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Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 211

Chapter 211 - Chu Yi, the Man of Action


Watchful eyes saw Yun Chu off as her carriage departed.

Xie Shi'an relied on his own two feet to walk back to the Xie residence.

In front of the Xie residence, there had originally been two majestic stone lions, but now no one knew where they had gone.

The plaque hanging beneath the eaves was pitted and pockmarked with holes from people throwing stones at it, making the words "Xie Manor" look exceedingly wretched.

"Eldest Young Master, you're back," Sanjiu came up to greet him. "Today, Ganlai and I helped someone repair a wall and earned over sixty copper coins. We bought a few pounds of meat and stewed a large pot of braised pork!"

There was indeed a large pot of braised pork, but after a portion was distributed to each courtyard, only a small bowl remained by the time it reached Xie Shi'an.

He was not a man of luxurious culinary desires; after taking a few brief bites, he left the rest for Sanjiu to eat.

He stood up and walked toward the courtyard where Tingyu resided.

Tingyu and Xie Shiyun had just finished their evening meal and were washing dishes. As she washed, she let out sigh after sigh.

Even when she had been Madam's maidservant in the past, she had never washed a single dish.

Now, life was truly getting harder and harder.

"Eldest Brother, why are you here?"

Hearing Xie Shiyun's voice, Tingyu hurriedly washed her hands and walked to the front yard.

Seeing Xie Shi'an with one eye covered, Tingyu felt an eerie, creepy sensation in her heart for reasons she could not explain.

Even though he was merely a child who had just turned thirteen and was blind in one eye, she did not know what she was afraid of.

"Yun'er, go play by yourself," Tingyu sent the child away, then asked, "Is there something on Eldest Young Master's mind, coming over at this hour?"

"I wonder how Aunt Rain's money-gathering is coming along?" Xie Shi'an got straight to the point. "I have my eyes on a shop that requires over three thousand taels of silver to purchase. If Aunt Rain takes forever to gather it, my business cannot be done, and I won't be able to pay off Yun'er's debts either."

Tingyu immediately said, "I'm gathering it, I'm gathering it now! Don't be impatient..."

Xie Shi'an rubbed his fingers together: "Does Aunt Rain think selling a few handkerchiefs can gather several thousand taels of silver? You can afford to wait, but I cannot."

Tingyu felt a terrifying sense of pressure pressing down on her.

The person before her was a child who had only just celebrated his thirteenth birthday; how could he possess such an imposing aura?

Clutching her handkerchief, she asked, "Then what do you think a weak woman like me should do?"

"People say those who do business are the wealthiest, but that is actually not so. Those serving as officials with real power in their hands are the truly wealthy ones—several thousand taels of silver are merely drizzle leaking through their fingers," Xie Shi'an spoke. "There is an official at court who is famous for being henpecked. Few know that in private, he often interacts with women... ahem, a woman like Aunt Rain should be able to catch his eye."

Tingyu's face was filled with utter disbelief: "You... you're actually telling me to sell... sell my body?!"

"Or else?" Xie Shi'an's face was devoid of any emotion. "Does Aunt Rain have anything else worth offering?"

He pulled out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it over: "You only have this one chance."

Having said that, he turned around and walked away.

Tingyu picked up the paper and glanced at it; on it was written the official's name and surname, as well as where he would appear three days later...

She collapsed into a chair with a heavy thud.

In the past, using her body to become a concubine was done out of her own free will.

And now...

She could not help but cover her face and weep bitterly.

After crying for a while, she snapped her head up. She had not reached a dead end; she still had her parents and older brother!

Tingyu was a household-born servant of the Yun family; her parents were both capable managers in the Yun Manor, which was why she had been arranged since childhood to become the eldest young lady's personal maidservant.

It was just that back when she climbed into Master's bed, her mother came to the Xie estate once, scolding her until her face was covered in dog's blood, declaring that she no longer had a daughter like her. From then on, she had cut off all contact with her family.

Now that her life was so bitter, her parents surely wouldn't leave her to suffer, right?

The Yun family treated their servants extremely generously, let alone household-born servants like her family. She had heard that her parents had even bought a large mansion outside for her older brother.

Tingyu asked Concubine Jiang to help watch her child, tidied herself up, and headed toward the Yun residence. Reaching the back gate of the Yun residence, she knocked open the side-back door and saw Auntie Li, who had watched her grow up since childhood. She immediately greeted her: "Auntie Li, I wonder if my mother is in?"

"Oh, isn't this Aunt Rain from the Son-in-Law's family?" Auntie Li sneered sarcastically. "Doesn't the Xie family wish for nothing more than to draw a clear line between themselves and the Yun family? What is Aunt Rain doing coming to our Yun family?"

Most of the Yun family's servants were household-born, with several generations serving the Yun family, so they were naturally loyal to their masters. Consequently, they looked down immensely on people like Tingyu.

Tingyu pretended not to hear the sarcasm: "Could I trouble Auntie Li to call my mother... Ahhh!!!"

Before she could finish her sentence, a basin of water was splashed directly onto her face.

With a loud crash, the basin was thrown to the ground. A woman stood at the doorway with her hands on her hips, cursing furiously, "I said it five years ago—I'll treat it as if I never gave birth to a daughter like you! Don't appear before my eyes ever again, and consider that as repaying my grace in raising you!"

Tingyu wiped the water off her face and cried out, "Mother, I know I was wrong! Please give me another chance!"

The woman didn't spare her a single glance, turning to the people nearby and saying, "I lost this daughter long ago. If she comes again in the future, blast her out directly!"

Saying so, she turned around and walked away.

Auntie Li spat, then slammed the side door shut with great force.

Tingyu slid powerlessly down to sit on the ground, hugging her knees as she burst into tears.

What happened at the back gate of the Yun Manor naturally spread quickly. When it reached Tingfeng's ears, Tingfeng immediately went to tell Yun Chu.

Yun Chu shook her head.

She didn't need to do anything to Tingyu at all; Tingyu's nature was hard to change, and she would die by her own hands sooner or later.

After finishing up with the account books, she stood up and walked over to the wall on the eastern side. The doorway here had already been opened, cut to a standard size, with mature climbing vines and colorful flowers transplanted above both sides. Long, green, broad leaves dangled down, adding quite a bit of scenery to this doorway.

This doorway opened into the side of her courtyard; walking through this door led straight to the main courtyard of the property next door.

In fact, it wasn't originally the main courtyard. After all, a main courtyard was usually not arranged in a courtyard against a wall. It was the Prince of Pingxi who had ordered the main courtyard connected to this side courtyard, setting up his own study right here. This was his place of business; without his permission, no one was allowed inside. Which was to say, aside from a few personal servants, no one else in the prince's estate could possibly discover this door.

Just as Yun Chu reached the doorway, she heard a voice coming from next door: "...All of you be careful! His Highness's official documents are all placed here. Just like at the prince's estate, arrange them in this spot..."

Through the doorway, she saw Manager Cheng, the chief manager of the prince's estate, personally directing the servants as they moved items in.

She could not help but sigh in astonishment. The Prince of Pingxi was truly a man of action—saying he was moving in, he moved in right away, bringing the entire prince's estate staff over along with him.

For a moment, her feelings were somewhat complex.

"Miss Yun."

Just as she was thinking, a tall figure appeared before her eyes.

It was Chu Yi, who had walked over.

He stood on the other side of the doorway, stopping in his tracks, and spoke up: "Is it convenient for me to come over?"

Yun Chu stepped to the side: "Your Highness, please."

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