TWENTY SEVEN

"All along General Kong knew that one of the Northwest Kings had planned to break the Xi empire's rule in the northwest region. It was just unexpected that Han Hong Yuan decided to join the campaign and informed me secretly about The Grand Chancellor and Li Qing Feng's plan to get rid of me." Li Fei Long shared his side of the story from the northwest experience.

Jiang Xi Yu lifted up her head away from Li Fei Long's arm. She pressed her hand on his chest to get up. They were naked and tired after a few love making rounds, but hearing Li Fei Long's explanation, Jiang Xi Yu could not help but having all the negative thoughts grow.

"Han Hong Yuan ran away from his own mansion and joined the campaign just to let you know that his father and Li Qing Feng plotted your death?! Do you really think it showed his sincerity?! He betrayed his own family and was willing to stand beside you. Could all this be just a political trick to get your trust up close?" Jiang Xi Yu asked as a few scheming scenarios that started to appear inside her mind.

Sat beside Li Fei Long, Jiang Xi Yu became very much worried. Could it be that her husband was not as smart as she thought he was?!

Li Fei Long laughed at her face. He touched her forehead to release her frown. Then he sat up and looked deeply at her eyes.

"Now he has become Commander Bai's apprentice and your brother is also keeping an eye on him. I would be the very first person who would know whatever hidden motive or plan that he has. Other than that, your new servant corroborated the reason why Han Hong Yuan turned his back on his own fu.", said Li Fei Long with confidence.

A new light came to her senses. She realized how stupid she was by easily put her trust on the young pitiful girl. Jiang Xi Yu smacked her own forehead.

"But I do feel Chu Hua is an honest girl. Come to think of it, there is the same possibility for her to get inside our fu and to win my trust. Being in this period, with this status and title, it is really very tough." Jiang Xi Yu admitted.

Li Fei Long laughed lightly at her. He held both her arms and pulled her closer. "No need to be worried. You made the right decision by putting that new servant under Ding mama and Xiao Gan Zi's surveillance. A slight move from her…."

Pulling her arms away, Jiang Xi Yu moved away from Li Fei Long. She stood up and walked away to get a cold refreshment that was prepared for them. She was hungry and tired.

"I know.. I know… You will get notice on anything. Even if a mouse moves in the storeroom, you will be the first to know." Being sarcastic, Jiang Xi Yu felt useless for being worried for her husband. She gulped down some water and heard Li Fei Long laughing while watching over her from their bed.

"My jealous wang fei… I proposed the marriage degree between Princess Duva and si di to King Kan. Becoming Chen Wang Fei is way more honorable than to be a concubine." All of sudden Li Fei Long uncovered his plan.

So, King Kan's original intention was to give Princess Duva as Li Fei Long's concubine. Jiang Xi Yu put down her water cup back on the tray. She folded her arms in front of her chest and leaned her hips on the side of the rounded table. Waiting for Li Fei Long to continue his words.

"If Princess Duva entered Duan Wang Fu as part of the qieshi, I could get the full support that I need from the northwest. But I discovered si di's aptitude while on the campaign together. His maternal background could not support him, therefore it is best to have him support me." Li Fei Long explained his move.

Jiang Xi Yu caught his sly smile. She has a love and hate feeling for this side of him.

"So, you set them up as a couple and gain more support for yourself?!" She replied right away.

Naked and sitting back, Li Fei Long smiled at her.

"What I want to say is that, if in the future, a girl has to enter our fu, certainly because of her background that I might have to take into account. I want you to remember this and understand that your position in my heart won't change."

An anger built up inside Jiang Xi Yu, she could not believe Li Fei Long would dare to say that to her. She got hurt from that statement and she did not try to hide it from Li Fei Long.

Her chin raised as her pride got torn. Her chest pulsates as she turns mad and sad.

Li Fei Long noticed the change in her reaction. Straightening up his back, he added, "You do realize a man is possible to have few concubines, right?!"

"I do know that in this era, a noble man….. a qin wang could have concubines, mistresses, any woman that he wants as many as he could." Her words were shaken as she spoke.

"I just want you to not feel jealous." Li Fei Long raised his voice as he became irritated seeing Jiang Xi Yu's reaction. He knew his words hurt her. His anger was because he regretted what he said to her but it was too late.

"I cannot forbid and I will not forbid. You can have as many women as you like. Either for the sake of your power support or maybe just for the call of lust. What I believe is that the moment you have another woman beside me, I do too have the right to leave you." Jiang Xi Yu said it loud and clear.

Her belief was firm. He knew Jiang Xi Yu meant every word of it. He knew she could leave him once he messed up with her. The fear of losing her crawled up inside him. Li Fei Long cursed loudly and stormed at her. Jiang Xi Yu blocked his move by putting her palm on his bare chest.

