Chapter 12: The Two Concubines

  "Wan Hua's residence", Ren Jia's eldest sister vented the resentment in her heart, and her expression had already eased up, saying lightly: "Zheng Pan'er, I also know that Yang Hu is a high-ranking official with heavy responsibilities, and his duties are busy. Such demands are somewhat difficult for him to fulfill. However, this time when we go to Lu, I am using the banner of going to Qi Guo to pay respects to our ancestors. In Qi Cheng, we cannot stay for too long, otherwise once the news leaks out..."

  Zheng Pan hastily cupped his hands and smiled, saying: "I understand. Young Master Yang also feels extremely apologetic for not being able to arrive as scheduled. Although this place is not far from the capital, naturally, young lady understands that matters in the imperial court can change in an instant and shake the entire world."

  Ruo Xi smiled faintly and said, "I understand, I hope Yang Hu also understands my difficulties. What Yang Hu is worried about is his future prospects. What I am worried about is my family's life and death! Can these two things be mentioned on the same day? Alright, I'll wait for three more days. If Yang Hu doesn't come within three days, I'll set off to Qi immediately, and we can talk about other matters later."

  Ren Ruoxi stood up with a flick of her sleeve, slightly tilting her head to the side. She saw Qing Yu and Ren Bingyue whispering in each other's ears, Qing Yu covering his mouth with a faint smile, while Bingyue's face was flushed red. They were completely unaware of the commotion on stage. Ren Ruoxi furrowed her brow, and a hint of annoyance rose up in her heart once again.

  Zheng Pan'er and his guards stood up to bid farewell, and upon hearing the commotion from both sides, Ren Bingyue and Qing Yu only then realized that their elder sister was leaving, and they hastily stood up as well. Ren Ruoxi didn't even glance at them before walking out first.

  Zheng Pan'er stood at the staircase entrance with a courteous bow, her face beaming with smiles. She listened as the footsteps faded away into the distance, and outside, a strong horse let out a long whinny, its hooves' sound disappearing in an instant. Only then did the smile on her face slowly fade away.

  He glanced at the person beside him and said coldly, "Chu Cai, you also heard just now. I can only drag on for three more days. If you want to take action, you only have these three days of opportunity. After three days, everything will be dropped!"

  That young servant smiled and said, "Don't worry, Lord Zheng. We can stall for three days, by then our people will have arrived. Chu will immediately inform the Emperor, and we won't let you be troubled."

  "That's good!" Zheng Pan waved his sleeve and walked down the stairs with a proud expression.

  Ren Ruo Xi returned to the front of her own mansion, and saw that the tightly closed mansion next door was now wide open. Many armored soldiers were entering in a steady stream, and she couldn't help but rein in her warhorse, a look of puzzlement appearing in her eyes.

  Several slaves in the mansion came forward, Ren Ruo Xi used her whip to point to the side door and asked: "Why are there so many armored soldiers? Is it because Mistress Cheng Bi is returning to the small courtyard for a short stay?"

  The Ren family was a big household with a large business, and they also had many mansions in Lu State. This large estate, which occupied several hectares of land, was one of their properties, and there were always some family slaves taking care of it in the mansion. That servant was an old slave from this estate.

  The old servant with grey hair bowed and replied: "Young mistress, I just heard from the servants of the Cheng family that a doctor surnamed Zhan borrowed their house to entertain guests, it's not Madame Cheng Bi who came."

  Ren Ruoxi softly said "oh" and faintly said: "Let's return to the manor."

  She finished speaking, but didn't see her sister respond. Turning her head, she saw Ren Bingyue and Qing Yu still on horseback, talking and laughing in low voices. Unbeknownst to them, anger rose from her heart. Ren Ruoxi flicked her wrist, and the whip in her hand suddenly flew up, producing a sharp cracking sound in mid-air, startling Ren Bingyue and Qing Yu who were huddled together, whispering to each other, and they quickly separated.

  Ren Ruoxi let out a cold snort and shouted: "Dismount!"

  The old slave in front of the horse knelt down on the ground, and with a slight press on the horse's back, the small deer skin boots stepped onto his back. He stretched out his hand to lift up the hem of her skirt and walked down to the ground, taking big strides towards the gate of the mansion. Seeing her sister get angry, Ren Bingyue hastily stuck out her tongue, meekly got off the horse and followed behind.

  Ren Ruoxi walked past two courtyards and stopped under a large elm tree with dense foliage, turned her face and said in a serious tone: "Ice Moon, did sister bring you out to play? You only know how to laugh and joke with the servants all day, today's trip is so ordinary, yet someone has to come find me to mediate, can't you handle anything serious...

  "Miss, Second Miss is still young and doesn't understand business...". Just as Qing Yu said this, Ren Ruo Xi's cold gaze swept towards her, icy and piercing like a bone-chilling frost. Qing Yu felt a chill in her heart and quickly shut her mouth.

  Ren Ruo regretted the corner of her mouth, Ma Bian pointed at her casually and shouted: "No rules for superior and inferior, when did I talk to Second Miss, what time did you insert your mouth, get out, kneel down in the front court, slap your mouth twenty times!"

  Qing Yu's face turned white with fear, in the entire Ren Manor, except for the master of the Ren family, she was most afraid of this young lady. As soon as she saw the young lady get angry, Qing Yu didn't dare to speak up and immediately retreated from the inner courtyard, returning to the front courtyard where she knelt down on the bluestone slab in the middle of the path, then slapped her own mouth, not even daring to hold back her strength.

