Ye Feishuang turned and walked away, but the three servants immediately rushed over to grab her.
They had all heard about how Third Madam had asserted her authority in the Fourth Household that afternoon, thoroughly embarrassing their Fourth Madam.
If some trivial matter were to escalate and reach Third Madam again, wouldn’t their Fourth Household become even more of a laughingstock?
Instantly, the old woman wrapped her arms around Ye Feishuang’s waist and shouted, “Lock her up! Don’t let her leave!”
“Exactly! Does she really think she’s a proper young lady now? We must teach her a lesson and make her understand who’s really in charge in the Fourth Household!” the maid chimed in.
Their Fourth Madam was the old lady’s niece, and Sixth Young Lady and Ninth Young Master were the old lady’s precious darlings. Even if Fourth Madam had suffered a setback at Third Madam’s hands today, she would soon regain her footing.
By dealing with this Fifth Young Lady, they would be solving a problem for Fourth Madam!
But they had underestimated Ye Feishuang. In her previous life, she had always endured, unwilling to resort to force.
Now that she was no longer holding back, how could these people possibly stop her?
Ye Feishuang kicked the old woman so hard she couldn’t stand up, then casually picked up a plate and smashed it over the servant’s head, leaving him bleeding profusely.
The commotion grew so loud that it alarmed Zheng Lian and Madam Jin, and even reached the main courtyard.
Mrs. Qin soon arrived and scolded sharply, “You, a young lady, causing trouble with servants? Truly uncultured! This is the Zheng residence, not your rustic hometown!”
“But these servants withheld my meals and said I… was nothing but a worthless mistress, and they wanted to starve me to death!” Ye Feishuang said tearfully. “I thought everything would be better once I returned home, but I never imagined I wouldn’t even have enough to eat…”
Mrs. Qin’s expression had already turned extremely unpleasant.
She had indeed been mistreating Madam Jin all along and was well aware that these three servants were bullying her. This was exactly what she wanted to see, which was why she never intervened.
She never expected this Fifth Girl to dare cause trouble so soon after returning.
“I want to go see Third Aunt.”
“Preposterous!” Mrs. Qin grew even angrier at the mention of Mrs. Lu. “You’re a girl from the Fourth Household. What business do you have going to the Third Household?”
“But Third Aunt said I should go to her if I had any problems. Isn’t that allowed? I’m sorry, Mother. I grew up in the countryside and don’t understand the rules. You know that.”
Mrs. Qin was nearly breathless with rage.
She was now stuck between a rock and a hard place.
If she pushed further, this little girl had already admitted she didn’t understand propriety, making Mrs. Qin seem unreasonable.
If she backed down, she was utterly infuriated.
Zheng Qianyuan curled her lip. “I thought it was something serious. Isn’t it just a few dishes of food? Was it really necessary to fight with the servants? Aren’t you afraid of losing face?”
Truly a country bumpkin with no class—how could someone like her be worthy of being Brother Chen’s fiancée?
The mere thought displeased Zheng Qianyuan. This marriage had been arranged by Madam Jin’s grandfather and the Chen family. If the Zheng family had been the ones to decide, it would undoubtedly have been her, not this country bumpkin!
Several maids snickered silently, thinking disdainfully: She really is from the countryside, utterly petty. Which young lady in the household would cause such a fuss over a few dishes of food? Isn’t she ashamed?
Ye Feishuang knew what they were laughing about but paid no mind. She wasn’t making a scene over a few dishes of food—she was using this opportunity to deal with these three servants.
There were a few of Mrs. Qin’s people in the small courtyard she shared with her parents, and the thought alone was sickening.
Mrs. Qin scolded Ye Feishuang again before dragging Zheng Qianyuan away, not uttering a single word of reprimand for the three servants.
Madam Jin said worriedly, "Shuang'er, with all this commotion you're causing, the mistress is angry. What will you do in the future…"
"It's fine," Ye Feishuang reassured Madam Jin with a smile. "They were the ones who were unreasonable in the first place."
