Wife Doting Addiction：My Abducted Tsundere Husband

Chapter 82: Learning to Read

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Had she been found out so quickly?

After a frantic moment of panic, Su Jiu quickly calmed back down. Since things had already progressed this far, then there was no reason to hide anymore. She lifted her head and curled her lips up in a chilly smile.

“That’s right. I am not Su Yuejiu!”

“What I want to know now is: who are you?” he said slowly.

“I have nothing to say!”

Su Jiu laughed and darted out from underneath him. She leaped up and ran for the door. With her identity exposed, there would be no staying at Ji Manor. She had to leave quickly.

Ji Yuxian suddenly turned around and shouted, “Stop!” He brushed off his sleeves and said coldly, “I know that your martial arts skills are strong, but Ji Manor is not the kind of place where you can come and go as you please! Even if you escape, can that servant girl of yours and Nanny fly away like you?”

Su Jiu’s footsteps halted abruptly. She turned back and asked coldly, “What do you want?”

A shallow smile widened on Ji Yuxian’s delicate, seductive face. He slowly walked over to the low couch and sat down, leaning back lazily. He held a cup of tea and drank it slowly, saying calmly, “Come here!”

Su Jiu’s eyes were cold and clear. She gritted her teeth and took two steps forward. Ji Yuxian’s phoenix-like eyes rose and swept over her bright face, which wore a cold expression. He said calmly, “Tell me. Who are you, exactly?”

Su Jiu snorted coldly and turned away wordlessly.

Ji Yuxian frowned. “It’s fine if you don’t tell me. I will go get someone to detain that nanny of yours. We can just give it a try. How many rounds of torture will she endure before she sells you out?”

Anger flashed in Su Jiu’s eyes. Like a leopard, she leaped onto the low couch and curled her fingers into claws around his throat. She demanded coldly, “Why don’t I just kill you now?”

He didn’t seem the least bit flustered. He raised a hand to place a wayward hair back behind Su Jiu’s ear, smiling. “Kill me? Then all of your people will be pursued and hunted down like dogs. They’ll be wanted by the government. From now on, they’ll be on the run no matter where they go. They’ll be unwanted strays in every last corner of the Liang Empire!”

“You.” Su Jiu’s fingers tightened. “I never hurt you, and I have not taken even the tiniest thing from your Ji Manor. All I did was pretend to be the Su family’s daughter for a moment. Why would you need to kill every last one of us?”

“I just want to know who you are.”

Ji Yuxian looked straight at her. Su Jiu frowned sternly and locked eyes with him for a moment. She let go of him, slowly, then sat down on the couch cross-legged. She nodded slightly.

“Fine, I will tell you who I am.”

Ji Yuxian rubbed his throat, which was turning purple where she’d grabbed him. He coughed a bit and then lifted his tea to drink a little. “Go on!”

Su Jiu took a deep breath. “We are mountain bandits from the base of Yuhu Mountain!”

“Ahem!” Ji Yuxian suddenly choked, coughed a few times, then lifted his head to look at Su Jiu in shock.

He had guessed that she was not truly Miss Su, thinking that she was a temporary replacement. He would never have thought that she was a mountain bandit. He’d married a hill bandit! The truth would have caught anyone off guard! Su Jiu raised an eyebrow at him. What about mountain bandits? Was that such a big surprise?

Ji Yuxian got his handkerchief out and wiped the tea from the corner of his lips. He smiled and said, “So, you are bandits. You killed the real Miss Su, impersonated her, and entered the capital for the marriage?”

“Right, but also wrong. I did pretend to be Miss Su and enter the capital for the marriage, but I didn’t kill her. By the time we got there, she was already dead!”

“How did she die?”

“Probably killed by other mountain bandits. The dowry was empty, and all the servants had also been killed!”

“Su Yuejiu is dead?” Ji Yuxian’s eyes deepened as if he was deep in thought about something. A long moment passed before he raised his head again and asked, “They say that there are many hill bandits at the base of Yuhu Mountain. Which gang do you and your people belong to?”

Since she had already told him that she was a bandit, Su Jiu no longer hid the rest from him. “We are the Dragon Conqueror Gang.”

“Who is your chief? That scholarly-looking one?”

Su Jiu was a bit surprised. Qiao An and the others had only been at Ji Manor for a few days before leaving for the restaurant. She didn’t realize that Ji Yuxian had noticed them.

“I am the chief!” Su Jiu answered honestly.

Ji Yuxian was taken aback again, then laughed. “The chief of the mountain bandit group turns out to be a woman. Intriguing!”

He frowned. His eyes swept over Su Jiu’s body, then he asked, “You aren’t a man in disguise, are you?”

Su Jiu coughed a little. “No!”

Ji Yuxian let out a sigh of relief. It was bad enough that he had married a bandit, but if that bandit also turned out to be a man, then Ji Manor would be the laughingstock of the entire Liang Empire.

