12 - Wangye’s visit

Chapter 12 – Wangye ’s visit

When Zhaolu and Shuang’er turned their heads, they were shocked to find the person approaching was the Wangye. They immediately got up from the stone chair and hurriedly knelt to greet him.

Bai Yuxiao who was lying on the embroidered soft chair could not help but feel shocked as well. She quickly withdrew her lazy and relaxed appearance and pretended to panic. She did the same as the maids and squatted down with a bow to greet the Wangye.

“This concubine greets Wangye .”

She bowed her head very low and at the same time wondered why he came over suddenly.

Si Liujing slowly walked up the steps of the pavilion and stopped in front of Bai Yuxiao.

As she stared at the pair of black boots with gold-threaded embroidery in front of her, she could feel his gaze falling straight on her head.

Why is this person suddenly here in Wutong Courtyard? Isn’t he very busy?

Si Liujing looked at the cold-melon on the table that had almost been finished and then looked at Bai Yuxiao again.

“Rise.”

“Thank you, Wangye .”

Zhaolu and Shuang’er retreated to stand together behind Bai Yuxiao with their heads lowered and did not dare to say a word.

Bai Yuxiao felt a little anxious.

When did Wangye arrive?

She was too careless! She did not detect his breathing nearby and also did not know how much he had overheard.

In case he asks, what should she do? Since the matter had come to this stage, she can only counter every move as it arises.

Si Liujing looked at her playfully. Suddenly, he reached out his hand to lift her chin so that they face each other and his sharp eyes slowly scrutinized her.

Bai Yuxiao did not expect him to do this and could not help but feel a little shy.

Si Liujing wanted to take a detailed look at this Bai Shufei. As for the concubines in the inner courtyards, he could only remember a few of their appearances. Now it looks like her appearance can also be considered beautiful and although she is not the most outstanding, she is still a beauty.

After looking her up and down for a while, he released his hand and sat down on the chair.

Bai Yuxiao immediately said. “This concubine is unaware of Wangye ’s arrival and failed to greet Wangye .”

“Zhaolu cut up the rest of the cold-melon, remove the rind and seeds. Shuang’er, clean the table.” She signaled to the two maids with her eyes.

After the two maids received instructions, they immediately took action. Fortunately, most of the cold-melon was already eaten and there were only a few pieces left on the table. Otherwise, if the Wangye saw, he would surely query why they had so much.

Bai Yuxiao was waiting on him by the side and the Wangye was sitting while she was standing. Suddenly Si Liujing grabbed her waist and pulled her to sit on his lap.

Why is he suddenly so enthusiastic?

She is now Bai Shufei , not Shui’er. This man who had not visited her courtyard for two years now suddenly came over. He shouldn’t have……..discovered some clues, right?

Bai Yuxiao forgot about being shy and her heart was filled with suspicion and vigilance.

Shuang’er quickly cleaned up the stone table with deft movements and Zhaolu served up a plate of cut cold-melons. Then the two maids retreated to the side and stood with their heads lowered respectfully.

Bai Yuxiao calmly and softly said. “It’s a rare occasion for Wangye to visit this concubine’s courtyard. It’s a surprise for this concubine.” While she spoke, she held up the jade plate with both hands and brought it in front of Si Liujing.

“ Wangye , please taste this cold-melon. The weather is hot and eating this will lower internal heat.”

(Internal heat – In Chinese Traditional Medicine, it is believed that there should not be excessive heat in the body meaning that the yang energy is too strong which will tip the balance of yin and yang in the body. Excessive heat will cause ailments like fever, sore throats, etc., therefore yin foods and herbs with cooling properties must be consumed to boost up the yin energy to maintain a balance.)

Staring at her shy expression, he joked. “Are you trying to buy this Wangye with cold-melon as well?”

By this time, Bai Yuxiao had already calmed down. However, on her face, she still put on a show of fear and trepidation and answered in a soft voice with her head lowered.

“That was only just a joke. Wangye , please don’t censure this concubine.”

