The Prime Minister’s Daughter and the Marquis’s Fool – Chapter 81

I’ll Exchange a Condition with You

This guard had only been with Qu Sheng for two days. He had heard before that she was a fool, but hearing her speak today, he felt the rumors must be wrong. However, he was Zhao Jiayu’s guard and didn’t dare to make wild guesses. Since he was assigned to protect Qu Sheng, he would simply obey.

After the guard left, the accompanying maidservant hurried forward.

Qu Sheng listened to the guard’s fading footsteps, straining her ears for a moment before saying, “Go to Jiejie’s courtyard.”

Lin Xizhao was not in her courtyard at the moment; Qu Sheng figured she must have gone out with Lin Xirui to investigate the parrot’s origin. She sat in the room and waited for a while, but a sense of unease grew in her heart.

She stood up to walk outside when she suddenly caught a whiff of a fragrance. “Who’s there?”

Hearing her, the maidservant outside the door quickly pushed it open, glanced inside, and asked, “Young Miss, what are your orders?”

Qu Sheng hadn’t heard any movement, but she had smelled the fragrance first. She took a step back, walked a few steps toward the source of the scent, and then said to the maidservant, “It’s nothing.”

It was sandalwood incense, and something had been mixed into it.

Qu Sheng held her breath and sat back down. After waiting a moment, she walked toward the windowsill of Lin Xizhao’s room. She remembered every corner of this room and lifted the window without any trouble.

She breathed in the cool breeze that drifted in from outside, and the smell in the room gradually dissipated.

After half a ‘ke’¹, a servant from the Lin Residence came to say that Lin Xirui and Lin Xizhao had returned and requested her presence in Lin Xirui’s courtyard for a chat.

Qu Sheng stared straight ahead, her expression calm. “Lead the way.”

The maidservant stepped forward to support her, but the servant said, “The Eldest Young Miss asked for you to come alone.”

The maidservant wanted to refuse, but the man added, “There’s nothing to worry about in our residence. It’s just that we have to keep the things Miss Sheng asked the Third Young Master to look into a secret.”

Hearing this, Qu Sheng’s brow furrowed slightly, then she smiled. “Alright.”

When the servant heard her agree, he raised his arm for Qu Sheng to rest her hand on. She went to Lin Xirui’s place alone, without anyone else to guide her.

Although she couldn’t see, she was still capable of causing a commotion in this residence. Besides, the guard she brought and the people originally placed in the Lin Residence were all still here.

The servant led Qu Sheng along the small path between courtyards. She walked with a steady gait, and he glanced down at the soles of her feet.

By the time Qu Sheng reached Lin Xirui’s small courtyard, the servant noticed her steps had become unsteady.

“Miss Sheng, are you dizzy?”

Qu Sheng didn’t speak, but her body reacted. After just a few more steps, she collapsed.

After Qu Sheng closed her eyes, the servant supported her and continued walking. A moment later, she sensed she had entered a room. This was Lin Xirui’s room, no doubt; she remembered the path.

“Is she unconscious?” the person who opened the door from inside asked.

“She’s out. Be careful,” the servant who had brought Qu Sheng instructed.

The two of them carried Qu Sheng into the room, placed her on Lin Xirui’s couch-bed², covered her with a quilt, and left without lingering. After they were gone, Qu Sheng listened carefully to the sounds around her.

There was no one left in the room.

Qu Sheng had no idea how long she had been waiting when the sound of footsteps approached from outside.

“I’m exhausted today. Go get me a basin of warm water,” Lin Xirui said as he undid the leather belt at his waist and walked into the room.

Once inside, Lin Xirui poured himself a cup of tea. After drinking half of it, he took off his outer robe, which a page boy³ took from the side and carried outside. Lin Xirui then went into the inner chamber to get a change of clean clothes. Who would have thought that as soon as he entered, he would be startled by an unexpected shape on his bed? He placed a hand on his chest, composed himself, and craned his neck to look. Only then did he see that it was Qu Sheng lying on the couch-bed.

“Sheng… Sheng-meimei?” Lin Xirui called out, but then he remembered she was asleep and lowered his voice. “Sheng-meimei?”

