Chapter 014
Chapter 14: Digging a Trap for You
Chun Yue held her mistress and shouted in a rage: “What are you doing? Was it not enough that the marquis chased her to kill her on the road? Now you come to our door to beat my miss. Do you want to force her to death and swallow her dowry? I am telling you to dream on.”
“I, I did not,” Madam Jiang stammered. She had only tugged at Xia Meng Yan, yet Xia Meng Yan fell.
“Silence,” Grand Madam Lin snapped. Seeing Xia Meng Yan leaning limp against Chun Yue, she had a bad feeling and was about to explain when a black shadow burst through the door.
The next second, Grand Madam Lin flew backward from a kick.
“Mother,” screamed Madam Jiang.
Xia Meng Yan felt a strong arm tighten around her waist. She looked up and saw Duan Yi Chen’s devilish face. Gone was his usual lazy air. His eyes were filled with killing intent as he barked: “For this Heir Apparent, beat them.”
Xia Meng Yan had not expected Duan Yi Chen to come. Before she could speak, Grand Madam Lin’s sharp scream rang out. Xia Meng Yan pinched his arm to signal she was fine.
Duan Yi Chen narrowed his eyes and leaned in. He caught a faint smell of medicine. He raised a brow. Xia Meng Yan blinked at him. He pinched her waist in mock anger. She blinked again to beg mercy.
Grand Madam Lin gritted her teeth and said: “Heir Apparent Duan, I am the Ping An Marquis’s old madam. You cannot touch me.” In the capital, everyone knew: better to offend a great minister than to offend Heir Apparent Duan. A minister weighs pros and cons. Heir Apparent Duan acts on mood.
Duan Yi Chen lifted Xia Meng Yan, kicked out again, and said: “You dare threaten this Heir Apparent. In the capital there is no one I cannot touch. Keep going…”
“Heir Apparent, let it go,” Xia Meng Yan murmured, using a voice only the two of them could hear as she laid out her plan.
Duan Yi Chen’s face did not change. He shaped the word silently: “Trouble.”
Xia Meng Yan rolled her eyes and thought: [Easy for you. Your mother is the Eldest Princess and your father is Marquis Xuan Ping. Of course everything is simple. I am only a court scholar’s daughter, so everything is messy.] He straightened and said aloud: “Today, Miss Xia pleads for you. Get out.”
Madam Jiang helped Grand Madam Lin to her feet. Seeing the two in an embrace filled her with rage, but she did not dare speak.
Xia Meng Yan glanced at Chun Yue. Chun Yue understood and swung a ready broom while shouting: “You dogs. You call this an apology? You came to anger my eldest miss to death and steal her dowry. No wonder Lin Ye Lan is so base. The crooked beam above makes a crooked beam below. Get out, get out now. If you dare come again, we will break your legs.”
Grand Madam Lin and Madam Jiang staggered toward the gate. Each time they tried to explain, the broom came down, and they were driven all the way out of Xia Manor.
“You, you bully too far…” Grand Madam Lin’s vision sparked with anger. She was the Ping An Marquis’s old madam. How could she be kicked out like this?
Xia Manor had already drawn crowds these days. Hearing the commotion, onlookers gathered. A maid stood on the steps, hands on hips, and cursed: “My miss barely escaped with her life, yet you come to push her to death and swallow her dowry. Wolves and dogs, that is what you are. You spent my miss’s silver and still covet her trousseau. Spit. What Marquis Manor? You are worse than common folk. You even dare come to ask for more silver. Shameless.”
“You are talking nonsense,” Grand Madam Lin said, eyes flicking over the crowd. She knew she had to talk back, or the Ping An Marquis’s name would be ruined.
Chun Yue gave a cold laugh and said: “Which part is wrong? Was Lin Hong’s debt not paid by my eldest miss? Were Marquis Manor’s bills not covered by my eldest miss? Especially that heartless younger son of yours who took silver from the Xia family to buy a promotion. He took 300,000 taels. Now that he has the money, he wants to kill his wife. Everyone, look at what kind of people these are.”
“What 300,000 taels? It was clearly 200,000,” blurted Madam Jiang.
“Madam Jiang,” hissed Grand Madam Lin, near mad enough to strangle her. One jab and the fool spilled everything.
Chun Yue smiled proudly and said: “Oh, so it was 200,000. Everyone heard that.”