Although her temperament is vastly different from Shui’er, there is still a possibility that she is pretending even when he saw her cowering so much. He was wondering how her voice could resemble Shui’er’s so much.

“Your voice sounds very familiar. Benwang seems to have heard it somewhere before.”

The little crimson face lifted and looked at him blankly. Her pair of glistening eyes were blank as if she did not know how she should reply to his question. After a while, she said softly. “It’s an honor for this concubine to have a similar voice with the person who is familiar with Wangye .”

The voices sounded similar but the tone of the speech was completely different and her face was devoid of any guilt.

Si Liujing contemplated…….can it be they are only similar?

“Feed me.” He ordered suddenly.

When the person in his arms heard, she immediately picked up a piece of melon and carefully held it to his mouth.

He opened his mouth and ate the sweet and juicy melon which was really able to relieve the heat.

When she fed him, her actions were a bit awkward and her hands were trembling. She seemed to be in awe of him from the bottom of her heart and was so shy that her face had turned red. Her pair of shiny eyes could not conceal her excitement and while she fed him awkwardly, she wiped his mouth with a handkerchief. Her movements were extremely clumsy but of course, all these actions were deliberately put on by her.

Si Liujing had suddenly pulled her over to sit on his lap on an impulse……is it because he wanted to feel her?……. And he wanted to compare whether hugging her is the same as hugging Shui’er?

She recalled the words she spoke to the two maids a while ago and her explanation had been clear and logical.

Unexpectedly, looking at herself now, she is as timid as a mouse!

Although he doubted her, he could not find anything suspicious about her.

When he asked a question, she answered with a reply but when he did not ask, she just sat there quietly. Sometime later, he felt bored and after he ate the melon and chatted a few more words with her, he eventually left.

The mistress and servants finally could breathe a sigh of relief. Bai Yuxiao immediately ordered Zhaolu and Shuang’er to dispose the remaining cold-melon.

After Si Liujing returned to the study in the front main courtyard, he still had doubts in his heart. Once his suspicions were stirred, he had to investigate thoroughly, so he summoned for Lan Shufei .

Lan Shufei ’s rank is the highest among all the concubines and she is temporarily in charge of the royal mansion’s affairs. When she heard from the Mama that Wangye summoned for her, she was so happy that she was beaming with smiles and her heart thumped crazily.

The Wangye seldom enters the inner courtyards and seeing him is not easy. Now the Wangye is thinking of her and even summoned for her to see him in the study during the day.

Thus, it has not been in vain for her to dress up every day and she did everything just to have an opportunity to show her face. After busily checking the makeup on her face in front of the bronze mirror, she put on her embroidered shoes and held the hand of her personal maid, Lufei, for support. Together with the maid, she followed the Mama and went to the study.

“Congratulations to Niangniang*. Wangye works diligently on government affairs during the day and he still sent someone to summon Niangniang . He must be missing Niangniang .” Lufei whispered in Lan Shufei ’s ear.

(When referring to the married female members of the royal family like the Dowager Empress, Empress, Imperial Concubines, the title Niangniang is used. The word is similar to ‘My Lady’.)

“Don’t talk nonsense! Wangye probably has some orders for me.” Although Lan Shufei reprimanded the maid, she could not conceal the joy on her face.

A while ago, Wangye had entered the bedchambers of Liu Ji , Xie Ji, and Zhang Ji for several days in succession but he did not visit her. She is the highest-ranked concubine in the inner courtyards and had wholeheartedly hoped the Wangye would visit her but it was all fruitless. It made her extremely envious and disappointed. For several days and nights, she could not sleep, especially when she saw the proud faces of Liu Ji and the other concubines and she hated them so much.

Now the Wangye had summoned for her especially. Can it be he wanted her to wait on him? Thinking up to here, Lan Shufei was indescribably excited.

When she arrived at the study, a young boy-servant went in to inform the Wangye before allowing her to enter. After entering the study, on seeing the mighty and handsome Wangye , Lan Shufei greeted in her most graceful and charming manner.

