Chapter 600   He Was My Real Lover

The weather was gradually turning warm in Prince Yi’s secondary manor outside the city. Ning Xueyan had left the manor with the excuse of recreation. When she reached the secondary manor, she entered a courtyard near the backdoor and settled down inside a unique room.

The room was divided in half, with a special curtain separating the front and back of the room. The curtain allowed Ning Xueyan to see the people opposite her, but the people opposite her wouldn’t be able to see the other side of the room.

“Master, can we begin?” Xinmei asked. Ning Xueyan nodded. This was why she had come out today. It so happened that there would be a banquet at the palace tomorrow to celebrate the two princes.

That left just enough time for her plan.

Seeing Ning Xueyan nod, Xinmei left the room. Lanning served Ning Xueyan tea and then stood behind her. Shortly after, Xinmei reentered the room and stood on the other side of Ning Xueyan.

On the other side of the curtain, a guard brought a blindfolded woman in. He pulled off her blindfold and forced her to kneel.

“Are you Chen Hexiang, Eldest Young Master Xia’s concubine?” A sharp glint flashed in Ning Xueyan’s eyes as she stared at this familiar face.

“Ye... Yes, I’m Eldest Young Master Xia’s concubine... Who... Who are you... Why did you catch me... Once the Eldest Young Master finds out, he, he won’t let you off.”

Chen Hexiang didn’t know why she was inexplicably brought here. She had escaped through the backdoor yesterday out of panic, only to be knocked unconscious after stepping out of the door. After she regained consciousness, she found herself in an unfamiliar place all by herself. She spent the night in fright and the intense fear kept her completely tense at this moment.

She tried to use Xia Yuhang’s name to scare her kidnappers.

“Won’t let me off? I heard that one of the concubines in Xia Manor became a fugitive yesterday and it has been reported to the Ministry of Justice. You’re that fugitive concubine, aren’t you?” Ning Xueyan chuckled humorlessly as she looked at the pale and panicking Chen Hexiang.

Fugitive concubine? According to the laws of the Chu Kingdom, a fugitive concubine could be directly killed once caught.

Even if a fugitive concubine wasn’t killed, she would be demoted to be a prostitute, never allowed to regain honor ever again.

Chen Hexiang had escaped out of pure panic. When the words “fugitive concubine” entered her ears, fear and despair filled her eyes. No matter what, her life was as good as over and she would die most terribly, too.

“Madam, save me. Please save my life. I’m willing to do anything to repay your great kindness.” Even though she didn’t know who was talking to, there was no harm in calling her madam. She slammed her forehead on the floor, desperate to survive this ordeal.

She stopped referring to herself as a concubine, but a slave, to express her willingness to serve Ning Xueyan with her whole heart.

It took no time at all for this woman to switch gears. The minute she realized she was in trouble, she immediately put on a different appearance like the day she pushed her into the water. When Xia Yuhang found out, Chen Hexiang admitted to her fault but insisted that it was an accident. Chen Hexiang tried to jump into the water to save her, only to delay Xia Yuhang from saving her. That worsened her injury and nearly killed her.

But, this was precisely what Ning Xueyan needed now. Talking to a person like this required minimal effort; all she had to was make her understand her situation clearly.

“It’s not hard to save your life, but you will have to avenge Yudong.” When Chen Hexiang heard a cold, resentful voice from the other side of the curtain, she froze and didn’t immediately understand who Yudong was.

“Surely you must know who Xia Yudong was, Concubine Chen?” The voice behind the curtain became even colder.

Xia Yudong? Second Young Master Xia? Wasn’t it said that he fell into the river and drowned a few days ago? There wasn’t a major funeral at the manor as he was a concubine-son and the banquet to celebrate the princes’ promotion would be happening soon. Xia Manor had buried him in a simple thin coffin. Other people might not know this, but Chen Hexiang knew.

“I know him, I know him. But, didn’t Second Young Master Xia drown in the river?” She nodded with force, but couldn’t help voicing her doubt.

“He drowned? Ha! Those people killed him. He colluded with the Third Young Lady of the Lord Protector’s Manor to harm Princess Yi, so the Third Young Lady assassinated him. Not only did Xia Manor not avenge him, but they even buried him without asking any questions. It was all because the lady wanted to marry Prince Xiang.”

The voice behind the curtain carried a trace of indignance. The resentment in it was as clear as day.

Chen Hexiang was sure that the person behind the curtain had a close relationship with Xia Yudong, so much so that she wanted to avenge him. This matter even implicated Prince Xiang. Thoughts and ideas ran back and forth in her mind. She felt that this was a wonderful opportunity. Ning Ziyan was her enemy, and Third Young Lady Ning was the enemy of the person behind the curtain.

It didn’t matter that their enemies weren’t the same person, as long as their target was the Lord Protector’s Manor.

Now that she thought about it, she and the person behind the curtain shared a similar fate. Hers was worse, though. She couldn’t just go out now; if she was caught, dying would be the easy way out for her.

“Madam, if you need me, please let me know. I’ll be grateful and repay you,” Chen Hexiang said, patting her chest with confidence.

“Do you have the courage to report this?” Ning Xueyan dropped her angry act after seeing Chen Hexiang behaving like this. Her voice, however, turned colder.