“Does the Su family know that you’re a fake?”

Miss Su was dead, so it was possible that the Su family would cooperate with bandits and deceive Ji Manor to make the marriage go through. It wasn’t an impossible scenario!

“They don’t know!” Su Jiu said frankly.

“They don’t know?” Ji Yuxian grew even more curious. “How did you hide it from them?”

As far as he recalled, during the ten days before the wedding, the Su family had been in Shengjing City. As her father and mother, they must have seen their daughter. How did they not recognize their own daughter? Su Jiu had pretended to be sick when they were here. She briefly explained how she’d gotten away with it.

Ji Yuxian shook his head, laughing. No wonder he’d had to help delay when she was supposed to return home. It was because of this. The Su family was determined to cling onto Ju Manor. In the end, their daughter was killed, and a bandit married into the family. If the imperial court one day learned the truth, who knew how they would feel? However, now, there was finally an explanation for all of Miss Su’s strange behavior.

Ji Yuxian took another small sip of tea. His voice became indifferent. “So, tell me, you impersonated Miss Su and married into Ji Manor. What did you want to do?”

He’d finally reached the real question! Su Jiu straightened her back and without evasion, told him straightforwardly, “We are bandits. Of course, we wanted to raid Ji Manor!”

Ji Yuxian nodded. “Very good. I like that you are so honest. So, when did you plan your hit?”

“We didn’t. On the second day after the marriage, we changed our minds. We’re not going to do anything for now!”

“Let me guess. After you entered Ji Manor, you discovered that Ji Manor’s defenses and power were much stronger than you’d anticipated, and raiding it wouldn’t be as easy as you’d thought. Even if you got what you wanted, you’d be hunted down and killed. So, you changed your strategy. You’d use Ji Manor and the dowry from the Su family to establish a base in Shengjing City, and, once you had a place in Shengjing City where you were good on your feet, you would leave Ji Manor. Is that right?”

No wonder that ‘Master Su Jiu’ had suddenly appeared in Shengjing City.

A flash of surprise flickered through Su Jiu’s vibrant eyes. She nodded slightly and said, “Yes, you guessed everything right!”

“What is your real name?”

“Su Jiu!”

“Su Jiu?” Ji Yuxian muttered lowly, then smiled. Su Yuejiu. Su Jiu. What a coincidence!

“Although we impersonated Miss Su, after we entered the manor, we didn’t touch anything of the Ji family’s. So, can we leave now?” Su Jiu asked, frowning.

“Everyone in Shengjing City knows that you are the Young Madame of the Ji family. Where would you go? Leave Shengjing City? Would you go back to Yuhu Mountain and continue your life as a bandit?”

“That’s not something you need to worry about, Young Master Ji. We’ll figure out where to go!” After saying this, Su Jiu stood up from the couch, turning to leave.

“Did I say you could go?” he suddenly said.

Su Jiu turned around. “What else do you want, Young Master Ji?”

“I want you to stay and continue to be the Young Madame of the Ji family!” His eyes were nearly closed, his face handsome and indifferent. His tone was gentle and light.

Su Jiu was taken aback. “Why?”

He knew that she was a phony. Why would he want to her stay with the Ji family?

“There’s no why. You continue being the Young Madame. I will even help you grow your business, so that you also have a place in Shengjing City as ‘Master Su Jiu.'” Ji Yuxian looked at her, smiling.

Su Jiu was becoming even more confused. “Why would you want to do that? Do you want me to help you with something?”

Between people, there were no relationships without favors. She didn’t trust that a shrewd businessman like Ji Yuxian would be so kind for no reason.

“This is where I need you. As the Young Madame of Ji Manor,” he said.

Su Jiu frowned as she looked at him. She didn’t understand what this man wanted. She smiled coldly and said, “Aren’t you afraid that I really will raid Ji Manor one day?”

He smiled, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “If I were afraid, I would take you in and send you off to the authorities today. Since I’m able to keep you here, then, obviously, I won’t be letting anything like that happen.”

The wind was picking up outside. The trees beyond the window swayed, leaving mottled shadows flickering on Su Jiu’s small face. With a dignified expression, she looked down as she thought for a moment. Then, she raised her head and said, “Alright. Then, I will thank you, Young Master Ji, for your mercy. Where you need me, I am bound to make myself useful to you!”

“Don’t make promises too quickly!” Ji Yuxian chuckled as he stood up and took two steps forward. He leaned over to look at Su Jiu, his eyes twinkling, “Being the Young Madame of Ji Manor is not that easy. At the very least, it won’t be the same comfort and contentment that you’ve so far been enjoying.”

Su Jiu looked up at him. “What do I need to do?”

“As the Ji family’s mistress, how can you be illiterate? Starting tomorrow, come to my study every morning. I will teach you how to read!”

Su Jiu’s big eyes were wide. “Reading?”

