The Eldest Princess Is So Annoying! - Chapter 5

A cold gust swept through the room, making the candle flame flicker gently.

Mu Xu shivered but did not stop writing. Row after row of elegant characters appeared across the sheet of fine paper.

The temple fair would be held tomorrow, so she had to finish recording the names of everyone who had kindly donated to the private school tonight.

“Teacher! Teacher!”

A young girl’s voice came from outside the door.

Mu Xu set down her brush and opened the door. Xiao Hua stood outside. Her eyes were not very large to begin with, but the moment she saw Mu Xu, she smiled so broadly that they narrowed into two thin crescents.

“Xiao Hua?”

Mu Xu was puzzled. It was already so late. Why had Xiao Hua come all the way here?

Xiao Hua handed her the things Jiang Huaisheng had entrusted to her and said with a giggle, “Teacher Jiang asked me to bring these to you. He said he has already finished writing the list and told you to rest early instead of worrying about tomorrow’s incense offering.”

Sweetness welled up in Mu Xu’s heart, and the corners of her lips lifted. She looked through the papers and found that every name had indeed been written down.

Xiao Hua gazed at Mu Xu and smiled.

“Teacher looks so beautiful when she smiles.”

Mu Xu pressed her lips together in a soft laugh. But then she remembered that Jiang Huaisheng was still preparing for this year’s imperial examination, yet he had wasted time on her affairs…

Mu Xu crouched down and asked Xiao Hua, “Did you come here alone? Did anything happen along the way?”

There was still some distance between Xiao Hua’s home and hers. The child had traveled so far despite being only eight or nine years old.

Although Chang’an stood directly beneath the Son of Heaven’s gaze, it was hardly free of wicked people or human traffickers. Mu Xu could not help worrying.

Xiao Hua knew that her teacher was concerned about her.

She adored the gentle and beautiful woman before her. Not only was Mu Xu highly educated, but she had also persuaded Xiao Hua’s parents to allow her to attend the private school. She treated everyone with exceptional kindness as well.

“Teacher Jiang came with me.”

He had come too?

Mu Xu looked around but saw no sign of Jiang Huaisheng.

Xiao Hua covered her mouth and snickered.

“Teacher Jiang isn’t here. He’s waiting outside.”

Mu Xu’s face reddened slightly.

To think she had been teased by an eight- or nine-year-old child!

She deliberately stiffened her expression and said sternly, “Tease me again, and I may punish you by making you copy books.”

Xiao Hua immediately covered her mouth in fright and shook her head.

“I won’t laugh anymore! Xiao Hua won’t tease Teacher again! Teacher, please don’t make Xiao Hua copy books!”

Mu Xu had only intended to frighten her a little. Of course she would not truly punish her.

Then, as if remembering something, Mu Xu turned and went back inside. She picked up several pieces of osmanthus cake from the table and placed them in Xiao Hua’s hands.

“Here. Eat them.”

Xiao Hua stared at the osmanthus cakes and licked her lips.

She badly wanted to eat them, but when she thought of her younger brothers and sisters at home, she could not bring herself to take a bite.

She smiled and said, “Thank you, Teacher! Teacher is the best!”

“Come. I’ll walk you out.”

Xiao Hua carefully tucked the osmanthus cakes into the front of her clothes and nodded.

“Mm.”

Mu Xu sighed inwardly.

She naturally knew about Xiao Hua’s family circumstances. That was precisely why she had done everything she could to convince the girl’s parents to let her attend the private school.

The current emperor was wise and capable, and his thinking differed from that of most people. Since ascending the throne, he had vigorously promoted women’s education, encouraging girls to enter schools and learn to read and write.

There was not much Mu Xu could do. She could only teach the girls everything she knew.

“Wait here.”

After speaking, Mu Xu hurried back inside and brought out all the remaining osmanthus cakes.

“Put the cakes in here.”

Xiao Hua obediently took the cakes from her clothes and placed them into the paper wrapping.

Mu Xu wrapped them securely before handing the bundle back to her.

“Carry them like this, and they won’t break.”

“Aren’t you going to eat any, Teacher?” Xiao Hua asked.

If Teacher gave all the cakes to her, what would Teacher eat?

Mu Xu smiled.

“I have already eaten some. Xiao Hua can take these home and let her parents have a taste.”

Xiao Hua was only a child. How could she know that Mu Xu was lying to her?

Since Mu Xu said she had already eaten, Xiao Hua believed her.

