Chapter 8 Punishment: "You've been hiding something from me."
Jiang Xu was startled by this subconscious thought.
His gaze was subconsciously drawn back to Shi Wan. It traveled through the woman's hair, which was disheveled from her hasty run, to her chest, which was trembling with fear, and then down her entire body.
Shi Wan could naturally sense such a strong, aggressive gaze.
She involuntarily prostrated herself even lower, almost covering most of her body with the ground. "Your Majesty is a wise and discerning ruler. If I had any disloyal intentions and had deliberately done something wrong, I'm afraid I would no longer have the chance to speak to you."
A wise ruler? What a smooth talker. Jiang Xu's expression was cold and stern. "The dereliction of duty is undeniable; he should be dragged out and given ten strokes of the military rod."
Shi Wan felt another jolt, but dared not try to be clever again. After a brief standoff, seeing that Jiang Xu was losing patience, she closed her eyes in despair and said, "This servant deserves to die. I am at Your Majesty's mercy."
She was powerless and vulnerable, and was being watched closely by the man and his men; she had no leverage to beg for mercy. She had already exhausted her verbal skills with that one instance of playing a word game; any further attempts to argue would only result in even harsher punishment from Jiang Xu.
But for some reason, as soon as he said that, Jiang Xu's eyes became even more terrifying, and he remained silent for a long time.
The quiet atmosphere made Shi Wan even more uneasy, and the wound that had been healing for more than ten days suddenly started to hurt again.
Throughout history, the more distinguished and prominent a person's family or status, the more heavily guarded their residence.
Even if Jiang Xu, a powerful ruler who dominates a region, was negligent in her duties, surely she wouldn't allow a mere maid to take advantage of her?
But at this moment, Shi Wan dared not ask any more questions.
As Shi Wan endured the pain, Jiang Xu happened to be watching her. The woman's expression suddenly turned somewhat unpleasant, and her willow-leaf eyebrows furrowed uneasily. The moonlight was like frost, making the pain in her eyes even clearer. He saw it all, and the words that were churning in his throat suddenly stopped.
"...From this day forward, your salary will be halved, and you may not leave this courtyard until 9 PM. Let's make sure nothing like what happened today happens again."
Shi Wan was taken aback upon hearing this.
Compared to Liu Yaran's tragic death, this punishment is simply...
That's far too light.
Simply deducting her salary seems like... deliberately letting her off the hook?
She immediately disregarded everything else, gritted her teeth and endured the pain, and performed a deep bow, saying, "This servant thanks Your Majesty!"
Jiang Xu's tone was calm, "Go back now." However, his overall demeanor contradicted this.
So much so that Shi Wan even felt that Jiang Xu's words telling her to go back were actually meant to make her go back... so she could get on her way.
Shi Wan immediately stood up, bowed, and backed away before neatly closing the door.
It wasn't until I stepped out of the main courtyard and felt the cool night breeze that I regained some composure.
Everything that happened tonight felt like a dream, floating on air, as if I couldn't touch the ground.
and......
Jiang Xu just let her go like that?
Suddenly, Shi Wan felt a surge of guilt mixed with fear and dread. After a moment, she let out a soft sigh.
People say that Jiang Xu is vindictive and difficult to get along with, but these past few days of spending time together, whether it's buying her clothes or making an exception for her a moment ago, are enough to prove that the rumors are not entirely true.
Shi Wan silently quickened her pace and headed back to the servants' quarters.
......
Inside the main room, Jiang Xu remained in the same posture as when Shi Wan left.
My thoughts wandered, and after a while, they settled into the room, where the incense carried a faint scent of orchids.
These past few days, his attention seems to have been focused too much on this singer.
This is not a good thing.
Although the other party did not actually commit any intentionally malicious acts, but...
Since the Wu family colluded with Youzhou, how could Wan'er, who was promoted by the Wu family, be completely innocent?
Perhaps he has only recently arrived in Jichuan and is still hiding his identity.
Many people wanted him dead, and there were even cases of using his beauty to seduce him, like Wan'er.
Why not wait a few days and find an opportunity to get rid of them here?
No... or perhaps he should send her back to Huzhou; the people there will surely take care of things for him.
Jiang Xu snapped out of his daze, his expression softening slightly.
The pages of the book on the desk rustled in the night wind, and the moonlight streamed in, casting his tall, slender figure diagonally to the ground. In the flickering candlelight, his shadow swayed with the wind.
The wind moves the shadows.
Jiang Xu raised his eyes and looked into the distance.
There was no one here, only a very faint scent of soapberry, which was quickly replaced by the smell of blood.
*
The night was as dark as ink; it was already past midnight.
Shi Wan lay on the bed, half-asleep, her face contorted in pain.
In her dream, she thought she was endlessly going around in circles in the dark prison, just like the previous days. But when she opened her eyes this time, she found herself in an open field.
A flag flies high, with a beige background and gold trim, and the character "幽" (you, meaning secluded) is prominently displayed on it.
Then the scene flashed, and a familiar figure appeared. Jiang Xu was in the crowd when an unfamiliar soldier suddenly appeared beside him, holding a sharp blade and stabbing him in the back.
