Chapter 20 - Chapter 20: Trust in me again

"She was bullied mercilessly by Madam Jiang (Su Rushi), who with her father, Duke Su, at her back, feared nothing. Worse of all, Concubine Lu had to watch as the man she married rose into the position her father had left behind, knowing full well now that it had been emptied just for him."

Anger rose up in her chest as she came to the realisation that there was much more evil in this place than she had initially suspected. How dare Jiang Zhenfeng frame her grandfather and then go on to take his place... He was utterly shameless!

"Then she was finally forced to have a child by Left Prime Minister Jiang, and she realised that any ideas of revenge were impossible when she looked into your eyes. That was when she promised that if nothing else, you would at least be protected..."

"And yet still, Concubine Lu was now just a lowly concubine with no connections and no family to help her."

"She didn't have the power to protect you so she could only embrace you, splitting open her own flesh to shield you when someone wished to hurt you... She could only bow her head and concede in shame praying that you would not be targeted by the evildoers."

Yingyue knew all that sacrifice showed Concubine Lu's undeniable love for her child. If she found out that her precious daughter had actually passed away at a mere 10 years old because of her husband and his main wife, she would never recover from the heartbreak.

"The reason why I still go to General Wu's manor is that my mother was originally a servant from their house when she was younger... Because of how close the Wu family and Lu family were, when Madam Lu's close servant passed away, Madam Wu gifted my mother to her."

"And when Madam Lu passed away a few years before your father was framed, she became your mother's servant, loyal always to the kindness that she received from both families."

"Ever since the tragedy that occurred to your family, Madam Wu made sure that we took good care of both you and Concubine Lu so we were told to report your well-being to her."

"Since my mother is no longer alive, I am now in charge of doing so. And even though Madam Wu passed away a few years ago, her son, the General, and his wife still welcome me just as Madam Wu used to."

"Young Miss, I have betrayed your trust all these years by not telling you where I've been and why, but I promise that both I and the General's house have only wished to take care of you and Concubine Lu."

"They may not have been able to interfere in anything that occurs within the manor, but they've given us money when times are hard... and they are the reason we have yet to starve."

Xiao Zhu clasped her hands together tightly as she looked away in shame. Yingyue could understand her hardships... She had lost her mother at such a young age, grown up as a servant in such a cruel household and borne the weight of this story all these years so that one day she could finally tell Yingyue.

"Xiao Zhu, turn your head to face me." She waited until she could look into the eyes of the 15 year old girl. Her eyes were cloudy with tears that were quickly forming.

"For all these years of my life, you have done such incredible things for me, so you should never turn your head down in shame. You never broke your promise to your mother, so now it is now my turn... I may still be young but I can promise that we will never again be treated like this. From now on, it is I who will protect you and my mother."

Xiao Zhu felt her breath catch in her throat as her gaze met the gentle eyes in front of her. Her young miss was only 10 years old but she was already so grown up. "Young Miss, you had my loyalty long before you were born... I will promise to never betray you, so please place your trust in me again."

Xiao Zhu suddenly remembered something that had nearly slipped her mind. "Young Miss, I seem to have forgotten to tell you... I reported to the General and his wife that you had done very well at the monthly test and even received a recommendation for entrance into the Junior Academy of Arts."

"Although they were overjoyed for your success, they were afraid that you may be targeted by others because of jealousy - especially Madam Jiang. They have decided to secretly assign you a guard that can look after you and keep you safe."

"If they are able to find someone who they can trust, then the person should be here tomorrow morning. As you were unaware of the General's family before, they wished for me to keep the shadow guard a secret from you. However, now that you know, the guard can serve you just as I do, or from the shadows if that is what you would prefer."

Yingyue nodded in approval. She might indeed need a shadow guard soon as dark clouds were quickly moving in her direction... Her actions and choices since she arrived in this world, while admirable, were truly rash. Here, she had no position, qualifications nor connections. In fact, it seems she barely even had any money...

At least, armed with her acupuncture needles, she would have something to protect herself with. However, strictly speaking, if they were to slit her throat in the middle of the night, there was nothing she could do. She certainly wouldn't be able to protect her mother like this...

She could only hope that this shadow guard would be capable of protecting them all while she slowly built up her power in this world...