My Lady Always Lacks Ambition

Having acquired the Jiao Pearl, Qin Liuxi was delighted. She was all set to pacify Noble Princess Consort Meng with it in exchange for the Jade Snow Skin she had saved, feeling utterly content.
Having saved a sum, she generously didn’t refuse a certain famous minister over fifty with ‘diminished vigor.’ However, the primary ingredient for the medicinal tea was not easy to come by—it required the Little Ginseng’s diligent cultivation, so availability and quantity were left to fate.
Little Ginseng Spirit: I’m actually possibly a little cabbage, unloved and uncared for, the kind that wilts with just a touch of the breeze!
Lin Xiang saw Qin Liuxi’s agreement and was delighted as well, yet he did not show it, only saying: “It’s unlikely that the Qin family will be pardoned and allowed to return anytime soon. I hear Teng Tianhan is investigating your grandfather’s sacrificial error case in private. If it turns out he was framed, there might be a chance of pardon, but he can’t avoid the consequences of negligence. Besides, he’s of an advanced age, and if his health suffers in the northwest, a reinstatement may be difficult.”
Qin Liuxi simply uttered “Oh.”
Lin Xiang continued, “While he can’t return for now, sending word over there to look after them shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”
Mentioning this, he felt as if Qin Yuanshan was fortunate, having people working for him here, all thanks to the blessing of his granddaughter.
Qin Liuxi responded with a smile, “You needn’t trouble yourself too much. If they can survive and come back, they’re already quite lucky. Having endured enough hardships, they should be more cautious in the future.”
“You’re not worried that their edges will be ground down or their spines bent?” Lin Xiang asked with raised eyebrows, probing her.
“True strength comes from enduring the greatest hardships. If they’re bent, it’s a problem of their own nature,” Qin Liuxi said. “I’ve done what I should. I can’t be expected to cover for my elders in all things. I’ve done my part, what have they done? Men should rely on their own strength.”
So, don’t rely on her, she would run away!
Lin Xiang’s eyes sparkled.
The conversation hinted at enough understanding for Qin Liuxi to tactfully take her leave. Lin Xiang accompanied her to the door of the study, but as she turned to leave, her smile paused, and she began to tally with her fingers, her brow furrowing.
Seeing her change in expression, Lin Xiang couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong?”
Qin Liuxi looked oddly at the Jiao Pearl in her hand, then handed over a jade pendant carved with runes that had been hanging at her waist, “This Jade Talisman, Prime Minister, wear it for protection against evil and safety. If anyone asks the Prime Minister where the Jiao Pearl is, feel free to tell them outright.”
In just this short amount of time, she had noticed a streak of ominous energy entangled around Lin Xiang, mixed with a faint red glow. After a quick calculation, it seemed she had become somewhat karmically entangled with him.
All because of this Jiao Pearl.
Someone else also desired this Jiao Pearl, and it seemed they’d soon inquire at the Meng Family’s first. They’d better pray for their own luck.
Lin Xiang was genuinely surprised this time, taking the jade pendant and, under the astonished gaze of a nearby servant, fastened it to his belt.
“Speak plainly, no harm in that?” he didn’t ask why Qin Liuxi had suddenly said this, guessing she must have calculated something.
Qin Liuxi nodded with a smile, “Ordinary people who come looking can probably be dealt with by those around you. But if someone like me comes, you won’t be able to handle them. So, to avoid any mishaps, you can clearly inform them that I have taken the Jiao Pearl.”
Lin Xiang rare showed a hint of concern, “Could this harm you? Do you need me to send someone to protect you?”
“No need, rest assured,” Qin Liuxi waved her hand and left with the Jiao Pearl.
…
In the palace, Noble Princess Consort Meng angrily smashed a set of landscape ink painting thin-porcelain tea set after sending off her mother, the Marchioness of the Truthful Loyalty.
Because she had lost the Jiao Pearl that was meant for the Longevity Gift, she didn’t even get the Jade Snow Skin in return. She had wasted an informant she had placed with Lady Xue to find out this news, and now she had come out with nothing, truly a case of trying to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used to lure it.
The final auction item this time at Jiuxuan was that very Jade Snow Skin, and it would not be available for the next two or three years.
How could this be acceptable?
Without the Jade Snow Skin, how could she maintain her fair and beautiful skin? Ever since she had given birth to the little prince, she felt that her skin was no longer as firm and elastic as before. It was precisely the time when she needed the Jade Snow Skin.
Most importantly, she had also heard that Jiuxuan’s goal was that very Jiao Pearl, which her family had just obtained to prepare as a gift for the Saint’s Longevity Gift. She immediately sent someone out of the palace to pass on a message, hoping her father would exchange it.
But now, the Jiao Pearl was gone.
“Your Highness, don’t be angry, didn’t the Marchioness say that the object is tied to the fate of the entire Marquis Mansion and cannot be kept?” A close servant carefully offered a new cup of tea and said, “If we can’t exchange it, the Jade Snow Skin will eventually be auctioned off. The Marchioness also said that she will surely win it for you.”
Noble Princess Consort Meng retorted angrily: “You believe her just because she says it, how do you know whether my father has come up with a better idea and is using these words to placate me? They don’t think, if I lose the Saint’s favor, our family will become nothing.”
“You’re being paranoid,” the palace maid said with a laugh to console her. “But you are someone accompanied by the little prince, not like those childless concubines. Plus, with the status of Imperial Concubine, who can surpass you? The Saint inquires after the little prince every day. Even the concubine in Fengyang Palace has to avoid your edge.”
The words pleased Noble Princess Consort Meng so much that her heart bloomed with joy, and she playfully scolded, “You just know how to sweet-talk me.”
“It’s an injustice, I’m speaking the truth,” the maid defended.
Noble Princess Consort Meng laughed and then, resting her chin on her hand, she sighed, “Having a child by my side is indeed advantageous, but with three thousand beauties in the harem, who can remain forever favored? The waves behind drive on those before, after all, I cannot compete with those tender young girls. Since the birth of the little prince, the Saint does put great importance on him, but how many times has he actually stayed in my chamber?”
Regardless, having borne a child or not, there was always something lacking. She had even heard the Saint mention in passing that her flesh was no longer as firm as before, and her waist had thickened by two inches.
With that, she ground her teeth in a sinister manner, “That Changsheng Hall is the worst, keeping such good items scarce instead of producing more, and now they’re still auctioning them off when they are available, truly heartless profiteers!”
The palace maid thought to herself that if they made more, the item wouldn’t sell for this price.
Scarcity drives up the value, everybody knows that!
Within Jiuxuan Auction Hall, Feng Xu fingered his hot ears, looking at the case containing the Jiao Pearl, he said to Qin Liuxi, “Do you believe the Meng Family is cursing us to no end behind our backs?”
The Jiao Pearl was lost, and the Jade Snow Skin couldn’t be exchanged, not to mention watching the duck that was almost in their mouths fly away; if they wanted the Jade Snow Skin now, they would still have to pay a high price at the auction. Although they made a hefty profit, it was really, heart and soul, quite the robbers!
Qin Liuxi: “I got it through my ability, and do not feel guilty in the least. Therefore, they too can obtain it, if they are willing to pay without limits.”
Feng Xu pointed to the Jiao Pearl: “What about this one then? Didn’t you say that someone else has taken an interest?”
“Yes,” Qin Liuxi squinted, saying, “I wonder who it is that could even find this Jiao Pearl.”
And moreover, that person would find her very soon.
Feng Xu looked at the slight excitement rising in Qin Liuxi’s eyes and shook his head slightly. The said genius is lonely, hence this little freak actually enjoys engaging in battles of wits!