Aunt Xiao felt utterly exhausted; even standing made her legs feel weak. Ming Rong's insensible behavior and disregard for her feelings left her completely at a loss. She was just a lowly concubine in the second wife's household; even if she were willing to risk her life, what could she possibly change?
"You'd better take care of yourself, young lady!" Aunt Xiao didn't want to say anything more, so she turned around, pushed open the door, and left.
Her feet felt like they were walking on cotton, and she was only able to avoid falling because the maid who had come with her was supporting her. Inside the room, Mingrong's crying grew louder, along with the sounds of things being smashed and a large bolster being hit against the door.
Aunt Xiao silently tugged at the corners of her mouth, revealing a bitter smile.
"Let's go."
******
The marriage between Mingrong and Liu Ren was finally settled, even though neither side was entirely satisfied. They agreed to the engagement out of politeness.
As if they wanted to quell the trouble quickly, the Liu family soon came to propose marriage.
Although this joyous occasion was somewhat awkward, not only the daughters of the second branch of the family, but also the daughters of the third and fourth branches, had to go and congratulate Mingrong. If it were too quiet, it would be a loss of face for the entire Chengping Marquis's mansion.
Since moving to Rongshan Hall, Mingwei has had less contact with the three daughters of the second wife. Now that Mingrong is waiting to be married and Mingfang is under house arrest, only Minglian occasionally comes over to talk to Mingwei.
When Mingwei and Minglian arrived at Mingrong's courtyard, the people from the third and fourth branches of the family had also arrived. The way everyone looked at Mingwei was filled with envy and jealousy.
"Seventh Sister has come to congratulate Third Sister!" Mingluo said cheerfully. "If it weren't for Third Sister's joyous occasion, we would hardly ever see Seventh Sister!"
All the young ladies from the Marquis's mansion were present, and Mingluo's words were blatantly designed to provoke Mingwei.
"The Liu family sent a full thirty-six loads of things!" At this moment, Mingying, the eldest daughter of the third branch of the family, suddenly said with great interest, "Let's go in and take a look!"
Mingying is only twelve years old this year, with a chubby face that makes her look as cute as a porcelain doll. Her words and actions unconsciously reveal a touch of innocence and charm.
However, Mingling glared at Mingying resentfully, and before she could say anything, Mingluo grabbed her sleeve.
Mingluo still smiled sweetly, but a calculating glint flashed in her eyes. They were naturally jealous of Mingwei's meteoric rise, but the one who should be burning with anger was Mingrong! The incident in the garden that day had already spread far and wide. Mingrong had tried to be clever and steal the spotlight, but instead, she had gotten herself into trouble, becoming the laughingstock of the sisters.
She refused to believe that Mingrong would be content with that!
Mingwei had a bad feeling when she saw Mingluo, who was like a smiling tiger. Sure enough, Mingluo was restless and wanted to cause trouble right away. Fortunately, Mingying stopped her. She was young and it was normal for her to be curious, so no one suspected that she was doing it on purpose.
However, seeing Mingying's sweet dimples when she smiled, Mingwei felt that Mingying was intentionally helping her.
Everyone expected to see a distraught and disheveled Mingrong upon entering, but to their surprise, Mingrong was dressed exceptionally beautifully and charmingly today.
Mingrong wore a long, light red jacket embroidered with gold and mimosa flowers, paired with a sixteen-panel gold-embroidered Xiang skirt. Her dark blue hair was styled high, adorned with a set of red gold and pearl jewelry. The cat's-eye earrings on her earlobes reflected a dazzling light, and the high-quality jade bracelet on her wrist made her wrist appear even whiter and more lustrous.
Coupled with her meticulously applied makeup and the shy, demure look of every bride-to-be, no one could detect anything amiss for a moment!
"Congratulations, Third Sister!" Mingying was the first to come to her senses, and she praised without any pretense, "Third Sister looks so beautiful today!"
Mingluo's daze only lasted a moment before she immediately replied, "Twelfth Sister is right. Third Sister is exceptionally beautiful and charming today. It's truly captivating!"
Their enthusiasm caused Mingfang and others, who shared the same father, to retreat a little.
Mingrong accepted the compliments with ease, her eyes and brows sparkling with joy and shyness. "My two sisters, are you speaking with honeyed words? They're so sweet!"
Seeing that Mingrong was back to normal, everyone had put away their excitement and offered their blessings, instantly making the room lively again.
"Congratulations, Third Sister!" Mingwei congratulated her with a beaming smile, handing over the prepared gifts—a pair of handkerchiefs embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in the water and a pair of purses embroidered with twin lotus blossoms. Although Mingwei's expression remained unchanged, a complex emotion lingered in her eyes. Mingrong had intended to scheme against her, but unexpectedly, she had ensnared herself. Would the ambitious Mingrong truly be willing to marry Liu Ren?
"Seventh Sister is so skillful!" Mingrong smiled as she took the purse and handkerchief, examined them carefully, and said with a smile, "Such exquisite embroidery probably surpasses all the sisters in our mansion!"
Mingwei felt there was something wrong with her, especially since she herself was someone Mingwei hated to the core. The more normal Mingwei acted, the more suspicious she became.
"A beauty like Third Sister, even Third Brother-in-law wouldn't be able to take his eyes off her!" someone exclaimed, then added in a sweet voice, "I heard that Third Brother-in-law doesn't even have a concubine or maid in his room!"
"Third sister is so lucky!"
Mingwei had been watching Mingrong's expression closely, and sure enough, after hearing those two sentences, a crack appeared on Mingrong's flawless face.
Mingrong probably looks down on Liu Ren's background the most!
Mingrong ignored her, pretending to be shy and embarrassed, and didn't respond.
Before long, the elders arrived, and the girls couldn't make a fuss anymore, so they all spoke politely.
As Mingwei was leaving, she saw Mingrong tug at Mingfang's sleeve, signaling her to stay. Although Mingfang looked impatient, she didn't refuse.
Mingwei immediately thought of the ominous rumors that had been spread about her. It was Mingfang who had taken the lead, while Mingrong had only been secretly instigating and fueling the flames.
However, Mingwei breathed a sigh of relief.
What worried her was that Mingrong hadn't made a move yet. Now that Mingrong had stopped Mingfang, she must have come up with some wicked scheme again. Anyway, now that they were living in Rongshantang and had the old lady's powerful backing, what could Mingrong do? She would just deal with whatever Mingrong tried!
******
Drunken Moon Abode. Immortal by the River.
The young man in fine clothes leisurely poured himself a drink and even enjoyed the scenery on Wangyue Lake in a good mood.
"Master Qin, the Marquis of Chengping's mansion and the Duke of Ying's mansion have formed a marriage alliance." The man said respectfully, "The third daughter of the second branch of the Marquis of Chengping's mansion has been betrothed to the fifth master of the third branch of the Duke of Ying's mansion."
"Oh?" The young man paused in pouring the wine, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes. He smiled brightly and said, "This is quite an interesting pair."
He was already as beautiful as a pearl, and now he shone even brighter.
"Master Qin, I dare to offer you a word of advice. It seems the Emperor is already considering choosing a consort for you!" The man hesitated for a moment, but finally said, "You should focus your energy on this."
"Choosing a concubine—" the young man muttered listlessly, a hint of nonchalance in his smile, but a closer look revealed a touch of helplessness. "We'll see!"
The Chengping Marquis's residence quickly returned to peace. Only occasionally, during tea breaks and after meals, would someone mention the Second Madam and Mingrong's self-righteous cleverness, exchanging a meaningful smile with each other, and that would be the end of it.