Chapter 19: Birth (Part 14)

When Guan Niang heard the report, she immediately took a calming pill on the spot. Since this guest was a close acquaintance of the young lady, the Shui family could only treat her with courtesy.

Lady Wang was temporarily arranged to stay in a room next to the young lady’s chamber, with two maids attending to her and delicate meals delivered daily.

Upon arrival, Shen Suwei noticed the servants carrying numerous potted plants to decorate the courtyard, and someone was setting up a ladder to hang ornaments on the plaque. He asked, “Does your residence have a celebration coming up?”

Xu Qianyu casually replied, “Oh, it’s for my birthday.”

Shen Suwei paused. “Fourteen already?”

“How did you know?”

Shen Suwei fell silent for a moment, then asked instead, “Which day is it?”

“The day after tomorrow… or maybe the one after that.”

Since every birthday felt the same each year, Xu Qianyu didn’t pay much attention to it. Besides, after this birthday, she’d have to start wearing a veil hat—it wasn’t exactly something to look forward to.

After hearing this, Shen Suwei nodded. “Then, young lady, just stay home and rest for the next couple of days.”

Xu Qianyu frowned, finding his words a bit strange.

“Is her courtyard cursed? The moment anyone steps over this threshold, they all become like the observing matron.

Shen Suwei had only stayed half a day in the Shui family’s home when he was summoned to the young lady’s quarters.

The room was spacious and cool. Xu Qianyu pulled him to the table, dipped a brush in ink, and pressed it into his hand. ‘Sign it.’

Spread flat on the table was the separation agreement.

…He couldn’t sign it yet.

He wasn’t Lady Wang.

Seeing Lady Wang hesitate, Xu Qianyu asked in surprise, ‘You don’t still have feelings for him, do you?’

Lady Wang spoke, ‘After all, we were once husband and wife…’

‘But he treated you like that. What’s there to hold on to?’ Xu Qianyu found Lady Wang’s indecision incomprehensible. ‘Did you know? He’s long wanted to replace you with a new wife.’

Beside them, Xiao Dong, who was adding incense, gave a startled cough, feeling that the young lady’s words were too blunt, practically rubbing salt into the wound.

Xu Qianyu stopped herself and took a sip of tea in a fluster.

She had brought Lady Wang to her estate, and the observing matron had already advised her gently.

The matron said, ‘Matters between husband and wife are often a case of one willing to hit and the other willing to endure. It’s best not to interfere. If you force yourself in, thinking you’re helping, they might end up resenting you instead.’

Such “matters between husband and wife” were truly beyond reason.

Now, if Lady Wang was unwilling to sign the separation agreement, so be it.

As long as she stayed here, Xu Qianyu could persuade her daily. Someday, she’d manage to convince her to sign.

Lady Wang was then sent out as a guest.

From the eastern wing window, one could see the young lady’s courtyard. Shen Suwei, having spent much time in the immortal sect, hadn’t seen such a lively human world in a long time.

In the young lady’s courtyard, the maids were playing shuttlecock and blindman’s buff, their laughter ringing like silver bells. Xu Qianyu sat on a slightly swinging swing, not joining in, but watching idly, acting as the judge.

He found himself silently observing for a while, then looked up at the sky.

The eaves of the four surrounding buildings framed a square of clear blue sky, like a still pool of water.

This courtyard felt a bit too small for her.

During the day, Xu Qianyu had pulled Shen Suwei aside to try and persuade him. He listened quietly, considering it a form of meditation. At night, he walked out of the wing, pasted a venom charm on the courtyard wall, and, as golden ripples spread, passed through the wall and left the Shui estate.

But this night, just as he was putting up the charm, he suddenly heard a voice behind him: ‘Where are you going?’

Shen Suwei’s hand paused, and he pulled the charm back into his sleeve. Turning around, he saw Xu Qianyu standing in the courtyard, looking up at him with a stormy expression, her eyes full of anger.

Xu Qianyu was genuinely upset. She felt her efforts over the past few days had been wasted. Lady Wang acted meek and compliant during the day, only to try to sneak off home at night. How could there be such a feeble person, unwilling to advance when led and retreating when pushed?

‘Don’t tell me you can’t let go of that husband of yours and are sneaking off to keep him company?’

Lady Wang’s white robes fluttered as she spoke, after a moment, ‘…I have other business to attend to.’

Xu Qianyu, seeing her lying, was even more displeased, sneering, ‘Fine, I couldn’t sleep anyway. Whatever you’re doing, take me with you.’

