Chapter Ninety-Eight: Unyielding and Unbreakable
I feel this is a bit wordy; I'll have to revise it tonight.
As soon as Baozhen and the Fourth Miss left, Ruan Bi yawned for a long time and then slid back into bed. Xiuzhi helped her tuck the blanket in, then lowered the bed curtains and quietly left the bedroom. Xiaoju was leaning against the door making a knot when she saw her come out and asked in surprise, "Miss, you're asleep again?"
Xiuzhi nodded and picked up the embroidery frame on the table.
Xiao Ju thought for a moment, then leaned closer and said, "Sister Xiuzhi, could it be that the girl was washed away by something dirty?"
Xiuzhi glared at her and said, "Don't talk nonsense, the girl is just tired."
Just then, Hanxing lifted the curtain and came in, exclaiming, "This is terrible, this is terrible!"
Xiuzhi quickly put her finger to her lips and shushed her, scolding, "The girl is sleeping inside, what are you yelling about? If you wake her up, I'll skin you alive."
Hanxing stuck out her tongue and lowered her voice, saying, "This is terrible. Just now when I passed by the kitchen, I saw Baoxiang and Baoyue talking furtively in the First Madam's room. I was curious, so I hid and eavesdropped. Do you know what I heard?"
Xiaoju gave her a push and said, "Tch, why are you keeping me in suspense? Just tell me already."
“I heard Baoxiang tell Baoyue to watch the medicine stove carefully, so it doesn’t get ruined or anyone might take it by mistake. This is medicine to help with conception; if it gets mixed up with the medicine for the Old Madam and Fifth Miss, it will be a disaster.” Xiuzhi was slightly taken aback, then suddenly realized what she meant, and a chill ran down her spine. “How can this be? She’s already five months pregnant; it could be life-threatening.”
"Yes, that was terrifying," Han Xing said, patting his chest, still shaken.
A soft cough suddenly came from the inner room. Xiuzhi quickly put down her embroidery frame, went into the inner room, and asked in a low voice through the curtain, "Miss, are you awake?"
From inside the tightly drawn curtains, Ruan Bi let out a soft "hmm," followed by, "Tell Han Xing not to spread what happened earlier."
In case any trouble arises in the future, it could easily be pinned on her. "Did you hear everything just now, young lady?"
Then a soft "hmm" was heard again.
Xiuzhi hesitated for a moment before saying, "Miss, the old lady's illness is such a big deal, the First Madam definitely didn't tell her..." Inside the tent, Ruan Bi stared blankly at the blue tent ceiling. She understood Xiuzhi's meaning, and she also believed that the First Madam hadn't informed the old lady. However, even if she had, the old lady would at most just say "Amitabha" with a face full of reluctance, and things would still turn out the same way.
"Xiuzhi, we can't handle this."
The eldest son and grandson are the heirs of the family, and naturally they should marry a lady from a distinguished family of similar standing. It's not uncommon for a concubine to give birth to the eldest son before a formal marriage, but it's rare in prominent families. If word gets out, it will make people doubt the Ruan family's precepts. Ruan Jiaxuan is not yet engaged; if he really gives birth to the eldest son first, it will be difficult to find a good marriage later.
In this fierce battle between the First Madam and the Second Madam, the former, though possessing an initial advantage, was no match for the latter in terms of political maneuvering. Her relentless pressure, step by step, gradually destroyed Ruan Jiaxuan—destroying him meant destroying the First Madam's future position. However, Ruan Bi couldn't understand why, since the Second Madam had no son, even if she destroyed Ruan Jiaxuan, the position of head mistress wouldn't be hers. But let them worry about their affairs; she couldn't manage them, nor did she want to. She turned over and closed her eyes again. She was so sleepy; she had never been so sleepy before, as if every pore was yearning for sleep.
Just as she was drifting off to sleep, she heard faint voices outside, and then felt Xiuzhi nudging her. "Miss, wake up quickly, Master Ziying is here."
Wasn't she in seclusion? Ruan Bi opened her eyes in surprise, her sleepiness instantly vanishing.
Xiuzhi deftly pulled up the bed curtains, helped her sit up against the headboard, and then took a comb to tidy her hair. Only then did she go to the outer room to invite Master Ziying in. With a cold face and a slight distance, she looked at Ruan Bi expressionlessly for a moment before a mocking smile appeared on her lips. "Is this the result you wanted?" she said.
Ruan Bi lowered her head and remained silent.
After a while, Master Ziying said, "Just now, the Empress Dowager summoned me to the palace and scolded me, saying that I had failed to teach properly and had allowed my disciples to be vain, opportunistic, and seducing members of the imperial family..." Upon hearing the word "seducing," Ruan Bi raised her eyelids, a hint of anger flashing in her eyes.
"You're angry? What right do you have to be angry? You're just a commoner, fortunate enough to be born into a scholarly family and enjoy this wealth and honor. You should know that this wealth and honor was bestowed by the imperial family; if she wanted it back, it would be a matter of minutes." He paused, then continued sarcastically, "I just went to see your old lady. What cold and flu? It's clearly just a seizure."
Ruan Bi slowly lowered her eyes again. Yes, the old lady had suffered a severe shock. She stood in the wind for an hour before the Empress Dowager invited her inside to speak. The Empress Dowager only asked her one question: "Ruan Liu Shi, I heard that you want to make a member of the imperial clan a concubine?" The old lady immediately kowtowed and admitted her mistake. After leaving the palace, she fainted in the carriage. "You once asked me what kind of person the Empress Dowager was, and I told you. She was only a Consort Rui, yet one of her sons became Emperor, and another commanded the Xingping Army. You can imagine what kind of person she was. The late Emperor had seven sons. The eldest prince, born to the Empress, was raised as the heir apparent from a young age, and his talent and ability were comparable to the third prince. It's normal that he was a bit of a womanizer in his youth. All the civil and military officials believed he would surely inherit the throne, but unexpectedly, when he was twenty and married, he was the only one not made crown prince. At that time, the third prince was only fifteen, and the sixth prince was only nine. Both were still developing their power; how could they possibly prevent the late Emperor from making the eldest prince crown prince? Whose scheme was it? You're so clever, can't you figure it out?"
