It was the dead of winter, the twelfth lunar month, and the New Year was just a few days away.
The plum blossoms were in full bloom at the Grand Tutor's mansion. A group of younger people surrounded the princess, playing football, building snowmen, and kicking shuttlecocks. After a few games, they lost interest.
"That's boring," Ji Qingyao suggested. "How about we play hide-and-seek? The person who gets caught has to endure the winner's challenges. What do you say? Are you up for it?"
Knowing that their cousin and the prince were at odds, the four brothers didn't rush to answer. Wei Pingxi nodded, "Alright, come and play. What's there to be afraid of?"
Princess Jiaorong smiled with satisfaction: "Good! She dares to play, so do you?"
Yu Zhi Liu Ye's eyes widened: "Me?"
"It's you! I've disliked you for a long time!"
"That's all the magnanimity you have."
"Wei Pingxi! How dare you speak to me like that?"
"I've already said it, why ask if you dare? We're both descendants of the Yan family, who are you trying to swagger with?" Wei Pingxi said impatiently, "Her win or loss is on me. Want to play or not? If not, forget it!"
"Let's play! If you lose, or she loses, you both have to soak in Mingshui Lake for an hour before coming out. Are you up for the challenge?"
"I'm not afraid of you. What if you lose?"
"The same applies!"
...
Madam Yan walked with the Empress with a smile: "I think Yao'er's temperament still has a long way to go. It's good that you're here. Take this opportunity to let them get to know each other better. They're all family, why be at odds?"
Yan Xiu nodded in agreement: "Mother is right. She's just used to being lawless in the palace."
Madam Wei, supporting the old lady on her left, said, "Why don't we go and see what they're playing, so they don't start making a scene again?"
This hit the nail on the head. The old lady then took her two daughters and headed northwest.
Halfway there, a servant rushed over in a panic: "Reporting to the old lady, the princess has fallen into Mingshui Lake!"
"What!" The old lady's face turned pale with anxiety: "Did they get them out?!"
"We've already sent people to retrieve it!"
It had been a long time since they last met, and now this had happened. The Empress and Lady Wei helped the old lady, and the group hurried toward Mingshui Lake.
Before even reaching Mingshui Lake, the noise of the crowd could be heard carried on the wind.
Ji Qingyao's maid jumped into the water and pulled her out, shouting loudly despite her clothes being soaked, "Princess? Princess? You mustn't be hurt!"
The four Yan brothers looked at each other in dismay. They were shocked to witness the discord between their two cousins. They couldn't understand how relatives could fight to the death.
Her Highness's attempt to harm others backfired, and while her jump may have been in a bad way, it has put the Yan family in a difficult position.
The old lady rushed over, calling out "My dear grandson."
Arriving at the shore of Mingshui Lake, Ji Qingyao had already vomited up the water she had drunk. Upon seeing the Empress, she called out in a hoarse voice, "Mother..."
"Yao'er!"
When Yan Xiu saw that her face was pale, her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly took off her cloak to wrap her up.
The lake is cold; even if someone jumps in and is quickly rescued, they'll likely fall ill. Since there's no concrete evidence that the daughter is fake, we can only treat it as real.
If it's possible it's true, how can a mother not worry?
The Empress glanced at Wei Pingxi standing to the side, then quickly carried her daughter back to her room.
Madam Yan also left.
If something happens to the princess in the manor, she has to go and see her, both out of courtesy and reason.
Lady Wei watched the Empress leave, her expression complex. In a flash, she turned around and took her daughter's hand: "Xi Xi, how are you? What happened?"
Wei Pingxi was still pondering the look in his aunt's eyes before she left, and said aloud, "What could possibly happen to me? The princess lost the competition, and I tried to persuade her not to jump, but she insisted on doing so..."
She felt inexplicably uncomfortable, with a sense of frustration that she felt betrayed and unable to utter a word of protest.
"I'm so glad you're alright, I'm so glad you're alright..."
Yan Ruyu said, "Aunt, we can all testify that the princess jumped down on her own, and it has nothing to do with my cousin."
"That's right, Aunt! My cousin almost jumped in to save someone!"
"Save her?" Madam Wei looked at the cold, deep Ming Shui Lake, a wave of fear washing over her. "Who are you going to save? She's gone mad, are you going to go mad too?!"
This was Wei Pingxi's first training session in eighteen years, and she was completely taken aback. Yan Qing, with a cold face, pulled her towards Qinghui Courtyard.
Yu Zhi hurriedly followed.
The gates of Qinghui Courtyard closed, and Yan Qing's face turned grim: "Whoever's daughter it is, that's who should take care of her. You are my daughter, how can you risk your life for someone else? Even if she dies, it's not your place to be buried with her."
It's hard to imagine such resolute and ruthless words coming from the mouth of Lady Wei, a devout Buddhist.
After scolding her daughter, she rushed to the kitchen to make ginger soup.
In the past half day, Wei Pingxi not only witnessed Princess Jiaorong's ability to court death, but also her mother's ability to turn on her. Her emotions were in turmoil.
"Tell me, why did Ji Qingyao jump into Mingshui Lake? It couldn't have been out of spite towards me, could it?"
Yu Zhi didn't understand either. As a princess, she was of noble birth. If she lost, she lost. Why did she have to risk her life?
