Oops! The Black Lotus Can’t Be a Female Supporting Character

CHAPTER 27

“My Yan’er, you’ve come!” Concubine Cui’s face lit up with joy as she saw Xiao Yanfei.

Shi momo helped Concubine Cui sit up and placed a soft, large pillow behind her back.

“Come, come closer.” Concubine Cui gazed intently at Xiao Yanfei, her pale, cool fingers grasping the young girl’s delicate wrist, pulling her to sit by the bed.

“Mother, how are you feeling?” Xiao Yanfei asked softly.

Concubine Cui’s complexion was pale, her lips lacking any color, and the loose silk robe she wore accentuated her long, slender neck, which seemed almost too delicate.

Xiao Yanfei’s eyes narrowed slightly, her gaze lingering on the point just beneath Concubine Cui’s chin, studying it for a while.

“Yan’er, Mother is fine, don’t worry.” Concubine Cui smiled softly, and the redness at the corners of her eyes, a result of her illness, seemed to carry a hint of blush, making her appear pitiful.

Shi momo wiped the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief and sighed, “Second Miss, Madam is seriously ill. She’s been suffering from severe chest pain these past few days. Last night, the pain kept her awake the entire night. Even after taking several doses of medicine from Physician Li, there’s been no improvement. We’re all so worried…”

“Momo!” Concubine Cui gently scolded, interrupting Shi momo.

She furrowed her brows, lifted a hand to cover her chest, and a look of pain appeared on her delicate face.

“Madam, please take a heart-saving pill.” Shi momo hurriedly took a small, brown pill, about the size of a pearl, from a small porcelain bottle and placed it between Concubine Cui’s lips.

Shi momo gently stroked Concubine Cui’s back, and slowly, the tension in Concubine Cui’s furrowed brows began to ease.

Xiao Yanfei, standing by the bedside, observed with a calm gaze. She watched the defined line of Concubine Cui’s jaw, noticing the stark contrast in color between her chin and neck. She also saw how Shi momo‘s left sleeve brushed past Concubine Cui’s chin, leaving a slight trace of white powder on the sleeve.

So, she really was pretending to be sick! Xiao Yanfei thought to herself, but it was a pity that Concubine Cui’s act was far less convincing compared to the advanced makeup techniques of the modern world.

Xiao Yanfei instructed a maid to prepare a cup of warm tea and handed it to Concubine Cui, who had just started to recover. She spoke softly, “Mother, have some tea.”

“My Yan’er is truly filial,” Concubine Cui said with a gentle smile, carefully taking a small sip of the tea that was just the right temperature.

Xiao Yanfei sat beside the bed, close to Concubine Cui, so close that she could almost see the individual eyelashes of the other woman.

“Yan’er…” Concubine Cui looked into Xiao Yanfei’s eyes, her tone tentative. “What did you say to the Madam last time? She’s not angry with you, is she?”

“Mother has been so worried about you these past few days, but the Madam… she forbade me from leaving the house… cough cough.” Concubine Cui spoke, then coughed lightly, as if to mask the discomfort in her words.

Xiao Yanfei lowered her small face innocently, her eyes downcast. “It was Mother who asked me to ask.”

“And what did the Madam say?” Concubine Cui asked, her tone slightly anxious.

Xiao Yanfei replied, “Mother said she has everything under control.”

Concubine Cui furrowed her brows, looking slightly troubled.

She was about to ask more when Xiao Yanfei spoke again, “Mother, I just went to pay respects to Mother and overheard that a Zheng momo from the palace is speaking with her. So, I decided to come check on you first.”

“Zheng momo?” Concubine Cui’s hand trembled slightly, and she slowly set the white porcelain tea cup down. Her eyes, which had been tinged with redness, brightened. “I heard that Zheng momo is a trusted confidante of the Empress, and highly favored by her.”

She fixed her gaze on Xiao Yanfei, waiting for her to continue.

“Zheng momo came to deliver the Qianfang Invitation,” Xiao Yanfei said, just as Concubine Cui had hoped. “I overheard Zheng momo mentioning that the Empress plans to announce the Crown Prince’s fiancée at the Qianfang Banquet. It sounds like it will be quite a spectacle.”

“She also mentioned that the Empress is very fond of the eldest daughter of the Duke of Ying…”

Concubine Cui’s eyes brightened when she first heard about the Empress’s plans to choose the Crown Prince’s fiancée, but when the second part of the sentence sank in, her expression froze.

Beside her, Shi momo also showed a worried look.

If the Empress were to choose the Duke of Ying’s eldest daughter as the Crown Princess, what would happen to her own daughter?

“Mother,” Xiao Yanfei tilted her head with an expectant expression, both excited and uneasy, “Do you think Mother will let me go to the Qianfang Banquet with Big Sister?”

Concubine Cui’s delicate fingers tightened around the white porcelain teacup as she sighed softly. “Yan’er, if I hadn’t been confined by the madam, I would have gone to plead with her on your behalf.”

“But now… sigh!”

Concubine Cui sighed deeply again and placed the teacup on the nearby tea table.

As her lips brushed the tea, the powder on them began to wash away, revealing a pale, mottled shade with a faint hint of natural color beneath.

