Chapter Twelve: The Harvest

Snakes are not the same as frogs.

Snakes are venomous!

If bitten, the outcome can be summed up in one word—death.

“Ninth Lady!”

Madam Fu was so frightened she trembled from head to toe.

Yet she gritted her teeth and clung tightly to Wang Heng in her arms.

While making sure the child was secure, Madam Fu desperately tried to edge away—

Oh heavens, the eldest son of the Lou family is truly ruthless, actually bringing out such a poisonous creature as a green bamboo snake.

And he deliberately threw it toward their Ninth Lady.

If the snake really coiled around her and bit her...

Just imagining it made Madam Fu's vision swim with black spots.

But worse was yet to come.

Faced with the “sky-falling” venomous snake, Wang Heng did not cry, nor did she even flinch.

She simply raised her hand, aimed carefully, and pinched the snake.

Her fair, chubby little hand held a vibrant green snake aloft.

The little snake, seemingly caught at its vital spot, dangled limply, as if its bones had been drawn out, motionless except for an inert sway in the air.

“Nine... Ninth—”

Witnessing this, Madam Fu felt as if her own throat had been seized, unable to utter a complete sentence.

“A snake! A venomous snake!”

Madam Cui, who had been posing elegantly upon a sedan chair, comfortably borne by two sturdy maids, saw the eldest son suddenly appear and toss something in their direction. She instantly remembered the toad that had so recently revolted her to the point of fainting.

A wave of nausea swept over her, her skin prickling with goosebumps.

Then someone recognized the green object flying through the air—it was a snake, a deadly green bamboo snake. Madam Cui’s heart nearly leapt from her chest in terror.

She frantically tried to rise and flee, forgetting she was still atop the sedan.

The maids carrying her, equally terrified by the venomous snake, quaked in their shoes, desperate to bolt. Madam Cui’s struggle made the sedan teeter like a rope bridge on a cliff’s edge.

“Ah! Ah! Ah!”

“Someone! Quick, help me! Hold me! Quickly, steady me!”

Sensing her body’s instability and fearing she would fall, Madam Cui clung to the sedan’s handle with one hand, her other hand instinctively covering her lower abdomen.

Such is a mother’s instinct—even though the life inside her was less than a month old, just a tiny sprout, at the moment of danger, it was her first thought.

“Eldest Son! Enough of this nonsense!”

“Someone! Quickly, take this snake away!”

“...Ayao! You two, put the sedan down! Protect Ayao!”

Though old and somewhat fearful of snakes, Madam Dowager Cui managed to remain composed.

She did not wail or flee, instead rebuking the eldest son and keeping her eyes on her dear niece.

From Madam Cui’s own words, she had learned her niece might be with child.

The first three months are the most delicate. Though the sedan was not high off the ground, less than the height of a man, Cui was pregnant—any fall could harm her, not to mention the child within.

The urgency in the dowager’s voice betrayed her concern.

Her gaze lingered unavoidably on Cui’s belly.

This aunt and niece pair from the Cui family... one protecting, one watching... there must be some “secret” hidden in that small belly.

The only one who remained truly calm was Wang Lin.

Though his expression was anxious, his eyes were clear and sharp.

He found the presence of mind to observe Madam Dowager Cui, Madam Cui, and the others’ reactions.

But Wang Lin did not simply stand by—he remembered well that his own Ninth Lady still held a venomous snake.

In a flash, he darted toward Wang Heng...

All this happened in the blink of an eye.

Wang Heng, still young, paid little attention to others; she simply looked at the limp little snake dangling from her hand.

Tilting her head, she gazed at the excited eldest son. Before he could clap and laugh with glee, she asked cheerfully, “Brother, is this a gift for Jiu?”

A gift?

At Wang Heng’s words, everyone fell silent, including Wang Lin, who had just rushed to her side.

With a thud!

On the other side, amid the swaying sedan, Madam Cui fell to the ground.

Wang Lin, pivoting on his toes, instantly turned from Wang Heng to Madam Cui.

He hurried to support her.

Fortunately, the maids she brought were reliable, and the dowager’s shouted instructions had prompted the sedan bearers to lower their load.

When Madam Cui fell, the sedan was barely half a meter from the ground. Two maids threw themselves beneath her, cushioning her fall.

Thus, although she collapsed, Madam Cui was unharmed.

“My dear! Are you alright?”

“Someone! Fetch the physician, quickly!”

Wang Lin, following his momentum, swept Madam Cui into his arms, examining her as he called out urgently.

His concern was that of a devoted, loving husband.

Madam Cui, though pale, felt her heart settle as her feet touched the ground.

Looking up, she saw her husband’s deeply concerned gaze, his affection and guilt warming her like a gentle current.

