The Beauty Within the Gates
Chapter 15
Seeing someone arrive, Eldest Master Wen rose to greet him. “Third Young Master is here.” He turned and instructed a servant to prepare a seat.
Xie Shao stood still, unmoving.
“Is Third Young Master visiting the in-laws today?” Pei Yuanqiu asked Eldest Master Wen beside him. After receiving confirmation, he chuckled, “I just saw my dear nephew at the manor yesterday, didn’t expect to run into you again so soon.” He lifted an arm to smooth the wide sleeve of his robe, then turned with enthusiasm to call out to Xie Shao, “Xian Wei, come, sit with us.”
Xie Shao smiled faintly. “Uncle Pei is busy. I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“Assistant Minister Wen and I rarely find ourselves back in Fengcheng at the same time. Now that we are, we’re simply catching up on some hometown matters. What intrusion is there in that?”
One was a senior official in the Court of Judicial Review, the other an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Revenue; both held office under the same court and were naturally acquainted.
Still, Xie Shao didn’t move. He lifted the brocade scarf draped over his arm and offered an apologetic explanation, “My wife’s shawl is still with me. Another day, Uncle Pei. I’ll call on you properly then.”
Ignoring Eldest Master Wen and Young Master Wen’s attempts to persuade him to stay, Xie Shao turned and left the way he came.
Once outside the courtyard, the unruly glint in Xie Shao’s eyes faded instantly. He turned his head and spoke to Minzhang, “Send a message to the old master.”
Minzhang quickly stepped forward and came up beside him. Xie Shao leaned in and whispered, “Tell him this: The monk may run away, but the temple remains. Someone is scheming against his son.”
That day, when Pei Shaoqing mentioned that there was still a Jin Wang in Fengcheng, Xie Shao had understood that this place his father had chosen for his retirement was perhaps not the right choice after all. Even if Jin Wang was merely an adopted son, the Crown Prince in the Eastern Capital had no intention of letting him off.
Minzhang was a straightforward sort, known for his efficiency. He never delayed when something needed doing. “I’ll arrange it right away.”
When Xie Shao looked up, Minzhang had already turned and was striding swiftly toward the gate, now quite a distance away.
Xie Shao: ……
Forget it.
With Minzhang gone, he was left alone, unsure where the path ahead led. He stopped a passing maid and asked, “Which way is the Second Miss’s courtyard?”
Today, all the servants in the mansion knew guests had arrived. The maid glanced briefly at Xie Shao’s face and, guessing he must be the young master from the Xie family, promptly led him to the gate of the Second Miss’s courtyard.
After Wen Shuse married, the maids and servants assigned to her courtyard had all been reassigned elsewhere. The entrance was empty, and so was the inside.
Xie Shao stepped in quietly, scanning the area for any sign of her, when suddenly, a voice drifted over from the top of the wall.
“How did you end up marrying the Third Xie?”
Xie Shao turned his head and saw a young woman standing at the top of a wooden ladder, leaning over the wall. Her pale-yellow skirt fluttered lightly over the ladder steps.
“Ugh, don’t even mention him, it’s been an absolute nightmare.”
Beside him stood a vermilion-lacquered pillar. Xie Shao didn’t disturb her. Instead, he leaned lazily against the column, prepared to listen carefully to her recounting this so-called nightmare.
The girl above remained completely unaware. The maid holding the ladder at the base, Xiangyun, was focused solely on keeping it steady and noticed nothing either.
“You poor thing. So… did he ever… do anything to you?” On the other side of the wall, Ming Wanrou propped herself up, her face thinner than before, eyes brimming with sympathy.
“No, nothing like that.” In truth, it wasn’t nearly as bad as she was making it sound. She added, reassuringly, “Let me tell you, he’s actually an idiot. Got swindled out of loads of money.”
But to her surprise, Ming Wanrou grew even more distressed. “A wastrel is one thing, but an idiot too?” If she weren’t perched on the ladder, she might have beaten her chest in despair, heart aching for her friend. “When my second brother heard you’d married Third Xie, he locked himself in his room and didn’t eat for a whole day.”
Wen Shuse froze.
At the mention of the Second Young Master Ming, a strange sense of having once shared a heartfelt, secret bond arose in her heart. With a concerned tone, she said, “Then you should go comfort him. Tell him to eat properly.”
Ming Wanrou nodded. “I did. He’s doing a little better now…”
“If he still can’t let go,” Wen Shuse continued, “then tell him I had no choice in the matter either. We simply weren’t meant to be. But there’s no shortage of flowers in this world, tell him to find someone else who’s good enough.”
Below, Xie Shao couldn’t hold back the sneer bubbling in his chest. He turned his head and gave a mocking “tch.”
Just then, Aunt Qing came out of the house after finishing her tasks. She immediately caught sight of the young master leaning against the red pillar across from her and froze in place. Turning her head, she then saw her own young lady up on the ladder.
Before she could even process what was happening, the young lady atop the ladder carried on, “And you? How are you? Has the Zhou family come up with a proposal yet? Has Zhou Kuang’s backside even healed yet? Honestly, I still can’t believe they’re afraid of dogs! Who doesn’t know about your two big black ones at home that even cats are scared of? That day was total chaos. I still don’t know if it was the dogs who scared the people, or the people who scared the dogs. It’s too hilarious!” Carried away by her own amusement, she burst into loud, unrestrained laughter.
“Miss!” Aunt Qing’s face went pale with alarm. She rushed forward and called out to Wen Shuse in a panic, “Second Miss! Second Miss…”
Xiangyun was the first to hear Aunt Qing’s frantic calls. She turned her head, and her eyes nearly bulged out of her head. Quickly, she joined in calling, “Miss…”
Wen Shuse hadn’t laughed this hard in ages; her cheeks ached from it. Only when she finally registered the voices calling her did she pause, her grin still frozen in place as she casually glanced down.
In an instant, the world shattered.
The man leaning against the red pillar was staring at her with eyes as sharp as knives, his gaze bone-chillingly cold.
A thunderbolt might as well have struck her. Her smile vanished instantly, and she nearly toppled off the ladder.
Across the wall, Ming Wanrou was still blissfully unaware. “Oh, you don’t even know. On the second day after you left for the manor, the Zhou family came with a marriage proposal. What cursed fate do the two of us have, to both end up entangled with worthless good-for-nothings…”
“Gao Xian,” she called again when she didn’t hear a response. “Gao Xian… Listen, why don’t you find a chance to badmouth me in front of Third Xie? I’m sure it’ll reach Young Master Zhou’s ears and make him call off the engagement…”
Wen Shuse snapped back to her senses in a panic, afraid Ming Wanrou would go too far. She frantically tried signaling with her eyes, but she was blinking so hard her eyelids were twitching, and Ming Wanrou completely missed the hint.
“Or how about this, next time you’re out, let’s plan to meet. I’ll bring Dahei and Erhei again to give them another good scare…”
Wen Shuse’s face turned ashen.
Her soul had already fled her body, leaving her speechless. But the man in the courtyard below answered for her, his voice icy, “Rest assured, Miss Ming. I will be sure to pass along your message.”
Ming Wanrou finally stopped talking. She stared blankly at Wen Shuse’s now ghostly complexion and asked with a hint of dread, “Who was that?”
Wen Shuse could barely speak. Her mouth opened woodenly. “…Third Xie.”
There was a brief pause, only then did Ming Wanrou’s head vanish from the wall like a puff of smoke.
Wen Shuse slowly climbed down the ladder. The man in the courtyard was long gone, along with her silk shawl.
A cold breeze swept through. Wen Shuse hugged her arms tightly and shivered violently.
“I’m doomed.”