spoiled brat

Chapter 2.2. A Dead End (Part Two)
News of Yao Niang's return spread quickly throughout the county.

Some say she became an official's wife, returned home in glory, and used a mountain of silver to redeem herself and Zhaozhao from their servitude; others say she became an ugly monster, neither human nor ghost, and no man wanted to touch her even if she paid him... There are many different opinions, but the only certainty is that Yaoniang was heavily pregnant, but whether she was carrying an illegitimate child or a noble one remains to be discussed.

So, the gossipy neighbors would gather in front of the building whenever they had free time, wanting to catch a glimpse of what the beautiful woman had become.

For half a month, no one saw Yao Niang, as if she didn't exist at all.

Some people tried to probe the girls in the building, but they all just laughed it off, their mouths tighter than the solidest wall in the world.

So everyone turned their attention to Zhaozhao.

On this day, Zhao Zhao, who had not shown her face for a long time, finally appeared. Her clothes were brand new, her hair was exquisitely styled, and she was even more radiant than usual. Walking on the street, she looked like a flower covered in dew that had fallen into the mud.

"Oh, whose daughter is this?"

“Isn’t this Yaoniang’s daughter…”

"Zhao Zhao'er, why hasn't your mother shown up for so long?"

Passersby struck up conversations, but Zhao Zhao, with a smile in her eyes and brows, didn't say a word, as if she had something incredibly happy hidden in her heart.

She went to the pharmacy at the end of the alley to buy medicine. As soon as she stepped across the threshold, the shopkeeper, Zhang, began to scrutinize her attire.

Good heavens, dressed in a Suzhou-made blue silk robe, with a jade hairpin in her hair, a silver bracelet on her wrist, and silk shoes on her feet, she looks more like an official's daughter than an official's daughter. How can she look down on anyone?

Shopkeeper Zhang chuckled and teased, "Zhao Zhao'er, why haven't I seen your mother these days?"

“My mother…” Zhao Zhao smoothed her hair, revealing the coral earrings on her ears, and said lightly, “Now that she doesn’t have to show her face in public anymore, why would she still come out to see people?”

If she were dressed plainly at this moment, Manager Zhang would surely think that Yao Niang had become an ugly monster who could not be seen by others.

But her attire was so luxurious that Manager Zhang concluded that Yao Niang had climbed the social ladder to become a high-ranking official and no longer bothered to sell her smiles to commoners.

"My little darling, you're going to have a good life in the future." Manager Zhang chuckled. "What kind of medicine are you buying today?"

Zhao Zhao mentioned several medicines to stabilize the pregnancy and calm the mind, then looked worried and mentioned several medicines to remove scars and reduce swelling.

Manager Zhang, who was dispensing medicine, frowned and asked, "Zhao Zhao'er, I heard that when your mother was found near the North Gate, she looked terrible."

“Uncle Zhang, you know how people in our town are. They can’t stand seeing others do well. They can call white black and black rotten.” Zhao Zhao laughed. “Just look at your pharmacy. How many times have people said you’re selling fake medicine? How can you believe what they say?”

Shopkeeper Zhang's face froze, and he said awkwardly, "That's true. Even the best person can become a monster after being talked about a few times. But... quite a few people saw your mother back then, and lately they've all been saying that your mother..."

He stopped talking, his small eyes gleaming like a starving mouse, just waiting for the rice bag to burst open so he could pounce and gnaw on it.

Zhao Zhao found a chair and sat down, saying quietly, "Uncle Zhang, to tell you the truth, my mother's situation is actually even worse than they made it out to be."

"Still miserable?"

Shopkeeper Zhang stopped preparing the medicine, leaned closer to Zhao Zhao, and feigned concern: "Is Yao Niang's face really broken? Is her body covered in festering sores?"

“It was even worse than that.” Zhao Zhao choked up. “My stepfather was a sixth-rank official who married a shrewish wife from a prominent family. He wanted to take my mother as a concubine, but he was afraid of her and dared not. So he could only give my mother some money and tell her to find a place to give birth to the child first, so that the child would have his bloodline, and then he could find a reason to bring the child into the family.”

As she spoke, tears welled up in Zhao Zhao's eyes: "Uncle Zhang, what kind of thing is this... My mother was with him out of affection, but he only saw her as a prostitute and just gave her money to get rid of her. He had no sincerity at all."

Manager Zhang was stunned by Zhao Zhao's words. He thought to himself, "Your mother is a prostitute. It's already a great favor that the official is willing to spend money to support her. If she gives birth to a boy, won't she have a lifetime of wealth and honor?"
Though inwardly disdainful, Manager Zhang outwardly feigned concern, hastily grabbing a handful of melon seeds from the table and handing them over, coaxing:

"Zhao Zhao'er, don't cry, it breaks Uncle Zhang's heart... If something's wrong, just tell me, Uncle Zhang is listening."

