Against the Current - Chapter 29
Chapter 29 - A Vicious Scheme
Ever since Cao Lihuan moved to her new quarters, she was deeply unhappy. Every day she would lock herself in with Hui'er to curse Qin Shi a few times over, and whenever anger surged up within her, she would vent her temper on Xiulan while making cold, sarcastic remarks to Siqiao. "Who knows if she's just faking it or genuinely hasn't recovered? She lies flat on the bed all day long, enjoying more luxury than her own mistress! It turns out I've taken on another grandmother to wait on. What an incredible set of airs!"
Hearing this, Siqiao had no choice but to suppress her pain and get up, hobbling over to wait upon her. Cao Lihuan would then find fault with her for being clumsy and slow, making her do needlework instead. Because Siqiao was clumsy with her hands, she often failed to embroider even a single flower properly in a whole day, which inevitably earned her further scoldings. Feeling sorry for her, Xiulan would help her with her chores whenever she had a spare moment. As Siqiao embroidered, tears would patter down onto the fabric, prompting Xiulan to quickly poke her and whisper, "What are you crying for? If your tears splash onto the material, won't that female rakshasa swallow you alive? Hurry up and wipe your tears away. What is there to feel wronged about? Everyone is just getting by like this. You have a miserable day whether you fret or smile—you need to look on the bright side."
Wiping her eyes with her sleeve, Siqiao sobbed, "I feel like I can't hold on..."
Xiulan said with absolute conviction, "You have to hold on even if you feel like you can't. Are you going to go hang yourself? Sometimes things are just like this: you clearly think there is no road ahead of you, but who knows when you'll turn a corner and find a willow tree shading a bright village; other times, you clearly think you are surrounded by blooming flowers and infinite splendor, but who knows that right ahead lies a sheer cliff, plunging you into utter destruction..."
"What are you saying? It gives me the creeps," Siqiao rubbed her arm and was about to say more when she heard Cao Lihuan shouting from the courtyard, "Xiulan! Xiulan!"
Xiulan answered aloud, hurriedly putting down her embroidery frame and stepping outside. It turned out Cao Lihuan wanted her to fetch water again. Xiulan dragged the bucket out, and after drawing the water, she saw a short, stocky fellow standing right at the courtyard entrance.
Pretending not to notice, Xiulan lowered her head and tried to walk past. The courtyard they were currently living in was directly connected to the second courtyard, and ever since Cao Lihuan moved here, she frequently summoned her trusted personal manservant, Sishun, to discuss various matters. Cao Lihuan was a scheming person; back when her parents passed away, she and her older brother had conspired over the family assets, pocketing a sum of money for herself and purchasing a small estate in the suburbs of Jinling, which she put in the care of her wet nurse's family. This Sishun was the wet nurse's son. In his twenties, though short in stature, his features were decent enough, and he originally looked capable. However, he was thoroughly addicted to eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling, never walked the straight and narrow, and poured all his efforts into chasing women. He had affairs with two young widows and scattered money like water in brothels, exuding an aura of utter vulgarity from head to toe. Back at home, he had a wife, but upon arriving in Jinling and accidentally catching sight of a few maidservants from the Lin household, he instantly felt that his own wife back home was like a fat pig. How could she compare to the maids of the Lin family, every single one of whom had a soft, slender waist and swayed like willows in the wind, looking even prettier than celestial maidens? From then on, whenever he came to the Lin estate, he would dress himself up extensively, eagerly trying to catch the eye of some pretty maid, though no one ever paid him any mind.
At that moment, Sishun was standing idly at the courtyard entrance when he unexpectedly caught sight of a beautiful girl carrying a wooden bucket walking toward him. His eyes widened instantly and his soul practically flew out of his body. He felt that even famous courtesans he had spent five silver taels to sleep with for a night were mere dirt by comparison, and he hurriedly bounded over with a flattering smile. "Elder Sister, is what you're carrying heavy? Let me help you with it." As he spoke, he reached out to snatch the wooden bucket, seizing the opportunity to brush his hand against Xiulan's.
