The Crown Princess Is Jealous Again - Chapter 41
Madam Hua pointed timidly at the door and said, “Linglong is inside…”
Before she could finish speaking, Xiao Beitang had already kicked the door open.
“Who goes there?!” Fang Wang shouted, whip in hand, both startled and furious.
Xiao Beitang barged in with Xiao Lin and the others. Linglong was on her knees, her hands and feet tied, a cloth stuffed in her mouth. Her clothes were torn in several places from the beating.
“What do you think you’re doing?! How dare you barge into my—” Fang Wang raised the whip, pretending to strike.
Xiao Lin kicked her hard. “A dignified Qianyuan, and you bully a Zhongyong like this? Disgraceful!”
Bang! Fang Wang fell heavily to the floor.
“Madam Hua! What the hell is going on?!” Fang Wang ‘s eyes burned with anger. “I paid for her! I’ll report this to the authorities! You’ll all rot in jail!”
At the mention of the authorities, Madam Hua immediately cowered. “Oh, Miss Wang, please don’t be angry—it’s all just a misunderstanding!”
Xiao Beitang removed her outer robe and draped it over Linglong, pulling the cloth from her mouth. Linglong burst into tears, trembling as she threw herself into Xiao Beitang’s arms.
Xiao Beitang froze for a moment, then gently helped her to the bed. “Are you alright?”
Linglong looked at the deliberate way she avoided contact, and her heart sank. Was she disgusted by how dirty she was now? She couldn’t say a word—only tears answered.
Madam Hua stomped her feet anxiously. “Miss Jiang, what are we going to do about this…”
Xiao Beitang turned to her coldly. “How much? I’ll pay it.”
Fang Wang climbed to her feet, her tone venomous. “You think you can just pay and take her? She’s mine tonight! She’s supposed to serve me. I don’t care how much money you have—I’m not letting her go!”
“What will it take for you to let her go?” Xiao Beitang asked calmly.
“I already said I won’t!” Fang Wang snapped. “So, what if you’re rich? I don’t lack money. You’ve ruined my fun, and I won’t give her up, no matter the price!”
“Looks like someone’s asking for another beating,” Xiao Lin raised her fist.
“You dare touch me? I’ll report you to the authorities!” Fang Wang blustered, backing down a little.
“Ladies, please, you’re all deities—my little brothel can’t handle this kind of storm,” Madam Hua said, bowing over and over.
“You knew Linglong belonged to me,” Xiao Beitang said coldly. “And yet you let her take customers?”
Linglong looked at her, stunned, but secretly elated. Belonged to her?
“Miss Jiang, you haven’t come in quite some time,” Madam Hua said, voice syrupy. “Linglong still works under my roof. I feed her, clothe her—she can’t just refuse customers. If all my girls acted like this, the
Hundred Flowers Pavillion would have closed long ago.” She pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at imaginary tears, studying Xiao Beitang closely.
Then she slyly added, “Besides… you’ve never mentioned buying her freedom.”
“Buying her freedom?” Xiao Beitang frowned.
Fang Wang cut in, “If that’s the case, I’ll buy her out!”
Madam Hua’s eyes lit up. “Miss Wang? You’re offering to redeem Linglong? She’s at the peak of her beauty—it won’t be cheap.”
“It’s just money, isn’t it? I’ve got plenty!” Fang Wang sneered.
Linglong panicked and knelt in front of Madam Hua, pleading, “Madam, I beg you. I don’t want to go with Miss Wang.”
“That’s not up to you,” Fang Wang said with a cold snort.
Madam Hua helped her up, smiling coaxingly. “Linglong, Miss Wang is willing to redeem you. That means you won’t have to stay here anymore. Isn’t that good?”
Fang Wang pressed on, “How much? I’ll have my people bring it now.”
“Wait,” Xiao Beitang said after a moment’s thought. “If I redeem her, she becomes mine, correct?”
Madam Hua smiled warmly. “Yes, once she’s redeemed, you can take her back to your estate. She’ll be your servant or maid—up to you. If you favor her, you can even make her a concubine.”
“Ah Lin, Ah Qi, come with me,” Xiao Beitang said, frowning as she led them to the next room. “About this matter—”
“You’re really planning to redeem her?” Xiao Wanqi, who had been silent until now, finally spoke seriously.
“I don’t know,” Xiao Beitang admitted. “I just don’t want her to suffer under someone like Fang Wang.”