“That’s right. Reading! Unless you want to forever remain a totally illiterate, savage, barbarian hill bandit? If you don’t want to gain a foothold in Shengjing City, then there’s no need for you to learn to read!”

Su Jiu bit her lip, and an unyielding stubbornness filled her eyes. She nodded slowly and relented, “Then, I’ll learn to read!”

“Good. Go back and get yourself ready, my dear. Tomorrow morning, close to eight, come to the study. I will be your teacher!” Ji Yuxian said calmly and turned around. He went to the bookcase and began to sort through the books slowly.

Su Jiu left the study. All the way back to Perched Phoenix Pavilion, she was in a daze.

Nanny was about to go out, completely flustered. She nearly crashed into Su Jiu. At the sight of her, she immediately let out a sigh of relief, saying breathlessly, “I left Second Young Madame’s place to go to the Thousand Plum Garden, but everyone had already left. And when I came back, Mrs. Fan said that you’d never come back and that the Eldest Young Master had called you away. I was just about to go take a look. Nothing happened, right?”

Hearing that Ji Yuxian had called Su Jiu directly into the study from the Thousand Plum Garden, she thought that Su Jiu must have let something slip, or that she’d gone and hit someone again. She was so panicked that she was about to go find out more news.

Su Jiu’s small face was solemn. “Nanny, our identities have been found out!”

“What?” Nanny cried in surprise, then quickly closed her mouth and looked all around. In a lowered voice, she said, “What happened? Eldest Young Master knows that you’re impersonating Miss Su?”

Su Jiu nodded. “Yes, he knows everything!”

Nanny’s face paled, and she stumbled back a few steps. Her expression full of urgency, she said, “Then let’s hurry and run away! I’ll go tell Master Huan and Master An!” She turned and began to hurry away.

“Nanny! Not yet!” Su Jiu grabbed Nanny’s arm and said quietly, “Ji Yuxian didn’t say that he was going to kick us out!”

“Huh?” Nanny was startled and looked at her blankly. “What is going on?”

“Let’s go back and talk about it!”

“Yes, yes!”

Nanny hurriedly followed behind Su Jiu. The two of them went back toward the bedroom. They saw Mrs. Fan come up from the corridor who, at the sight of Su Jiu, picked up her pace to greet her.

“Hello, Young Madame!”

“Mm!” Su Jiu nodded and opened the door to go inside. She turned her head to see that Mrs. Fan was following them. “What is it?”

“No, nothing!” Mrs. Fan’s expression was full of flattery. “I’m going to serve you tea!”

“No need. I have something to discuss with Nanny. Leave!”

“Yes!” Mrs. Fan smiled in embarrassment and glanced at Nanny. She bowed out of the room.

With the doors closed, Mrs. Fan’s small eyes twinkled as she pressed against the door to eavesdrop, but all she heard was a cold voice from behind her.

“What are you doing?”

Mrs. Fan did a double-take, frightened. She turned her head to see Su Jiu’s devoted servant girl, Chang Huan. With a guilty smile, she said, “I was just about to ask if the Young Madame wanted to have a snack. Since Miss Chang Huan is here, I will take my leave!”

She skulked away. Chang Huan watched her retreating figure and snorted.

In the room, Su Jiu told Nanny everything that she and Ji Yuxian had talked about. For a long while, Nanny was stumped and couldn’t say a word. Their identities had been exposed, and Ji Yuxian now knew that Su Jiu was a mountain bandit pretending to be Miss Su. However, he didn’t even report them to the authorities, nor did he kick them out. He even wanted her to stay on as the Young Madame of Ji Manor. What was going on?

Su Jiu drank a bit of cold tea. With a small smile, she said, “Ji Yuxian said that starting tomorrow, he’ll teach me how to read. What on earth does he want?”

Nanny shook her head. “I can’t fathom a guess. But since Eldest Young Master is keeping you around, then I don’t think he will hurt you. Ji Manor is very wealthy, and we have nothing at all. What would he gain out of harming us, anyway?”

Su Jiu sat cross-legged on the chair, nibbling on her fingers. She nodded and said, “That’s right. Now that you mention it, what would he hurt us for?”

As she said this, everything suddenly clicked into place, and the somberness disappeared from her face. She raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Since this is the case, then I’ll just keep on as the Ji family’s Young Madame. I don’t believe that he can eat me up!”

There wasn’t anyone in the world who could swallow a b*tch like her!

“Yes!” Nanny smiled. “Maybe this is a good thing. At least we won’t have to struggle so hard to find ways to hide your identity!”

All along, she had worried most about Su Jiu’s words and behaviors being unladylike—and being found out by the Ji family. Now, she wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore!

Su Jiu’s bright eyes curved into crescent moons. “That’s right!”

