Chapter 22

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"An Overbearing Prince?"

Zhu Qiuyu glanced at the title, raising an eyebrow. *Hmm, is this some gossip piece about one of the princes in Bianjing? The author certainly has some nerve! This is actually quite interesting.*

Zhu Qiuyu picked up a rose-honey milk pastry from her plate and took a small bite. She continued reading, unhurriedly following the narrative.

"A few years ago, there lived a family named Bai on Distillery Street. The couple were honest, hardworking folk with an only daughter named Bai Wanwan. Their life as a family of three was peaceful and content, but alas, good times did not last. The mother fell gravely ill and never recovered. On her deathbed, she called her daughter to her side and said, 'Wanwan, you must live well and take care of yourself. Mother is going now, but I will watch over you from the beyond.'

"With those words, the woman closed her eyes and passed away."

Reading this, Zhu Qiuyu couldn't help but frown slightly. *To lose her mother at such a young age—this poor girl.* She set down her half-eaten pastry.

The story by Yang Manniang continued.

After the woman passed, she was buried on a hill outside the city. Bai Wanwan, a diligent, kind, and filial girl, relied on her father for support. Despite her youth, she learned to wash clothes and cook. Every morning, she would wipe clean her mother’s memorial tablet, honoring her in her own way.

Later, when winter came, her father took a new wife—Bai Wanwan’s stepmother. The woman was a widow, and when she arrived, she brought her own daughter from her previous marriage. She even gave her daughter the surname Bai, calling her Bai Zhenzhen.

Their arrival marked the beginning of young Bai Wanwan’s suffering.

Whenever the father was away, the mother and daughter would seize Bai Wanwan’s clean, decent clothes for themselves, forcing her into rags. They banished her to the kitchen to handle the chores: clearing ashes, washing vegetables, cooking, and feeding the chickens and ducks. While Wanwan labored, the stepmother and stepsister would sit in clean clothes, eating delicate pastries bought from the market.

Wanwan rose before dawn to fetch water, start the fire, cook, and wash. Beyond that, she had to endure the beatings and curses of her stepmother and stepsister. By night, when she was exhausted, her room had been usurped by her stepsister, leaving her to sleep on a small wooden board beside the stove...

Yang Manniang possessed a gift for storytelling. Through simple, vivid descriptions, she made the abuse suffered by Bai Wanwan feel deeply personal to the reader. To make the story feel more authentic and immersive, Yang had incorporated various sights and sounds she had encountered during her time in the Song Dynasty.

Consequently, her protagonist, Bai Wanwan, was essentially a Northern Song version of Cinderella.

Zhu Qiuyu, who had been quite amused by the initial gossip, found herself so absorbed in the plight of Bai Wanwan that the smile faded from her face. Especially when she read about Wanwan being forced to sleep on a wooden board after her room was stolen, Zhu Qiuyu slammed the manuscript onto the table in a fit of rage.

"Outrageous! Simply despicable! How could there be such a malicious stepmother and such a hateful stepsister in this world!"

"Miss, what... what is the matter?"

Startled by the outburst, her personal maid, Xiaoyu, came rushing in from the outer room to investigate. Her mistress had been smiling just a moment ago—how had her mood shifted so drastically? And what was this about a malicious stepmother and stepsister? Her mistress was the lady’s own daughter, and she had five older brothers; where would a sister come from?

"This is none of your concern!" Zhu Qiuyu had no time for the maid. She was too curious about what would happen next. She took a deep breath.

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Composing herself, she picked up the manuscript and continued reading.

The narrative went on:

"Although the stepmother and stepsister were vicious, Wanwan’s nature was kind and simple. She endured the hardships at home without complaint, and life remained somewhat bearable.

"However, one day, a carriage arrived at the Bai household. A refined, middle-aged man in wealthy attire stepped out. He approached Master Bai, claiming that in his youth, he had been saved by Bai Wanwan’s mother and wished to repay the debt. When told that the mother had passed away, the man expressed his regret and revealed his identity. He was none other than the wealthy Landowner Lu Qianshan from the local area. He proposed an agreement with Master Bai: his son would marry the daughter left behind by his savior to honor the debt of gratitude.

"Master Bai was naturally willing, and he handed the token left by Landowner Lu to Bai Wanwan. This was meant to be a wonderful marriage for her.

"But the stepmother and stepsister were consumed by jealousy. As a common family, how could they not covet the riches of the Lu household? The stepmother was unwilling to let Wanwan marry into such wealth; in her eyes, if anyone were to marry into that family, it should be her own daughter, Bai Zhenzhen.

