie, do you know when the Duke will invite us to his bed?"
Jasmine was embarrassed: "Master didn't say anything. Don't worry, I will find a chance to remind you."
Both concubines snorted inwardly. Did they think they didn't know? The Duke had already said that the date of the emperor's visit to the emperor would be decided by the concubines. Was this a deliberate act by the slut?
Jasmine did it on purpose.
Jasmine knew that the two of them had gone to see the old lady. The old lady had asked the Duke this morning when he would consummate the marriage, and the Duke said that his concubine had chosen an auspicious day, so it would probably be in a few days.
The two of them were in no mood to deal with Jasmine anymore, so they left with the excuse of going to pay their respects to the old lady.
Jasmine nodded naturally.
evening.
Jasmine and the Duke had dinner together as usual.
It's already the third day! The two concubines didn't expect the whore to ignore them so blatantly. And the Duke didn't even ask a single question.
What do they think of them? They are all concubines, why should they live in the main courtyard, sleep and eat with the Duke, and be neglected?
The two concubines could no longer bear it. They decided not to endure it anymore!
They rushed to the main courtyard together and clashed again. If they succeeded, who would be the first to succeed?
After a long stalemate, Aunt Xu suggested, "How about we go together?"
Aunt Fu blinked and nodded in agreement.
Before they came, they had both read a lot of the best books. To be on the safe side, the family even paid a high price to hire a brothel madam to teach them.
The madam also said that in a brothel, it was not a big deal for several girls to serve one man.
Jasmine hung her master's clothes on her arm. When she heard the noise outside, she said to her master, "I'll go check it out. I'll be back soon."
The Duke nodded, untied his belt, and stepped into the water.
Jasmine saw the two concubines and asked in surprise, "Why are you two here?"
Aunt Xu sneered, "Of course Aunt Jasmine doesn't want us to come."
Aunt Fu glanced at the men's clothes in her hands and asked, "Is the Duke bathing?"
Jasmine nodded to Aunt Fu: "Yes, Master is taking a bath."
Aunt Xu: "If Aunt is busy, you can let us serve the Duke."
Jasmine looked embarrassed: "I'm afraid the Duke will be unhappy."
"How did you know that the Duke would definitely be unhappy? Or did you just think so?" Aunt Xu said sarcastically.
Jasmine didn't say anything.
Aunt Fu suggested: "How about we help Aunt Fu serve Master tonight?"
Jasmine's face was filled with anger: "You don't mind the dirtiness, but I do."
It was not known whether she was angry or embarrassed, but Jasmine blushed, stomped her feet, threw her clothes into the arms of the two men, and ran away.
The two of them didn't expect her to react so strongly, but they were happy for it.
The Duke thought it was the concubine. But he immediately realized something was wrong. The concubine used to rub his back with a lot of force, but now it was very gentle, and she used more than one pair of hands.
The Duke turned his head suddenly and saw his two new concubines staring at him with murderous eyes.
"Why are you here?"
Aunt Fu was only good at talking, having never seen a man's bare chest in real life. She looked down at the Duke's muscular chest into the swaying water, blushing and saying, "I am here to serve you, Master."
Aunt Xu was also trembling with fear, and said with a blushing face, "Tonight... let the two of us serve you together."
After these words were spoken, the Duke's expression, which had originally been one of surprise, turned gloomy: "Why do I need you two?"
It has come to this. The two looked at each other, knowing that they could not retreat.
"The Duke only has Aunt Jasmine, and I'm afraid she has never experienced this. The Duke will like it." Aunt Fu said as she untied her belt and took off her clothes.
When Aunt Xu saw Aunt Fu, she knew that she could not fall behind, so she also took off her already thin clothes and skirt.
The Duke's face was gloomier than ever. It was only slightly red from the hot water, but the two concubines didn't take it to heart.
The two were about to stretch their arms to reach the man in the bathtub, but the next moment their hands were handcuffed behind their backs.
Continuous screams were heard in the dormitory.
The next moment, the servants looked towards the main courtyard and saw that the door of the main courtyard bedroom was opened, and two disheveled concubines were pushed out of the door. They could not stand steadily and sat down on the ground.
And then the door was closed again.
From inside the door came the Duke's angry voice: "Where's the concubine? Call her in!"
Everyone understood that the concubine the Duke was calling was of course Aunt Jasmine.
There was no need to call out, as Jasmine was waiting in the small room nearby. She looked at the two concubines with great sympathy, then went back into the bedroom.
Because Jasmine came too fast and the Duke was too angry, he didn't even have time to change the cloak he was casually wearing.