  Ren Bingyue, who had been smiling and didn't think much of it, saw her sister severely scolding her maid and immediately looked displeased, frowning and rebuking: "Sister, Qingyu is my personal maid, always obedient and sensible. Although speaking out of turn disrupted the rules, it was done with the intention of protecting me wholeheartedly. Why are you being so harsh?"

  Ren Yuexi was furious, and with a flick of the whip in her hand, she lashed out at a nearby elm tree, making Ren Bingyue shrink back as if the whip had struck her own neck. Her sister rarely lost her temper, but when she did, even Ren Bingyue was afraid.

  Ren Ruoxi paced back and forth in front of the courtyard for a few steps, then stopped in front of Ren Bingyue and stared at her for half a day before nodding slightly. "You ask me why? Alright! You come with me!"

  He turned around and walked into the house with big strides, leaving Ren Bingyue no choice but to pout and follow him in.

  Ren Ruo Xi sat down on the seat, looked at Bing Yue's innocent face and sighed helplessly, asking: "Bing Yue, this time we came to Lu Guo under the pretext of returning to Qi to worship our ancestors, what are we really doing here?"

  Ren Bingyue blinked her eyes, looking confused and said: "Isn't it to deliver two hundred pieces of leather armor, three hundred swords, and five hundred narrow leaf spearheads to the buyer?"

  Ren Ruoxi shook her head, saying helplessly: "Bingyue, Father has many wives and concubines, but no sons, only you and I two daughters. Now that Father is old, it's up to us to share his worries. The current King of Wu is wary of those who were too close to the previous king, and our Ren family is in a precarious situation - don't you know this?"

  Ren Bingyue was stunned, and said in surprise: "It can't be, our Ren family is also a big clan in the state of Wu, but we have never had an overly close relationship with the royal family. When the current king of Wu ascended to the throne, didn't my father present him with 3,000 bronze swords? What doesn't he trust about our family?"

  She smiled wistfully, her dense eyelashes drooping as she fell silent for a moment before speaking: "It's all because Father asked Doctor Cao to persuade King Xiang of Qi to betroth my sister... to Gongzi Qingji as his wife. The king agreed right away, but since Gongzi Qingji was still fighting in the state of Chu, the formal engagement ceremony had not yet taken place. At that time, Helü was present before the late king's throne and saw everything with his own eyes; after he usurped the throne, how could he trust my family, the Ren?

  The technique of smelting and casting in Wu and Yue is the best in the world, and my family is among the best. The weapons of the State of Wu all come from my family. Under my father's command, there are 2,000 smelters, 2,000 blacksmiths, and 4,000 mining laborers. If we want to rebel, we can raise an army in no time. How could the King of Wu not consider my family a thorn in his side?

  It's just that our family is very influential in the state of Wu, and after he ascended to the throne, my father was the first to offer three thousand sharp swords as a congratulatory gift. Since then, Helü has been unable to find any fault with our family, so he has been tolerating us for the time being. My father saw through his murderous intentions, and offering the swords was actually a way of protecting himself. Now, violating Wu's ban on selling arms to other states is also done in order to survive. Making money isn't the goal; it's about getting acquainted with the powerful people of each state, preparing an escape route, that's my father's true intention."

  Ren Bingyue said in surprise: "So that's how it is...... But Bingyue didn't do anything, just walking around with Qingyu, what kind of trouble could she cause?"

  Ren Ruo Xi rebuked, "Foolish! If the news of our private meeting with the foreign dignitary were to leak out, the already suspicious Wu Wang would definitely not bother with courtesy and immediately take action against my Ren family. At that time, my Ren family would be doomed to extinction. Along this journey, sister has been low-key and cautious, but you are reckless and show off everywhere, yet you say you won't stir up trouble?

  I've told you countless times, but you never take it to heart. Qing Yu that little girl only knows how to fawn and flatter, catering to your every whim. Hmph! It's getting more and more unseemly. She is indeed loyal to you, I know that, but can a loyal servant be indulged? You are a woman of the Ren family, the servants by your side are not ordinary servants, if you don't maintain a distinction between superior and inferior with them, it will give them hopes they shouldn't have!

  When you are in power, their status naturally rises with yours, and their pride will also grow. However, no matter how well you treat them, can you share everything with them? Can you let them have the same honor and status as you?

  You can't control them, but you tolerate their ambitions, and they will harbor resentment. The way to govern subordinates is to use both kindness and severity, making them grateful for your rewards and fearful of your authority. If you don't distinguish between master and servant, superior and inferior, trouble will arise sooner or later.

  Look at the state of Lu today, the three families of Ji, Shu and Meng have divided up the power of the ruler of Lu among themselves, and driven the ruler of Lu to Qi. They have powerful vassals under their command, such as Yang Hu, Gongshan Buqi, and Zhongliang Huai, who are all ambitious and secretly gathering death squads, privately purchasing weapons, emptying the public treasury, and usurping power, following the same path as their masters.

  "These courtiers, towards Lu Jun, these family ministers, towards the court, which one was not loyal and devoted at first? Which one had evil intentions from the start? It is human nature that people's desires are insatiable, and their ambitions know no bounds. If you don't understand how to rule your subordinates, but have great power, even a loyal dog will turn into a ferocious wolf and eventually bite back."

  Ren Bingyue said discontentedly: "Isn't there still sister around? As long as Bingyue listens to your words, what's the use of learning these cunning and deceitful tactics?"

  "Me?" Her delicate eyebrows, like distant mountains, slightly furrowed, and a thread of melancholy slowly rippled between her brows. She gazed at the flowers swaying on the path outside the door, dazed for a long time, before softly sighing and whispering: "Sister... perhaps I'll be getting married soon..."

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