Chapter Thirty-Six: Punishment Without Worries

  Xiu Yao wasn't pretending to be afraid in front of Li Zhiqing, who had been raised in the Duke's mansion in Beijing. Although the Duke's mansion was not among the top aristocratic families in Beijing, it was still a place where dignitaries came and went, and all Li Zhiqing saw was wealth and luxury. As someone who understood history, Li Zhiqing knew that Emperor Kangxi was a wise ruler, kind and gentle to his subjects, and she had never seen the ruthless side of him. Growing up in Huizhou, Xiu Yao had experienced what it meant to be implicated.

  When Shi Yau was six years old, she had a very good friend who was the daughter of a colleague of Ama Zhiyuan. Both families were close as they served in Huizhou together. However, when pirates attacked Huizhou, her friend's father made a mistake and fled, causing Huizhou to fall into chaos. After the rebellion was put down, an imperial edict from Emperor Kangxi arrived, first rewarding those who had contributed to the victory, then executing those who had deserted their posts as a warning to others.

  Shu Yao's previous life was a soldier, and his father was also a hawkish general of the Republic. Shu Yao also hated those who deserted in battle, and had no sympathy for that uncle. But what Shu Yao did not expect was that Emperor Kangxi's punishment would extend to his family members. His three sons were all exiled to Ningguta, and his daughter and concubines were forced into prostitution. Shu Yao watched as her usually gentle aunt gave a bowl of poisonous medicine to a good friend, then took her own life by hitting her head against a pillar.

  For this matter, Shu Yao had two months of nightmares in a row. As soon as she closed her eyes, she could see the scene of her friend vomiting blood to death. It was at that time that Shu Yao's heterochromia iridum awakened, and the cruelty of that day, with resentment filling the sky, made Shu Yao subconsciously resistant to using her heterochromia iridum, resulting in her heterochromia iridum being unreliable.

  "Xiao Yao, Xiao Yao." Gua Erjia's heart ached as she saw Shu Yao's dazed and lifeless eyes, knowing that she was thinking about that matter again and hating Li Zhiqing even more. Gua Erjia hugged her daughter tightly, "Mother and Ama will protect you, Yao."

  "Uh-huh."

  Shu Yao rubbed against Guar Jia's belly and said softly, "Mother, I'm not afraid. Ama won't run away with his tail between his legs or make a mistake."

  Guarjia was amused by her daughter, "Yao'er, you should remember that everyone makes mistakes, it's just a matter of big or small. As long as one's integrity and sense of justice are not wrong, the current emperor will not take drastic measures. Your Ama may seem straightforward, but she understands things in her heart. Moreover, your mother is watching from behind, a virtuous wife can only bring up children."

  "Mother, I'm afraid I'll never be like you." Shu Yao was extremely disheartened, even if she studied hard, she couldn't become a strong and intelligent woman like her mother.

  "I don't want my daughter to be like me." Guajia patted her daughter's tender cheek, feeling the softness of it, as delicate as tofu made from milk, with eyebrows and eyes that were sweetly shaped, making people easily let their guard down. "Mother will arrange everything for you."

  Gual Jia looked at her daughter and thought she was fine just the way she was.

  "Madam, Old Madam is taking Miss Bao out of the mansion."

  Gual Jia's face changed, "Nonsense, nonsense." An old lady who had lived a lifetime could still be so confused, it was indeed a strange thing. She wouldn't rest until she had stirred up trouble for the Duke's mansion.

  "Mother, I think Sister Shu has some backing?" Shu Yao was unhappy, why was the mysterious space so good?

  "No matter what, the treatment of Empress Dowager Cixi on her 55th birthday was a great success, and everyone was overjoyed. But what if? The entire ducal mansion would have to be sacrificed, and your mother would still rise through the ranks with ease, bringing glory to our family. With the current emperor prioritizing national stability and people's livelihoods, there are opportunities to make achievements, yet you insist on taking the most perilous path."

  "Mother, you mean it's too risky and not worth it?"

  Guaerjia was relieved, her daughter was very clever, and she pulled her daughter towards the gate of the mansion, explaining: "Think about it, even if Li Zhiqing has the ability to save the Empress Dowager this time, what about next time? Can they all be saved? How many high-ranking officials are there in the capital city? How many close relatives of the royal family, princes and nobles can't afford to offend the Duke's Mansion? Can she save them all?"