In her anger, the wall in front of Lady Wang suddenly cracked with a “crack,” and powder fell down in heaps. Xu Qianyu was startled and looked at him with some uncertainty.

Shen Suwei instantly understood the situation.

It seemed she possessed a spiritual root, naturally absorbing spiritual energy, yet at fourteen, she had not yet guided qi into her body and could not refine it. She had bathed in spirit water recently, and her spiritual energy had surged, but her spiritual palace was still as small as it was when she was born. As the pool overflowed, the excess energy dispersed, making her restless and unable to sleep, causing her to notice the activity outside.

Shen Suwei then said, ‘Give me your hand.’

Xu Qianyu, unsure of his intent, held Lady Wang’s outstretched hand. The hand was cool, and as he held it, a calming flow seemed to move from his palm, spreading gently to her limbs, bringing an indescribable comfort.

Then Lady Wang turned, pulling her back to the room. At the table, he spread out the paper with one hand, took up a brush, and signed the separation agreement smoothly.

‘What are you doing?’ Xu Qianyu asked, surprised.

Lady Wang replied calmly while signing, ‘Don’t worry, I am completely severed from him. I just left some things at home that I need to retrieve.’

As he finished, the ink on the paper had dried. Lady Wang folded it and handed it to Xu Qianyu. After a moment, he asked softly, ‘Are you still going?’

Xu Qianyu looked at the separation agreement in her hand, staring blankly at him.

She couldn’t understand why Lady Wang had suddenly come to her senses and decisively signed the agreement. And why hand her the signed document, as if signing just to please her? What did it have to do with her?

But after a moment, she realized:

Lady Wang had been trying to reassure her.

He was treating her like a child, hoping that by making her happy, she would stay put and not follow him.

But Lady Wang didn’t understand her nature.

All the maids in the Shui estate knew that Xu Qianyu hated being treated like a child. She immediately scowled, ‘Why shouldn’t I go? Do you think you can come and go from the Shui estate as you please? If I want to go with you, you must take me. If you leave without me, don’t ever come back.’

‘…Fine, let’s go.’ Shen Suwei, rendered speechless, turned and left, unwilling to continue arguing with her.

After just a few steps, Xu Qianyu caught up, grabbing his sleeve and reaching out, as if searching for his hand.

Having just helped her adjust her qi, she had likely felt a sense of comfort, and, once released, grew restless again. Shen Suwei’s eyelashes quivered, but he said nothing and gently took hold of her hand.

Xu Qianyu, who had felt abandoned when Lady Wang left her, now felt calm and secure as he silently held her hand, allowing him to lead the way. Strangely, they encountered no obstacles along the way, not a single person questioned them.

Not long after they left, Xiao Dong hurried out of the pavilion.

Since her last nightmare, she had been sleeping poorly, waking up in the middle of the night to quietly lift the curtain and check if the young lady was still there.

Today, the young lady is missing again. When she opened the corner door, she saw two shadows in the distance. She went to knock on the door of the east wing and confirmed that the young lady must have left with Lady Wang.

Although the young lady had company, it was late at night, and two weak women were still a cause for concern. Xiao Dong couldn’t make up her mind and decided to wake Songbai.

As soon as Songbai heard that the young lady had gone east with Lady Wang, she hurriedly got dressed and said, “Oh no, they must be going back to the Wang Changshi’s residence.”

“Wang Changshi’s residence?”

“That Wang Changshi is not a good person,” Songbai said. “He has a lot of fierce servants at his house.”

Xiao Dong’s face turned pale. “What should we do? The young lady didn’t bring anyone. What if she gets into trouble there?”

“I’ll go call Guan Niang,” Songbai said as she put on her shoes and was about to leave.

“Wait, although the young lady is bold, she’s not reckless. What if it’s something she agreed upon with them, and she doesn’t want to disturb Guan Niang and the master by leaving in the middle of the night? Tomorrow is the young lady’s birthday—a joyful occasion. We shouldn’t ruin her mood.”

“What do you suggest then?”

Xiao Dong picked up a lantern, the warm yellow light illuminating her determined face. The last time the young lady insisted that she stay behind, it had made her upset for quite a while. Was she really that timid?

“You tell me where Wang Changshi’s residence is, and we’ll quietly follow. We’ll take a firecracker with us and discuss a signal with the people in the courtyard. If there’s nothing wrong, we can bring the young lady back without alarming anyone. If something is wrong, we’ll light a ‘starry sky’ to call for help.”

