"Ahhhh!"
Xi Ying screamed and retreated back two steps.
Yun Shan raised his hand and gave Xi Ying a slap across the face,
"Why are you screaming? You'll startle the young miss!"
"Yun Shan, don't hit her," Song Zhao said with a smile as she slowly got up and walked towards Xi Ying's frightened and astonished gaze.
"What's wrong? Was this gift too frightening for you?"
She glanced down at the severed finger lying quietly on the ground, then reached out and stroked Xi Ying's disheveled hair. She spoke very gently,
"It's your own family, what is there to be afraid of? Have you forgotten that your younger brother has a brown birthmark on his right index finger? When your brother got lost as a child, your parents recognized him because of that birthmark, right?"
Xi Ying, still in shock, stared at the severed finger on the ground for a long time.
When she finally recognized that the birthmark on the severed finger was exactly the same as her brother's, she was so frightened that her knees went weak and she collapsed onto the ground like a puddle of mud.
Song Zhao looked at her coldly from above, then said to Yun Shan:
"Help her up, the floor is cold."
When Yun Shan moved closer to Xi Ying, she was so frightened that her soul left her body. She shrank back until she hit the wall and could retreat no further. Then, with trembling lips, she said,
"W-What have you done to my brother? He's only twelve... How can you be so cruel?!"
Song Zhao leisurely walked over to stand in front of her. Yun Shan brought over a chair for Song Zhao to sit on.
After sitting down, Song Zhao leaned forward and hooked Xi Ying's chin with her forefinger, subtly exerting force to make Xi Ying raise her head and meet her gaze.
"I don't know what benefits Consort Chen gave you to have you monitor my every move. But I know that Consort Chen's father is the Minister of Imperial Guards and concurrently serves as Viceroy of Sichuan and Shaanxi. Her whole family is in the Sichuan and Shaanxi region, so she certainly won't threaten your family's lives to coerce you. I'm different."
Her slender fingers slowly moved upwards, her water-green nails sliding over Xi Ying's swollen cheek,
"My father is the Duke of Protector, and the Protectorate is in the capital. What a coincidence, your family also lives in the capital. Tsk tsk... I seem to remember you live on Nongzhuang Lane? Oh dear, what if that place suddenly caught fire? What would you do then?"
Xi Ying was terribly frightened and quickly said, "Young miss, spare my life! This servant knows she was wrong, please give me a chance!"
Song Zhao gently stroked the wound on Xi Ying's cheek and smiled gently, "Does it hurt? Today Consort Chen came up empty-handed and only gave you a slap on the face, you got off easy."
In fact, this so-called "competition for favor" was just a scheme set up by Song Zhao.
She deliberately let Xi Ying overhear her plans with Yun Shan, and secretly had Yun Shan follow her to see who she would tell.
Today Consort Chen got the tip-off from Xi Ying and rushed to the northeast corner of the Imperial Garden, but after waiting all night she didn't see any sign of Song Zhao.
In her rage, she gave Xi Ying a slap and told her to keep monitoring Song Zhao's every move.
She also said that if there was another false alarm next time, she would show no mercy.
At this moment, Song Zhao's hand stroking Xi Ying's cheek felt very warm, but Xi Ying felt a chill emanating from Song Zhao's palm into the depths of her heart.
After a while, Song Zhao gently patted Xi Ying's cheek, her smile growing even warmer,
"Doubt those who should be doubted, and trust those who should be trusted. This time I'm giving you a chance. I believe that after this incident, you'll know what you should and shouldn't do, right?"
Xi Ying nodded profusely. She watched as Yun Shan handed Song Zhao a jade bracelet just like the one she had given to Zhi Hua.
Song Zhao held the bracelet and compared it to Xi Ying's wrist, "You and Zhi Hua both serve me, so what she has, you'll have too. I don't know how much silver Consort Chen paid you. But you just need to understand one thing - whatever Consort Chen can give you, I can give you just as much, if not more. Haven't you always said that for a servant, choosing the right mistress is the most important thing?"
As Song Zhao spoke, she rolled up Xi Ying's wrist and gently put the jade bracelet on her.
Then she patted the back of Xi Ying's hand and raised her eyebrows at her with a smile,
"Now that things have come to this, have you made your choice?"
Did Xi Ying have a choice?
Right now, wholeheartedly following Song Zhao was her only option. Otherwise, her whole family's lives would be at stake.
So after Song Zhao finished speaking, she immediately kneeled down and bowed to thank Song Zhao profusely,
"Thank you for your mercy, young miss! This servant will serve you faithfully with all my heart from now on!"
Song Zhao sat back down on the heated seat, took a sip of tea from her cup, and asked casually,
"What did Consort Chen want you to do around me?"
Xi Ying said, "Consort Chen gave me some silver to monitor your every move. She wanted me to report everything you do daily, no matter how trivial."
Then she lowered her voice and said, "It's not just around you. I heard that Consort Chen has planted people around all the new young misses who just entered the palace..."
It was not uncommon for a favored consort to plant spies around newcomers to consolidate her position and favor.
Song Zhao responded nonchalantly to Xi Ying,
"Just keep accepting Consort Chen's silver like usual in the future. She wants to know my every move, so just tell her openly. But you know what to say and what not to say. A clever girl like you shouldn't need me to teach you personally, right?"
Xi Ying nodded profusely again. Song Zhao said, "I'm tired, you may leave now."
As she spoke, she glanced meaningfully at the ground, "Bring your brother's finger with you."
Xi Ying's hands trembled as she picked up the severed finger. She bowed deeply to Song Zhao before hurriedly leaving.
Seeing how readily Song Zhao let Xi Ying off, Yun Shan was a little annoyed and said,
"Young miss is too kind-hearted. A two-faced creature like her should at least be punished a little."
Song Zhao scoffed lightly, held out her hand, and appreciated her slender fingers in the candlelight.
"Isn't that crimson stain on her brother's severed finger punishment enough for her? Consort Chen was bound to plant spies around me no matter what, so we might as well keep Xi Ying. After all, family is the weakness for most people. With her whole family's lives in my hands, she'll naturally know to watch her mouth."
Yun Shan said, "Young miss is so thoughtful. You're right, for someone like you, the old master is your backing in the palace, but also your weakness..."
He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Song Zhao's brow twitch subtly. Yun Shan didn't continue.
Song Zhao was silent for a moment. Flashes of her mother being beaten to death by Jiang and Song Shicheng watching the whole thing without intervening appeared in her mind.
Her expression became sinister, her jaws slightly clenched. She enunciated heavily,
"I have no weaknesses."
Having said that, she blew out the candle in front of her.