Empty crotch, bare feet.
Jasmine got him clean clothes to change without saying a word.
After helping her master change his clothes, she finally explained, "Just now, I was frightened by what the two concubines said, so I ran away. Why is the master angry?"
The Duke did not answer her, but asked, "What did they say?"
The concubine's cheeks flushed, she pursed her lips, and looked at the floor. Finally, she whispered something in the Duke's ear.
After she finished speaking, my aunt's face turned even redder.
The Duke was of course even more enraged. He slammed his palm on the table, flung open the door, and shouted at the two, "Shameless things! You are not ladies from aristocratic families, you are worse than brothels!"
The two concubines were kneeling in the corridor, not daring to leave. Now they were scolded and their faces turned pale with fear.
The Duke was a general who had come down from the border defense. He had thrown them out without hesitation just now, and he could chop them down now.
The two men were so frightened that they kowtowed and cried for mercy.
"I don't dare anymore! Lord, please spare my life!"
"I know I was wrong, please forgive me, my lord!"
"Give him twenty strokes of the cane and return him to the old lady."
Others don’t understand how the two concubines angered the Duke, but the old lady, who has had a mother-son relationship with the Duke for more than 20 years, understands.
As soon as I heard about the good things the two concubines had done, I immediately knew what was going on.
The old lady almost fainted from anger.
"I agreed to let you into the mansion, not to let you do whatever you want and embarrass me! Look at what you have done!"
The two concubines were beaten so badly that they couldn't even kneel up. They could only lie on the ground wailing and enduring the pain, calling for help from the old lady.
The old lady really didn't want to care about them. But if someone died in the Duke's Mansion, the Xu family would probably come to make trouble.
The old lady waved her hand. Nanny Qian understood what she meant and called four maids to drag the two away. She then said to one of her trusted maids, "Please ask the palace doctor to take a look at them. They don't need to use strong medicine. As long as they are still breathing, it will be fine."
The trusted maid took the order and left.
Nanny Qian turned back to comfort the old lady, "Calm down. There's no need to ruin your health for these two fools. The Duke didn't come in person, but only said to hand them over to your wife. I'm sure he doesn't blame you."
"How can I not blame him? He beat someone up. He didn't hit those two bastards, he hit me in the face!"
Nanny Qian stroked the old lady's back, "You must not be angry with the Duke. This time, please forgive me for speaking my mind, but it's these two who are wrong. The Duke has always been a man of rules and regulations, and has followed them for so many years. He only started having sex recently after getting a concubine. Even then, he wasn't greedy for pleasure and never neglected his duties. But these two are so good, they just pounced on him and asked him to serve them together. What kind of a man with such ambition would do such a ridiculous thing! If I really let him be seduced, it would be a disaster for the Duke's Mansion, and I would cry. What do you think?"
"Hmph." The old lady snorted and turned her head away without saying anything.
But Nanny Qian knew that the old lady had heard it.
After a moment, the old lady said again, "Tell me, what should I do with these two people? I can't kill them, and I can't send them back."
Nanny Qian thought hard, and after a while she said, "Why don't you just let the old lady stop interfering? If they want to stay in the mansion, we'll have enough to eat. If they want to leave, let them go. They have the ability to go find the Duke on their own. If they can't do anything, then there's nothing we can do. Madam, you've already done what you promised them. It was the two concubines who offended the Duke, and there's nothing you can do about it. If Xu asks about it, just tell her so."
The old lady was worried: "But, I'm afraid my brothers will blame me for not doing my best."
Madam Qian: "I followed Madam from the Xu family. I understand this all too well. Your relationship with the Xu family is already strained, and you haven't been in touch for years. How can you ease it by agreeing to send two concubines into your family? To put it bluntly, even if Madam allows the two concubines to give birth to the Duke's eldest son, they may not be satisfied. What will Madam do then?"
The old lady felt wronged: "But they are the only ones I have right now."
Madam Qian: "Madam, you are terribly wrong! You have the Duke, and the Fourth Master will be able to come out in a few years. I know you feel that the Duke has alienated you, but if the Duke was really that kind of person, why would he agree to let you keep the two concubines? In short, you and the Duke are family. Only the Duke respects you."
Slowly, the old lady calmed down. "You're right."
After a while, the old lady sighed again: "Why did the Xu family choose to send these two fools? Everyone in Qi State knows who the Duke is. How could they make such a mistake? It's outrageous!"
She was too excited just now, but now that she has calmed down, the old lady remembers that something is wrong.
"Why did the concubine abandon the Duke and run away? She doesn't look like a heartless person. Find someone to ask those two idiots."
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