Qu Sheng had been awake the whole time. From the moment Lin Xirui spoke in the courtyard to his footsteps inside the room, she had heard everything clearly. She had been suddenly summoned and then brought here with drugged incense⁴; she wanted to see who was behind this scheme.

Lin Xirui called to her softly, but Qu Sheng didn’t react. He blinked, lowered his gaze in thought for a few moments, and walked over.

Looking at Qu Sheng’s well-behaved face as she slept, Lin Xirui couldn’t help but let the corners of his lips curl up. He glanced at the window and the door, wondering why Qu Sheng would choose to rest in his room. He hadn’t heard that she had come to the residence earlier.

He and Lin Xizhao had been out since morning and had only just returned. He had spent some silver to have the vendor who was always selling parrots there keep an eye out for the servant who sold the bird. He had rushed over today after hearing news, but it had been a wasted trip—he hadn’t seen a soul.

Now Lin Xizhao had gone to the Qu Residence, yet Qu Sheng was here…

Lin Xirui went outside and said to the servant, “Send someone to the Qu Residence to call my Ajie⁵ back. Just say Sheng-meimei is here.”

The page boy looked confused. Lin Xirui tapped him on the head. “Hurry up and go!”

The page boy gave a sheepish laugh and rushed out of the courtyard.

After watching the boy leave, Lin Xirui turned back to look into the room. He was guessing that perhaps Qu Sheng had missed him and, growing tired while sitting here, had simply lain down on his couch-bed to rest.

Because of the distinction between men and women⁶, Lin Xirui didn’t dare stay in the room for long. He stood outside, resolving not to go back in, and waited for Lin Xizhao to arrive so they could send Qu Sheng back to her courtyard after she woke up.

However, as he scanned the people in the courtyard, he didn’t see anyone that Qu Sheng had brought with her. Qu Sheng can’t see, so how did she get here?

Just as Lin Xirui was about to call a servant on duty, Qu Sheng’s guard arrived, dragging a person dressed in their residence’s servant attire.

The man was thrown to the ground, choking on the dirt, the skin on his face scraped raw and bleeding.

“Third Young Master Lin, save me!”

Lin Xirui found the man on the ground somewhat familiar but didn’t recognize him. He looked at the man before him, who was dressed in the uniform of a Qu Residence guard and flanked by other guards from the same household. “You—” he asked in alarm.

“I’m Miss Jiayu’s guard, ordered to protect Miss Sheng. This man was acting suspiciously in your esteemed residence, and it took me great effort to catch him.” The guard raised his eyes, his gaze cold as he stared at Lin Xirui. “He said that Third Young Master Lin went to Young Master Xiao to ask for him and instructed him to do this.”

Hearing this, Lin Xirui was stunned for a moment. Seeing the man’s burly build and unpleasant expression, he quickly took a step back. “I don’t even know him. Besides, what purpose would I have for doing something like this?”

The guard looked down at the Xiao Residence guard who was kneeling beside him, trying to ask Lin Xirui for help. In a gruff voice, he said slowly, “Third Young Master Lin, don’t be anxious.”

The guard then took a few steps forward, grabbed the kneeling Xiao Residence guard by his clothes, lifted him over his head, and was about to throw him to the ground when the man cried out, “It was Third Young Master Lin! He likes Miss Qu Sheng and asked my young master for a man to lure her people away!”

The man said it all in one breath, but even though the words were out, the guard didn’t let him off. He slammed him back onto the ground, sending him rolling a great distance, but he didn’t kill him.

“Third Young Master Lin, please hand over Miss Sheng.” Just now, when he had brought his men to the courtyard, the maidservant at the door said Lin Xizhao had asked Qu Sheng to go to Lin Xirui’s courtyard, but he suspected things weren’t that simple. The fact that Qu Sheng went without any guards made him suspicious. If he hadn’t seen Lin Xirui in the courtyard just now, he probably would have kicked the door in.

But now, the terrified Lin Xirui was stammering, and he was losing his patience. He walked past Lin Xirui and headed for the room. Just as he entered, Qu Sheng came out, fumbling her way.