Xiulan had heard about Sishun from both Cao Lihuan and Hui'er, and the moment she saw him now, she knew who he was. A wave of vigilance arose in her heart, and seeing Sishun approach, she quickly dodged out of the way, keeping her head down as she muttered, "No need," and tried to walk inside.
How could Sishun let her go? He followed alongside her, shaking his folding fan and fancying himself handsome and dashing as he smiled ingratiatingly. "Is Elder Sister on duty here with Miss Huan? How is it I've never seen you before? Meeting someone so amiable today—could it be that we were fated in a past life?"
Xiulan found these words both ridiculous and thoroughly repulsive. She set her face and walked straight ahead while Sishun babbled on, making small talk: "Are you serving Miss Huan? I heard the young lady say the household gave her a maid named Siqiao, who looks like a fairy and is both clever and deft with her hands, truly living up to her name. Could it be that you are the one she meant?"
Xiulan stopped in her tracks, turned around with a stern expression, and demanded, "What business do you have here? This is the inner residential quarters. If you dare push any further inside, I'm going to shout!"
Seeing Xiulan's cold brows and frosty gaze, Sishun found her even more stunningly fierce and alluring, making his bones feel weak with desire. He piled on a smile and wheedled, "It was Miss Huan who sent me here..."
"Since the young lady called for you, you should be waiting at the entrance! You are only permitted to enter when she summons you inside. Do you understand any rules at all? Acting so shamelessly is simply slapping Miss Huan in the face!" Without even bothering to pick up her water bucket, she threw him a scathing look and marched straight into the house.
Once inside, she saw that Siqiao was not in the room, and her half-embroidered colorful butterflies and peonies were still lying on the <i>kang</i>. Xiulan picked up the embroidery frame, and after finishing a leaf, she quietly cracked open a slit in the window to look outside. Seeing that Sishun had already left, she went back out to carry the water bucket to the tearoom, pouring the water into a bronze kettle to boil.
Meanwhile, after Sishun had received Xiulan's cold shoulder, he instead felt she possessed a spicy, vibrant charm, her flashes of anger making her appear even more exquisite. With his heart itching like it was being scratched by a cat and his mind wandering in a daze, he heard Huairui call him inside. He hurried back to Cao Lihuan's room, where Cao Lihuan gave him two tasks: first, that in a few days when Qin Shi celebrated her birthday, Sishun should bring two baskets of fresh pears from the estate; and second, that he should relay a message to her older brother, Cao Gang, stating that Zhao Yuechan had promised him a flower-and-tree procurement contract, and he just needed to wait for Qin Shi's final approval without acting rashly. Having finished her instructions, she grabbed a handful of reward coins and dismissed him. To her surprise, Sishun plopped straight down onto his knees, kowtowed twice, and cried out, "Eldest Young Miss—no, no, Madam, my ancestral grandmother! If you don't grant me this request, your lowly servant won't have a way to live!"
Startled, Cao Lihuan asked, "What is it?"
"Just now, I saw the maid carrying the water bucket. I don't know if she's the maid the Eldest Young Miss mentioned—the one the Lin family gave her named Siqiao—but the moment I laid eyes on her, I lost my soul! If the Eldest Young Miss can bestow her upon me in marriage, I'll go back and divorce my wife at home, and from this day forward serve the Eldest Young Miss like a beast of burden for the rest of my life, willing to throw my very life away if it saves you trouble!" With that, he began kowtowing again, making a loud thumping sound.
Cao Lihuan knew that Sishun was a lustful scoundrel, and in truth, she didn't think much of him either. However, since she had no other useful people around her at the moment, she usually turned a blind eye and had spent plenty of time behind closed doors cursing him with Hui'er as a "randy donkey who gets weak-kneed the moment he sees a woman, unable to keep his trousers fastened and constantly plotting filthy deeds—a wretch who deserves a bad end." Yet to his face, she still had to coax him with sweet words to make him work her errands. Hearing this, her thoughts shifted, and she picked up her teacup to take a sip. "Siqiao? The maid carrying the bucket? What does she look like?"
Sishun remained kneeling rigidly, gesturing wildly with both hands. "She's... she's exceptionally pretty, with a fair, tender face, big eyes, a slender little waist, wearing a moon-white skirt..."
