Chapter 124: Chao Chao’s Fury
This chapter is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.
“Chao Chao, you smell nice. Smell me…” The little one stood on tiptoes, extending her tiny hand.
Madam Zheng abruptly stepped back, her face contorted with disdain.
“Insolent!” A maid interposed herself between Madam Zheng and the child, shielding the former. “How dare a nobody like you approach Madam Zheng? Know your place!” She peered down scornfully at the child.
Lu Chao Chao, once a formidable figure in her past life, was now merely a year and a half old and profoundly influenced by her current surroundings. This marked her first encounter with such blatant contempt.
Wounded by the rejection, she withdrew her hand and hid it behind her back. Her large eyes filled with tears that stubbornly refused to fall as she murmured softly, “I… I don’t stink.”
Madam Zheng glanced at her icily. “Whether you stink or not is irrelevant to me. Has the gift for my daughter been dispatched to the palace?”
The maid bowed slightly and responded, “Yes, it has been delivered. Matters concerning the Consort are always handled promptly and without delay.”
Madam Zheng shot a scornful look at Lu Chao Chao. Her eldest daughter had become a consort in the palace and had birthed a six-year-old princess named Xie Yi Ning. Prior to Lu Chao Chao’s arrival, Princess Yi Ning had been the apple of her eye. But now, the king’s attention was predominantly on Lu Chao Chao. Madam Zheng’s eyes simmered with malice, fueled by the letters of complaint she had received from her daughter regarding the king’s favoritism towards Lu Chao Chao.
“Madam, Princess Yi Ning is both wise and charming, beyond comparison,” a servant remarked, ignoring Lu Chao Chao’s presence.
“Indeed, even Marquis Zhongyong rejected her. What worth could such a child possibly hold?” Madam Zheng chuckled softly, her voice dripping with contempt.
As tears streamed down her face, Lu Chao Chao trailed behind them. She was a vengeful and petty soul, and Madam Zheng was utterly unaware of the storm brewing against her.
“A little beggar daring to visit the Xiao estate to beg? You certainly have audacity. Did you steal my Ning’er’s favor?” A young man with thick eyebrows and big eyes, dressed in opulent attire, looked down on her disdainfully.
Lu Chao Chao pouted. The king and the crown prince had offered to send guards with her, but she had declined, preferring to handle her grievances privately.
“Mother, you even personally received her. You’re giving her too much importance…” This was Madam Zheng’s son, Xiao Ming Yao.
“We need to maintain appearances for His Majesty and the public,” Madam Zheng retorted, irritated by his nonchalant attitude.
“Mother, give me another ten thousand taels. I need it for something crucial.” Xiao Ming Yao clung to his mother’s arm, pestering her for money.
“All you think about is money! How much have you squandered this month? If your father learns of this, he’ll be irate. Can’t you accomplish something on your own? Your sister in the palace still requires your support!” Madam Zheng scolded him, frustrated by his lack of ambition.
Madam Zheng, in her thirties, was Duke Xiao’s much younger second wife, following the death of his first wife who had borne him a son. This son now held a governmental position far from the capital and had not returned in years due to her machinations.
“Mother, you know academics are not my forte. Father won’t be upset; he favors me the most.” Xiao Ming Yao boasted, successfully extracting ten thousand taels from Madam Zheng and flaunting it before Lu Chao Chao.
“If you kneel and kowtow to me, I’ll give you two banknotes. How about that?” Xiao Ming Yao, known throughout the capital as a spoiled playboy, was unmoved by the king’s favoritism towards Lu Chao Chao. The dowager was a Xiao, Duke Xiao’s aunt, and thus his great-aunt, which accorded the family considerable respect within the nobility.
“I won’t kneel!” Lu Chao Chao crossed her arms, her face etched with rare anger.
Suddenly, she was shoved from behind, sending her stumbling towards the edge of a table. She managed to twist her body just in time to avoid hitting her head, but she still sustained a scratch from the sharp corner.
“Ah!” Lu Chao Chao cried out softly, clutching her head as blood began to trickle down.
“You’re asking for trouble! Do you want a beating?” A chubby, robust little boy glared at her menacingly.
“My, my dear grandson is so strong!” Madam Zheng applauded, her voice laced with pride.
“Didn’t you eat? My Yu Hang just gave you a slight push, and you fell. Are you trying to make a scene?” Madam Zheng accused loudly, ensuring there were no witnesses to back up a different story.
Lu Chao Chao staggered to her feet, her eyes burning with anger and her small fists clenched tightly.
“How dare you fight back? If you bark like a dog on the ground, I’ll let you go!” Xiao Yu Hang, robust at four years old and already known as a troublemaker, taunted her.
“I’ll…” Lu Chao Chao’s cowlick stood up defiantly. “I’ll fight you to the end!” No one expected the fierce resolve from the tiny, one-and-a-half-year-old. She charged at the sturdy Xiao Yu Hang like a miniature cannonball, knocking him over and latching onto his head.
Xiao Yu Hang struggled to dislodge her, but her grip was unyielding. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his ear. “Ah!! It hurts, it hurts, Father, help!” His screams were piercing, filled with shock and agony as Lu Chao Chao bit down hard, her nine tiny teeth sinking into his flesh, causing blood to flow freely.
“Ah!” Madam Zheng screamed in horror. “Quick, separate them! Save Yu Hang!”
The crowd attempted to pry Lu Chao Chao away, but the more they pulled, the harder she bit, amplifying Xiao Yu Hang’s cries to a horrifying crescendo.
“Ah, it hurts so much! Kill her, kill her!” Despite usually being the bully, Xiao Yu Hang had never experienced being on the receiving end of such ferocity.
“Help, help…” Madam Zheng was on the verge of tears, her voice breaking as panic set in. Xiao Ming Yao, who had been about to kick Lu Chao Chao, hesitated, not daring to escalate the situation further.
Duke Xiao was urgently summoned and arrived to witness the appalling scene. Seeing his beloved grandson, Xiao Yu Hang, in such distress was his worst nightmare. He was nearly paralyzed with fear.
“How dare you!” Duke Xiao trembled with rage.
Lu Chao Chao lifted her head, her gaze fierce and unyielding.
“Little one, whatever he did, I apologize on his behalf. Please let him go, or he might lose his ear!” Duke Xiao, his voice quivering with anguish, had never intended for Lu Chao Chao to be tormented to this extent, despite Madam Zheng’s schemes to undermine the king through this altercation.
But unexpectedly, the situation had spiraled out of control. Blood trickled down, staining Xiao Yu Hang’s face as he continued to wail, having soiled himself from fright.
Madam Zheng, witnessing the flow of blood, shook uncontrollably with fear. “Please, let him go. We can discuss this. He’s only four. He’s just a child…”
Lu Chao Chao’s face, twisted with rage and the injustice she felt, remained locked in her fierce bite, her small teeth nearly severing the boy’s ear. The screams that filled the room were chilling to the bone.
Just signed their death warrants..