“Miss Sheng, are you alright?” The guard hurried forward a few steps, raising his arm to place it under Qu Sheng’s palm.

Qu Sheng felt the guard’s sleeve and lowered her arm slightly. “I’m fine. Tie this man up first.”

By now, Qu Sheng had a rough idea of what had happened. Lin Xirui watched her walk out of the room with a smile on his face and quickly said, “Sheng-meimei, you’re awake?”

Qu Sheng turned her ear toward Lin Xirui. He probably knew nothing about today’s events.

“Yes,” she replied faintly and walked outside.

Qu Sheng went to Lin Xizhao’s place, and Lin Xirui followed. The guard from the Xiao Residence was tied up in the courtyard by Qu Sheng’s men.

---

“Sheng’er.” Lin Xizhao quickened her pace, striding toward Qu Sheng who was standing in the courtyard. She had just gone to the Qu Residence but hadn’t seen Qu Sheng. Hearing she was here, she had rushed back.

Qu Sheng heard Lin Xizhao’s voice, turned her ear toward the sound, and a faint smile appeared on her face.

“Why did you come over by yourself?” Lin Xizhao asked anxiously, then looked up at Lin Xirui behind her.

Seeing Lin Xirui’s gentle expression as he looked at her, her tense heart relaxed for a moment. Qu Sheng probably hadn’t said anything reckless to Lin Xirui.

Qu Sheng didn’t speak. The guard glanced at her, then at Lin Xizhao who had just arrived, and after a moment’s thought, answered for her, “Miss Sheng was tricked into coming here.” Lin Xizhao had never asked Qu Sheng to come over.

Lin Xizhao looked confused. Lin Xirui, who had been completely bewildered a moment ago, now seemed to understand something.

He looked at his older sister and quickly raised his hands, waving them. “It wasn’t me.”

The group went to Lin Xizhao’s courtyard, where Qu Sheng told her what had happened. Lin Xizhao wanted to have the residence locked down, but Qu Sheng said, “the monk can run, but the temple can’t run away⁷. The person should be gone from the residence by now.” The one who drugged her and the one who led her away were likely long gone.

While Qu Sheng was waiting in Lin Xizhao’s room, someone had dangled a thread of incense from the roof, laced with a sleeping drug. The incense had been burning before she arrived, but the initial section was odorless.

They had certainly gone to a lot of trouble, even finding out who her guard was to stir up suspicion and try to lure him away.

“Jiejie, did you find anything today?” Qu Sheng changed the subject, asking about the parrot’s origin.

Lin Xizhao glanced at the still-shocked Lin Xirui, then looked back at Qu Sheng. “We didn’t find him.” She had only gone with Lin Xirui today because she was anxious, and Lin Xirui hadn’t mentioned it because they hadn’t found the person.

Lin Xizhao’s answer was what Qu Sheng had expected. She just felt it was a bit unsafe for Lin Xizhao to have gone out, but thankfully Feng Qi was with her, and her most capable guards had also accompanied them.

“No matter,” Qu Sheng said with a smile.

Right now, she still had to deal with the man from earlier, as well as the newly captured servant from the residence who had delivered the message with the hairpin.

“Feng Qi, go and invite Young Master Xiao Yaocai to the residence in Third Young Master Lin’s name. Say you want to seek a confrontation with him.”

Feng Qi accepted the order, retreated from the room, and left the Lin Residence. Lin Xizhao was now pondering what benefit Xiao Yaocai would gain from this.

If Qu Sheng had truly woken up inexplicably in Lin Xirui’s room, and this man claimed Lin Xirui was the mastermind, then Lin Xirui would be branded with the crime of plotting wrongdoing.

If Qu Sheng refused to let it go, any possibility between her and Lin Xirui would be destroyed, and that was secondary. If the Qu family found out, even with Lin Xizhao’s protection, Lin Xirui wouldn’t escape a beating, and his reputation would be swept to the ground⁸.

Lin Xikuan.

The first person Lin Xizhao thought of was Lin Xikuan, who had a prior record. She looked at Qu Sheng, wondering if she had thought of him too.