Ming Shui Lake is as cold as ice; after this jump, he'll need to stay in his room for at least a month to recover.
What good can come of keeping her in a room?
She jumped into the lake, and her aunt was the one she was most worried about. What good would it do to make her aunt worry about her?
Wei Pingxi decided to think in the simplest way possible, and after a while came to a conclusion that sounded extremely ridiculous: "Could she be using this method to compete with me for favor, in order to keep my aunt away from me?"
If that's the case, then this method of sowing discord is quite ruthless.
Chapter 50 Using Oneself as Bait
The saying "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" works wonders everywhere.
Princess Jiaorong fell into the lake and caught a cold. Suddenly, she became the apple of the eye in the Grand Tutor's mansion, and everyone was busy worrying about her condition.
Wei Pingxi became an idle person with nothing to do in Qinghui Courtyard. Just now, her maternal grandmother sent someone to tell her to avoid Ji Qingyao in the near future, so as not to cause any more uncontrollable chaos.
The fourth young lady was so bored she felt like she was going to mold. She tossed a bean into her mouth, making a crunching sound on purpose. "What do you think my cousin is up to? I underestimated her. Turns out she's not so stupid after all. Do you know what her trick is called?"
Yu Zhi held a small wooden mallet and massaged her legs. She had a nightmare last night and kicked the Fourth Miss again. She was trying her best to atone for her sins.
Not wanting to let the princess's affairs affect someone's mood, she said, "Isn't it good to stay in Qinghui Courtyard where no one bothers us?"
"What's so good about it? Ji Qingyao stayed in the manor for a day, and my maternal grandmother wouldn't let me leave Qinghui Courtyard. Isn't that just a disguised form of confinement?"
She stretched out her long legs and leaned lazily against the back of the chair: "This move is called 'the ruthless are afraid of the reckless.' She's playing with my life, but I can't afford to play that game. That's why we're in this stalemate."
"Now that's bad, I have no idea what's happening in the manor. Think about it, she's willing to harm herself, she must have other plans."
Yu Zhi put down the wooden mallet and massaged her calves: "She has a backup plan, so we'll just have to deal with it as it comes. No matter how skilled a master is, he can only counter after the opponent makes a move."
“That’s true.” Wei Pingxi closed his eyes. “Whatever. She has her backup plan, and I have mine. What’s the point of living if I don’t even know how I died?”
She pondered for a moment, then said, "Jade, bring me paper and pen. I need to write a few letters."
Why write a letter?
She glanced at Yu Zhi with amusement: "Since you have nothing better to do, why not settle some past life debts?"
"..."
Putting everything else aside, the fact that he was willing to die for her in his past life shows his deep affection and loyalty.
Wei Pingxi didn't think she had that deep relationship with those people. To be honest, she had only redeemed Yan Ji from her servitude, helped her avenge the massacre of her family, and then asked her if she wanted to come with her and be kept as a vase in the backyard, where she would occasionally have the vase to amuse herself by painting.
From that day on, the most beautiful courtesan in the brothel willingly became a member of her private quarters.
The depths of people's hearts are sometimes truly unfathomable.
Some may appear compassionate, but inside they have committed countless acts of killing.
Some may see them as dissolute, yet they are also deeply devoted to love.
The truth and the falsehood cannot be discerned by mere observation.
She was writing a letter to Yanji, the one with the most beautiful legs in the villa.
After finishing the letter, she snapped out of her reverie and recalled the few times she had met the eldest son of the Song family.
She helped him when they first met, and saved him when they met again. It was truly a case of seeing injustice and drawing one's sword to help.
She helped and rescued the other person, who was so exhausted that the other person jumped into the river for her sake. But she had no memory of this person in her heart. She only remembered what she did, and she couldn't even remember what the person looked like.
commit a sin.
She buried herself in writing letters.
Yu Zhi served her with great care and attentiveness, a faint smile appearing in her bright eyes.
It seems that the Fourth Miss is not as heartless as she thought; at least she cares about those who died for her and about each and every precious life.
The white paper was laid out again, and Wei Pingxi held the pen in his hand, suspending it without letting it fall.
"What's wrong?"
Miss Wei sighed, "What a tragedy..."
Yu Zhi touched her nose and thought to herself: You know you've committed a sin, let's see if you dare to provoke those people again.
When Wei Pingxi was fourteen, she went to the Northern Region and met the Holy Maiden of the Northern Region. At that time, she did not know that the person was the Holy Maiden.
Being a newcomer to the place and unfamiliar with everyone, the woman invited her to travel with her, and so they did, leading to many interesting events along the way.
It was later learned that she had come to see all the beauties in the world, and that she was an exceptional painter. The woman then asked her to paint a picture of her.
How could someone who can be a saintess not be beautiful?
At the age of fourteen, Wei Pingxi was carefree and unburdened. He loved to do things that were considered shameful by scholars, doing whatever he pleased. He could paint mountains and rivers, the sun and the moon, and of course, beautiful women.
She chuckled and said, "This pen of mine is no ordinary pen; it only draws naked beauties."
The woman looked at her intently, then smiled and said, "Okay."
A simple "Okay!" created the first vivid and beautiful portrait of her life.