Holding the melon seeds, Zhao Zhao revealed the naivety of a thirteen-year-old girl and began to cry, sniffling: "Uncle Zhang, I really feel sorry for my mother... My mother's body is covered with scars from being tortured. I asked her how she got them, but she wouldn't tell me. Later, my mother couldn't help but tell me that they were all caused by my stepfather."

Shopkeeper Zhang scoffed inwardly. "Your mother's been on the market for over a decade; she's practically rotten by now. Do you really expect her to be treated like royalty? No wonder the official took a liking to her; after all, her fair face is rather endearing..."

"Zhao Zhao'er, don't cry."

Shopkeeper Zhang, having heard enough gossip, got up to go back to get the medicine, scoffing, "These days, which high-ranking official doesn't have a bad temper sometimes? Men in bed... well, you wouldn't understand. Uncle Zhang will prepare the medicine for you properly. Take it back and give it to your mother to drink and apply, and I guarantee the pregnancy will be stable, and the scars on her body will disappear immediately."

“Then thank you very much, Uncle Zhang… Everyone in this town treats my mother like a prostitute, and they wish she would suffer as much as possible,” Zhao Zhao said, looking at Manager Zhang’s busy back, her tearful eyes empty and cold. “Only you, Uncle Zhang, are a kind-hearted doctor and don’t wait to see us make a fool of ourselves.”

It's so comfortable to be a saint in front of children.

Shopkeeper Zhang chuckled at the praise, and in his delight, he increased the amount of medicine, even adding two more layers of oil paper to wrap it.

Zhao Zhao readily paid the money, and as she turned to leave, the sincere and touching gratitude faded from her youthful face, replaced by a numb and worldly indifference.

She was carrying the medicine and walking back when she heard a furious shout from behind: "I finally caught you!"

Before she could turn around, a sharp pain shot through her right shoulder, and a withered hand landed on it. The hand belonged to a man in his forties, who glared at Zhao Zhao with raised eyebrows.

"You little bitch, give me back my money!"

His voice was so shrill it was like a needle, which drew a crowd of neighbors who stood around watching the spectacle.

"Li Tailor, what money do I owe you?" Zhao Zhao said calmly.

"You said you could win over your mother and make her submit to me!" Li the tailor gritted his teeth. "I've spent a lot of money these past few months, but I haven't even seen your mother! You said she had a cold and couldn't see anyone, and I was stupid enough to believe you and send money to that pregnant slut!"

"What did you say back then?" Zhao Zhao sneered. "You said you didn't care about my mother's looks or body, only her gentle nature and unparalleled talent. You said she was a celestial being who had mistakenly fallen to the mortal world, and that you would cherish her no matter what. Now you turn around and call her a piece of trash?"

Li the tailor, who had initially been somewhat eloquent, was now rendered speechless by Zhaozhao's retort, and began to cry out to those around him:
"Listen to this little bitch's twisted logic! What man doesn't use sweet words to please a woman? Even if I had impure intentions, that's no excuse for her to deceive me."

He was overly shrewd in business, which caused him to have poor relationships with his neighbors. Seeing him get the short end of the stick, everyone mocked and ridiculed him:
"Men deceive women's feelings, and women deceive men's money. Neither of them are good people, so why are you pretending to be wronged?"

"Li Tailor, you know she's a slut and you still dare to trust her? Aren't you just asking for trouble?"

"You've been blinded by lust. It's one thing to be swindled out of some money, but why are you trying to take advantage of a little kid like her?"

"Exactly! Love is like gambling; gambling on women is like gambling with dice. Why get so upset when you lose money? A man in his fifties shouldn't be so stingy!"

Li the tailor blushed deeply, and in desperation, he grabbed Zhao Zhao's shoulder, making a move to reach into her purse.

"I never do business at a loss, you have to pay me back!"

Zhao Zhao was young and weak, and couldn't break free from him, so she bit Li the tailor's wrist. Li the tailor cried out in pain and, in anger, raised his hand and slapped Zhao Zhao.

Despite his lean appearance, he had considerable strength in his hands. With a loud thud, Zhao Zhao fell to the ground like a petal.

Her clean clothes were stained with mud, the hairpin in her hair fell to the ground, a fishy, ​​sweet taste seeped into her mouth, and her vision blurred with double images, alternating between black and white, until she could see nothing clearly.

When her vision finally cleared a bit, Zhao Zhao saw the hairpin lying in front of her. She reached out to pick it up, but Li the tailor firmly stepped on her hand with his foot.
"Pay back the money!"

Zhao Zhao tried to pull her hand away, but the more she struggled, the harder Li the tailor pressed down on her, as if he wanted to break her hand bones.

But then there was a snapping sound, and Zhao Zhao felt a sharp pain in her palm; the hairpin had broken off in her hand.

