Transmigrated Into A Novel As A Scumbag Princess’ Consort - Chapter 42

42:

Her consort seemed to lack curiosity, or perhaps trusted her completely, rarely asking about her arrangements proactively.

She often had the illusion that her Consort enjoyed quietly watching her, not understanding nor asking questions, yet acting decisively when the time came.

Ye Xuejin had once had close companions, like her personal maid Sushui or her dear friend Tao Qianhua.

In the past, in situations like this, both would have been curious about her plans and would have asked her intentions.

But Yun Chi didn’t.

A hint of inquiry flickered in Ye Xuejin’s eyes. Could it be because her Consort was different from others? Because they were wife and wife?

Because of understanding, because of trust?

She felt this was the case, but for some reason, there was a faint unease in her heart.

Yun Chi casually replied, “I trust you. As long as you have it under control, that’s enough.”

In six days, she would complete her mission and step back, so there was no need to concern herself with too many details.

Besides, she genuinely believed Ye Xuejin always had her reasons for doing things.

Ye Xuejin gave a faint smile. As expected, her Consort trusted her completely.

“Don’t worry, Consort. I have a plan, and you’ll understand in time.”

Saying more was less effective than doing. For some reason, seeing Yun Chi’s complete trust made her feel that explanations were unnecessary.

At this moment, Shi Song and Zhou Qiyue approached.

“Your Highness,” they said, looking at Ye Xuejin expectantly.

On their way here, everyone had been watching them eagerly, even asking what Her Highness had summoned them for, clearly hoping the immortal would grant them food.

Ye Xuejin calmly instructed, “Turn around, close your eyes, and be sincere.”

The two exchanged a glance, their expressions confirming their expectations, the immortal was about to grant food again.

This time, Yun Chi directly took out twenty compressed biscuits and a wooden bucket, placing the biscuits inside.

Last night, to obtain blankets, she had given away all the compressed biscuits. Now, she was merely holding them for Ye Xuejin, so there would be no further rewards.

Then, she took out five pieces of bread and handed them to Ye Xuejin, silently wishing for food.

She didn’t hand them over one by one because bread had already been offered before, making it a one-for-one exchange.

However, last night, when she used all the compressed biscuits to obtain five blankets at once, Yun Chi had a new theory about her golden finger.

It was about quantity.

Ye Xuejin took the bread and placed it in the bucket.

Yun Chi’s eyes flickered, and she nearly rolled her eyes again.

[Five pieces of bread sent. Please choose a reward: five pieces of bread or five pieces of bread.]

Fine, it wasn’t one-for-one; it was five-for-five.

A slight difference, but not much…

It seemed yesterday was an exception. Wait, no!

Yun Chi quickly grabbed Ye Xuejin’s wrist, signaling her to wait.

Ye Xuejin was about to call Shi Song and Zhou Qiyue to turn around, her lips parting, but before she could speak, Yun Chi stopped her.

Then, Yun Chi handed her five stun batons.

Ye Xuejin caught them, and immediately after, the stun batons vanished.

Her eyes flickered slightly, as if she had guessed something.

Could her consort’s divine ability involve exchanging items?

Yun Chi then signaled Ye Xuejin to let Shi Song and Zhou Qiyue turn around.

Inwardly, she was secretly thrilled—she had finally guessed correctly.

When she sent all the stun batons at once, she hadn’t been thinking of weapons but of food.

Stun batons exchanged for weapons had depreciated to less than one-for-one, but when exchanged for food, not only did they not lose value, they greatly appreciated.

[Five stun batons sent. Please choose a reward: ten baskets of soup dumplings or ten boxes of self-heating hot pot.]

Yun Chi desperately wanted both, but she couldn’t. For convenience, she chose the soup dumplings.

Ten baskets of soup dumplings were more substantial than ten boxes of self-heating hot pot, especially since she was now responsible for thirty people.

…

Zhou Qiyue glanced at the food in the bucket. She had eaten both types of pastries before.

Her mind racing, she boldly requested, “Your Highness, I can’t help much right now, so why don’t I take charge of distributing food from now on?”

She wasn’t skilled in martial arts, but Her Highness valued her for her intelligence.

She had to showcase her abilities to prove Her Highness hadn’t misjudged her.

Ye Xuejin nodded in agreement. “Give it a try.” Let’s see if she was up to the task.

Soon, they returned to the eagerly waiting group.

Seeing this, Yu Lu raised his hand, ready to call Xiao Gao and the other officers to help distribute the food.

“Lord Yu, Her Highness said I’ll be in charge of distributing food from now on,” Zhou Qiyue announced, slightly raising her voice while observing the crowd, her expression brimming with pride.

Ye Xuejin nodded at the right moment, affirming her words. “From now on, Xiao Yue will handle this task for the time being.”

Yu Lu paused, then clasped his hands in acknowledgment, stepping aside obediently. However, his sharp gaze swept over Xiao Gao and the others.

Xiao Gao and the others lowered their heads silently, understanding that Lord Yu was blaming them for not stepping up, which was why the princess refused to let them handle the food.

Nearby, Yun Chi watched Zhou Qiyue, curious about how she would distribute the food.

Although compressed biscuits were as filling as bread, they looked much smaller, especially since the biscuits required water to digest properly.

Uh…

She forgot to take out water.

Yun Chi realized she still had seventeen bottles of water in her storage space. Water was now a one-for-one exchange, so as long as she kept one bottle, she could get more indefinitely.