Shi Wan suddenly sat up on the couch, instinctively pulling the blankets covering her tighter. Around midnight, a light rain began to fall outside again, the raindrops pattering against the leaves, making a soft crackling sound, just like in her dream.
The clash of weapons echoed, and corpses littered the fields.
Cold sweat trickled down his inner garment, soaking his back.
Whenever she experiences chest pain, she almost always has this strange dream after nightfall. It has happened nearly ten times now. Therefore, although she was afraid a few hours ago in the main courtyard, she also had a vague idea of what was going on.
But this dream... is too bizarre.
Everything in the dream was too real, even the scar on the soldier's right eye was extremely clear, but upon further thought, Shi Wan couldn't remember any more details.
Her current situation is awkward, and she has just gotten into trouble, so it's best to keep this matter to herself.
The Jingbei Army has rarely suffered defeats in recent years, and Jiang Xu himself is highly skilled in martial arts and can hold off an enemy single-handedly. Under such circumstances, even if she were to be foolish and actually say it, the other party would probably just think she is delirious.
Having figured out the key to it, Shi Wan calmed herself down for a while and then fell asleep again.
Outside the window, the rain intensified, and a moment later, a muffled rumble of thunder rolled across the sky.
The sound was unlike the usual, crisp thunder of late spring rainy season; it was more like the heavy, persistent stagnation of blood that an old man, unable to cough up, was pressing down on the roof.
*
The next day, the sky was turning pale, and there was still some thin mist in the morning, indicating that it had rained the night before.
When Shi Wan arrived at the main courtyard before 3:45 AM, Jiang Xu was already practicing martial arts.
This time, he didn't use a sword, but instead practiced with a spear, a rare occurrence for him. The spearhead gleamed coldly, the shaft was straight, and every move the man made was swift and precise.
After a while, the other person leisurely stopped what they were doing, waved in her direction, and when Shi Wan came over, said, "Today the rain and fog are heavy, it's a good day to collect some morning dew."
Upon hearing this, Shi Wan paused, nodded in agreement, and asked, "Would Your Majesty like some tea?"
She had just committed a crime last night and had a nightmare, so she only slept for a little over an hour. If she continued to stand in front of Jiang Xu like this, who knows what might happen today? It would be better to take a breather while pouring tea and collecting morning dew.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xu did not send her as usual, but merely glanced at her indifferently, saying, "Isn't it better to stay by my side?"
This statement carries a lot of implications.
Shi Wan, already feeling guilty, unconsciously lowered her head even further. "Why does Your Majesty say such a thing?"
Wan'er was absent-minded from the moment she arrived today. Although she tried to restrain herself, Jiang Xu was a seasoned military commander and had a keen eye for people. How could he not see through her clumsy acting?
He hadn't even settled things with her about what happened last night, and this guy was already starting to have his own suspicions?
Or perhaps... the obedient behavior of the past twenty days was indeed an act by this person?
Jiang Xu said bluntly, "You're hiding something from me."
He gave Wan'er a chance, but she didn't cherish it. If that's the case, then he can't be blamed.
“I said it before,” Jiang Xu said with a smile, “Now that you’ve come here, you are my property.”
In chaotic times, people are commodities that can be traded, especially someone like her who is all show and no substance and of lowly birth, making her the most suitable candidate to be a 'gift'.
The Wu family must have known for a long time that Wan'er was with him, and the fact that they haven't sent anyone over for so long must mean that they've decided to give her up after weighing the options.
Jiang Xu snapped out of his reverie, his eyes crinkling slightly as he looked at Shi Wan, "Wan'er, I do indeed have some interest in you."
Shi Wan was surprised by his words, and her expression briefly went blank.
That is...
The man twirled his spear, the black and red tassels at the end fluttering in the wind. With such a sharp weapon right in front of him, the sense of oppression was doubled.
A similar scene unfolded, but this time, Shi Wan wasn't as afraid.
So, was it because of this "interest" that Jiang Xu didn't take the opportunity to kill her last night?
Even the slightest bit of interest... should be enough to keep her alive for a few more days, right?
Seeing her in a daze, Jiang Xu continued, "You're quite intelligent, so you naturally understand that this 'interest' is only temporary and cannot last."
It is perfectly normal for a man to have likes and dislikes.
What he cared about was that Wan'er had vaguely realized this, but had not expressed her opinion for a long time.
If he hadn't seen how obedient and compliant she had been after several tests over the past few days, without ever overstepping her bounds, he wouldn't have said these things to her now.
"This is the only chance I'm giving you."
He stared intently at the person in front of him, "If you have any inside information, feel free to speak your mind."
Tell me? No, I can't tell you.
If she told him, Jiang Xu would definitely not believe her, and would most likely think that she was possessed by evil spirits.
"This servant doesn't understand Your Majesty's meaning; this servant is simply afraid..."
Fear? Jiang Xu chuckled, and after a moment, he received such an ambiguous reply, "Wan'er, if you are hiding something, you will remain stubbornly ignorant."
"Do you believe that I can send you on your way right now?"
A note from the author:
----------------------
Good luck to all the students taking the college entrance exam! Have a good rest after the exam! [cheering emoji]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
