Chapter 8: Chapter 8

Pretty girls always attract unwanted attention. By sixteen, Ye Qiuniang had grown even more beautiful. Four years in the Ming household had transformed her from a skinny little bean sprout into a tall, graceful, and stunning maiden. People couldn’t help but let their gazes linger on her in passing.

Ye Qiuniang knew full well what these gazes from all sides meant. Some, she couldn’t fight against. Others, she didn’t bother acknowledging. She could only focus all her energy on Ming Rou. It was this tiny girl who had given her the chance to escape her original cage. Because of her, Ye Qiuniang could at least enjoy a few more years of peace.

However, one day, just past noon, an Errand Boy who served Du Xian came to find her. He said the Master was asking for her presence. Ye Qiuniang’s heart lurched. Ming Rou had gone to a relative’s house with her mother shortly after breakfast and hadn’t returned. Old Patriarch Ming had also left for the estate early that morning, and as was his custom, he would likely stay there overnight.

As for Ye Qiuniang herself, she had little to no interaction with Du Xian. For him to summon her now was highly suspicious. Her intuition told her that her fears weren’t misplaced. Summoning her at such a coincidental time suggested Du Xian had planned this for a long time.

But regardless, Ye Qiuniang’s position didn’t allow her to refuse. Lowering her eyes, she calmly said to the Errand Boy, “Sixth Brother, please wait a moment. The Wet Nurse asked me to finish some shoe soles earlier and said I should deliver them today. If I’m late, she’ll surely come looking for me. How about I drop them off first, then go with you to see the Master? What do you think?”

The Errand Boy’s eyes shifted. “I’ll go with you. After you deliver them, you’ll come with me to the Master’s courtyard.”

Ye Qiuniang nodded. “That’s also convenient. Then I’ll trouble Sixth Brother to accompany me.” The two of them headed together towards the back courtyard. Ye Qiuniang quickened her pace, but the Errand Boy, not wanting to be left behind, as if afraid she’d run, strode forward to walk right beside her, their shoulders almost touching.

Ye Qiuniang said nothing. Halfway there, she suddenly slowed her pace. The Errand Boy, caught off guard, couldn’t stop in time, and they nearly collided. He raised his head and shot her a fierce glare.

It was late autumn, and the lotus flowers in the garden’s Lotus Pond had begun to wither. Only a few lonely blooms remained standing in the water. Because the mud hadn’t been cleaned out, a foul stench emanated from the pond even from a distance. Old Patriarch Ming had already ordered someone to dredge the pond, but a few days of heavy rain had delayed the work.

Just as they were crossing the narrow bridge beside the pond, Ye Qiuniang suddenly lost her footing and stumbled to the right. The Errand Boy, momentarily distracted, had been one step ahead and, as a result, tripped her. With a startled cry, Ye Qiuniang fell heavily sideways, plunging headfirst into the pond.

She had only half-fallen in at first, but then, with a clumsy struggle, she tumbled entirely into the muck. Her hair was covered in filthy, dark mud, a truly wretched sight. The pond was very shallow, barely chest-deep at most. Her floundering stirred up the bottom, releasing an even fouler stench.

The Errand Boy cursed inwardly. He rushed to the edge of the pond and shouted at Ye Qiuniang in a low, furious voice, “Are you blind? How am I supposed to report back to the Master now!”

The commotion quickly drew the attention of nearby servants, who gathered around to see what was happening. There was Ye Qiuniang, covered head to toe in stinking brown mud. Looking horrified, she cried out to the Errand Boy on the bank, “Sixth Brother, it was entirely Qiuniang’s carelessness. I didn’t notice your foot suddenly sticking out, and I tripped over it. I’ll have to trouble you to tell the Master that Qiuniang’s body is foul and filthy, and I fear offending him with the stench. I will come straight to offer my apologies as soon as I’ve washed.”

The Errand Boy hadn’t expected Ye Qiuniang to pin the blame squarely on him for her fall. He wasn’t even sure himself if his foot had tripped her. Seeing the crowd gathering, sweat beaded on his forehead. The Master had explicitly ordered that summoning Qiuniang was to be kept quiet. Now, thanks to her shouting, the whole courtyard probably knew about it.

He felt a surge of resentment but had no other choice. Moreover, Ye Qiuniang now smelled so revolting that even he couldn’t stand near her, let alone the Master, who was so fastidious and clean.

“Go wash up and get back quickly! If the Master gets angry, you know the consequences,” the Errand Boy grumbled, already resigning himself to at least a scolding for botching this errand.

The servants who had gathered around, listening to their exchange, more or less grasped the gist of what had happened. A knowing look appeared on the faces of the older ones as they glanced at the Errand Boy, their eyes full of unspoken meaning. However, the Master’s affairs were not for lowly servants like them to meddle in. All they could do was work together to fish Ye Qiuniang out of the water.

Feeling the weight of their stares, the Errand Boy’s heart pounded with guilt. Seeing the putrid state of Ye Qiuniang, he ignored everything else, covered his nose, and spat, “Ye Qiuniang, don’t try any tricks! Get cleaned up and get over there!” Then, without a backward glance, he scurried off to Du Xian’s courtyard to report his failure.

After Ye Qiuniang climbed ashore, she thanked everyone profusely before trudging back to Ming Rou’s courtyard in her foul-smelling state. The moment she stepped inside, Little Cui greeted her with a string of complaints, pinching her nose while fetching water for a bath.

But Ye Qiuniang, in stark contrast, moved with an almost leisurely air. She gave herself only the most cursory cleaning, which utterly baffled Little Cui. “Qiuniang, didn’t the Master say he had urgent business with you? Your hair isn’t even halfway clean; it still reeks! Even I can’t stand to be near you, let alone someone as obsessed with cleanliness as the Master.”

