Chapter 010

Puyi was completely absent-minded.

Yu Gege repeated the story of the lost Ling several times, but the abdicated Emperor not only failed to grasp the implied meaning and the undertone in her words but also asked Yu Gege who Ling was.

"The parrot that Empress Dowager Cixi favoured the most, a congratulatory gift from Minister Li Hongzhang on her sixtieth birthday."

"Oh," Puyi nodded, as if recalling that there was such a matter.

A spark of hope ignited in Yu Gege's heart, and the next step was to steer the conversation from the parrot towards herself.

"Let it fly if it wants to," Puyi unexpectedly interjected.

The flicker of hope was instantly extinguished.Yu Gege hadn't anticipated Puyi's indifference toward Empress Dowager Cixi's cherished possession. Hoping that he would extend his care to her seemed laughable now.

"Leaving might be for the best. If it stays in the palace, sooner or later, someone might mistake it for a fried quail."

"Let them try!" Yu Gege's words sounded like she was defending Ling, but in reality, she was defending herself.

Puyi finally picked up on something amiss. "Is the reason for your visit today, Gege, not just about that bird?"

At this point, with matters having reached such a point, using Ling as a pretext was unnecessary. Yu Gege closed her eyes and steeled her resolve, "Your Majesty, Wu Yusheng, I will not marry."

"Insolent!" Puyi adopted the demeanour of an emperor.

The eunuchs nearby were so frightened that they knelt down in a flurry.

"Oh, I wasn't talking about you. Get up, and be careful with my belongings."

Puyi quickly took a porcelain bottle from one of the eunuchs' hands to examine it. "When it comes to preferences, I still love this enamel red-washed jade pot with pine, bamboo, and plum blossom motifs the most. It's a pity it's too large, not suitable, not easily manageable…"

In an instant, Yu Gege and Wu Yusheng were cast into oblivion by Puyi's words. He then pointed to a eunuch holding a scroll and asked how many similar ancient paintings were left in the storeroom.

The eunuch remained silent, his eyes frequently glancing at Yu Gege.

Puyi understood the situation and changed his demeanour toward Yu Gege from stern to gentle. "Gege, I'm doing this for your own good, do you understand?"

Yu Gege's stubborn expression practically spelled out the words "I don't know" across her face.

"The Wu family has served the court for generations, and Wu Yusheng is faithfully devoted to me..."

"Faithfully devoted? Then why is he in Qingdao while you are in Beijing?"

In fact, Yu Gege's words carried a deeper implication: You're no longer the emperor, so why do you still need his loyalty?

"Do you even understand? Wu Yusheng is residing temporarily in Qingdao, biding his time and strategizing for the revival of our great Qing."

More than a decade had passed since the fall of the Qing Dynasty, and even a child wouldn't believe Puyi's words. No wonder a trace of mockery and disdain appeared on Yu Gege's lips.

"Yun Gui!" Puyi's anger flared, "Don't forget, your surname is still Aisin Gioro. I can use you to win over Han officials and restore the Qing Dynasty. Don't weigh yourself too heavily; you're not more valuable than that bird. You're a pawn, and I can manipulate you however I wish, just like a chess piece."

Yu Gege rarely witnessed Puyi's explosive anger, and she was somewhat taken aback.

A delicate and slender young man appeared at the doorway. Seeing the tense situation, he hesitated for a moment before mustering the courage to step forward to Puyi's side and whisper something.

"What?" Puyi's rage instantly dissipated, "You were stopped? What about the item?"

"Thankfully, I was quick on my feet..." The young man untied a piece of jade from inside his jacket and handed it to Puyi.

Yu Gege recognized him as Puyi's younger brother, Pujie. The piece of jade was likely a jade bi with cloud patterns.

"It's fortunate that these jade artifacts from the Warring States period have holes in the centre. If it were a solid piece, there wouldn't be a place to tie a cord." Puyi examined the jade bi, his face filled with relief.

Seeing Yu Gege, Pujie smiled and greeted her before Puyi realized that he still had a thorny issue to address.

"Pujie, told Gege, at the palace gate just now, whom did you encounter?" Puyi asked.

"Feng Yuxiang's Nationalist Army," Pujie honestly admitted.

Yu Gege listened but displayed an indifferent attitude that conveyed "What's it to me?"

"Gege, let me tell you the truth," Puyi sighed, "Our days of being emperors behind closed doors are numbered. The Republican army is stationed at the palace gates day in and day out. Sooner or later, they will storm in. If I don't protect you, who will?"

This was the first time Yu Gege had heard about this situation, and she couldn't help but turn pale with shock.

"In the future, I'll have to rely on these things to get by," Puyi gestured toward the collectibles and calligraphy held by the eunuchs, "You... I've inquired about it. Wu Yusheng has been a government official for many years, and he has a substantial family background..."

Yu Gege understood. Puyi was still trying to preserve her dignity by finding her a stable source of support through marriage.

Yu Gege could only accept it.

She stood beneath the parrot's perch, feeling just as empty and aimless as the stand itself.

A spider started weaving its web on the stand, and Yu Gege watched as it moved back and forth, forming the initial shape of a bagua (Eight Trigrams) pattern.

Yu Gege couldn't quite tell if she was irritated by the spider occupying the magpie's nest or if she was jealous of its self-sufficiency. She extended her hand and tore apart the bagua web.

The spider hurriedly fled, but Yu Gege pursued it. She plucked the spider off the stand, pinched it between her two fingers, and rolled it repeatedly. After she had vented her frustration to her satisfaction, she stopped tormenting the spider and placed it in the palm of her hand.

