"Huaping, help Aunt Li up." Third Sister waved her hand impatiently and said, "Don't kneel all the time. Have I ever set such a rule for you?" She looked sharply at Li Shi and sneered, "If others see this, they'll think I'm mistreating you!"
Li's heart trembled.
Third Sister is quite different from before. It used to take An Jiu Niang to remind her of this, but now Third Sister can also subtly stab people in the back.
"I dare not." Li stood up again, trembling as she knelt before Third Madam and said, "I am truly repentant. Please forgive me this time, Madam."
Third Sister was too lazy to argue with her.
"Madam, this is a book I've copied. Please take a look." Madam Li took the bundle that Xiao Cui handed her and gave the thick stack of papers to Third Sister.
When she reached out her hand, Third Sister noticed that her fingers were stiff, inflexible, and trembling slightly. Third Sister felt a surge of satisfaction; this was the price for her restlessness!
Third Sister took it and casually flipped through a few pages.
Li's handwriting was quite good; her neat, small regular script, despite being punished, did not become sloppy or blurry, as if she harbored resentment. Every single character she wrote was clear.
Seeing that she was docile, Third Sister's attitude softened a bit.
"I haven't finished copying yet, I've only copied this much, and the more I realize how wrong I was, the more I feel. I couldn't wait to apologize to Madam." Madam Li smiled gently, "Ninth Sister is right, people learn from books, I finally understand. From now on, I will certainly always—"
"What did you call Ninth Sister?" Third Sister interrupted Li Shi with displeasure.
Even if she is a concubine, she is not a secondary consort! How dare she address the Crown Prince's sister as her own sister?
That's absolutely outrageous!
Third Sister raised an eyebrow and sneered, "I think you've just copied all those books! You haven't learned a single principle. It seems the Four Books for Women aren't enough; you need to add etiquette too!"
Madam Li seemed flustered and quickly stood up, saying, "Please don't be offended, Madam!" She said with some doubt, "It's true that Ninth Miss is the Crown Princess's younger sister, but I'm older than her. From now on, we'll be living in this inner courtyard, so I don't think it's inappropriate for me to call her 'younger sister'—"
At first, San Niang didn't realize that something was wrong.
In a flash, she suddenly understood what Li meant.
Li was saying that Jiu Niang was going to become Yun Shen's concubine. Although Jiu Niang was a concubine's daughter from the Marquis's mansion, once she entered Yun Shen's courtyard, she would only be a concubine. She also had an eldest son born out of wedlock, so it was perfectly acceptable for her to call Jiu Niang "sister".
"Who gave you permission to call me that!" Third Sister's eyes seemed to hold ice as she stared coldly at Li Shi, almost fiercely saying, "Get out! Get out of here!"
Seeing that Third Sister seemed genuinely angry, Li felt relieved.
"Madam, please don't be angry. I was wrong. Please teach me!" Li Shi, still fearless, continued, "Even if you were to ask the Princess Consort for judgment, I wouldn't have said anything wrong—"
Third Sister slammed the stack of papers in her hand to the ground and shouted, "Get out of here!"
"Madam—" A hint of smugness flashed in Li's eyes. She wanted to delay a little longer, hoping to run into Yun Shen. However, seeing that the situation was not good, Hua Ping and Yin Ping quickly supported Li on either side and forcibly "invited" her out.
Third Sister sat expressionlessly on the rosewood chair carved with phoenixes and peonies.
These days, she and An Ran have gotten along so well, and An Ran has helped her a lot, that she has forgotten the purpose of the Marquis's mansion sending An Ran here.
The fact that An Ran wanted to become Yun Shen's concubine was like a thorn in San Niang's throat; every movement was painful. The recent peace, deliberately ignored by San Niang, had led her to genuinely believe that An Ran was only staying for a short time.
But she knew in her heart that Li was already a concubine, and perhaps at the full moon banquet, when her grandmother and mother came, they would remind her about Anran's status!
The longer it drags on, the more awkward and difficult it becomes.
When Yinping and Huaping returned, they saw that San Niang's expression was gloomy and inscrutable, and they secretly thought to themselves that things were going badly.
"I'm tired today and want some peace and quiet." Third Sister's face was indifferent as she said calmly, "If Ninth Sister comes back, let her go and rest first."
The two readily agreed.
Huaping gave Yinping a wink, then made an excuse to go out and find Anran.
Ninth Miss has helped the Crown Princess a lot, and the Crown Princess is currently very angry; we can't let this upset Ninth Miss! As for the Crown Princess… a pang of regret flashed in Hua Ping's eyes; she hoped the Crown Princess wouldn't be misled by malicious people! (Just Love Network)
Chapter 48 Full Moon
As Anran emerged from the Embroidery Courtyard and turned onto the path, she saw Huaping running towards her, her face covered in sweat.
Seeing her anxious expression, Anran's heart sank: Could something have happened?
An Ran let Qingxing and Qingmei lag behind a few steps to observe their surroundings. She walked side by side with Huaping, talking in hushed tones.
"Ninth Miss, I have something to report to you." Huaping hesitated before speaking. She gritted her teeth and said, "Just now, Concubine Li went to see Madam!"
Li actually dared to go see Third Sister!
"What did she say?" An Ran noticed Hua Ping's unpleasant expression and guessed a little.
Hua Ping dared not conceal anything and recounted all of Li Shi's words and actions since her arrival that day. Finally, she looked at An Ran somewhat nervously and said, "Ninth Miss, please don't take it to heart! This Li Shi is clearly trying to sow discord between you and the Crown Prince's Consort!"
An Ran smiled slightly.
“Since you know, my third sister naturally knows too,” An Ran said. “It’s just that my third sister has been blinded by anger. I know in my heart that my third sister is so sincere and genuine, and I will not fall for Li’s treacherous scheme.”
Hua Ping finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
“There are only two days left until the full moon celebration for Dongge’er. We absolutely cannot afford any mistakes at this time.” Anran whispered, “You’re by Third Sister’s side, so you must also be on guard at all times. I have a feeling that Aunt Li won’t give up so easily.”
Hua Ping readily agreed.
When they arrived at Anran's east wing, Huaping invited Anran to go in first, while she returned to San Niang's side.
"Qingxing, find the jade bracelet that Third Sister gave me." As soon as Anran returned to the east wing where she was temporarily staying, she asked Qingxing to open the chest.
Qingxing agreed and went, while Anran, holding the collection of Li Houzhu's poems that Yunlan had given her, sat alone by the window, resting her chin on her hand and speaking softly.