Bright sunlight streamed onto the bed. When Chu Muqing awoke, she was still a little dazed. But when she turned her head and saw the furnishings around her, she realized she had returned to the Marquis’s mansion and was living in the courtyard her mother had prepared for her. She was no longer in Hezhou, nor in the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion. Her life had truly begun anew.
Hearing a sound, Bai Zhi came into the room to check. Seeing Chu Muqing sitting on the bed, she quickly said, “Miss, you must be careful. It’s autumn now, and the weather is getting colder. You should take good care of yourself and avoid catching a cold.”
While speaking, she prepared the toiletries. After Chu Muqing washed up, Bai Zhi helped her with her hair and makeup.
“Just be casual,” Chu Muqing said. She had just returned to the manor, so she didn’t need anything too extravagant, but she also couldn’t be too plain. It only needed to be enough to reflect her status.
“Yes, Miss.” Bai Zhi worked skillfully, styling her hair into a flying fairy bun and selecting a round, full pearl hairpin.
“Miss, you look so beautiful. Even in such a simple outfit, you look gorgeous,” Bai Zhi exclaimed.
“Is that so?” Chu Muqing gazed quietly at the girl in the bronze mirror. She was only fourteen or fifteen, but her beauty was already apparent.
She was naturally beautiful. Even after all the criticism she had endured in her past life, her face remained undeniably lovely.
“Let’s go. It’s time to pay our respects to Grandmother.”
At the entrance of Shou’an Hall stood a young maid Chu Muqing didn’t recognize. The maid bowed and said, “Greetings, Miss. The Old Madam has just finished breakfast, and the Second Miss is keeping her company. Please come in, Miss.”
Chu Muqing smiled, nodded, and lifted the curtain to enter.
The first thing that caught her eye was Chu Shuran sitting beside the old lady, speaking to her intimately. The old lady occasionally laughed, showing no trace of the anger she had displayed toward Chu Shuran yesterday.
Chu Shuran truly lived up to her reputation, holding a special place in the old lady’s heart. In no time, she had managed to appease her.
It was Lian Xia who first noticed Chu Muqing and reminded the Old Madam, “Old Madam, the eldest miss has arrived.”
The grandmother and granddaughter, who had been chatting amicably, finally paused. Old Madam looked at Chu Muqing and smiled. “My dear girl, you’ve arrived. Are you settling in well at the manor?”
Chu Muqing replied respectfully, “Thanks to Grandmother, I am doing well.”
Old Madam nodded. “That’s good. Don’t just stand there, sit down.”
In truth, she had regretted her actions that morning. Although she had vented her anger on Chu Shuran last night over the First Madam’s matter and returned the courtyard to Chu Muqing, what had happened wasn’t Chu Shuran’s fault. Especially since Chu Shuran had arrived early this morning with red-rimmed eyes, it was clear she had been wronged. But the courtyard had already been given away, and it was no longer appropriate to ask for it back. Now she could only make it up to her in other ways.
Chu Muqing could read the old lady’s thoughts from her expression and felt a flicker of disdain. A bunch of people coveting her courtyard, how audacious.
Yet thanks to her father, who had insisted on leaving the courtyard for Chu Nianyi to live in and had prevented the old lady and the First Madam from touching anything in it, the courtyard had been preserved. Otherwise, with their personalities, it would have long since been emptied, leaving nothing for her.
Lost in thought, she heard a maid’s voice outside, the First Madam and Second Madam had arrived together.
The two women entered and first greeted the old lady. The First Madam then said, “On the way here, i happened to meet my second sister-in-law, so we came together.”
Despite being scolded by the old lady yesterday, she was able to come pay her respects this morning with a perfectly normal expression. The First Madam was indeed shrewd and resourceful. Had Chu Muqing not anticipated her moves last night and prevented her from finding any evidence, leaving her speechless, she would never have suffered such a significant loss so easily.
However, the old lady was clearly still not in a good mood toward her because of what had happened last night. After all, her precious grandson was still lying in bed, so she only gave a faint reply and did not invite her to sit.
Chu Muqing, of course, couldn’t overstep either, since the First Madam was still her stepmother in appearance. She could only stand, bow, and say, “Mother.” Then she turned to the Second Madam and bowed, “Aunt.”
She then gave up her seat to the First Madam. The Second Madam smiled gently at her before sitting next to the First Madam, while Chu Muqing took the seat beside the Second Madam.
When the Third Madam arrived, the scene inside the room was as follows, the old lady sat in the main seat talking with Chu Shuran, while the First Madam, Second Madam, and Chu Muqing sat below her. All three simply looked at the Old Madam with slight smiles and remained silent.
The Third Madam had just taken over the kitchen yesterday, and today she was in high spirits. All she wanted was to quickly finish paying her respects and then replace the kitchen maids and servants. They were all the First Madam’s people, and she naturally wanted to swap them all out for her own.
Chu Muqing followed suit, offering the Third Madam her seat. Seeing her smug expression, she thought the Third Madam was foolish. The First Madam had only temporarily lost power, how could she be so easily swayed? She probably couldn’t even outmaneuver the cunning Bai. Once the First Madam recovered, she would be the first one to be dealt with.
Chu Sichun sat to the left of Chu Muqing. From the moment she entered, she glared hatefully at Chu Muqing and Chu Shuran. Now, perhaps seeing that the third branch of the family was in power, she seemed to have forgotten all the grievances she had suffered a few days ago. She first spoke provocatively to Chu Shuran, “I saw that Second Sister’s eyes were red and swollen when I came in. Has someone in the manor wronged you? Sister, just speak up. Grandmother has always loved you and will surely stand up for you.”
Last night, the first madam had been scolded by the grandmother, which had made her feel extremely happy. She thought Chu Shuran would definitely lose favor with the old lady in the future. Seeing her sitting next to her grandmother now, she simply thought how shameless she was.
Chu Muqing was stunned by Chu Sichun’s words. She had only ever thought her foolish before, but she never imagined she could be this stupid. Last night’s events were a thorn in their side, and anyone who brought them up was doomed. Besides, everyone knew why Chu Shuran had cried, it was because of the old lady. How dare Chu Sichun suggest otherwise? She was truly incredibly foolish.
Of course, Chu Muqing didn’t say anything to warn them. this dog-eat-dog situation was exactly what she wanted to see right now.
Sure enough, Chu Shuran was stunned for a moment, then her expression turned to disbelief. She shed a few more tears, looking extremely aggrieved. “Thank you for your concern, Fourth Sister. I was just worried about Elder Brother and got too anxious,” she said.
Seeing Chu Shuran like this, the Old Madam felt extremely sorry for her but couldn’t bear to be too harsh on Chu Sichun. She could only frown and say, “Why are you making such a fuss so early in the morning? You don’t act like a proper young lady at all.”
Seeing that the old lady was siding with Chu Shuran, Chu Sichun felt both angry and furious, but dared not say anything more to Chu Shuran. She couldn’t swallow her anger, and seeing Chu Muqing sitting calmly there only made her feel more resentful.