“This concubine greets Wangye .” Her voice was soft and tender like a yellow oriole.

“Alright, don’t stand on ceremony. Benwang has something to ask you. Yesterday, when the cold-melon was distributed to the inner courtyards, was Liu Ji the only one who did not get a share?”

When Lan Shufei heard, she was dumbfounded.

How did Wangye know about this matter?

Usually, the Wangye would not bother about the matters inside the inner courtyards unless informed by her.

Making use of the incident that she did not get her share of the melon, Liu Ji created a ruckus but Lan Shufei managed to suppress it. That woman deliberately wanted the Wangye to know about the grievance she suffered but Lan Shufei forbade her.

Does she think she can use this trivial matter to get Wangye ’s attention? No way!

But now the Wangye is asking about this matter and she immediately became alert.

Can it be that Liu Ji had used other means to complain to the Wangye and now he is querying about this?

Lan Shufei returned to her senses and hurriedly responded. “Replying to Wangye ’s question, such a thing indeed happened. The matter is like this…….“

After Lan Shufei explained the cause and effect of the incident, she concluded. “It was because this is a trivial matter, this concubine dared not disturb Wangye and took the initiative to settle this by ordering the preparation of Nanhai Bird’s Nest as compensation to Liu Ji .”

The bird’s nest is a precious commodity and using this as compensation for the cold-melon, it can be considered as Liu Ji had made benefited.

Si Liujing was not interested in the affairs of the inner courtyards and was not bothered whether Liu Ji had gained or suffered a loss. He just wanted to make sure that such an incident did happen. Then he continued to ask. “The person staying in Wutong Courtyard is Bai Liangdi , right? Tell me about her family and background.”

The topic suddenly changed to Bai Liangdi who was completely not related to their ongoing conversation which made Lan Shufei startled again.

Why is the Wangye suddenly concerned about the inner courtyards today?

However, under Si Liujing’s stern and displeased gaze, she hastily replied respectfully.

“Bai Liangdi ’s maiden name is Bai Yuxiao. Her father is Chief-of-Staff in the royal mansion. Her mother is deceased and she is the only daughter in the family. She entered the Ling Wang Mansion at the age of sixteen and she is now eighteen.”

Since Lan Shufei was in charge of the inner courtyards, of course, she would be very clear about every concubine’s family and their backgrounds. Following that, she talked about the father’s family members, the mother’s family members, and other minor details.

After listening, Si Liujing had a general idea and asked. “In which royal mansion does her father work in?”

Lan Shufei was stunned. She realized that the explanation she gave was not clear enough and she quickly added. “Replying to Wangye , it’s our royal mansion. Her father’s name is Bai Hao.”

Only then Si Liujing realized that Bai Liangdi is the daughter of his subordinate. However, he could not remember why she was brought into his royal mansion as a concubine. It could not be helped since there are so many concubines in the royal mansion and the reasons for accepting the concubines were varied. Therefore, he could not remember every one of them.

“Alright, Benwang is finished with the questions, you can retreat.” He waved his hand.

Lan Shufei was dumbfounded. She came full of hope but the Wangye told her to retreat after questioning her. How is she willing to accept this?

When Si Liujing saw her standing there motionless, he asked in confusion. “What other matters do you have?”

Lan Shufei gathered her courage and stepped forward to say warmly. “Since Wangye is busy with government affairs, this concubine is willing to remain in the study to wait on Wangye with pouring water and grinding ink…….” Before she could finish speaking, the Wangye ’s piercing gaze shot at her. The remaining words immediately got stuck in her throat and she lowered her head without daring to speak again.

“Is there no one present to serve Benwang ? Since you know that Benwang is busy with government affairs, then you should return to the inner courtyards and be contented with your lot. As long as you know your place, you won’t suffer any grievances in terms of food, clothing, and wealth.”

“Yes…….” Lan Shufei ’s heart turned cold. She was extremely disappointed but she did not dare to be disobedient and could only bow in salute before leaving the study.