Ever since Xie Qingran had returned, Wang Shi could feel the distance between them. At first, she thought it was because they hadn’t seen each other for many years.
But now, looking at Xie Qingran again, Wang Shi felt that she couldn’t see the slightest trace of affection for her in the girl’s eyes. All she could sense was an endless coldness, yet that had clearly not been her original intention.
Xie Qingran’s gaze was frank, allowing Wang Shi to scrutinize her as she pleased. It was neither aggressive nor submissive, just a calm devoid of joy or sorrow.
She had known long ago that whether she was happy or hysterical, it was all the same to the Xie Family. Since that was the case, she didn’t care either.
“The imperial Begonia Flower Banquet is about to begin. You are to dress yourself properly. Do not, under any circumstances, bring shame upon our Xie Family.”
In this silent confrontation, Wang Shi was ultimately the one to back down, directly stating the true purpose of her visit.
Wouldn’t it have been better to just do this from the start?
Why bother with the act?
Xie Qingran stood up, opened her wardrobe, and said pointedly, “I wonder if these clothes are enough to ‘dress myself properly’?”
When she was at the estate, she had been tormented into a wretched state by the old mammy, who refused to give her any nice clothes, insisting that a woman’s beauty lay in simplicity and that dressing too ostentatiously was the style of a courtesan.
After she returned from the estate, everyone was preoccupied with the feelings of the adopted daughter, Xie Hanyue. They crowded around her, coaxing her, and hadn’t even had a single new outfit made for Xie Qingran. No one had truly cared whether Xie Qingran had lived well at the estate all these years.
As her gaze fell upon Xie Qingran’s wardrobe, Wang Shi felt as if an invisible hand had slapped her hard across the face, turning her constant talk of “family” into a ridiculous joke.
“Someone, come! Take the young miss’s measurements for new clothes!”
Wang Shi vented all her anger on the servants.
“What are you all good for? You don’t even know how to serve the young miss properly after her return!”
“She doesn’t even have a single presentable outfit to wear out. Sooner or later, I’ll sell every last one of you!”
Wang Shi put on a grand display of her authority as the mistress of the house, hoping that this would make Xie Qingran understand that the family had not intentionally wronged her, but that it was the servants below who had been negligent.
But in Xie Qingran’s eyes, this performance was nothing more than a perfunctory attempt to gloss over the truth.
Meeting Xie Qingran’s scornful and mocking gaze, Wang Shi felt even more that her actions were like those of a buffoon.
A sense of humiliation washed over her.
After so many years of being pampered and respected, Wang Shi had long forgotten such a feeling, and it was particularly unbearable now.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Could it be that you are still not satisfied with this?”
Wang Shi gritted her teeth, the so-called kindness on her face barely holding up.
She finally understood completely now. This daughter was not on her side at all. Even though she was her own flesh and blood, there was no closeness between them!
“Mother, you’re overthinking it. Your daughter is thanking you.”
Before her words had even faded, countless bolts of precious fabrics were brought in. Even in the dim light of the room, the materials still shimmered, dazzling the eye.
Looking at these fabrics, Xie Qingran found it utterly laughable. In her previous life, she had never seen so many fine things. Now, with just a few casual words, they had brought them all to her.
It seemed that the foundation of a person’s existence was their own value. Only when her value was great enough would they see her as a person, would they hear her voice.
Xie Qingran walked forward, selected a bolt of goose-yellow fabric, and said faintly, “This one will do.”
“Sister!”
“Mother?”
Xie Hanyue entered at just the right moment.
She walked over with a sweet smile and tugged at Wang Shi’s arm coquettishly.
“Mother, I was looking for you everywhere. Why are you here?”
“Are you choosing fabric to make clothes for Sister?”
Xie Hanyue’s eyes were full of charm, her voice melodious, truly like a carefree oriole.
She stepped forward and ran her hand lightly over the fabrics, then pointed at the goose-yellow bolt. “Isn’t this the Shu Brocade that costs a fortune? Mother, I want it. I’ve loved this fabric for so long, but Wanbao Pavilion always said they were out of stock.”
Xie Qingran said nothing, merely crossing her arms and watching Xie Hanyue’s performance with a cold expression.
She knew very well that Xie Hanyue hadn’t just burst in. She had arrived long ago and had been observing. The reason she chose to rush in at this moment was to snatch her things and humiliate her in front of everyone.
Wang Shi was in a difficult position. She took Xie Hanyue’s hand. “Yue’er, be good. Your sister has just returned. She likes this fabric, so let her have it. In the future, Mother will find you something even better, alright?”
Xie Hanyue didn’t cry or throw a tantrum. She just stared wistfully at the goose-yellow fabric before finally tearing her gaze away with reluctance.
“Alright, then give it to Sister.”
“I… I’ll just choose something else.”
She lowered her head, looking as if she were on the verge of tears, utterly wronged. Her voice became muffled.
At this, Wang Shi could bear it no longer. She snatched the fabric, stuffed it into Xie Hanyue’s hands, and turned to Xie Qingran. “Since your younger sister likes it, why must you fight with her over it?”
“When did I fight over it?”
Xie Qingran stood to the side, arms crossed, her eyes cold and tinged with disdain.
“Mother, from the moment my sister came in until now, I haven’t said a single word.”
As soon as she said this, the surrounding maids and mammies came to their senses.
It was mainly because Xie Qingran had a cold personality, unlike Xie Hanyue who loved to talk, laugh, and act spoiled. Thus, everyone seemed to naturally favor Xie Hanyue and would subconsciously assume that Xie Qingran was the aggressive one.
But as it happened, Xie Qingran had remained silent, while Xie Hanyue, all on her own, acted as if she had suffered a great injustice.
Even Wang Shi was stunned for a moment.
She suddenly realized that she had only seen Xie Hanyue’s grievance and had failed to notice that from beginning to end, Xie Qingran had not uttered a single word.
Her face flushed red and then turned pale, a spectacular sight. Though she clearly knew she was in the wrong, she felt not the slightest guilt, merely using her status as an elder to suppress the matter.
“What is wrong with you, child? Your sister is about to cry, how can you just stand there, unmoved?”
“It’s just a bolt of fabric. Is our Xie Family unable to afford it? Truly raised on an estate with no worldliness, so shallow!”
The moment the words left her mouth, Wang Shi belatedly felt a pang of regret.
Perhaps… she had been a bit too harsh?
“If my sister likes it, she can have it. It’s just a bolt of fabric. How is it worth crying over?”
“Anyone who didn’t know better would think I, the older sister, was being petty.”