After hearing this, Songbai agreed: “Okay, I’ll go with you.”

*

Xu Qianyu followed Lady Wang straight into Wang Changshi’s residence, and still, no one stopped them, which surprised her. However, on the way, Lady Wang had set three rules with her, instructing her to say nothing, no matter what happened; it was best to remain silent.

Xu Qianyu knew that if she spoke, she might complicate things further. Out of respect for Lady Wang’s request, she reluctantly kept her mouth shut.

The two entered a very dark room. There was only a weak candle on the table, and its light was dimmer than the moonlight coming through the window. Neatly arranged on the table were books, papers, an inkstone, and a row of brushes, all shrouded in dim moonlight. It appeared to be a study.

Lady Wang let go of her, looking up at the doors and windows and the cabinet. After scanning the room, she sat down at the table.

Xu Qianyu, feeling bored, noticed several open boxes on the desk, neatly arranged with items inside. She pulled one out to take a look, only to find it filled with brand-new embroidered insoles. The stitches were tightly packed, and the embroidery was exquisite; each flower was beautiful. Xu Qianyu flipped through them one by one and discovered they were all embroidered with the twelve seasonal flowers.

Another box contained various handcrafted headbands, which felt soft and comfortable to the touch.

Xu Qianyu couldn’t help but ask, “Did you embroider all of this?”

It was hard to imagine that those cold, emotionless eyes could spend day after day stitching such delicate pieces under the lamp.

Lady Wang glanced at the embroidery in Xu Qianyu’s hands but said nothing, seeming to acknowledge it.

“Why did you come back?”

A voice suddenly came from behind. Xu Qianyu was startled and turned around to see Wang Duan standing at the door of the study.

The moonlight illuminated his sickly pale face, making his eyes appear even redder. He looked surprised as he gazed at Lady Wang, his expression somewhat anxious.

“I have something…”

“What is it? Just take it and leave quickly,” Wang Duan interrupted hastily. He stood at the door, his chest rising and falling as if he was trying hard to suppress a cough.

But Lady Wang did not stand up. “We are husband and wife; why are you so wary of me?”

“We’ve already… cough cough… parted ways. We are no longer husband and wife,” Wang Duan said, pressing his hand against his chest. With each violent cough, the spiderweb-like veins on his forehead became more pronounced, as if the purple blood vessels were throbbing to the point of bursting through his skin. “If you don’t leave soon, I will… report you for trespassing and burglary.”

Lady Wang stood up and laughed, “Fine, then go ahead.”

Xu Qianyu was caught off guard and pulled back, sitting down in her chair.

She stepped closer to Wang Duan, her soft aura being replaced by an inexplicable chill as if she carried a biting west wind, making the atmosphere suddenly oppressive.

Wang Duan could only watch her approach, letting out a weak groan, “Yueyin, let’s go.”

Lady Wang walked up to him and gently pushed him in the chest, causing him to stagger back a few steps. “Things between husband and wife should not be discussed in front of children. Let’s go outside.”

After saying this, she glanced back at Xu Qianyu. At that moment, Xu Qianyu felt a sudden chill in the room, as if a pair of hands were pressing down on her shoulders, pinning her to the chair, rendering her unable to move.

Wang Duan was just about to step back outside.

Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred.

A figure holding a lantern rushed in from behind, and the warm yellow light suddenly illuminated half of Wang Duan’s pale face.

Wang Duan flinched as if afraid of the light, his eyes widening, and his pupils shrinking in an instant. Then, without warning, the spiderweb-like veins burst through his skin, and a second “head” grotesquely emerged from the side of Wang Duan’s pale face. This head had no features, its dark, shadowy essence swelling violently, opening its mouth in a beastly rage, and with a swift motion, it devoured the newcomer whole!

At the same time, “Lady Wang” shot out a golden sword from her sleeve, splitting it into three: one pierced Wang Duan’s chest, another lodged in his abdomen, pinning him harshly against the wall; the third “thrust” through the neck of the shadowy head. The creature was unable to chew, and with a forceful opening of its mouth, it spat out the newcomer whole.

Songbai ran closer and saw the person on the ground. She didn’t have time to light the “starry sky” firecracker and immediately collapsed to her knees, “Xiao Dong…”

The shadowy head gasped for breath for a while, then fell silent, and after a moment, like Xiao Dong’s lantern, it rolled and fell to the ground.