Cuddling with the Cold Female Protagonist – Chapter 8

This Slave Wishes to Repay Kindness

Since they wouldn’t move, they had no choice but to go themselves.

Su Yi endured her discomfort while letting Yanshen push her wheelchair outside to take a look.

            

It was nearly noon, and Feng City’s early summer sun was harsh. At the main gate guarded by two stone lions, a figure so frail that a breeze could knock her over stood out conspicuously.

She wore tattered clothes, her face was sallow, clearly showing signs of long-term malnutrition.

The Su Manor’s guards were still trying to persuade her to leave. She kept her spine perfectly straight, stubbornly shaking her head, appearing unwilling to speak. However, when she saw Ji Qingchi appear at the entrance, her eyes suddenly blazed with light as she swayed to her feet and ran forward.

            

The two guards hadn’t expected someone who had been so stubborn moments ago to suddenly run so fast. Before they could react, she had already run several steps toward Su Yi’s group. They hurriedly caught up, apologizing, “Young Miss, she ran too fast, we didn’t expect…”

“I understand, you may go,” Su Yi said weakly.

“Yes.” Although Su Yi dismissed them, since she was the family head’s precious daughter, how could they dare leave a stranger before her? They stepped back slightly, positioning themselves protectively around Su Yi, fearing this unknown mute girl might accidentally bump into their young miss.

            

When Ye Shui saw Ji Qingchi, her joy knew no bounds. After approaching, her eyes constantly scanned up and down, worried there might be some injury.

“How did my benefactor come here? Were you worried about me? Please don’t worry, my Wife Master treats me well,” Ji Qingchi said, deliberately moving closer to Su Yi to indicate there was no cause for concern.

Ye Shui had saved her and taken painstaking care of her for a long time. The young girl, worried about her, had walked dozens of li to see her, her lips peeling from the harsh sun outside. Ji Qingchi felt moved as she observed this – the young girl had such a kind heart, she couldn’t mistreat her and must repay this debt of gratitude.

            

Besides, she still had something hidden at Ye Shui’s home that she hadn’t retrieved.

Having made up her mind, she smiled and introduced Su Yi to Ye Shui, “This is my Wife Master. The Wife Master treats me well, and currently, all my affairs are under her authority.”

As she spoke, a timely blush appeared on her face, leaving Su Yi so embarrassed she didn’t know where to put her hands. Why was the female protagonist dragging her into this for no reason?

            

Ye Shui, who had been immersed in the joy of seeing her, felt both heartache and comfort upon hearing these words – heartache that she had married another, but comfort that Su Yi treated her well.

Following the conversation, she looked toward Su Yi. Upon seeing the fine silks and satins adorning Su Yi, she thought of her own tattered clothes, and her earlier courage in forcing her way into the Su Manor instantly vanished. Unconsciously, she took a step back.

Su Yi noticed her timidity and, after coughing for a moment, gently asked, “Husband, who is this young lady?”

            

“This is my benefactor.” Ji Qingchi then repeated the story she had fabricated in the village.

“Cough… Since she is my husband’s benefactor, then she is the Su Manor’s benefactor as well. Miss Ye, it’s getting late, would you like to come in for a meal?”

Su Yi spoke casually, but she had a deep impression of this girl called Ye Shui from the book. Orphaned young, she once saved the female protagonist while gathering herbs in the mountains. The female protagonist, grateful, kept her close and had people teach her martial arts. She later became Ji Qingchi’s personal guard, deeply grateful to Ji Qingchi, always protecting her first whenever trouble arose. Once when Ji Qingchi faced assassination, she took the blow herself, shielding Ji Qingchi from everything.

            

In Su Yi’s assessment, she was truly a loyal dog.

Her protection was extreme – if any of the female protagonist’s male favorites dared to seek her without being summoned, Ye Shui would leave them with sword marks.

Even now, this protective girl wasn’t fully grown, yet her eyes were already filled with nothing but Ji Qingchi. If Su Yi accidentally slighted Ji Qingchi and earned her grudge, wouldn’t that be tragic for her later?

            

Su Yi’s motto was to survive whenever possible, so she planned to be polite. Though Ye Shui was loyal, she had strong self-respect and would surely not accept an invitation to dine while dressed in rags.

After she refused, Su Yi would give her some valuables and have someone escort her back.

Su Yi’s calculations were clicking away rapidly.

            

As expected, Ye Shui showed an unwilling expression at these words. Before she could wave her hand in refusal, Ji Qingchi suddenly covered her face with her sleeve and said hesitantly, “Wife Master, my benefactor has tirelessly cared for this slave these past days, and now has come such a distance to seek me. This debt of gratitude, this slave must repay.”

Before Ye Shui could refuse the repayment, Ji Qingchi quickly pulled a thin needle from her sleeve and, with lightning speed, struck her acupoint [穴道 | xué dào | pressure point in martial arts].

Ye Shui could only move her eyes now, staring at Ji Qingchi in bewilderment. Ji Qingchi gave her a slight smile – foolish girl, just wait, your future life will soon be free from want.

            

Ji Qingchi’s movements were swift; apart from Su Yi, no one saw her actions. Though Su Yi noticed, she could only pretend not to see the subtle movement. Enduring Ji Qingchi’s fake crying that nearly burst her eardrums, she said good-naturedly, “What my husband says is true. How does my husband wish to repay?”

Ji Qingchi covered her face with her sleeve and began to whimper, “This slave’s status is too lowly to speak.”

