PFC Chapter 77 The Arrogant Lackey
Chapter 77 The Arrogant Lackey
Spring Equinox turned pale with fright and turned to run away.
He was grabbed by several strong servants, tied to a bench, and severely beaten.
Those servants were also ruthless; after only a few blows, blood seeped through Chunfen's trousers.
Her pitiful screams pierced the air above the courtyard of the main house.
"Young Master Xiao, please save me! Please save me!"
Xiao Chengyan knelt indifferently to the side, ignoring Chunfen's heart-wrenching cries, without even glancing at her.
He knelt upright, completely bewildered as to how things had turned out this way.
He clearly drugged Qiao Qingshu and clearly saw her drink it, yet she still claimed to be dizzy and needed to rest.
How come Qiao Qingshu turned into this lowly servant girl the moment she got into the room!
Madam Xing was clearly also puzzled. She stood to the side, hands on her hips, scolding and asking questions at the same time.
"You little slut, confess already! Your young lady was clearly resting in the side room today, how did it become you?"
Spring Equinox was nearly beaten to death and hurriedly cried and tried to explain herself.
"I was drunk and resting on the tatami mat, I don't know anything."
I really know nothing about the Spring Equinox.
She was overjoyed when Qiao Qingshu rewarded her with a few cups of wine at the banquet.
When had she ever tasted such exquisite nectar?
The wine served at the Xiao family banquet today was a special supply from the imperial court. Chunfen hurriedly drank the wine that Qiao Qingshu handed her clean.
Who knew that after just two drinks, they would be completely drunk. Qiao Qingshu also claimed to be drunk, and the two of them then went to the side room to rest.
Chunfen immediately fell into a deep sleep, and when she woke up again, Xiao Chengyan had touched her bed.
She happily agreed, assuming that Xiao Chengyan had come specifically to find her.
The paddle continued to strike hard, and after a moment the pitiful screams stopped.
Chunfen, covered in blood, was carried onto a door panel, and Xiao Zhiheng tore up the indenture and threw it on her.
Fragments of paper fell onto the corpse.
He coldly ordered, "After dark, carry it out and throw it into a mass grave."
Qiao Qingshu returned to the Qiao family home near dusk.
As soon as I entered Zhuqingxuan, I saw Liu Wan'er standing at the entrance of the courtyard.
Liu Wan'er was carried out of the Xiao family's gate by several servants.
She had intended to linger at the door, but the Xiao family simply unleashed their dogs to chase her away.
She returned to the Qiao family in a disheveled state, feeling a surge of resentment that made her restless and unable to sit or lie still.
He simply stood outside Qiao Qingshu's courtyard, waiting for her to return and confront her.
Qiao Qingshu stepped forward with a smile and said,
"Cousin Wan'er, were you waiting for me?"
Qiao Qingshu had already suspected that Liu Wan'er had been reborn, and today's family banquet at the Xiao residence almost confirmed that.
Like herself, Liu Wan'er was also reborn!
She actually wanted to replace Qiu Rui as the adopted daughter of the Imperial Concubine and steal someone else's destiny.
They've really got a clever plan.
Liu Wan'er's eyes were red-rimmed. Her face was full of grievance as she said...
"Cousin, what have I done to offend you? Why are you scheming against me like this today? Even if my mother and Second Master got together, that's a matter of the previous generation. Why are you dragging me into it? Or are you holding a grudge against me for my engagement with Second Brother Xiao?"
Liu Wan'er has also seen clearly these days that ever since the incident at the Bai family's mourning hall, Qiao Qingshu has been deliberately targeting the mother and daughter.
She also wondered if Qiao Qingshu was reborn.
But seeing that Qiao Qingshu was making a scene and wanted to break off her engagement with Xiao Er, she concluded that Qiao Qingshu was probably not a reincarnation.
Xiao Chengyan is a prince!
He will become Emperor Pingxuan in the future!
How could Qiao Qingshu be so foolish as to give up wealth and status?
Therefore, Liu Wan'er concluded that Qiao Qingshu was targeting the mother and daughter and making things difficult for them because she resented her mother's affair with the Second Master and her own engagement with Xiao Er.