Everyone in the room went to Lin Xirui’s courtyard. After waiting there for a long time, Xiao Yaocai was finally brought to the Lin Residence.

The moment Xiao Yaocai entered, he started shouting, “It really has nothing to do with me! Brother Xirui just said he was borrowing a man; I only just found out!”

Feng Qi walked ahead, ignoring Xiao Yaocai. He entered the room and gave a cupped-hand salute⁹ to Qu Sheng and Lin Xizhao. “Eldest Young Miss, Young Miss, Young Master Xiao has been brought.”

Lin Xirui heard Xiao Yaocai’s words. Listening to his slander, he couldn’t help but glare at him angrily. “Young Master Xiao, you need to have real proof and solid evidence when you speak.”

Upon entering the room, Xiao Yaocai glanced around at the people inside. Qu Sheng and Lin Xizhao were sitting to one side. He stared at Qu Sheng’s eyes and, seeing their lifeless appearance, thought she really must be blind. Hearing Lin Xirui’s words, he gave a helpless smile. “Third Young Master Lin, you can’t be tearing down the bridge after crossing the river¹⁰. I was kept in the dark by you too. If you hadn’t come to my door and begged me, I wouldn’t have lent you my man.”

“You’re spouting nonsense!” Lin Xirui was so angry his chest heaved.

Although Lin Xirui and Xiao Yaocai knew each other and had met a few times, they had no dealings. In contrast, Lin Xikuan was quite friendly with him.

Lin Xirui’s anger was purely because of Xiao Yaocai’s lies; he knew that right now, Lin Xizhao and Qu Sheng believed he was innocent.

“Go and call Xikuan here,” Lin Xizhao said, cutting through their argument. The two men in the courtyard had been pinning the blame on Lin Xirui, which made her feel this was all premeditated.

It was strange that something could happen in the residence for so long without Lin Xikuan knowing a thing.

Hearing Lin Xizhao send for Lin Xikuan, Xiao Yaocai straightened up slightly and looked around the room.

When Lin Xikuan was summoned, he wore an innocent expression as he bowed to Lin Xizhao. “Ajie, you called for me. What’s the matter?”

Lin Xizhao watched as her younger brother didn’t even glance at Xiao Yaocai after seeing him. She asked, “Were you involved in today’s events?”

“I don’t know what Ajie is talking about,” Lin Xikuan denied flatly.

Lin Xizhao stared at him for a few moments, then glanced at Xiao Yaocai, who was still staring at Qu Sheng. “Regarding today’s matter, if you admit it now, I won’t report it to the authorities. But if you refuse to confess, then you can go spend some time in the government office jail.”

It was rare for Lin Xizhao to speak so threateningly.

Lin Xikuan’s expression froze for a second, but he quickly resumed his gentle tone. “What does Ajie mean by this? I don’t know anything, yet you want to report me to the authorities as soon as I arrive. Does Ajie feel that I’ve angered you again and you want to punish and frame me?”

“Ajie…” Lin Xirui didn’t believe Lin Xikuan was involved.

A faint smile played on Qu Sheng’s lips. She listened to Lin Xikuan’s defense, blaming Lin Xizhao’s suspicion on her desire for revenge. Just as Lin Xizhao was about to question him again, she said, “Feng Qi, take Young Master Xiao elsewhere. Make him confess.”

Qu Sheng was going to use torture.

“Yes, Young Miss.” Feng Qi gave a salute, turned to Xiao Yaocai, and a strange smile appeared on his face.

Xiao Yaocai knew what this guard was capable of. He stared at Feng Qi, then at Qu Sheng. “My father is a great general of the imperial court! If you dare touch me, I…”

At that moment, Xiao Yaocai seemed to remember that his father still relied on the Qu family.

“Young Master Xiao, to save yourself from a beating, you’d better confess,” Feng Qi said with a deliberately sinister smile.

Hearing Feng Qi’s words, Xiao Yaocai seemed to waver, but he was also betting that Feng Qi wouldn’t dare to actually harm him.

