Chapter 10: No Rules
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Du Zi Heng opened his mouth, but no words came out.
You Bing Yue had also reached the bridge, and Du Zi Heng frowned. “Why did you come to cause trouble for her? Didn’t I promise you that I wouldn’t have anything to do with her? We just asked for her help, and now you’re stirring up trouble for her. How does that make any sense?”
“You’re my man, yet she has the title of your wife. I’m here to regain my dignity; what’s wrong with that?” You Bing Yue retorted, her eyes flashing with anger before she scoffed. “Besides, she’s just some sheltered young lady. What kind of skills does she have to help me? It’s just your parents backing her up to keep you in line.”
“It’s all just manipulation!” She was clearly annoyed. “Even without their help, I could handle it myself.”
As for her sudden fall into the water earlier, she didn’t think too much about it. She assumed she had lost her balance from using too much force.
But Du Zi Heng wasn’t so sure it was as simple as that. Still, he didn’t have the time or energy to argue.
You Bing Yue’s wet clothes clung to her, revealing much more than they should. He had Du Lin walk away, and then escorted You Bing Yue back to Moon Gazing Pavilion himself.
At the same time, Yu Zhi Yi had already returned to the Wind Facing Pavilion. Zi Yuan was still fuming. “That woman is too much! Who does she think she is, coming here to show off in front of you? She’s not even a concubine!”
At least a concubine had some status. What was You Bing Yue compared to even that?
“Alright, calm down,” Yu Zhi Yi said, pouring her a cup of tea. “I promise you, as long as she comes looking for trouble, I’ll give her a good lesson each time, just like today. How about that?”
Yu Zhi Yi hadn’t planned on bothering with You Bing Yue at first. In her previous life, every time You Bing Yue made trouble for Yu Jiao Jiao, it was because Yu Jiao Jiao provoked her first. Yu Zhi Yi thought maybe she and You Bing Yue could keep things peaceful, at least on the surface.
She had been wrong.
Still, she was trying to accumulate good karma and couldn’t let someone like You Bing Yue ruin her spiritual path. But if You Bing Yue came knocking, then she only had herself to blame.
Besides, Yu Zhi Yi had discovered something interesting—she still couldn’t read You Bing Yue’s fortune.
It had been like that in her past life, and even after being reborn, it was still the same.
There were usually only two reasons for this. Either the other person was also trained in metaphysics, or they knew someone who was and used a secret technique to conceal their fate.
Or…
The person was destined for something extraordinary.
Yu Zhi Yi couldn’t figure out which it was yet, but she wasn’t too worried. Either way, it wouldn’t affect her much.
In the future, Du Zi Heng would set up his own household, and she’d stay in the Chancellor’s residence. They wouldn’t have much reason to interact.
The only potential issue was the matter of children.
In her previous life, even until her untimely death, You Bing Yue hadn’t been able to bear a child. That was a bit concerning.
Yu Zhi Yi quickly pushed away those thoughts and returned to setting up her formations. She had already placed a defensive array around the entire residence. It would only activate at night, with openings at the main gate and side entrances.
As long as no one tried to sneak in by climbing over the walls or crawling through a dog hole in the middle of the night, the formation wouldn’t be triggered.
And if someone was foolish enough to try, they’d be injured by the formation.
The Chancellor’s residence was well-guarded. Any disturbance would alert the guards.
Most importantly, Yu Zhi Yi had made some modifications to the formation. If someone did activate it, she’d be able to “see” what they looked like.
Even if they managed to escape, they wouldn’t be able to hide from her sharp eyes.
She remembered how, in her previous life, Chancellor Du had once been falsely accused. Though it was eventually proven that he had been framed, the scandal had caused a lot of trouble, and Yu Zhi Yi had suffered for it as well.
She didn’t want that kind of hassle. If she could nip the danger in the bud, she certainly wouldn’t let it grow into a towering tree.
Setting up the formation for Wind Facing Pavilion was even easier. She didn’t need an excuse. She just wandered around tending to the flowers along the walls, and no one would suspect a thing.
Just as she finished, a servant came to report, “Young Madam, the Marchioness of Wu’an is here.”
“Let her in,” Yu Zhi Yi replied.
The Marchioness of Wu’an entered with a broad smile. “Enlightened Master is truly amazing!”
Her son was a bit rebellious. He had previously been engaged, but he had looked down on the girl because she was a general’s daughter, not as gentle and refined as the young ladies of the capital. He had often made a fuss about breaking off the engagement.
Miss Tan, upon hearing that her son had nearly been beaten to death for harassing a young girl, had come over in a fury to call off the engagement.
Now, her son had changed his tune completely, refusing to end the engagement and begging her to set a wedding date as soon as possible.
Yu Zhi Yi could tell all this just by looking at the Marchioness’s face, but she still found it a bit ridiculous when she heard the story.
Wasn’t this the very definition of “loving what you can’t have”?
Still, even if he was a fool, the young lord did settle down after marriage, becoming a happy couple with Miss Tan. Their marriage turned out well.
Yu Zhi Yi smiled. “She is his true match. As long as you treat her well, the Marquisate Wu’an will prosper.”
The Marchioness beamed and handed over a purse. “Enlightened Master, this is a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it.”
Yu Zhi Yi glanced at the bulging purse. It must contain at least thirty or forty taels of silver—possibly more if it was gold.
She had Zi Yuan take the purse, saying lightly, “I’ll give you one more piece of advice for free. The eighteenth day of the twelfth month is an auspicious day for them. If both families are willing, it would be a perfect date for the wedding.”
The Marchioness was overjoyed. “Thank you, Enlightened Master!”
After she left, Zi Yuan asked, “Miss, Miss Tan wanted to call off the engagement. Is she really his true match?”
Yu Zhi Yi nodded. “She does care for him, but he’s been too much of a scoundrel in the past. This latest incident was just too embarrassing, and it hurt her deeply. But after this, he’ll settle down.”
Zi Yuan sighed in relief. The young lord of Wu’an had been such a troublemaker, she had worried Miss Tan wouldn’t be happy marrying him.
And if that were the case, wouldn’t it harm her mistress’s karma?
While they were talking, Yu Zhi Yi opened the purse. It was filled with gold.
Thirty or forty taels of gold was worth hundreds in silver. Yu Zhi Yi was quite pleased.
Suddenly, Yu Pan’er rushed in. “Young Madam, the one from Moon Gazing Pavilion has left.”
Yu Zhi Yi asked, “Did the young master go with her?”
She assumed Du Zi Heng had gone along, but Yu Pan’er shook her head. “No, Young Madam, the young master stayed behind.”
Yu Zhi Yi was surprised, but she quickly understood.
You Bing Yue had always had her freedom—a freedom that Du Zi Heng gave her.
Madam Yao disapproved, but since she couldn’t go against her son, she had to compromise.
Zi Yuan frowned. “She’s completely out of line!”
In a proper household, any woman from the inner quarters who wanted to leave had to report to the matron.
But You Bing Yue left the residence whenever she pleased, showing no respect for the lady of the house!
Yu Zhi Yi chuckled. “She’s not really part of the household. She can come and go as she likes.”
She wasn’t a mistress, nor a servant. She wasn’t even a proper guest, because the family didn’t welcome her.