Chapter 47: A Beautiful Counterattack (Part 1)

Tantai Jing left Ma Yuntong behind and listened attentively to Mingxin’s report. Mother Xu was crying with anger at the side, but Tantai Jing was as calm as could be. Turning around, she walked back to her desk and wrote on a piece of letter paper: I will go to study at the academy tomorrow with my Fifth and Sixth Sisters.

Thinking that he would still be able to see Tantai Jing tomorrow, Ma Yuntong was so excited that he failed to notice Tantai Jing's unusual demeanor. He followed Mother Gui into the courtyard to have dinner with Tantai Shanchang.

Meanwhile, Tantai Jing brought her entourage back to Liruoyuo Courtyard.

Wiping away her tears, Mother Xu said, "Those heartless curs simply cannot bear to see the Third Young Miss doing well. They must make sure the Third Young Miss cannot live a peaceful life!"

Tantai Jing sat composedly on the Luohan bed, staring at the teacup in her hands, her expression giving away neither joy nor anger.

As expected, this matter was the handiwork of Madam Ye. The burly man had been disposed of, but while she had been acting as the mistress of the household on behalf of her stepmother, the reputation of a shrew had already spread. Coupled with her earlier scandalous reputation of trying to force herself in as a concubine and violently beating her younger sister, she was now completely notorious. As for finding a husband, I'm afraid that was utterly out of the question. To say nothing of those in Zecheng who knew her background inside and out, even if she were to marry far away outside of Zecheng, once people caught wind of such a reputation, who would ever marry her?

Madam Ye, what a vicious and venomous heart!

Wiping her tears, Mother Xu thought of the Ma Yuntong she had just seen. Although his background was somewhat humble, his future was boundless. If her Third Young Miss were to be matched with him, it would not be too much of a grievance. Should she go to the front courtyard and drop a hint to the master?

Just as Mother Xu was pondering an escape route, Tantai Jing spoke up: "After Master Ma leaves, have Suyue take the hangover soup to the master."

Mother Xu was startled for a moment, then immediately realized that the young lady intended to let Suyue rise in status.

"Third Young Miss, Suyue's mind is not quite right. She may not put her whole heart into serving the Third Young Miss. If she betrays the Third Young Miss and returns to Madam's side, what shall we do? It would be better to keep her under control for a little longer!" Mother Xu had previously thought of completely winning over Suyue's loyalty first before placing her by the master's side, which would then be foolproof.

Tantai Jing smiled slightly and said, "A person like Suyue will never have a straight mind in all her life. Even if Mother holds her under control for a lifetime, she can never be elevated. It would be far more practical to hold her very life and death in our own hands."

"The Young Miss means..." Mother Xu could not quite grasp the Third Young Miss's intention.

Tantai Jing did not commit to an answer, only offering a calm and faint smile: "Mother can just send her over first and give her strict instructions: if she wishes to stay alive in this manor, she must return to Liruowu Courtyard the moment her service is finished. If she dares to spend the night in the outer study and loses her life, I will not care about her!"

Mother Xu nodded heavily and turned to leave.

The candlelight flickered with mottled shadows. Tantai Jing remembered that Suyue's monthly period had passed by ten days or so. Whether she could accomplish this deed depended entirely on Suyue's own fortune!

After Mother Xu departed, Nanny Jiang and Mother Gui entered the main hall to help Tantai Jing prepare the study materials for tomorrow.

Tantai Jing gently stroked the pages of her books, turning them leaf by leaf, until she stopped at the page bearing the lines: "A graceful and demure maiden, a fine match for a gentleman." She stared at it intently, as if looking at some rare and precious treasure.

Closing her eyes slightly, she carefully recalled every single action of Wang Ziyu from back then, down to the tiniest detail. Sometimes Heaven is fair; Tantai Jing being poisoned mute in her previous life was not entirely without its advantages. For instance, her memory—she could recall past events one by one, right down to the weather of that particular day, and how many blossoms of orchid had bloomed before the window...