Chang Huan had come in and heard that their identities had been exposed, which had also given him a shock. Seeing that Su Jiu was unhurt calmed him back down. His responsibility was to protect Su Jiu, to be wherever she was. If they went back to continue their lives as bandits, that would be fine. And if they stayed here for her to be Ji Manor’s Young Madame, that would be fine, too, so long as it didn’t interfere with him protecting Su Jiu!

Since she had not gone out for the past few days, Su Jiu was getting used to being lazy. The next day, she slept in until nine. By the time she washed up, finished breakfast, and got to the study, it was already nearly noon.

The guard called Jing Feng was standing at the door. Seeing Su Jiu approach, he bowed and fell back a step. “Hello, Young Madame!”

Su Jiu sized him up. “Your breathing is long and even. Your martial arts must be strong!”

Jing Feng’s eyes flashed, and he dipped his head a bit farther down. “Thank you for the praise, Young Madame!”

Su Jiu smiled and pushed the door open to enter the study.

“Hello!”

Su Jiu went inside and sat down on the couch, greeting Ji Yuxian, who was behind the bookcase. No longer needing to hide and pretend that she was Miss Su, Su Jiu suddenly felt at ease and relaxed. Even the way she sat carried some of her old roughness.

Ji Yuxian sat behind the large cedar table, lifting his eyes to glance at Su Jiu. His lips hooked into a smile, and he said, “Yesterday, what time did I tell you to come for your reading lesson?”

Su Jiu rolled her big eyes. “Eight.”

“What time is it now?”

Su Jiu’s voice got gradually quieter. “It’s noon.”

“When a student is late to the classroom, do you know what the punishment is?” He leaned back in his seat with a smile. Somehow, the smile had a blood-curdling edge to it.

“What’s the punishment?”

“Standing or hitting the fingers with a ruler!”

“What?! I’m not even your student!” Su Jiu wasn’t going to accept that.

“Starting today, in this study, whatever I say, that’s what you’re going to do! You are four hours late. Go stand at that wall!” His voice was warm.

“Tch! Why should I listen to you?” Su Jiu laughed and turned to leave.

“Yu Lao!” Behind her, Ji Yuxian suddenly called out an order, “Go get Young Madame’s Nanny, and tie her up to stand in the snow for four hours, taking the punishment on Young Madame’s behalf!”

“You dare!” Su Jiu whipped back around.

“It’ll be you standing here, or your Nanny standing in the snow. You choose!” He smiled like a fox.

Su Jiu gritted her pearly teeth, glaring at the hateful man’s face. She wanted to send a fist right at it. After a long moment, she sneered and said, “Fine. It’s just standing. When I was learning martial arts, I had to stay in the horse stance for a day and a night. Who’s afraid of four measly hours?”

She sent him another hateful glare, then strode over to the wall to stand. Ji Yuxian’s eyes, like phoenixes in flight, carried a slight smile. He lowered his head to continue reading his book.

Time passed slowly. Su Jiu stood straight as a pencil, motionless, as if she were in a meditative state. Ji Yuxian slowly turned each page of his book as he read. The study was silent. There was only the faint smell of the spiraling smoke curling up from the burning incense and the rustling of the hourglass sand.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Yu Lao pushed the door open and entered. His eyes fell upon Su Jiu, and he was slightly taken aback.

He quickly gathered himself and bowed, “Hello, Young Madame!”

Su Jiu stood by the wall, her expression stern. She nodded.

Yu Lao turned to face Ji Yuxian, “Eldest Young Master, lunch is ready. Shall we set it out for you now?”

“It’s cold. I don’t want to go outside. Have them set up the food here in the study!” Ji Yuxian said carelessly, rummaging through the books.

“Yes!” Yu Lao answered and left.

Soon, servants came in carrying a round wooden table to set up in the spacious study. Delicacies and fine foods were brought in, one by one. At first, everyone was amazed to see Su Jiu. They greeted her, then focused on their work. No one stared in her direction. Cloud Pavilion’s servants had all been strictly trained. They worked with diligence and with the utmost care. They were first-class servants.

Su Jiu had been focusing without any wandering thoughts, but when she smelled the meat, she immediately opened her eyes. She watched as hot soups and dishes were put on the table right in front of her eyes. After all the dishes had been brought in, several servant girls stood around respectfully waiting for Ji Yuxian to sit. Jin Mi was the last to enter. She was carrying the water basin. When she saw Su Jiu, she was startled, and astonishment flashed in her eyes. She pretended that she hadn’t seen her and put down the water basin.

Wetting a cloth for Ji Yuxian, she laughed charmingly and said, “Young Master, I cooked plum blossoms in the water. Doesn’t it smell nice?”

Ji Yuxian took the cloth and wiped his hands, smiling. “It does have the scent of plum blossom!”

“If you like it, Young Master, then I will pick plum blossoms for this water every day!” Jin Mi’s charming face displayed an adorable smile. She looked at Ji Yuxian ardently.

