Female Consort Chapter 65: Imperial Report

"I'm fine," Yao Tai said with a smile, though her lips were pale. "I didn’t mean to keep it from you. I just didn’t want you to worry."

Li Qingwu sat silently at the edge of the bed, saying nothing.

"Come on, don’t be angry," Yao Tai said gently. "Telling you back then would’ve only added to your troubles."

"No... if you had written to me about it earlier, I could’ve..." She could have tried to search for another tengshou grass.

Though it wasn’t guaranteed to bring the dead back to life, its effects were undeniably powerful.

But Uncle Jiang had said it could only be found by those fated to see it, and even then, only once in decades.

And once the tengshou grass was picked, without the waters of the Taoyuan River to sustain it, it would wither within two days.

No matter how you look at it, even if Li Qingwu had known about Yao Tai’s condition earlier, without giving up treating her own leg, the grass could never have been brought back.

It was a hopeless dead end.

Realizing this, Li Qingwu fell silent again.

She closed her eyes briefly. "What did Doctor Chen say?"

"He said... I won't die within three months," Yao Tai gave a faint smile and coughed twice, her lips turning even paler. "But those stab wounds were deep. If not for Doctor Chen throwing together a mountain of herbs to keep me alive, I’d already be dead..."

Dead, on the very day she was stabbed, given how primitive the medicine in this era was.

Her internal organs had been severely damaged. For the past two months, she’d barely been able to stand. All the shop’s accounts had been left for Yu Ming to handle.

She’d drifted in and out of consciousness. In the last two months, she’d slept for over forty days. The days she’d been lucid were too few to count.

Yang Qiu came to see her every day. At first, he’d tried to speak with her to raise her awareness. But as time went on, he spoke less and less.

Yao Tai was like a once-vibrant flower on the verge of withering, fading rapidly into fragility.

And all they could do was watch.

Watch her choke down bitter medicine, struggle to cling to life, only to slip back into sleep, waking up each time with no idea what day it was.

There was nothing they could do.

Li Qingwu gently placed her hand on Yao Tai’s now much thinner one. Her eyes reddened as she looked down. "You shouldn’t have provoked him. Yuan Fu is a madman."

If Yao Tai hadn’t said those words to enrage him, Li Qingwu might not have been in real danger of being killed.

But Yao Tai didn’t seem to care. She sighed and said, "I know what you’re thinking... but this has nothing to do with you. I said those things out of spite. That was my choice."

Li Qingwu’s eyes flickered, and she looked up to meet Yao Tai’s gaze.

"I never told you, did I? My former lover... he left me after I caught him cheating. He used my terminal illness as an excuse to walk away from it all."

Yao Tai’s lips curled in a bitter smile, her gaze distant. "I hate men who can’t control themselves."

It was hard to say whether her words had been meant for Yuan Fu, or for that old lover from decades ago who had once betrayed her.

"And what about you?" Li Qingwu’s voice caught in her throat as she raised it. "Did you not think about what saying those things might bring upon you?"

Yao Tai shook her head. "I didn’t have long to live anyway."

In her previous life, she’d been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Her days were numbered, until she suddenly transmigrated here. These extra twenty years of life were a gift from the heavens.

She had no attachments. In this world, no one loved her, and she loved no one.

Dying didn’t matter.

What she feared more was that her arrival had disrupted the course of history.

She had admired the love between those two women and had been moved by the mark they left in history.

If her interference led to their deaths before their time, then her sin would be grave indeed.

Li Qingwu didn’t understand what she meant by that and frowned at her. After a moment, she said, "...I’ll go find Uncle Jiang."

Chen Huichun was Uncle Jiang’s apprentice. If Chen Huichun couldn’t heal her, it didn’t mean Uncle Jiang couldn’t.

What if there was still a chance?

Just as she stood up, Yao Tai grabbed her hand. "Wait."

Li Qingwu turned back.

Yao Tai blinked. "Actually... I’m not from this world. Do you believe me?"

Li Qingwu didn’t respond.

Her upbringing forbade her from saying anything disrespectful, or making a mocking expression.

But her silence said enough.

