Doomed to be Cannon Fodder

Chapter 5: An ugly daughter-in-law can’t avoid meeting her mother-in-law forever

Xiao Shi claimed her mistress was unwell and thus asleep to all comers. The old servants didn’t bother examining matters beyond that and left quickly. However, a runner came an hour later, bearing summons for Bai Xiangxiu. Apparently, the Old Madame and the lord were in the front courtyard with something important to to tell her.

As a result, Xiao Shi was forced to shake Bai Xiangxiu awake. The latter dressed absentmindedly, curious about this unexpected development, “It’s already this late. What do they need with me at this time?”

Xiao Shi whispered back, “Apparently someone is in deep trouble. I’m not exactly sure of the details, but you’ll find out when you go.”

Knowing she was about see the male lead was making Bai Xiangxiu feel very uncomfortable. But an ugly daughter-in-law couldn’t avoid meeting her in-laws forever! They lived under the same roof, so they were bound to meet. She wasn’t worried about the male lead becoming involved with her, the male lead had too lofty an ego for that.

When a certain woman had run off to avoid the arranged marriage, all he had cared about was bringing her back. Otherwise, he showed no interest in the concubines housed in his rear court. As a result, she had little to no expectations of him. Realistically, he probably wouldn’t even look twice at her.

As a matter of fact, she was actually a bit curious. When she read the novel, she’d considered the male lead’s character to be quite good. Obviously, she wouldn’t have kept reading otherwise. Now that she was an actual spectator, it probably wasn’t a bad idea to ogle a hot man.

Thinking of this, she allowed Xiao Shi to dress and tidy her up. Afterwards, Xiao Shi slowly supported her as they made their way towards the front hall. The front hall was the main hall of the back courtyard; it was where the Old Madame handled affairs.

Although the concubines were legitimate wives, since the male lead had just returned from battle, and they’d only just moved to a new home, the concubines had yet to be assigned proper personnel. Normally, each concubine would be assigned a head servant and a minor servant. Since Mistress Xiu had just arrived, she was yet to be assigned a minor servant girl.

As for palanquins or similar litters, the old madame was the only one with that privilege. The concubines could only rely on their feet to travel. As Bai Xiangxiu walked towards the front hall, she couldn’t help but admire the scenery. Deep down, simple awe suffused her heart. The beauty of the ancient gardens was definitely incomparable to those in the modern world.

This was her field to begin with. She couldn’t help but slow down to take in the mesmerizing sights. Xiao Shi started to grow worried, trying to rush her along, “Mistress Xiu, the Old Madame had asked us to come and we cannot be late. Please hurry.”

Bai Xiangxiu could find no fault in those words. She decided to hurry, lifting her skirt with one hand. She had to, the skirt was too long and made walking very inconvenient. Xiao Shi started to sweat profusely on the side. She panicked, “Put it down! Please put it down. That’s too indelicate, Mistress!” Recently, she’d noticed her mistress becoming more and more casual. Not only behavior, her speech wasn’t as formal as before either.

Bai Xiangxiu crinkled her brows as she retorted, “You want me to be graceful and walk fast at the same time. Why don’t you just install wheels under my feet then? That way, I could be fast and not lift up my skirt.”

“Mistress Xiu, you’re making ridiculous statements again. Why would you install wheels on someone’s feet?” Xiao Shi responded patiently as she held onto her mistress’ arm. Xiao Shi was worried her mistress would step on her skirt and trip again. She’d tripped countless times over the past couple of days due to the dress.

“Ai ya….” Bai Xiangxiu nearly fell again. Fortunately, Xiao Shi had a firm grip on her held onto her. She couldn’t help but curse angrily, “Whoever that invented this long skirt was clearly trying to ruin the lives of females. His corpse deserved to be whipped a hundred times. A hundred times!” Someone could trip and die, alright? Luckily Xiao Shi held onto me. Or else, my nose would’ve been bruised and my face swollen.