Deep-rooted problems are hard to reverse.
Shangguan Yuqi continued, "Therefore, in my father's memory, the last time he saw her in the brothel room seven months ago was the last time they met. They had made everything clear to each other, and he had reformed himself, thinking that everything would be fine from then on. But he never expected that such a thing would happen at the end of the year. He was both flustered and surprised, but since it had come to my aunt's attention, he had no choice but to admit it."
Ah Qiu couldn't help but say, "He's fine now, but your mother must have had an extremely difficult seven months of pregnancy."
Xiao Chang'an said blankly, "Then it's all your mother's fault for taking the word 'love' too seriously. Men frequent brothels, it's all just for show. Even if your mother met the wrong person, if she had listened to your father's good advice and..." He wanted to say "abort the child," but immediately remembered that the child was Shangguan Yuqi, the current number one swordsman of the Southern Dynasty. If he had really aborted it, the loss would have been too great. So he swallowed the words that were about to come out and said, "Take his money, make a good living, and you might be able to live a peaceful life for the rest of your days."
Ah Qiu immediately retorted, "Xiao Xiao, although you frequent brothels, it seems you don't understand the plight of courtesans. Now that she's pregnant and her reputation is ruined, it will be difficult for her to get clients. And this money will most likely never reach her. What she lacks isn't money, but someone to stand up for her and help her. With her source of income cut off and her reputation ruined, she'll be all alone, surrounded by pimps and brothel owners trying to extract money from her. She'll either be resold to even lower-class brothels or forced into prostitution at a low price. Her fate is doomed."
Upon hearing A Qiu's words, "Little Xiao, you seem quite familiar with brothels," Xiao Chang'an's expression immediately turned grim. He had forgotten that A Qiu had overheard him and Pei Yu saying this that night while they were hiding on the boat. He straightened his expression and coughed, "How come you seem so familiar with brothels, Sister A Qiu?"
A Qiu's expression hardened at his words, and she replied, "I heard it from an old friend." In the past, she had often gone to brothels and red-light districts to scout out situations, plan ambush locations, and escape routes. However, her true understanding of the brothel industry came largely from her second senior brother, Mo Yimingyue.
The reason is simple: brothels are one of the nine classes of people, and one of the businesses managed by Xingfeng Hall. Mo Yimingyue's tone when he mentioned it was devoid of emotion, but Aqiu knew that he was not as cold and heartless as he saw these women as mere tools for making money.
Everyone is born under certain limitations and can only judge things based on their own background and perspective. A Qiu had no doubt that even if Xiao Chang'an were a woman, even if the same thing happened to her, he would indeed act decisively and swiftly, using all his resources to seek a comeback. This was in line with his personality and style.
In fact, if something similar had happened to either A Qiu or Shangguan Yuqi, even though they were both women, they would most likely have made the same choice as Xiao Chang'an, rather than risking their lives on this child and a faithless man.
But they also knew that this was simply because both they and Xiao Chang'an were among the strongest of the strong, top martial arts masters, and were born with this indomitable and resilient mentality.
Back then, Shangguan Yuqi's birth mother was just a slightly pretty girl who was sold from the countryside to the capital and spent her life being beaten by brothel owners. Her only skill was reading people's faces.
Although the dazzling world of Beijing is vast, the path left for her is actually very narrow.
After hearing A Qiu's words, Shangguan Yuqi was stunned for a long time before she said blankly, "Only after hearing you tell me today do I realize what her situation was like back then. I used to complain that if she hadn't been so stubborn and had taken the money to run away with me instead of risking her life to cling to the Shangguan family, would I have had a different childhood?"
A Qiu never imagined that Yu Qi, the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family, who was pure and aloof, always regarded worldly affairs as external things, and even the emperor and the crown prince had to be mindful of her feelings, would have such regrets and slight resentment in her heart. She had also imagined whether her life would have been different if she had not been the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family.
She noticed that Shangguan Yuqi used the word "climbing the social ladder".
In fact, given Shangguan Yuqi's proud and aloof nature, A Qiu could imagine that even though the Shangguan family was her father's family, if she had a choice, she would probably rather starve to death than enter the prestigious Shangguan family in such a humiliating and shameful way.
She said softly, "Now you know, if your mother hadn't risked her life to send you back to the Shangguan family, you would either have been aborted in her womb, or if you had stayed with her, you would have just... ended up in the red-light district."
A woman in the sex industry with no one to rely on, raising a baby girl all alone—everyone can imagine what kind of life she could possibly have.
Shangguan Yuqi's gaze finally shifted from calm to sorrow, and she said in a hoarse voice, "So I have always misunderstood her."
She smiled bitterly, "For so many years, I only thought she was vain. I only thought that even if she couldn't marry into the Shangguan family herself, she would still make her daughter a lady of the Shangguan family. As a result, I lived as a dependent for many years, suffering cold looks. I never thought that she had already made the best plan for me that she could make."
Lord Liyang, who had remained silent until now, spoke slowly and deliberately: "Excuse my bluntness, but shouldn't the root of this tragedy lie with your father? Why doesn't Miss mention him at all?"
He glanced at Ah Qiu almost quickly, then said, "Even if it was just an act at the time, when your mother told him she was pregnant and immediately denied that the child was his, could he really leave without any guilt and with a clear conscience?"