Su Jiu rolled her eyes at Ji Yuxian. What a harlot!

Ji Yuxian sat down at the table and said quietly, “You may all leave!”

Jin Mi immediately told the other servant girls, “All of you may leave. I will wait on Young Master!”

“You can go too!” Ji Yuxian said again.

Jin Mi’s expression stiffened. She said with a pout, “I still have to wait on you and serve your meal!”

“Dismissed!” His voice was warm but absolute and stern.

Jin Mi paled, and she did not dare to say more. She took the others and left the room. Once outside the study, Jin Mi’s expression immediately became cold. She went straight to the flower room, took two steps, then whipped back around. Her gaze swept over the four servant girls behind her before finally falling upon the one in a lilac-colored dress. She frowned and said, “Mo Yu, come here!”

The young woman called Mo Yu stepped forward, trembling. In a quiet voice, she said, “Miss Jin Mi, do you have instructions for me?”

Jin Mi bent over and sniffed her body, and her eyes suddenly become sharp. “You use the same cosmetic powder as Lady Lan? You’re trying to seduce Eldest Young Master?”

Mo Yu trembled, falling to her knees on the ground. “I did not!”

“You dare to argue with me?” Jin Mi slapped her across the face, saying hatefully, “This powder can only be made from magnolia dregs. One box of it costs ten taels of silver. Where did you get so much money?”

A glaring handprint was forming on Mo Yu’s beautiful face. Her eyes were brimming with tears. She said, sobbing, “Sister Jin, you’re misunderstanding me. Yesterday, when Lady Lan came to the manor, I served her tea. I offhandedly remarked that her powder smelled nice, and she gifted me half a box.”

“Really?” Jin Mi’s eyes were treacherous.

“I would not dare to deceive you, sister!”

“Even if Lady Lan gave it to you, you still deserve to be hit! You dared to receive a gift from Lady Lan without knowing who’s higher or lower!”

“Yes, yes. I know I was wrong. I won’t do it again!”

“Get up!” Ji Mi glanced at her and said coldly, “Go back and treat your face with cold water. If it doesn’t stop the swelling, then you are not to appear before the Young Master for the next two days!”

“Yes, I understand!”

The other three stood to the side, their heads down. They didn’t dare to disrupt. When they saw Jin Mi walk away, they immediately, carefully, followed behind her.

In the study, Ji Yuxian ate leisurely. Su Jiu watched helplessly, drooling.

“Hey, don’t forget about me!”

Seeing that he didn’t even give her a look, Su Jiu finally couldn’t help but speak up.

“I’m not called ‘hey’!” He raised his head and threw her a glance. Though his gaze was shallow, it carried a substantial charm.

“Eldest Young Master Ji!” Su Jiu said again.

This time, he didn’t even raise his head.

“Ji Yuxian!” Su Jiu shouted again.

He still ignored her! Seeing that he was almost halfway done with his meal while Su Jiu’s stomach was grumbling with hunger, she finally gave in. In a voice as small as a mosquito’s, she said, “Husband.”

“Too quiet. I can’t hear you!” He gracefully pulled out a fish bone.

Su Jiu clenched her teeth and shouted, “Husband!”

Ji Yuxian’s lips immediately opened in a smile as fresh as a spring breeze. His voice became gentler. “Are you hungry, my dear?”

Nonsense!

“It’s fine to stand for punishment, but you can’t starve me. Even prisoners of war aren’t treated so inhumanely!” Su Jiu coldly snorted.

“That’s right, my dear! I never said that you couldn’t eat. It was you who just stood there with such focus, not willing to come over here.” Ji Yuxian smiled brightly.

Su Jiu clenched her teeth so hard they nearly broke. She wanted so badly to send a foot flying into his face. He truly had the face of a fairy and the heart of a devil! Su Jiu immediately ran over, her eyes green with hunger. She hadn’t even settled into her seat properly when she stretched out her hand to grab a chicken drumstick.

Suddenly, he reached over with his chopsticks and smacked them on Su Jiu’s hand. “Remember, you are the Young Madame of the Ji family, not a mountain bandit. Sit properly, and don’t be rude!”

Su Jiu bit her lip, glaring at him. She kneaded her sore hand where it had been hit. She bowed her head, took a deep breath, and settled herself properly in her seat. Then, she snatched a piece of braised pork and stuffed it in her mouth.

He looked over at her and frowned a little. Su Jiu burned her tongue, and while she was huffing and blowing at it, she said carelessly, “I’m just too hungry. Can’t I learn the rules tomorrow?”

Ji Yuxian smiled lightly. “Fine. Remember that you said that!”

Su Jiu raised an eyebrow, lifted her bowl higher, then devoured the food like a wolf or a tiger.

Ji Yuxian watched her eat so happily and smiled with a raised eyebrow. “Was it hard to eat your fill when you were in the Dragon Conqueror Gang?”

