Volume One, Chapter 16: Sir, I Beg You, Spare My Cousin

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His voice was not loud, sounding almost like an ordinary inquiry, but the unmistakable softness in it confirmed that he was a eunuch.

That realization jolted the Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang out of his panic. He had actually tried to seize someone right from beneath Dantai Jianan’s nose—how many heads did he have to spare?

He had never intended to buy that Liu Wuyi and bring her home in the first place. Xue Shuyao had egged him on.

On the day they bought her, the woman had disappeared, and he had thought to let the matter go. But when Xue Shuyao happened to encounter her, she would not stop raving about how beautiful the woman was and insisted that he come see for himself.

She truly was an unparalleled beauty. Yet after he had decided to spare Liu Wuyi, that wretched Xue Shuyao had blocked him again, insisting that he take the woman back to the residence.

And now she had brought disaster upon them all. Still, he truly had never imagined that Dantai Jianan harbored a fondness for pregnant women.

No, no—that was not right. Lord Supervisor Dantai was blameless, and so was he. The only one at fault was that vile woman, Xue Shuyao.

The Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang straightened up. Tears mingled with mucus and ran into his bleeding mouth. Though the pain and disgust were unbearable, he dared not show the slightest trace of it. He had none of the arrogance he had displayed half an hour earlier.

He could only weep as he said, “My lord, how was I to know she was your wife? If I had known, I would not have dared, even with eight hundred extra lives.”

“It is all this wretched woman’s fault. She insisted on saying… saying…” Remembering the indecent things she had said, the Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang had no courage to repeat them in front of Dantai Jianan. Instead, he shoved Xue Shuyao to the ground and continued cursing. “It is all this vile woman’s fault! If she had not egged me on, why would I have seized a common girl in broad daylight?”

“My father is the illustrious Marquis of Pingyang, renowned for his military achievements. I am his only legitimate son. What could I possibly want that I would have to snatch a woman off the street?”

“It was all a misunderstanding—a misunderstanding.”

Lying sprawled on the ground, Xue Shuyao buried her face in her hair and did not move. It was impossible to tell what condition she was in.

The Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang was both shifting the blame onto Xue Shuyao and hinting that his father was still commanding troops in the northwest. To move against him would be to chill the hearts of the soldiers. But how could Dantai Jianan let him see through his thoughts? As time passed, the heir grew increasingly frantic.

Dantai Jianan drew another handkerchief from his sleeve and carefully wiped his pale, slender knuckles, without even glancing at the pig-faced man grinning ingratiatingly at him.

Liu Wuyi, already composed and properly dressed, sat nearby, stealing occasional glances at Dantai Jianan. Only when she saw that his expression remained unchanged did she relax. She had never imagined that he would personally attend to her with those precious hands.

Well, he had attended to her, so be it. What husband did not tend to his pregnant wife from time to time? Why did he look so put out about it? Never mind. He was, after all, the exalted Lord Supervisor. It was already fortunate that he was not angry.

Dantai Jianan turned his head toward Liu Wuyi, but she calmly shifted her gaze away. His hand paused.

Had she grown angry?

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Dantai Jianan frowned, somewhat bewildered. She had looked so pleased to see him just moments ago.

When the Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang saw Dantai Jianan frown, his heart trembled.

Unable to make sense of it and too lazy to think further, Dantai Jianan lifted his eyes toward the two of them.

“The New Year is nearly upon us. My wife is timid and dislikes seeing flames blazing into the sky, but celebrating without the sound of firecrackers always seems to lack something.”

“Very well. You may strike yourselves across the face and give my wife something to listen to.”

Liu Wuyi: “…”

The Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang looked troubled. “This…” He tentatively raised a hand and lightly touched his cheek.

Dantai Jianan said, “Go teach him.”

Several Embroidered Uniform Guards stepped forward. Ignoring the heir’s terror, they worked in groups of three: two held his arms in place while the third swung his arm in a wide arc.

A sharp crack rang out, accompanied by the heir’s howl. Xue Shuyao, however, remained utterly silent.

“Dantai Three,” Dantai Jianan said, “gag him.”

For a time, only the rising and falling sound of slaps rang through the main street of the Eastern Market. The rapid smacking truly did resemble the crackle of firecrackers.

No one knew how long it lasted before Dantai Jianan finally raised a hand to signal them to stop.

“Have you learned how? Try it yourselves.”

Whether cowed by Dantai Jianan’s authority or numbed by the pain in their faces, the Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang and Xue Shuyao began striking themselves, one slap after another, putting all their strength into each blow. The sound was surprisingly pleasant to hear.

After watching for a while, Dantai Jianan found himself growing bored.

“That is enough.”

“Only one of you will leave here alive today.”

Before the heir could rejoice, Dantai Jianan continued.

“You will each recount, clearly and in full, every evil deed committed by the other. Whoever gives me the more entertaining account may live.”

Half the heir’s heart turned cold. When it came to wicked deeds, what spoiled heir in the entire capital had done more than he had? Even the schemes Xue Shuyao had managed were merely a small portion of the underhanded business he conducted in secret.

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Simply confessing to the abduction of a common girl would be enough for Dantai Jianan to throw him into prison and investigate him from top to bottom. In the end, the investigation would implicate the entire Marquis of Pingyang’s household, giving Dantai Jianan every justification to have them all beheaded.

Dantai Jianan had never intended to let him go.

Xue Shuyao, on the other hand, might still escape with her life. No—he had to find a way to make her take the blame.

Sure enough, Xue Shuyao rose to her knees and respectfully bowed her head.

“This servant pays her respects to Lord Supervisor and Lady Supervisor.”

“My lord, do not listen to this woman’s lies. She is always a glib and scheming wretch. Out of jealousy, she deceived me into believing that people were ill, when in truth she had poisoned them herself. Later, she even lured me into gambling. Once, after I lost money and was in a foul mood, she sent her household servants to seize a common girl, then deceived me by claiming she had bought a new maid. I fell into her trap.”

“My lord, this woman deserves to die.”

The Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang pointed at Xue Shuyao with righteous indignation, as though he were an innocent man identifying the bully who had wronged him. In his heart, however, he was already calculating how to threaten her into confessing.

At the same time, Xue Shuyao said, “This servant deserves death. I beg you to spare the heir’s life.”

With that, she bowed her head to the ground once more.

When the Heir of the Marquis of Pingyang realized what Xue Shuyao had said, he stared at her in shock. No one knew better than he did how ruthless and heartless this woman was, how devious she could be, and how fiercely she cherished her own life.

He had continued to dote on her only because she was useful and reasonably attractive. Yet at this moment, she was willing to give up her life for his sake.

Why?

The complexity of his emotions made him forget, for a brief moment, that Dantai Jianan was seated above them. When he came to himself, he hurriedly knelt properly and tried to follow Xue Shuyao’s words, but his throat had grown so dry and constricted that he could barely speak.

Dantai Jianan’s expression turned cold and grim. He hated these tedious displays of self-sacrifice, and even more so because she had ruined his opportunity to deal with the Marquis of Pingyang’s household.

“Kill that woman.”

Liu Wuyi panicked at once and reached out to seize Dantai Jianan’s sleeve.

“Husband…”

Dantai Jianan hesitated and turned toward her. He saw Liu Wuyi anxiously shaking her head.

“Husband, she is my cousin. Could you spare her life?”

Xue Shuyao had treated her without mercy, but Liu Wuyi could not stand by and watch her die before her eyes.