Wang Qinglin still lacked social experience, and was flustered by Madam Bai’s casual threat.
Did the Empress Dowager, such a significant figure, have the leisure to concern herself with her trivial family matters? It was only because Wang Qingyao happened to visit the palace yesterday that the Empress Dowager, while bestowing rewards, casually mentioned it.
Besides, one could not make the same mistake twice. Wang Qingyao, now with a sharp mind, would not bother the Empress Dowager with her own small affairs repeatedly.
Madam Bai understood this clearly.
Seeing that her only daughter had realized her mistake, she could not bear to continue frightening her. She said earnestly, "As long as we prepare ourselves now, it will be useless even if Wang Qingyao complains to the Empress Dowager."
Wang Qinglin looked at Madam Bai with an eager desire to learn.
Madam Bai then advised her to first go to the Old Madam and admit her mistake. Of course, this admission of fault had its own art; on the surface, she would admit her wrongdoings, but in reality, she would imply that others were to blame.
"The Old Madam has always doted on you. What is Wang Qingyao, a lone star, compared to you?"
Wang Qinglin nodded vigorously.
Madam Bai glanced at her and continued, "You have been the center of attention since childhood, never having suffered the slightest grievance, and your personality is proud and self-respecting. But Wang Qingyao is different; she is a fallen woman, a broken pot that doesn't care about anything. You don't need to concern yourself with her. How can a firefly shine as brightly as the moon?"
Wang Qinglin clenched her fist and said resentfully, "I can't swallow this insult."
Madam Bai's eyes darkened, and as if thinking of something, she sneered, "If you're going to do something, do it so that others can't find any trace of it, and have no way to defend themselves!"
Wang Qinglin's eyes lit up, and she looked at Madam Bai with anticipation.
"You don't need to worry about this matter. Mother has her ways."
Madam Bai was cautious. She first sent her head maid to the Old Madam's Rongtang Courtyard to probe for information about what Wang Qingyao had said. The maid returned quickly with a complex expression.
"What is it?"
"Second Miss did not go to Rongtang Courtyard."
"What?!" Wang Qinglin suddenly stood up.
This was quite unexpected.
"Your servant inquired and learned that after Second Miss left Eldest Miss, she returned to Lengxiang Courtyard, changed into men's clothing, and left directly."
Wang Qinglin was unaware that Wang Qingyao often disguised herself as a man and went out to misbehave. Upon hearing this, her eyes widened, and she looked at Madam Bai in disbelief.
Madam Bai repeatedly sneered, "I underestimated her!"
To endure the grievance and not go to complain, and still have the heart to go out and have fun!
Not everyone possessed such a state of mind.
She glanced at Wang Qinglin, feeling increasingly annoyed.
Her own legitimate daughter, whom she had meticulously raised for over a decade, was being toyed with by a wild girl!
She absolutely could not swallow this insult.
Her fingernails dug deeply into her palm, and Madam Bai's face turned terrifyingly grim. Originally, she had only intended to teach that girl a small lesson, but now she had no intention of showing her any mercy.
While Madam Bai had come up with a plan, Wang Qingyao, having changed her clothes, headed straight for the Apricot Blossom Pavilion.
What a joke! If Wang Qinglin wouldn't give her food, could she starve herself?
She requested a private room, ordered a table full of dishes at the Apricot Blossom Pavilion, and instructed a waiter to deliver some of it to the back door of the Wang family – she had arranged with Zhizi to wait for the delivery there.
The rest went into her stomach. She was ravenously hungry and eating alone, with no other entertainment but to bury her head in her food. As she was eating, someone knocked on the door. Thinking it was the waiter, she said without looking up, "Come in."
Someone pushed the door open, but it was not the waiter.
It was a strange middle-aged woman.
Wang Qingyao frowned slightly. Was she selling insurance?
"It really is Yaoyao. I thought it was you from afar and followed you all the way, and it turns out it is you," the woman said with a smile, her tone affectionate. Before Wang Qingyao could reply, she sat down next to her warmly.
Wang Qingyao now regretted not bringing Yin Zhu or Zhizi with her. She had no impression of this person at all.
"Hehehe," she could only force a smile to appease her.
"You look thinner," the woman said, looking at her with pity. Seeing that she remained silent, she continued softly, "I know you are deeply devoted to Yu'er and do not wish to marry Prince Ding'an. However, the Emperor's decree is difficult to defy. It would be better to plan well for Yu'er in the future, and Yu'er will remember your kindness..."
Wang Qingyao's skin crawled.
She knew who this person was.
She was the mother of Wang Qingyao's former fiancé, Tian Yu!
This Madam Tian was quite something. Her family had disdained the original owner and broken their promise, yet instead of feeling guilty, she now wanted to use the original owner's feelings to advance her son's future!
She was more blood-sucking than a sanitary pad!
"Auntie, who are you?" Wang Qingyao's voice was normal, and her question broke the silence in the private room.
Madam Tian was startled, and said with embarrassment and confusion, "I am Tian Yu's mother. Don't you recognize me?"
"No."
The original owner rarely left her chambers. Even if she had met Madam Tian, it would have only been a fleeting glance, so it was normal not to recognize her.
However, Madam Tian's pride was wounded.
Tian Yu was a renowned scholar in Duanjing, and countless young ladies flocked to him. Wang Qingyao, relying on the engagement, held the title of fiancée. Shouldn't she have already inquired about her beloved's mother's preferences and tried her best to please her?
Madam Tian's expression changed, a hint of anger flickering in her eyes.
But times were different now. Wang Qingyao was destined to become a princess. If she could be used well, it would be greatly beneficial to Tian Yu's future.
So, she forced a smile and tried to help Wang Qingyao recall, "...It was that time, during the Old Madam's sixtieth birthday..."
Wang Qingyao still shook her head, "Perhaps you are too ugly, and I don't remember ugly people."
What?!
Madam Tian thought she had misheard, "What did you say?"
Wang Qingyao looked puzzled, "Did I not speak clearly, or are you hard of hearing?" She cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone and shouted with all her might, "I said you are very ugly... very ugly... ugly... ly..."
She even added an echo.
Madam Tian's face turned ashen with anger, and her whole body trembled.
No woman, regardless of age, would want to be called ugly if she had a normal mind.
"You, you, you..."
Wang Qingyao said with a sincere expression, "It's not your fault for being ugly, but it's wrong to come out and scare people."
"Hahahaha!" Uncontrollable laughter suddenly erupted from the adjacent private room.
Madam Tian paused, then belatedly realized that their conversation had been overheard by the neighbors.
Filled with shame and indignation, she pointed a trembling finger at Wang Qingyao, "As expected, you were born but not raised, with no manners at all!"
Wang Qingyao's gaze shifted from the wall. Oh, what a coincidence, Prince Ding'an and his companions were next door. A group of handsome, upright young men, but their voices were too noisy. She had no interest in admiring them.
She calmly looked at Madam Tian and said, "You are ugly."
"You, you, you... I'm going to tell your Old Madam!"
"You are very ugly."
"You, you, you..." Madam Tian was so angry that she couldn't speak in complete sentences, clutching her chest as if she were about to vomit blood.
"You are truly ugly; even your husband doesn't want to look at you more than necessary."
Striking at the heart, Madam Tian's eyes turned red. With a "wah," she burst into tears and ran out.