Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 387 The Reasons for the Deep-seated Anxiety

The tone of those words seemed to suggest a marriage alliance with the Earl of Wuxing's household...

As Consort Chun recounted her story, Meng Shu became increasingly certain that the Marquis of Lin'an and Lady Yun, husband and wife, truly shared this intention.

It is said that on the day the Second Young Master Wu fell into the water, after resting in the mansion for a few days, he took his page and ran away from home under cover of night.

Little did he know that his every move had been observed by the spies sent by Zheng Shan.

Wu Er Gongzi, who only had one hundred taels of silver with him, was afraid of being caught by his family and dared not travel by water. So he planned to travel by land to Jinnan first, and then take a boat to Lin'an.

Little did he know that Jinan was the territory that Marquis Tang Xian of Lin'an had cultivated for many years, and that the Marquis's mansion had spies everywhere.

As soon as Young Master Wu arrived in Jinnan, his money bag disappeared.

Zheng Shan had thought that such harassment would surely make this young nobleman back down. Who would have thought that he would grit his teeth and pawn his ancestral jade pendant, and insist on boarding the passenger ship to Lin'an again.

Then... this unlucky young master Wu fell into the water again.

At this point, even the most dull-witted person would realize that the Marquis of Lin'an's mansion was deliberately obstructing them.

Unfortunately, this second young master Wu was a stubborn man, and he came up with a clever trick: he had his page impersonate him to attract attention, while he disguised himself and boarded another merchant ship.

The bumpy journey took a toll on the already pampered young master of the Earl's Mansion, who was nearly killed by seasickness. By the time he arrived in Lin'an, he was ashen-faced and emaciated.

Having grown up in both high society and the bustling streets, Young Master Wu the Second has his own unique way of surviving.

With his broad knowledge and a bit of street smarts, he not only successfully avoided the eyes and ears of the Marquis's mansion, but the men sent out by the Earl of Wuxing's mansion didn't even catch a glimpse of him.

After many days of searching, he finally found out about the incense shop that the Fifth Miss and the Sixth Miss, who was born out of wedlock, ran in Lin'an City.

After waiting patiently for more than ten days, he finally got to see the beauty he had been longing for.

The Fifth Miss was a clever girl who always carried a golden abacus with her. Because Madam Yun was far away in the capital, and the Old Madam was particularly indulgent, she often took the Sixth Miss out of the mansion for outings.

At first, she didn't recognize the plainly dressed, haggard-looking man before her as the Second Young Master Wu, who had fallen for her at first sight at the flower-viewing banquet in the capital...

After listening to Consort Chun's retelling, Meng Shu reconstructed the story in her mind and couldn't help but look up at Consort Chun.

Sure enough, a fleeting hint of envy could be caught in the depths of her eyes.

She knew Consort Chun all too well.

Such fervent, impulsive, and action-oriented sentiment was something Consort Chun had never possessed, yet had genuinely longed for in her boudoir.

It's as if she only unintentionally reveals how much she secretly envies the young lady when she's drunk. Hidden in her tone is a wistfulness she would never show when sober.

Fate is so capricious.

They were both daughters of Tang Xian. The eldest daughter was born out of wedlock, and the fifth daughter was too young. But Tang Qingwan happened to be born out of wedlock and was of the right age. She became the most crucial piece in the couple's ambitious chessboard and was pushed into the bottomless vortex of the harem.

No one ever asked her if she wanted to embark on this path.

They simply spoke softly, in the solemn ancestral hall, under the watchful gaze of the ancestral tablets, in the tone of an elder:

"You will become the Ninth Prince's concubine."

"You were born as the eldest daughter of the Tang family, and the die is cast; you have no other choice."

*

Previously, Meng Shu was not sure why Consort Chun, who clearly had no feelings for the Emperor, was still troubled by her feelings.

Until this moment, I heard Consort Chun say in a tone that was slightly sentimental, envious, aggrieved, and yet full of blessings: "...If that Second Young Master Wu always treats Fifth Sister sincerely, even if the Wu Xing Earl's family declines and even if he cannot inherit the title in the future, the old lady and mother still have the idea that they might be able to arrange a marriage."

She finally identified the root cause of Consort Chun's problem —

Maybe,

When I saw with my own eyes my older sister, who was my blood relative, walk the path of life I had once secretly longed for,

When I heard with my own ears that my fifth sister, whom I shared the same mother with, was experiencing the kind of genuine affection I had never received, I was truly moved.

Even the most gentle and mild-mannered,

It's also inevitable that in the dead of night,

In the deepest part of my heart,

Save up a mouthful,

It's a lingering sense of unease.

......

After figuring this out, Meng Shu, whose emotions had not fluctuated for a long time, felt a subtle stinging pain in her heart, an indescribable heartache for Consort Chun.

Consort Chun, who was sitting opposite her, had just taken a sip of tea to moisten her throat after talking for a while when she looked up and saw Meng Shu staring at her blankly.

She asked softly, "Is Shu'er worried that there might be some problems if the Marquis's Mansion really forms a marriage alliance with the Earl of Wuxing's Mansion?"

Meng Shu suddenly stretched out her palm, her fingertips brushing across the chessboard, and gently placed on the knuckles of Consort Chun's hand holding the teacup.

She spoke to Consort Chun in the gentlest voice she had ever used in her eighteen years of life:

"When the eldest young lady married down, and then went to the northwest to follow the army, was it really her wish? It was because Commander Song would become an asset to Wan'er and the Marquis's mansion in the future."

The fifth young lady is lively, free-spirited, and outspoken. For her, no matter where she marries, it won't be a hindrance. However, the reason why the lady changed her mind and was willing to marry into the Wuxing Earl's Mansion, which only held the title, was precisely because the Marquis's Mansion was at the height of its power and needed to avoid suspicion by marrying into a lower-class family.

The third, sixth, and even the seventh young ladies will inevitably face arrangements made by the Marquis and his wife in the future.

Wan'er doesn't need to envy them for walking the path you once longed for.

Every road offers unique and unseen scenery, each with its own distinct beauty.

Besides, this journey includes me, Aunt Mei, Mengzhu, Ruizhu, Mingyue, Donggua, and Lvliu. We've already traveled a very long way from Lin'an to the capital, and we'll continue on this journey.”

Meng Shu spoke these words of analysis and comfort almost involuntarily.

The wisps of tea smoke obscured Consort Chun's vision.

She thought she had hidden it well, but unexpectedly, through her fifth sister's matter, she only revealed a slight trace of her emotions, and Meng Shu, who knew her well, immediately saw through her deep and unspeakable worries.

She respected her father's strategic thinking and appreciated her mother's meticulous planning, but at the same time, she genuinely resented their arrangements for her.

She loved her older siblings, but also genuinely envied her eldest sister and the other younger sisters.

Even... for a fleeting moment, when Meng Shu was able to win the Emperor's genuine favor, a bittersweet feeling stirred within him...

These contradictory emotions, which she could not express or reveal, often tormented her, gradually turning into pent-up frustrations that accumulated in the softest corner of her heart, forming an unresolved knot.

The moment her secret thoughts were unexpectedly revealed, a warm tear fell onto Meng Shu's outstretched fingertip.

This is the perfect time to be alone and unwind, a skill Meng Shu learned well from a young age.

Before leaving the study, she took Chunfei's hand, gently squeezed it in her palm, and comforted her in a lighter tone: "Wan'er, Imperial Physician Jian diagnosed you earlier that your liver qi has been stagnant for a long time. If you don't resolve the pent-up emotions in your heart, how can you welcome the destiny of having children?"

......