Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 140: I Want This Maid

Sisi worked hard to carry Zhao Changhe, who was pretending to be drunk, back to the guest house. When she got there, she pushed him onto the bed.

However, Zhao Changhe was too heavy, and his arm instinctively wrapped around her, causing her to fall onto the bed together with him.

She angrily struggled and said, “I’m only here to do my job and help you into your bed, not to accompany you in bed!”

Zhao Changhe, still pretending to be drunk, intentionally pursed his lips and moved his face closer to hers, saying, “Don’t worry. I won’t treat you badly, little maid...”

Sisi tried to push him away, blocking his mouth with her hand. “I heard that you’re a hero! How could you harass a poor person like me?!”

Zhao Changhe, feigning confusion, responded, “Where did you hear that I’m a hero? Everyone in the world calls me a bandit...”

Realizing her mistake, Sisi continued to struggle while seemingly searching for another excuse.

Finding her amusing, Zhao Changhe teased, “Aren’t you maids always trying to seduce young masters... Why are you so fierce all of a sudden?”

Sisi said angrily, “Will you go to the young master and ask him to let me go and make me follow you in the future?”

Zhao Changhe was stunned for a moment.

Sisi struggled even harder. “While this might all just be fun and games for you, for us, this is not a game. Have you even spared a thought for our future?”

Zhao Changhe asked, “Oh, and what would happen to you in the future?”

“As maids, we must maintain our integrity and innocence. It’s fine if we are chosen by a young master in the future, or even if we get together with another servant by the main family. But if a guest casually plays with us, our lives are over. Would anyone still want me in the future? Will you take responsibility for me for the rest of my life?”

Damn, you really are dedicated to playing this role...

Zhao Changhe was left speechless for a moment. After a while, he continued pretending to be intoxicated, patted his chest, and said, “Then if I were to take you away, would you follow me?”

It was now Sisi’s turn to be stunned, and her struggling weakened. “Y-you can’t lie to me... If you can really take me away, I, I...”

Then, she gritted her teeth again and turned her head away. “But I won’t go with you! The Tang Clan is a refined and elegant family, which young master here isn’t charming and refined? Why would I go wander the jianghu with a boorish man like you? Let me go!”

“A’Zhu does think Qiao Feng is better than Murong Fu...”[1]

“...What?”

“It’s just a story from the jianghu. A’Zhu is a clever little maid who is good at disguise.”

Sisi’s eyes widened and she scoffed, “I’ve never heard of it! Other people’s stories have nothing to do with me! Let me go!”

She suddenly exerted an unexpectedly great force as she struggled. Zhao Changhe, who was playing the role of a drunkard, could not use his full strength for fear of her seeing through his act, so he was ultimately pushed aside.

Sisi leaped out of the bed and stood beside it, panting heavily. “Are all men like this? They pretend to be drunk and crazy just to take advantage of women!”

Lying on the bed sprawled out, Zhao Changhe mumbled, “Just you wait, tomorrow I’ll go look for Tang Buqi and ask him...”

Sisi: “...”

Before long, Zhao Changhe’s snoring filled the room.

Sisi bit her lower lip and watched him for a while, trying to figure out if he was really asleep or just pretending. She also could not tell if he had really been drunk just now or not.

It’s really hard to tell. Last time, when he pretended to be lecherous as he approached Yue Hongling, it seemed so convincing! Fortunately, Yue Hongling intervened and saved me from that fate. If Yue Hongling had not shown up, I would have been the one to suffer that fate.

Not only that, he had been suspicious of Wan Dongliu causing trouble with the northern barbarians from the beginning, but he never showed any sign of it until the dust settled. Those who really think that this guy is just a rough and reckless man will end up played to death by him.

After hesitating for a long time, Sisi reached her hand out toward his arms as if wanting to grab something, but she ultimately did not dare to go through with it. She withdrew her hand and sat down on the side of the bed, hugging her knees and looking pitiful.

She truly was quite pitiful. While pretending to be a maid, not only did she risk being forced to sleep with someone, but even if he didn’t do anything, she still had to remain by his side, ready to serve him at any moment, whether it was to clean his vomit or help him wash up...

It was really tough.

From Zhao Changhe’s perspective, his acting today was quite mediocre, mainly because he was not really in the mood for it.

Tang Buqi’s behavior left him feeling somewhat disappointed and uninspired, so he simply went through the motions.