"Take your foot away," Zhao Zhao said coldly.

Li the tailor didn't care about the skinny little girl at all: "I'm stepping on you, you bitch."

Almost in the blink of an eye, Zhao Zhao, who had been sitting with her head down, pounced on him like a cat, and stabbed him in the face with the broken hairpin in her hand, leaving bloody marks on Li the tailor's face in a few quick moves.

"He's hitting me!" Li the tailor screamed in pain, calling out to those around him for help: "He's hitting me... that little bitch is hitting me!"

He looked like he had suffered a great injustice, which Zhao Zhao found absurd. She became even more ruthless with him, showing no mercy whatsoever.

"Only bitches are allowed to get beaten, but not allowed to fight back?!"

Seeing that Zhao Zhao had become ruthless, Li the tailor dared not argue any longer and struggled to get up and run away. But before he could get up, the sound of horses' hooves and wheels rang out in the distance, accompanied by several loud gong sounds. The onlookers dispersed and respectfully bowed their heads and knelt down by the roadside.

This is the kind of pomp and circumstance only high-ranking officials and nobles show when they go out. Judging from this, he must be at least a high-ranking official of the third rank or above.

Arguing with a prostitute is a small matter; offending the powerful is a big one. With a quick leap, Li the tailor got up and rolled to the roadside, covered in dirt.

Unexpectedly, after only a couple of thrashings, Zhao Zhao grabbed his withered white hair, and when he looked up, he saw Zhao Zhao's disheveled face.

She was still clutching the broken hairpin in her hand, dripping blood—it was her own.

The sound of horses' hooves grew closer, and the tailor Li said urgently, "Zhaozhao, we can talk about our business later. Right now, don't block the way of important people! That's a capital offense!"

A sandstorm swept up from afar, and with a gust of wind, it reached the two of them. After the sandstorm dissipated, four guards on tall horses had already arrived in front of Zhaozhao.

The head guard shouted coldly, "Who dares not step aside?!"

Zhao Zhao was young and had never seen such a scene before. She raised her head slightly and saw that behind the tall, mounted guards were solemnly dressed attendants. Further ahead was a sedan chair carried by twenty-four people. Through the light gauze that was as clear as water and as bright as the moon, she could vaguely see two noble people sitting inside.

"Insolence!" The head guard cracked his whip, the sound of it whistling through the air like a thunderclap in Zhao Zhao's ears. "How dare you pry into the beauty of a noble lady?"

After saying that, he pointed at Zhao Zhao and the tailor Li with his riding whip and said to the soldiers behind him, "They are ignorant of etiquette and have offended your esteemed guests. Take these two into prison."

"Yes!"

The clanging of armor filled the air, and several soldiers were already standing before the two. Zhao Zhao was trying to come up with a plan, but the tailor, in a panic, wet his pants and knelt down, crying:

"Sir... I'm innocent! I was walking down the street when this little bitch beat me up for no reason. She wouldn't let go of me, so I had no choice but to block your way!"

The head guard squinted at Zhao Zhao, not asking whether what the tailor Li said was true, but only asking Zhao Zhao: "Are you of lowly status?"

According to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty, those who are registered as lowly people will inevitably lose in lawsuits and will be executed in criminal cases. They cannot be compared with ordinary people and are considered livestock even if they are able to speak human language.

Li the tailor's cloudy old eyes gleamed, and taking advantage of Zhao Zhao's unpreparedness, he pulled open her clothes, leaving a mark on her fair shoulder.

"Sir, look!"

The head guard looked away, as if even glancing at Zhao Zhao would offend his eyes, and said impatiently, "Take this bitch away."

Before Zhao Zhao could pull her clothes up, several burly soldiers had already restrained her.

What kind of place is a prison? It's hell on earth!
If there isn't enough money to redeem one's life, one might be imprisoned in that dark and filthy place for the rest of one's life.

Ultimately, Zhao Zhao was just a girl who hadn't reached marriageable age yet; no matter how clever she was, it was just petty wit.

She panicked, but still tried to remain calm and asked, "May I ask the distinguished guest in the sedan chair, what makes a person noble?"

The head guard, hearing her insolent words, raised his whip to strike her, but unexpectedly, two clear knocks came from inside the sedan chair.

Seeing that things were turning around, Zhao Zhao asked loudly again: "Is it good to bully the weak? Is it good to punish a minor mistake severely?"

Before she could finish speaking, a sharp pain shot through her back. The captain of the guards dared not let her continue and roared, "Aren't you going to take her away?!"

pain.

Zhao Zhao had been beaten a few times when she was a child and thought she was not afraid of pain, but this lash seemed to have split her in two, and her bones felt like they were about to break.

Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, her vision blurred and blacked out, and she collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The ropes binding her were tightened, and the soldiers didn't care whether she lived or died; they just tied her to the back of the horse and dragged her to the prison.

Zhao Zhao thought to herself that she was probably going to die.

Before losing consciousness, Zhao Zhao heard a cold male voice behind her: "Let her go."

It came from inside the sedan chair.

The rope that was dragging Zhaozhao suddenly loosened, and she fell to the ground, blood seeping from the wound on her back, mixing with the blood on the ground.

The head guard rushed to the side of the sedan chair to ask for instructions, but Zhao Zhao could no longer hear what he said. A moment later, she heard footsteps.

Gently, slowly, with a touch of laziness.

A pair of hands cupped Zhao Zhao's face.

It turned out to be a girl, a girl about the same age as Zhao Zhao.

"The princess!"

A maidservant trotted over, her gaze falling on the girl's hands that were cupping Zhao Zhao's face. Her hands, white as jade, should not be stained with any dirt, much less touch the face of a young prostitute.

The maid took out a handkerchief from her sleeve, intending to wipe the girl's hands: "What are you doing..."

The girl remained silent, only shaking her head. She took the handkerchief and gently wiped away the dirt and blood from Zhao Zhao's face, as if she were handling some precious treasure.

A nobleman, radiant with wealth and status, and a lowly commoner, covered in blood and filth, like an ant.

Under the blazing sun, Zhao Zhao looked at the girl in front of her, feeling utterly empty, as if her soul had been drained away.

Zhao Zhao had never hated her origins or loathed her filth so much.

She suddenly felt a strong urge to cry, a very strong urge, but not because of the pain in her back.

It was because the person in front of me was so noble and so gentle.

This only made her appear even more lowly and filthy.

The girl gestured to those around her to help Zhao Zhao up, then untied the ropes binding her. Finally, she looked at the maidservant, her slender white fingers deftly moving.

The maid understood her sign language and looked at Zhao Zhao: "The princess asks, which music academy do you belong to?"

Zhao Zhao lowered her head and said, "I am not under the jurisdiction of any brothel."

The implication is that she was the lowest-class prostitute in the brothel.

The girl remained expressionless and gestured to her maid to ask, "What is your name?"

“Zhao Zhao.” She paused, “Zhao Zhao Xi Wei Yang.”

It means bright and splendid.

The girl nodded slightly, her gaze falling on Zhao Zhao's right hand.

The broken hairpin was clutched tightly, with a few streaks of blood clinging to it, the scarlet mixed with the emerald green, a scene of sorrow and desolation.

The girl pulled a hairpin from her hair and handed it to Zhaozhao; it was as white as snow and as smooth as the moon.

"The county master..."

The maid reached out to stop her, but was intimidated by a look from the girl, and could only say to the stunned Zhaozhao:
"The princess is bestowing a reward upon you, why aren't you accepting it?"

Zhao Zhao opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't say a word. She slowly raised her hand and approached with trembling hands.

As they drew closer, he could almost feel the warmth of the girl's palm. Suddenly, as if bitten by a snake, she jerked her hand back.

"You..." the maid said in astonishment.

How can someone be so ungrateful?

"Xiu Ning".

From the sedan chair behind them, a cold male voice rang out again: "It's time to go."

The girl frowned, grabbed Zhao Zhao's hand, and stuffed the white jade hairpin into it. Before Zhao Zhao could say anything, she vanished like a cloud back into the sedan chair.

The maidservant gave Zhao Zhao a cold look, left after saying "You worthless thing" in a huff.

The sedan chair started moving again, and Zhao Zhao stepped aside to avoid it, kneeling down like the others.

Li the tailor shamelessly approached Zhao Zhao and asked with a sly smile, "Zhao Zhao, what did that nobleman say to you just now?"

They didn't say anything.

Zhao Zhao held a broken emerald hairpin in one hand and a plain jade hairpin as white as ice and snow in the other, as if she were holding two paths in life.

While everyone else lowered their heads, Zhao Zhao raised hers.

She saw the light curtains of the sedan chair fluttering in the breeze, and the girl who had been so close to her just moments before was sitting side by side with a young man in white, the two of them like immortals in a painting.

Zhao Zhao looked on greedily, as if she could escape all her lowliness and suffering and taste the riches of the world by taking a few steps forward.

Perhaps because her gaze was too intense, the girl noticed and met her gaze with a smile.

He quickly looked away, as if it were just an unintentional glance.

Even after the group had walked away in a grand procession, Zhao Zhao remained in the same spot, her mind replaying that glance back—clean, bright, compassionate, and gentle.

For the first time, a powerful force welled up in her humble heart, overwhelming her like a flood.

Zhao Zhao knew that this was desire.

She was no longer willing to live that kind of life.

She didn't want anyone's charity or pity, nor did she want anyone to control or influence her fate.

She wants to change her fate.