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Chapter 11: My Chest Has Grown
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Xiangwu followed Yueqing out in high spirits. Sure enough, Ergouzi’s mother—the wife of Steward Wang—was leading a few servant women and maids, handing out money to the young mistress’s personal maidservants.
When Steward Wang’s wife saw Xiangwu, she remembered her situation and felt a touch of guilt. She immediately ordered someone to grab a generous handful of silver and gave it to Xiangwu. "This is for you, Miss. Keep it safe now."
In truth, Xiangwu had previously viewed this woman as her future mother-in-law. Since the engagement had fallen through so abruptly, seeing her again made Xiangwu pause for a moment, recalling everything that had happened. But the instant her eyes landed on those bright, shiny pieces of broken silver, joy overwhelmed her, and any lingering awkwardness evaporated completely.
Accepting the silver, she beamed so widely she couldn't close her mouth, politely and dutifully thanking Steward Wang’s wife.
Seeing Xiangwu like this—with her fair, delicate complexion and exquisite features—Steward Wang's wife was momentarily dazed. When the girl smiled, it was like tasting peach blossom honey in the spring breeze, immensely sweet and lovely. Ah, well, the woman thought to herself with a quiet sigh. A bride this gorgeous is beyond what our family could handle anyway. The bride granted by the Marquis is better; at least her status is clear!
Xiangwu didn't spare a thought for any of that. Ergouzi was ancient history; now that she had silver in hand, her heart was filled with pure delight.
She and Yueqing returned to their room and shut the door behind them. Each taking a corner of the bed, they began counting their silver. After counting it over and over, Xiangwu weighed it in her palm—it came out to roughly five taels of silver. Her heart leaped with unexpected joy.
She began counting on her fingers again: How much silver will I need to buy back my freedom? Once I save up enough to redeem myself, can I finally leave the Marquis's estate?
To leave the Marquis's estate as a free woman with plenty of silver to back me up... Once I have money, who needs a man!
Ah-Fu, Chen Zhong, Ergouzi—I don't care about a single one of them. What I want is money!
Yueqing was equally thrilled. She excitedly cupped the bits of broken silver in her hands, pressing her cheek against them. "Oh, silver, beautiful silver! I love you to death!"
Xiangwu hugged her silver to her chest as well. "I wish I could sleep with my silver every night."
Hearing this, Yueqing immediately snapped back to reality. "We're keeping ours in our own separate chests—don't get them mixed up!"
Even best friends keep clear accounts. Sharing a room meant they had to make sure there was no confusion over money.
Xiangwu nodded vigorously. "Right!"
Just as the two were counting their money, Yunruo and Huameng came over to call them, saying they needed to go before the young mistress to offer their thanks for the reward. Xiangwu and Yueqing hurriedly stashed their silver and hurried out with them.
Huo Yingyun was actually in quite a pleasant mood.
Her father had praised her—a rare occurrence indeed.
He said the belt she embroidered was very well done, and he even intended to entrust her with an important responsibility.
With a beaming smile, she surveyed her four maids. Each had her own strengths, but Xiangwu was by far the most beautiful. Originally, Huo Yingyun had planned to send her away early, but the girl had remarkably skilled hands. Fortunately, she had exercised restraint and kept Xiangwu around; now, that decision could be put to great use.
Huo Yingyun dismissed the other three maids, leaving only Xiangwu behind to discuss the matter.
"Embroider a folding screen?" Xiangwu asked in astonishment. "But... but I don't know how to embroider a screen! I've never done one before!"
Embroidering a full folding screen wasn't like stitching a simple pouch. Who knew how much time and grueling effort it would take? She was still hoping to save up enough money quickly to redeem her freedom and go home!
"What? Are you unwilling?" Huo Yingyun’s face instantly darkened.
This task had been ordered by her father. To demonstrate her filial piety, Xiangwu had to take the job. No matter how difficult it was, she had to rise to the challenge and overcome it. Saying she didn't know how or had never done it before was nothing more than making excuses!
“No, no!” Xiangwu shook her head and waved her hands frantically, visibly uneasy. “Miss, I’m only afraid that my embroidery won't be good enough. If the Marquis sees it and gets angry, wouldn't that bring trouble upon you as well?”
Hearing this, Huo Yingyun’s dark expression softened just a fraction. “Stop making up excuses. My father was the one who brought this up. As his daughter, there is no way I can refuse, so you must help me embroider it.”
