The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

 

Shen Yu didn't care how large a psychological shadow he left on the King of Yue. He returned to his room in good spirits, and maintained his good mood even when he met Shen QingRan on the way.

After handing over Madam Ru's case to the Zhenbei Marquis, Shen Yu didn't sit idly by. He ordered someone to secretly pass a large quantity of evidence to the Zhenbei Marquis.

Shen Yu knew the Zhenbei Marquis would protect Madam Ru. It would be difficult to deal with her completely with this matter alone, but that didn't matter. He had a different purpose in mind.

Shen Yu ate and drank well, and after a few days, his complexion was much better than when he first woke up. The Zhenbei Marquis took away a group of people who served in Shen Yu's courtyard and soon sent another batch, followed by a steady stream of the highest quality clothes and useful things. Regardless of what was sent, Shen Yu accepted it all.

The new servants must have received orders from the Zhenbei Marquis to serve Shen Yu wholeheartedly. Given the situation, he was now being given the treatment rightfully due the legitimate son of the marquis' residence.

As the day he would enter the palace drew nearer and nearer, the palace sent its own people to serve him, and they gradually took over things around Shen Yu. These people worked in silence and never told Shen Yu what to do. Shen Yu was happy to remove the Zhenbei Marquis' people, so he agreed to let the palace servants stay in the courtyard.

It must be said that these people were much easier to handle than the underlings of the marquis' residence. Shen Yu enjoyed seeing the marquis' people slumped over in defeat.

During this period, the King of Yue didn't give up. He quietly sent Shen Yu several letters. Shen Yu didn't even look at them. He threw them directly into the brazier.

In the bright light of the fire, the invisible shackles burned away. His dark eyes were tinted with warm orange light, and the corners of his mouth hooked with unknown meaning.

"Young Master..." The servant boy who pushed the door open saw the handsome figure sitting by the brazier, and from the bottom of his heart he somehow felt a chill.

Shen Yu frowned. "What is it?"

"The Lord Marquis asks you to please go to the main hall." The boy bowed his head and didn't dare to look directly at the seated young man.

The young servant was handpicked by the Zhenbei Marquis and sent to Shen Yu. The Zhenbei Marquis instructed him to take good care of the young master and neglect nothing while serving him. After he came, he found that the eldest young master who was usually overlooked in the mansion was nothing at all like he imagined.

Shen Yu clapped his hands and stood up. "Let's go."

There weren't many people in the main hall. After Shen Yu went in, the Zhenbei Marquis waved his hand to dismiss some of the servants, leaving only those whom he trusted.

Shen Yu lifted his eyes and saw with a glance that Madam Ru had an ugly face. She stood below the Zhenbei Marquis with her son, Shen QingRan, whose expression was unsure.

"Father asked me to come. Does that mean there's already a result?" Shen Yu slowly said under three pairs of eyes.

"Somewhat." The Zhenbei Marquis nodded. He'd found out the truth long before today, but he dragged out the matter while deciding what to do. Madam Ru was his beloved concubine, and Shen QingRan was the son he had high hopes for. He didn't want to leave a stain on either of them.

"I brought you here because I want Madam Ru to apologize to you properly. What compensation do you want...?"

Shen Yu raised his eyebrows. "Father wants me to turn such a big thing into a small one?"

"Madam Ru didn't do it on purpose." The Zhenbei Marquis sighed. "She was influenced by someone else too. The person behind it will be handed over to you. Since she hasn't made such a mistake before, let's forget it this once. You'll soon enter the harem, and it's not a good time to spread negative stories to the palace."3

"This concubine knows she was wrong. This concubine was momentarily obsessed and almost harmed the eldest young master. I'll pray for blessings for the eldest young master every day...." Madam Ru said. The Zhenbei Marquis wanted to hand over the most capable maid at her side. Madam Ru hated it, but she didn't dare show the slightest inkling on her face. She gritted her teeth so hard they almost cracked.

"There's no need to pray for me for blessings. I'm afraid I can afford them." Shen Yu smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "What if I tell you I don't wish to accept this result, Father?