She didn't want to be at odds with Qiao Qingshu like this; such an adversarial relationship was too detrimental to her plans after her rebirth.
She deliberately feigned weakness and cried,
"If my cousin makes me angry, she can hit me or scold me, and I will accept it."
"I only beg you, sister, not to ruin my future like this. I am a helpless person, and I am no match for you. No matter who you marry in the future, you will be a proper wife, while I don't even know where my future lies."
"Even if I were to marry Brother Xiao Er along with my cousin in the future, I would certainly remain dutiful and would not covet even a fraction of your glory."
It was her usual tactic: feigning weakness.
I've heard Liu Wan'er say these things so many times in my past life that I'm sick of them.
Qiao Qingshu was too lazy to deal with her, and smiled with a slight raised eyebrow.
"Cousin, let me be frank with you. If you're smart, take your mother and get out of the Qiao family and out of the capital as soon as possible. Don't let me see you again, or I might spare your lives."
“But if you insist on making a fool of yourself in front of me, I will definitely deal with you.”
"Today, your dream of becoming the adopted daughter of a noble consort has been shattered; this is merely the beginning."
After saying that, Qiao Qingshu smiled and walked past Liu Wan'er, heading straight into the courtyard.
Liu Wan'er was left behind, nearly grinding her teeth to powder.
Her fists clenched, and her eyes blazed with venomous hatred.
Qiao Qingshu, if that's how you are, then let's wait and see who will have the last laugh!
As soon as he returned to the courtyard, the three maids, Lin Dong, Xia Zhi, and Wan Qiu, surrounded him.
They chattered on and on, asking if the food was good, if the imperial concubine was beautiful, if the scene was spectacular, and if there were any opera performances.
Lin Dong looked behind Qiao Qingshu and asked curiously.
"Hey, young lady, where's Chunfen? Didn't she come back with you?"
Qiao Qingshu sat in front of the dressing mirror, looking relaxed and at ease.
"She's not coming back. Xiao Er took a liking to her and took her away. The indenture has already been sent to the Xiao family."
Upon hearing this, the maids stopped what they were doing and stood there stunned.
Late Autumn called out first.
"I told you so! This little hussy is a troublemaker! She actually did something like climbing into someone else's bed. You even gave her to the Xiao family, young lady. If you ask me, you should tie her up, bring her back, hang her up, and beat her!"
Summer Solstice also put his hands on his hips and made a side road split.
"That's too lenient on her. Let her go to the Xiao family to enjoy a life of luxury! Maybe by the next Spring Equinox she'll be a concubine, wearing gold and silver and showing off."
Qiao Qingshu adjusted her hair and smiled faintly.
"Then it depends on her fate."
Having lived in the Xiao family for so many years in her previous life, Qiao Qingshu knew her former in-laws' personalities all too well.
Xiao Zhiheng disliked nothing more than his son's idleness and had beaten several of Xiao Chengyan's concubines to death in his previous life.
Those who behaved themselves were fine, but any concubine who caused trouble in front of her father-in-law never had a good ending.
Madam Xing even took care of all of Xiao Chengyan's premarital flowers and plants, leaving none behind.
In her previous life, Qiao Qingshu truly believed that Xiao Chengyan was a well-behaved and studious man.
Only after marriage did she realize that it was simply a matter of her mother-in-law keeping things clean and her father-in-law being very controlling.
The Spring Equinox happened on the day of the Imperial Concubine's visit to her family, and the outcome was predictable.
She smoothed her hair and looked up to see that the orchid on the windowsill had withered.
Qiao Qingshu smiled faintly.
She waved to Wanqiu and whispered a few instructions in her ear.
The next day, before dawn.
Then a commotion came from outside the courtyard.
Granny Zou, who lived in the old lady's room, was shouting at the entrance of Zhuqingxuan courtyard.
"What time is it? Still sleeping! The old lady has already finished breakfast. Quickly wake your daughter up. The old lady wants to see her."
His attitude was unusually arrogant.