She also wanted to cause a hysterical uproar.
But then what?
She was merely a lowly concubine's daughter, and hadn't even grown up in the Marquis's mansion. To the mansion, she was practically insignificant. The Dowager could erase her existence at any time, letting her vanish like a blade of grass in the late spring.
And what about An tide and An Mu... If I die, what good will come of them?
An Ran felt a surge of anger welling up inside her, unable to vent it. She didn't know whether to hate herself or someone else. She had been reborn, she had been trying her best to correct the mistakes of her previous life, and all she wanted in this life was to live a good life!
They brought her back to the Marquis's mansion, just to treat her like an object, like a beautiful vase waiting to be sold. Such a big matter, yet they disregarded her wishes!
Perhaps she is not as valuable as a piece of precious porcelain.
The porcelain was carefully preserved and treated with utmost care, while she was thrown into the abyss.
She was unwilling to accept it!
Why? Why must she suffer such a fate again?
That's unfair...
An Ran's heart skipped a beat, and she began to tremble inexplicably.
How ridiculous!
Just over a month ago, she had advised Third Sister, telling her that there is no such thing as fairness in this world, and that she shouldn't be too attached to it or lose herself. Now, she has to repay those words to herself.
She was all alone in the Marquis's mansion. Even though the Dowager Madam was her own grandmother, she was willing to push her into a pit of fire for the sake of the mansion's interests. Not to mention her stepmother, who disliked illegitimate daughters to begin with and had absolutely no feelings for her.
The only person you can rely on is yourself!
Anran forced herself to calm down and stop wallowing in pointless self-pity. It only added to her worries and did nothing to solve the problem.
The concubine of the heir apparent of Prince Yi.
Even though she had decided to face reality, this title still made An Ran feel suffocated.
She gripped the jade pendant tied to her waist tightly, the intricate carvings digging deep into her palm, but she was oblivious to the pain.
At this moment, she was too passive, completely at the mercy of others. But there must be a way, there must be a way to get out of this predicament. She needed to calm down, she needed to calm down and think things through.
The key to the problem lies with Third Sister.
An Ran had overheard some of it; Third Sister's life was very difficult these days. The birth of Li Shi's eldest son by a concubine was already a disadvantage for her, and now she was having a major falling out with the heir. Jin Zhi's words in the pavilion must have revealed Third Sister's greatest predicament.
Lady Li was promoted to the rank of concubine.
This is not something that can be suppressed by simply elevating a concubine. In fact, a noble concubine can raise her own children and has a lot of dignity in front of the mistress. Unlike the maids and concubines who can be sold off at will, the mistress cannot dispose of them arbitrarily.
Originally, Zhao's plan was to provide Yun Shen with two beautiful concubines, which is why she sent Zhi Mo and Ru Lan over. However, San Niang never used them, and it was only after Li returned that the matter became less important.
We must find someone of equal status to Lady Li to share Yun Shen's favor in order to suppress Lady Li's growing power and influence.
This person is not someone that just any maid could do.
That's why the Dowager Lady and Lady Zhao set their sights on us!
An Ran gave a bitter smile.
Perhaps I once tried to dissuade Third Sister, making them believe that I would obediently serve her and offer advice. Aren't they afraid I might develop ulterior motives and try to oust Third Sister to compete for the Emperor's favor?
An Ran thought with a hint of gloom, "Where do they get their confidence?"
Suddenly, her gaze fell on the purse hanging on her body. The two slanted plum blossoms on it were not stitched very evenly, but she cherished them; An tide had made them for her.
No wonder, no wonder the Grand Madam was so kind as to let her go out to see Anxi and Anmu today!
An Ran closed her eyes, forced a laugh, and finally couldn't hold back the tears that slid down her cheeks.
The Grand Madam had long seen through her weakness and had her firmly under her control! With An tide and An Mu around, how dare she disobey?
not to mention……
If she weren't stupid, she should have helped Third Sister secure her position first, instead of letting Li Shi grow too powerful. After all, once she arrived at the Prince Yi's residence, An Ran could only rely on the Marquis of Nan'an's residence. Third Sister was both the heir apparent's wife and the Marquis's legitimate daughter; she had to depend on Third Sister.
At the same time, she also had to do everything she could, and be prepared to be a powerful tool in San Niang's hands, to remove obstacles for San Niang so that she could live at the mercy of others.
But that's not all that's difficult.
Third Sister hated Li Shi so much that her teeth itched, something An Ran had witnessed firsthand. If she herself were to join the young master's side, wouldn't Third Sister's hatred be even more intense? Before Li Shi could even make a move, Third Sister had already started to harass her at every turn.
She was originally going to help Third Sister. As long as Third Sister wasn't confused, she should get along with her peacefully and work together to deal with Li Shi.
Third Sister wasn't confused, she just couldn't let go. An Ran sighed deeply in her heart. If Third Sister could have let go, how could she have ended up in this situation? If she had proposed a concubine to the young master earlier, and had only pretended to be magnanimous after Li Shi entered the household, how could she have ended up having to choose one of her half-sisters as a concubine?
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck An Ran.
She finally realized something was wrong. The Dowager Madam was one thing, but Madam Zhao had always doted on Third Sister; she couldn't possibly disregard Third Sister's feelings. How had they managed to persuade Third Sister to agree?
If Third Sister were more open-minded, she would have come back to her senses long ago, instead of ending up like this. Therefore, sending her over there rashly is not a good thing for Third Sister.
Someone as capable as the Dowager Lady couldn't possibly be unaware of these things.
Moreover, if they were going to send her in as a concubine, since the Dowager and Zhao had already made their decision, why didn't they just tell her directly instead of using such a roundabout method?
There must be something she's using!
Anran calmed herself down, took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears, and rallied her spirits.