"Thus, the two women conspired to find a way to prevent Wanwan from marrying the Lus, so that the stepsister could take her place."

"Ah! Those two wicked women, how can they be so shameless? Wanwan, you must not fall for it!"

The first-person perspective made it easy for female readers to empathize with the heroine. The twists in the plot forced a cry of alarm from Zhu Qiuyu. Her eyes filled with deep concern, and she gripped the manuscript so tightly that she wrinkled the edges. Remembering her father’s previous instructions, she quickly loosened her grip and carefully smoothed out the creases. She continued reading.

"One day, while Master Bai was away on a long trip, the stepmother acted uncharacteristically kind. Not only did she excuse Wanwan from chores, but she gave her a set of clean, new clothes and prepared a table of delicious food. She invited Wanwan to eat with them, claiming they were finally a true family. The simple, kindhearted Wanwan was moved to tears.

"Without suspicion, Wanwan accepted a bowl of gardenia sweet soup offered by her stepmother, which had been laced with an aphrodisiac. She drank it all.

"Afterward, she felt dizzy and weak. Before she knew it, the stepmother and stepsister had vanished. Only a lecherous-looking man stood there, stumbling into the room with the stench of alcohol on his breath."

"Ah!"

Seeing this, Zhu Qiuyu had completely immersed herself in the story. She felt Wanwan’s plight as if it were her own. She could not accept that such a kind and innocent young woman would have her purity defiled by such a vile man. She slammed the table again.

"Abominable! How can there be such a poisonous woman in this world, ruining someone’s virtue like this! It is truly hateful; they should be dragged to the magistrate and locked up!"

By now, the maid, Ayu, understood what was happening. Her mistress must have become obsessed with a storybook again. She picked up a yellow jade teacup with a bamboo pattern and carefully poured a cup of Guanyin tea for Zhu Qiuyu, whispering a plea:

"Oh, my dear lady, those storybooks are all fabrications by down-and-out scholars. It is fine to read for amusement, but why take it to heart and make yourself angry? Anger is harmful to one's health."

"Oh, I’m not drinking that." Zhu Qiuyu was too anxious about Wanwan’s situation, fearing she would be bullied. She couldn't be bothered to pay attention to her maid.

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She didn't drink the tea, but instead kept reading.

"'Well now, little lady, would you like this brother to keep you company?' the lecherous man said, reaching out toward Wanwan, who was slumped over the table.

"Only then did Wanwan realize she had been tricked by her stepmother and stepsister. But because of the drug, her body was burning, and she lacked the strength to resist. The man moved to embrace her. Terrified, Wanwan pinched herself, trying to summon the spirit to dodge him.

"Though the man was drunk, he was still a man with great strength. He turned back, stumbled toward her, grabbed her arm, and began to tear at her clothes. Wanwan struggled, screaming in fear. But no one came to save her.

"Wanwan knew she had to save herself, or her purity would be lost. Enduring the pain, she bit down hard on the tip of her tongue. The sharp, piercing pain helped her regain her senses and gave her a surge of strength. She pushed the drunken man away and grabbed the base of a candlestick, smashing it against his head. Seeing him collapse in pain, she scrambled and fled.

"She ran forward blindly, not knowing the direction. She only knew she had to escape to protect her virtue. After running for who knows how long, she encountered a small, injured white kitten by the roadside. Despite her own distress, the kindhearted Wanwan bandaged the kitten's wounds.

"Somehow, she found herself following the kitten into an inn called the Yuelai Inn. By pure chance, she knocked on the door of the inn’s top-tier suite. As the door opened, the bright candlelight spilled out, illuminating Wanwan’s delicate face. Dazed and weak, she collapsed into the arms of a man.

"Weakly, she pleaded, 'Please... save me.'"

Zhu Qiuyu read this part holding her breath. From the moment the heroine was cornered by the scoundrel, to her using the candlestick to escape, to saving the kitten and finally reaching the inn—she hadn't even had a moment to catch her breath before the overbearing protagonist made his sudden entrance.

Yang Manniang had described the appearance and aura of the absolute lead, Prince Yu, perfectly. It was incredibly alluring.

"The man in the room was tall and slender, dressed in a black python robe with a jade-colored court sash at his waist. He wore a white jade and gold crown, his gaze cold and his dignity too imposing to meet directly. In the brilliant candlelight, he was impossibly handsome, exuding a noble aura that seemed born with him."