Su Jiu nodded heavily. “Yes. In the winter, after it snowed on the mountain, there wasn’t any food at all. At most, I would have half a piece of corn over three days.”

Ji Yuxian frowned. “Aren’t you bandits? Why were you so poorly off?”

Su Jiu put a grain of rice into her mouth, then raised her chin proudly. “I am a righteous bandit who steals from the rich and gives to the poor. All of the money we took went to the suffering poor!”

Ji Yuxian’s lips curved in disdain. “No wonder the group that follows you is so small! What’s a ‘righteous’ bandit? You’re either righteous or a bandit. You have to choose one specialty or the other. Otherwise, you’ll end up miserable and down and out, like you are now!”

Su Jiu didn’t have it. “Are you trying to say that it’s wrong to give money to poor people?”

Ji Yuxian raised an eyebrow. “Did those people remember your goodness later on?”

Su Jiu was taken aback. She didn’t speak, chewing on her chopsticks. Whenever she brought money to the poor, they were indeed full of gratitude at the moment. But later, no one ever brought it up. When their small group had been starving to death, they’d gone to the families that they’d previously helped to borrow a bit of food, but those people had acted like they were bandits. They’d defended themselves and hidden away.

Su Jiu snorted, “I didn’t do it for their gratitude!”

“Stubborn!” Ji Yuxian’s lips smoothed up to a sneer, “You failed even at being a bandit!”

Su Jiu raised her head, her bright eyes glaring at Ji Yuxian. She wanted to refute him, but for a long time, she couldn’t find an argument. He was right. She was a bandit, but she wasn’t a successful one! Even Cao Datou—although he’d betrayed her, and his character was contemptuous—had brought glory to the Eight Dragons Gang. All his followers spoke highly of him. She, on the other hand, had brought the Dragon Conqueror Gang to near ruin. Almost all of its members were gone, while everyone who was left starved.

“What is it? You’re depressed now after I said just a few things?” Ji Yuxian smiled.

“Says who? Even though the Dragon Conqueror Gang is down and out, our conscience is clear!” Su Jiu straightened her neck stubbornly.

“Mm!” Ji Yuxian nodded in agreement, not riling her up further. He filled up a bowl of soup and put it in front of her, smiling. “My dear, even though you were not a successful bandit, I do trust that you will become an extremely impressive and successful mistress of Ji Manor!”

Su Jiu raised her bowl of soup. “Happy to work with you. I’ll cheers to that!”

Ji Yuxian watched her with bright and clear eyes, his lips curling up in another smile. His eyes glittered. Su Jiu was terribly hungry. She ate two bowls of rice, finishing the second very slowly. After eating, Ji Yuxian had already gone behind his desk to balance some financial ledgers. He looked up to see Su Jiu still counting the grains of rice, one by one.

“I have to go out and attend to business later. We’ll end today’s punishment here, then!” He said quietly.

Su Jiu’s face lit up with joy. She raised her head and said, “I don’t have to go stand anymore?”

“Mm!” His tone was clear and melodious.

Su Jiu’s eyebrows shot up on her fine little face. In a few moments, she shoveled down her last bits of rice, and then stood up and said quickly, “Then, I’m going to leave now!”

Ji Yuxian put down the documents in his hand, looked up, and called to her, “Su Jiu!”

“Oh?” The smile on Su Jiu’s face was not gone yet. She turned. In the sunlight, her face was shining.

“We do not have a lot of time left. Tomorrow at eight, I’ll be here waiting for you!” He looked at her. “Of course, you can continue to be late, but tomorrow it may not be as simple a punishment as standing!”

Su Jiu’s eyes darkened, and she nodded lightly. “I understand!”

She said this and then sprang out. She leaped out of Cloud Pavilion two, three steps at a time, like a caged bird flying free and instantly finding its freedom. Through the half-open wooden window, Ji Yuxian watched her shadow grow gradually more distant and frowned a bit. It seemed like he’d taken on a big project. Taking this stubborn rock and turning it into gold or jade would take a lot of effort. But it was going to be interesting!

Su Jiu returned to Perched Phoenix Pavilion. Chang Huan was sitting lazily on the wooden railing in the corridor. His hand was holding a bare willow branch, and in his boredom, he was knocking it around to fiddle with the plum flowers. Seeing Su Jiu return, his eyes suddenly lit up. He flew over and appeared in front of Su Jiu in the blink of an eye. With a toothy grin, he said, “Boss, why are you so late?”

Naturally, an embarrassing thing like being punished with standing was not something Su Jiu was going to bring up, so with a neutral expression, she said, “Ji Yuxian is hellbent on teaching me to read. He was crying and begging me to read, so I took pity on him and stayed over for a while!”

“Boss, you are too kind!” Chang Huang smiled, his two hands on her shoulders kneading gently, “Is it tiring, learning to read?”

