Chapter 9: Yi Xiu 7
711 Words
Yin Zhen, although I am deeply hurt and saddened by your breaking your promise to marry me and choosing Rouze instead, I understand that my status does not warrant the position of the primary wife. I have accepted this fate and planned to spend the rest of my life taking care of Honghui.
But why? Why did you have to do this? Why did you have to kill him? He was so young, only three years old. Was it just because he occupied the position of the eldest son that should have belonged to my sister’s child?
Listening to Yi Xiu’s accusations, Yin Zhen was enraged. He thought Yi Xiu had lost her mind, as Rouze was so beautiful and kind in her eyes. How could she possibly harm Honghui? He snapped:
“Enough, Ula Nara. Although you have just lost Honghui, I will not allow you to slander Rouze like this. She is so kind; the night Honghui died, she even asked me to stay with you. How can you defame her like this? Imagine how heartbroken she would be!”
Yi Xiu laughed coldly. “Kind? Ha, that’s the biggest joke I’ve ever heard. Do you really think Rouze loved you? She could not stand being overshadowed by me. She had a fiancé before, but how could the wife of a general compare to the principal wife of a prince? So she set her sights on you.”
“What kind-hearted person would dance the Imperial Consort’s Prosperity Dance on the path her sister’s husband frequently walked while visiting a pregnant concubine? Oh, by the way, do you know where she got that Imperial Consort’s Prosperity attire? It was thanks to your dear mother who was obsessively focused on her favorite Fourteenth Prince.”
“After all, you chose Rouze and married her, which is like a case of a ruler taking away a subject’s wife. This has left a bad impression with the Emperor and a stain on yourself, making your path to the highest position even more distant. If you’ve lost hope, you can devote yourself to assisting your brother, the Fourteenth Prince, and be content, ha, you’re truly pathetic.”
“By the way, do you know why my father had no other offspring besides me and Rouze? It’s because my legitimate mother would never allow another woman to bear my father’s children. My birth was only possible because my mother was shrewd and I was a girl; otherwise…”
“Do you really think Rouze, who was educated by my legitimate mother, is kind?”
Though Yin Zhen showed no outward reaction, Yi Xiu’s words left a mark on him, causing a rift between him and Rouze.
He looked at Yi Xiu and said nothing, merely summoning Su Peisheng.
“Su Peisheng, the secondary wife is deeply grieved by the loss of her son and has fallen ill. She should not go out and will stay in Qingfeng Courtyard to recuperate.”
Yin Zhen placed Yi Xiu under house arrest. Yi Xiu was not frightened and said nothing further, but as Yin Zhen left, she suddenly said, “Yin Zhen, you will face retribution for how you treated Honghui. I curse you; you will never have children again, and those who love you will leave you. You will be left alone and die in loneliness.”
Hearing her words, Su Peisheng was shocked and exclaimed, “Secondary wife, such words are highly inappropriate. You must not speak so recklessly!”
Yi Xiu ignored him and left. Yin Zhen observed her departure without comment and returned to his quarters with a dark expression.
Soon after, he sent his secret guards to investigate the matters Yi Xiu had mentioned. Although he loved Rouze, he valued power more.
After Yin Zhen left, Shu Yao sent away the people in the courtyard, claiming she was tired and that they should rest and not attend to her.
Once the room was left with only her and Jian Qiu, they quickly brought in the bodies they had found in the manor, changed their clothes, and disguised themselves. After lighting a fire in the room, they took the bodies to the place where the two palace maid corpses were to be placed.
- Writer