“Thank you, Teacher.”

The moment Mu Xu reached the entrance, she spotted Jiang Huaisheng.

He stood beneath a tree. The cold wind swept past, lifting several strands of his hair and causing his robes to sway gently with it.

“Huaisheng,” Mu Xu called softly.

Jiang Huaisheng turned around and walked toward her.

“Why did you come outside? It’s late, and the wind is strong. Be careful not to catch a chill.”

Jiang Huaisheng’s gaze remained fixed upon Mu Xu, the love in his eyes far too open and undisguised.

Unable to meet his eyes, Mu Xu shyly lowered her head.

“I only came out to see Xiao Hua off. It isn’t far.”

The two had grown up together. Jiang Huaisheng knew exactly what Mu Xu was thinking.

Were he to expose her thoughts, she might become so embarrassed that she would run straight back inside. Besides, he had also wanted to see her.

“You, on the other hand, will be sitting the imperial examination in only a few months. Yet you delayed your studies today because of my affairs.”

Jiang Huaisheng did not know what to do with her.

She was always thinking of others, yet constantly forgot to consider herself.

“Had I not helped you write them, you probably would not have rested at all tonight. They were only a few names. It did not take much time.”

Jiang Huaisheng paused, then smiled.

“Besides, your affairs are my affairs. There is no need to distinguish between yours and mine.”

The bashfulness of a young woman in love caused Mu Xu’s face to redden even more.

She nodded.

Mu Xu had no idea how captivating she looked when she was shy.

Jiang Huaisheng faintly felt the urge to pull her into his arms, but he quickly suppressed the thought.

Although he and Mu Xu were betrothed and had fled Suzhou for Chang’an together, they had not yet married.

Even though no one was around, someone might still happen upon them. If rumors spread, Mu Xu’s reputation would suffer.

Jiang Huaisheng suddenly said, “Mu Xu.”

Mu Xu raised her eyes and looked at him in confusion.

“Once I pass the examination and earn an official title, I will come for you with an eight-bearer bridal sedan and marry you in the grandest possible fashion.”

When that day came, no one in the Mu family would ever be able to look down upon them again.

Mu Xu lowered her gaze with a soft smile and lightly bit her red lip, as though she could already picture the scene of Jiang Huaisheng arriving to marry her.

Only after a long moment did she answer, “Mm. I’ll wait for you!”

In the tree behind them, a dark shadow flashed past.

The Eldest Princess’s Residence.

Qie Ge closed the final memorial, feeling exceptionally pleased.

Yang Hao’s decisions hardly differed from what she herself would have chosen. He truly no longer needed her assistance.

Were their imperial father and mother still alive, they would surely be delighted to see how much Yang Hao had grown.

Qie Ge picked up the tea beside her and took a small sip.

“Qingqian, what time is it?”

“Your Highness, it will be midnight in another quarter of an hour.”

The instant the teacup touched the table, a shadowy figure appeared before Qie Ge.

“Reporting to Master. The woman’s name is Mu Xu. She is sixteen years old. Her father is Mu Bo’an, the owner of the Mu family embroidery workshop in Suzhou. Her mother was Shen Xiaoxiao, the dancing girl once renowned throughout Jiangnan.”

Shen Xiaoxiao, the dancer once famous throughout Jiangnan?

Qie Ge’s interest was immediately piqued.

“Was it truly Shen Xiaoxiao?”

The hidden guard replied, “Yes.”

“Has Your Highness met Shen Xiaoxiao before?” Qingqian asked.

Had Her Highness met her, Qingqian should have seen her as well. Why, then, did she have no impression of the woman whatsoever?

Qie Ge smiled and shook her head.

“I never met her. However, when I was young, I often heard Uncle speak of her. It was said that she was not only beautiful, but also an exquisite dancer. Even the little songs she sang were unrivaled. Countless men fought for the chance to redeem her from the brothel.

“Back then, even Uncle once professed his love to her. Unfortunately, his affection was unrequited, and she ultimately rejected him.”

Qingqian exclaimed in surprise, “Why would the Imperial Uncle take an interest in a woman from a brothel? And she actually dared reject him!”

It was simply unbelievable.

“Qingqian, that is where you are mistaken. Although Shen Xiaoxiao lived in a brothel, she was a courtesan who sold her artistic talents, not her body. I heard that a wealthy young gentleman eventually redeemed her and took her home. I did not expect that she had only become his concubine.