“It’s alright. Where’s Nanny?” Su Jiu asked as she walked toward the flower room.

“Nanny said that you’ve been losing weight, so she’s in the kitchen right now making chicken soup for you,” Chang Huan said.

“What’s with drinking soup? Why not just eat the meat directly?” Su Jiu laughed.

Nanny’s chicken soup cooked for four hours. When it came time for supper, the soup was richly colored and powerfully fragrant. First, Nanny ladled out a bowl for Su Jiu.

“I added ginseng. In such cold weather, you have to strengthen the body. Drink up while it’s hot!”

Su Jiu put it up to her nose for a whiff and immediately frowned. “What is this smell?”

Nanny took a spoon and smelled it, smiling. “There’s no smell! Don’t be picky!”

Su Jiu held up the bowl, still frowning. Just then, Mrs. Fan ran into the dining room, greeted Su Jiu, and said, “Nanny, the down clothing mill sent over the winter satins today. Young Madame’s have already been picked out. Please help the servants take a look and see how the rest should be distributed.”

Nanny wiped her hands on her apron and pulled down the sleeves that had been rolled up. “Alright. I’ll follow you there now!”

Nanny followed Mrs. Fan outside. But before she left, she turned her head and reminded Su Jiu, “Young Miss, you must finish that chicken soup, even if you have to think of it as not wasting my entire day’s work!”

Su Jiu smiled happily. “I know!”

Once Nanny was out the door, Su Jiu immediately gave the bowl to Chang Huan and said, “You drink it!”

Chang Huan’s eyes widened. “Why do I need to drink it!”

“It’s an order! Hurry up and drink it!” Su Jiu said.

Chang Huan bit his red lips, looking wistfully at Su Jiu. Completely reluctantly, he pinched his nose and downed half of the bowl. The tragic scene made Su Jiu laugh. When Nanny came back, she saw that the chicken soup had been finished, and she nodded with satisfaction.

At night, Nanny prepared Su Jiu’s bed. She had a few words for her before going to sleep. Chang Huan, as a devoted servant girl from the maiden’s family, slept in the outer room. The winter night was quiet, and the two of them fell asleep quickly.

Just past midnight, Chang Huan, who was sleeping on the low couch, suddenly frowned and wrinkled his brow. He clutched his stomach in pain, cold sweat dripped down his forehead, and his body twisted continuously. With a thump, he fell off the low couch.

Su Jiu quickly woke in surprise, and called out, “Chang Huan!”

“Mm…”

At the muffled sound of pain that was coming from the outer room, Su Jiu pulled aside the canopy and got out of bed. Without putting her shoes on, she rushed out of the inner chamber with bare feet. Through the dimness of the corner, she could only see Chang Huan in his white clothes, rolling on the ground. His handsome features were clenched, and he was holding his stomach while he rolled on the ground.

Su Jiu knelt beside him, cradling Chang Huan. She shook Chang Huan’s shoulder urgently.

“Chang Huan, Chang Huan, what’s wrong?” Chang Huan slowly became more alert, and tightly clutched at Su Jiu’s clothes. “Boss, I hurt a lot!”

“Where does it hurt?” Su Jiu’s voice trembled slightly.

Chang Huan couldn’t get any more words out. He just arched out of Su Jiu’s arms.

“Wait here!”

Su Jiu hurriedly put Chang Huan down on the ground. Without even putting on a jacket, she stood up and ran out the door.

“Nanny, Nanny!” Su Jiu shouted while running.

Nanny threw on her clothes as she ran outside, asking in alarm, “Young Miss, what is it?”

“Chang Huan is sick! I’m going to get the manor physician. Please, go watch him in my room!” Su Jiu commanded rapidly.

“Ah? Master Huan is sick?” Nanny said in alarm. Her eyes fell on Su Jiu. Immediately, urgently, she said, “Young Miss, how can you wear so little? You don’t even have shoes on! It’s so cold that the ground is frozen. You cannot catch a cold like this. You go back and watch Master Huan. I will go find the manor physician!”

“No! I will run faster; you hurry back to watch Chang Huan!” Su Jiu said this and flew out of Perched Phoenix Pavilion.

Watching her disappearing shadow, Nanny frowned, then hurried anxiously back. In the bedroom, Chang Huan was rolling around on the ground in pain. Nanny was panicked and anxious.

“Master Huan, what’s wrong?”

“Boss, bo-boss…” Chang Huan’s lips were deathly pale. His face was abnormally red, and his eyes were wide open. He clutched at his clothes below his abdomen and kept mumbling to himself.

Seeing Chang Huan like this, Nanny was panicked and at a loss. She moved the table aside so that he wouldn’t hit himself on it. She watched over him as she kept looking toward the door, hoping that the manor physician would come in soon.

Mrs. Fan, hearing the noise, also got out of bed and came over for a look. She pushed the door aside and was alarmed at the scene before here.