The onlookers all gaped.
“Two hundred thousand taels? Did Ping An Marquis Manor marry a wife or marry off a son?”
“How is that different from marrying into the wife’s family?”
“I thought Ping An Marquis was full of great war merit. Turns out the merit was bought with his wife’s silver.”
Whispers rose and fell like slaps across Grand Madam Lin’s face. She and Madam Jiang wanted to argue but found no words. They could only leave in disgrace.
Behind the door, Duan Yi Chen glanced sideways and said: “Well? See how strong my skills are? Pressure point sealing from a distance.”
Watching the ruckus outside, Xia Meng Yan felt fully avenged and said: “Count one merit.”
Duan Yi Chen’s smile curved, then his gaze caught the blood at the corner of her mouth. He touched it, sniffed his fingers, and smelled sugar. He said: “You planned this.”
“It was not planning. It was caution,” said Xia Meng Yan as she headed back inside. “I knew someone from Ping An Marquis Manor would come. I prepared a medicine ahead of time. After taking it, I look very pale and feel limp, but it does not harm the baby.”
Chun Yue hurried after them and asked for praise: “Eldest miss, how was my performance?”
Duan Yi Chen spoke first: “Not bad. A reward.” He pulled out one tael of silver and tossed it to her.
“Thank you for the reward, Heir Apparent Duan,” Chun Yue said, catching it with a grin.
Xia Meng Yan could only smile helplessly as she led Duan Yi Chen back to Autumn Lotus Court.
“That old witch was sharp her whole life, yet she tripped over you,” Duan Yi Chen said, lazily picking up fruit from the table. “When you mentioned the two hundred thousand, you left out when it happened on purpose, so the crowd would think Lin Ye Lan got his title because of that money. That was ruthless.”
The woman he favored was indeed clever.
“This is only the first step,” Xia Meng Yan said. “Second, we show the world Ping An Marquis covets my dowry. That also gives a reason for the chase on the road.” She wanted separation. To do it, she had to cut off all of Ping An Marquis Manor’s props. The Huo family had already been driven out of the capital. What remained was to ruin Lin Ye Lan’s career. [This mini chapter continues on the next page.]
Reputation may mean little to ordinary people, but in a noble house it is the root of standing.
Duan Yi Chen’s eyes flashed. He sat up and said: “If you truly want to separate, I can enter the palace and speak to the emperor. Why make it so troublesome?” Emperor Xuan Ming was his uncle. This small thing was no problem.
Xia Meng Yan only smiled. In her past life, she might have agreed. Now she saw through Emperor Xuan Ming’s mind. He liked lonely, dependent ministers. Her father could walk near the throne not only because of talent, but because his upright nature left him isolated in the Hanlin Academy. A man like that could lean only on Emperor Xuan Ming. The Eldest Princess likely knew this long ago, which was why she let Duan Yi Chen run wild in the capital. If Xia Meng Yan asked Duan Yi Chen to plead with the emperor now, the Eldest Princess would hate her.
She said: “Taking revenge with my own hands feels better.”
“That is true,” Duan Yi Chen said, leaning close. “But if Lin Ye Lan does not return to the capital and instead stays at Northern Fortress Pass to earn merit and kill the rumors, how will you separate?”
Xia Meng Yan had already planned for that. If Lin Ye Lan learned what happened in the capital, he would not dare return. He would only rush to make military merit, then use the merit to try to calm the gossip. If so, perfect. She and her father would use this time to drag Ping An Marquis’s name through the mud. When they were done, no amount of merit could save him.
She said: “We will wait for him to return, then separate. I do not plan to marry again anyway.”
Duan Yi Chen’s hand trembled, then he smiled and went back to eating.
When Xia Ping Yuan returned to the residence, he heard his daughter had vomited blood and hurried over, only to see Duan Yi Chen lounging in a chair. He said: “Many thanks today, Heir Apparent Duan. I will remember this favor.”
Duan Yi Chen sat up straight and returned the salute with respect: “You are too polite, Lord Xia. Meng Yan is my friend. If she is in trouble, I must help. But Ping An Marquis Manor is truly hateful. They even came to anger her at the door.”
Xia Ping Yuan snorted in anger and said: “I will enter the palace at once and ask the emperor to judge fairly.”