"I am not an object." She told him. "I am not your object. Whatever the reason you have in the future, if you have the intention to have a new mistress, new concubine, or whatever it is you call that woman, I would not be Duan Wang Fei anymore."

"Stop your nonsense!" Li Fei Long shouted right in front of her face. He held her arms tightly. He pulled her hurtfully.

What she said was what she believed, she would not back off. Staring back at Li Fei Long, Jiang Xi Yu showed him how disappointed she was at him.

"You will never leave me. You belong to me!" Li Fei Long shouted more fiercely.

He pulled her to his chest. He forced his lips on her. He ravished her beastly like he wanted to show her that she was in his territory. That she was his!

As the tears ran down on her face, Jiang Xi Yu did not say anything and let him be. Their kiss did not feel the same as before. It did not feel mutual. Li Fei Long pulled his head back and looked at her teary eyes.

At that moment his anger has left him. Jiang Xi Yu caught his fear in his eyes. With both hands touching her cheeks, Li Fei Long sternly told her. "I do not allow you to leave me."

He held her tightly. He kissed her again, this time it felt like he begged her. One hand held Jiang Xi Yu's head, another hand circled her body. An easy lift moved Jiang Xi Yu's body from the center of the room to the side of the bed. Slightly pushed her down to the bed, Li Fei Long laid her on top of a crumpled blanket.

He positioned himself on top of her. Locking her so she could not be able to move. Desperately, he pushed his tool on her private part. When it was about to enter her, he looked into her eyes. His hand caressed her face as he spoke.

"We are one."

***

"For the two days wang ye and wang fei isolated themself in their bed chamber, we were lucky Chen Qin Wang and Yan Huang Fei entertained our guests. For the full two days we were not too busy to handle the guests." Chu Hua said in a cheerful tone.

She was happy. Serving as a maid right under Ding mama's authority, Chu Hua never was this happy and content. She got comfortable sleep, a wage, and a full set of food daily. Even though she still got punished here and there for her clumsiness, the punishment was never as inhuman as she witnessed at the previous fu.

Chu Hua walked behind Ding mama, carrying a silver tray of refreshments to be presented to the side garden where Duan Wang Fei was hosting an afternoon walk with Princess Duva and her mother.

Another servant who walked beside her could not help but giggled. "Our wang ye missed our wang fei dearly until no one even dared to disturb them for two days. Soon, we will announce happy news from our fu."

Ding mama stopped her feet right away. Both servants almost dropped the tray on their hands. Chu Hua shrinked in fear. She regretted bringing up her foolish thoughts. Ding mama has scolded her many times for speaking her mind out loud.

"How many times do I have to punish both of you for being nosy?!" Ding mama scolded them loudly. Ding mama sounded desperate as Chu Hua knew she kept making small mistakes here and there.

"Mama…" Chu Hua was about to bow but because she made sure her grip on the tray was strong enough and would not cause bigger trouble for her, her move was slower than the other servant.

Her eyes caught the sight of a guard with a familiar build. In the distance, the house guard acted suspiciously. She was stunned and her mind tried to recall who he was.

"Chu Hua!"

The loud scold pulled her back to her senses. Chu Hua turned her eyes and found Ding mama frowning at her.

"Mama…. nubi…" Chu Hua was shivering.

She got to remember the identity of the house guard who was acting that unusual. Following Chu Hua's source of fear, Ding mama turned around to check who was in the distance. The house guard was gone.

After taking a deep breath, with a full composure, Ding mama continued their way. "Return to your pose, we have to serve wang fei and the guests."

The other servant replied right away. At the same time, Ding mama glared at Chu Hua.

"Your punishment will follow after this affair is over." Ding mama gave a warning specifically for Chu Hua.

***

Returning home from the morning assembly, Li Fei Long immediately looked for his wife's whereabouts. Still fresh in his mind how unintentionally he hurted Jiang Xi Yu's feelings. His main purpose was simply to remind Jiang Xi Yu that she should not have to worry and be jealous if in the future he needs to accept a political marriage. But that turned sour.

Li Fei Long regretted it deeply. He has been trying to make up with his wife after that and since then Li Fei Long was getting a little bit more possessive towards her. Knowing Jiang Xi Yu's character, Li Fei Long understood that she really could leave him once he betrayed her trust.

Found the main chamber was empty, Li Fei Long turned to Ming He while letting Qian Chang Xin help him to change from his formal outfit into casual.

"Where is wang fei? This morning she told me she was planning to entertain the Queen and Princess Duva. It is past midday. Are they having midday meals together?" Li Fei Long threw so many questions impatiently.

"Answering wang ye, after accompanying the guests, wang fei took Xiao Gan Zi gonggong, Ding mama, and Chu Hua into wang ye's study room. Wang fei only told us to serve wang ye after wang ye returns from the palace and convey an invitation for wang ye to join wang fei after wang ye finish with the midday meal."

