Chapter 5: One Deserves One's Own Fate

With these thoughts, she strode purposefully to find Su Jin.

The First Madam followed in quick steps.

As they neared Su Jin's room, the First Madam wiped away tears, her face filled with guilt. "It is my fault as a mother for failing to fulfill my responsibilities. I should have warned her earlier; perhaps then this great mistake wouldn't have been made."

Arriving at the door, the Left Prime Minister pushed the door open with force.

Within his sight, a naked man was seeking pleasure, fighting fiercely. From the woman's lips escaped soul-stirring, coquettish moans. The gauze curtains had been torn down and lay discarded on the floor; clothes were a messy, crumpled heap. Even after a full night, the passion had not yet subsided.

The Left Prime Minister was livid.

His fingertips trembled as he pointed at the woman in the room, rebuking her in rage, "You shameless thing! Get out! Get out of the Su Estate right now! You are truly as cheap as your mother. People as undisciplined as you deserve to die!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the sounds inside the room ceased abruptly.

Everyone was stunned into silence.

The Young Cousin scrambled up from the bed, crawling and tumbling. "It's not my fault, it was Fourth Cousin..." It was she who knocked me unconscious; when I woke up, my body was burning with heat, and there happened to be peonies in the room, so I...

Just as he was about to speak, he was interrupted.

The Left Prime Minister said, "Let this rebellious daughter speak for herself!"

The woman on the bed pulled up the bedsheets to wrap her body, leaving only her head exposed. She pressed herself against the wall in trepidation, wishing she could hide herself, shaking her head desperately. "Master, Peony knows nothing."

Master?

The Left Prime Minister's eyes widened. He hadn't seen clearly just now because the woman was being pressed down, but looking closely now, it indeed was not Su Jin. He felt as though he had been played. He turned to look at the First Madam. "What exactly is going on!"

The First Madam's body trembled slightly. "The servants reported it incorrectly."

The Left Prime Minister's fingers clenched tight.

After giving the First Madam a warning look, he averted his gaze. Just then, Su Jin walked in from outside the door. "It was stifling in the room last night, so Jin'er went out for a walk. When I returned, I saw Cousin and Peony... I assumed he had entered the wrong room and didn't want to disturb him, so I sat in the courtyard all night."

The Left Prime Minister looked up.

Seeing the dark circles under her eyes, he surmised she had not slept all night.

His gaze stopped on the small bottle in her hand. "What is that?"

Su Jin handed over the emerald-colored small bottle, her expression gentle. "I heard that Father enjoys drinking tea, so I gathered some dew to brew it. This way, the tea's fragrance will be even more refreshing."

The Left Prime Minister's emotions softened slightly.

He looked at the Young Cousin. "Pick a day and leave the estate."

He couldn't control his philandering in other places, nor did he care about him having secret affairs with maids, but this was far too indiscreet, causing a scene right under his nose.

Having said that, he departed.

The First Madam looked at the dressed Young Cousin and Peony. One was the person she had brought to ruin Su Jin's reputation, and the other was the one who had drugged Su Jin. How had these two ended up together? Before leaving, she shot them a look. The Young Cousin and Peony tactfully followed.

Arriving at the courtyard in the far north, the First Madam entered her own room.

She began the interrogation.

Before long, the reason for the incident was clarified. She gritted her teeth in hatred. "I truly underestimated this little slut. I originally intended to settle her affairs early and send her to the underworld to meet her short-lived mother, but now, there is no rush. Let's see just how many tricks she has up her sleeve."

The Young Cousin felt very wronged. "I beg Aunt to seek justice for me."

The First Madam waved him off. "Withdraw for now."

She needed time to think.

The Young Cousin walked out of the room in a sulk, with Peony following like a shadow. Having been tossed about tirelessly all night, she felt as though her body was about to fall apart, but now was not yet the time to rest. She clung to him. "Young Master, how do you plan to arrange things for Peony?"