“What is going on here?”

“I don’t know. Chang Huan just suddenly was like this!” Nanny was anxious.

Mrs. Fan didn’t dare to come closer; she just stood by the partition watching. “It looks like Chang Huan is seriously ill! Ah? Why is Miss Chang Huan’s chest so flat?”

Nanny was surprised, and hurriedly moved to block Chang Huan behind her. She pulled a quilt over and said, “Chang Huan is still young, and probably still developing! Now’s not the time for that kind of talk. Can you please go heat some water?”

Mrs. Fan craned her neck to steal a few more glances, then nodded embarrassedly. “Alright, I’m on my way!” As she left, she looked back for another glimpse. As it was dim and Nanny was in the way, she couldn’t see anything, so she left.

Su Jiu found the night guard’s family servant. He brought her to the front of the manor to find the physician. She pushed the door open, entered, and pulled up the manor physician, who was deep in sleep, saying, “Hurry, come with me!”

The old man, white-haired and past his fifties, was frightened. Blowing his beard, he said, “You! Who are you? You dare come into Ji Manor to rob me?”

The family servant hurried forward and explained, “Old Master Gu, this is our manor’s Young Madame. Someone has fallen ill in Perched Phoenix Pavilion. Please, go take a look!”

Old Gu opened his eyes. “Even so, let me put on some clothes!”

“It’ll be too late!”

Su Jiu grabbed a quilt, wrapped it around Old Gu’s shoulders, then hurried him out. The family servant followed behind, watching the formidable Young Madame with shocked eyes. From afar, he heard Old Gu yell, “Bring my medicine case!”

A whole line of people rushed toward Perched Phoenix Pavilion. As they passed Cloud Pavilion, Ji Yuxian, who was watching from his bedroom window, frowned. His ears perked up to listen to the movement outside. He called to the man in the inner room, “What is going on?”

“I will go find out right away!” Jin Feng’s figure flitted out to the night.

Not half a cup of tea later, he returned, reporting respectfully, “Young Master. Someone has fallen seriously ill at Perched Phoenix Pavilion. Doctor Gu is already on his way!”

Throwing the bed curtain wide open, Ji Yuxian put on a robe and went outside, his face pale. “I’m going to take a look!”

Jin Feng followed behind him. “Yes!”

Su Jiu had dragged Old Gu to her bedroom. She let go once they were there, saying urgently, “Old man, hurry up! Please, take a look!”

Old Gu was dizzy, and his breath was stuck in his chest. When he heard her say ‘old man,’ he was already about to open his mouth to yell at her, his beard puffed up in anger. “Old man? I’m a miracle doctor!”

“Yes, yes, miracle doctor. Hurry up and look at him!” Su Jiu pulled Old Gu by his arm.

Old Gu snorted and took two steps forward. Seeing Chang Huan on the floor, he frowned, and said sharply, “On the bed!”

“Yes!” Su Jiu picked up Chang Huan, still moaning in pain, and with big steps strode into the inner room. She called out an order, “Nanny, bring a light!”

“Yes!”

Nanny ran into the inner room and lit all the lights in the four corners. Su Jiu laid Chang Huan on the bed. Chang Huan was in so much pain that he had no strength left, but he held onto her clothing, unwilling to let go. His voice kept calling out quietly, “Boss…”

Su Jiu could only sit down, half-cradling Chang Huan and looking at Old Gu in alarm. Old Gu sat down and took Chang Huan’s pulse. His hands had just touched down on Chang Huan’s wrist when he looked up at Chang Huan’s hair pulled back in a girl’s hairstyle. He looked over at Su Jiu with a meaningful smile.

Su Jiu narrowed her eyes. “Doctor, please just treat the illness. Say what needs to be said and not what doesn’t. Either way, I was able to bring you here today, and I can still bring you back tomorrow!”

Old Gu snorted coldly, completely uncaring. He was about to criticize Su Jiu when his brow suddenly furrowed. His expression became serious, and he said quietly, “It’s poison!”

“Poison?” Su Jiu frowned.

“That’s right!”

“Can you cure it?”

Old Gu peered at Su Jiu and said proudly, “There is no life on this earth that I can’t save. Even if it’s an incurable poison, and the person is at death’s door, I can still pull them back!”

“Then hurry up and cure him!” Su Jiu said urgently.

“You little brat. You still have to let me see what kind of poison it is for me to cure it!”

Su Jiu, “…” You don’t even know what poison it is, and you say you can cure it?

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Old Gu stood up, looked at Chang Huan’s eyes and tongue, then put a silver needle in his wrist. He pulled it back out, and his expression became even more solemn.

Su Jiu and Nanny could not hide their anxiety. “What kind of poison is it?”

Old Gu raised his head to look at Su Jiu. “Stone Flower Powder!”

Hearing this, Su Jiu was bewildered and confused, while Nanny’s expression changed completely.