  Shu Yao nodded, it's this reason, the name of saving Empress Dowager Li Zhiqing was thoroughly spread out. The higher the status, the more afraid of death. Shu Yao didn't know how many magical ginseng Li Zhiqing had, what if there wasn't enough to go around? Whoever she gave it to or not would offend a group of people. Empress Dowager wouldn't always be able to take care of Li Zhiqing. If Emperor Kangxi wanted the miraculous medicine, would Li Zhiqing give it to him or not? The emperor was even more afraid of death.

  Shu Yao believed that Li Ziqing's space was magical, but judging from the system's response, Shu Yao inferred that Li Ziqing's magical space couldn't be too heaven-defying, as the system would also emphasize balance. Another thing that Shu Yao couldn't understand was why Li Ziqing, with such a magical space, had to go to the Forbidden City and cause trouble, instead of just eating the magical ginseng, living forever, and being carefree?

  The food in the Qing Dynasty was still pretty good, and the clothes and jewelry were very beautiful. Even if the Fourth Prince was the most handsome man in the world, being his wife wasn't an easy thing to do. The princes and nobles had many women, Shu Yao suddenly thought, could it be that Li Xiang's medicine for the Fourth Prince was meant to make him exclusively dote on her? Or did he only react to Li Xiang? Other women couldn't satisfy the Fourth Prince.

  Shu Yao thought more and more crookedly, but the more she thought, the happier she became. If she wasn't studying medicine, then she would have researched this kind of pill, which would be a blessing for women, and wouldn't waste her magical space either.

  "Mother, please wait." Gua Erjia saw the old lady supporting Li Zhiqing to get on the carriage and quickly walked a few steps saying: "Where are you going?"

  Li Ziqing looked at Gualjia who was anxious and asked, "Does grandmother still need to report to second aunt when she goes out?"

  "My niece, I'm talking to your mother." Guwalgiya's face turned red, had she given Li Zhiqing too much face that she forgot herself?

  The old lady patted Li Zhiqing's hand and said: "Zhiyuan's wife, I plan to go to the Anqin Wangfu."

  "Are you going to see your aunt?"

  "Hmm." The old lady sat in the carriage, "I heard Qiying say that the Empress Dowager has been kind to our dukedom. Qiying is loyal and dedicated. If you stop her, I won't say anything more about you. You don't want this credit, I do."

  "Mother, you see the prosperity after things are done, but haven't you seen the danger in it? My niece is not a doctor, and there's no panacea that can cure all diseases in this world."

  "You don't believe in Zhiqiong, I do, get out of my way."

  "Guarjia advised: 'Mother, you think carefully...' "

  The old lady said angrily: "Zhiyuan's wife, don't force me to make Zhiyuan divorce you. You are not filial to your mother-in-law and do not follow the way of filial piety."

  "Dismiss me? Mother, which of the rules has my daughter-in-law violated?" The sternness of Guan Jia's words was beyond Old Lady's expectation. The haughty and noble air displayed by Guan Jia made Old Lady lose her composure: "Jealousy, disobedience, reckless speech... shouldn't you be dismissed?"

  "Jealous? Who is the daughter-in-law jealous of? The daughter-in-law speaks the truth, can't you see that watching you act rashly without advising you is not filial piety? You can't just look on..."

  "Shut up, shut up."

  The old lady was thoroughly angry, and she had never had a good impression of Zhiyuan's couple. Just now Li Zhixian added fuel to the fire, and the old lady said: "I am still your mother-in-law, and it is right for me to punish you. You should..."

  "Mother, you can't blame Guar Jia." Shu Yao stood in front of Guar Jia, opening her small arms to protect her: "Guar Jia didn't say anything wrong, it was Biao Jie's fault."

  Shu Yao's eyes were clear and distinct, with a pure and calm expression. The old lady's anger dissipated by half, and Shu Yao's added affability points took effect at this moment. The old lady said: "Liu Ya Tou, you say it again, who was wrong?"

  "This is for Shu Yao," said Shu Yao firmly, "It's Eldest Sister who was wrong. She only saw the benefits of saving the Empress Dowager and didn't see the risks clearly."

  "That's enough! You're just like your mother. Someone come and take Shu Yao away to calm her down."

  The old lady let down the carriage curtain and said, "Let her out in three days after she has calmed down. By then, she will be able to think clearly about who was wrong."