Consort of a Thousand Faces

The women were getting more agitated in their tirade. “What are you putting on airs for? Aren’t you just the official eldest daughter? Your waist is like a water bucket. Prince Hao wouldn’t accept you unless his eyes have gone blind!” 

 

“I am able to skip meals if that is what it takes. What about you? You’re as gaunt as a plank of dry wood, and even have a hidden disease.”

 

One of the woman’s anger got the better of her as she advanced several steps, planning to hit the other woman. “Nonsense, clean out your mouth! Who did you say has a hidden disease?!”

 

Su Xi-er couldn’t help but shake her head. She then crouched down and picked up two stones. With a flick of her wrist, the stones struck both of their knees.

 

The two women immediately cried out in agony; directly kneeling on the ground from the pain in their knees.

 

Everyone was dumbstruck. The two haven’t even started fighting yet. Why are they already kneeling on the ground?

 

The scene quietened down all at once, allowing Su Xi-er to break the silence. “I heard that Beimin’s Prince Hao is extremely cruel, and hates people talking about him behind his back the most. Perhaps Prince Hao’s imperial guards have long overheard your conversation, and will wait until the wee hours of the night to gouge out your eyeballs.”

 

Everyone’s gaze landed on Su Xi-er, their eyes involuntarily widening at her stunning beauty.

 

The two women crawled up from the floor, their fury now locked onto Su Xi-er. “Where did you pop out from? You actually dared to interfere with my matters. I see that you’re tired of living.”

 

Su Xi-er smiled. “My words were just to scare you two. However, people with status do in fact hate people randomly talking about them. I suggest that the both of you immediately return home and improve your figures or treat your hidden disease.”

 

Someone chimed in, “That’s right! With both of you making a fuss here and blocking the whole street, how are we going to do business? Aren’t you just a landlord’s daughter? And aren’t you just related to some ministers in the court?” 

 

“However, that minister relative of yours doesn’t attach any importance to you. You have long passed the prime of your youth, but why hasn’t your minister relative found a marriage for you?”

 

Resentment glimmered in the two women’s eyes as the sounds of disparagement from the surroundings lingered incessantly in their ears. They knew that all these people like beauties. They must be helping this woman who suddenly popped out just because she’s beautiful!

 

We have lost. Lost in not being beautiful. The two women clenched their teeth and turned to leave. Hmph, we’ll fix her and make her bear the consequences sooner or later.

 

Even after the two women left, the crowd still hadn’t dispersed, but were instead staring at Su Xi-er. The middle-aged woman closest to Su Xi-er had a concerned expression on her face. “Miss, you have to be careful. Those two women are Landlord Wei’s official and concubine-born daughters. They have a distant relative who is the Imperial Guard Army Commander in court.”

 

Such a coincidence! These women are ‘related’ to Wei Mohai. Since that’s the case, I will have to treat them properly.

 

At this moment, an imperial guard urged the horse carriage and slowly steered it over, forcing the crowd to disperse a little.

 

Su Xi-er smiled at the middle-aged woman before turning around to get into the horse carriage. Although the carriage was ordinary, it was slightly more spacious than a common one.

 

The crowd separated into two rows on their own, and watched as the horse carriage travelled into the distance. Only after it had disappeared from their sight did they come back to their senses.

 

“Was that woman a daughter of an eminent family?”

 

“Although her demeanour and appearance did match those of a noble daughter’s, according to Nanzhao’s rules, those daughters have to stay in their boudoirs. How is it possible for them to leave the residence?”

 

“Perhaps… she just came to Nanzhao, and her family is slightly wealthy.”

 

Everyone accepted the last theory. Regardless of whether her family was wealthy or whether she was the daughter of an eminent family, her appearance had left a deep impression in the minds of these people.

 

Furthermore, she hadn’t expended any physical strength, but relied on her wisdom to make those two unruly women retreat, causing a trace of respect to involuntarily arise in everyone’s eyes.

 

In the end, at least half of the people in Nanzhao’s capital had heard that a peerless beauty had arrived in Nanzhao. Not only was she beautiful, but she was also intelligent, able to subdue two notoriously unruly women.