Chapter 10: Wrongfully Accused

A bamboo basket was tossed onto the stone table.

The basket was covered in mud and water weeds, still dripping water.

The mouth of the basket wasn't sealed shut, and a dozen colorful frogs hopped out.

"Ah!"

"Toads! They're all toads!"

"Don't come over... someone, help..."

The maids serving in the pavilion were all young girls in their teens. They loved beauty and cleanliness, and they had an instinctive fear and disgust for slimy creatures like toads and snakes.

There were over a dozen toads, and they were very active, croaking as they hopped about in every direction.

Fearing that the little beasts might jump onto them, the maids completely forgot their manners, screaming and running about in a panic.

The pavilion descended into chaos.

"Haha! Hahaha!"

Perched on one of the pavilion's pillars, a seven or eight-year-old boy had climbed up at some point.

His hair was tied into two small buns, resembling ram's horns, a style known as "zongguan."

However, perhaps from his recent romp in the water, the boy's buns were a bit messy, with a few strands of hair hanging down and sticking to his fair, tender face, occasionally dripping with water.

The boy's clothes were also covered in mud, a filthy mess, though one could vaguely discern that the robe was red, shimmering with threads of gold.

This must be the "gold-embossed embroidery" that had recently become popular in the capital over the last two years—using pure gold thread to embroider intricate, magnificent patterns, the height of luxury!

Yet, the boy didn't cherish such expensive clothing in the slightest.

Gold-embossed embroidery could not be washed; with his roughhousing, the garment was completely ruined.

The boy, however, didn't care at all. He clung to the pillar like a monkey, looking very satisfied as he watched the maids below panic and scream as they fled.

For a brat, what could be more delightful than the success of his own prank?

"Eldest Young Master! Why, why are you on the pillar?"

"Heavens, Eldest Young Master, it's too dangerous, come down quickly!"

"...Keep your voice down, don't startle him. If he gets scared and falls, what will we do?"

"Someone! Come quickly!"

The frogs hopping everywhere were already enough to make the maids break down.

But then, looking up, they saw their most pampered little ancestor "monkeying" around on the pillar.

The pillar was painted with red lacquer; it was so slippery that one careless move would lead to a fall.

Not to mention, seeing that the servants had finally noticed him, the Eldest Young Master grew even more smug, watching them tremble in fear with pale faces.

He couldn't help but laugh out loud, deliberately stretching out a hand or dangling a foot.

With these little movements, the maids' screams and exclamations grew even more intense.

How fun!

Haha, these lowly maids were the most amusing; they really were the most cowardly and stupid!

He was the Eldest Young Master of the Lou family; he had been riding horses and practicing stances with his father since he was three.

For the past two years, his father had been away, and he had been staying with the old hag, often driving away tutors and tearing up books, but he had never neglected his martial arts.

Climbing a pillar was a breeze for him.

He could even perform dangerous stunts, one after another, teasing the nerves of the servants.

But soon, the Eldest Young Master spotted an anomaly—

"Fatty, why aren't you crying?"

Amidst the chaotic crowd, the Eldest Young Master saw a chubby, fair-skinned little girl.

She was five or six years old, wearing a pink ru-skirt, her little face round as a silver basin.

A true silver basin... she was fat!

Among the little girls the Eldest Young Master knew, none were this chubby.

Well, one couldn't exactly call it obese.

The chubby girl was just fat, but not ugly!

On the contrary, those curved eyebrows, big eyes, small nose, and red lips were all so pretty.

Put together, they made one can't help but like her.

The rolls of fat on her body even looked exceptionally cute.

If it were anyone else, the Eldest Young Master would have bluntly called them a fat pig or an ugly monster.

But this chubby girl before him was quite cute... wait, what was she doing!

It was one thing not to cry, but she hadn't immediately jumped up to run away, nor had she screamed!

She, she was still eating!

The Eldest Young Master absolutely could not tolerate this.

With a *whoosh*, he slid down the pillar like a mud monkey.

He scurried a few steps to the stone table and climbed right up, sprawling most of his body across the surface.

Wang Heng was quick-witted; she held the snack box filled with pastries and dodged backward.

Eldest Young Master:...I, the dignified Eldest Young Master of the Lou family, am actually not as important as a box of lousy tea snacks?

"Fatty! You, you—"

The Eldest Young Master was somewhat frantic, not knowing whether to demand why she wasn't crying or why she prioritized the snacks.

The Eldest Young Master didn't understand the world of a foodie.

For a foodie, nothing in life should be let down except for delicious food!

Wang Heng, however, still remembered the Eldest Young Master's words from earlier.

She hugged the snack box tight with one hand, and with the other, she quickly picked up a lotus pastry and stuffed it into her mouth.

She chewed hard twice, swallowed the food, and then asked naively: "Why should I cry?"

She wasn't pretending to be stupid; in her view, there was no person or event right now worth crying over.

The Eldest Young Master stared: "Aren't you afraid? If you're afraid, you'll cry."

Wang Heng blinked, seemingly unable to grasp the logical connection between the two.

A moment later, she asked back: "Why should I be afraid?"

"Aren't you afraid of the toads?"

The Eldest Young Master didn't want to go in circles with Wang Heng, so he went straight to the "culprit."

He stared fixedly at Wang Heng, his tone even carrying a hint of dissatisfaction: "You little ladies, aren't you all afraid?"

Saying this, the Eldest Young Master didn't forget to look around.

