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

CHAPTER 55

Swish!

Xiao Yanfei released the bowstring with calm ease. The white-feathered arrow shot forth, tearing through the air with a force sharp and ruthless, streaking toward the tavern across the street—swift as a falling star, fast as lightning.

Liu Jia instantly sensed that this arrow was faster and sharper than he had expected. Still, he felt no real fear. With a careless motion, he shoved aside the beauty in his arms and leaned lazily against the railing.

The arrow grazed past his neck, so close he could feel its blade-like edge. His skin stung as though cut.

But—it had not hit him!

Liu Jia exhaled in relief, cold sweat beading faintly at his temples.

He sneered, lips curling with contempt. “A little girl should stick to pitching hoops. What business does she have with a bow?”

His words had barely fallen when—thud!—the arrow struck the very railing he was leaning against. The wood shuddered violently under the force.

Then came the sharp crack of splintering wood.

What—?!

Before Liu Jia could react, the railing behind him broke clean through. His body lost balance at once, and he toppled backward uncontrollably—

“Ahhhh!”

“Young Master!”

Amid Ming Yi’s shout and the courtesan’s shrill scream, Liu Jia’s eyes bulged wide as he fell. His body tumbled from the second floor, banging down the staircase step by step in a sorry heap, until he crashed heavily onto the main hall floor. His forehead smashed against the counter’s corner with a resounding bang! leaving wreckage everywhere.

“Young Master… the Young Master has fainted!”

“Quick! Call for a physician!”

“……”

Screams, gasps, the crash of bodies—all burst chaotically from Longquan Tavern across the street.

Inside, the place was utter bedlam.

Xiao Yanfei twirled the horn bow in her hand with delight, her arched brows curving as she laughed slyly, foxlike and bright-eyed.

“Serves him right!” Ning Shu leaned against the window frame, laughing until she nearly fell over.

Watching Liu Jia’s pitiful state, the little princess finally felt the weight on her chest lift. She clapped her hands again and again, until her palms turned red from the force.

Xu Li’s face was stricken, his mouth opening and closing, staring at Xiao Yanfei in disbelief.

The Duke Cheng’en estate held sway by virtue of the empress. Following the young heir about, Xu Li had always seen others bow and scrape, never daring a word of offense.

Yet here was the Xiao family’s second daughter—gentle, quiet, seemingly obedient—acting so brazenly, so recklessly.

She had actually dared to strike their Young Master!

Xu Li staggered back a step, then another, forcing bravado into his voice as he shouted, “Second Miss Xiao, you—you dare injure the Young Master? Our Young Master will not let this rest!”

But even as the words left his mouth, he was already fleeing in panic, terrified the next arrow might fly his way.

The two West City officers exchanged glances. Wanting no part in this, they too quietly withdrew.

Ning Shu pulled her gaze back from the tavern, stuck out her tongue at Xu Li’s stumbling retreating back, and muttered, “Hmph, anyone can spit harsh words.”

Gu Yue leaned close to examine the horn bow in Xiao Yanfei’s hand, studying it for a moment before commenting, “The bow’s not great. More ornament than weapon.”

“True,” Xiao Yanfei nodded. The bowstring was made of silk—pretty to look at, but weak in strength. Fine for play, little else.

She passed the bow to Zhiqiu, who dutifully rehung it on the wall.

“My elder brother has a fine collection of bows,” Gu Yue said with solemn earnestness. “Next time, I’ll ‘borrow’ one for you.”

Xiao Yanfei looked at her soft, delicate face and was left speechless.

How could this little girl speak of pilfering as though it were the most righteous, upright matter in the world?

Did Gu Feichi even know his sister had set her sights on his private stash?

Xiao Yanfei chuckled, tilting her chin slightly, dimples deepening—her smile clear and bright as the moon.

“Shall we go back to our leaf cards?” Gu Yue asked, her eyes twinkling though she kept her face politely composed.

“No more, no more!” Ning Shu waved her hand.

How could she possibly calm down for cards now?

With a flourish, she looped her arms through both girls’, declaring cheerfully, “Come on! Let’s go to Qingluan Lane and buy hair ornaments. I brought plenty of silver today!”

The three girls descended the stairs together.