"I’m serious," Yao Tai laughed and coughed at the same time. "Don’t look at me like that... If you don’t believe me, ask your City Lord. I’m sure she’s investigated me thoroughly by now. She knows I never had any lovers in the past. And I’m not saying I lied to you, just that what I said is true. What your City Lord found out is also true."

Li Qingwu didn’t say whether she believed her or not. She only sighed and gently pulled Yao Tai’s hand away, tucking in her blanket as she whispered, "Stop talking now."

Yao Tai didn’t have the strength to argue. She sighed again and obediently closed her mouth.

Li Qingwu had set her mind to saving her. She wouldn’t give up until she saw the coffin with her own eyes. Though everyone said Yao Tai was beyond saving and that they should start preparing for her funeral, Li Qingwu returned to the Princess’s residence and immediately began discussing with Qiu Che how to send a letter to Uncle Jiang to see if he could come to the capital.

Taoyuan River was hard to enter and harder to leave. They still didn’t understand how Uncle Jiang had brought them in, or how they had gotten out.

Qiu Che supported her decision without hesitation. They wrote the letter together and sent it to Jinzhou.

At the same time, word that Qiu Che and Li Qingwu had returned alive spread through the streets of the capital within a day.

The next morning, Qiu Che attended court as usual and felt as if lifetimes had passed.

Though many court officials privately regretted that she hadn’t died, they still put on warm smiles in public. No one dared cross her.

Apparently, the shock she had given them with her last outburst still hadn’t worn off.

What was different now was the presence of the Empress Dowager, who now sat beside the Emperor in court, listening from behind the curtains.

On the third day after their return, the rumors about them gradually began to die down. With the Emperor lifting his suppression and even subtly favoring her, Li Qingwu’s business also got back on track.

Everything seemed to return to how it had been before they left.

On the fifth day, Qiu Che received an unexpected visit from Qiu Chudong.

He came bearing gifts, wearing a fawning smile, completely different from his previous arrogant self.

Madam Wang couldn’t bring herself to throw him out. It wasn’t until Qiu Che arrived that she finally relaxed.

She trusted Qiu Che and didn’t worry that she’d suffer a loss in front of Qiu Chudong. She stood up and said, "I’ll go make you both some new clothes. Winter’s nearly here, you’ll need something warm to wear."

Qiu Che had barely nodded when Qiu Chudong stepped between them again, blocking Madam Wang’s way with a grin. "Don’t leave just yet. I actually came today to ask you to return home..."

He had spent all that time babbling nonsense to Madam Wang just to lead up to this request.

Madam Wang looked surprised. Qiu Che’s face immediately turned cold. She shielded her mother behind her and said, "What do you mean?"

Qiu Chudong rubbed his hands and signaled for his servant to bring something forward.

The red cloth was lifted, revealing two pairs of gleaming golden earrings.

Qiu Chudong beamed. "Just a small token of apology, from a father making amends for what your brother did. Look, it’s been so long already. Your mother is a married concubine, living with you in the Princess’s residence. That’s not proper."

Qiu Che narrowed her eyes. "Improper? And yet she’s lived here all this time. Where were you then?"

Qiu Chudong choked for a moment, awkwardly coughing before attempting a more emotional appeal.

"It’s all to accommodate you... Che’er, you’ve been angry long enough. Once you return, I’ll raise your mother’s status to equal wife. She’ll no longer have to do any hard labor, "

"Angry?" Qiu Che repeated the word with a scoff. "You think I’m angry?"

"What else?" Qiu Chudong pushed on, gritting his teeth. "I know I treated you both unfairly before, but I won’t anymore..."

Qiu Che coldly cut him off. "If that’s all you came to say, then please leave."

"The Princess’s residence does not entertain trash."

Qiu Chudong hadn’t expected her to be so blunt. After being humiliated several times, he was beginning to lose patience.

But he still forced a smile. "It’s alright, I understand. You’re still mad at your father."

Qiu Che: "I’m not."

His face froze.

Qiu Che raised her head and said lightly, "Don’t flatter yourself. I am gambling, but not out of spite."