“My lord, don’t worry! I’m... I’m fine!”

She subconsciously stroked her abdomen, silently reassuring herself: the child is fine too.

She did not notice Wang Lin’s initial movement toward Wang Heng—she believed he had come straight for her, and felt wrapped in happiness.

Madam Dowager Cui, however, saw everything, but looking at her niece’s infatuated expression, she said nothing.

Cui was unharmed, the snake was in the Wang family girl’s hand; the dowager’s worries eased.

She darkened her expression, fixing a rare stern look on the eldest son. “Eldest Son! You’ve gone too far this time!”

“Play is one thing, but how could you bring such a dangerous creature?”

The eldest son, disconcerted by Wang Heng’s “Brother, is this a gift for Jiu?” was momentarily at a loss.

A gift?

He had meant to give her a good scare, to show her what true fear was!

And yet, the chubby girl wasn’t frightened or crying, but had simply grabbed the silly snake.

A silly snake indeed—supposed to be a fearsome viper, yet so useless even after its fangs were removed.

How ridiculous, just like those useless, lowly servants!

He grew more irritable.

What was wrong with this chubby girl? Not afraid of toads or snakes! Was she really a little lady?

In truth, even little boys would wet themselves at the sight of a venomous snake.

He had paraded this green bamboo snake around the Lou family’s inner quarters, terrifying every young son of the household into trembling, begging for mercy.

He had threatened them all, “Don’t tell anyone, or... I’ll put the snake in your bed or your clothes!”

So ruthless, so terrifying.

The Lou family’s boys were all cowed, swearing not to say a word.

Thus, though he had brandished this snake for days, none of the womenfolk, including Madam Dowager Cui, knew about it—until now.

“Yes, Eldest Son, how could you play with snakes?”

“That beast is venomous—one misstep and someone could die!”

“And what about those useless maids serving him—how could they not know?”

The key was, no one had reported it upwards.

Madam Dowager Cui was caught off guard, her beloved niece nearly endangered by a snake.

Even if unhurt, falling from a sedan in public was humiliating.

For a noblewoman, even a single misstep was disgraceful—falling from a sedan, a carriage, or into the water, all equally undignified.

“Hmph! Didn’t you hear what the chubby girl said? That’s right—a gift! I gave the chubby girl a gift!”

“She’s a guest, and as the host, it’s my duty to give her a present. Isn’t that the rule you’re always talking about?”

Though rattled, the eldest son seized on Wang Heng’s words and used them as a shield against the crowd.

Madam Dowager Cui and the gathered women were silent.

This boy, they thought, had grown cunning, even learning to argue his way out. And Wang Heng, with her innocent remark, had unwittingly given him an out.

Madam Dowager Cui clenched her handkerchief, her face composed but her eyes flickering.

Even Wang Lin, still playing the part of the devoted husband, was drawn in by the spectacle.

As he gently lifted Madam Cui, he reassured everyone, “It’s nothing. The snake must have been dealt with already.”

The eldest son was mischievous, but those around him knew the rules.

Indulged as he was, no one would truly let him be in danger.

Poisonous snake? Fine—but a servant or guard would catch it, then have its fangs removed by someone knowledgeable.

Only after ensuring its harmlessness would they give it to the young master.

Such is the way in noble families; Wang Lin himself had had odd hobbies as a child.

The household staff always knew how to keep him happy yet safe.

Therefore, Wang Lin dared rush toward his daughter—he had guessed that the snake was harmless!

Moreover, after being seized by his daughter, the snake had remained limp, without any sign of aggression.

It was evident the snake had been “trained.”

It dared not bite its “master.”

“Hmph! Boring!”

The eldest son, his prized secret exposed before all, lost interest.

With a flick of his sleeve, he stormed off, ignoring the dowager’s continuing rebuke.

Madam Dowager Cui was left speechless.

Though she had spoiled him into this little tyrant, she was nonetheless satisfied to see his boldness.

But time and again, faced with such a wayward, unfilial child, she couldn’t help but feel vexed.

The eldest son’s unruliness spared no one; he did not defer even to her, his elder.

In a way, Madam Dowager Cui was reaping what she had sown.

Wang Lin took all this in silently.

This day had been most enlightening.

First, he had uncovered Madam Cui’s “secret.”

Second, he had witnessed the Lou family’s untamable, yet untouchable, little tyrant.

All these details, Wang Lin stored away, to be used perfectly when needed.

Take Madam Cui, for example.

If she refused to behave and continued to flaunt herself in the Wang household, he would not confront her openly, but would find subtle ways to retaliate.

He would make her see that the house bore the Wang name, not the Cui.

He, Wang Lin, was the scion of a noble house, not her servant to be ordered about...