If she was the fake celestial maiden, she should have already gotten violated if things had really gone as they were supposed to. She had merely been saved by the real Yue Hongling back then. This time, she took on the identity of a maid whose duty was to serve guests, which really just seemed like karma coming full circle. It was as if she was destined to be violated. But at the same time, who told her to impersonate other people? If she stopped pretending to be someone she wasn’t, then she wouldn’t be in such miserable situations in the first place...

But Zhao Changhe was more confused than Sisi at the moment. He still was not certain if this maid was truly the fake celestial maiden or not, mostly due to how much she seemed to emphasize her innocence. If she was not actually the fake celestial maiden, then what he was doing to her was indeed inappropriate. That was why he decided to simply pretend to fall asleep and wait and see what her next actions would be.

Anyway, even with his eyes closed, he could still keep track of her movements with the Back Eye by just turning his head a little every now and then.

She did move her hand toward him at some point. It looked like there was something he wanted to take from him. But she hesitated and ultimately decided against going through with it.

Then, she sat pitifully at the side, hugging her knees. She rested against the bed, and gradually, her head drooped and she actually fell asleep.

Zhao Changhe: “...”

Now the one feeling aggrieved was Zhao Changhe. Whether or not Sisi had truly fallen asleep, he dared not sleep.

What if he fell asleep and she suddenly stole something or stabbed him? That would truly be tragic.

And so, while a little maid who should have been pitiful slept soundly, a man who was lying comfortably on the bed had a sleepless night.

*

When dawn came, Sisi’s head was still bobbing up and down as she slept. Zhao Changhe could not bear it any longer and pretended to wake up from a deep sleep, stretching lazily as he got out of bed.

Sisi still did not wake up.

It looked like his acting was for nothing, as there was no one to witness it.

Annoyed, Zhao Changhe washed up on his own, and then he took Dragon Bird and went out to practice.

The sound of his saber ripping through the air finally awoke Sisi. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she stood up in confusion. When she looked outside the window, she saw Zhao Changhe swinging his saber.

She silently watched him for a while, noticing that Zhao Changhe’s saber no longer contained hints of Chi Li’s Fox Spirit Saber Intent nor the Spring Water Sword Intent. He was still practicing the Vicious Blood Saber Art, with a hint of Yue Hongling’s style in it. His saber art had become much more developed, and it looked like he was beginning to form his own unique style.

Although Zhao Changhe no longer used those intents, Sisi still could not wrap her head around how he managed to learn the others’ sword and saber intents in such a short time. Even though he had indeed not grasped them to a deep level, that did not change the fact that those intents were not something that a normal person could just learn through such a short period of observation... There was also the Pure Bliss Art. She could not understand how he learned it so quickly.

I really want to steal his things!

Trying to control him is probably not going to work. On the day when he had just learned the Pure Bliss Art, there might still have been a chance. But now, he might even be more proficient with it than me. If I try to control him now, it’s hard to say who would end up controlling the other.

She had infiltrated the Maitreya Cult and accidentally learned about the treasure of vicious qi. It was then that she decided to come to the Tang Clan to seek it out. She never would have expected him to also show up.

Originally, she had disguised herself as a marginalized guest house maid in order to avoid attracting attention, but this identity truly did have its flaws. Her status was so low that she could not even enter the sword pond. In the end, it was only thanks to Zhao Changhe showing up that she managed to make use of him to visit the sword pond.

However, she did not dare dive into the water to explore things herself, fearing that she might end up alerting him. All she could do was linger on the periphery, dipping her feet into the water to see if she could sense any vicious qi.

Also, it allowed her to feel like she was letting him drink her feet water.

She wondered whether he had come to cause trouble for her or to help her...

Sisi was just about to say something to him when Tang Buqi’s voice suddenly came, “I was so drunk last night. Oh, you’re practicing the saber so early!”

Zhao Changhe put away his saber and said with a smile, “Didn’t you say that you would shut your mouth if you couldn’t make me drink to death? It seems that your mouth is still yapping like no other, no?”

Tang Buqi said, “Instead of that, how about I just let you call me Crybaby Tang for today?”

“?” Zhao Changhe rolled his eyes. “Why don’t you just shut your mouth and let yourself be called Doggy Tang?”

Sisi could not help but laugh.

Zhao Changhe turned to look at her, and then said to Tang Buqi, “Hey, little crybaby, if I ask you for something, will you give it to me?”

Tang Buqi said, “As long as it isn’t my aunt, it’s possible. It still depends on the situation, though”

Zhao Changhe pointed at Sisi and said, “I want this maid. Can you give her to me?”

Sisi’s smile froze on her face. Is he being serious?

1. Another reference to the Eightfold Paths of the Heavenly Dragon. ☜