Lian Hua squinted her almond eyes, shaking her head and tapping on the table to the rhythm as she listened. Xiao Linzi was truly impressive; he remembered so many poems about insects. She couldn’t recall a single one, otherwise she might have recited one just now to pretend she knew.
Xiao Qing also nodded along. The master had said that one should shake their head a little while reading to avoid dozing off.
Xiao Jizi was somewhat speechless. Well, this was really fitting the occasion—all the poems were about insects. He hoped the masters wouldn’t be scared away again when they came back...
The two speakers paused, goosebumps forming on their skin. Why did it have to be about insects? They were afraid... The two exchanged glances, and the look made them reluctant again; they overcame their fear of insects, tears started to fall, and they couldn’t help but lament whether they would ever have the chance to meet again in this life.
Hearing the crying, Lian Hua frowned, found time to glance at the two crybabies who had been sobbing for quite a while, more than even Sister Fang could.
Alas, it turned out Sister Fang was also afraid of insects, and so was Xiao Yinyi. With that thought, she raised her hand, "Xiao Linzi, stop for a moment, that’s enough."
"...Yes, Your Highness." Xiao Linzi felt a bit regretful. He had recited only nine and a half poems, still two and a half short of completing all the insect poems he had seen.
Xiao Jizi breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily His Highness had called a halt, otherwise the concubines would have just had to endure it.
Lian Hua grew bored again, no longer wanting to hear recitations, with nothing else to do. Sister Consort De had mentioned there would be a great show before she left and had told her to wait, but why hadn’t the people arrived yet? A whole duration of tea time had passed, alas...
Suddenly, she remembered something, shifting her gaze to those two, almost forgetting—they were about to leave the palace soon, how could this be?
She straightened up and immediately turned to Xiao Jizi behind her, "Xiao Jizi, is the ’IOU’ still there?"
The voice echoed in the Qianqiu Hall, and it seemed as if the two heard it—their crying diminished slightly as they stealthily glanced over.
Xiao Jizi replied, "It’s still here, Your Highness. The servant has kept it safe, wouldn’t lose it for anything." He patted his chest, causing the stack of papers to rustle crisply.
Xiao Linzi chimed in, "Your Highness, there’s no need to worry if it’s lost, the servant has memorized them all."
"Well done, very secure indeed." Lian Hua gave a thumbs up, then said, "I just remembered something. Some debts shouldn’t be postponed; it might be too late to collect them later."
The two grew stiff. Was she talking about them? But they weren’t scoundrels—they would pay off their debts even with jewelry they no longer wanted to wear.
Xiao Qing didn’t quite understand and asked, "Your Highness, why is that?" Could there really be someone who wouldn’t acknowledge the debt? She couldn’t understand it.
"Well, someone the day after tomorrow... cough cough..." Lian Hua was about to tell the truth when she caught the pitiful, tear-filled eyes of the two, looking so wretched that she quickly changed her phrasing, unwilling to deeply hurt them: "You know, such matters shouldn’t be dragged out, the longer it’s delayed, the more distressing it becomes for the sisters, right? Let’s settle today’s matters today, otherwise today..."
The eyes of both individuals widened. Today was the Longevity Event. Surely Beauty Lian wouldn’t choose today to collect debts, would she?
Upon reflection, Lian Hua realized she had misspoken. How could she collect debts on His Majesty’s birthday? That was something only a thug would do. So she quickly corrected herself, "Never mind, let’s leave it for tomorrow. Tomorrow forever a tomorrow, there are plenty of tomorrows. We shall collect the debts then."
Xiao Qing and Xiao Linzi thought to themselves and readily grasped the underlying message. Indeed, constantly being owed was indeed unsettling for their master. It would be best to collect the debts sooner rather than later.
Xiao Jizi’s eyes revealed his understanding. Given his knowledge of his master, he was confident that the reason was that she feared someone might leave the palace the day after tomorrow and the debts would remain uncollected!
"Alright, alright," Lian Hua called everyone’s attention back and excitedly began planning her grand schemes. "Let’s decide first who will go to collect the debts and how."
Xiao Linzi’s spirits lifted; he couldn’t wait to say, "Master, let this servant go. This servant remembers how much silver each of them owes." He had regretted not accompanying them to intimidate Consort Zhen last time.
Lian Hua’s eyes lit up. No problem at all, Xiao Linzi was obedient and had a good memory. He wouldn’t collect the wrong debts. She couldn’t help but slap the desk, "Alright, Xiao Linzi, it’s settled. You’re in charge, remember that."
"Alright, Master, this servant has remembered," Xiao Linzi responded cheerfully, his face breaking into a lively, bashful smile.
Fearing she might be overlooked, Xiao Qing hurriedly said, "Master, don’t forget this servant. This servant is strong and can carry a lot!"
"Hmm?" What does collecting debts have to do with being able to carry a lot? Lian Hua thought for a moment, then widened her eyes in shock as she turned to look at Xiao Qing.
She couldn’t help but clap her hands, "Xiao Qing, well done! You’ve made a valid point. Yes, we need to collect cash, shiny silver, nothing else! Looking at it that way, we indeed need someone strong. Xiao Linzi, count Xiao Qing in." They would need the strength to carry the silver back, which was the most important thing! Google seaʀᴄh novel✦fire.net
The four of them took this matter very seriously and started to discuss noisily. They decided who would go, how to handle tricksters, and even how the spoils would be shared after collecting the debts — each would receive ten taels of reward silver.
The two of them listening grew more and more stunned, forgetting the hard-to-break sisterly bonds after leaving the palace, driven only by the desire for cash, and the infuriating methods of debt collection! They decided in their hearts that they would immediately go and pay off their debts upon returning, to take back their IOUs.
Beauty Lian was too frightening. Who collected debts in the palace? It was utterly unseemly. Listen to what they were planning: At every debt collection spot, they would send a maid with a loud voice to make a scene all the way through, letting the entire palace know, adding interest upon interest if they didn’t pay. Those who were leaving the palace had to surrender the original sum plus interest before they could go; those remaining in the palace would be closely watched on allowance days, forcing them to loudly acknowledge how much they still owed with interest, leaving them stripped of dignity and money.
By the time most of the concubines had tidied up and returned to Qianqiu Hall, and they saw that the two of them looked quite perplexed, radiating panic as if they were on tenterhooks, frequently glancing at Beauty Lian. Had something happened while they were out?
Let’s now put aside these scenes and return to a time when most of the concubines were still out. Not far from Qianqiu Hall was a pavilion. The area was bustling, with people continually passing by. Within the pavilion, there sat two people, one of them being the master, looking relaxed as if enjoying the scenery and breathing in the fresh air while talking warmly to the palace maid beside her, the scene exuding tranquility.
The other was the palace maid, head bowed, her expressions unseen by outsiders, her mouth moving slightly as if to match the master’s enjoyment of the scenery.
Anyone drawing nearer would realize that this was not the case at all.