Su Yi watched the hand gripping her wheelchair, seemingly able to hear the wood turning to powder inch by inch. She had no doubt that if she truly believed this talk of lowly status now, she would end up with her tendons torn and bones broken.

            

Taking a mental breath, she maintained a gentle as water expression, “How could that be? You are my properly wedded husband, speak freely of what you wish.”

Ji Qingchi ignored her and continued whimpering. Su Yi couldn’t figure out what scheme she was plotting, but could only continue coaxing her patiently.

When Su Yi felt her mouth was about to go dry, Ji Qingchi finally raised her head, her eyes slightly red – though whether this was forced through martial arts was unclear – and said to Su Yi, “Since the Wife Master insists, this slave shall respectfully comply. My benefactor’s village has many evil people, and I fear it would be dangerous for her to return alone, so this slave wishes to accompany her home.”

            

Having just been married, to follow a strange woman home – if it were any ordinary woman, she would surely point at Ji Qingchi and curse her as a loose husband [荡夫 | dàng fū | unfaithful spouse].

But Su Yi wouldn’t. She only wanted to survive, and whatever the female protagonist wanted to do, she had to allow it.

So she smiled slightly, putting on a show of loving concern for her husband, “It’s just such a small matter? I thought it was something else. If my husband wishes to go, then go.”

            

Upon hearing this, Ji Qingchi wasn’t pleased; instead, her expression cracked for a moment.

What was wrong with this Su family young miss? She was taking this too lightly. After all, she was her husband – how could she let her husband leave with a strange woman without even trying to hold her back?

Was she truly kindhearted, or did she simply not take her role as husband seriously?

            

Regardless of the reason, she didn’t want to let Su Yi have an easy time.

So she began whimpering again, “But… but… if this slave goes alone, people will surely say I’m not following the husband’s way. This slave’s personal disgrace is minor, but the Su family’s reputation being ruined is major. This slave… doesn’t want the Wife Master and mother to be criticized…”

Such a righteous lord, perhaps there were few like her in all of Yanxue Kingdom. It would be remiss not to award her a memorial arch for virtuous husbands.

            

The watching maids and guards were instantly moved to tears by Ji Qingchi. Gancao rushed over, sobbing, “Young Miss, let’s go with our lord! wuwu… Our lord is truly loyal and righteous, even now thinking of the Su family…”

“Yes, Young Miss,” Yanshen was also moved, “Miss Ye’s home shouldn’t be too far from our manor, let’s go with our lord to take a look?”

It must be said, there was a reason Ji Qingchi became the female emperor.

            

Look how in such a short time, she had convinced everyone around her through her acting.

Su Yi coughed once, “Since my husband wishes to go, let’s go take a look.”

While it was still early, Su Yi had people prepare a soft sedan chair [软轿 | ruǎn jiào | comfortable portable chair] and refreshments, then sent someone to inform her mother. Only after everything was ready did she let the guards carry her toward Ye Shui’s residence.

            

Su Yi was physically weak and couldn’t ride in carriages. Even in a sedan chair, it had to be completely stable. The Su family head had painstakingly selected their guards with one primary requirement – steady hands. Their martial arts didn’t need to be exceptional, but they had to carry the sedan without any swaying, or the young miss couldn’t bear it.

After everyone was seated in the sedan, Ji Qingchi keenly noticed that it barely moved, as if they were simply sitting in regular chairs. She looked at Su Yi curiously, “This sedan chair?”

Yanshen was feeding water to the pale-faced Su Yi. After managing to drink a little, she smiled weakly and said, “My mother specially found these people, they don’t sway much… cough…”

            

Before finishing her words, she couldn’t help but retch. She had indeed suffered from heatstroke earlier, holding it back until now when she could no longer endure.

Yanshen quickly held up a handkerchief for her. After Su Yi vomited the small amount of rice porridge she had managed to eat that morning, she felt somewhat better. After rinsing her mouth, she felt improved, though still rather tired.

Thinking of her own survival, she gave Ji Qingchi an apologetic smile, “Husband, I’m sorry, I…”

            

Seeing her so weak, and remembering how she had just insisted on her accompanying her to the capital, Ji Qingchi felt perhaps she had gone too far. Feeling guilty, upon hearing these words, she immediately said softly, “Wife Master need not concern yourself with this slave, please rest.”

Su Yi could no longer care about much else. With an apologetic smile, she slowly closed her eyes.

After confirming her breathing had softened in sleep, Ji Qingchi looked at Yanshen who was fanning Su Yi, “Has the Wife Master always been this weak?”

            

“The Young Miss has been this way since birth,” Yanshen said softly while fanning Su Yi, “The family head has tried countless methods, but nothing has worked. Alas… both the family head and Young Miss are good people, they say good deeds bring good fortune, but…”

She sighed and fell silent. Ji Qingchi frowned at Su Yi, whose face was as yellow as gold paper and whose breathing was faint.

Originally, she had been single-mindedly focused on returning to the capital, but now she felt somewhat guilty.

            

But as soon as that guilt arose, the next moment when visions of the imperial palace flashed through her mind, it dissipated without a trace.

I cannot be soft-hearted, Ji Qingchi repeated internally. After lying low until now, having spent so much effort, I absolutely cannot fail at the last moment.

As for the Su family’s young miss…

            

Ji Qingchi gazed at the pale-faced beauty, letting out a soft sigh.

After I successfully ascend the throne, if you’re alive, I will grant you wealth and honor.

If you unfortunately die… then I can only… offer incense for you.

            

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