Chapter 16
Sisterly Bonds?
With someone stepping forward first, and no one reprimanding her, the other women gradually revealed Yu Lang’s whereabouts.
“I’m Bi He, I live on Baiyun Alley. Yu Lang hasn’t come by these past few days…”
“I’m Luo Chu, living on Peach Blossom Lane. Yu Lang came by at noon the day before yesterday. He said he wanted me to make him an exquisite pouch to hold something important, but since mine wasn’t finished, he… just left.”
“I’m An Ran, from Sanliu Lane. Yu Lang came to me three days ago. He was all smiles, claiming he had accomplished something great, and that I would enjoy endless wealth and glory if I served him well. He said that if he married one of the daughters, I could officially become a proper concubine in the household.”
“Yu Lang said that too! He also said that now that he’s a top scholar, future marriages will elevate him even more, and if he finds a suitable wife, I could still become a secondary….”
At first, everyone was simply recounting their own experiences, but upon hearing Yu Lang’s usual words, they couldn’t help but chime in. More and more information came out, and Jiu Que listened with great interest.
Yu Lang was truly despicable—raising nine beautiful sisters while still having his eye on daughters from wealthy, noble families? But given their good backgrounds, how could they possibly choose someone as old as him? He was far too overconfident.
Jiu Que thought this and spoke her mind, but the girl named Fu Liu clarified matters.
“One time Yu Lang got drunk and said that girls from wealthy families, spoiled and naive, would fall for him if he was even slightly kind. And since he’s a top scholar, how could those girls, locked away in their boudoirs, resist?”
“Even if things go badly…”
Here, Fu Liu hesitated, finding it hard to continue. After all, Jiu Que in front of her seemed well-born, even capable of being appointed by the Emperor—something unprecedented since the new dynasty began! Such words were harsh, especially for a young girl.
Unexpectedly, Ying Jiu Que remained unperturbed.
“Didn’t Yu Lang also say that, at worst, he could use trickery to make naive girls lose their purity? For girls from noble families, their reputation is everything. To avoid repercussions, they’d find ways to force their families to let them marry him?”
The nine women stared at Jiu Que in astonishment. She seemed so young, yet she understood so clearly. They were at a loss for words. Finally, they could only nod.
“Yes… he did say something like that.”
Fu Liu paused, not mentioning that she had felt nauseous when she first heard it. Yu Lang was handsome, which had earned him the trust of so many women. His literacy added an air of refinement. But no matter how charming, when speaking of such schemes, he came across as cruel and ruthless.
A man in his forties plotting relentlessly against girls barely in their teens or twenties was truly frightening.
But what left Fu Liu powerless was that she was merely a concubine; she could not control her own fate, let alone help others.
“Other than that, he wasn’t particularly remarkable. Generally, he wouldn’t tell us what he did outside. Because he often said…”
Jin Hua suddenly spoke up.
“Didn’t he say, ‘A woman’s lack of talent is her virtue,’ and tell us not to pry?”
“Yes! He always said men work outside while women should stay obediently inside, cooking, serving their husbands, and being gentle and virtuous—that’s a woman’s nature.”
Ying Jiu Que spat out her drink in disgust.
“Ugh!”
“Twisting the meaning of the ancients, and he’s supposed to be a scholar! A top scholar!”
Not only the former Emperor, but even Jiu Que herself began to doubt Yu Lang’s merit as a top scholar. Could someone with such character really have earned that title? Truly astonishing.
But then again, no matter how carefully the Ministry of Rites evaluated him, it’s hard to know a person’s true heart. With Yu Lang’s skill at deception, even abandoning a former love while making himself appear pure as a lotus would be easy.
At this point, talking about it was pointless, so Jiu Que simply nodded.
“Have any of you ever seen him take pills?”
They exchanged glances, a bit unsure, shaking their heads. Before Jiu Que could be disappointed, she noticed Jin Hua hesitating, which piqued her interest.
“Jin Hua, have you noticed anything?”
“I did see him take medicine, but I don’t know if it was pills. He said it was herbal medicine for his health, and since it wasn’t convenient to carry, he made it into pills. I could smell the herbs, though.”
Xie Mingchen subtly nodded on the side.
“There were indeed many medicinal herbs in the pills, to replenish qi and blood, but… there were other things added too.”
With many people around, Xie Mingchen didn’t elaborate, but Jiu Que immediately understood—they had added something deadly. Could it really be mercury or cinnabar?
But where did he even get such things?
While Jiu Que pondered, a sudden fit of coughing erupted. It was Fu Liu, who had seemed weak, now choking violently. Her pale face flushed red, blood vessels prominent, struggling to breathe.
The other girls gasped. Jin Hua and Yun Niang, who were closest, supported her, one patting her back, the other handing her a cup of tea to calm her breathing.
Noticing something was off, Yun Niang stiffly turned and saw Jiu Que’s curious gaze.
“You two… seem quite familiar?”
Yu Lang could really make his concubines get along? Weren’t they supposedly strangers before?
“We… just saw she was struggling a bit, so we helped,” Jin Hua hurriedly explained.
“Exactly. After all, we’re all Yu Lang’s concubines. That creates a bond. Now that he’s gone and we have no other family, we’re the closest to each other.”
Watching Jin Hua’s flustered explanation, Jiu Que smiled mischievously, looking rather improper.
“I see, I see, truly sisterly bonds. But Fu Liu, your health is poor, right? Want us to let Doctor Xie take a look? Though young, he’s trained in the Imperial Medical Institute and is excellent!”
After calming down, Fu Liu shook her head.
“I’ve been ill since birth—a congenital weakness. I’ve taken countless medicines over my life, yet it hasn’t helped. Doctor Xie treats only the highest nobility; I’m just a minor concubine. I don’t want to trouble him.”
Catching her breath, she continued,
“This coughing just now… I remembered that when Yu Lang took his medicine, a pill accidentally fell at home. That’s why I coughed…”