The teahouse hall below was nearly empty—tables and chairs overturned in disarray like the aftermath of a storm. Aside from the shopkeeper and a waiter, the scholars and gawking patrons had all been driven out.

Across at Longquan Tavern, the uproar continued. Ming Yi, Liu family servants, the tavern keeper, waiters, and courtesans all clustered around the fallen Liu Jia, crying “Young Master, Young Master, wake up!”

Gu Yue and Xiao Yanfei boarded the carriage first.

Lingering behind, Ning Shu perked up, eager to send someone to check just how badly Liu Jia had fallen. But before she could say it, a furious voice rang out from across the street:

“Quick—quickly seize those three for me!”

Still able to bark orders? Clearly he hadn’t fallen hard enough. The little princess thought it almost a pity.

All three girls turned their heads in unison.

Supported by servants, Liu Jia staggered upright. His robes were in disarray, his coronet lay discarded, his carefully bound hair half undone, a swollen bump rising on his brow. His wretched state was nothing like the elegant figure of earlier.

“Wang Shihe!” Liu Jia’s face twisted viciously as he pointed at Ning Shu across the street. Grinding his teeth, he ordered the short-bearded officer beside him, “Why are you standing there? Seize them at once!”

The pain made him suck in a sharp breath, his features contorting. He turned to Xu Li and snarled about the absent physician.

“……” Vice Commander Wang Shihe of the West City garrison was already nursing a headache.

“Who dares?!” Ning Shu puffed out her chest proudly, glaring across at Liu Jia and his men. Her girlish voice rang with imperious defiance. “This princess would very much like to see who dares lay a hand on me!”

“Oh? Is it me you mean to arrest?” Xiao Yanfei parted the carriage curtain with a casual hand, revealing half her clear, elegant face. “I was merely playing with a bow and arrow. The shot strayed a little, that’s all.” She pinched her fingers together to show an inch.

“I didn’t harm anyone. The Great Jing Code states: if one accidentally damages another’s property, one need only compensate at market value. But if one trespasses and causes damage, then the penalty is greater—thirty strokes of the rod.”

The law was strict on trespass, but forgiving of accidents. At most, a matter of repayment—and perhaps a little extra for medical costs.

Her shot had merely “accidentally” broken a tavern railing. It could hardly be considered trespass.

“Zhiqiu.” Xiao Yanfei gave a small gesture, her smile pure and guileless.

Zhiqiu understood instantly. Bowing, she crossed the street to Longquan Tavern.

“Shopkeeper,” she greeted the portly man pleasantly, tossing him a gold ingot. “My young lady accidentally damaged your railing. Here is the compensation.”

“Will this suffice?” she asked crisply.

The gold weighed two taels—that was twenty silver.

Repairing a railing wouldn’t cost even one.

The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up, and he snatched the gold quickly, nodding over and over. “Enough, more than enough!”

Zhiqiu then turned toward Liu Jia, now disheveled and bruised. With a sigh she said, “Ah, who would have thought—my lady’s little accident with the railing, and the young heir himself would ‘accidentally’ fall? What misfortune indeed.”

“Though Young Master’s injuries are not grave, my lady is kind-hearted. This, then, will cover your physician’s fee.”

Another gold ingot flew from her hand, clattering onto the tavern floor, rolling across the polished stone until it stopped neatly before Liu Jia’s boots.

Xu Li’s cheeks burned hot. He recalled the paltry silver ingot he had tossed earlier, its clink now echoing mockingly in his ears.

“This is my lady’s payment for treatment,” Zhiqiu declared.

Without waiting for reply, she flicked the ingot with her foot so it rolled half a turn, landing exactly at Liu Jia’s feet. The disdain in the gesture was unmistakable.

She didn’t so much as glance at him again as she turned to walk back.

Liu Jia’s face flushed dark with fury, rage boiling in his chest. His voice cracked as he screamed, “Ming Yi!”

Even a mere servant girl dared humiliate him now!

Ming Yi’s expression tightened. Still, he stepped forward, blocking Zhiqiu’s way.

“Wretch, did you not hear the Young Master—ahhh!”

Pain shot through his leg. His knees nearly buckled.

Zhiqiu had lashed out with a sudden kick, striking him squarely, and walked past as if nothing had happened, not a sleeve disturbed.

