The Eunuch Has A Wife - Chapter 53

Bai Zhi’s breath hitched, her heart warming slightly. That black leather booklet still had its uses; thankfully, it hadn’t been lost.

She glanced at Wei Ziwan, who occasionally looked over, their eyes meeting in a smile. It was unclear whose ears turned red first.

Not long after, Zhou □ entered the courtyard and saw the half-open door of the room. Inside, the two had just put down their bowls and chopsticks, preparing to eat.

Just as she was about to greet them, she saw Bai Zhi sit down, then immediately stand up again without taking a bite, walking straight toward Wei Ziwan.

Zhou □ paused, watching as Bai Zhi and Wei Ziwan embraced. She sighed silently, feeling she had come at the wrong time.

As she hesitated whether to interrupt or leave quietly, Bai Zhi looked out into the courtyard, then, as if seeing nothing, boldly closed the door.

Zhou □ stood frozen, certain that Bai Zhi had seen her. She even noticed Bai Zhi knocking over a pair of bamboo chopsticks in her haste.

It was clear what the two were doing inside.

Zhou □’s face darkened, and she turned to leave. Halfway, she felt inexplicably annoyed and turned back.

This time, she didn’t enter the courtyard but stood quietly outside the gate, waiting for the occupants to emerge.

Inside the room, after a kiss, Wei Ziwan breathed unevenly, “Aren’t we going to eat?”

Bai Zhi swallowed, the words “I’ll eat you first” stuck in her throat, too embarrassed to say them aloud.

Remembering Zhou □’s stunned expression in the courtyard, she let go. “I think I saw Miss Zhou in our courtyard earlier.”

She wondered if Zhou □ was still there. If she had any sense, she would have left by now.

But then again, Zhou □ might not be so considerate.

Or perhaps she had something important to discuss.

Wei Ziwan shot her a reproachful look. “Why didn’t you say something earlier? What if she saw us?”

“So what if she saw? We’re in our own room.” Bai Zhi retorted, but under Wei Ziwan’s gaze, she relented. “Next time, I’ll let you know before I kiss you.”

“Alright, I’m not blaming you. Let’s open the door and invite Sister Zhou in.”

Wei Ziwan straightened her clothes and adjusted Bai Zhi’s collar before they went to open the door together.

Hearing the door open, Zhou □ turned around.

She walked calmly into the courtyard, handing over a booklet. “This is the confession from the black-clad man. Take a look.”

Her expression was serious, her gaze clear, as if she had just arrived and hadn’t seen anything inappropriate.

Bai Zhi took the booklet, leaning close to Wei Ziwan as they read it together.

Zhou □ averted her eyes, thinking how shameless these two were.

The confession wasn’t long, only four pages.

According to the black-clad man, he was from Lingjue Manor, tasked by Second Miss Bai Luo to secretly follow them. Two days ago, he received orders to eliminate them.

As for the rest, he had nothing more to say.

Whether he was truly just a hired hand or knew nothing about Lingjue Manor was unclear.

Seeing they had finished reading, Zhou □ said, “We can’t get anything more out of him. This is all we know. I won’t ask who this Second Miss Bai Luo is; you must have your reasons.”

She wasn’t one to pry, especially since everyone had their secrets. If others didn’t want to share, there was no need to ask.

Bai Zhi glanced at Wei Ziwan, who remained deep in thought, then said to Zhou □, “Thank you for your efforts, Miss Zhou. As for Second Miss Bai Luo, she is indeed an old acquaintance. Why she wants us dead, we’re not entirely sure.”

It was frustrating, feeling pushed by an invisible hand, the motives behind it as unclear as the situation in Song Village.

Zhou □ didn’t press further, only advising, “From now on, take someone with you when you leave the village. If anything happens, consult the clan leader, elders, or me before acting rashly.”

Bai Zhi nodded, now aware that Song Village was at least safe, and they needed to be more cautious.

As Zhou □ prepared to leave, Wei Ziwan, regaining her composure, asked cryptically, “We don’t know the reasons behind this. Does Sister Zhou know anything?”

Bai Zhi’s eyes flickered with surprise, but she remained silent, looking at Zhou □.

Wei Ziwan’s question surely had its purpose. She was cleverly setting the stage for a frank discussion.

So, stay calm and play along.

A gentle breeze blew as the three silently faced each other, much like the night before.

After a moment, Zhou □ raised an eyebrow and said frankly, “Since Sister Ziwan is sure I know something, why not ask more directly? Your vague question leaves me unsure where to start.”

It wasn’t that she didn’t know, but that she knew too much to explain in a few words.