Ming He's answer drew confusion for Li Fei Long. Apparently, his wife was already used to using his private room.

"How long wang fei has been there?" Li Fei Long asked while finishing his touch.

"About half an hour, wang ye."

"Let's join them." Li Fei Long walked out in a rush. He was too eager to fulfil his curiosity. Both his taijian followed him in a hurry.

"But your midday meal….wang ye?!" Qian Chang Xin asked in a hurry while trying to balance his master's paces.

"It can wait." Li Fei Long did not slow down until he reached his study room and heard Jiang Xi Yu ask a question to her new maid.

"Are you sure it was him?"

The question was asked by Jiang Xi Yu toward Chu Hua who was kneeling down on the ground. Jiang Xi Yu was sitting down on his chair when he entered the room. He did not find it annoying as he found her wife looked very much adorable.

Jiang Xi Yu was a weak woman with a strong will which made him always want to look after her. To watch her looking that serious, questioning the new maid with full intention, Li Fei Long wanted to hug her in his arms. He wanted to give her full protection.

"Yes, nubi is very confident that the guard was the brother of The Grand chancellor's second lady." Chu Hua answered with fear. "Lady Pan asked The Grand Chancellor to help her find her brother. Not long after returning from Luoyang, the brother entered the mansion in secret. Nubi firmly believed that was the same man with the one nubi saw sneaking around the garden this morning."

"Which man?!" Li Fei Long interrupted right away.

Jiang Xi Yu turned and found him already inside the room. Ding mama and Xiao Gan Zi gonggong greeted him without moving away from their post. Both have turned into Duan Wang Fei's close confidants.

"This servant claimed to witness a man she was familiar with roaming around in secret this morning when wang fei was entertaining the guests at the garden. We brought her to the gate to check which one, and now wang fei wanted to confirm this person's true identity." Ding mama helped explain briefly.

Chu Hua turned her body and gave a kowtow to Li Fei Long right away. "Wang ye, nubi was saved and accepted by wang fei into this fu. Nubi begged not to be sent back to The Grand Chancellor's mansion."

"You are Chu Hua, a slave that I bought from the street. Why would I give you away to The Grand Chancellor's mansion?!" Jiang Xi Yu butted in.

Quickly nodded, Chu Huan wiped her tears. "Yes, I am Chu Hua. A loyal servant from Duan Wang Fu."

"The guard in question is one of the guards that kept the imperial taiyi who committed the murder against me and let him commit suicide." Jiang Xi Yu informed Li Fei Long. "I have ordered Lou Sheng to arrest that guard and wait for you for the next order. I am worried about how much he had already reported to The Grand Chancellor."

Li Fei Long straight over to Jiang Xi Yu's side. He took her cold hand. He knew Jiang Xi Yu could easily panic even though she tried her best to cover it up. "No worries, I will take care of it."

***

"Even though in the end wang ye will know what I am doing and probably wang ye will be mad at me. Still I have to do it."

Jiang Xi Yu was in hurry walked up to the part of the fu where Li Fei Long held any subjects to get punished or torture. The part of the fu was forbidden for anyone to know and was not much known by outsiders. Even Jiang Xi Yu would not have known it if it was not because they found that guard was a spy planted by The Grand Chancellor.

Li Fei Long was forced to tell Jiang Xi Yu that they have their own secret dungeon to keep anyone who has done something bad to Duan Wang Fu, because he has been holding back the guard who claimed that his name was Pan Tai Hao there.

The dungeon was on the outside part of the front gate of the fu, Zhaotai gate. It was carefully guarded with selected guards and it was close to their drum tower. The place was divided into two floors, one was half basement, and the floor below it was a complete underground. The second floor was more like a muddy dungeon. It smelled horrible. It was dank.

Ru Ming held her hand tightly when they stepped down slowly while Ru Qing carried the lantern to lighten up the ground.

"Wang ye will punish both of us after this." Ru Qing complained to her but Jiang Xi Yu was too determined to recognise this person with her own eyes.

"Both of you know I will not let that happen. I bring both of you here to give me full protection. Ding mama and Xiao Gan Zi gonggong are too old to help me do this and they cannot do any martial arts. It is wang ye's own words which say you two are on duty to look after me. Wang ye cannot be mad because both of you are just fulfilling your duty." Jiang Xi Yu scolded both of them in length.

Jiang Xi Yu regretted not changing her clothes to something lighter. Her beautiful dress got ruined as the bottom of the dress got smudged.

They reached the deepest dungeon and found five cells over there. The cell on the left side was inhabited by a figure Jiang Xi Yu recognized. The figure that she knew as a brother to her friend in modern times.

Ru Qing brought the lantern closer to the cell. She threw a small rock to that spy's body. He was fat and tall. That dumb fellow was groaning in pain, laying on top wet hay.

