Chapter 246: From Bad to Worse
Chapter 246: Chapter 246: From Bad to Worse
Xie Yuanjiu had never heard Second Madam Xie mention any of this.
She had always thought her father was in love with someone else, but due to family pressure, he had no choice but to marry her mother.
She never would have imagined that the way her mother married into the Xie family was so sordid.
No wonder she had never been close to her father, even as a child.
She always felt that Second Master Xie treated her merely out of politeness and paternal duty, not with the affection of a true father-daughter relationship.
She had never known what it felt like to be held in her father’s arms.
And her two cousins, Xie Mingxu and Xie Ming’an, also kept their distance.
She was even treated worse than Shen Ningning, the adopted daughter who had just been accepted into the Xie family.
At some point, Consort Rong appeared before her and gently helped Xie Yuanjiu to her feet.
"You foolish child. I truly feel for you. If I couldn’t bear to watch this any longer, I wouldn’t have come all this way just to warn you."
"So what if your mother was wrong to drug Second Master Xie first? Second Master Xie took her body and ruined her innocence. He should have taken responsibility, shouldn’t he?"
"Besides, you are innocent. Since he became your father, he should have treated you well."
Hearing her words, Xie Yuanjiu felt as if a thread of clarity had suddenly been pulled from the tangled mess of her thoughts.
"Yes, that’s right..." she nodded along. "This has nothing to do with me. Mother gave birth to me, so on what grounds does Father ignore me?"
Consort Rong smiled faintly. "Your uncle is coming to take you from the palace today. He will surely reprimand you."
"But you need not be afraid, because you are the true and legitimate young lady of the Xie family."
"When you see Chancellor Xie, you should ask him to plead with the Emperor on your behalf. With the Emperor’s forgiveness, your life won’t be so difficult in the future."
"Yuan Jiu," Consort Rong’s hand, adorned with a jeweled ring, felt a little cold as she gently straightened the girl’s messy hair. "You must not back down or admit defeat to them, do you understand?"
"Otherwise, they will only become more aggressive, thinking you owe the Xie family."
Xie Yuanjiu nodded blankly. The black fog in her eyes slowly dissipated, replaced by a venomous glint.
"Yes, the Xie family owes me. Since they brought me into this world, they shouldn’t have ignored my feelings."
’Thinking back now, why did I make that mistake at the Waterside Pavilion and Flower Shed?’
’Wasn’t it because I was too desperate to become a female official, to prove myself to my uncle and father?’
’I wanted to show the Xie family that I’m no worse than Shen Ningning!’
’If not for that, would I have made that mistake? In the end, it was the Xie family who dragged me down.’
Xie Yuanjiu collected herself. As she left the courtyard of the torture room, she hadn’t gone far before she saw a tall, somber figure standing a short distance away.
Xie Suzhi was dressed in an official robe with flying cranes. The dark blue fabric made the spread-winged red-crowned cranes look lifelike.
But beneath his calm expression was a cold and merciless heart.
Xie Yuanjiu was used to it. She walked forward, feeling neither guilt nor shame. "Uncle, are you here to take me home?"
Xie Suzhi didn’t answer. He simply turned and walked away, signaling for her to follow.
Xie Yuanjiu followed silently behind him.
Just then, Xie Suzhi’s cold voice drifted from ahead. "I have already made arrangements for you. You will leave tomorrow for the ancestral home in Changzhou and stay there until your hairpin ceremony."
Xie Yuanjiu’s steps froze abruptly.
Her face was pale, her eyes locked onto Xie Suzhi’s back.
’Consort Rong was right. My uncle really does see me as a disgrace and can’t wait to get rid of me.’
Xie Yuanjiu’s voice was laced with ice. "Why are you making me leave? Uncle, didn’t you even think of going to the Emperor to plead for me?"
Xie Suzhi stopped and turned to look at her, his eyes dark and profound.
"Plead for you? You trespassed in the Forbidden Palace, slandered Ningning, and embezzled five thousand taels of silver from the estate for a bribe. Which of these is not a crime!"
"Yuan Jiu, you aren’t even ten years old. How can your heart be so cruel, and your schemes so plentiful?"
