The Eunuch Has A Wife - Chapter 11

Bai Zhi: “…” I believed your nonsense. In my past life, the Crown Prince wanted you too, but you ended up stabbing him to death.

She then thought about the three taels of broken silver in her bundle and felt a pang of regret. It seemed they would have to beg their way to Ninglin Prefecture.

Wait—that wasn’t right. Hadn’t this woman mentioned before that she had hidden thousands of taels in silver notes?

Bai Zhi cleared her throat, her expression softening slightly. “The journey ahead is long, and three taels of silver won’t be enough. Didn’t you say you had silver notes? Could you lend me some for travel expenses? If there’s an opportunity in the future, I’ll definitely repay you.”

If she can make empty promises, so can I.

In the blink of an eye, Bai Zhi was the one asking for help. How strange life could be.

“Silver notes? I forgot where I put them. Maybe they were stolen. Don’t worry, husband, I’ll stick with you through thick and thin.” Wei Ziwan curved her lips into a faint smile, then turned and went back to bed.

Bai Zhi’s expression froze: “…” Life really is strange. Screw this strangeness. This woman was probably lying to me all along.

The next morning, their punishment was announced: exile to the borderlands.

If you’re wondering why they were punished without any wrongdoing, that’s just naive. In the palace, luring the Crown Prince to the cold palace—whether actively or passively—was a crime.

It was said that they were originally sentenced to death by a thousand cuts, but Chief Eunuch Bai had pleaded for leniency, and the Empress, believing it was important to accumulate blessings for the demoted prince, decided not to harm others. Thus, their punishment was changed to exile. In reality, exile to the borderlands was practically a death sentence.

Of those exiled to the borderlands, nine out of ten died on the way, especially these two—a beautiful, delicate woman and a eunuch with no roots.

When Wei Ziwan heard the news, she looked at Bai Zhi in disbelief. So, this was what “leaving the palace” meant—exile to the borderlands. She had been so persistent last night, but now she regretted wasting her energy.

Bai Zhi, on the other hand, remained calm and even comforted her earnestly: “Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

In truth, she wasn’t so sure herself. Was my adoptive father really this unreliable?

This sounds worse than guarding the imperial mausoleum.

Wei Ziwan’s eye twitched slightly. She didn’t feel like dealing with this damned eunuch right now. When she was brought into the palace, she had nothing, and now she was leaving with nothing. So, when Nanny Jiang announced they would inspect their luggage, she didn’t feel much.

But Bai Zhi felt like she had been struck by lightning. Inspect their luggage? They were actually going to inspect their luggage!

Nanny Jiang noticed Bai Zhi clutching her bundle and raised an eyebrow. She had thought there was nothing of value in the cold palace, and the inspection would just be a formality. But now it seemed this little eunuch might be hiding something.

She snorted coldly, “Open the bundle now.”

Bai Zhi glanced around. Almost everyone in the cold palace had gathered to watch. Several disgraced concubines were enjoying the spectacle, the old consort was murmuring prayers with her prayer beads, the officials tasked with escorting them stood ready, and the two maids behind Nanny Jiang were peeking curiously.

She instinctively looked at Wei Ziwan.

Wei Ziwan was puzzled. Why is this damned eunuch looking at me? Did she really hide something incriminating? Is she planning to frame me? Not a chance!

“Open it now!” Nanny Jiang stepped forward. What could possibly be worth hiding in the cold palace? At most, some crude pottery. Unless her adoptive father had secretly given her something valuable.

Her eyes gleamed with greed. Chief Eunuch Bai might indeed have something good.

Bai Zhi’s hands holding the bundle trembled slightly. She hadn’t smuggled anything from the palace, but the booklet gifted by the old consort was inside.

She instinctively looked at the old consort, and her eyes lit up. That’s right, the old consort! Nanny Jiang might not show respect to others, but she seems to respect the old consort.

She clutched the bundle tightly and said pitifully, “Esteemed Concubine, this contains the secret manual you gifted me.”

Everyone turned to the old consort, surprised that she was involved. What kind of important manual could it be?

The old consort paused her prayer beads and looked at Bai Zhi, who was blinking at her. The atmosphere became strangely quiet.

Nanny Jiang hesitated. The old consort had been kind to her, and her family hadn’t been implicated in past troubles. Some of her descendants were already making a name for themselves in the court. It wouldn’t be wise to offend her.

Bai Zhi blinked at the old consort, full of hope.

Then she saw the old consort smile lovingly and give her a teasing look.

“Eunuch Bai, don’t drag me into this. I have nothing but my prayer beads, the wooden fish in my room, and the plants in the courtyard. I’ve never given you anything, let alone heard of any secret manual.”

Bai Zhi was stunned. Looking at the kind-faced old consort, all she could think was, It’s over, it’s over! The old consort has ruined my reputation!

Seeing this, Nanny Jiang snatched the bundle from Bai Zhi’s hands.

Bai Zhi gave up struggling. She let go of the bundle and stared at the ground, filled with shame and regret. Why didn’t I just throw it away?

The small bundle was quickly opened, revealing two sets of undergarments, three taels of broken silver, and a black leather booklet.

Nanny Jiang grabbed the booklet and flipped through it. After a few pages, her breath hitched. This shameless little eunuch! Disgusting!

The others couldn’t help but peek as Nanny Jiang turned the pages. Their eyes widened in shock.

Consort Rong, dressed in a red dress, was the first to burst into laughter. “Hahaha, so this is the ‘secret manual’? I never thought the cold palace had such interesting things.”

Bai Zhi took a deep breath and slowly raised her head. Stay calm. I must stay calm.

My adoptive father said I must always smile just right.

She curved her lips into a faint smile and looked at Wei Ziwan. “Since I’ve had Wanwan, I’ve wanted to cherish her more. So when I found this booklet, I couldn’t bear to throw it away. I apologize for the embarrassment.”

It was just something I found.

The old consort clearly wasn’t going to admit to anything. The best outcome was for the booklet to have no traceable origin.

Wei Ziwan: “…” Hypocritical eunuch. Keep your ‘cherishing’ to yourself.

Nanny Jiang, who had thought she might uncover something valuable, was disappointed to find it was just a farce. She spat twice and threw the booklet on the ground. “Get going. What a disgrace.”

Bai Zhi bent down to pack her bundle, calmly putting the booklet back inside. She then slung it over her shoulder and followed the officials out.

Wei Ziwan hurried after her.

As they were about to leave the palace gates, Bai Zhi inexplicably turned back and saw the old consort smiling and nodding at her.

She turned around, feeling something was off. The old consort’s gaze had been unusually affectionate.

The people in the cold palace, in this tiny world, put on acts every day to maintain appearances. Everyone has their own way of surviving.

Bai Zhi was lost in thought when the officials handed her shackles and a cangue.

Her expression stiffened. She glanced at Wei Ziwan, who looked utterly defeated, and said vaguely, “Maybe things will be better once we reach the borderlands.”

Wei Ziwan looked at her in disbelief. She had imagined a thousand ways to leave the palace, but never like this.

Is this eunuch really this clueless, or is she pretending?

Shouldn’t we be more worried about whether we’ll even survive to reach the borderlands?

“Husband is right—if we can even make it to the borderlands alive.”

Bai Zhi: “…”

—

Author’s Note:

Bai Zhi: This was too reckless!