She stared at Xiao Yanfei, her eyes filled with a glimmer of tears, her voice sorrowful as she continued, “My Yan’er is so beautiful, unmatched in the capital—there’s no one who compares to you… You should have a bright future, full of promise.”

A flicker of irony passed through Xiao Yanfei’s eyes before she quickly concealed it.

“Yan’er, it’s my fault. I’ve dragged you into this,” Concubine Cui said, her cold hand gently caressing Xiao Yanfei’s soft, smooth cheek. Her movements were tender, filled with pity. “If you lose your mother’s favor as well, what will become of you?”

The old maidservant, Shi momo, chimed in from the side, “Second Young Miss, the Madam has been so worried these past few days, not sleeping properly. She’s concerned that Madam might neglect your marriage, and it could ruin your future.”

“The foundation of a woman’s life is still her husband. As long as her husband is noble, everyone will look up to her. Only then, in the Marquis’ house, can you hold your head high,” Concubine Cui said earnestly, tears welling in her eyes. “You won’t end up like me, having to rely on others. Yan’er, do you understand?”

“I understand, Mother,” Xiao Yanfei replied, gazing intently at Concubine Cui with deep admiration on her fair face. “I’ve thought about it these past few days, and I know you’re doing this for my own good.”

“I shouldn’t have been so ungrateful, making you worry about me…” she added, her voice tinged with regret.

“Yan’er, if I don’t worry about you, who else will?” Concubine Cui smiled warmly, her heart finally easing after her recent probing. She couldn’t help but sneer inwardly—this girl was as easy to manipulate as always.

She gently brushed aside Xiao Yanfei’s hair, her tone sincere as she continued, “Don’t worry. The family I’ve chosen for you is perfect. The man’s status is high, and once you marry him, no one will dare to bully you. In fact, everyone will respect and seek to please you because of his position.”

As Concubine Cui spoke, Xiao Yanfei’s mind flashed to Gao An’s face. The look in his eyes was filled with unmasked greed and desire, making her feel sick.

What kind of mother in the world would consider such a eunuch a suitable match for her daughter?

Had Concubine Cui ever thought about this? If Xiao Luanfei truly married the Crown Prince as she hoped, how could the noble Crown Princess have a sister who was given to a eunuch?

What would happen to the original owner then?

The Marquis’ household would probably announce that the original owner had “died suddenly.”

From that point on, the name “Xiao Yanfei” might never be heard again.

As for whether a illegitimate daughter of a marquis had truly died or merely pretended to, who would even care?

Her name, her existence, would be quietly erased, and she would become nothing more than the eunuch’s possession from then on!

Xiao Yanfei lowered her lashes, hiding the cold smirk in her eyes, and asked innocently, “Is that true?”

“Of course!” Concubine Cui said firmly.

Xiao Yanfei asked again, “What about Big Sister? Is she the same?”

“Is Big Sister also the one who looks up to me, respects me?”

“…” Concubine Cui’s nostrils flared briefly, and her eyes widened slightly.

Xiao Yanfei bit her lip and continued, “I’ve always envied Big Sister. Everyone in the house respects her, adores her. Even Grandmother and Father treat her the best.”

The longing and envy in her eyes flowed out uncontrollably, her pupils sparkling as if a child was eagerly describing the candy they longed for.

Concubine Cui’s gaze grew increasingly deep.

After a long pause, she finally uttered two words softly: “Yes.”

Her expression carried a coldness akin to the frigid chill of late winter, as though saying, “You don’t know your place.”

Yet, her tone remained gentle: “But Yan’er, you and your big sister are sisters. You two should be supporting each other.”

“When your big sister becomes the Crown Princess, her future will be beyond measure…”

Xiao Yanfei, who had been lowering her head, suddenly raised it, locking eyes with Concubine Cui again. Her delicate face was illuminated by the light, and her eyes—clear and bright—seemed as if they could reflect all of the hidden truths.

“Mother, but from what I heard from Zheng momo, the Empress favors the eldest daughter of the Duke of Ying. Big sister might not become the Crown Princess after all,” Xiao Yanfei sighed softly. “Zheng momo said that the best Big Sister can hope for is to become a secondary consort.”

Concubine Cui seemed struck by a sharp pain, her lips trembling violently before she hastily replied, “That’s possible!”

“As long as you’re willing to help your big sister!”

Xiao Yanfei fixed her gaze on Concubine Cui’s eyes and slowly said, “So, the marriage you’re arranging for me is to help my big sister?”

From these two sentences, Xiao Yanfei finally confirmed—

It was indeed for Xiao Luanfei!

The only person who stood to gain anything from this was Xiao Luanfei. Concubine Cui’s plan to marry the original owner off to Eunuch Gao was, without a doubt, to benefit Xiao Luanfei!

“…” Concubine Cui’s lips parted slightly, her eyes flickering. Every word Xiao Yanfei spoke left her speechless.

Xiao Yanfei suddenly stood up from the bedside, looking down at Concubine Cui. Her shadow loomed over her, exuding an invisible pressure.

“Heh, with all this effort you’re putting into planning for my big sister, could it be that she’s actually your biological daughter?” Xiao Yanfei smiled lightly, her expression as cold as snow falling on a frozen river.

As her words settled, the room fell into complete silence, as if it had suddenly entered the dead of winter.

***