RWWAI 2

Chapter 2: Roles Like the Vixenish Mistress

Even though I had casually blurted out a massive promise and taken on all the responsibilities, where on earth was I supposed to settle this mistress? And where was I supposed to find a doctor?

Suddenly, the geographic layout of the commandant’s estate flooded into my mind the very next second.

It seemed that the original owner Liang Jingjing’s memories could be accessed at will whenever I needed them. Even for maidservants whose faces looked completely unfamiliar to me, I could easily recall their names.

"Huangying, tidy up the Jiaoyue Pavilion; it will be Qin Niangzi’s quarters from now on. Pass the word down to take good care of her, and if anything is lacking, just draw it from the steward's accounts," I instructed gracefully, every single word perfectly fitting Liang Jingjing’s aristocratic lady persona. Even I couldn't help but admire myself.

But truth be told, right before I spoke, the glowing subtitles had provided another piece of prior context.

In the previous life, the original Liang Jingjing did not settle Qin Miaomiao in the Jiaoyue Pavilion; instead, she had her move into the front courtyard guest quarters, which the commandant's estate traditionally used for welcoming VIPs.

Why didn't I do that?

Because Jiaoyue Pavilion was the closest to Qi Lu’s study, and it came with its own secluded courtyard. It could satisfy Qin Miaomiao's need for quiet recuperation during her pregnancy, make it convenient for Qi Lu to sneak past prying eyes to carry on his romance, and—best of all—keep them as far away from me as possible, out of sight and out of mind.

If only the original owner had possessed my kind of foresight and emotional maturity back then, perhaps she wouldn't have died of melancholy.

You really have to ask what love even is in this world. It only ever teaches people to march themselves straight to their own doom.

My arrangement clearly caught Qi Lu completely off guard, as a look of perplexity flashed across his face.

Playing the ultimate green-tea innocent, I asked a question I already knew the answer to: "Does husband find... something amiss with the Jiaoyue Pavilion?"

The reason I say I knew the answer was because the prior context provided by the bullet comments stated that in the previous life, after the original Liang Jingjing arranged for Qin Miaomiao to stay in the front courtyard guest quarters, she had asked this exact same question.

Only back then, the implication behind her words clearly treated Qin Miaomiao as the orphaned daughter of one of Qi Lu’s comrades who had fallen on the battlefield.

Following that cue, Qi Lu had confessed right then and there, acknowledging that the child Qin Miaomiao was carrying was indeed his own flesh and blood. He even went on a lengthy, heartless confession about how they had met too late, and how he would rather let down the entire world than fail her—a whole series of soul-crushing declarations capable of tearing Liang Jingjing's heart to pieces.

While I didn't love Qi Lu, I had zero desire to waste my time listening to how he hooked up with Qin Miaomiao.

My little stunt right now was specifically designed to cut him off before he could even start that monologue.

Sure enough, with a very peculiar expression, Qi Lu said, "Just handle the arrangements as you see fit."

I nodded with a facade of absolute submissiveness, using my sleeve to successfully mask the corners of my mouth, which were desperately trying to curl upward.

Judging by that constipated look on his face, he must have spent the entire journey back racking his brain over how to spin his inability to keep his lower half under control into a grand, noble sacrifice that I was simply forced to accept.

Since he had nowhere to showcase his mental gymnastics right now, it was bound to leave him sitting on pins and needles for a good long while, hehe.

I knew very well that the less you pay attention to someone like this, the more it eats away at them on the inside.

So I turned around and instructed another maid, "Go fetch Doctor Zhou and tell him that a distant relative with child has arrived at the estate. After a long and exhausting journey, request his presence to conduct an examination. Have him bring along any common prenatal remedies so we don't have to make a second trip."

I specifically made the maid clarify that the pregnant person wasn't me—and trust me, that wasn't just me being petty!

I am currently a young married woman whose husband has been away at war for three years. If people mistakenly thought I was the one knocked up, how on earth was I supposed to show my face in public again?

I am definitely not carrying that blame. Even as a modern person, I still understand the ancient idiom that gossip can melt metal.

However, even with the cheat code of bullet comments, I wasn't omniscient.

For instance, the bullet comments failed to mention the crucial detail that Doctor Zhou was gorgeous.

When I saw that drop-dead gorgeous hunk carrying a medicine chest step through the gates of the commandant's estate, I stood there staring like an idiot for a full second.

True to a reborn power-fantasy script, even a random NPC had idol-tier visuals!

Doctor Zhou looked to be about a decade older than Qi Lu, with a few faint lines etched by time on his face, and he sported the kind of facial hair ancient men loved so much. But hey—even an old Ferrari is still a Ferrari.

Especially that natural, effortless aura carried by a medical professional—it made me follow right behind Doctor Zhou's footsteps into Jiaoyue Pavilion with zero self-control whatsoever.

Qin Miaomiao, who had been lounging sideways on the daybed, looked somewhat awkward the moment she saw me walk in.

Fluttering her eyelashes, she spoke in a delicate, fragile tone, "Madam Qi..."

I hurriedly chimed in, "Qin Niangzi needn't stand on ceremony. My coming here today is simply to hear what the physician has to say. If there are any precautions we need to keep in mind, I can give the necessary instructions and get things arranged early."

I was probably the first person in history to cook up such a lofty, grand excuse just so I could gawk at an attractive man!

Moreover, my overly enthusiastic gaze directed at Doctor Zhou seemed to be entirely misinterpreted by Qin Miaomiao as me showing deep, heartfelt concern for the Qi family lineage.

After Doctor Zhou left, Qin Miaomiao actually dropped to her knees on the floor, red-eyed as she choked out, "Miaomiao knows she has wronged Madam and dares not harbor any extravagant hopes. All I ask for now is that the child in my womb can safely enter this world. Once the baby is born, whether I stay or go shall be entirely at Madam’s discretion. Whatever Madam commands, Miaomiao will raise no objections."

Drawing from my years of experience reading web novels, I knew that characters like vixenish mistresses always keep a super low profile before they actually secure power.

Naturally, I wasn't going to start chewing her out and make a fool of myself at this stage.

So, I nodded and said, "Your staying or leaving ultimately doesn't rest on my decision alone. If you can serve the commandant well and live together in harmony, a stable life naturally awaits you. But the day you incur his displeasure and he insists on casting you out of the estate, even if I talked until my lips turned dry, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to keep you here."

Of course I knew Qi Lu wouldn't have the heart to chase her away, but I didn't want her getting too comfortable either.

Ideally, she should pour every ounce of energy into sucking up to him and draining his stamina, leaving him with zero residual brainpower to come bug me.

After all, I still intended to keep enjoying the good life inside the commandant's estate.

Back then, I had no idea that I wasn't holding a wish-fulfillment power-fantasy script at all.

By the time I was beaten down to the point of absolute heartbreak, it was already far too late.

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