The two young won knelt before Hua Manman, weeping and pleading.
"We are willing to stay by your side, Your Ladyship, and toil like slaves. We only beg you to let us stay. Please don’t send us back."
Seeing them cry so wretchedly, Hua Manman thought they must have suffered so sort of mistreatnt in the back courtyards.
Gao Shan usually handled such trivial matters, so Hua Manman had him summoned to ask how he had arranged for these young won.
Gao Shan answered truthfully.
"The Prince found them annoying and didn’t want to see them, so he had arrange for them to be sowhere farther away. I settled them in the West Courtyard of the Prince Mansion.
The West Courtyard is the farthest from the Mountain and Sea Residence where the Prince lives. Plus, it has its own separate side gate.
If the ladies wish to go out, they can leave directly through that side gate, avoiding the front courtyard so as not to disturb the Prince.
As for the ladies’ monthly allowance, it’s set at the standard for a concubine: two taels of silver each month, and two new sets of clothes every season."
Hua Manman asked again, "Have you mistreated them in any way?"
Gao Shan hastily denied it.
"Never! Although the Prince dislikes them, they were sent by the Emperor, the Empress, and the Eldest Princess, after all. How would I dare neglect them?
Ever since they entered the mansion, I have provided them with the best food and drink and haven’t made them do a lick of work.
If Your Ladyship doesn’t believe , you can ask anyone else in the mansion."
Hua Manman believed that a man as shrewd as Gao Shan wouldn’t lie about such a trivial matter.
She offered a few words to reassure Gao Shan, then looked at the two girls still kneeling on the floor, utterly baffled.
"The Prince Mansion provides you with the best food and drink. You don’t have to work, and we even give you money for new clothes. You can leave whenever you want; your freedom isn’t restricted at all.
You’re giving up such a comfortable life, yet here you are, crying and begging to toil and slave away for .
Are you sure there isn’t sothing wrong with you?"
’This was the kind of wonderful life she dread of—good food, no work, plus money and beautiful clothes!’
The two young won were rendered speechless by her questions.
Gao Shan had nearly been blad for mistreating servants because of these two.
He was rather displeased and let out a sarcastic little laugh.
"There’s sothing you may not know, Your Ladyship. There’s nothing wrong with these two ladies’ heads. They’re simply unwilling to be stuck in the West Courtyard and want to use you as a stepping stone to get close to the Prince."
It dawned on Hua Manman. ’So that’s what this is about!’
With Gao Shan having exposed their intentions, the two young won’s faces instantly turned deathly pale.
With tears streaming down their faces, they kowtowed to Lady Hua, begging her not to punish them.
Just then, Prince Zhao returned.
As he entered the Glazed Pavilion, his eyes fell upon two unfamiliar won kowtowing to Hua Manman.
The two won were bawling, looking utterly pitiful.
Anyone with a shred of compassion who witnessed this scene would surely feel sympathy for them and get the impression that Hua Manman was an arrogant, tyrannical bully.
However, Li Ji clearly heard the two won’s true thoughts—
’So this is Prince Zhao. He really is a cripple. What a waste of such a handso face.’
’In terms of looks and figure, we’re not a bit inferior to Lady Hua. Prince Zhao is bound to take a fancy to us. As long as we get a chance to get close to him, we can definitely complete the mission our master assigned us.’
Li Ji’s thin lips curled. ’Well, well,’ he thought. ’Two more idiots trying to sche against .’
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