Chapter Seventeen: Complaints
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The waiter’s legs went weak with fright, and he nearly fell to his knees. He shook his head like a rattle drum.
“Absolutely not! I would never dare deceive you!”
“If you don’t believe me, ask anyone in Drunken Fragrance House. How could I possibly lie to you? I don’t even know this young lady.”
The more the waiter spoke, the softer his voice became, barely louder than a mosquito’s buzz. Clearly, Gu Shijin had frightened him badly.
“What exactly do you mean by this, General?”
Su Zhinian frowned, her gaze icy.
“Do you really enjoy being cuckolded so much that you refuse to let this go until you’ve dug up an adulterous lover who doesn’t even exist?”
“Su Zhinian! Stop spouting nonsense!”
Gu Shijin was plainly furious at having struck a sore spot. He gave a cold snort.
“Can’t you stay at home? What matter could possibly be so important that you had to come here to deal with it?”
He clearly intended to keep pressing Su Zhinian. Even Yushu could imagine that if her mistress failed to give the General a satisfactory explanation today, returning home would mean nothing but misery.
Just as Yushu was racking her brains for a solution, Su Zhinian took a medicine bottle from inside her robe.
“This is all thanks to you, General.”
“If the wound on my shoulder hadn’t been so painful, I wouldn’t have come here to apply medicine.”
“Just to apply medicine?”
Gu Shijin took the bottle and held it beneath his nose. After confirming that it carried the scent of herbs, he asked doubtfully, “Is that all?”
“If you don’t believe me, perhaps you should take a look?”
Su Zhinian stared calmly at Gu Shijin.
Fortunately, she had accepted the medicine from Prince Yu. Otherwise, explaining herself would have been truly difficult.
Her expression remained perfectly tranquil, and that made Gu Shijin wonder whether he was simply being suspicious.
Hearing the faintly mocking note in her voice, he rejected the suggestion with a cold expression.
“No need.”
“If there is nothing else, Madam, you would do well not to wander about outside.”
Gu Shijin’s gaze was dark and cold. He firmly believed that Su Zhinian’s decision to leave the residence was the reason he had been driven into such a rage—and had made such a fool of himself in front of outsiders.
If only she had obediently stayed at home, none of this would have happened.
With that, Gu Shijin turned and walked away.
Once he reached the street outside Drunken Fragrance House, he glanced back and spoke in a chilling voice.
“You dared come back and make a reckless report without seeing clearly what happened. Make sure that person never appears before me again.”
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That sentence was essentially a death sentence.
“Yes, General,” one of the accompanying guards replied.
Gu Shijin snorted coldly. At least Su Zhinian still knew how to observe a wife’s virtue. Then again, she loved him so deeply that she had probably exhausted every means of winning his affection.
In the end, it was all futile.
His thoughts turned to Ren Xixi. He wondered how she was faring in the palace.
But now that he knew Ren Xixi had deliberately hidden herself to make him anxious, Gu Shijin’s heart gradually grew cold.
If he did not temper her temperament properly, would she not become spoiled?
If she ran off again in the future whenever things did not go her way, it would be entirely improper.
Still, he had heard that Consort Wan was exceptionally gentle and tolerant. Surely she would not mistreat Ren Xixi.
Perhaps Xixi would return only after His Majesty’s decree had been issued.
Gu Shijin had made up his mind to teach Ren Xixi a lesson, so he did not search for her with the fanfare she had imagined.
Imperial Palace, Palace of Extended Joy.
Spring was nearly over, and the ladies of the various palaces had stopped burning charcoal. Incense drifted lazily through the room as Bai Wanwan lay with her eyes closed on a luxurious chaise longue, covered by a white fox-fur blanket.
Ren Xixi was visibly restless. She paced back and forth without pause, muttering all the while.
“Do you think Brother Jin has forgotten me?”
“Wanwan, why hasn’t Brother Jin searched for me with the same fanfare as the male leads in those novels?”
“Could it be that his whole heart really belongs to Su Zhinian?”
When Bai Wanwan ignored her, Ren Xixi went over and tugged at her arm.
A trace of impatience appeared on Bai Wanwan’s delicate, beautiful face. Her lovely eyes narrowed slightly as she spoke irritably.
“You’ve been repeating yourself for an hour.”
Ren Xixi showed no awareness whatsoever that she had disturbed someone’s sleep. Pouting, she blinked her large, watery eyes and pleaded sweetly.
“Wanwan, tell me. Has Brother Jin forgotten me?”
Bai Wanwan cursed her inwardly for being annoying. She sat up gracefully and looked at Ren Xixi with eyes as limpid as autumn waters before letting out a sigh.
“Xixi, it has only been two days. Gu Shijin may simply be questioning Su Zhinian.”
“Besides, he only returned recently, and so many people see him as a thorn in their side. How could he dare make such an extravagant search at a time like this?”
If she had not been afraid that Ren Xixi would flee at the crucial moment, Bai Wanwan truly would not have wanted to work with her.
What a brainless fool!
Ren Xixi tilted her head, apparently giving the possibility serious thought, then sighed in disappointment.
“But in novels, the male lead always does whatever it takes to find the heroine after she fakes her death and disappears!”
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That was naturally because you were not the heroine!
Bai Wanwan cast her a mocking glance and curled her lips.
She herself was the Emperor’s favored consort, lofty and untouchable, with an illustrious family background—the perfect heroine in every respect.
Most importantly, she had a brain.
She shuddered to think what would happen if a dimwit like Ren Xixi obtained this script. She would probably die horribly in the palace.
Bai Wanwan reached out and poked her in the forehead, her tone filled with exasperation.
“Those online novels are poisoning your mind. I told you to read fewer of them.”
“Especially those stories about overbearing presidents falling in love with me. I think they’ve ruined your brain.”
Ren Xixi caught her hand and pouted as she begged for mercy. “I know, my future Noble Consort.”
“Once this matter is over, you’ll be the Noble Consort, second only to one person and superior to all others.”
As she spoke, Ren Xixi grew excited.
If her best friend lived well, she herself would have greater confidence in the future.
“Be quiet!”
Bai Wanwan lowered her voice and scolded her sternly.
“In the imperial harem, you must be cautious with every word and action. Do not say such things again.”
“All right…”
Ren Xixi felt that Bai Wanwan was making far too much of it.
Those who accomplished great things should not concern themselves with minor details. If they were this timid and careful, what could they ever achieve?
She truly disliked it, but for the time being, she could only suppress her nature.
She counted the days. The thought of what was about to happen filled her with anticipation and excitement.
The slight resentment she had felt toward Gu Shijin vanished in an instant.
As for Su Zhinian, this time she did not leave through the back door. Instead, she walked openly out through the main entrance.
Afterward, she found a teahouse to wait in and sent someone to summon Youqing.
“Miss, you nearly frightened me to death!”
Youqing sat down breathlessly, picked up a teacup, and gulped down two mouthfuls.
“I saw the General arrive earlier and was so frightened that I hurriedly hid before he could spot me. By the way, Miss, are you all right?”
Only after saying all this in one breath did he examine Su Zhinian carefully.
“That was terrifying. The General looked as though he had discovered someone and intended to beat Miss to death,” Yushu said, still shaken.
“It’s good that nothing happened. Earlier, I saw the Imperial Guards dealing with a criminal in the street. Their methods were truly frightening.”
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