After some thought, she took Ye Xuejin’s hand and whispered, “I’ll take out fifteen bottles of water.”

Ye Xuejin squeezed her hand back, indicating she understood, then looked up at the sky.

After retracting her gaze, she turned to Zhou Qiyue.

“Xiao Yue, the immortal will also grant us water. Distribute it to everyone.”

“Yes.”

As soon as she spoke, fifteen bottles of mineral water appeared beside the bucket.

Zhou Qiyue steadied herself and first looked at her own family. “Zhou family, come forward.”

The Zhou family servants were instantly excited. Their young lady now controlled food distribution, so she would surely prioritize them—perfect!

Old Censor Zhou frowned, about to say something, but after glancing at Ye Xuejin, he held back. Since it was Her Highness’ decision, it was a test for his daughter.

It was fate.

Yun Chi and Ye Xuejin exchanged a glance, both watching Zhou Qiyue, curious about her approach.

Zhou Qiyue first let Yun Chi, Ye Xuejin, Yu Lu, and Shi Song choose.

Yun Chi and Ye Xuejin tacitly chose compressed biscuits, as did Yu Lu and Shi Song.

Zhou Qiyue then proceeded decisively. The Zhou family all received compressed biscuits, followed by Shiniang and the young girls.

“Come and choose what you want to eat,” she said.

The Zhou family members immediately looked over. What? They could choose?

When they saw Shiniang take the same food as them, they breathed a slight sigh of relief, but then they couldn’t hold back.

Mei, Lan, Zhu, and Ju each took a piece of bread.

The Zhou family members looked at the small biscuits in their hands, then at the large bread in others’ hands, and collectively shot resentful glances at Zhou Qiyue.

How could their young lady favor others over them? Who was her real family here? But since the old master and madam said nothing, they could only obediently comply, not daring to protest.

Once everything was distributed, Zhou Qiyue looked at Ye Xuejin, a bit nervous.

Her distribution should be fine, right? Though the biscuits looked small, she had eaten them before. Their rich, savory flavor made her feel full quickly, even more so than the bread.

Ye Xuejin smiled at her, giving her affirmation.

The young girl had some cleverness and wanted to prove herself, not a bad thing, and she did well.

Relieved, Zhou Qiyue joined her family and started eating her compressed biscuit.

Old Censor Zhou and his wife were unfazed, especially the old censor, who felt as if a weight had been lifted. His daughter hadn’t foolishly prioritized her own family, which was good.

But Zhou Qishan couldn’t help himself. “Xiao Yue, I know you want to show loyalty to Her Highness, but you can’t completely ignore our own people, especially Father, Mother, and Ying’er. How can these two bites be enough?”

Before Zhou Qiyue could respond, Old Madam Zhou poked her son’s forehead. “Eat your food. We’ll be full.”

She had eaten the compressed biscuits twice before, and each time, she didn’t feel hungry for half a day.

“This can’t possibly be enough,” Zhou Qishan muttered.

Old Madam Zhou wanted to tell him it was filling, but remembering her granddaughter’s words, she held back. Little Ying’er had said the princess wanted to keep it a secret from Dalang.

Old Censor Zhou didn’t speak, but after finishing, he said with relief, “Xiao Yue has grown up. Remember, always act this way in the future, and never use power for personal gain.”

It was a blessing that his daughter had such an opportunity.

If the princess could recognize his shining talent, that would be even better. He was confident he could outperform his daughter and win over more hearts for Her Highness.

Meanwhile, Yu Lu, following Ye Xuejin’s earlier instructions, collected all the bottles and wrappers, placing them neatly on the ground not far from her.

The group then witnessed another miraculous sight as the items vanished into thin air.

Yu Lu approached Ye Xuejin, sat down, and asked quietly, “Your Highness, I noticed a village in the distance earlier. We should be able to leave the mountains by evening. Shall we continue heading southwest?”

Going further west would truly be a detour.

They had already been delayed for days, and taking such a long route would make it impossible to reach the southern border on time.

Ye Xuejin glanced at him, her expression neutral. “Continue west. If we encounter a city, send out a word immediately that we’re taking a detour to avoid pursuit.”

Yu Lu hesitated for a moment before asking, “Your Highness, may I know the reason?”

If a word reached the capital and the emperor doubted them or something went wrong, wouldn’t they be doomed before achieving their goal?

Privately, he thought it was safer to reach the southern border first and plan from there.

Otherwise, with just their group of thirty—old and weak included, and not fully united—even with an immortal’s protection, success would be difficult.

Ye Xuejin looked at him calmly. “Lord Yu, do you not trust me?”

Yu Lu’s heart tightened, and he quickly stood, clasping his fists. “I wouldn’t dare not trust you.”

“Go.”

The group set off again. Ye Xuejin took Yun Chi’s hand and said softly, “Consort, I’m fortunate to have you.”

Without comparison, there was no distinction.

Compared to Yu Lu’s unease, Yun Chi’s unquestioning trust and belief in her felt especially precious at this moment.

Ye Xuejin’s eyes were filled with affection as she gazed softly at Yun Chi’s profile. She, too, should trust her Princess’ Consort without needing to ask anything.

Because she believed that, in time, her Consort would tell her everything, just as she herself would.

Actions spoke louder than words.

Yun Chi turned to meet her gaze and froze.

Those beautiful eyes seemed to hold an endless tenderness, as if they contained the setting sun, unforgettable at a glance.