Chapter 93: Chapter 93: She Deceived Us
The horse trotted slowly along the road, its hooves making a rhythmic clatter on the ground.
"Heir Pei, Miss Qu has deceived us."
Aside from the four main guards, even the guards around Heir Pei were aware of Qu Fulan’s identity.
They knew she was the Li Family’s daughter, childhood friends with Prince Xiao, but she never mentioned she was betrothed to him.
The one speaking now was Qiao Qi.
"The Li Family has been seized, and she has become a servant. I reckon she fears the Xiao Family won’t accept her, so she willingly stays in the Pei Mansion. But if she learned that Prince Xiao still carries the pouch she made and publicly declares her his fiancée, what would she think?"
Xiao Ba chimed in, "There are many capable people around Heir Pei. Moreover, shops and restaurants are crucial for message passing and are of utmost importance. It’s unwise to let someone who might betray us at any moment take charge, even though she is quite competent. Precisely because of her competence, she needs to be guarded against, Heir Pei."
If it were someone incompetent, it would be less worrisome and require no vigilance.
Unexpectedly, Miss Qu’s ability exceeded everyone’s expectations.
Who could feel at ease with that?
...
Qu Fulan worked tirelessly on revising her plans until evening, feeling a bit sore in her eyes and neck before she finally decided to get up and take a walk.
She went to Fushou Hall to find Hai Xia, only to see her feeding birds under a locust tree.
Upon seeing her approaching, Hai Xia smiled and said, "Fulan, it’s finally good to see you. I was just about to finish feeding the birds and go look for a chat with you."
Qu Fulan smiled and replied, "Would you dare to come find me?"
Hai Xia’s expression immediately crumbled, looking pitiful, "Of course not. If I were to bump into Heir Pei, it wouldn’t be good."
She avoided Heir Pei like a mouse avoiding a cat, no, more like a mouse avoiding a tiger.
Qu Fulan chuckled softly, "What do you want to chat about with me?"
Hai Xia instantly regained her energy, "Did you hear? Miss Ying is about to be sent away. I heard she’ll be sent off early tomorrow before dawn, otherwise, in broad daylight, if she doesn’t cooperate and causes a scene, it would make us a laughingstock."
Qu Fulan, upon hearing this news, felt no ripples in her heart.
She had long anticipated Ying Man’er’s downfall.
A country girl came looking for a marriage, but after staying in the Pei Mansion for long and witnessing the Capital City’s opulence, she got dazzled and even rejected the marriage proposal arranged by the old lady, thus doomed to have no good outcome.
When the old lady was rejected, she said nothing, but surely was displeased inwardly.
Thinking about how she intended good to find a marriage, being rudely refused, how is this not a slap in the face?
Forget about being the old lady, anyone would feel uncomfortable.
If you think it’s beneath you, then you must have your ideas and should take responsibility for yourself.
But such a person naturally cannot stay in the Pei Mansion. Someone oblivious to their place might do something disgraceful, and who would bear the face loss of the Pei Mansion?
Hai Xia shared the full story about Miss Ying, feeling at ease afterward, then indulged herself in playing with the bird in front of her.
"Fulan, look how cute this bird is. It eats after sleeping and sleeps after eating, carefree and content."
Qu Fulan gazed at the caged bird and shook her head, "No, it’s not happy."
Hai Xia asked puzzledly, "Why isn’t it happy? If I had nothing to do every day but be fed, I’d be over the moon."
Qu Fulan smiled and said, "You think you’re happy because you’re with your family, but its home is not here. How could it be because of a bite of food in a cage, carefree? Truly free like fish in the sea, or birds in the sky is true freedom."
"What a phrase — fish frolic freely in the sea, birds soar in the sky."
A voice praising came from behind.
Qu Fulan turned to see three different types of men.
Gentle and jade-like Pei Yuan, who was the one that spoke.
Also present was Pei Lian, absent for a while, carrying an aura of decay.
And the dignified moon-like Heir Pei.
One wonders which wind gathered all three Pei brothers today.
In terms of height, Heir Pei was taller than Mr. Pei, and Third Young Master Pei was half a head shorter than Mr. Pei.
Heir Pei, with a nine-head body ratio, stood like a crane among chickens, truly eye-catching.
Unlike Mr. Pei and Third Young Master Pei’s amazement, Heir Pei’s eyes lacked astonishment or appreciation but carried an investigative look towards her.
When Heir Pei wasn’t smiling, his aloofness became particularly apparent.
Hai Xia’s hand trembled, almost dropping the bird food she was holding onto the ground.
"Greetings to Heir Pei, Mr. Pei, and Third Young Master Pei," Qu Fulan saluted respectfully.
Hai Xia returned to her senses, hurriedly following suit and bowing, then kept her head down, trying hard to minimize her presence.
Pei Yuan looked at Qu Fulan and said, "The meaning of that sentence you said earlier was excellent. I just wonder where you learned it from?"
It’s from Ruan Yue’s "Poetry Talks of the Past and Present" of the Song Dynasty, yet she couldn’t say it was from there. She also couldn’t use the excuse of dreams, as invoking her so-called Guanyin’s dream in front of the old lady and Heir Pei was acceptable, but saying it to just anyone may not be very credible.
So she simply said, "It was from some informal history book I saw, but I don’t know where it went now."
The world is vast and full of wonders, Pei Yuan nodded, clearly accepting her explanation.
And Pei Lian, with a dejected aura, suddenly had bright eyes after hearing Qu Fulan’s words. He gazed at Qu Fulan, feeling her knowledge extensive, having never encountered such a wonderful sentence despite his scholarly background.
If only he had such a well-read maid by his side, to chant poetry and appreciate the moon with him daily, isn’t that far better than a wife who merely clings to grievances and relies on her family background to cause troubles?
"Is the old lady inside?" Heir Pei spoke, turning to Hai Xia.
Under three gazes, especially the slightly cold one from Heir Pei, Hai Xia’s tongue seemed frozen, unable to form a complete sentence, "In, in, in, there, in..."
Qu Fulan beside her helped answer, "The old lady is chanting scriptures in the backyard."
Thus, it was inappropriate to pay respects now, so Pei Yuan suggested, "It’s been a while since the three of us gathered. We might as well meet by chance and head to your Peony Pavilion for a chat?"
Pei Ji’an didn’t refuse.
Qu Fulan gave Hai Xia a farewell glance, and Hai Xia signaled her not to worry, just to hurry and leave.
Once the crowd left, she exhaled a big breath of relief.
Fortunately, Fulan helped her answer, or she didn’t know how much she’d embarrass herself, too useless. Whereas Fulan was amazing, calm and composed no matter the situation, simply admirable.
The group, one behind the other, ascended the stone steps to the Peony Pavilion.
Just as Qu Fulan was about to find someone to bring tea, Shi Yi appeared, holding a tray with all the teapots and tea sets, placing it on the stone table before quickly departing.
Steam rose from the teapot spout, evidently freshly brewed tea.
Besides this, Shi Er also brought along Heir Pei’s chess set.
Qu Fulan, remaining silent, often suspected that these elusive guards were truly Heir Pei’s personal maids, after all, they were much more attentive than she.
As she walked over to pour tea, Heir Pei had already picked up the teapot, pouring himself a cup and also pouring for the other two.
Qu Fulan paused her movement and then retreated to stand behind him, quietly awaiting instructions.
"Si, who helped crack the chess puzzle you trapped me with last time?" Pei Yuan smiled as he spoke.
"Oh, who cracked it?" asked Pei Ji’an, somewhat absent-minded as he picked up the teacup.