Xiao Chang'an scoffed and said, "Aren't most men in the world like that, daring to do something but not daring to admit it? If all men were to put their words into action and be of unyielding integrity, there would be far more than just a few kings and generals who have achieved great things throughout history."
Shangguan Yuqi smiled bitterly, "I don't mention him because I have almost no impression of him in my memory. My mother did at least one thing for me, which was to send me into the Shangguan family with her own life, but my father is really very vague in my memory, and he has never had any presence."
After Yanxiu learned the whole story, she instructed her cousin to kneel in the ancestral hall and then seek instructions from the clan head, her uncle Shangguan Jin. Because she was still a young woman who had never left her home, some things were not easily accomplished.
It was already the end of the year, and everyone was busy with both official and family matters. Shangguan Jin took a moment out of his busy schedule to hear about this matter. He simply sighed and instructed Yanxiu to entrust the child to a highly respected aunt in the clan for upbringing. He immediately dispatched his capable detectives to arrest the brothel madam and a group of witnesses. No matter what means were used, they had to confirm whether the child was of Shangguan family blood.
After multiple testimonies and the brothel madam being whipped until she bled, it was confirmed that since Shangguan Yuqi's birth mother began working as a prostitute, Shangguan Gongzi was her only patron. After Shangguan Gongzi broke off relations with her, she spent her days in tears, neglecting makeup and refusing to entertain customers, for which she was frequently beaten.
After her last meeting with Young Master Shangguan, she said the child wasn't his, but couldn't say who the father was. Unable to find the rightful father, the madam could only pinpoint Young Master Shangguan's involvement. However, he had already disappeared from their circle, and the madam's connections weren't strong enough to reach the most powerful and influential circles in Jianzhang. Therefore, the pursuit had to be abandoned.
During those seven months, Yuqi's birth mother suffered greatly, being forced to take medication to induce a miscarriage time and time again. She resisted by going on a hunger strike and promised the madam that as long as she was allowed to give birth to the child, she would definitely serve customers well afterward. Only then did she manage to endure until Yuqi was born.
Even the madam didn't expect that the day after the child was born, she, despite her frail health, would come to the Shangguan residence with the child in her arms to commit suicide.
Shangguan Jin had presided over the alliance of the Jianzhang, Shuofang, and Northwest armies, and decisively defeated nearly a million Hu cavalrymen from the south across the river. He was a renowned prime minister of his time, a man of exceptional intelligence and competence. All the necessary tortures had been used, and the testimonies of the people were crystal clear. It was clear in their hearts that this child was undoubtedly of Shangguan's blood, and that her mother was a fool who had devoted her life to this unrequited, doomed love, ultimately losing her own life.
He was helpless to do anything about such a tragedy that had befallen his younger relatives. He could only call over the offending young master and reprimand him, then return Yuqi to him and instruct him to take good care of her, treating her as if she were the daughter of his other wives and concubines. He also instructed his family to properly bury Yuqi's mother outside the city, and that was the end of the matter.
In fact, at the end of the Former Huan Dynasty, the entire political climate was corrupt and beyond redemption. It was common for the sons of powerful families to indulge in debauchery, cockfighting, horse racing, gambling, brawling, and even bullying men and women. The actions of this young master from the Shangguan family could at most be described as "starting a relationship and then abandoning it," and that was not even towards a respectable woman; it was already considered extremely minor. Even if Shangguan Jin wanted to severely punish him, he would have no grounds to do so.
In fact, if Yuqi's mother hadn't been so devoted and strong-willed, this would have been just a minor transgression, and wouldn't have escalated into such a tragedy.
Tears welled up in Shangguan Yuqi's eyes as she said, "I think my mother's biggest mistake in life was being too serious."
He added, "Being too serious only leads to misplaced affection. What man in this world is worthy of such true love that one would give their life for?
When A Qiu heard her say that, looking at her beautiful and refined profile, he suddenly felt a sense of foreboding.
She still remembered that when she was troubled by Gu Yi's affairs, she had consulted Shangguan Yuqi. At that time, Shangguan Yuqi was so detached from worldly affairs, her heart as still as water, as if all the disturbances in the world were not enough to disturb her clear mind for even a moment.
But at this moment, A Qiu suddenly realized that the phrase "too serious" was probably just right for Shangguan Yuqi herself.
She had originally been obsessed with swordsmanship and secluded herself in a forbidden area, not even wanting to become the Crown Princess. Yet, for more than a decade, she never forgot the cause of her aunt Yanxiu's death. She did not hesitate to enter the palace as a Flying Phoenix Guard, repeatedly angering the Emperor. Her obsession and seriousness were probably inherited from her mother.
To distract Shangguan Yuqi, she changed the subject, saying, "So, from then on, you grew up in the Shangguan family?"
A faint smile appeared on Shangguan Yuqi's lips as she said, "More or less. I grew up among my father's wives, concubines, and children, but I don't really remember him. Men are usually out socializing, and even when he was home occasionally, he would pretend he didn't see me."
A Qiu could imagine that Shangguan Yuqi's birth was an embarrassing moment for her biological father. He naturally hoped to see her less often so he could forget the guilt in his heart.
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