Ye Qiuniang dried her hair with a towel, unhurriedly replying, “What can I do? I’ve already washed as thoroughly as possible. But hair mixed with mud is terribly difficult to clean. To truly get it spotless would take until evening. Yet the Master wants to see me urgently, so I can’t refuse to go. I’ll just have to go and risk offending him.”

Little Cui opened her mouth to retort but found no words. Ye Qiuniang had always been in the masters’ good graces; some things weren’t her place to comment on. She then saw Ye Qiuniang go inside, take something unknown from a drawer, and leave. It wasn’t long before she returned. Little Cui asked, “Qiuniang, didn’t you go to the Master’s? Why are you back so soon?”

Ye Qiuniang answered casually, “The shoe sole I was working on earlier fell into the pond and is ruined. I’ll work on it a bit longer before going.” Ignoring Little Cui’s further urgings, she sat down in the courtyard and continued her needlework. After about an hour, she finally rose slowly and headed for Du Xian’s courtyard.

When she entered his yard, she found it devoid of other servants. The Errand Boy from before was kneeling on the ground, enduring Du Xian’s furious scolding. Du Xian was pacing back and forth, cursing under his breath, clearly agitated. It had to be said, the man was blessed with an incredible face. Ming Rou’s own beauty was a perfect blend of her parents’ best features, which explained her loveliness. Now, if Du Xian were to rein in the cruel, volatile expression on his face, he would cut quite the dashing, romantic figure. No wonder Ming Yulan was so utterly devoted to him.

Hearing movement at the door, Du Xian looked up. Seeing it was Ye Qiuniang, he gave a slight wave of his hand. The Errand Boy scrambled up from the floor, hastily retreated out the door, and pulled it shut from the outside.

The clang of the lock clicking into place confirmed Ye Qiuniang’s worst suspicions. Even though she had mentally prepared, her heart still leaped into her throat. Putting on a mask of sheer terror, she shuffled forward, bowed deeply, and called out, “Master.”

Du Xian quickly composed his earlier displeasure, forcing a pleasant expression. He pointed to a nearby chair. “Qiuniang is here. Sit.” But as the words left his mouth, a sudden, overwhelming stench assaulted him, and he instinctively lifted a hand to cover his nose.

A closer look revealed the specks of grime still clinging to Ye Qiuniang’s hair. Without her lovely face to offset the sight, she would have been utterly repulsive. Ye Qiuniang seized the moment to step back. “Qiuniang meant no disrespect to the Master. It’s just… on my way here, I was tripped by Sixth Brother and fell into the Lotus Pond. I was covered in mud and tried my best to wash, but no matter how I scrubbed, it wouldn’t come clean. That’s what took so long.”

Earlier, the Errand Boy had reported that Ye Qiuniang fell into the pond. When Du Xian asked how it happened, the boy said she wasn’t watching where she was going and fell in herself. But now, Ye Qiuniang was claiming the boy tripped her. It seemed the matter wasn’t so simple.

“Lotus roots from the pond can be eaten after just a couple of washes. Yet here you are, over an hour later, still so disgustingly foul. Could it be that Ming Rou’s courtyard lacks water, so you must come to my courtyard for the Master to wash you clean?” Du Xian sneered.

Ye Qiuniang felt a wave of nausea at his words. But she couldn’t afford to offend this man. Disgusted, yet panicked, she hastily replied, “Qiuniang had no such intention. It is simply that the mud in the pond hasn’t been dredged for years, which is why the stench is so strong. And hair is so fine and dense, it’s difficult to wash out completely in one go. I am deeply sorry for offending the Master with this odor. Please, punish me as you see fit.”

Du Xian gave a cold snort. “Any maid in this household, upon my summons, would wash herself spotlessly clean and present herself properly. But you… you come barging into my courtyard in this disgusting, filthy state. Are you trying to use such a disgusting method to attract my attention?”

Ye Qiuniang hadn’t expected Du Xian to twist her words so shamelessly. She shook her head in denial. “Qiuniang would never dare harbor such thoughts. If the Master has orders, please just give them. The Eldest Miss will be back soon, and if she doesn’t see me, she will start searching everywhere.”

Du Xian let out a disdainful snort through his nose. “She went with her mother to a relative’s house. She won’t be back for a while. They probably won’t return until nightfall.”

“Before the Eldest Miss left, she told me to transcribe some books for her. If she returns and finds I haven’t finished, she will be angry. I beg the Master to let Qiuniang return to her work, and not make things difficult for me,” Ye Qiuniang tried, calculating the time, using Ming Rou as her shield once again.

“Then that’s easily solved. You can do your transcribing right here. Perhaps I can even offer you some guidance. Or does Qiuniang think this Master’s skills are insufficient to guide you?”

Without waiting for Ye Qiuniang’s reply, Du Xian grabbed her arm, dragging her into the study. He pushed her towards the desk. “Brush, ink, paper, inkstone—all here. Go on, copy. This Master will supervise you carefully.”

The man’s eyes were now stripped bare of pretense, filled with naked lust as they roamed over the young girl. The look of sheer panic on Ye Qiuniang’s face reflected in his pupils, feeding his perverse satisfaction. Usually, he had to be so cautious in the Ming household, careful not to give the Old Patriarch any reason to find fault. But now, here was someone lower than him, a drenched lamb, pulled fresh from the water, trembling before him. It was an exhilarating sense of power.

It was just… that foul stench clinging to the girl was truly nauseating. Like a dish of exquisite food covered in a layer of vomit. Years of comfortable, pampered living had made Du Xian very particular about cleanliness. Ye Qiuniang’s revolting odor and the ugly flecks of mud still clinging to her hair drove him to distraction. It completely ruined the atmosphere.