“Young Master…” Ming Yi stammered, face red with shame, trying to explain himself.

Smack!

A resounding slap cracked through the tavern hall, cutting off Ming Yi mid-sentence.

Everyone froze in shock.

Ming Yi’s head was whipped to the side by Liu Jia’s blow, a stark red handprint blooming across his pale cheek. His face swelled rapidly, the mark glaringly vivid.

Liu Jia’s voice dripped with meaning as he warned, “Ming Yi, the worst fault in a man is trying to play both sides. Your Ming family may have produced a Princess Consort of Prince Ning, but who knows how long your elder sister can keep that position?”

His words clearly accused Ming Yi of going easy on Zhiqiu just now—because with Prince Ning as a new backer, Ming Yi no longer obeyed orders and had deliberately let her go.

“Young Master, you’ve misunderstood me…” Ming Yi tried to explain, but Liu Jia had no patience for his excuses.

“Don’t forget who it was that allowed you to return alive from Lanshan City to the capital…” Liu Jia sneered, dusting his palm with contempt. “Shall I tell them just how you survived?”

He leaned close, his malicious voice whispering at Ming Yi’s ear: “That little nephew of yours—his bones are still rotting at the bottom of a well. If I recall, he was only three, wasn’t he?”

Ming Yi: “…”

His eyes flew wide, his face drained bloodless, which only made the red handprint stand out all the more starkly.

He lowered his head, clutching his swollen cheek in silence. Yet beneath his drooping lashes, a flash of guilty hatred flickered deep in his gloomy eyes—there, and gone in an instant.

Liu Jia only smiled, murmuring in a cold warning: “Do as you’re told.”

“Understand?”

“Obey… like a dog.”

A thin, disdainful smile curved his lips.

Ming Yi stood rigid, as if someone’s hand were clamped tight around his throat, not daring to utter a word of defiance.

Meanwhile, Zhiqiu had already crossed the street to the carriage, but she couldn’t help glancing back once more toward Ming Yi.

Inside, Xiao Yanfei caught the flicker of attention and arched a brow.

Zhiqiu stared at Ming Yi, then waved him off with distaste, muttering softly to Xiao Yanfei, “That man’s got a gloomy, rotten stench about him.”

“In the old days, when I collected corpses on the battlefield, I smelled that same stench…”

Battlefields were graveyards, littered with corpses. When they cleared the dead, the air reeked with putrid decay. Wind would sweep through, carrying sand laced with the stench of blood and rot, enough to make one retch.

Only the carrion vultures thrived in such filth.

At that moment, Ning Shu climbed into the carriage and settled beside Xiao Yanfei.

Seeing Xiao Yanfei looking toward Ming Yi, Ning Shu curled her lip. “The Ming family’s truly unlucky, to have such a son!”

“When General Ming and his sons fell at Lanshan City, their kin who followed the army also perished miserably. Nearly a hundred souls of the Ming household, masters and servants alike—only Ming Yi survived.”

“Eldest Young Master Ming’s boy was just three, still a baby… not even his bones were recovered.”

“If not for General Ming’s tragic death, Sister Ming Rui would never have been forced, during her mourning, into marriage with Prince Ning by that stepmother of hers!”

Ning Shu wrinkled her little nose, then sighed. “And Prince Ning is no good man—he’s already killed three consorts. Sister Ming Rui was once so valiant, but when I saw her last, she sat silent and dull-eyed, as if she were no longer herself…”

Her words carried regret, pity, and helpless sorrow.

It was simply unjust!

Ning Shu cast one last glare at Ming Yi, then let the curtain fall and ordered the driver, “Old Li, let’s go! We’re heading to Qingluan Workshop!”

“Yanyan, Yue Yue, pick whatever you like later—I’m buying!” she declared, eager to vent her pent-up frustration through silver.

The coachman, Old Li, quickly answered in assent.

The ornate carriage with its jade canopy and pearl tassels rolled eastward along the street, carrying the three young ladies. Before long, it reached Qingluan Workshop on the next street.

Qingluan Workshop had just released its summer collection. The theme this season was “Lotus.” Hairpins, beaded flowers, tassels, coronets—all in the shape of lotus blossoms.