“If you like her, then redeem her,” Xiao Wanqi said gently. “But you clearly don’t. And if you do redeem her, where will you keep her?”
Xiao Lin disagreed. “If we don’t, she’ll probably be tortured to death. You saw what just happened.”
“She needs somewhere to go,” Xiao Wanqi said, pragmatic. “Ah Lin, your place—?”
Xiao Lin quickly shook her head. “No way. My father barely tolerates my antics as is. If I bring a courtesan home, he’ll skin me alive.”
Xiao Beitang sighed. “I always admired her pipa playing…”
Xiao Lin’s eyes lit up. “Pipa! That’s it! She can join the Jiaofang Bureau. That way, she’ll have a proper place.”
“That’s a good idea,” Xiao Wanqi nodded.
“Then it’s settled,” Xiao Beitang said after a moment’s deliberation.
Linglong was still sobbing like a spring rain, hiccupping from crying so long.
Xiao Beitang glanced at her and said lightly, “Very well. I’ll redeem her.”
Linglong looked up in disbelief, eyes wide with hope.
Madam Hua beamed. “Miss Jiang, you’re not joking, are you?”
“I don’t joke.”
Fang Wang snapped, “I said I’d redeem her first!”
Madam Hua feigned diplomacy. “Miss Wang, please don’t be upset. Our house follows the rule of highest bidder. Linglong is our top girl. Her redemption will cost no less than ten thousand taels!”
Linglong gasped. “Ten thousand taels? Madam, are you mad?!”
Xiao Beitang responded without hesitation, “Fine.”
“You’d pay ten thousand taels for a courtesan? Are you mad or am I?” Fang Wang sneered.
“Will you be making a higher offer, Miss Wang?” Madam Hua asked sweetly.
Fang Wang scoffed, sounding almost amused. “She might be pretty, but she’s still a whore. She’s not worth that much. Forget it—you can have her.”
Madam Hua grinned. “In that case, Linglong now belongs to Miss Jiang.”
Linglong knelt before her. “I will serve you with all my heart.”
Madam Hua asked, “Miss Jiang, when will you be coming to fetch Linglong?”
Clearly, she meant—when will the money be delivered? Xiao Beitang wasn’t naive. This place, once a casual indulgence, now felt foul in every way.
She shot Madam Hua a cold look. “Tomorrow. I didn’t bring that much silver today.”
“Treat Linglong well. I’ll send someone to pick her up tomorrow.” With that, she turned and left.
As she stepped out of the Hundred Flowers Pavillion, she was about to return to the palace when she spotted a familiar carriage nearby. That was… Song Qingqian’s?
Xiao Beitang didn’t care at all where she’d just come from. She waved goodbye to Xiao Lin and the others and ran straight to the carriage.
Lifting the curtain, she climbed inside with a smile. “What brings you here?”
Song Qingqian glanced at the brothel through the window and said with a smile, “You left in a hurry. Liuzi told me you had business, but I never imagined this was the business.”
Xiao Beitang noticed her gaze and quickly explained, “Someone brought me here—Linglong, the girl who used to serve me, you’ve seen her. She was nearly beaten to death today. Her little maid came to the academy to find me, so I rushed over.”
Song Qingqian furrowed her brow, thoughtful.
After a pause, she asked, “She’s a courtesan. Serving guests is part of her trade. What does that have to do with Your Highness?”
Xiao Beitang nervously fidgeted with her fingers. “I… I had some feelings for her. I couldn’t bear to see her mistreated. You didn’t see it—her body was covered in whip marks… It was pitiful.”
Feelings? What kind of feelings? Song Qingqian shot her a subtle side glance. Since when did casual play turn into emotional entanglement?
She asked quietly, “So you saved her once. Can you save her again and again?”
“I… I bought her freedom.” Xiao Beitang buried her head lower, her hands still nervously picking at each other.
Song Qingqian’s heart sank. So, this was what Xiao Beitang had become—just another rich libertine, flinging money around?
With a faint smile, she said, “Where do you plan to keep her, then? Should I give her my west wing? I can move to Qiwuyuan.”
Xiao Beitang immediately sensed the chill beneath her smile—she was clearly displeased. Especially when she referred to herself as concubine. That was just… strange.
Xiao Beitang’s eyes showed a flicker of panic. “I won’t bring her into the palace.”
So, she plans to keep her outside, then?
Song Qingqian didn’t want to talk anymore. “Liuzi, let’s go.”
Xiao Beitang shivered at her icy tone.