He said he liked her.

He said he would marry her.

Thinking of this, she smiled with triumphant joy.

Looking at the coquettish Peony, the Young Cousin felt as if he had swallowed a fly. He pushed her away in disgust. "Arrange? How ridiculous. A lowly maid like you needs 'arranging'? You might as well find a well and jump in, so you don't annoy people while you're alive."

Peony was pushed to the ground.

The bruises left on her body, combined with the violent impact, made her body ache even more.

The corners of her mouth immediately drooped, and tears fell incessantly. "Young Master, last night, you clearly promised me that you would marry me. How can you go back on your word and be so untrustworthy!"

The Young Cousin looked at her mockingly.

Truly, stupid!

To actually take a man's words in bed seriously. "My Marquis Estate is, at the very least, a noble family. Marrying someone like you, who can't even be presented in public, would only disgrace our lineage. If you were even slightly intelligent, you would hurry up and find some fool to marry, rather than hovering in front of me and being an eyesore."

Peony cried even more sorrowfully. "You said you liked me."

The Young Cousin seemed to have heard the greatest joke in the world, and he couldn't help but burst into wild laughter, his face full of pity. "Wake up! Stop dreaming, will you? If I hadn't said that, would you have obediently let me manipulate you?"

Peony gradually stopped crying.

In the depths of her eyes, there was hatred.

She did not lash out, but instead, she climbed up from the ground resentfully. Ignoring the mocking stares of the passersby, she hid in her own room.

At night, under the high hanging bright moon, Su Jin sat before a mirror. She applied a human-skin mask to her face, looked at her unfamiliar self, and raised her eyebrows in triumph. Then, she pushed the door open and stepped out. With a light touch of her toes, she vanished into the dark night within moments, leaving no trace.

Inside the Qingmeng Pavilion, within the largest pleasure district of the capital.

It was extraordinarily lively.

Brilliant lights flickered, revealing the luxury of the entire hall.

Su Jin walked in ostentatiously, waving a folding fan. Walking one step and waving the fan three times made her look like a country bumpkin trying to act refined, provoking suppressed laughter from the accompanying women. At this time, the hall was packed, and the sound of discussion was incessant.

Amidst the boisterous crowd, she stood with her hands behind her back.

In an instant, her interest vanished.

Just as she was about to leave, the clear sound of a zither drifted down from the second floor, slowly flowing toward her, soothing all the nerves and making one's mood pleasant. Su Jin's footsteps paused slightly. A beautiful piece!

At the same time, the noisy discussions vanished completely; the entire hall became so silent that one could hear a pin drop.

The legendary number one courtesan, Yun Yao, slowly walked down the steps, her figure swaying, mesmerizing the watching men to the point of losing control, leaving the surroundings submerged in the scent of saliva.

Yun Yao settled in the center of the stage to perform a dance.

Su Jin furrowed her brows...

This Yun Yao had a graceful figure, a peerless beauty, played exquisite music, and even her dancing possessed a breathtaking beauty, like light clouds veiling the moon or flowing wind returning snow.

But, she kept staring at her with such affectionate eyes—what was the meaning of that!

It was quite hair-raising.

When it came to the bidding stage, the watching men acted as if they had been injected with chicken blood, going mad all over the place. The price was raised from the initial two thousand taels to twenty thousand. Su Jin was too lazy to watch this group of idiots risking their entire fortunes just to act like hooligans, and she turned to leave.

Yun Yao's plaintive voice drifted over. "Please stay, Young Master."

Su Jin paused.

Tears welled in Yun Yao's eyes, looking as if they were about to fall, like a wounded little white rabbit. "That gentleman in green has never placed a bid. Does he feel that my skills are shallow and unworthy of being seen?"

Exquisitely pitiful, with a desolate charm.

Su Jin raised her eyes and turned around, only to find with misery that she had become the focus of the entire venue.