"I am just a lowly subject. Work for a bowl of rice and a sum of money. I am innocent. Please….General… please find justice for me who got framed by some ill men." He grumbled in pain.

With difficulty, he moved his body and narrowed his eyes to get a clear view on his visitor. Jiang Xi Yu and him got startled at the same time. In a second, Jiang Xi Yu grabbed the iron pole separating them. On the other hand, the fat man was scared to see her.

"Your sister…." Jiang Xi Yu's voice got shaken.

She never liked this brother of her friend. He was lazy and only knew how to fill his stomach with so much food. If what she suspects was true, this man has a connection with a figure she recognized at the moment Yu Han and Yu Mei were sentenced publicly in Luoyang.

"Your sister got cheated by The Grand Chancellor. Your sister was tortured and nearly killed if she did not escape from The Grand Chancellor's mansion." Jiang Xi Yu told him honestly. "Do you know about this or did you spy on me for your sister?"

"Da Jie is the second lady of The Grand Chancellor. Do not create a false accusation just to get me to talk." The fat man got irritated and moved slowly approaching the bars.

Ru Ming stationed herself between Jiang Xi Yu and the iron bars. But Jiang Xi Yu felt the man was no threat to her.

"What is your name?"Jiang Xi Yu asked calmly. She really wanted to know.

The fat pathetic man chucked. "You really lost your memories."

"Watch your mouth, fatty. You are answering Duan Wang Fei, give your respect!" Ru Qing yelled at him out of anger.

"Duan Wang Fei, I am Pan Tai Hao, the younger brother of Lady Pan Xi Yin who is the second Lady of The Grand Chancellor." The fat man was posing as if he were paying respect to her but he sounded cynical.

"The former servant to the Pastry Marchant Owner right?! The daughter and the son of the Hall of Amusement Brothel Madam, Pan Lang Shi." The reply was no less cynical. Jiang Xi Yu continued on as Pan Tai Hao's face got redden of embarrassment.

"Brother and sister who are fond of wealth and title, wanting something beyond ability, have the guts but without brains." She said bluntly.

"You!!" Pan Tai Hao came forward to grab Jiang Xi Yu but he was too weak because he already injured from the torture. Ru Ming caught his hands and twisted it easily until a cracking sound was heard. His painful scream filled the air, making Jiang Xi Yu shivered.

"You and your sister were blinded by a desire beyond your destiny. If you think your sister is the second lady of the house and your master would save you, you are wrong. You are just a tool that is being used. Your sister was lucky enough to get away from The Grand Chancellor's house." Jiang Xi Yu lectured him.

Jiang Xi Yu let out her emotions and still continued on. "Yu Han and Yu Mei have the ambition to change their life with their talent even though in the end they failed under greed. But you and your sister are beyond. One is dumb, the other one is sly wolf. Nothing could come true in the lowly way that both of you used."

Ru Ming pushed his broken fingers away and caused him to stumble and fall. Pan Tai Hao groaned in pain on the ground and Jiang Xi Yu got enough of him. She turned and was about to leave the dungeon with both her yahuan.

A scary laugh surprised them. The three of them turned around and watched directly to the deepest cell in the dark. The three of them were confident that Pan Tai Hao's cell was the only one that was occupied. A chill ran on Jiang Xi Yu's neck.

She held Ru Ming's hand tightly and looked at them to make sure the two yahuan were hearing the same thing like she did.

"There is another prisoner over there." Standing in front of Jiang Xi Yu, Ru Qing lifted up her hand so that the light could reach the end.

Jiang Xi Yu pinched her eyes in the darkness to get to see the inside of the cell. Her feet were getting closer to the deepest cell, following Ru Qing who acted brave to check the cell at the other end.

As they went closer, the silhouette of a man sitting down on the wet ground came on sight. Jiang Xi Yu was relieved it was not a ghost. There was a man with both hands tied up. Ignoring Pan Tai Hao's cry, Jiang Xi Yu put her hand on Ru Qing's shoulder.

"Let's return back to the chamber." She held back so Ru Qing would not step any further. She was scared that they might see something dreadful. But it was too late.

All of a sudden the prisoner screamed at her and stood up on his feet. The man with alot scars on his face, blood traces and shit smell was coming from him. He ran and crashed himself into the iron bars. His dire face was out of the iron gap and he shouted.

Jiang Xi Yu dropped in shock on the ground. Her feet felt weak and her hands were trembling in fear. She did not care any longer about how dirty she was.

"Duan Wang Fei!!! I will get you to get the revenge that Duan Qin Wang deserves to get!!!" Then the dire face laughed maniacally at her.

Ru Ming helped her to stand up and retreated. Ru Qing stood full alert in front of Jiang Xi Yu and helped them to get out from the dungeon as fast as they could.