His Peasant Wife : Yao Ling

They arrived at a secluded place near Concubine Lan's courtyard. The two-faced concubine! Xiao Yu waited for a while under the shadow of a big tree. Xiu could see how she bit her lips in anxiety and her hands gripped her skirt tightly. If she was this scared, why did she still go?

Xiu knew what he would witness was something that shouldn't be seen. He could feel Xiao Yu's anxiety was affecting him too. He felt a pang of sadness in his heart because he had a hunch that there was a chance Xiao Yu betrayed their masters. He could see how good Young Mistress was toward her and it was the same way Young Master treated him. Would she really be able to betray them?

When Xiu heard the sudden rustling from the bush near the big tree where Xiao Yu waited, he quickly hid deeper in his current hiding place. He looked at the sky and it was going to be dark soon. The sun was starting to set and it would perfectly hide his presence.

Xiu saw that it was a young maid, probably the same age as Xiao Yu. Xiu furrowed his eyebrows once more, thinking about that girl. It seemed like she was Concubine Wan's personal maid, Liu Li. He sneered to himself and thought about how careful they were. They decided to meet at another concubine's courtyard as not to make it obvious who the real perpetrator was.

Tsk! He started to realize the messiness of 'Wang Fu' inner courtyard. It looked peaceful on the outside, but insider like him could tell that it was actually the opposite. He was sent by Master to serve and guide the young master. Master even warned him that he should protect the young couple from harm and that said a lot about the messiness.

Xiu knew that Master really put importance to the young couple by sending him to them. He was actually Master's hidden guard that stayed by his side as a servant too and Master even went as far by telling him, 'From now on, your real master will be Yao Ying. I really treat him as my son and he doesn't have anyone to protect him. It will be your job. Don't disappoint me!'

With those words, his new master and new life goal were sealed. He is Yao Ying's person and his loyalty belongs to him. He only needed time to prove his loyalty because he knew the young couple was wary of spies. He could feel that they also questioned his loyalty. He couldn't blame them though. They were thrown into a brand new environment in which they had to adapt quickly and find out about the power struggle inside.

If they weren't wary of anything but instead stupidly believed in luck, then they didn't deserve to become Master's stepchildren. Fortunately, Master really had great eyes in judging people. His new master was certainly a smart person.

Xiu had a good sense of hearing due to his training as a hidden guard. He could clearly hear the conversation between the two servant girls, even though they were only whispering to each other.

"Do you have any news?" Liu Li asked.

"Liu Li Jie, I won't tell you anything! Not until you tell me where my little brother is!" Xiao Yu tried to negotiate with the evil creature in front of her.

Xiu felt a thump in his heart. Was she being blackmailed by Liu Li? He coldly laughed inwardly. Even this type of disgusting things could also be done. He thought to himself, judging from the intelligence level of Concubine Wan, he didn't think she would be able to pull out something like this. However, he could never judge a book by its cover. He scrunched up his nose in disgust.

He waited for Liu Li's answer. Fox spirit would always reveal its tail [1]. That… he believed. He didn't wait for long before he heard the nasty laughter of the woman, making him cringe in revulsion. Maybe because he had heard and understood the true nature of this Liu Li girl, her pretty appearance became dull and ugly.

"What's the hurry? Just like I said, if you give me a report about your young mistress, then nothing will happen to your little brother. Tsk… tsk… tsk…" Liu Li taunted Xiao Yu with undisguised evilness.

"I won't tell you anything unless you give me proof that he's in a good condition!" Xiao Yu gritted her teeth in annoyance. Her tears were threatening to fall at any moment, but she had to be strong. Although she was sold as a slave, Master was kind enough to let her keep in touch with her family. How could she not feel anxious if her younger brother was kidnapped? She felt like going crazy because of worry.

Liu Li pulled out something from her left sleeve and threw it to Xiao Yu in an arrogant manner. "This is the proof," she laughed in a wicked way. Even if maidservants sometimes did the dirty works for their masters, those maidservants still had some fears in doing something as nasty as kidnapping or killing people. But this Liu Li? Xiao Yu could only see her crazed appearance and it made her feel the chilling atmosphere down to her bone. She was thinking of how her younger brother would survive when he fell under the hand of this nasty woman.

Xiao Yu glanced at the blue necklace which was carved with the word 'Yi' on it. Xiao Yi… It belonged to Xiao Yi! She would recognize this necklace easily everywhere because it was given to Xiao Yi by her. She bought it when she received her first salary. It was cheap but she wholeheartedly carved the words herself! She even asked one of the literate maids to teach her how to write this special one word. She touched the messy engraved words and traced it with her fingers. Even the slight mistake of the written word was there. This wasn't a fake.

Xiao Yu felt like the world came down crushing on her. Xiu who saw her despair couldn't do anything. If he helped her recklessly, he would only reveal himself to Liu Li. By hiding in the dark, he could try to help Xiao Yu find her brother. He needed to tell Yao Ying and come clean to him about his identity. One of the reasons was because he felt overprotective over Xiao Yu and wanted to help her.

"Where is he?" Xiao Yu was feeling agitated and trying to claw Liu Li's face like a lunatic. Her previous demeanor changed into a frantic one. She hated this girl. She hated Liu Li down to her bone. Her young brother! She took her beloved younger brother!

Liu Li looked at Xiao Yu in disgust. She easily caught both of Xiao Yu's hands and laughed at her pitiful face. Liu Li could see the hatred but for her… it was just some types of amusement for her. A sinister laugh was pasted to her face, ridiculing Xiao Yu and her stupid emotion.

Xiu gritted his teeth in anger, he almost… almost went out and beat up this evil woman. He closed his eyes, trying to contain his emotions.

It wasn't enough that Liu Li gripped Xiao Yu's hands until it left a black and blue mark. She also slapped Xiao Yu's left cheek and pushed her until she fell down to the grown in a pitiful state. Liu Li patted her clothes, trying to clean the mess that Xiao Yu made.

"Behave! Or else…" She trailed off, but the meaning was clear. If Xiao Yu kept opposing her, her younger brother would not get a good treatment either.

***

[1]. Fox spirit would always reveal its tail: people with a motive will always reveal it eventually. Fox spirits seduce men (whether it be for their own survival or entertainment) so people use this phrase to say the fox spirit will reveal itself sooner or later.