In the time it took for her to catch her breath, the spider regained consciousness and used its eight legs to scramble desperately. It probably didn't have a clear sense of where it was; it only felt that the path ahead was endless.

In reality, Yu Gege was repeatedly flipping her palm, watching the spider's desperate struggle with an amused expression.

But then, a thought struck her, and she lowered her hands, allowing the spider to fall to the ground in a victorious escape.

Clapping her hands, Yu Gege called out for Xi and Fu.

No one answered.

Yu Gege made her way to the quarters where the palace maids resided.

In truth, she hadn't yet figured out what she should do next to change her fate. She simply felt that if a spider could fight so hard for survival, why should she let Puyi dictate the rest of her life with just a few words?

The laughter of Xi and Fu could penetrate any wooden door. When Yu Gege suddenly appeared before them, the two servants were so embarrassed that their lips seemed stuck to their teeth, unable to release themselves no matter how hard they tried.

Xi, always crafty, quickly pushed Fu forward to greet Yu Gege, laughing mischievously as she asked their mistress to guess what idle gossip she had just heard.

Yu Gege looked at Xi with a disdainful expression, as if saying, "If you have something to say, just say it. I'm not a mind reader, how would I guess?"

"Princess Duanyang has just been betrothed in a ghost marriage, and the groom is Instructor Zou," Xi revealed.

Yu Gege felt like her mind had been struck by thunder, her eyes flashing with astonishment.

"Princess Duanyang is your sister, Jun," Xi explained, assuming that Yu Gege might not be accustomed to connecting Princess Duanyang with Jun.

"I know very well who that princess was, the one who only acknowledged her heritage after she died. I don't need your chatter,"Yu Gege retorted angrily, her expression and voice fierce.

Xi rolled her eyes, knowing that Yu Gege had just been so jealous.

"I heard that Instructor Zou's father personally went to propose to Princess Duanyang's father. The two families quickly agreed, as if they wouldn't allow those two to stay single any longer..." Fu, apparently unaware of Yu Gege's mood, eagerly added more gossip details.

"This is what they call 'birds fly together in the sky, branches intertwined on the earth.' The bond between Instructor Zou and Princess Duanyang is so moving, whoever isn't touched by it must be heartless," Xi added with a hidden intention.

"By the way, Sister Xi, your words remind me of something. About that parrot, Ling – it is truly extraordinary. It's no wonder it was Empress Dowager Cixi's beloved possession," Fu said.

Xi glanced at Yu Gege and noticed that the handkerchief in her hand had been twisted into a mess. Xi secretly rejoiced and decided to knowingly ask, "Why is that bird extraordinary?"

"It kept saying something about Little Zou and Second Niu, hand in hand wherever go. You see, aren't Instructor Zou and Princess Duanyang holding hands forever now?" Fu replied.

"Fu!" Yu Gege's angry shout cut off the exchange between the two palace maids.

"What's wrong, Gege?" Fu was confused. They were talking about well-known anecdotes; how did they manage to anger this thirty-year-old mistress?

"You, go and find me a peach wood sword. Also, bring a basin of dog's blood."

"What are you planning to do, Gege?"

"Just go already, why so much nonsense?"

Fu was too frightened to speak further, but Xi couldn't help herself, "Peach wood sword? Dog's blood? Gege, are you... trying to capture ghosts?"

Yu Gege shot Xi a contemptuous glance and turned to leave.

How could those two ignorant maids possibly fathom Yu Gege's intentions? She wasn't merely trying to capture ghosts; she also had the means to get things done. Yu Gege was confident that she could manipulate Yan without spending a dime, as long as she touched on his sensitive spots. He would do anything for her without hesitation.

The peach wood and dog's blood were quickly prepared, waiting for Yan to fall into the trap. Yu Gege was certain that Yan would come; after all, if he took away the talkative bird, how could he resist taking the bird's food as well? Even if he was cautious due to the danger, a sigh and teary eyes from Jun would make him cast all caution aside.

Yu Gege crouched by the storage room door for most of the night, anxiously awaiting Yan's arrival. However, he didn't show up. Just as she was regretting not enlisting the help of Xi and Fu, Yu Gege saw something incredible through the broken window: a feather duster rising into the air seemingly on its own.

The feather duster floated and swayed, heading straight for the peach wood sword as if it had a mind of its own. It picked apart the peach wood sword and in the blink of an eye, the bag of millet vanished.

Yu Gege's heart was pounding in her throat. She silently counted five numbers, the steps it took to walk from where the bag of millet was placed to the storage room door.

Before the door even cracked open, Yu Gege grabbed a basin of dog's blood from the floor and flung it towards the entrance.

According to her plan, Yu Gege waited for Yan to reveal his true form. As soon as he did, she would shout, "Yan, it's me! I'm Jun's sister."

Yu Gege understood that at this moment, she had to use Jun's identity. Even if Yan was a ghost, he would likely spare her. Then, she would appeal to his emotions and reason with him, describing the hardships she and Jun endured in the palace. Without making an effort, they would never have a chance to escape their predicament.

However, whether Yu Gege mistimed her move or simply encountered the limits of superstitious practices, the outcome was disappointing. After the dog's blood, there was nothing left but a smelly, sticky, and bloody mess on the ground.

Yu Gege was dumbfounded. The thought of having to deliver Puyi's treasures out of the palace the next morning left her even more flustered. All she could hear echoing in her ears was a gambler muttering to himself, "It's over, it's all over now."