“No, I would rather sell this screen to someone else than give it to you. You can give up on that idea.”
Ignoring Xue Yan’s stunned expression, Xue Ning turned to the shopkeeper and said.
“The screen can be hung up for sale normally; I can wait. I’m in no hurry.”
The shopkeeper was secretly delighted. “Alright, Miss Xue, rest assured, I will sell it as soon as possible.”
“Ah Yan, what’s going on between you and your sister?”
Su Zhan looked at Xue Yan with astonishment. Everyone in Jingdu knew that Xue Ning always revolved around her two elder brothers and never defied them. Had the sun risen from the west today?
Xue Yan’s face instantly darkened. “Xue, Ning, come with me!” he said through gritted teeth.
Feeling he had lost face in front of his friend, Xue Yan pulled Xue Ning aside.
“How can you be so unreasonable! Have you no regard for the Xue family’s reputation? Over such trivial matters, how long are you going to keep fighting with your elder brother? It was just a cup of wine I made you drink. Do you no longer even recognize me as your elder brother?!”
Xue Yan spoke in a threatening tone, expecting Xue Ning to show fear and admit her mistake.
Instead, he saw Xue Ning shake off his hand.
Her gaze was icy as she looked at him, devoid of any filial affection, so unfamiliar it startled him.
“You’re right. Starting from that cup of wine, you, Xue Yan, are no longer my elder brother. So, you have no right to dictate what I do with my embroidery.”
Just a cup of wine, that’s all?
No, it was her life.
“Xue Ning, do you have any idea what you’re saying?!”
Xue Yan’s low voice trembled with anger. He took a deep breath and stared coldly at her.
“Considering this is your first offense, I can let it go this time. All this fuss you’re making is just because you want to compete for favor with Mingzhu, isn’t it? I promise you, if you behave obediently this time, when I return home, I will naturally speak well of you to Father and Mother.
If the screen were embroidered by Mingzhu, she would never be as unreasonable as you.”
Xue Ning replied with detached sarcasm, “If she’s so reasonable, go ask her to embroider it for you. Why must you insist on my embroidery? Could it be that you want to use your status as an elder brother to take my embroidery for free? That would be far too greedy and despicable.”
“Xue, Ning!”
Xue Yan was furious. What made him even more uncomfortable was Xue Ning’s transformation from being obedient and respectful toward him, her elder brother, to now being defiant and cold.
Everything indicated that things between them had truly begun to change. She had changed.
Just as Xue Yan was about to say more, Xue Ning suddenly heard a familiar voice at the entrance. She turned to look.
She saw a maid dressed in emerald green, anxiously apologizing to the shopkeeper and saying things like “I’m late.”
“Bi He, what are you doing here?”
Shaking off Xue Yan, Xue Ning walked straight over.
The moment the maid Bi He saw Xue Ning, her eyes reddened with urgency, and she grabbed Xue Ning’s hand.
“Fifth Miss, you are the mistress. Please help me negotiate with the shopkeeper and see if he can refund the deposit for the screen. My lady, the County Princess, is in a terrible state and needs this money for medical treatment!”
Xue Ning’s heart sank. County Princess Xie An was her only close female friend in Jingdu.
When she first arrived, everyone only knew of the Xue family’s talented daughter, Xue Mingzhu, while mindlessly scorning Xue Ning as a jinx. Only Xie An had stood in front of her, defended her, and cared for her like an elder sister.
“Don’t cry. Quickly tell me, what exactly happened…”
Xue Ning took Bi He upstairs to a private room for a detailed discussion. With so many people in Jingdu and gossip spreading easily, it was best to avoid being overheard and stirring up unnecessary trouble.
In this world, women already faced enough hardships—rumors and slander could be deadly.
Inside the private room, Xue Ning was deeply concerned.
Bi He wiped her tears. “The County Lady discovered her husband’s affair with his cousin, and that cousin is already pregnant—further along than our County Lady!”
Bi He trembled with anger. “The County Lady overheard her husband’s plan—he actually intends to swap the child his cousin gives birth with our County Lady’s when she’s weak after delivery!
Fifth Miss, you know our County Lady comes from a military family. She has a fiery temper and can’t hide things. She confronted her husband on the spot, and then…”
“Then… her husband struck her. The County Lady bled heavily and lost the child. Overwhelmed with grief and rage, she fell gravely ill. Yet her husband simply had the house physician dismiss her condition and confined her to her courtyard, leaving her to fend for herself!”
Xue Ning clenched her fists. “This is utterly outrageous! How dare he treat Sister Xie like this!”
Bi He sobbed bitterly. “It’s all because the entire Xie family died in battle, leaving only the County Lady alone. They take advantage of her having no one to protect her, so they act without restraint.”
Xue Ning’s expression darkened. “The Xie family was honored and glorious, bestowed with riches by the emperor. When Sister Xie married, her dowry procession stretched for miles. How could she not even have three thousand taels now to see a doctor?”
At this, Bi He grew even angrier. “The County Lady’s dowry has been constantly used to fill the holes in the General’s estate. Now that she’s ill, the Old Madam has taken control of her dowry, leaving the County Lady isolated and helpless…
Originally, this screen was meant as a birthday gift for Old Madam Jiang, to ask her to preside over the Second Miss’s coming-of-age ceremony. Instead, this deposit is now the only hope of redeeming money to buy medicine and hire a doctor for her.”
Xue Ning comforted her. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you get the deposit back. I also have some silver here—take it first for emergencies. As for the screen, I’m ashamed to say I embroidered it myself. I never mentioned it to Sister before.
I’ll keep the screen for Sister. In the next couple of days, I’ll find a way to visit her in the General’s estate.”
Bi He took the silver, deeply moved. “Fifth Miss, you’re the only one who truly cares for our County Lady.”
When the Xie family was prosperous, everyone fawned over them. After their decline, Xie An was left with only the empty title of County Lady, experiencing the fickleness of human relationships.
After going downstairs, Xue Ning noticed Xue Yan hadn’t left. He stood at the entrance, his face cold as he waited.
Xue Ning ignored him and approached the shopkeeper.
She apologized to the shopkeeper. “I won’t be selling the screen. Please return the deposit to her.”
The shopkeeper felt a pang of regret but complied.
Standing nearby, Xue Yan overheard Xue Ning’s words, and his cold expression softened slightly.
He thought to himself, it seemed Xue Ning had just been stubborn earlier, acting out to seek attention.
But in the end, she had kept the screen for him. Since she was being sensible, he would put in a good word for her when they returned to the estate and treat her better.
After Xue Ning stepped outside, Xue Yan pointed to a carriage not far away.
“It’s hot and sunny. Come back to the estate with me.”
Xue Ning gave him a cold glance. “No need.”
With that, she turned and walked away, not looking back at Xue Yan, who frowned as he watched her leave.
She found it bitterly ironic. That day, Xue Yan had abandoned her at Gongzhu Fu under a sun even fiercer than today’s, showing not the slightest concern for how she had made her way back to Xue Zhai. And now, he suddenly cared?
What a pity—belated affection is cheaper than grass, and she no longer needed it.