Madam Jin sighed. Her daughter was still too naive.
How could so many matters be explained by a single word like "reason"?
Ye Feishuang would never let her parents go hungry. On her way back, she had bought many local specialties and shared a hearty meal with her parents.
Whether it was Mrs. Qin's instruction or the three servants deliberately trying to intimidate Ye Feishuang, the next morning, none of them rose to attend to their duties.
The young servant didn't get up to chop firewood, the old woman didn't boil water, and the maid didn't go to the kitchen to fetch breakfast.
Ye Feishuang chopped the firewood herself, boiled the water, warmed the pastries she had bought, and kept them warm on the stove for her parents.
Then, after tidying herself up, she went to the main courtyard.
As soon as Mrs. Qin stepped out, she saw Ye Feishuang and immediately felt a lump of anger stuck in her throat, unable to rise or fall.
What an ill omen so early in the morning!
Zheng Qianyuan glared at her. "What are you doing here?"
Ye Feishuang smiled shyly. "I came to wait for Mother and Sister, so we can go together to pay respects to Old Madame Zheng."
Mrs. Qin and Zheng Qianyuan exchanged glances, their expressions darkening.
Ye Feishuang smiled faintly.
In her past life, she hadn't understood these courtesies, and Mrs. Qin hadn't called for her, so she hadn't been able to pay respects to Old Madame Zheng.
Little did she know that Mrs. Qin would later tell Old Madame Zheng that she had invited Ye Feishuang, but Ye Feishuang had refused to come, labeling her as rude, uncouth, and untamable. As a result, on her second day back home, Mrs. Qin had thoroughly ruined her reputation.
Now, by coming on her own initiative, Mrs. Qin couldn't refuse to bring her along.
Old Madame Zheng's courtyard was bustling with people, yet everything was orderly.
Ye Feishuang stood obediently behind Mrs. Qin, waiting quietly.
Many people secretly observed her.
"Is that the Fifth Young Miss who just returned? She's truly beautiful."
"She stands so straight, her hands are placed correctly, and her skirt is neatly arranged. Hey, who said the Fifth Young Miss didn't understand etiquette?"
A maid lifted the curtain. "Old Madame has risen. Everyone, please come in."
"They're going in. The Fifth Young Miss walks so gracefully."
"Huh? Did the manor send someone to teach the Fifth Young Miss etiquette?"
"Silly, the Fifth Young Miss only returned yesterday. When would she have had time to learn etiquette? She must have learned it in the countryside."
"Ah, look over there. Who is that?"
Several maids looked up and saw a group of people approaching from the moon gate.
Leading them was a noblewoman from a prestigious family, dignified and elegant.
Even more striking was the young master half a step behind her. His expression was gentle, his demeanor reserved yet refined. With wide sleeves and flowing robes, he moved with grace, his appearance truly unparalleled.
"Ah! It's Madam Chen and Young Master Chen!"
"Which Chen family? The Yingchuan Chen clan?"
"Exactly!"
"Isn't that the family the Fifth Young Miss is betrothed to?"
"That's right!"
"Then they're here… to discuss the marriage?"
"Probably. Although the Fifth Young Miss is still far from her Ji-ji ceremony, aristocratic marriages involve many preparations. The earlier they discuss it, the better."
A group of people watched from the shadows as the Chen family entered the main hall.
Old Madame Zheng's room was lavishly decorated, but amidst all the opulence, Chen Yan spotted Ye Feishuang at a glance.
Ye Feishuang turned her head and saw Chen Yan, momentarily taken aback.
In her past life, she hadn't heard that the Chen family had visited the Zheng family at this time. So she hadn't known that the distinguished guests mentioned earlier would be Chen Yan.
Chen Yan nodded to Ye Feishuang with a smile.
Ye Feishuang turned her head away expressionlessly.
Now it was Chen Yan's turn to be stunned.
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that this Fifth Miss Zheng…
had a strong dislike for him.