Seeing no way out, Xiangwu lowered her head and averted her gaze. “Yes, Miss.”
Huo Yingyun continued, “As for the specifics of the screen, you need to take a close look at the painting hanging in my father’s study.”
Xiangwu blinked in confusion. “A painting?”
“Of course!” Huo Yingyun said. “My father wants a screen that matches the painting in his study. Naturally, you have to examine it carefully, it must be embroidered to look identical, or my father won't be pleased with it!”
Xiangwu was utterly bewildered. “But... but I’ve never seen the painting in the Marquis’s study!”
Even though she had accompanied the young mistress into the Marquis’s study before, she had been too terrified to draw a deep breath, let alone raise her head to look around. How could she possibly know what the painting looked like, much less replicate it in needlework?
This was indeed an issue, but Huo Yingyun had already thought it through. “What does that matter? I’ll just tell my father that I have a maid who excels at copying artwork, and that I’m sending you over to copy the painting for me. Once you trace it, I can use it as a reference to embroider. That way, you can go to my father’s study to examine the painting completely in the open!”
Xiangwu’s face fell into a deep scowl. “But Miss, I don't know the first thing about copying paintings...”
Huo Yingyun glared at her. “Who said you actually have to copy it? Are you foolish? That’s just an excuse, a pretext to let you sneak a few good looks at the painting in my father's room! Just look at it carefully while you’re there, and then use it as a reference to embroider at night.”
The more Xiangwu thought about it, the more distressed she became. Hesitating, she stammered, “But... but...”
“But what?”
With a soft sob, Xiangwu dropped to her knees. “Miss, I’m scared... I don't dare to go to the Marquis’s study all the time.”
The Marquis was terrifying, and that big, wild dog of his was just as horrifying.
Huo Yingyun frowned, looking down at the maid before her with growing impatience. Narrowing her eyes, she snapped, “You’re afraid of my father, but are you not afraid of me?”
Xiangwu shuddered instantly and stammered in panic, “I—yes, Miss! I’ll go look at the painting!”
Whether she stretched her neck out or pulled it back, a blade was waiting for her either way. She had no choice but to bite the bullet and brace herself to push through it.
---
Ever since the plan to visit the Marquis’s study for the embroidery task was settled, Xiangwu felt like an eggplant struck by frost—completely wilted.
Even counting her bright, shiny silver that evening couldn't lift her spirits. She let out a long sigh and slumped limply onto her couch.
Beside her, Yueqing glanced over. “Don't be silly. This is a rare opportunity. Who knows, maybe the Marquis will take a fancy to you.”
At those words, Xiangwu froze in sheer terror. “The... the Marquis? Take a fancy to me?”
Seeing Xiangwu turn pale as a sheet, Yueqing realized she had terrified her and quickly tried to backtrack. “Aiya, I was just joking! How could that ever happen?”
Yet Xiangwu recalled the intense heat radiating from the Marquis in the stables when he bent over her, as well as the gentle touch of his hand brushing through her hair. Suddenly, her face flushed red, her ears burned, and an overwhelming surge of nerves washed over her. She grabbed Yueqing’s hand and insisted, “Sister Yueqing, do you really think the Marquis might take a liking to me?”
Yueqing hurried to reassure her, stating with absolute certainty: “Don't be foolish. Think about who the Marquis is! Between the women gifted by the Emperor and those sent by outside officials, his Shuiyun Pavilion is practically overflowing. Every single one of those women is better than you in every way. Would the Marquis have to be blind to like you? You're timid, clumsy, terrible with words, and you don't even look like anything special!”
Hearing this, Xiangwu finally let out a small sigh of relief. “That’s good, then.”
Ever since that strange dream, she saw things crystal clear and had accepted her fate.
Whether it was a Marquis, a young master, or a son-in-law—they all belonged to the category of "masters," and they were all the same kind of men. A man like that might take a fancy to her and take her body, but it would be nothing more than lusting after her flesh. He might very well call her into the study and have his way with her right on the writing desk.
Any man who wanted to mess with her anywhere outside of a proper marriage bed was up to no good. It meant he didn't respect her at all; it meant he viewed her as a mere plaything.
She didn't want to be a concubine, nor did she want to be a toy. No matter how high a man’s status was, if he wouldn't marry her properly, then his "liking" her was never genuine.
