Qi Mingzhu’s lips were bitten so hard they bled, while Fu Su beside her paced anxiously.
“Even if you bite your lips until they’re raw, only you will feel the pain,” Qi Zhenzhen continued to twist the knife. “Qi Mingzhu, if I were you, I’d find a way to salvage such a poorly played game of chess. That way, there might still be a chance to turn things around. Well, seeing you in such a sorry state, my objective has been achieved, so I won’t waste any more time here with you.”
Before Qi Zhenzhen could leave the courtyard, she saw a little maid strutting arrogantly into Qi Mingzhu’s courtyard.
“Aunt Qi, aren’t you usually the most well-behaved? Why are you so ill-behaved today? Do you think the Duke of Protection’s heir’s wife is here to back you up?” the little maid said sarcastically.
Qi Zhenzhen stopped in her tracks. Erxi, understanding her intent, quickly walked up to the little maid and slapped her twice.
“Eldest Sister, aren’t you usually the most well-behaved? Why is there such an ill-mannered maid in your courtyard? You are the mistress, and she is a maid. How can a maid be so disrespectful? Ah, Eldest Sister, I was so angered that I hit this maid. Please don’t be angry,” Qi Zhenzhen exclaimed.
Although Qi Mingzhu hated Qi Zhenzhen to the core, in this matter, Qi Zhenzhen had clearly defended her.
“You are the heir’s wife. Since she knew your status, yet was so arrogant and didn’t even pay respects, she deserved to be hit,” Qi Mingzhu said indifferently.
This was a perfectly reasonable excuse.
No matter whose maid this was, she had been disrespectful first. Hitting her was justified, and no one could fault it.
The little maid clearly understood this as well. She swallowed her grievance and respectfully paid her respects to Qi Zhenzhen.
“Heir’s wife, this servant is a maid by the side of our family’s heir’s wife. I am acting on the madam’s orders to remind Aunt Qi of the rules,” the little maid explained. “As a concubine, Aunt Qi should pay her respects to the principal wife every day. The young madam is kind and has never held grudges, but our heir’s wife said that we cannot abolish the ancestral rules just because the young madam is kind-hearted.”
The people around Qi Mingzhu’s maternal aunt’s family were likely acting with her tacit approval to dare to be so presumptuous.
No matter what, Qi Mingzhu was an aunt, a semi-mistress. Setting that aside, she was also the granddaughter of Prince Qin and his consort. If no one had instructed her, even if they gave her ten times the courage, she wouldn’t dare.
“Then I’ll accompany Eldest Sister to meet the young madam,” Qi Zhenzhen said with a smile.
Qi Mingzhu was taken aback. Qi Zhenzhen was about to leave just now, and now she wanted to accompany her to see Lu Jingning? Was she trying to witness how Lu Jingning would humiliate her?
Qi Mingzhu gritted her teeth, but Qi Zhenzhen urged her on. She couldn’t very well chase her away. Although her maternal aunt disliked Qi Zhenzhen, she couldn’t guarantee that she wouldn’t pick a fight over this, accusing her of being rude, and then scolding her again. Let her watch, it was just this once anyway.
Before coming, Qi Zhenzhen had asked people to inquire about Lu Jingning. She was knowledgeable and virtuous, and her disposition was very kind. In their circle, her reputation was excellent. How kind was she? Even when several of her half-sisters were disrespectful to her, she was always very tolerant. From this perspective, either Lu Jingning was too pedantic from reading too much, or she was quite cunning. After all, she had learned that the Grand Scholar doted on his several concubines and illegitimate daughters, and naturally paid less attention to his principal wife. For his legitimate daughter, he was naturally not as attentive as he was to his illegitimate daughters.
Normally, in such a situation, Lu Jingning should have sided with her mother and stood united against the concubines and illegitimate daughters. Instead of cherishing those half-sisters who were often disrespectful and sarcastic towards her!
Therefore, Qi Zhenzhen wanted to see how Lu Jingning would treat Qi Mingzhu.