Chapter 44: No Mercy, No Letting Go

Note: if you want us to continue translate this story and to get access to +20 advance Chapters I hope to support us on Patreon.com/flokixy without your support we can't continue ???? Su Li returned to the courtyard and said to Si Qin, "Let Yu Qi come in." With her mother pregnant, some plans needed to be made in advance. Anyone or anything that posed a threat to her mother or unborn brother must be eliminated swiftly! "Miss, did you call for me?" Yu Qi entered, speaking carefully. Over time, the arrogance that had once been present in Yu Qi had been worn down. Su Li put down the book, looked at her, and asked, "Do you resent me?" Yu Qi lowered her eyes and replied, "I... I do not dare." Su Li sneered. Not daring wasn’t the same as not resenting. "I asked you to handle something. How is it progressing?" Yu Qi answered, "Replying to the eldest young lady, Xia Jiang already knows that I am working for Xia Yiniang. His resentment toward her has eased quite a bit. Xia Yiniang and Second Miss trust me now." With Liu’er’s help and her own deliberate flattery, she had occasionally leaked some information to the Western Courtyard, making them lower their guard. Su Li nodded. "Good. In a few days, find an opportunity to kill Xia Wencai." Su Li's tone was flat, as if she were commenting on the weather. Yu Qi instantly looked up, her face filled with horror. "Kill... kill Xia Wencai? Miss, I’ve never killed anyone. I... I can’t do it!" Su Li said indifferently, "I’m giving you an order, not asking for your opinion. You and Xia Wencai can only live if one of you does. You choose." Yu Qi frantically kowtowed, begging, "Miss, please spare me! I really can’t do it!" She was somewhat greedy for power, but she had grown up in the Shilang Manor and had never encountered darkness like this. Suddenly being told to kill someone left her panicking. Su Li’s voice grew colder. "You have two choices: kill Xia Wencai, or die. Choose." "No choice? Then I’ll help you decide..." "Please! I’ll do it!" Yu Qi screamed. Su Li smirked. "That’s better. When you act, make sure Xia Jiang finds out." Yu Qi’s eyes widened. "Miss, if he finds out, can I even survive? You can’t be so ruthless!" Su Li laughed. "Don’t worry. Someone will save you. You won’t fall into Xia Jiang’s hands." "Is this true? Miss, you’re not lying to me, are you?" Su Li glanced at the disheveled Yu Qi on the floor and coldly said, "Do you think you have room to bargain? Either you die now, or you do as I say and have a chance to live." Before Yu Qi could respond, Su Li pinched her jaw and tossed a pill into her mouth, raising her chin. Yu Qi, in shock, tried to spit the pill out, but it was already swallowed. "Miss! What did you make me eat?" Yu Qi asked in panic. "Nothing much. Just a little poison, in case you’re disobedient. Don’t worry, if you do as I said, the antidote will be given to you." Yu Qi’s face fell as the last route of escape was blocked. "I will do as you say, Miss. I beg you to spare my worthless life, given I’ve been by your side for so many years." Su Li picked up the book, saying, "Go now." "Yes, Miss. I’ll take my leave." Su Li watched Yu Qi’s retreating figure. She would not show mercy! In this life, she was a demon who crawled out of hell! The next day, as she had promised her mother not to leave the manor, Su Li spent the day with her mother after breakfast. "Mother, your embroidery is really beautiful," Su Li said as she watched her mother start making a pair of tiger-head shoes for children—so cute and interesting. Su’s mother smiled, "When you were little, all your clothes were made by me, stitch by stitch. You were round and adorable, always pulling on your father’s hair. He’d wince in pain, but never scold you." As Su’s mother reminisced about her daughter’s childhood, she smiled brightly, and Su Li listened with great interest. "You were so mischievous when you were young. I don’t know how you became so steady now." She thought her daughter had grown up and no longer clung to her parents. Su Li leaned on her mother, saying, "Mother, I was foolish back then." She had believed the words of the Western Courtyard, thinking that a young lady should always be composed. But Su Yue had always been spoiled by her father. She was envious, but Xia Yiniang always reminded her that she was the eldest daughter, the legitimate daughter. Su’s mother gently touched her daughter’s face. "With the Crown Prince’s wedding coming up, all the officials’ families will be attending. Li’er, you haven’t been to such a grand event in years. You should go with your mother, understand?" Su Li nodded, rubbing against her mother, inhaling the sweet fragrance from her clothes, and smiling. Su’s mother chuckled, "You’re getting older but still love to be spoiled." Su Li suddenly asked, "Mother, if Father loves you so much, why did he let Xia Yiniang enter the household?" Su’s mother blushed. "What love and not love..." After a pause, she continued, "When you were born, you were over eight pounds, a big, healthy girl." "But it also drained my energy, and the doctor said it would be difficult for me to conceive again." "Your grandmother insisted that your father marry another, not because she was unkind, but because she couldn’t bear the thought of the Su family having no heirs." "Your father resisted for over a year, but one day, he came back from a trip, gloomy and silent. I finally asked him. He said that during the trip, his colleagues had arranged for a few women to accompany them, and one of them was Xia Shi. Your father got drunk..." "He felt guilty toward me, and that guilt grew in him. Xia Shi, however, became pregnant." "When your grandmother found out, she decided to make her a wife. On the day Xia Shi entered the household, your grandmother warned her that as long as she behaved herself, she would have a life of honor and riches." "Xia Shi has done so all these years, but her daughter is another matter." Su Li watched her mother, a cold smile curling on her lips. It wasn’t that Su Yue wasn’t obedient; it was just that Su Yue was young and hadn’t learned to hide it as well as Xia Shi. "Did Mother know if Xia Yiniang had an engagement before entering the household?" "No, your grandmother sent someone to investigate. Xia Shi was of good standing, but your father owed money to some officials and used his daughter as repayment." Su Li nodded. It seemed that to get to the bottom of Su Yue’s background, she would have to start with Xia Jiang. "Mother, let’s take a walk in the courtyard. You shouldn’t stay seated for too long with the pregnancy," Su Li said as she stood up. Su’s mother set aside her embroidery and nodded. Su Li helped her mother, carefully guiding her around the courtyard. Suddenly, a red flower caught her eye. "Forget Summer, where did this flower come from?" Su Li turned and asked. Forget Summer smiled and replied, "Miss, this is from the florist today. Madam likes bright flowers, so the florist brought a lot." Su Li’s voice turned cold. "Throw these flowers out! From now on, no flowers will be placed in Mother’s courtyard without my approval." Forget Summer was stunned, quickly instructing the servants to remove the red flowers. "Li’er, is there something wrong with these flowers?" Su’s mother asked in confusion. "Mother, this flower is called Lingxuehua, which can be used in medicine for blood circulation and removing blood stasis. But it’s very harmful to someone who’s just become pregnant. The smell can cause a miscarriage." Su’s mother was shocked. "It’s that dangerous?" Su Li took her mother’s hand. "Don’t worry, no matter who did it, intentionally or not, I won’t let them get away with it!" Su Li turned to Forget Summer. "Take Mother back to the house." "Yes!" Su Li and Si Qin left the main courtyard and walked to the front courtyard. "Let the florist come to see me!" "Yes, Miss!"