Thirteenth Lady's Comback: Her Everyday Life as a Bystander-Chapter 342 - 22: The Provocation Strategy (First Update)
Susu felt what she heard was simply a fantasy from the Arabian Nights!
Had Prince Ke been swapped with someone else?
If not, did his head get caught in the door or did he go mad?
The throne isn’t even secure, and he’s already butchering his supporters?
Or has Bai Lili once again used some kind of seductive fragrance?
Susu’s mind was in turmoil, constantly feeling that something was amiss here!
"Is the Prince at home?"
Mrs. Xu shook her head, "The Prince went to the camp, and he will only return after dark."
"Then let’s not wait until tomorrow. I’ll go with you right now." Only after becoming a mother did she understand just how much she loved the little life inside her.
If something were to happen to me... No! Susu didn’t even dare imagine that possibility.
Susu instructed someone to prepare the carriage, and after some thought, she not only brought along her five maids but also summoned Wei Rong’s wife and Nanny Liu, just in case they encountered the maddened Bai Lili.
"Mrs. Xu said the mansion has gotten a new cook, and the clear broth Buddha Jumps Over the Wall they make is so delicious it could bite your tongue off. The Concubine knows I love this dish and has invited me over tomorrow!
But just hearing about it made my cravings insatiable, so I can’t wait until tomorrow. I’ll go today."
Aside from Nanny Liu, everyone else knew that Susu was pregnant.
The young maids were unaware, but Wei Rong’s wife knew that when a pregnant woman craved something, it was a longing deep in the bones. If she couldn’t satisfy it immediately, she’d be uncomfortable for quite some time.
Though a reputation for loving food wasn’t ideal, considering her special condition and her close relationship with the Concubine Song, the Concubine likely wouldn’t mind such trivial matters; she might even ask the cook to write down the recipe for her to take home.
...
Prince Ke, having arrived in Hami, stayed at the Liu family’s villa for safety.
The villa was at the foot of Tianshan, just a quarter-hour’s journey from the Hami Camp.
Aunt Qin was shrewd, and all the villa servants had been sent elsewhere; aside from a tastefully decorated house, not even a cat was left behind.
Prince Ke found this quite satisfactory, given that those in power are often suspicious, trusting no one absolutely, not even those by their side.
Susu asked Mrs. Xu to sit with her, as there were some details she needed to discuss with her.
Mrs. Xu noticed that Susu’s maids had laid several thick quilts on the carriage’s bench and also noticed Susu’s hand instinctively protecting her belly, leaving her puzzled and uncertain.
Once they boarded the carriage, Mrs. Xu, still in a daze, said, "Aunt, are you...?"
Susu raised a hand to stop Mrs. Xu, gesturing outside and nodded her head.
Mrs. Xu realized then that Susu truly was pregnant and did not wish for others to know, so she didn’t ask further, feeling both sad and joyful.
Susu always felt that Fourth Miss suffered because of her, and now seeing Mrs. Xu like this, she didn’t know what to say, leading to a silent exchange between them.
...
When they arrived at the villa, Mrs. Xu got off and gave a word before the carriage entered directly through the side gate.
This wasn’t Susu’s first visit to the villa. Although the scenery was beautiful, she had no mood to appreciate it and directly switched to a soft palanquin to reach Fourth Miss’s Yuan Shan Residence.
The maids around Fourth Miss were all brought from her paternal home, and seeing Susu, they expressed both joy and sadness.
Joy because Susu was here, particularly close to Fourth Miss, and might persuade Miss to eat something. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
But saddened because the little one in Miss’s belly wouldn’t come back, even if Susu was here.
The head maid Xiang Chuan and Xiang Yu, who served Sixth Miss, had once changed their names together, both being Susu’s staunch supporters.
In just a few months without seeing each other, there was a palpable sense of change; Susu felt uneasy seeing her, just a teenage girl yet with a hint of melancholy about her.
Susu didn’t say a word, walking straight toward the bedroom, only to hear voices inside.
Xiang Chuan followed behind Susu and spoke, "It’s Ruan Concubine; since the mistress’s miscarriage, she’s been here by her side, only..."
What the mistress said to console Ruan Concubine was plenty, yet she couldn’t pass this hurdle herself. After all, the young master was merely taken by the Princess Consort, at least he could still eat and sleep.
But their little master... Xiang Chuan quickly wiped her tears, "Please go in, I’ll guard outside!"
Susu lifted the Western-style lace openwork jade-colored curtain and saw a richly carved agarwood bed inlaid with ivory. On a round stool at the head of the bed sat a woman dressed in plain clothes, turning her back to Susu—it was Sister Ten.
Because of the white hibiscus gauze lace canopy hanging over the bed, and partly obscured by Sister Ten, Susu couldn’t see Fourth Miss’s complexion.
Yet Sister Ten had been talking all along, but the person on the bed remained motionless, which indicated it was of no use.
Sister Ten sighed, "Good sister, just cry and let it out!" As she spoke, thoughts of her child far away in the Capital and her uncertain future with Fourth Miss overwhelmed her, and she couldn’t help but shed tears.
Living was just too painful!
Susu deliberately stepped louder, and surely enough, Sister Ten, like a startled rabbit, quickly wiped her tears. Seeing it was Susu, she breathed a sigh of relief and then asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"
Susu tried to smile helplessly, though her expression was more pained than a cry, "Such a big matter, I only learned about it two days later. And now, you’re asking me why I came? Do you really consider me an outsider?"
Sister Ten hastily replied, "It’s not that we didn’t want to tell you. The Prince only went to the camp today, worried you might run into him, and if anything happened to you, how could I face..."
Realizing there were outsiders present, Sister Ten stopped speaking, "It’s good that you’re here. Try to persuade her; she’s just finished confinement, and she must eat and drink."
Sister Ten herself didn’t look well, her face pale, needing a pause every few sentences, clearly lacking strength.
Susu approached the bedside, seeing Fourth Miss staring blankly at the canopy, her eyes seemed void of anxiety.
In just a short period without seeing her, even the sockets of her eyes were sunken.
Susu looked at her, her voice like something transmitted from the heavens, ethereal and devoid of humanity, "If you’re so heartbroken, why not just follow him?"
Upon hearing this, the hand of the seemingly oblivious person on the bed twitched, while Ruan Shiniang looked at Susu in disbelief, then sternly said, "Susu, what nonsense are you spouting?"
Susu didn’t turn back or answer Sister Ten, only focusing on Fourth Miss, "If you follow him, dying would bring an end to it all. You won’t need to bear the family’s mission, care about others’ glances, or worry about the family’s high-stakes gamble.
Once you’re gone, the Prince will arrange a ritual for you, Sister Ten will burn more paper money, the Song Family will mourn for you, and I’ll burn more incense and pray to the gods. Maybe in your next life, you’ll be luckier.
Once it’s all over, the Song Family will send another girl here. Do you think it’ll be Fifth Miss or Sixth Miss?"
Susu seemed to talk to herself, "I guess it’ll be Sixth Miss. Fifth Miss is not only spoiled by her aunt but also a thankless wretch. If she gains favor, it’ll be a disaster for the Song Family.
If it’s Sixth Miss, though the Old Madam will be unwilling, for the sake of Fifth Young Master and Sixth Young Master, Third Madam and Third Madam will consent.
The only solace I find is that Sixth Miss is mischievously spirited, unlike you who is inflexible. Otherwise, how could she endure in these red walls for a lifetime!"
"Stop it!"