Some were fresh and simple, some bright and charming, some elegant, some regal… enough to dazzle the girls until they didn’t know where to look.

Ning Shu was in high spirits picking out ornaments for them both: for Xiao Yanfei, she chose a white jade hairpin inlaid with garnet, shaped like a lotus ru-yi; for Gu Yue, she picked a pink-jade lotus hair flower, its petals layered one by one in translucent pink jade, delicate and refined.

By the time they came out of Qingluan Workshop, the girls’ hair was already adorned with their new treasures. Their brows and eyes blossomed with smiles, radiant as flowers.

Still unsatisfied, Xiao Yanfei dragged Ning Shu and Gu Yue off for more wandering—embroidery shops, cloth shops, zither shops, pastry shops… By the end of it, all three were laden with spoils.

It was nearly dusk when Xiao Yanfei returned to the Yin household.

The corners of her lips curved with an irrepressible smile. She thought to herself: Girls, whether in past or present, all love to shop. Myself included!

“Grandfather, Grandmother!”

She first went to pay respects to Old Master Yin and Madam Yin.

The room was tastefully arranged and warmly lit. In one corner, a cloisonné enamel tripod incense burner sent up gentle whorls of lily fragrance.

Old Master Yin lounged lazily on a luohan couch, one hand propped on a large cushion, the other holding a finely-printed deed. His spirits were much better than when they had first arrived in the capital, and his brows and eyes carried laughter.

Xiao Ye was sipping fruit nectar with contentment. Yin Huan, the heir, sat on the other side with an account book in hand, while his wife, Madam She, poured tea, served, and fanned Madam Yin.

“Xiao Yanfei is back.” Yin Huan greeted her with a broad smile.

Xiao Yanfei gave him and his wife a polite bow. “Uncle, Aunt.”

Then, beaming, she set down a few boxes of pastries she had just bought.

“Grandfather, Grandmother, I stopped at Dingshiji and bought these fresh cakes. I wanted you to taste them. Brother Ye, there’s some for you too. They’re still warm from the oven.”

She had chosen soft cakes—osmanthus millet cake, yam and jujube cake, tuckahoe cake—knowing the elders’ teeth were not strong.

The head maidservant quickly stepped forward, smiling, to take the boxes and plate the cakes.

“Did you enjoy yourself, child?” Old Master Yin asked cheerfully, setting the deed aside.

Yin Huan’s eyes flicked toward the deed, a shadow flitting across them before he masked it with a faint smile.

Meanwhile, Xiao Ye pouted, feeling wronged that his sister had not taken him along.

“It was wonderful!” Xiao Yanfei replied, bright-eyed and animated. “I went with Princess Ning Shu to Sifang Teahouse to watch the scholars’ debates—it was so lively! Afterwards, we shopped at Qingluan Workshop.”

Because Yin Huan and his wife were present, she glossed over what had truly happened at the teahouse. Instead, she raised her hand and pointed to the white jade lotus hairpin in her hair, inlaid with a gleaming garnet.

“This hairpin is new from Qingluan Workshop. Isn’t it lovely?”

The blood-red gem shimmered with dazzling light, setting off her features all the more.

“Lovely, lovely!” Old Madam Yin nodded again and again, her eyes crinkled in delight. The more she looked at her granddaughter, the more beautiful she found her.

Xiao Yanfei opened her jewelry box and one by one displayed the trinkets she had bought—until the whole table was covered with dainty lotus ornaments.

“Grandmother, what do you think of this one?” She held up a lotus hairpin for Old Madam Yin.

“Beautiful, beautiful.” Old Madam Yin nodded once more.

“Let me pin it for you.” Xiao Yanfei leaned close and placed the hairpin into the old lady’s silvered hair.

It was exquisitely made: a filigree gold base shaped like a lotus, inlaid with jade petals and ringed with turquoise.

Old Madam Yin usually wore sober clothing—dark greens, purples, rusty browns—and her hairpins were plain jade or white stone. With this fresh, intricate ornament, her whole person seemed to glow.

“So pretty!” Xiao Yanfei admired her handiwork, then turned to Old Master Yin.

“Grandfather, don’t you agree?”

“Indeed, indeed!” He stroked his beard with a broad grin.