"Alright, alright." The moment Cao Lihuan heard this description, she understood. A cold sneer curled the corners of her lips. "I figured you wouldn't have the eye to fancy Siqiao. That girl is actually Xiulan, one of the Lin family's maids. You can put those thoughts out of your head right now."
Hearing this, Sishun refused to give up. "What if she is a Lin family maid? Either way, she's a servant serving the young lady!" He crawled forward a couple of inches on his knees with a ingratiating grin, putting on twelve-tenths of flattering warmth as he gave Cao Lihuan a significant look. "My good young lady, as for my loyalty to you, it has always been utterly steadfast. If you grant me this request, you will be my parent who gives me a second life, my regenerating father and mother! Besides, I've served the young lady loyally all these years; even if I haven't made great contributions, I've certainly put in hard labor..."
Seeing Sishun press forward with such an obsequious expression made Cao Lihuan feel sick to her stomach. She leaned back, her face freezing over. "Alright, alright, look at this pathetic ambition of yours!" Calming down, she thought it over. Although this Xiulan was a bit foolish, not terribly well-versed in human affairs, and lacked any real scheming, she worked without a single complaint and was easy to manipulate—not to mention she was exceptionally skilled at needlework, and Cao Lihuan had long since intended to keep her. It was simply hateful that she was too pretty; if she kept her by her side when she eventually married, the girl would undoubtedly be a disaster. Giving her to Sishun, however, would be a different story entirely. Firstly, it would firmly secure Sishun's loyalty; secondly, a servant's wife could never stir up any major waves; and thirdly, it would give her a subservient lackey she could easily control in the future. Mulling it over, she decided the plan was sound. She was hardly a kind-hearted person anyway, constantly plotting solely for her own benefit with zero regard for karmic retribution or the lives of others. With a quick turn of her mind, she hatched a vicious scheme. Seeing that the room was empty except for Hui'er, who was lying down sleeping in the alcove, she said, "What you're asking for... isn't entirely impossible."
It was as if Sishun had received an imperial decree from a Buddha. He eagerly crowded closer, nodding like a chick pecking at rice as Cao Lihuan whispered her plan. At the end, he slapped his thigh, smacked his lips, and laughed with anticipation, "If this succeeds, I'd gladly die for it!"
Cao Lihuan smiled warmly. "I always knew you were a sensible person. I don't expect you to remember my kindness—just handle my affairs properly from now on in return for my favor."
Sishun repeatedly vowed, "Understood! Understood! This lowly one will never forget!"
Clutching her handkerchief, Cao Lihuan wore a smile touched with a chilling ruthlessness. In truth, deep down in her heart, she knew she was jealous of Xiulan! That little hussy of a maid, though only a servant, carried a natural air about her as if she were born to be a mistress, her every movement imbued with a restrained, aristocratic elegance that Cao Lihuan found utterly detestable. Even though she had tried every possible means to torment and oppress her, and Xiulan truly appeared obedient and submissive, Cao Lihuan could vaguely sense that she had never truly broken that proud backbone of hers.
A cold light flashed in Cao Lihuan's eyes—this young lady would just love to see how haughty that backbone remains once you are forced to give your body to a filthy, wretched beggar of a man!
Behind the screen, Siqiao was trembling from head to toe. There was a back door in the room located right behind this screen; earlier, when Cao Lihuan had asked Siqiao to carry two pots of flowers out into the courtyard to dry in the sun, Siqiao had returned with the plants and, just as she was about to close the door, overheard Sishun mention her name. Emboldened, she had hidden behind the screen to eavesdrop, and listening to this conversation broke her out in a cold sweat.
In a dazed state, Siqiao returned to the small room she shared with Xiulan. Upon entering, she saw Xiulan holding an embroidery frame and helping her with her needlework. Stumbling over to the kang, she felt a sharp pain in her buttocks and immediately stood back up. Xiulan let out a soft laugh. "How could you possibly sit down so fast? You're still limping when you walk. Give it another two days of medicine and you'll be right as rain."
Looking at Xiulan's smiling face, Siqiao had the words right on the tip of her tongue, but she stubbornly swallowed them back and said nothing at all.