His meaning was clear: the surrounding maids, though wanting to come up and serve him, were avoiding the hopping frogs as much as possible.

Some were truly terrified, but didn't dare break the rules, so they could only sob silently.

The whimpering sounds were like mosquitoes.

Though annoying, it was proof that his prank had succeeded.

Everyone else was afraid, yet this chubby girl, who was even smaller and softer, wasn't!

The Eldest Young Master felt it was highly unreasonable!

Wang Heng understood what the Eldest Young Master meant. She tilted her little head, glanced at the toad hopping by her feet, and asked in a soft, milky voice: "Is it poisonous?"

The Eldest Young Master shook his head; it wasn't a toad, so how could it have venom?

Wang Heng then asked: "Then will it bite people?"

The Eldest Young Master shook his head again; of course it wouldn't bite, it was just disgusting.

Wang Heng didn't speak again.

The Eldest Young Master was still waiting for Wang Heng's questions, but she didn't open her mouth.

The Eldest Young Master was stunned for a moment, just about to ask bossily: Why aren't you talking?

But soon, he realized.

He understood what the chubby girl meant.

Since the toad wouldn't bite and wasn't poisonous, there was no need to be afraid.

People fear something either because it is unknown—they don't know its danger—or because it is harmless, and they know it isn't scary!

The chubby girl was the latter.

She knew the toad wouldn't hurt anyone, so she wasn't afraid anymore.

Eldest Young Master:...

The chubby girl was quite smart, and more importantly, calm enough.

But since his prank hadn't succeeded on her, the Eldest Young Master was still a bit unhappy.

He looked at Wang Heng, sizing her up from head to toe.

Wang Heng felt a bit nervous under his gaze and couldn't help but hug the snack box tighter.

That vigilant little look made it seem as if she were worried the Eldest Young Master would snatch her snacks.

Eldest Young Master:...I'm not a glutton!

Besides, these were things he was tired of eating; only a foodie like this chubby girl would treat them like treasures.

Treasures?

The Eldest Young Master's eyes rolled around, and when he thought of "treasures," his eyes suddenly lit up.

Hey!

I've got it!

Fatty, aren't you not afraid of toads? Then I'll bring my little treasure!

When that time comes, let's see if you're scared!

Just as the Eldest Young Master was thinking about how to "scare" Wang Heng into crying, chaotic footsteps sounded outside the pavilion.

"What happened? Is the Eldest Young Master alright?"

"Oh my, could it be that my Ninth Daughter was naughty and offended the Eldest Young Master?"

A group of servants surrounded two women as they hurried toward the pavilion.

Those two women were naturally the Old Madam Cui and the aunt and niece of the Cui family.

Old Madam Cui looked anxious, her eyes filled with worry and heartache.

Not to mention outsiders, even the Cui woman, catching a glimpse from the corner of her eye, couldn't help but sigh: As expected of the Old Madam, clearly detesting that concubine-born brat, yet still able to treat him like the apple of her eye.

This level of composure, this forbearance, this acting... it was all worth... pfft, no, never mind!

She was different from her aunt; the Wang family needed to rely on her, while her aunt needed to please Lou Jin.

Therefore, her aunt had to endure and act.

But the Cui woman didn't need to!

If she were in a good mood, she could give the Wang family a reason.

If she were in a bad mood, she could even skip the reason.

This time, it could already be considered that the Cui woman was in a "good mood"; she wanted to get rid of the burden that was Wang Heng, and she had chosen to use someone else's hand to do it.

If it had been the Cui woman's original idea, she would have directly said she was pregnant and that someone in the household (meaning Wang Heng) was incompatible with her unborn child.

For the sake of her and her child's lives, Wang Heng had to be sent away.

The Cui woman had just proposed this idea when she was dissuaded by her personal maid, Zhenzhu.

"My Lady, the Wang family does need the help of the Cui family's marriage ties, but too much is as bad as too little."

"As the saying goes, the winds of fortune change. Who can guarantee that the Wang family won't rise again in the future?"

Once the Wang family gained power, the Cui woman's past arrogance would become evidence of her crimes.

As long as there was an opportunity, the Cui woman would be doomed.

"Furthermore, you and the Master are husband and wife after all, not enemies plotting against each other."

Even if she wanted to "clear away" the burden, it should be done subtly and indirectly.

If for no other reason, then for the sake of her marriage with Wang Lin.

Zhenzhu was the Cui woman's wet nurse's daughter, and the bond between mistress and servant was the deepest.

The Cui woman valued Zhenzhu highly, and she took all of her advice to heart.

If simple and crude wouldn't work, then she would use a little strategy.

The Lou family's Eldest Young Master, a brat hated by everyone, was the perfect person to "frame" Wang Heng.

And so, before the Cui woman had even arrived at the scene to understand the full story, she had already pinned the blame on Wang Heng.

Wang Heng blinked innocently; faced with such an obvious injustice, she didn't feel wronged or sad.

She remained as obedient and quiet as ever.

Instead, it was Old Madam Cui and the Cui woman who rushed into the pavilion and froze.

The scene was indeed chaotic, but the situation of the "parties involved" was not what they had expected—

First, the Eldest Young Master wasn't laughing or making a ruckus;

Second, Wang Heng actually hadn't cried!

As long as Wang Heng cried, the Cui woman could say the two children had "fought."

Yet, this dead girl still had a blank expression, as if she had been scared silly.

Cui woman:...How is she supposed to continue "wronging" her?

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(End of chapter)