After a long while, Tantai Jing picked out a sheet of letter paper from the side—the most ordinary kind used in the academy—and lightly folded a corner at the upper left. She copied the poem onto it, using Wang Ziyu's running script calligraphy style. At the lower right corner of the letter paper, she wrote: A quarter past the未 hour, Lotus Garden.

Similarly, Tantai Jing found a pink sheet of letter paper, sprinkled some rose powder over it, and wrote: A quarter past the未 hour, Lotus Garden. She then folded the letter paper into a heart shape. Following this, she placed both letters inside her own book, stood up to bathe, and determined that tomorrow would surely be a completely different beginning!

True to form, Suyue obediently returned to Liruowu Courtyard. As it was already approaching the Hour of the Rat (midnight), she wanted to return to her room to wash up and freshen herself, only to discover that all the hot water had been used up. Taking a bath was completely out of the question, so she simply gave herself a hasty wipe down and climbed into bed, unaware that the freshly boiled hot water from the kitchen was all sitting right now in the main bedchamber.

After bathing and changing her clothes, Tantai Jing donned a bean-green pajama set with crossover collars and frog buttons. Seeing that the candlelight in the room where Suyue stayed had been extinguished, she gently curved the corners of her lips in a smile and said to Suxin behind her: "For this past month or so, do not let Suyue do any heavy work. Take those few bolts of brocade I bought earlier and place them before her, and have her tailor a few autumn garments for me."

Suxin did not understand what Tantai Jing meant, assuming she merely wanted to keep Suyue cooped up indoors and prevent her from going out, so she happily agreed. Mother Xu, who was tidying up the washroom nearby, cast a thoughtful glance at Tantai Jing, and subconsciously began calculating how many days had passed since Suyue's monthly period...

The autumn air was crisp and refreshing, and in just a few days, it would be the Mid-Autumn Festival. Even the academy was bustling with excitement. This was the first day back at the academy for the Third, Fifth, and Sixth Young Misses of the Tantai household, and they had prepared quite a few gifts for their fellow classmates. Though everyone received something, each person's gift was slightly different.

The person Fifth Miss Tantai Xuan missed the most was none other than Wang Ziyu. The moment she entered the academy, she went straight to Wang Ziyu's side. Yet, the intimidating presence of Nanny Jiang prevented her from losing all sense of propriety. She came to a halt three inches away from Wang Ziyu, smiled brightly, and said, "Brother Ziyu, I have prepared a peony sachet for you. Take a look and see if you like it."

Tantai Xuan held the dark blue peony sachet high up in front of her, her eyes and brows brimming with smiles. Wang Ziyu noticed his classmates casting strange, sidelong glances his way, and his expression grew somewhat unnatural. While he did hope that Fifth Miss Tantai Xuan felt differently about him, this special treatment didn't need to be so flagrant...

Sixth Miss Tantai Zhi frowned imperceptibly. Fortunately, she reacted quickly and stepped forward as well, smiling as she said, "Brother Ziyu, hurry and accept it. Fifth Sister has brought quite a few sachets, and she still has to give them to others. If she has to hold it up like this for every single person, I'm afraid her arms will grow sore!"

As Sixth Miss Tantai Zhi spoke, she also picked out an amber pendant and handed it to Wang Ziyu, saying, "Previously, we caused Brother Ziyu some trouble. This time, just consider it an apology to Brother Ziyu from us sisters. We are all classmates; let us not damage our cordial relations over such petty little pranks!"

Sixth Miss Tantai Zhi phrased everything so appropriately that if Wang Ziyu were to refuse Fifth Miss Tantai Xuan's sachet, he would simply be ungrateful and blind to favors.

Wang Ziyu gladly accepted the sachet. None of the three noticed that Mingxin, the maid beside Third Miss Tantai Jing, had darted around them, only to relax her tightly clenched little fist and flash a mischievous smile toward Third Miss Tantai Jing, signaling that the matter had been successfully accomplished.