Madam She chimed in with a smooth compliment: “Mother looks years younger with that pin. Our Yanfei has such fine taste, and is so filial.”

“Grandmother,” Xiao Yanfei adjusted the hairpin slightly, pleased, “next time I’ll take you to Qingluan Workshop. Their designs are especially novel and beautiful.”

Old Madam Yin, utterly delighted, called to Nanny Liao: “Fetch my Western ruby necklace. That piece is too heavy for me—but it will suit our Xiao Yanfei perfectly.”

“Yes, madam.” Nanny Liao bustled off, smiling.

“What?!” Madam She’s eyes widened before she caught herself, the smile on her lips freezing.

She had seen that necklace: the central ruby was as large as a pigeon’s egg, magnificent, brought back on Yin family’s trading ship from overseas last year. At first sight, she had coveted it, thinking it would one day serve as her daughter’s dowry. She had assumed Old Madam Yin too old to wear such ostentation—that it would fall to her daughter or to a future daughter-in-law.

But now…

A shadow of envy and unwillingness flashed in her eyes. She cast a quick glance at the deed on the tea table. Wasn’t a whole hot spring estate enough for this girl?

Composing herself, she dabbed her mouth with a handkerchief and lifted her head with a pleasant smile. “Mother is adding to Xiao Yanfei’s dowry. Our niece has grown into a young lady—soon to be married!”

Yes… soon to be married. Old Madam Yin’s gaze lingered tenderly on Xiao Yanfei, bittersweet.

When her elder granddaughter, Xiao Luanfei, had come of age, she and Old Master Yin had sent heavy gifts to the ceremony in the capital. By all accounts, it was splendid.

But Xiao Yanfei… had nothing.

In private, Old Madam Yin had asked her daughter, and Ah Wan admitted: at that time, Xiao Yanfei had been left on an estate by Concubine Cui, alone, without a single kin beside her.

Just imagining it made Old Madam Yin’s chest ache.

They could not redo her coming-of-age ceremony. But her dowry—this, she and Old Master Yin would see to it, heavy and grand, so she would not be wronged again.

“It’s not enough…” Old Madam Yin stroked the girl’s fair cheek, eyes glistening. “Yan’er, your grandmother will prepare you a dowry so rich that you will marry with glory. Let all the capital envy your ten-li bridal procession.”

“……” Madam She’s smile grew brittle, her gaze sinking, a deep shadow clouding her eyes.

She thought of Yin Wan’s ten-li bridal procession back then. Even now, people in Jiangnan still brought it up from time to time. It was said that one entire palanquin of dowry had been filled with silver drafts, each worth no less than five thousand taels.

Her husband, Yin Huan, was the elders’ heir—one day it would be his duty to send them off in burial. By reason and by sentiment, this vast family estate ought to belong to their branch.

Yin Wan had been married off for so many years. A married daughter was water thrown out of the house. Still, her parents-in-law kept her in their hearts, and now they even wanted to lavish care on the granddaughter as well. Clearly, they did not regard their branch as family at all.

If this went on, would those two old ones end up hollowing out half the household’s estate, pouring it all into their grandson and granddaughter?

At the thought, Madam She felt as if a chunk of flesh had been cut from her chest; the pain stole her breath.

Unconsciously, she clenched the handkerchief in her hand until her knuckles turned white. Suddenly, she felt a tug at her sleeve. Glancing sideways, she saw Yin Huan quietly giving her a pull, then signaling her with his eyes.

Catching his look, Madam She gave a small nod, pressing down the surge of emotions in her heart.

Lifting her head again, she asked with a gentle smile, as if in passing, “Father, I wonder—when will the Duke of Wei’s household be sending the betrothal gifts for our niece?”

“I was thinking, perhaps Aunt and niece should return to the Marquis’s residence early to make their preparations. A young lady’s betrothal is no small matter in her life.”

Her round face was wreathed in smiles, her brows and eyes soft, every look and word carrying the air of warmth and thoughtfulness.

Old Master Yin, however, had caught every silent exchange between Yin Huan and his wife. He gave a cold laugh, his eyes sharp and clear.

“What’s this? You mean to drive Wan’er away?” he said bluntly, tearing through the flimsy veil of pretense with a single stroke.

***