She was betting on herself. That Qiu Chudong’s beloved son would never surpass her, never match up to this daughter he had always dismissed.

Qiu Chudong licked his lips, both angry and speechless.

He took several deep breaths and said, "Must you make everyone miserable just to feel satisfied?"

Qiu Che didn’t flinch. "If you'd stayed in your place, I’d be living peacefully in the Princess’s residence right now and I would naturally not care about you... You should ask yourself, who is it that doesn't want others to feel comfortable?"

Qiu Chudong said, “Good… good, very good! I really did raise a wonderful daughter! Since that’s how it is, don’t blame me for abandoning all sentiment from now on!”

Qiu Che sneered. “Your sentiment? I don’t need it.”

Qiu Chudong was so furious his nose almost twisted from rage. He turned on his heel and stormed off, his face dark with anger, even taking the tray with the earrings along with him.

The household servant trailing behind him could barely keep up with his pace.

Yu Ming personally escorted them to the door. Only after confirming they had truly left did she return to report.

Madam Wang said anxiously, “You were so harsh with him today… I’m afraid your father might hold this against you.”

Yang Qiu was right, Qiu Che was capable in all things, except she refused to leave herself a way out.

Seated at the head of the room, Qiu Che took a sip of tea to moisten her throat and said coolly, “He’s been holding a grudge for a long time now. This doesn’t make any difference. Mother, you don’t honestly believe he’s having second thoughts and wants to invite you back, do you?”

Wang hesitated. “Isn’t that the case?”

“He let you stay at the Princess’s Residence for so long without the slightest reaction. Clearly, he doesn’t care where you live.”

“And now that he’s come here, acting all conciliatory, it can only mean one thing…”

She trailed off mid-sentence.

Wang looked puzzled. “Mean what?”

After a moment’s pause, Qiu Che gave a vague reply. “He’s driven by self-interest.”

Wang only half understood. Seeing that her daughter clearly didn’t want to elaborate, she held back her questions despite her concern.

Qiu Che said, “If he ever comes again, no matter the reason, there’s no need to see him.”

Wang nodded immediately.

Qiu Che left the main hall and walked toward the study along the path she had come, though her steps slowed.

What she hadn’t said in front of Wang was that Qiu Chudong’s sudden attempt at reconciliation, trying to bring Wang back, was a move to seize upon Qiu Che’s soft spot.

He must have caught wind of something, something that made him desperate to reassert control over her.

And just one day ago, Qiu Che had completed the dossier on the Qiu family’s case of filicide.

According to procedure, it would still take about three days before it reached the emperor.

Qiu Che had compiled the dossier herself without involving anyone else. Other than Li Qingwu and Yu Ming, no one knew what she was investigating.

If Qiu Chudong was trying to regain leverage over her to stop this case from moving forward, where had he gotten the information?

Clearly, his intel wasn’t all that accurate, or he wouldn’t have tried to smooth things over with honeyed words today. He would’ve burst in, furious and panicked, accusing her of being an unfilial daughter.

…Or perhaps, someone deliberately fed him incomplete information.

She couldn’t tell whether his visit had been orchestrated by someone behind the scenes, or if Qiu Chudong had acted impulsively.

Qiu Che leaned toward the latter.

But that didn’t explain how, without her continuous supply of stipends to the Qiu residence, they still managed to produce two pairs of gold earrings.

Her mind drifted back to the brief glance she had caught, the symbol she saw at the base of those earrings made her pause.

She changed direction and headed for the master bedroom.

Li Qingwu was checking account ledgers, a book in one hand and a brush in the other.

When she saw Qiu Che enter, she immediately set the work aside and asked, “He’s gone?”

Qiu Che gave a faint “mm” and walked straight to the desk, only then remembering there weren’t extra writing tools in this room.

She extended her hand. “Give me the brush.”

Though unsure why, Li Qingwu handed it over at once.

Qiu Che grabbed a scrap of paper and swiftly sketched a symbol in bold, confident strokes.

She pushed the drawing in front of Li Qingwu. “Do you recognize this?”

Li Qingwu stared at it for a few moments, then shook her head honestly. “Looks familiar… probably a merchant’s mark from the capital, but I can’t recall which one.”

