To put it simply, you can't catch a wolf without risking your cub.
If you don't risk everything, you might be devoured by even more wicked people until there's nothing left.
Compared to an unknown man, the fourth young lady was her best choice.
Yu Zhi lay on the pillow, her face flushed and ears burning, the room filled with the fragrant sweat emanating from the beauty's body.
After her experiences in January, Yuzhi was no longer the pampered girl protected by her blind mother in Liushui Lane. She suddenly realized the truth and grew at an astonishing speed.
The most visible improvement is that she is gradually able to suppress her shyness in front of others.
When the maids in the courtyard had free time, they would talk to her about matters between women, and the delicate beauty would listen attentively without batting an eye.
Granny Wu was deeply gratified.
You have to be able to keep things hidden.
But you must never wear your heart on your sleeve.
You must understand that Miss Yu is not dealing with an ordinary person, but with the unpredictable Fourth Miss, who is more dangerous than any dangerous man.
Men might be blinded by beauty, but when Miss Fourth gets angry, she doesn't care whether you're beautiful or ugly.
After many days, she finally saw some results. Granny Wu silently stepped forward, lowered her head, and gently inhaled the fragrance in the air, feeling a sense of accomplishment as if the fragrance had been "marinated" into her skin.
"good."
Yu Zhi turned around and obediently called out, "Grandma."
Granny Wu, wanting to test her, asked, "If one day you displease the Fourth Miss and she wants to punish you, what should you do?"
"It depends on what kind of unhappiness it is."
Even if the nanny didn't ask, Yuzhi had thought about this question a hundred or a thousand times on her sleepless nights.
She answered fluently: "If it's just a minor unhappiness, I'll coax her with sweet words. If sweet words don't work, I'll let my body speak for itself."
As she approached the courtyard, a woman's sweet voice reached her ears, and Miss Wei suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Jade and Agate, lacking her profound inner strength, could only vaguely hear Miss Yu speaking, but couldn't make out what she was saying.
"How do you mean by showing your actions?"
Granny Wu asked the question that the fourth young lady wanted to ask.
Yu Zhi said generously, "It's just that I made her forget she was angry with me, and she even had to come back and coax me."
"..."
Wei Pingxi smiled knowingly, blinked, and somewhat admired Granny Wu's methods of training people.
What exactly did Zhizhi learn in the courtyard? She's really quite boastful.
It's a good thing to dare to think and act.
Wu Mama suppressed her suspicions. It wasn't that she looked down on Miss Yu, but no matter how eloquent Miss Yu was now, if she really displeased the Fourth Miss, she would probably cry her eyes out.
"Miss?"
Wei Pingxi gave up his desire to go in and visit.
It seems that Miss Zhizhi is more adapted to this environment than she thought.
They've started talking big.
"I'm not watching anymore, let's go home!"
She spoke on a whim, and Jade and Agate dared not utter a sound, following behind her, feeling utterly bewildered.
Since we've already come all this way, why are we leaving just because the person isn't there?
A gust of wind blew by, carrying the heat of summer. Yu Zhi subconsciously looked towards the entrance of the courtyard, but did not see the person she was thinking of, and felt a slight sense of disappointment.
Wei Pingxi walked away, not hearing Wu Mama's next question: "Does Miss Yu know what the highest realm of a concubine is?"
The world is vast, and there is knowledge to be gained everywhere.
Yu Zhi opened her beautiful eyes and pondered the question carefully.
After a month of pampered living in the small courtyard, she became even more fair-skinned and beautiful, radiant with health. She shed the timidity of her impoverished background and gained a newfound composure in every gesture.
Without that petty air, she looked completely different, if not entirely transformed, but certainly much more eye-catching.
She spoke shyly: "In my opinion, the highest level of being a concubine is to be both real and illusory, to be both deeply affectionate and detached, and to leave room for maneuver in one's actions."
Granny Wu slowly exhaled, her old face beaming with joy: "Knowing to leave a way out, this old servant can rest assured."
A virtuous wife is rare, but a concubine is seldom found.
Freshness won't make people tired of it too soon; only when the Fourth Miss is comfortable can she be comfortable.
After receiving a few more words of praise from the nanny, Yuzhi moved to the music room to practice the zither.
The four arts cultivate character, and the study is dedicated to one person, which is something she has never experienced before.
From now on, the Fourth Miss's joy is her joy, and the Fourth Miss's sorrow is her sorrow. She must serve her wholeheartedly, and may pretend to love her deeply, but she cannot truly love her.
She could be coquettish, charming, and shameless in begging for her pity, but she still had to see her true identity—she was a concubine.
Even a concubine is timid.
A timid person lacks the courage to love, nor the courage to expect an equal amount of genuine affection.
The music stopped abruptly.
