It is now the thirty-seventh year of Zhaoping, and the time left to make up for the regrets of the previous life is getting shorter and shorter, with each passing day bringing fewer days.
"Thank you, Third Sister and Fourth Sister!" Mingwei replied with a smile.
Clearly, such a calm and peaceful congratulation was not Mingfang's style. She would often take a few jabs at Mingwei to highlight her own superiority. Now that Mingwei had the opportunity to receive honor, she was naturally filled with resentment.
"You're really something, actually having the nerve to agree!" Mingfang was just looking for trouble. She jumped up and said, "You really think you're going to the palace as a concubine? Don't you even know your own limitations?"
Mingfang, who had initially just looked displeased, suddenly developed a hint of ferocity on her face.
She was used to bullying Mingwei, and even Mingwei, with her new soul, usually preferred to keep quiet and avoid trouble. Therefore, she was confident in her ability to provoke Mingwei, and Mingwei dared not do anything about it.
However, Mingwei knew she couldn't endure it any longer.
"Fourth Sister!" Mingwei straightened up, her beautiful features revealing a hint of sternness, and her voice carrying a stronger tone. "I merely accompanied Grandmother to the palace; I have no regard for any empress or anything like that. I never considered any of the things you mentioned, Fourth Sister!"
This is indeed true. Not to mention that the man was an old man in his sixties, the fact that he was Rong Duo made her unwilling to have anything to do with him again!
She was reborn, not to humiliate herself again!
Mingfang was momentarily intimidated by Mingwei. But when she saw the hint of mockery in Mingrong's smile, her anger surged again.
Mingwei brought up the old lady, and she dared not speak ill of the old lady anymore. But for a moment she couldn't think of any words to retaliate, so she simply took action and pushed over the tall table next to her.
The teacup on top was overturned with a clatter, scattering shards all over the floor.
"Fourth Sister, what are you doing!" Mingwei exclaimed in astonishment.
She was standing on the ground, so she was inevitably affected. Tea stains splattered onto her pear-blossom white skirt, making them quite conspicuous. Even a person made of mud has some temper, let alone Mingwei, who was not one to be trifled with.
Mingfang seemed to have finally vented her anger. A smile appeared on her gloomy face as she provocatively said, "So what if I do this? What can you do about it?"
Mingwei clenched her fists immediately, her eyes turning cold. She had never suffered such humiliation in either of her previous two lives!
“That’s true, it’s just an old official kiln tea set and a tall black lacquered table.” Mingwei curled the corners of her lips, but there was no smile in her eyes. “Fourth Sister is generous and doesn’t care about these things.”
“Since Fourth Sister accidentally knocked it over, just give me a replacement set exactly as it was! Fourth Sister already knows that everything in this room is in the register, and Mother has a record of it, so I can’t make the decision.”
Not only were Mingfang and Minglian taken aback, but even Mingrong was stunned, clearly not expecting Mingwei to do such a thing.
Mingrong thought that if Mingwei had a temper, she would definitely fight with Mingfang. If that happened, her reputation would be ruined if the old lady heard about it, and the person she brought into the palace would have to be changed.
If Mingwei were a weakling, she would have endured the past, and all the old lady's high regard for her would have been wasted, and she would naturally never have been able to stand up for herself in the future.
However, no matter what Mingwei chooses, it will be a mistake. That's why Mingrong deliberately encouraged Mingfang to come along, hoping to ruin Mingwei while Mingfang was causing trouble.
"As expected, she's short-sighted. What's this tea set compared to that? I—" Mingfang became smug, her expression relaxing. She was about to agree when Mingwei interrupted her.
"I forgot to tell Fourth Sister, the high-end tea set is fine, but the tea set—it's likely to win Fourth Sister's heart!" Mingwei said leisurely.
Mingfang glanced down at the broken pieces on the ground, and her expression immediately changed.
There was nothing of value in Mingwei's room; this old official kiln tea set was a defective product. Yet, if it were registered, it would be considered an extremely valuable tea set. The original set had long been replaced by this shattered, inferior one by Mingfang.
The original owner of this body was furious but dared not speak out, and could only silently endure it. This was only revealed by Yue Lin when Ming Wei noticed the flaws in the tea set.
Since you took my things, you should return them to me!
"Fourth Sister, we sisters are very close, and I don't want to complain to Mother." Mingwei said understandingly, "Please return everything you took from me!"
"Aunt Wen has been feeling unwell these past few days and is resting quietly in Qinglin Courtyard. I'm afraid Fourth Sister won't be able to find her for a while."
The second wife has been in a terrible state these past few days because of the rouge sent by the old lady. She is a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong. Now that she sees that the second master doesn't seem to care about Concubine Wen as much, she finds fault with Concubine Wen and effectively confines her to her quarters.
At this moment, the Second Master was completely focused on Yan Hong, and for the first time, he ignored Aunt Wen's crying and told the Second Madam to handle it herself.
"You—" Mingfang still wanted to play dumb, but remembering that her aunt had failed to defeat the Second Madam this time, her arrogance diminished. She wasn't so confused as to be beyond redemption, and her expression shifted uncertainly as she looked at Mingwei, not daring to suggest that Mingwei should report the matter to the Second Madam.
The second wife never showed any mercy to her illegitimate daughter!
“If Fourth Sister is unwilling, there’s nothing I can do.” Mingwei sighed, seemingly helpless, and made as if to call the maid over. “You should tell Mother; I would never dare to hide it from her.”
"Please, Third Sister, bear witness for me. It wasn't a slip of the hand." Mingwei turned to look at Mingrong with an innocent expression, seemingly pleading. "Mother trusts Third Sister's words the most!"
Mingrong laughed awkwardly a few times.
"What are you trying to call a precious thing? I'll give it to you!" Mingfang's expression changed several times before she finally stood up, her eyes burning with a small flame: "You just wait!"
Before she finished speaking, she glared angrily at Mingrong and Minglian, then walked away without touching the ground.
"Fourth Sister, take care!" Mingwei said with a smile, then turned to Mingrong and said, "I'll have someone serve you some more tea. Please wait a moment, Third Sister."
Mingrong felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, but she only stayed for a short while before hurriedly saying goodbye and leaving.
"You're really something!" Minglian exclaimed in admiration. "You've hit the snake right where it hurts! You've got Fourth Sister figured out!"
"I'll just tell the truth," Mingwei shook her head.
Seeing that Mingwei looked somewhat downcast, Minglian advised, "Don't let those people affect your mood. The more they try to cause trouble, the happier you should be!"
Chapter 170
Preventing theft of 2 or 3 chapters
No matter how unwilling Xiao Jin was, she accepted the imperial decree along with Xiao Ji, and then immediately took Xiao Ye back to Jinrong Courtyard.
She didn't want to hear the hypocritical and flattering words on the imperial edict.
What gentleness and kindness, what virtue and beauty, what utmost respect and courtesy...