After Jiang Yanqing left, Feng Yulian stroked Shen Zhenze’s arm, her heart aching so much that tears streamed down her face.
“Zez’er, Zez’er, how are you? It’s all Mother’s fault. I didn’t protect you well enough. Don’t blame your father or your fourth sister… sob…”
Seeing Feng Yulian crying like a drowned woman and his beloved second son covered in injuries, Shen Changfeng couldn’t help but feel remorseful.
“Yulian, it’s my fault. I was just blinded by anger, too eager to kill that rebellious daughter. I never imagined she’d be so venomous as to use Zez’er as a shield. Stop crying now, and quickly call a physician to treat Zez’er.”
“Yes, alright.”
Jiang Yanqing waited in the dining hall for the time it took to drink a cup of tea, but no dishes were served.
She asked the maid, “Why hasn’t the meal started yet?”
The maid lowered her head, trembling.
“Replying to the Fourth Young Miss, unless the master and mis… Concubine Lian arrive, the meal cannot begin.”
“Oh…”
Jiang Yanqing said nothing more. She stood up and walked to the kitchen.
The kitchen overseer, Zhang Quan, didn’t recognize her and spoke arrogantly, “Which courtyard’s new maid are you? The kitchen is a restricted area—you can’t just wander in. Get out, get out.”
“I am Jiang Yanqing.”
Zhang Quan abruptly looked up. Though he didn’t know Jiang Yanqing, he had already heard her name earlier.
He quickly took two steps back. “F-Fourth… Fourth Young Miss, please do as you wish…”
Jiang Yanqing had been training in martial arts with her master since she was five and had always had a large appetite.
In the time it took others to drink a bowl of porridge, she could already finish two steamed buns, a chicken leg, and three lamb chops.
Zhang Quan fawned beside her, “Fourth Young Miss, in the future, whatever you wish to eat, just give the order. This servant will have it prepared and sent to you. The kitchen is greasy and smoky—it might dirty your clothes.”
“All of you, get out.”
“What?”
Zhang Quan seemed not to have heard clearly.
“All of you, everyone, get out.”
“Huh?…”
Though puzzled, Zhang Quan knew that his Fourth Young Miss was someone who could kill over a dozen top archers with a single move. He could only do as she said, calling out all the cooks, maids, and matrons.
Then, Jiang Yanqing picked up a stool and smashed it against the stove with a loud “bang.”
Instantly, flames erupted.
Everyone panicked.
“Fire, fire… hurry, put it out…”
Only Zhang Quan’s eyes welled with tears as he looked gratefully at Jiang Yanqing.
The Fourth Young Miss was truly beautiful and kind-hearted. She set the fire but didn’t harm anyone… If it had been the eldest young master, second young master, or third young miss, they would have roasted them all like livestock…
By the time Shen Changfeng and Feng Yulian arrived, the kitchen was engulfed in raging flames and thick smoke.
Shen Changfeng grabbed Zhang Quan. “What happened? How did a fire break out for no reason?”
“Don’t trouble unrelated people.” Jiang Yanqing sat on a stone stool nearby, leisurely sipping her tea. “I set the fire.”
“Why? I didn’t blame you for burning your Lian Concubine’s and my clothes or for injuring your second brother. What more are you dissatisfied with?”
The teacup in Jiang Yanqing’s hand smashed with a “bang” right in front of Shen Changfeng’s feet, splashing tea all over him.
“Let’s speak plainly. Do you think I don’t know you deliberately delayed and wouldn’t let the kitchen serve me food? Since I’m the jinx of Pingyuan Houfu, if I can’t eat, then naturally, none of you will eat either.”
“Qingqing…”
Feng Yulian fell to her knees with a thud before Jiang Yanqing. "It's all my fault. I changed clothes and freshened up, which delayed everything. Qingqing, it has nothing to do with your father. If you must blame someone, blame me."
"How could it be your fault?"
Just as Shen Changfeng reached out to pull her up, Jiang Yanqing stepped forward first and slapped Feng Yulian across the face.
"Qingqing this, Qingqing that—how dare a lowly concubine like you address me by my name?"
Slap! Another blow landed. "And you think we can't start the meal without you? What are you, anyway? An illicit affair, bearing three children before being brought into the manor—what difference is there between you and a prostitute?"
"Jiang Yanqing!" Shen Changfeng's temples throbbed with rage. "Although Yulian may not hold the title of the principal wife, she fulfills all the duties of one. Back on the battlefield, she not only saved my life but also tended to my daily needs for five years. Later, she managed every aspect of the Marquis's Manor, inside and out. In my heart, she is the most important woman in my life, my true wife!"
"Pah!" Jiang Yanqing sneered contemptuously. "And you think you're any better? You married my mother for her wealth, swearing that if you ever betrayed her, you'd die without a proper burial. The day after your wedding, you followed General Meng's orders to battle the barbarians. My mother spent her dowry, tended to the Marquis's Manor, served the elderly madam, and waited for you for five long years, nearly crying her eyes out with worry. Yet, while you were at the border, you indulged in romantic affairs. In the end, you returned with this vile woman and those three illegitimate children. In public, you've failed the court; in private, you've betrayed your sworn wife. A man as disloyal and faithless as you will one day face the consequences of your own oath!"
Shen Changfeng trembled with fury. "You ungrateful wretch! How dare you curse your own father? It is you who deserves to be struck by lightning! Since ancient times, what man hasn't taken multiple wives and concubines? Jiang Yuexi bore me no children in five years of marriage, while Yulian continued the lineage of my Marquis's Manor in her stead. Instead of being grateful, she schemed relentlessly to harm Yulian and the children. That I haven't divorced her is the greatest mercy I could show. What more does she have to complain about?"