Chapter 58

Chapter 58 – Skin As White As Tofu! (2)

Dai Mei, who was outside, hurried in. “What’s wrong, Third Miss?”

Ye Zhen was panting and sweating. She looked at Dai Mei in front of her with a lingering fear. It took her a while to wake up from her dream.

“I’m all right.” Ye Zhen whispered and looked out of the window until she realized it was dawn.

“Is the third miss having nightmares again?” Dai Mei looked at her anxiously. She was better these past few days. Why did she start having nightmares again?

Ye Zhen shook her head and said, “I should bathe, I am covered in sweat.”

Only then did Dai Mei look at Ye Zhen’s body. Indeed, even her clothes were dripping with sweat! Not only that, but her clothes were also smudged with dirt!

“Miss should quickly take off her wet clothes so as not to catch a cold.”

Strange, didn’t she change her clothes yesterday? Why did it look so dirty?

Ye Zhen also found something strange in her body. She dismissed the maid immediately. “Fetch some water first and I’ll change my clothes.”

Right after her handmaiden left, Ye Zhen took off her robes. There was a layer of something black on her robes and even her body! Some of it, mixed in with sweat, made her whole skin look like it was covered in grime.

What is happening? She was confused.

She was sure that, when she went to bed last night, she was still clean. When did she get all these dirt?

Ye Zhen took the towel to wipe away the sweat from her forehead, and arms, only to be surprised to find that her skin was much whiter and smoother than yesterday.

Wait! Was this because of…

Looking at her arm, Ye Zhen was reminded of the fact that she had had a drop of the lingquan¹ last night before going to bed.

Her mouth went dry all of a sudden.

Was this related to the lingquan²? Could it really discharge dirt with sweat?

Ye Zhen was shocked and uncertain. She quickly took her new clothes and dressed. When Dai Mei knocked, bringing in a basin of hot water, Ye Zhen handed over her dirty clothes to the servant.

“This dress is too dirty. Don’t bother washing it. Take it and throw it away.” She commanded before turning around, beginning the motions of preparing her bath.

Seeing her doing a chore she was supposed to do, Dai Mei insisted on serving her mistress.

“No, I’ll do it myself,” Ye Zhen said, still feeling troubled and confused. She didn’t want anyone else to be here.

“Then, this servant will go fetch your breakfast.” Dai Mei bowed before turning away, having already gotten used to Ye Zhen’s habit of refusing her service.

Ye Zhen sat in the bathtub, washed away the stains on her body and then, stood in front of a tall bronze mirror. She looked at the person looking back at her and only two observations appeared in her mind.

Her face had the color of a lotus flower, and her skin was as white as tofu!

Unexpectedly, the lingquan³ had such a magical effect.

Ye Zhen was secretly pleased, but a little nervous. Which woman didn’t want to be beautiful? But, still, now was not the time to become prominent. It was impossible to change in a span of hours!

If she went out today, she would certainly arouse suspicion.

Her mind was tangled up. Pretending to be sick wasn’t an option either, people would start visiting her in her chambers!

Gathering all her wits, she carefully thought for a moment and called the maid stationed outside. She ordered her through the screen to pick a certain grass from the courtyard.

Fortunately, she had her sister’s knowledge of herbs in her mind and knew what kind of grass in the courtyard could temporarily cover her skin. As for her body, she could just cover it with her elaborate clothes. It was more important to tan her face, a bit.

The lingquan⁴, she would not dare to drink or eat anymore! If it became too severe, it would be impossible to hide it.

The maid followed Ye Zhen’s description and found the grass. Ye Zhen allowed her to go to town later during the day as a reward for a job well done.

She smashed the grass and smeared the juice all over her face, hands, and neck. The jade-like skin immediately turned dark yellow!

Dai Mei brought in the breakfast. Seeing that Ye Zhen was dressed up and her black hair was tilted on the soft couch, she walked over and said with a smile, “Third Young Miss, this servant has brought breakfast. When you have finished, this servant will comb your hair.”

Ye Zhen smiled and gave a grateful yes.

Dai Mei looked at the third miss whose face was yellowish.

For some reason, she felt that something was off with her today. However, she could not say what was different. Looking at the third miss, she noticed that she looked a little better than yesterday.

After eating breakfast, Ye Zhen went to the study to find Teacher Shan and learned etiquette for two hours. Finally, she got half an hour’s rest time.

Remembering the disgruntled expression on Pei Shi’s face last night, she requested Teacher Shan for extra time and went to find Lu Xiangzhi.

To her disappointment, Lu Xiangzhi was just as unaware as she was. He’d been following his mentor, Mister Wang, for days that he didn’t know the whereabouts of his parents. Thus, he became worried as he heard it from his sister.

Ye Zhen said, “Don’t worry about it either. I’ll go to Mother and ask her. I’ll talk to you when I have news.”

Lu Xiangzhi felt that his sister and his mother must talk personally with each other, so he nodded. “Then you should go ask her yourself.”

In the end, when Ye Zhen turned to leave, Lu Xiangzhi snickered and called her out. “Yaoyao! You look better every day. If only you knew the capital was such a nurturing place, you should have visited here much earlier!”

Ye Zhen turned back and gave him an angry look. “Even in the border town, I am already a beauty!”

Lu Xiangzhi burst out laughing, “Yes, yes, my third sister is the first beauty in here and in the border town!”