Seeing him stubbornly crane his neck, Feng Qi’s lips twitched. He reached out and dragged him out by the collar.

“Hey! Hey! You dare! Let go! I’m going to call my mother!” Xiao Yaocai yelled as he was dragged out by Feng Qi.

Feng Qi took him to a side room in the courtyard; it was never good for torture to be seen.

Soon after Xiao Yaocai was taken into the side room, his miserable screams rang out, making even Lin Xirui’s brow furrow.

“Ajie, he won’t be killed, will he?” Lin Xirui asked in a low voice.

Lin Xizhao was staring intently at Lin Xikuan. Her suspicion of him was not baseless. Lin Xirui must have told him before that he wanted to marry Qu Sheng.

Marrying a fool wouldn’t naturally incite jealousy, but recently, there were rumors that Lin Jianhai was to be granted a royal title. He and Lin Xirui were full brothers. He was banking on the fact that Lin Jianhai valued his reputation; once Lin Xirui’s name was stained, the path would be clear for him to inherit the title.

Furthermore, if Lin Xirui married Qu Sheng, even if she was a fool, he would gain the support of the Qu Residence. In the future, it would be impossible for him to use any means to reclaim the title. So he wanted to strike while everything was still unsettled—one stone, two birds¹¹. He would destroy Qu Sheng’s good impression of Lin Xirui and also stain Lin Xirui’s reputation¹². Of course, this was just Lin Xizhao’s speculation about her younger brother.

“Don’t worry. Feng Qi has never known restraint. If he dies, we’ll just have Father smooth it over,” Qu Sheng boasted, but it was something her Qu family could indeed do.

The son of a military official, plotting against her—it was not unheard of to kill him in a fit of rage. The Qu family could not only go head-to-head with others but could also twist the truth for the benefit of their own, provided the other party offended them first.

Lin Xirui’s face showed a hint of horror, while Lin Xikuan stood to the side, lips pressed together, not even daring to look up at Lin Xizhao or Qu Sheng.

After a long while, Feng Qi came in from outside, his hands covered in blood. He gave a cupped-hand salute. “Young Miss, he has confessed. It was a conspiracy with Second Young Master Lin to frame Third Young Master Lin.”

“You’re spitting blood on someone¹³!” Lin Xikuan immediately turned and denied it when he heard Feng Qi’s words, but he froze when he saw the blood on Feng Qi’s hands.

“Second Young Master Lin, Young Master Xiao is in the side room. You can go and confront him.”

A look of fear crossed Lin Xikuan’s face, and his Adam’s apple bobbed. “I didn’t conspire with him. Xirui is my younger brother. What good would it do me to harm him?”

“The benefit, naturally, is Father’s yet-to-be-conferred title,” Lin Xizhao said, spelling out the reason for him. “You used Sheng’er’s reputation to make Xirui be scorned by the Qu family, then have Father, in a fit of rage, revoke his status as the legitimate son¹⁴ and replace him with you. That way, you would logically become the heir to the royal title. Am I right?”

Lin Xizhao seemed to have hit upon Lin Xikuan’s true motive. A flicker of panic showed on his face, but he remained stubborn. “For Ajie to speculate like this, you must still hold a grudge for my past actions. You’ve set up such a scheme today to get rid of me. Truly, the most venomous is a woman’s heart.” Lin Xikuan pointed the blame at Lin Xizhao.

Lin Xizhao’s face was cold as she stared at him. Seeing his refusal to admit guilt and a stubbornness that reminded her of his mother, Yu Shi¹⁵, she swiftly raised her hand and slapped him across the face.

Lin Xikuan was struck, his head snapping to the side. Fury gradually filled his face as he turned his head back viciously toward Lin Xizhao. “You dare hit me?”

Lin Xizhao met his murderous gaze for a moment, then raised her other hand and slapped him again.

“You—” Lin Xikuan angrily raised his hand to strike back, but Feng Qi shot out a hand and gripped his wrist, applying a bit of force.

The pain instantly drained Lin Xikuan of his strength, and his face turned pale. A moment later, once Feng Qi was sure Lin Xikuan couldn’t lift his arm, he let go.