"Don't be in such a hurry to dismiss me. Whether the madam was tricked into 'accidentally' doing wrong, I think we both know in our hearts. I handed this matter over to Father, trusting that he would act as my father. Now it seems my father doesn't deserve this son's trust."

When the Zhenbei Marquis heard this, his temple throbbed. Why hadn't he noticed when his eldest son became so eloquent and stubborn?

Madam Ru could barely hide the distorted expression on her face, and an alarm bell kept ringing in her mind. This child left by the late Madam Marquis needed re-evaluation.

She'd always regarded Shen Yu as a roadblock to her son inheriting the marquis' title, and all her efforts had gone to prevent the marquis' only di son from officially becoming the heir. This time, when she heard that Shen Yu would be sent to the palace, she felt that heaven itself was helping her. But before she could breathe a sigh of relief, the people she'd planted in Shen Yu's courtyard brought back bad news.

Fortunately, this was followed by additional news that Shen Yu handed everything over to the Zhenbei Marquis. She secretly laughed at Shen Yu's naïveté, then turned around and figured out a way to wriggle out of the blame.

Sure enough, the Zhenbei Marquis only cared about saving face. He didn't want to make a big deal out of it. He accepted her excuse and put the blame on someone else.

Everything was going smoothly, and Shen Yu seemed to have no intention of intervening. Although it was painful to lose a maid who was her confidant, she would definitely find a way to take revenge.

She'd already lowered herself a great deal. But unexpectedly, Shen Yu not only didn't appreciate it, he didn't even seem to have much respect for the Zhenbei Marquis.

As she looked at Shen Yu's half-smiling eyes, Madam Ru found she couldn't read him at all, a man who was ten years younger than her.

Shen Yu's attitude was careless. The Zhenbei Marquis was clearly biased towards his favourite, but there wasn't a trace of anger in Shen Yu's eyes. It was like he'd known the outcome long ago. He stood there as if it were just a formality.

What exactly was his purpose?

That was the moment Madam Ru began to feel some panic. She thought the reason Shen Yu agreed to let the Zhenbei Marquis look into the matter was because he trusted and admired his father. Now it seemed that wasn't the case at all. The reason he handed it over was because he didn't care. He didn't care about someone tampering with his medicine. Let alone the Zhenbei Marquis, he didn't care about the entire marquis' residence.

"Lord Marquis..." Madam Ru couldn't help but step back. She grabbed the sleeve of the Zhenbei Marquis and stared at Shen Yu in fear.

Aware of her frightened eyes, Shen Yu's smile widened.

 

How funny. He hadn't done anything yet, and she was already frightened.

Frowning, the Zhenbei Marquis patted the back of Madam Ru's hand soothingly. "What exactly are you saying? What happened to everything you learned from studying the books of the sages for so many years? No matter what you say, Madam Ru is your elder. You can't just make up nonsense."

"My elder?" Shen Yu sneered. "Let's not talk about me speaking nonsense. She's merely a concubine. I'm afraid she'll never be entitled to the word 'elder' from me."

In Da Huan, there was a clear distinction between di and shu children. The status of the official wife and her children was much higher than that of concubines and their children. The Zhenbei Marquis' principal wife died early, and he never married another. He might have given Madam Ru the power to manage the courtyard, but the law was the law. No matter how much the Zhenbei Marquis favored her, he could never install her as the official wife.

Shen Yu's words directly hit Madam Ru's sore spot. Because she originally entered the house as a concubine, she could never rid herself of that status. Her children were born inferior to others. She might consider her child no worse than Shen Yu, but Shen Yu was of good birth, and that wouldn't change. Her son would never rise higher than him in this lifetime.

The darkness in her eyes flashed, and when Madam Ru looked up again, she was already crying. "This concubine is to blame. The marquis and the eldest young master mustn't quarrel because of this concubine. Since the eldest young master is certain this concubine did it, I accept it. Don't make things difficult for the lord marquis."

As soon as his wife said this, the anger on the Zhenbei Marquis' face deepened. "Shen Yu, you have no respect for your elders! You're really becoming more and more unruly!"

"Disrespecting my elders?" Shen Yu replied impolitely. "What if my elders are covering up a crime?