Hearing the name "Ningning," Xie Yuanjiu laughed, a deeply mocking laugh.
"When it comes down to it, you’re just taking your anger out on me for Shen Ningning’s sake."
She was on the verge of breaking down, screaming hysterically, "Even if my origins aren’t clean or pure, at least I’m a member of the Xie family! But what about that Shen Ningning?"
"She’s just a bastard, someone else’s child! On what grounds do you protect her? Why won’t you believe that she was the one who lured me there!"
The moment Xie Yuanjiu finished speaking, a heavy slap landed across her face.
CRACK! Xie Suzhi had actually struck her.
Xie Yuanjiu clutched her stinging cheek, her eyes wide with stunned disbelief.
Xie Suzhi’s gaze was impossibly dark. "I may not have said anything, but don’t think for a moment that I don’t know."
"That anonymous letter reporting Ningning’s storeroom—you wrote it."
Xie Yuanjiu was startled.
’How could Uncle possibly know?’
Xie Suzhi’s tone grew even colder. "Everything you did at the Waterside Pavilion and Flower Shed... you may not have spoken of it, but I’ve heard all about it."
The acquaintance he had Shen Ningning seek out earlier, Aunt Fang Min, had been transferred to the Waterside Pavilion and Flower Shed to serve as the head female official.
Every day, the head female official would write to Xie Suzhi, reporting on the performance of the two Xie children to ease his worries.
Likewise, she had also described, in meticulous detail, the viciousness Xie Yuanjiu had shown in her presence.
"Did you think you weren’t exposed? You caused Miss Qi to fall into the water and then stood by watching. Did you really think no one saw you?"
At this, Xie Yuanjiu was completely dumbfounded.
’I had done it so stealthily, how could anyone possibly know?!’
But she never would have guessed that as she stood around the corner that day, watching Qi Xiuwei struggle in the water, she had left footprints at the scene.
And the head female official had found them.
The head female official then took an impression of the print and compared it with everyone’s shoes.
Xie Suzhi’s gaze was filled with disappointment. "You have done so many wrong things. If I don’t send you away now, am I supposed to just let you continue stirring up trouble in the Capital City?"
Tears welling in her eyes, Xie Yuanjiu retorted, "But I only did all this to gain your approval!"
"You’re the ones who ruined me! It’s the Xie family that has wronged me!"
Even now, she was still saying such things.
Xie Suzhi was utterly disappointed.
’This child is beyond saving.’
He closed his eyes and hardened his heart, commanding, "Men, tie up the Fourth Miss, take her back to the estate, and lock her in the side room of the main courtyard. No one is to visit her!"
"First thing tomorrow morning, send her to Changzhou immediately!"
As his voice fell, the Prime Minister’s guards, who had been following nearby, all appeared.
Xie Yuanjiu began to struggle. "Uncle! Uncle, you’re so heartless! No wonder you lost your daughter!"
"This is your retribution! This is the Xie family’s retribution!"
Her words were too vile. The guards forcibly gagged her and threw her directly into the waiting carriage nearby.
Xie Suzhi closed his eyes again, feeling a dull ache in his chest.
The taste of blood rose in his mouth.
He leaned against a nearby palace wall, breathing slowly, his face pale and cold, his frosty brows furrowed tightly.
After a moment, a guard returned to his side and quickly supported him. "Prime Minister!"
"It’s nothing. There’s no need to panic. Has Ningning returned?"
"The Eldest Young Master just took the Commandery Princess to the carriage outside the palace to wait for you."
Xie Suzhi took a handkerchief from his robes and wiped the bloody foam from the corner of his lips.
He slowly straightened up and took a long breath. "Do I look any different?"
The guard looked him over and shook his head. "No, My Lord."
"Good. We mustn’t frighten Ningning. Let’s go."
However, the moment Xie Suzhi boarded the carriage, he called out with a cheerful laugh, "Ningning, have you been waiting long? My apologies, Godfather is late."
The little round munchkin immediately threw herself into his arms.
Before she could even say a few sweet words, Shen Ningning looked up. "Huh? Godfather, your face is so pale!"