“Of these two slaps, one was for Sheng’er, and one was for Xirui.” Hearing Feng Qi say that Xiao Yaocai had confessed, a wave of anger attacked her heart¹⁶. The two people she cared about most, and Lin Xikuan had so easily trampled on them.

For the sake of personal gain, he would even plot against the little sister he grew up with and his own full-blooded brother. For him to harbor such intentions—his heart can be executed¹⁷!

Lin Xikuan held his limp, powerless arm. Hearing Lin Xizhao’s words, he suddenly let out a cold laugh. “Lin Xizhao, you’re only this arrogant because you’re sucking up to the Qu family. Without them, you wouldn’t even know how you died.” He stared sinisterly at her, then snorted after a moment. “So what if I did it? Why should you all get all the good things? What’s wrong with me taking what my mother traded her life to win for me!”

“Lin Xikuan!” Xiao Yaocai’s voice came from outside. Everyone turned to look at the door.

Feng Qi walked to the door and opened it. They saw a completely unharmed Xiao Yaocai, a cloth gag being removed from his mouth. “You bastard, you’ve ruined me!” he roared at Lin Xikuan. They had agreed that if they were discovered, they would deny it to the death and push all the blame onto Lin Xirui. And now look, he hadn’t confessed, but Lin Xikuan had.

They had even discussed that if Qu Sheng’s reputation was ruined, he would step in as the good guy and marry her. Who knew Lin Xikuan would be someone who is not enough to succeed, more than enough to fail¹⁸.

Feng Qi hadn’t actually used torture. Xiao Yaocai was Xiao Bingying’s younger brother and also Zhao Jiayu’s cousin. With this connection, Feng Qi wouldn’t dare to act rashly. Besides, Qu Sheng hadn’t signaled for him to actually do it. Xiao Yaocai’s screams were because Feng Qi had dislocated his arm and then prodded the joint back and forth with a stick, which was what made him howl in pain.

Hearing Xiao Yaocai’s words, Lin Xikuan was stunned for a long time. He couldn’t believe Xiao Yaocai was uninjured. He had clearly seen the blood on Feng Qi’s hands and heard Xiao Yaocai’s screams.

“You all ganged up to trick me?” Lin Xikuan stared at them in disbelief.

Lin Xizhao was also in the dark. Hearing Lin Xikuan’s words, she looked toward Qu Sheng.

“Feng Qi, report this to the authorities,” Qu Sheng said faintly.

“Sheng-meimei, didn’t you say we wouldn’t report it?” Lin Xirui said anxiously.

Even if his older brother was at fault, he was still his brother.

“Xirui-gege, the person he harmed was you.” Qu Sheng was not so forgiving. Normally, she might let it go with a small punishment, but Lin Xikuan’s earlier comment—that without the Qu family, Lin Xizhao wouldn’t even know how she died—made her feel there was no need to spare him.

“Sheng-meimei, please give Second Brother another chance.” He didn’t want Lin Xikuan to be sent to court. If this matter were to be brought for confronting in court, his Juren¹⁹ title would surely be revoked.

Hearing this, Qu Sheng gave a light laugh and asked Lin Xizhao, “Jiejie, what do you think?”

Lin Xizhao felt a lingering fear in her heart; she had been keeping such a menace by her side. If he wasn’t punished today, who knew what he might do in the future. “Feng Qi, go report it.”

“No, no, no! Don’t report it! I’ll exchange a condition with you!”

Everyone in the room looked at Xiao Yaocai. He said, “Aren’t you all looking for the person who sold the parrot at the teahouse? I know where he is.”

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Qu Sheng and Lin Xizhao returned to the Qu Residence. Before they could tell Qu Yu and the others the new information, the others came to find her first.

Zhao Jiayu said excitedly, “Half an hour ago, a carrier pigeon message²⁰ arrived from Shoulin. It says they’ve found Liu Wuxiang.” After speaking, her expression fell again, and she looked toward Qu Yu.

Qu Yu lowered his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and said, “It’s just that this person is unwilling to come over. We’ll have to make a trip there.”

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