How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

Early in the morning, Yanru's courtyard was quiet and deserted. Today was New Year's Eve, and apart from the occasional cuckoo's breath, she was all alone, leaning on the railing and gazing into the distance.

The warm morning sun enveloped her, dispelling the chill for a moment. Yan Ru pulled her sleeves tighter, her eyes downcast.

"No one is coming."

The cuckoo suddenly spoke.

Yan Ru didn't turn her head, but nodded almost imperceptibly.

Du Juan sighed softly. She really didn't understand what the sixth concubine was thinking. She was already the master's woman, so why was she making a fuss again, as if she wanted to erect a monument to her chastity?

Isn't it all because of the eldest young master? With her eyes slightly open, Du Juan, upon seeing the truth, became even more worried about her future. She originally thought that following the sixth concubine would bring her success, but she didn't expect her to be just a pretty face with no substance.

Thinking of her little one who hadn't returned in a long time, Du Juan resigned herself to her fate and quietly withdrew. Fine, she'd take the gamble with her.

"Ah! Sister Fang?"

As soon as she came downstairs, Du Juan was startled by the person who appeared. It turned out to be the little one she hadn't seen in a long time.

"Oh my god, you suddenly made a sound! You scared me to death! Haven't you ever seen me before?" the little thing said with utter disgust.

"Why are you back, sister? Has the master lifted the ban?" It's New Year's Eve today; perhaps the master has softened his heart.

"Hmm, how would I know what the master is thinking? Here, these are that person's dumplings, take them upstairs."

The little creature handed over a food box. Dujuan took it and was about to look at it when the little creature stopped her.

"What are you looking at? Don't you believe me? It's not like I'm giving you food, why are you getting involved?"

Du Juan withdrew her hand that was about to peek, and chuckled twice, "How could that be? I'm overjoyed that my sister is back. She's resting upstairs. Should I go up and pay my respects?"

"I'm not going. You take it up there. I have other errands to run."

When the dumplings arrived, the little creature tiptoed away.

Du Juan carried a plate of dumplings upstairs.

"Please have something to eat. I heard it was given to you by the master. It's hot dumplings, just right for today's festival."

Yanru looked up and saw that the plate of dumplings was not much, and the lard on the edges had solidified, which immediately made her lose her appetite.

"No need, you can heat it up and eat it, I'm not hungry."

Du Juan was also somewhat embarrassed; this plate of dumplings was probably not meant for servants. In the past, when the Sixth Concubine was favored, the main kitchen would never dare to send such dishes. Now, times have changed, and they are being treated with such disrespect.

They even said the master sent it over. Is that possible? Or is the master deliberately trying to provoke the sixth concubine and tell her not to be too willful?

Unsure of what the higher-ups meant, Dujuan felt that things were getting increasingly difficult.

"If you don't want to eat it, just leave it there. I see there are still a few birds in the yard that haven't flown away; you can feed them."

"Yes." Du Juan didn't really want to eat either. Rather than eating this cold rice, she'd rather cook a pot of porridge to warm her stomach.

Since the ban on eating, only the two of them remained in the small building, and Dujuan mostly prepared the meals herself.

After placing the dumplings on the veranda, Dujuan went about her own business. Yanru sat there as usual, idly watching the birds foraging for food.

A few small birds were perched on a branch not far away. The cold wind was biting, and the birds hopped around. Soon, they were attracted by the smell of food and flew down one after another.

After pecking at the ground to make sure the only human posed no threat, the birds hopped onto the plate and began to eat, bit by bit.

Yanru stared at them; these lively little birds seemed to be the only vibrant things in the winter.

"Chirp~"

"What happened?" Yan Ru exclaimed in surprise.

The little bird that had eaten the dumpling hopped around on the ground a few times, let out a painful cry, and then stiffened and fell backward.

As soon as he fell, his whole body went limp and collapsed.

Yanru's heart clenched suddenly. She rushed over to check on it and found that its whole body was stiff, its eyes were wide open, and it looked like it was dead.

Yan Ru frantically called out to Du Juan, "Du Juan, Du Juan!"

Du Juan was cooking in the kitchen when she heard Yan Ru's shout and immediately came out. Seeing that the little bird had stopped struggling, she froze, "This...this is..."

"It just ate dumplings, and then...it died. What happened? Is someone trying to harm me?"

Du Juan panicked. She looked around, trying to find someone who could help her, but found that only she and Yan Ru were left in the room, and they were of no use at all.

“Go find the master and tell him what happened.” Dujuan was terrified.

Yan Ru panicked and said, "But didn't you say that these dumplings were sent by the master? He's the one who wanted to kill me, so why are you going to find him? Go find Song Yuanliang, go find him."

Du Juan gritted her teeth, turned around, and ran out the door.

Yan Ru stayed in the room, thinking for a long time but still couldn't figure out what had happened. Finally, she thought of one possibility: the dumplings had been poisoned!

Once she understood this, she became even more panicked.

She picked up a dagger from the table and gripped it tightly in her hand. She took a deep breath, turned around, and sat back down in her chair.

She must remain calm; she absolutely cannot lose her composure at this critical moment!

Yan Ru took several deep breaths, trying to calm her inner fear, but the more she tried to remain calm, the more flustered she became.

Her hand holding the dagger trembled slightly, and her palms were sweaty.

Seeing the little bird lying dead on the ground, she finally couldn't help but cry.

Master Song is too cruel. He says he loves her so much, but he tries to kill her at the slightest disagreement.

No, it can't be him, it's unlikely. Then who could it be? Yan Ru's head throbbed with pain, several faces flashed before her eyes, but she couldn't make sense of them.

It doesn't matter who it is anymore.

She was leaving, not out of cowardice like last time, but because she was determined to leave.

Yan Ru walked to the door and suddenly stopped.

Because she heard a sound, she quickly crouched down and hid behind a pillar to listen carefully.

"Is she dead? I clearly saw Dujuan run out, so something must have happened?"

Yan Ru was shocked; it was the little thing's voice. A surge of anger welled up inside her. She had thought the little thing was just a sycophant, but she hadn't expected the little thing to actually want her dead. And judging from the tone of her voice, she knew about it?

Hiding behind a pillar, Yan Ru wanted to see what she was up to. "You're not dead, are you? If you are, I won't take responsibility. Don't blame me, it wasn't my intention to harm you. You can only blame yourself for blocking her way."

Yan Ru was furious. This little brat was truly wicked!

Just as she was about to scold her, she heard the little thing continue, "It should be dead, I'll go take a look."

Yan Ru was so frightened that she hid there, too afraid to move.

The little thing walked into the yard, stood under the eaves, tiptoed, craned her neck to peek into the house a few times, and then pushed open the door and went inside.

Upon entering the house, the little creature found it empty. It looked around again before tiptoeing towards the bedroom.

Yan Ru hid behind a pillar and saw the little thing push the door open and go in. She immediately gripped the dagger tightly, her heart pounding wildly.