“I do! Give me the evidence and I’ll head to the Ministry of Justice right now to avenge Second Young Master Xia.” Chen Hexiang would say anything it took to save herself. She knew that if she refused to do so, she would be sent to the Ministry of Justice for the crime of being a “fugitive concubine.”

She would do anything to survive.

“There’s no evidence.” Ning Xueyan smirked. Of course, she didn’t have any evidence. She had only heard about it from Ao Chenyi. It was best to connect it with Chen Hexiang’s matter. One, she could hide her identity from Chen Hexiang, and second, she could lure Chen Hexiang into her trap.

“No... No evidence!” Chen Hexiang was dumbfounded. If she reported the matter without any evidence, it would be just another dead-end for her. She stammered, “Ma-Madam, how do I report it without any evidence?”

“Tell them that Xia Yudong died without any explanation. Since Xia Manor didn’t publicize it, it must have something to do with Prince Xiang’s Manor. Say that you want them to investigate it.” Ning Xueyan sounded self-righteous and confident, but her words only made Chen Hexiang smile wryly. Ignorant of the rules she might be, she knew that evidence was necessary. This woman could only offer her speculation; the people at the Ministry of Justice would never pay her any heed.

If she went there to file a complaint, she would be sending herself to her death. She would never be able to return alive.

It was so difficult for her to escape. She didn’t want to die here for no reason. However, this woman seemed determined to make her accuse Xia Manor.

“You’re not willing to go?” A cold snort came from behind the curtain. The guard beside Chen Hexiang moved his feet as if he was going to come over and drag her out.

“No... I’m willing to, but I just thought of some other things that I can accuse Xia Manor of. I have evidence for those things. I’m sure it’ll draw the attention of the Ministry of Justice then. When I bring up Second Young Master Xia’s death, it’ll be much easier to handle.” Chen Hexiang was also anxious. She did keep some evidence to deal with the Lord Protector’s Manor and Xia Manor in the past.

She had left the evidence in Cold Mountain Temple, but someone inexplicably sent it to her. She carefully hid it out of fear that Xia Yuhang would find out. Though the evidence was left in Xia Manor, only she knew its hiding place.

The woman behind the curtain seemed reluctant, but she still asked after some hesitation, “Was any deaths involved?”

“Ye... Yes, Eldest Young Master Xia’s fiancee was supposed to be another lady, and this lady was surely killed by those in the Lord Protector’s Manor. If we connect this to the collusion between Second Young Master Xia and Third Young Lady Ning, we’ll surely gain the trust of the Ministry of Justice. I’m sure we can avenge Second Young Master Xia then.”

Chen Hexiang didn’t know if they could avenge Xia Yudong but she realized that she might be able to live if she used Ning Ziying’s death as the starting point. If this matter was revealed, Xia Manor and Ning Ziyan would be in great trouble. Who knew, Xia Manor might be so desperate to draw a line from Ning Ziyan that they would divorce her. Her causing Ning Ziyan’s miscarriage would be a nonissue then!

Thus, she was able to answer the woman’s question with certainty.

Once she was sure that she would be safe, she would also mention Xia Yudong’s death. After all, this woman seemed quite powerful.

With her help, she would have a place to stay after leaving the Ministry of Justice. She might even gain additional rewards.

“Where is it?” Ning Xueyan asked, sounding rather thoughtful. She only kept Chen Hexiang alive because she wanted to find out about the past from her. Other people refused to speak about the past but Chen Hexiang was different. She was neither from Xia Manor nor from the Lord Protector’s Manor. Moreover, she knew quite a lot about the past. She was the best candidate.

When Chen Hexiang realized that the woman was giving her a chance, she immediately said with excitement, “It’s hidden under my bed, under the third brick next to the right leg of the bed. You can send someone to fetch the item, Madam. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the Ministry of Justice and make a complaint.”

“In what capacity will you make the complaint?” Ning Xueyan asked. This was a question that the officials at the Justice Department would ask any accuser.

“In my capacity as Ning Ziying’s best friend and sister. I can even say that I entered Xia Manor and suffered humiliation to avenge Sister Ziying,” Chen Hexiang said self-righteously. “Ning Ziyan caused the death of such a gentle lady. Someone has to avenge her!”

“Then, how did you find out about Xia Yudong’s death? How did you know about the collusion between Xia Yudong and Third Young Lady Ning? And you have no evidence!” Ning Xueyan looked at Chen Hexiang, who was kneeling, with contempt.

“I... I’ll say that Xia Yudong was my actual lover. And about Third Young Lady Ning... I’ll say that Second Young Master Xia told me about it. Madam, I’m willing to do whatever it takes to repay you.” All Chen Hexiang wanted was to win this woman’s trust. She would admit to everything. Either way, it was a matter of bringing up Xia Yudong’s death. She had undeniable facts about Ning Ziying’s death, after all. She could mention Xia Yudong as a favor to this woman.

She must let this woman know that she was only going this far because of her. She was even doing this at the expense of her reputation!

Chen Hexiang had never cared for her reputation as a virtuous woman. Her affair with Xia Yuhang in the temple only happened because she had seduced him and drugged his wine. Otherwise, someone like Xia Yuhang would never lose his mind so thoroughly.

Of course, she would only keep this to herself. In front of this woman, she had to pretend that she was willing to go through hell for her. She must show how much of a sacrifice she was making for this matter.