Ruan Bi walked away with her eyes downcast and remained silent.
“I warned you long ago, but you wouldn’t listen. Now look at what you’ve gained? Fortunately, she showed you mercy and didn’t kill you. You should know better and give up this ambition to climb the social ladder.”
Upon hearing "Give up this ambition to climb the social ladder," Ruan Bi felt as if a dull saw was cutting into her heart, causing her unbearable pain and bringing tears to her eyes.
Having said these words, Master Ziying's anger subsided considerably. Seeing her sitting dejectedly, her face pale and her eyes glistening with tears, his heart softened. He recalled many years ago, when he himself was this age, perhaps naive and foolish, falling in love with General Zhao, only to end up as a dependent of the Daoist sect. His heart softened, and his tone softened as well. He sighed and said, "Silly girl, I've said it before, it's better not to meet someone of such a vastly different social standing."
Ruan Bi covered her eyes with her hands, her shoulders trembling.
Master Ziying stood silently for a while, sighed, and turned to leave.
As soon as she left, Ruan Bi pulled the blanket over her head.
Xiuzhi stood by the bed, watching the quilt tremble, her eyes slightly moist. After a while, seeing that the quilt had stopped trembling, she took a new quilt from the trunk, replaced the old one, and was about to take it outside to tell Hanxing and Xiaoju to unpack it when she suddenly heard Ruanbi say, "Xiuzhi, am I very stupid?"
Xiuzhi thought for a moment and said, "Miss, don't think too much. Take a nap first. Princess Jingyi will be coming over at noon." After a while, a soft "Mmm" came from under the covers.
Just after noon, Gu Jingyi arrived, carrying a snowball in her arms, followed by seven or eight maids and servants. One of the maids carried a black lacquered wooden birdcage containing a goose with green feathers and red edges. The parrot had its eyes closed, its head resting on its back, and its body curled up, looking as if it were asleep.
Gu Jingyi sat down on the edge of the bed, looked Ruan Bi up and down, and asked, "Fifth Sister, are you feeling better? My grandmother originally wanted to come see you, but Master Ziying persuaded her otherwise, saying that as an elder, she was a respected person and that it would be bad for your fortune if she came to see you in person." "Much better, I'll rest for a few more days and I'll be fine," Ruan Bi said. "My master is right. I'm just a junior, and it's not a serious illness. How could I possibly trouble the Princess? I'll go to the Princess's residence to express my gratitude when I'm better."
Gu Jingyi hummed in agreement and then fell silent.
Seeing that she was not as lively as usual and seemed rather listless, Ruan Bi couldn't help but be curious and asked her carefully, "What's wrong, little sister? Are you feeling unwell?"
Gu Jingyi shook her head and said, "I'm feeling uncomfortable." Seeing her confusion, she added, "The Empress Dowager's bestowal of a marriage upon my cousin was really like bringing up a sore spot." Xiuzhi, standing to the side, was so angry that she covered her mouth.
Ruan Bi's eyes flickered, and she quickly lowered her eyelids.
An old nanny from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion coughed lightly and then winked at Gu Jingyi.
Gu Jingyi realized she had been impolite and said sullenly, "Let's not talk about this anymore, Fifth Sister. I heard you sang a song called 'Xin' in the palace with strange lyrics and melody, but it was very beautiful. Is that true?"
Ruan Bi nodded.
"Could you sing it for me?"
The old nanny next to her coughed lightly again, and Gu Jingyi then remembered that Ruan Bi was still ill, and smiled awkwardly.
"I'll sing it for my sister another day when I'm better."
"Okay, okay, it's a deal." Gu Jingyi immediately beamed with joy.
Looking at her smiling face, Ruan Bi thought enviously, "She's still just a child, her emotions are so changeable."
The old nanny said softly, "Princess, where are the gifts you brought?"
Gu Jingyi exclaimed "Ah!" and said, "I almost forgot." She then gestured to the maid carrying the parrot.
The maidservant tactfully stepped forward.
"Fifth sister, what do you think of this parrot?"
"Very good."
“This is a gift from my brother Xiaobai. He said you get bored lying in bed all day, so he gave you a parrot to keep you company,” Jing Jingyi said, patting the birdcage. “Xiaocui, hurry up and say something!” The parrot was woken up by the noise, flapping its wings blankly, and then squawked loudly, “Jingyi is a big idiot.”
The servants around him covered their mouths and laughed.
Gu Jingyi's cheeks flushed red as she patted the birdcage and said, "Not that line, you silly bird."
The parrot squawked loudly again: "Brother Little White is a big bad guy."
Gu Jingyi shook her head repeatedly: "No, no, Brother Xiaobai taught you last night."
The parrot tilted its head, probably "thought for a moment," and opened its mouth to say, "May the Fifth Sister live as long as the moon, as bright as the sun, and as long as the Southern Mountain, never waning or collapsing."
"That's it, that's it, that's the line!" Gu Jingyi clapped her hands and said happily, "Little White Brother taught me that all night."
Seeing her joyful expression, Ruan Bi's mind drifted to Gu Xiaobai's face. She imagined a young man under a solitary lamp, repeatedly teaching a parrot to recite...
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