There were simply too many merchant logos to remember them all, it wasn’t surprising.

At most, it proved that the earrings came from a jewelry shop in the capital. Whoever was behind the scenes likely had considerable wealth.

Qiu Che thought for a moment, then told Li Qingwu everything that had just happened.

As she spoke, she drew a rough relationship chart on another piece of paper:

Prime Minister Wu → Mastermind / Wu’s ally (uncertain) (malicious, enemy) (connected to Southern Yi) (extensive intelligence network) (possibly an independent faction)

Yuan Fu → Mastermind (malicious, enemy) (deeply connected) (likely the emperor)

Spy Anan → Mastermind (unknown faction) (unknown motives) (likely the Crown Prince or Third Prince)

Qiu Chudong → Mastermind (unknown faction) (possibly wealthy) (unknown motives)

Four different masterminds, all shrouded in mystery.

What troubled Qiu Che most was that ever since her high-ranking marriage in this life, every malice directed at her seemed to have one of these shadowy figures behind it.

Looking at the clues, these four had no obvious connection. Yet deep down, she had a strange feeling, 

Could it really be just coincidence that so many people were scheming in the shadows against her?

She had reason to suspect that behind all of this… there was only one person.

Someone who bore her a deep and growing grudge.

Someone with vast connections, a wide-reaching intelligence network, highly cautious, always watching from the shadows, constantly planting misleading clues to divert her… yet had never once exposed themselves.

It was bizarre.

Far too bizarre.

The more she thought, the more her headache. She racked her memories of her past life but could recall no such person.

After a long silence, she sighed and said, “Forget it. Doesn’t matter.”

After all, she was already walking a tightrope in a storm.

Let the winds howl stronger, she could handle it.

Li Qingwu patted the back of her hand gently, offering silent comfort.

, 

The next morning, on the way back from court, a light rain began to fall.

It was the start of the twelfth lunar month, and in the northern capital, the weather was cold enough to frost. The carriage wheels slipped slightly on the wet roads.

When they reached a fork in the road in the eastern part of the capital, Qiu Che suddenly remembered something and called out for Yu Yan to stop the carriage.

The alleyway ahead was too narrow, so she got off, told Yu Yan to wait, and stepped out into the drizzle. Glancing up at the falling rain and the passing crowd, she made her way toward East Street.

She still owed Li Qingwu two sugar figurines, she hadn’t forgotten. She just always happened to pass this place and forgot every time.

The owner of the pastry shop was surnamed Xu, a fellow from Yeming City. Qiu Che wasn’t joking when she’d told Li Qingwu she knew him.

Seeing Qiu Che approach under her umbrella, Shopkeeper Xu smiled and asked what she wanted.

Qiu Che opened her mouth, then said, “…I’ll take three sugar figurines.”

“There’s plenty of styles. What shapes would the lady like?”

She thought for a moment. “A jade rabbit, Chang’e, and Sun Wukong.”

The shopkeeper grinned and quickly handed over the wrapped figurines.

Qiu Che was still reaching into her sleeve for coins when she heard the rhythmic clatter of footsteps rapidly approaching.

Instantly alert, she looked up to see townsfolk around her crying out and scattering. A squad of Imperial Guard in flying fish uniforms surrounded her in an instant.

The leader sat atop a tall horse, his expression complicated, it was an old acquaintance.

“Lord Qiu,”

Liu Buxiu said, “…long time no see.”

Qiu Che’s hand paused for only a second before she calmly retrieved three copper coins and set them neatly on the counter with a clink.

She turned to Liu Buxiu. “Lord Liu, what’s the meaning of this? Such a dramatic display.”

“By imperial order, we’re here to escort you to the palace,” Liu Buxiu dismounted, then hesitated before lowering his voice with a barely audible sigh. “Someone has accused you before the emperor of seducing men and bullying women, causing a respectable lady to miscarry. Her mother died of grief, and the girl nearly took her own life…”

“There is widespread outrage among the court officials.”

He stepped aside slightly and said sternly: “Lord Qiu, please come with us.”