If the Marquis truly took a liking to her, her only fate would be to become a concubine—one who served him at the foot of the bed.
That was not what she wanted.
Seeing how genuinely frightened she was, Yueqing’s thoughts drifted to the young master. Recalling him, she asked, “The young master has you in his heart. Do you really not want to become his concubine?”
Xiangwu nodded vigorously. “Of course not! Not only do I not want to, Sister Yueqing, but I also want to advise the rest of you not to either. Being a concubine is really not a good life…”
Yueqing raised a hand, quickly cutting her off. “Alright, alright, alright! If you don't want to be the young master’s concubine, I certainly do. Later, I’ll find a way to become one myself. Just don't fight me for it, and I’ll be content. You don't need to lecture me, I appreciate your good intentions.”
Xiangwu felt utterly helpless. “Sister Yueqing...”
“You’re silly, but I’m not,” Yueqing said plainly.
Xiangwu looked at Yueqing helplessly. Her lips parted as if to speak, but in the end, she said nothing.
Only now did she realize that no matter how truthfully she spoke, those who hadn't experienced it for themselves would never understand.
She uttered a soft sigh, lay down on her couch, and drifted off to sleep.
Her sleep was filled with dreams all night long. Men of every sort cropped up in her dreams—Ah-Fu, Chen Zhong, Ergouzi, along with the young master and the son-in-law. Toward the end, even the Marquis and his huge black dog made an appearance.
Terrified, she turned and ran as fast as she could. But as she ran, she felt increasingly exhausted and sore.
The fatigue came from her body, but the pain came from her chest.It was swelling and aching intensely.
When she woke up the next morning, Xiangwu had mostly forgotten about her dreams from the night before, but the sensation of swelling pain across her chest remained. Examining herself closely, she realized it wasn't the bright, inflamed soreness of yesterday. The redness had gone down, but a heavy, tight fullness lingered in its place. She couldn't fathom what was going on.
Xiangwu could only comfort herself with the thought that it would likely fade in a few days, so she continued applying the ointment even more diligently.
Unexpectedly, after two or three days, the initial swelling was completely gone, yet her chest felt as though it were subtly sprouting, growing noticeably fuller with each passing day.
This left Xiangwu astonished and deeply uneasy. Counting her silver, she thought to herself, ‘I really need to see a doctor... Why on earth am I suddenly growing here...?’
Yueqing, on the other hand, looked at her with eyes reddening from pure envy. "You're filling out! You're growing!"
Sharing a room and a bed with Xiangwu, she had watched with her own eyes as Xiangwu’s chest began to bloom.
Xiangwu had always possessed a lovely figure, and her shape there was particularly graceful, but she had been on the smaller side—certainly not as voluptuous as the other maids. Yet now, there was an unmistakable surge in growth. Especially when she wore her peach-pink undershirt; squeezed lightly within the tight fabric, the contrast of vivid crimson against milky-white skin was a sight that could stir a heart—be it a man's or a woman's!
Yueqing creased her brows. "How old are you again? Not quite eighteen,right?"
Xiangwu held her chest, looking thoroughly distressed. "Yes, I won't turn eighteen until this summer."
Yueqing felt a twinge of jealousy. ‘Of course.’ Before even reaching fifteen, a girl's body was still developing. Yet Xiangwu wasn't gaining weight anywhere else—she was growing exclusively in that one place. Talk about being favored by luck!
Yueqing’s eyes drifted to Xiangwu’s slender waist, as delicate as a flower stem. It was a waist so small it could be encircled by a single hand, yet it held up a pair of ripe, tempting, peach-like curves.
‘How did she manage to grow so perfectly?’
Yueqing sighed with emotion. "The Heavens truly aren't fair."
Why did Xiangwu get all the good gifts? If only a fraction of that luck had gone to her, she could go seduce the young master!
Xiangwu could hear the sourness in Yueqing’s tone. Glancing at her, she sighed softly, "Sister Yueqing, you don't understand my struggle."
"What struggle could you possibly have?" Yueqing countered.
"I... think I've grown bigger..."
"Isn't that a great thing?"
Xiangwu patted her undershirt with a troubled expression. "I'll probably have to tailor new ones now. That all costs real silver!"
Yueqing: "..."
If she could grow like that, she would gladly endure tailoring undershirts big enough for winter melons! She certainly wouldn't care about a bit of silver!
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