Most importantly, some things were beyond her ability to clarify.

Bai Zhi’s face darkened. Was she deflecting the question again?

It seemed Song Village wasn’t as straightforward as it appeared.

Wei Ziwan, seemingly unaware of the evasion, followed up, “Where do you think we should start, Sister Zhou?”

With Bai Zhi’s background?

She had a vague suspicion that this series of events ultimately stemmed from Bai Zhi’s origins.

Zhou □ smiled. “If you’re free this afternoon, visit the village school. Elder Li might be able to enlighten you.”

Elder Li was in charge of rituals and education, often teaching the village children.

She sighed inwardly, thinking she’d need to inform Elder Li to adjust today’s lesson.

“Thank you for the suggestion, Sister Zhou. My husband and I will go.” Wei Ziwan replied, understanding Zhou □’s hint.

Bai Zhi nodded vigorously beside her.

Yes, they would go.

Zhou □ paused, adding before leaving, “It’s daytime now; best to exercise some restraint.”

With that, she turned and left, feeling somewhat relieved.

Bai Zhi was dumbfounded, turning to Wei Ziwan. “What did she mean? Did she see us earlier?”

“Yes, she saw.”

“So what if she saw? She’s meddling too much.”

Wei Ziwan shot her a look. “Sister Zhou means well.”

Bai Zhi muttered discontentedly, “But we didn’t do anything.”

They had only kissed; they hadn’t even used what was depicted in that booklet, let alone anything more intimate during the day.

Miss Zhou seemed so proper, yet her thoughts were so indecent.

She hadn’t even dared to think that far.

Wei Ziwan chided her, “What else did you want to do? Let’s go eat before the food gets cold.”

It seemed they needed to show some restraint, unlike last night when they got carried away and missed breakfast.

After eating, Bai Zhi tried to embrace Wei Ziwan but was gently pushed away.

Wei Ziwan smiled, “Husband, we need to exercise restraint.”

Bai Zhi: “…”

They hadn’t done anything; what restraint was needed?

She looked up at the sky in frustration: Zhou □ has misled me!

Wei Ziwan chuckled, linking arms with Bai Zhi and whispering in her ear, “Let’s go hear what Elder Li has to say. We can continue tonight.”

Their time together was fleeting and beautiful; she too wanted to lose herself in it.

Bai Zhi suppressed a smile. “Alright, let’s go early and come back soon.”

They found the so-called school, which was just a slightly larger room.

Inside, only about seven or eight teenagers sat scattered around, with no young children in sight.

Elder Li stood calmly at the podium, nodding at their arrival before beginning his lecture.

“Today, I’ll talk about a peculiar matter in our royal family. From the previous emperor’s reign to now, nearly a hundred years, the royal family has only had princes, no princesses. Do you know why?”

“The royal family has a secret for bearing sons.”

“Princesses are hard to raise; they might die young.”

“It must be a coincidence; no one can control the gender of a child.”

The teenagers speculated, and Elder Li listened with a smile, in no hurry to reveal the answer.

Bai Zhi, having no clue, asked Wei Ziwan curiously, “Do you know why?”

Wei Ziwan glanced at her deeply, whispering, “I don’t know either. Let’s hear what Elder Li has to say.”

In truth, she had some guesses.

No one could control the gender of a child, so there must have been princesses born in the royal family over the past century. The reason they were never heard of was likely due to some method employed by the royal family to erase them from public view.

But why would the royal family do such a thing?

Wei Ziwan looked at Elder Li. How could an obscure elder in this small village dare to discuss royal secrets? Either he was incredibly bold, or this was intentional.

She leaned toward the latter, especially since this likely concerned Bai Zhi’s background.

At that moment, Elder Li raised his hand for silence, his gaze sweeping over the room, pausing slightly when it reached Bai Zhi and Wei Ziwan.

“You’re right; princesses were indeed born. But these royal daughters, who should have been honored as princesses, almost all died young—or were ruthlessly eliminated by the royal family. The reason for this is a rather absurd prophecy.”

Elder Li recounted a somewhat bizarre story: the last seer of Baiyue, on his deathbed, prophesied that the Zhou dynasty would fall at the hands of a princess and not last a thousand years.

Since then, no princess in the royal family had been allowed to grow up safely. Now, in the 962nd year of Baiyue, the millennium mark was approaching.

After hearing this, Bai Zhi and Wei Ziwan exchanged a silent glance, both speechless. They never expected such a far-fetched reason.

Even more absurd was that the royal family believed this prophecy and personally caused the deaths of those innocent princesses.