"Madam Ru's skills are truly impressive. With just a few words she persuades the marquis to defend her, regardless of right or wrong. Will she really succeed? Will the lord marquis drop the matter so easily?"

"Don't talk that way about my mother!" Shen QingRan finally digested what was going on, and when he heard Shen Yu's words, he couldn't help but cut in.

"You have no right to speak here," Shen Yu gave Shen QingRan a cold glance. "Besides, except for the main wife, concubines can only be addressed as 'aunt'. Don't get it wrong again."

When Shen QingRan met Shen Yu's icy gaze he shivered. He mumbled a few words and didn't dare to open his mouth.

Shen Yu found a chair and sat down, then slowly and methodically straightened the cuffs of his sleeves. "Let's get to the point. The lord marquis doesn't want the entire town to hear that his concubine attempted to murder me before I enter the palace, right?"

The Zhenbei Marquis finally realized that Shen Yu was no longer under his control. After a few days Shen Yu would enter the palace. He might accuse the marquis of anything. The Zhenbei Marquis couldn't do anything about it, but he also didn't want to sacrifice a person he valued. He fought back his anger and asked, "What exactly do you want?"

"It's a shame that father wasn't this sensible sooner, or things wouldn't have gotten so ugly." Shen Yu lowered his sleeves. "Since Madam Ru is so easily confused to do wrong, it must be difficult for her to manage the great marquis' mansion. Father should choose someone else."

The Zhenbei Marquis hadn't married another official wife, but there were quite a few other concubines in the back courtyard. Madam Ru had always been the only one in charge. If she fell, the harem of the marquis' residence would suddenly become an exciting place.

"Also, although my mother is gone, I don't want anyone to act in her name. Until Father marries a new official wife, there can be only one wife in the marquis' residence, and that's my mother. Father, do you understand? If Father wants a new wife, I'll mention it to His Majesty when I enter the palace."

How cruel.

Madam Ru stumbled. She never thought the quiet di son of the marquis' residence could be so powerful. In a few words he destroyed more than ten years of her efforts in the marquis' residence. Without the right to control the household and the position of acting lady, what was the difference between her and all the other concubines?

So this was his plan.

Madam Ru gazed at the man she'd loved for half her life. The expectation in her eyes nearly overflowed.

"What does Father think?"

What else could he do? The Zhenbei Marquis had no choice at all. He avoided Madam Ru's eyes. "You don't have to worry about your father remarrying."

Agreeing to Shen Yu's request.

Madam Ru's body went limp. She looked up blankly, just in time to meet Shen Yu's meaningful gaze, and it dawned on her that today might only be the beginning.

---

In the imperial study, a man dressed in imperial robes, with a face like a crown of jade, half-supported his head with his hand as he listened to the eunuch give the report provided by the spies.

After reading the letter, Meng Chang, the Great Court Eunuch, couldn't help but chuckle. "The eldest young master of the Zhenbei Marquis' family is an interesting person."

The man said lightly, "Well, he can certainly make a scene."

There was no trace of disapproval in his tone. Meng Gonggong noted this and said, "When the young master arrives, the palace will be much more lively."

The man responded indifferently.

After reading a while, Meng Gonggong stopped. "Oh, this..."

The emperor opened his eyes. "What?"

Meng Gonggong hesitated, then presented the secret letter to the man.

The man took the letter and scanned through it, ten lines at a glance. His expression became subtle.

The letter said that the eldest son of the Zhenbei Marquis had admired him for a long time, so much that he even sought out a substitute that resembled him....5

 

---

TL Notes:

(✿ꈍ ꒳ ꈍ)

 

regardless of right or wrong - 不分青红皂白 - not distinguishing red-green or black-white (idiom) / not to distinguish between right and wrong

gonggong - 公公 - gōnggōng - husband's father / grandpa / eunuch - A common form of address for eunuchs

 

Transliterated names, places, and titles—new in this chapter:

Great Court Eunuch - 大太监 - dà tàijiàn - Alternatively: Great Eunuch

Meng Chang - 孟常

Meng Gonggong - 孟公公