Yu Zhi clutched her chest, overwhelmed by a sudden wave of sadness.
The fourth young lady said she was going to visit her, why hasn't she come yet?
...
Tired from walking, Wei Pingxi sat back down on the two-wheeled wooden chair. Emerald pushed her forward and couldn't help but say something nice about Yu Zhi: "It seems that the young lady is studying very hard."
The fourth young lady chuckled, "How do you know she's studying hard if you haven't seen her?"
"Even without seeing her, just by hearing her voice, the girl is different from before."
She knew a little about Wu Mama's methods. Many women from powerful and wealthy families who wanted to enter the palace to serve His Majesty had to ask Wu Mama to give them some pointers beforehand.
Granny Wu's skills extend far beyond what's available in the backyard.
She was an old woman who had retired from the palace. She entered the palace at the age of thirteen as a maid in the Gan Ning Palace. When she reached the age of retirement, the Empress bestowed her upon her as a lady, implying that the lady would help take care of the old nanny in her old age.
Ordinary people can't get her to come.
Furthermore, His Majesty is a rare romantic in the royal family, doting solely on His Majesty the Empress. The old nanny was originally a servant of the late Emperor. The late Emperor was a womanizer with three thousand concubines, and the women in his harem were no less capable than men when it came to vying for power.
A man who has weathered many storms is more than capable of training a beautiful concubine, if not a waste of his talents.
"The young lady's speech is quite charming now."
Previously, Miss Yu spoke timidly, but after visiting Granny Wu, she broadened her horizons and learned something useful. Now, her tone of voice exudes a subtle and elegant charm.
Her allure lingered on her lips and tongue, making full use of her beautiful voice, delicate and melodious, the most charming voice Jade had ever heard.
When sound is used to its fullest potential, it becomes colorful.
Yu's voice evokes images of vibrant colors in springtime.
Emerald glanced at her young mistress furtively, wondering why she remained so composed despite how well Miss Yu had improved. Shouldn't she at least show some joy and say hello?
Unable to fathom their mistress's thoughts, Jade and Agate exchanged glances and asked, "Why is Miss leaving? What if the young lady is waiting for you..."
"Then let her wait. She keeps saying she wants to take me down, I'd like to see just how capable she really is."
"..."
The hot wind blew by, cooling down people's enthusiasm. Jade and Agate, who had been carried away for a moment, now came to their senses and dared not say another word.
No matter how good Miss Yu is, she is ultimately just a concubine that the young lady uses to admire and play with on a whim.
Besides, to talk about true feelings with a young lady is just wishful thinking.
"It's just a matter of mutual benefit." After saying this, Miss Wei's mood visibly darkened.
Her moods were so unpredictable that they couldn't be fathomed by common sense, and the two maids dared not even breathe loudly.
Pushing the wooden wheelchair back to Jingzhe Courtyard, I heard the young lady ask, "How is things on White Tiger Street?"
There is a house on Baihu Street that she arranged for Yu's mother.
"Madam Yu has been blind for many years. She can be cured, but she is not easy to cure. The divine doctor is missing a few medicines."
Which flavors?
Agate took out a prescription from her sleeve pocket and handed it over.
The words written in black and white are rare and precious medicines that are hard to find in this world.
"Yao Chenzi is taking advantage of the situation to kill people again."
Wei Pingxi smiled, not minding that her old friend was taking advantage of her indirectly, and her gaze lingered on the names of several familiar herbs.
"I remember this medicine was available in the palace; it was a tribute from a foreign country two years ago."
She folded the prescription and tucked it into her sleeve: "Be careful, and remember to check on the courtyard often when you have nothing else to do. Make sure there are no wicked servants bullying their masters."
The jade and agate responded softly.
On that day, the two of them brought the gifts they had brought from Jingzhe Courtyard to the residence at No. 3 Baihu Street.
Upon learning that her 'son-in-law' had sent gifts, Yu's mother emerged from her room, leaning on her jade cane. Her clothes were neat, and she was slender. Gone was the worry of struggling to make a living; she now exuded the air of a noble lady from a prominent family.
His speech, behavior, and way of dealing with people were truly astonishing.
Supported by maids on either side, they stood respectfully beside her, their imposing manners overwhelming the two of them.
Is this still the same blind woman who was bullied by a shrew and had no way to fight back?
"Zhizhi and Xixi didn't come?"
Emerald, regaining her senses, said respectfully, "The family cannot do without the young mistress. Miss said she would come to visit you again after things have settled down."
Upon learning that her daughter's "son-in-law" was busy, Yu's mother sighed a couple of times.
Emerging from the mansion, the two sisters, dazed and confused, looked at each other, unsure of what to say.
"No wonder she could give birth to such a beauty as the girl. I'm sure we don't need to come; Madam Yu herself can keep this group in check."