He Jin returned to his bedroom in a huff and found Su Hele still trailing behind him. His brows furrowed even deeper.
"Leave me alone for a while."
"If my husband is troubled, why don't I play the zither for you?"
With that, she was about to go and fetch the zither when she heard He Jin shout sternly:
"Get out!"
Play what zither? Right now, even celestial music wouldn't lift his spirits.
Rather than wasting time on such romantic pursuits here, he should think about how to change his colleagues' attitudes towards him.
With these thoughts in mind, He Jin called out to stop Su Hele, whose face had turned pale.
"If you really want to relieve my worries, go and urge Su Nansheng again. Let He Xun fulfill his duty as an elder brother as soon as possible."
Once he got promoted, he'd like to see if those colleagues would still look down on him. They'd be scrambling to curry favor with him.
...
Thanks to He Xun's efforts, the Ministry of Personnel sent word within a few days that He Jin had been promoted to the fifth - rank junior secretary.
When the news came, Concubine Li immediately felt elated. She even found Su Hele more pleasing to the eye.
Su Hele was both happy and secretly relieved. Fortunately, Chen Wanrong had kept her promise. Otherwise, she really didn't know what to do.
These days, He Jin had been constantly urging her to go to Su Nansheng, but she didn't want to go at all. She just made a round outside the Tingfeng Courtyard and then went back. Fortunately, no one noticed.
Now that He Jin had been promoted, she no longer needed to go to Su Nansheng.
Moreover, she wanted Su Nansheng to see that He Jin could get promoted without her help.
So, on the day He Jin took up his new post, Su Hele stared at the Tingfeng Courtyard from afar, just waiting to run into Su Nansheng.
If Su Nansheng didn't come out, she'd keep waiting.
It wasn't until the beginning of noon that she saw Su Nansheng come out of the Tingfeng Courtyard and head towards the main gate.
Su Hele couldn't help but snort. It was already this late and she'd just gotten up. How lazy.
Thinking this, she quickly followed up.
"Aunt Su, what a coincidence. Are you going out too?"
Su Nansheng stopped in her tracks, glanced at her sideways, and said,
"Indeed a coincidence."
Then she continued walking forward, showing no intention of chatting with Su Hele.
But Su Hele wasn't going to let this opportunity slip away. She lifted her chin and said,
"Yes, my husband is favored by the emperor and has been promoted. Naturally, I have to celebrate for him."
"Congratulations then. I hope the second young master can hold that position for a long time."
Su Nansheng didn't even turn her head, her tone flat.
"This is just what my husband deserves. Aunt Su doesn't need to envy or compete. After all, you're just a concubine, while I'm the proper wife of a fifth - rank official now."
As they were talking, they had reached the mansion gate, which was wide open.
Outside, several servants were carrying dozens of pots of fresh flowers from the carriage. Camellias, narcissuses, and white magnolias, all cold - resistant varieties with a strong fragrance.
Looking at the pure - white narcissuses, Su Nansheng smiled and said,
"Yes, I'm a third - rank gentlewoman. How can I compare with a proper wife who has no rank? She's not worthy."
Su Hele's face suddenly changed. Her teeth bit so hard into her inner lip that it bled.
This was what she couldn't accept the most. When Su Nansheng was granted the title, she was lying in bed recuperating and couldn't move. Otherwise, she would never have allowed Su Nansheng to be granted the title.
Su Nansheng was just a vulgar and lowly person. How could she deserve a title?
Seeing Su Hele's gloomy face, Su Nansheng smiled brightly.
"You said I'm just a concubine, but I've been granted a title. It's really—well - deserved."
Hearing this, Bitao behind her lowered her head and tried hard to suppress her smile.
Su Hele's face changed again. She gritted her teeth and was about to speak when she heard Su Nansheng say,
"Second young mistress, your back injury has just healed. You'd better watch your words. Don't offend me, a third - rank gentlewoman. There are so many people listening."
As she said this, Su Nansheng motioned with her eyes towards the outside.
Following her gaze, Su Hele saw that all the servants outside were staring at them.
Seeing this, Su Hele forcibly suppressed her anger, lifted her chin, and turned to leave.
"Wait."
Su Hele turned back and glared at Su Nansheng. What did she want now?
Su Nansheng's smile became even brighter. She pointed to a pot of narcissus and said,
"That narcissus matches you very well. I'll give you a pot."
"That narcissus is pure and elegant. It does match me, but I don't like it."
After saying that, Su Hele held her head high and walked away with a straight back.
Vaguely, Su Nansheng seemed to say something else, but Su Hele didn't catch it, and she didn't want to listen either.
She was just a vulgar person. Why bother entangling with her?
Su Nansheng watched Su Hele's back with a smile before saying to the servants outside,
"Move all these to the Tingfeng Courtyard."
The servants immediately got to work. After a few trips, they had moved all the flower pots away.
During this time, someone whispered,
"Uncle Zhou, is the narcissus poisonous?"
"Of course. This flower looks beautiful, but it's actually very poisonous. Be careful when you raise it."
...
The next day, Su Hele didn't go to the Yurong Courtyard to attend to Concubine Li. Instead, she just sent someone to inform Concubine Li that she wanted to stay in her courtyard to attend to He Jin.
"Su Mo, go and tell the small kitchen to make the dinner more delicate. Don't make my husband angry, or they'll be in for it."
Su Hele's voice was calm but threatening.
She had long disliked those cooks.
Previously, her meals were always bland. She even had to use her own silver to get some meat.
And those maids were always reluctant when she told them to do something.
This was not the life a second young mistress of the marquis's mansion should live. It was even less comfortable than when she was in the Su Mansion.
Those people just looked down on her because He Jin didn't like her. They were so bold as to bully their master.
Now that He Jin had been promoted, she also had a part in it. So He Jin had been treating her well these days.
As long as a few more days passed, He Jin would surely dote on her as before. Then she'd see how she could deal with these servants who had neglected her.
...
In the Yurong Courtyard, when Concubine Li heard the news sent by Su Hele's servant, she sneered.
"She's still a petty - minded person. Just because A Jin has given her a bit of a good look, she's already getting carried away."
If it weren't for the fact that she was happy about He Jin's promotion, she would have gone over to teach Su Hele a lesson herself.
"Now that the second young master has been promoted, he'll surely have a lot of social engagements in the future. The second young mistress may not have a peaceful life again."
Nanny Wang couldn't stand Su Hele's arrogance and reminded Concubine Li.
Concubine Li snorted and said,
"Of course I know this. But she won't be able to cause any more trouble. Now that A Jin has been promoted, the threshold for taking concubines can be raised again. You said you were keeping an eye on the unmarried young ladies in the capital. Do you have any suitable candidates now?"
Nanny Wang smiled and said, "I wouldn't dare to delay this. I've already sorted them out. If you want to see, I'll go and get the list now."
Concubine Li waved her hand.
"It's not urgent. You said before that Su Hele used her own silver to order meals."
"Yes, she eats very delicately every day."
Concubine Li's eyes flashed. She whispered,
"I wonder how much silver the Su family has subsidized her that makes her so arrogant."