Huo Wanying and Huo Dong could not care about past grievances at this moment, quickly stepping forward to pull Yin Weiyue up.
Right at this moment, Lady Chen spoke first to ignite the flames of war.
“Heh, look at that—smudges of dirt all over that little face.” Lady Chen flicked her sleeves, her eyes brimming with disdain. The corners of her mouth curved upward, creating a contemptuous arc together with the wrinkles around her lips.
“The legitimate daughter of the Yin family actually engages in such whoreish behavior. Knowing you’ve committed a grave mistake now and crawling over to bow in prostration—it’s too late! If you still have half a shred of shame in you, you ought to choose a sturdy pillar outside and bash your head against it, lest you tarnish my Kai’er’s upright good reputation!”
Although the Huo Residence was currently teetering in the wind and rain with an uncertain future ahead, Lady Chen still guarded Huo Kai’s reputation fiercely.
Yin Weiyue stood up, giving a gentle look to Huo Wanying and Huo Dong who had helped her up, before unhurriedly dusting off the dirt on her clothes. Not a single trace of embarrassment or shame could be seen on her face; not only did she boldly meet Lady Chen’s gaze, but a smile even tugged at the corners of her mouth. She then said in a measured and deliberate tone:
“Listen to what Third Aunt is saying. You, the big whore who seduced a man back then, haven’t even bashed your head to death yet, so how could it be the turn of a junior like me? I heard that when Third Uncle was arranging his marriage back then, my father-in-law had only just inherited the noble title. At that time, our Marquis Xingwu Residence’s military achievements were far from as illustrious as in recent years; it was precisely a period of striving for prosperity and making friends with prominent families. How could he possibly marry a mere concubine-born daughter like you, whose father was only a fifth-rank official at the time?”
Lady Chen’s hand trembled.
Yin Weiyue continued as if blind to it: “I also heard that the person arranged for Third Uncle back then was not you, but the legitimate daughter of your Chen family’s main line—your legitimate older cousin. Who would have thought that before the matchmaker could even come to the door, during a flower-viewing banquet, Third Uncle so coincidentally picked up your handkerchief embroidered with love poems? When he returned it, it was love at first sight, and from then on, he refused to marry anyone but you.
Heh~ As the old saying goes, ‘Don’t let the crow laugh at the pig for being black; better to make good use of the time.’ How about I, this little whore, support you, the big whore, to take a walk along the veranda, so we can select a pillar together?”
Listen to these words!
Lady Feng wondered on one hand how Yin Weiyue knew about this matter, while feeling on the other hand that her son had suffered terrible luck to marry such a daughter-in-law.
Lady He and Lady Su were so shocked by Lady Chen’s unknown past that their hearts trembled. Huo Wanying was looking left and right for usable objects to drive out these two scoundrels who lacked womanly virtue.
The Old Lady nearly passed out from anger. Now that great disaster had befallen the Huo family, watching her daughter-in-law and granddaughter-in-law trading insults like shrews in the marketplace and exposing each other’s dirty secrets, she felt her old bones would be better off dying right away.
“You—what nonsense are you spouting?! How dare you slander me!” Lady Chen instantly panicked. How could a yellow-haired girl like Yin Weiyue know about these things?
She had indeed employed schemes when marrying into the Huo Residence back then. These old affairs were extremely dishonorable; both families had kept them strictly concealed for the sake of their reputations, and the servants who knew about it had all been dismissed long ago.
It could be said that whether outside or within the Huo Residence, no one knew except for the elders of the two families and the parties involved. Precisely because of this, she had been able to stand high above for so many years as the respectable Third Lady of the Marquis Xingwu Residence.
Lady Chen naturally did not know that Yin Weiyue was someone who could recite the first ten chapters by heart. Clenching her back teeth tightly, she pondered back and forth, convincing herself that it must have been leaked behind her back by that hypocritical eldest sister-in-law who acted good and righteous all day long. Thus, she shot a glance of deep, bone-deep hatred toward Lady Feng.
Another grievance was added to the score between the two in an instant.
With Lady Chen’s past completely exposed in public, in the past, her dowry maidservant Nanny Song would certainly have rushed forward to slap Yin Weiyue left and right twice to vent her anger.
But now, all the servants of the Huo Residence had been confiscated by the state, so there was naturally no Nanny Song acting tyrannically on borrowed authority. Lady Chen had always known Yin Weiyue to be acrid and difficult, but this nephew’s wife had always targeted Lady Feng in the past, so she used to wish she were even more formidable, preferably swallowing Lady Feng alive.
Yet at this very moment, after going head-to-head with Yin Weiyue, Lady Chen finally experienced embarrassment. She was like a wild boar stripped of all its bristles under the watchful eyes of the crowd; amid her shame and fury, she temporarily lost all sense of composure.
Taking advantage of this pause, Yin Weiyue raised her head and said to Lady Feng: “Mother, please support Grandmother to rest in the side room first. Looking at Third Aunt’s posture, she won’t want to leave anytime soon. Why not let your daughter-in-law keep Third Aunt company and chat a bit?”
The reason for sending them away was that it was written in the book that Huo Jun, that useless fellow, would only bring the male and female leads over after an incense stick’s time. During this period, Lady Chen specifically chose unpleasant words to say to the Old Lady on purpose. The Old Lady would become so enraged that she suffered a mild stroke. Although her blood vessels didn’t burst, her face became crooked, leaving her with slurred speech and impaired limbs from then on.
Lady Feng raised her head to look at this unvirtuous, unfilial, and unchaste daughter-in-law, her inner feelings truly complex. But staying here any longer, she feared the Old Lady would be angered to the point of vomiting blood.
Either way, she was incapable of engaging in women’s verbal brawls. Fine then, if the sky falls, the earth will catch it; let them make a scene. Thinking of this, she supported the Old Lady into the east side room.
“Mother, don’t leave! This slut is slandering me; you must restore my innocence!” As Lady Chen spoke, she was about to pull forward, only to be grabbed by the arm by Yin Weiyue’s swift reaction, stumbling and nearly falling.
The air instantly froze.
Behind her, little Huo Dong timidly swallowed a mouthful of saliva: Seventh Sister-in-law truly has strength!