The crown prince was deposed, and Concubine Zhao's family naturally made great efforts. How could Duan Chenghong, the crown prince's prospective father-in-law, not hate him? It has come to this point, but Concubine Zhao still forgot to block his eyes and ears. Naturally, he hated her even more. Seeing Ah Chou's eyes, she wanted to cut off a few pieces of flesh and blood. Ah Chou finally understood. Concubine Zhao wanted to kill her.
As expected, she lived up to Concubine Zhao's expectations. Duan Chenghong really put a lot of effort into punishing her, but what kind of background did Duan Chenghong have? Of course, he would not do such a low-status act as whipping and caning, but it was so cold. She had to wash clothes all day, chop wood and cook, and there were more than a dozen mouths waiting to eat in the Duan family. She cooked, served rice, washed pots and dishes all day long. But she never had a full meal.
After three months, Ah Chou thought her bad luck had reached its peak. However, Duan Chenghong sent her to the deserted Ningguta again with just one word.
…
After the beard was trimmed, Ah Chou hadn't finished his words. He threw a handkerchief to Zhong Mingwei to wipe his face. He complained to him, "Do you think I'm unlucky? I went to put out the fire and save people with good intentions, so I didn't get any reward or praise. But Concubine Zhao actually got jealous of me. You don't know how miserable I was that whole year. I was always worried. I got up before dawn to wash clothes. After washing my own share, I hurried to wash others'. I didn't dare to say a word for fear of being caught. I lived like this for a whole year. Every day I hoped that Concubine Zhao would show mercy and send me back to the laundry department. Who would have thought that later, she would change her hands and... So I was given to the Duan family. Tsk, tsk, tsk, you don’t know that Mrs. Duan looks so kind and gentle, but when she gets angry, she doesn’t even blink an eye. Tsk, tsk, tsk, I have never been able to straighten my back since I entered the Duan family. Anyway, I have no time to rest, either chopping wood and cooking or fetching water to wash clothes. The worst thing is that their kitchen leaks, and snow water drips from the roof all day long. No matter where I spread the mattress, it will get wet, and then I will wake up in the middle of the night. Tsk, tsk, tsk, I have never experienced such a cold winter..."
Zhong Mingwei's mind was buzzing. He watched Ah Chou's mouth opening and closing, but he couldn't hear what Ah Chou said. All that remained in his mind was "I went to put out the fire and save people out of kindness." His lips trembled for a long time before he finally spoke: "Where did you put out the fire? Where did you save people? When did it happen?"
"On New Year's Eve last year, I was on guard in the Yanxi Palace, and I heard crackling noises in the Jingren Palace. I went out and saw the flames shooting up to the sky. Of course I had to put out the fire. Could I wait for the fire to spread to the Yanxi Palace? Then the blame would naturally fall on me, the night watchman," Ah Chou pursed his lips, looking aggrieved. "But when I think about it, I'm really unlucky. It's my fault if I put out the fire, and it's also my fault if I didn't put out the fire. I couldn't be more unlucky. If I had known earlier, I would have followed others to watch the fireworks."
Zhong Mingwei looked at Ah Chou. From his angle, he could clearly see the scar that snaked down from Ah Chou's chin. It was the first time he looked at the dark red scar so carefully. It was twisted and intertwined, and it was indeed very ugly. However, the dark red scar made Zhong Mingwei's mouth dry. His eyes could not help but be fixed on the dark red scar, from the chin to Mo Ru's collar. He looked back and forth, over and over again...
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