DTBCF Chapter 11

Baixiang Xiu had carefully prepared for a long time. When she finally finished and added the finishing touches with paint, even Xiao Shi was shocked. “Are you giving this to the Madame?”

“Of course. What do you think?” Baixiang Xiu, looking quite proud of herself, admired her work. She elegantly twirled a carving knife in her hand, the other hand resting on her waist in a confident pose.

Xiao Shi nodded so hard her head nearly fell off. How had she been serving her mistress for so long and never realized she had such talent? This was great news, though. Once this gift was presented, the Madame would surely look at Baixiang Xiu differently.

Baixiang Xiu was quite satisfied as well, and now she just needed to choose what to wear for the occasion.

Her face was already strikingly beautiful. She knew that just showing up, even without much effort, would catch the attention of many. But her goal wasn’t to flaunt her looks—Madame disliked such behavior.

Although she did plan to catch the attention of one of the male characters, she certainly didn’t want to get beaten to death before she succeeded.

So, she chose a light blue dress, not too plain but not overly flashy either. She paired it with a red vest, giving her a balanced, understated appearance. After all, it was the Madame’s birthday celebration—she had to show some respect.

As for her hair accessories, she kept them to a minimum. The main reason was that her long hair already felt heavy, and she worried that wearing too much on her head would eventually give her neck problems.

Xiao Shi sighed. In her opinion, her mistress’s beauty was too extraordinary, but she had deliberately downplayed it to avoid being accused of seducing someone.

“Later, spend some money to hire two servants to carry the gift over. Make sure it doesn’t get dropped,” Baixiang Xiu instructed before standing up. She examined herself in the bronze mirror. Even when dressed modestly, her face still had an alluring quality.

Why had such a good face ended up in this situation? Was it really because she lacked the aura of a main character?

Baixiang Xiu had read about this in the book. In this era, concubines didn’t hold much status. Although she was an official concubine, brought in through proper channels, she was still just a concubine.

At this birthday banquet, the four concubines had no right to sit with the main family. They were only there to present gifts, and once the other women arrived, they would have to leave.

Unless the Madame or Prince Li, Long Heng, allowed them to stay—but according to the book, they were never allowed to remain.

So, all she needed to do was deliver the gift, attract some attention from one of the male characters-Song Jiaoyue, and then leave. She had no other expectations. Since family gifts were presented before those of outsiders, they needed to arrive early.

Right now, the male and female guests should all be gathered in front of the Madame, so maybe she’d get a chance to see that male character, Song Jiaoyue.

Baixiang Xiu was a bit excited. After all, she had chosen him. If it worked out, he would save her from this situation. Maybe, just maybe…

She shouldn’t think too far ahead. Just staying alive would be enough.

With that, she and Xiao Shi made their way toward the grand hall. Many guests had already gathered, mostly members of the prince’s household or their close relatives.

Before Prince Li, Long Heng, was granted his title, his family was already quite prominent, but only his generation flourished. However, they have the least members in the whole family tree.

Long Heng’s father had been a general, often away at war. He had two illegitimate sons, but neither survived and his only illegitimate daughter married long ago. His wife, Liu Shi, the Madame, only had Long Heng. Now, with him holding such a high position, she commanded a great deal of respect.

Even the Emperor had sent a gift for the celebration—a scroll of “One Hundred Longevities,” which was already displayed in the main hall.

As soon as Baixiang Xiu and the other three concubines arrived, they were instructed to first kneel and bow before the scroll, to show proper decorum.

So, before even seeing the Madame, Baixiang Xiu had knelt to the scroll and then was guided to the Madame to kneel and bow to her.

Ancient people’s knees really suffered. She had already knelt twice in such a short time.

While silently complaining, she heard someone announce, “The Prince has arrived.”

She rolled her eyes. Did this mean she had to kneel again?

Sure enough, Prince Li, Long Heng, strode in with confident steps, paid his respects to his mother, and then sat down. The concubines had to kneel once more to pay their respects to their husbands.

“You may all rise. There are no outsiders here,” the Madame said with a smile, looking much more pleasant than the day she had someone beaten to death. Still, her authority was undeniable, and Baixiang Xiu was quite frightened, not daring to even raise her head.

It wasn’t her fault for being timid. She had been a modern woman, never even seeing a chicken or a duck being slaughtered, and suddenly, she had witnessed someone beaten to death. That kind of shock wasn’t something one could just forget.

Baixiang Xiu rose with the other three concubines, trying her best to sit unobtrusively. But just as she sat, she heard the Madame laugh and say, “Jiaoyue has arrived. Don’t just stand there; come sit. How is your mother doing? Is she coming today?”

Song Jiaoyue glanced briefly at the group of four women, his eyes barely pausing on their graceful figures, before smiling. “Replying to the Madame, my mother will of course come, though she hasn’t been out for some time and may take a while to arrive.”

The Madame laughed. “Yes, it’s been a few months since we’ve seen each other. With all the busy affairs of the households, it’s been ages since we had a good chat. If it weren’t for this occasion, she might not have moved at all!”

Song Jiaoyue smiled and exchanged polite conversation with the Madame for a while before stopping.

Throughout the conversation, the stoic male lead remained silent. Just as the book described, he was a man of few words.

Baixiang Xiu only hoped she could present her gift soon and leave. Most of the important guests had already arrived.

While she was thinking, Madame’s maid laughed and said, “Madame, the concubines, and young ladies are waiting to offer their birthday wishes. Should they come over now?”

The hint was clear: time was running out, and it was time for them to offer their gifts and make way for the proper wives and daughters.

“Yes, let them come,” the Madame said with a smile.

Baixiang Xiu couldn’t help but twitch her lips. She had known concubines held a low status in ancient times, but this felt more like being treated as a servant. Offering a gift felt like a handout, which made her feel quite frustrated.

But there was nothing she could do. After all, she wasn’t the female lead. She had no choice but to endure these small humiliations.

She waited, knowing that she was the last of the four. There was even a cousin ahead of her, one of the supporting female characters in the book, whose ending was worse than death despite her survival.

Out of curiosity, Baixiang Xiu glanced at her. The book described this woman as having the frail beauty of Lin Daiyu, but with a vicious temperament. What kind of woman was she? Baixiang Xiu was eager to see for herself.

One glance was enough for Baixiang Xiu to conclude that this woman was as much of a doomed side character as she was. Both of them were destined for tragic fates, and it seemed their beauty only hastened their downfall.

In a typical romance novel, someone like her could never be the heroine. Although she was beautiful and delicate, her attitude was far too sharp. Which man would find that appealing?

Still, she didn’t say anything inappropriate to the Madame—just the usual polite words of congratulations. Afterward, her maid presented the gift, but the maid tripped.

She wasn’t pleased and laughed, saying, “Look at you! You’re usually so capable, but now you’re fumbling at the most crucial moment. Get up before you dirty my cousin’s shoes.”

She then coughed a few times and laughed softly. The scorn in her laughter was so obvious that even a blind person could sense it.

It was clear she was mocking her maid, insinuating that the girl had fallen on purpose to get closer to Prince Li.

But wasn’t that maid one of her own? How could someone be so devious?