"Xie Mianmian! What is the meaning of this?" Xie Rujue snapped back to his senses, furious. "You actually dare to protect this old hag! I’ll beat her to death no matter what!"
The Marquess's Wife had been wary of Nanny Qi's status and was also angry that Nanny Rong had impulsively stepped forward to teach a lesson.
But seeing Xie Mianmian and Nanny Qi show her, the Marquess's Wife, so little face, she couldn't help but glare.
"Xie Mianmian! You've been back for less than half a day, yet you've injured Rujue, caused Siyu to end up like this, and now you're condoning violence! Do you really think my Marquess's Manor is like that lawless, vulgar place where you spent the last ten years? Just what do you want?"
Did she think she could disregard all rules just because she had Nanny Qi's backing?
The Marquess's Wife believed that even Nanny Qi, the Donggong Zhangshi Momo who understood etiquette best, would not like Xie Mianmian’s savage and rude behavior.
"Marquess's Wife, I suggest you watch your words." Nanny Qi's voice was calm but carried an air of indisputable authority. "The young miss spent ten years away without receiving a shred of care from the Marquess's Manor. How can the Marquess's Wife disparage the place where she stayed for ten years so lightly?"
"I…" The Marquess's Wife was slightly stunned, quickly offering an obsequious smile to Nanny Qi. "Nanny Qi is right. This is all a misunderstanding; blame my momentary impulse."
Although she didn't know how her daughter had gotten involved with Nanny Qi, seeing Nanny Qi protect her like this, the Marquess's Wife increasingly felt that Xie Mianmian must be deeply calculating and good at flattery. There was no telling what means she had used to climb so high.
But due to Nanny Qi's status, she could only lower herself for the time being.
Xie Mianmian met the Marquess's Wife's gaze, addressing each point. "Xie Rujue was rude to me and tried to lay hands on me; I simply stopped him. Xie Siyu wanted to hang herself; I saved her. Nanny Qi said the arranged courtyard was poor, and this old woman was hit only because she tried to hit someone else. I learned rules in the place I stayed for ten years, and it wasn't vulgar. On the contrary, where are the rules of the Marquess's Manor?"
"I was barred from the door when I returned today, and after half a day, the courtyard for my stay has yet to be settled."
Xie Mianmian's eyes held a trace of doubt. "Mother, I was missing for ten years. Am I no longer your daughter?"
Xie Mianmian's voice was soft and calm, stating facts without arguing or shouting.
The Marquess's Wife's anger was gradually replaced by an indescribable sense of guilt and being in the wrong. Coupled with Nanny Qi watching her like a hawk from the side, her voice couldn't help but soften slightly. "You've just returned and haven't adapted, but your habit of hitting people at will is truly savage and undisciplined. It's not the behavior of a noble lady."
"Furthermore," she paused, then added, "the West Wing is quiet and peaceful. Surely it's better than wherever you were wandering before. Why be so pedantic?"
The West Wing was somewhat far from the main courtyard, but it was certainly not as terrible as they claimed!
Even if she didn't like this daughter who had just returned, with Nanny Qi present, she wouldn't have arranged something too lowly; instead, she wanted to show that she valued her.
However, the Marquess's Wife did not know that the West Wing she had arranged had, through the deliberate messages of a calculating person, been turned into the derelict West Garden.
Because of this, she felt even more that Xie Mianmian was intentionally finding fault by relying on Nanny Qi's support.
"Remote, old, dilapidated, and worse than a servant's quarters—you call that a good place?"
Xie Mianmian didn't want to argue anymore. Her gaze fell on a familiar gate not far away. "This was originally my courtyard, wasn't it?"
Vague images surfaced in her mind. She had once planted a grapevine here, watching it grow from a thin branch into a thick shade that covered half the wall.
The Marquess's Wife's brow furrowed slightly. "Your younger sister lives here now."
"Mother," Xie Mianmian looked up. "Since I am back, shouldn't the courtyard be returned to me?"
The Marquess's Wife's face suddenly stiffened. She hurriedly looked away from that piercing gaze and stared at the roses blooming on the wall.
Her voice carried a touch of earnestness: "Siyu suffered much as a child. All these years, she has performed filial duties in your stead before your father and me, serving tea, bringing water, and showing us care…"
"Was it more bitter than my ten years?"
Xie Mianmian's tone was as flat as a bottomless pool, but those few light words hit the Marquess's Wife's heart like a massive boulder.
The Marquess's Wife didn't know how this daughter had fared during her ten years away, but she had heard of the fates that befell children taken by kidnappers—tragic, lowly, and struggling through all sorts of hardships just to survive…
She had felt pity for this daughter, but after ten years of not seeing each other, they were truly strangers.
Moreover, she already had a well-behaved and sensible daughter and a clever, adorable young son by her side…
Now, she was truly afraid that this wild girl, who had just returned from ten years in a savage and lowly place, would do any harm to the children she had meticulously nurtured.
Dealing with Xie Mianmian alone would have been manageable, but with Nanny Qi there, the Marquess's Wife became even more guarded.
She hoped that once Nanny Qi finished delivering Xie Mianmian to the manor, she would leave quickly!
Too many things had happened in succession today, leaving the Marquess's Wife feeling exhausted.
"Mianmian, I know it hasn't been easy for you these ten years, but your return was too hasty. Stay in the West Garden for a few days first, and I will pick another courtyard for you…"
Xie Mianmian looked at her in silence.
Faced with this silent refusal, the Marquess's Wife felt even more weary.
She wanted to quickly send away this stranger of a daughter who was so out of place in the Marquess's Manor, yet she also couldn't quite swallow her frustration.
Finally, in a flash of inspiration, she said after much deliberation, "How about this… go to Wenzhao Courtyard."
As soon as she spoke, Xie Rujue was the first to object. "Wenzhao Courtyard? How is she worthy! That was clearly Grandfather's—"
"Rujue!" The Marquess's Wife interrupted him. "It's settled."
"Take your people to Wenzhao Courtyard," the Marquess's Wife said to Xie Mianmian, her tone softening considerably. "I've already sent someone to inform your father and eldest brother. They will surely be happy to know you're back. Our family is finally reunited."
Xie Mianmian quietly watched this Marquess's Wife, whom she hadn't seen in ten years yet was called Mother. Her eyes were searching, careful and serious, as if she were trying to fill the ten-year void.
"Mother, now that I’m back, are you happy?"
The Marquess's Wife froze for a moment, not expecting her to ask this. Her expression went blank for a second.
Then, she forced a stiff smile. "Of course I am happy. That you could return safely, Mother… Mother couldn't be more joyful."
Watching the smile on her face that looked worse than crying, Xie Mianmian suddenly let out a light laugh.
The smile didn't reach her eyes at all; instead, it held an indelible mockery, like the cracked ice on a winter lake, piercingly cold.
"No, you aren't happy."
Those four light words were like a dagger dipped in ice, unexpectedly slicing through the Marquess's Wife's hypocritical warmth.
His Highness had said: She was a treasure of the world and needn't care about the opinions of those who have eyes but cannot see.
So…
"Whether you are happy or not, I do not care." Xie Mianmian turned around. "Wenzhao Courtyard—I'll take it."