“Had she married Uncle back then, I might have had to address her as Aunt.”

“And now Your Highness has encountered her daughter, Mu Xu, here in Chang’an. It truly is fate,” Qingqian said.

Qie Ge laughed softly.

“Perhaps. Still, I truly would have liked to meet Shen Xiaoxiao and see what sort of woman could make Uncle so infatuated.”

The hidden guard said, “Reporting to Master, I fear that will no longer be possible.”

“Oh? Why?”

The hidden guard answered, “After Mu Bo’an took Shen Xiaoxiao as his concubine, the people in the residence frequently bullied her. Mu Bo’an was weak-willed and did not dare oppose his principal wife. Two years ago, Shen Xiaoxiao died after falling gravely ill.”

Qie Ge felt a trace of regret.

She did not even need to guess what could happen to a woman in a wealthy household.

“What a pity. Truly, great beauties are often doomed to unfortunate lives. Continue.”

“After Shen Xiaoxiao’s death, Mu Bo’an’s principal wife continued to regard Mu Xu as a thorn in her side. She intended to marry Mu Xu to the Prefect of Suzhou as a concubine, but Mu Xu refused no matter what they did. She therefore sought out her childhood sweetheart, Jiang Huaisheng, to whom she had long been betrothed, and eloped with him. The two fled all the way to Chang’an.”

Compared with the story of Shen Xiaoxiao, the account of Mu Xu clearly interested Qie Ge even more.

“Eloped… Shen Xiaoxiao’s daughter is rather daring.”

Qingqian had never imagined that the gentle woman she had met during the day—someone who appeared too softhearted even to kill a chicken—would possess enough courage to elope.

It seemed one truly could not judge a person by appearances.

After all, if an eloping couple was caught, the man would be expelled from his clan’s ancestral registry, his land would be confiscated, and he would be tied to a door plank and beaten with clan rods until he was injured or even killed.

The woman would either be returned to her family or drowned in a well.

As for the Mu family, once outsiders learned of the scandal, they would never again be able to hold their heads high.

For the first time, Qie Ge felt the desire to investigate someone more deeply.

She herself had never been one to obey the rules.

In the eyes of others, she was wanton and unrestrained, lacking the modesty and reserve expected of a woman.

Now she had learned that there was someone else like her—someone who had also fought desperately to break free from the shackles of convention.

She had to meet this woman.

“I will go and see her tomorrow.”

“Yes.”

The hidden guard disappeared as soon as he finished speaking.

At that moment, a guard knocked on the door.

“Reporting to Your Highness. Young Master Lu Xing has sent over some sweet lotus seed soup.”

Qie Ge nodded.

After Qingqian opened the door, a maid entered carrying the lotus seed soup.

Steam was still rising from the bowl.

Qie Ge stirred it with a spoon, then glanced at the maid, who stood with her head lowered.

“Has Lu Xing not yet retired for the night?”

The maid replied, “Reporting to Your Highness, after Young Master Lu Xing finished preparing the lotus seed soup for you, he went to bathe. He should be preparing to sleep.”

Lu Xing’s intentions were obvious.

With Rong Xiao gone, he merely feared that Qie Ge would begin favoring someone else and that he would consequently lose his influence. That was why he had hurried to compete for her affection.

Qie Ge tasted a spoonful of the lotus seed soup.

Her brows furrowed slightly.

It was cloyingly sweet.

“Summon Lu Xing to attend me in bed tonight.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The maid was overjoyed and hurried back to deliver the news.

Qie Ge set down the spoon, her expression growing increasingly displeased.

She turned and walked toward the inner chamber, saying as she went, “Pour that away.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Qingqian picked up the lotus seed soup and was about to hand it to a nearby servant when she vaguely felt something like dust at the bottom of the bowl.

She touched it again and examined her fingertips.

White powder?

Qingqian brought it closer and smelled it. Aside from the heavy, sugary scent, she detected nothing else.

She tasted a little and immediately shuddered.

Not only was it sweeter than ordinary lotus seed soup, it was so sweet that it became nauseating.

Still, something felt wrong.

Considering the maid’s words and Her Highness’s expression just now, even if Qie Ge disliked the soup, she would never normally react this way.

Could it be…

Had Lu Xing drugged the lotus seed soup?

Qingqian wiped away a bead of cold sweat.

Fortunately, Her Highness had not punished her for failing to notice sooner.

She quickly ordered the servant beside her, “Hurry. Take it away and pour it out!”

“Yes.”