The next morning, Meng Xizhou stepped out of the Hou Manor with calm composure and boarded the carriage.
She was going out today to meet her close friends and ask them to help with matters she couldn’t currently handle.
The moment the carriage disappeared around the street corner, Meng Nanyi also stepped out of Meng Manor.
Her face was ashen, her eyes bloodshot—clearly, she hadn’t slept all night. In her hand, she clutched tightly the troublesome decorated letter—an invitation from Jiang Manor that she couldn’t avoid!
Gritting her teeth, she steeled herself and boarded the carriage heading toward Jiang Manor.
At the entrance of Jiang Manor, two carriages arrived almost simultaneously.
As the carriage curtains were lifted, two identical, stunning faces met each other’s gaze across the distance.
The air seemed to freeze instantly!
Meng Nanyi’s pupils contracted sharply, as if she’d seen a ghost in broad daylight, and she cried out involuntarily, “Why are you here?!”
Meng Xizhou was also somewhat surprised but then gracefully alighted from the carriage and said calmly, “What a coincidence.”
Meng Nanyi, supported by her maid as she got down, couldn’t take her eyes off Meng Xizhou.
Just then, the Jiang Manor steward came out, beaming with smiles.
Meng Nanyi immediately put on a guarded, haughty demeanor, flashing a proud smile.
But to her shock, the steward’s eyes swept over the two of them without the slightest hesitation, and he went straight to Meng Xizhou, bowing respectfully with a familiar and deferential tone: “Greetings, Eldest Miss Meng! You’ve finally arrived—our young lady has been talking about you for ages!”
Only then did he turn to the pale-faced Meng Nanyi: “Greetings, Second Miss Meng.”
Meng Nanyi felt her head buzz! Her vision blurred with darkness.
Was this old fool blind?!
She was wearing the most luxurious dress, the most exquisite jewelry, and carrying herself with the most refined posture! Why had the steward immediately recognized that wretch as Meng Xizhou?!
Humiliation and fury threatened to consume her!
But Meng Xizhou no longer paid her any mind. With a nod and a smile to the steward, she stepped into the manor.
Meng Nanyi fumed silently for a while before suddenly realizing Meng Xizhou had disappeared from sight. She hurriedly strode into Jiang Manor.
Only to find she didn’t know the way!
Frustrated, Meng Nanyi retreated and had that blind steward lead the way.
At the waterside pavilion in the courtyard, as she turned the corridor, a burst of silvery, girlish laughter reached her ears. Several young ladies in lavish attire were seated around the pavilion, and their eyes lit up the moment they saw Meng Xizhou.
“Well, well! Look who’s here?” The girl in red at the forefront raised an eyebrow, stepping forward with a teasing smile. “We thought someone had retreated back into her books like a quail, too afraid to see us!”
Meng Xizhou raised an eyebrow. So, when Meng Nanyi had taken her place, she’d acted like a quail?
She laughed heartily, her expression radiant with confidence. “Jiang Ji, are you still half-asleep? Since when is there anything in this world that I, Meng Xizhou, wouldn’t dare to do?”
That familiar tone, that unrestrained attitude!
Jiang Jiyue’s face lit up with delight, and she patted her chest exaggeratedly. “Thank heavens! When I saw you shrinking from a wolf into a trembling rabbit the other day, I was so disappointed. But now that your wits are back, it’s truly worth celebrating!”
“Likewise,” Meng Xizhou replied, scanning the group with a sly grin. “After all, without this wolf leading the pack, you all must be itching to stretch your claws, right?”
Everyone burst into laughter, and the atmosphere instantly warmed, as if the bold, unrestrained Meng Xizhou had never been gone.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, Meng Xizhou reached out affectionately and pulled Meng Nanyi, who had frozen stiff in the corridor, over to join them.
“Look, today I’ve even brought my second sister! Double the sincerity, is that enough?”
Meng Nanyi’s wrist was tightly gripped by Meng Xizhou’s fingers, sending wave after wave of goosebumps across her skin!
She wanted to shake free, to scream, but under everyone’s watchful eyes, she could only bite her lower lip hard and force out an awkward smile uglier than crying.
The laughter in the waterside pavilion paused subtly for a moment.
Several young women exchanged knowing glances, their eyes instantly filling with playful amusement and undisguised scrutiny when they looked at Meng Nanyi.
“The sincerity is sufficient,” Jiang Jiyue’s eyes sparkled as she smiled like a cunning fox, “but, Miss Meng, you’ve been avoiding us for so long – just bringing an extra person isn’t enough. We sisters have prepared a special gift for you, and now that you’re here, we won’t let it go to waste!”
Meng Xizhou raised an eyebrow, genuinely intrigued: “Oh? What kind of gift? Do tell.”
“What’s the hurry?” another yellow-dressed girl, Lei Rui, chimed in. “Old rules – for special gifts… we must play a few games first! Only the winners get to enjoy them!”
Meng Xizhou smiled understandingly: “Very well.”
Watching herself completely reduced to a background character, the unwillingness and jealousy in Meng Nanyi’s heart burned fiercely once more!
She should have been the protagonist of today’s banquet!
She couldn’t bear being ignored like this! Especially being completely overshadowed by Meng Xizhou’s radiance!
“I want to play too!” she blurted out, her voice shrill with urgency.
The waterside pavilion fell silent for a moment.
Then, Jiang Jiyue’s smile widened brilliantly: “Ah, that’s wonderful! The more the merrier! Isn’t that right, sisters?”
“Of course, of course!” everyone chorused.
The games soon began, starting with archery in the already-prepared shooting range.
Through random drawing, Meng Xizhou and Meng Nanyi “coincidentally” ended up in the same team.
The rules were simple: each team of two would have one person shoot arrows while the other… would be tied to a distant wooden post with an apple placed on their head as the target!
Meng Nanyi’s heart leaped violently! Looking at the gleaming arrowheads, she instantly conceived a brilliant plan!
This was practically heaven-sent!
Meng Nanyi spoke before Meng Xizhou could: “How about… letting your younger sister take the first round? To set an example for elder sister?”
Her heart surged with wild joy – as long as she “accidentally” let her hand slip, making the arrow veer off course and hit Meng Xizhou’s arm, shoulder… anywhere would do!
Who could prove she did it on purpose? Who asked them to invite her to play such rough, barbaric games? Accidents were perfectly normal in such dangerous games!
Meng Xizhou glanced at her, her eyes seeing right through everything, yet she smiled indulgently: “Alright then, little sister, you go first.”
Suppressing her wildly beating heart and barely contained excitement, Meng Nanyi took the bow offered by an attendant.
However, when she tried to draw the bow, she found this seemingly lightweight carved soft bow wouldn’t budge at all!
Using all her strength until her face turned red, her arms trembling like fluttering moths, the bowstring only quivered slightly!
“Pfft…” someone couldn’t hold back a snicker.
Meng Nanyi was mortified beyond belief!
Refusing to give up, she pulled with all her might again!
“Ah!”
Not only did the bowstring fail to draw, but it viciously snapped against her improperly positioned fingers, blood immediately gushing out!
The sharp pain made her release the bow, which fell to the ground with a clatter.
“Oh dear! Second Miss Meng, your hand!” the attendant exclaimed.
Meng Nanyi clutched her hand, tears welling in her eyes from the pain, her face turning from red to pale, looking utterly discomfited.
“It seems my sister is having poor luck with her hands today,” Meng Xizhou’s voice drifted over leisurely. “Then it falls to me to take over.”
Meng Nanyi, overwhelmed by pain, anger, and humiliation, was escorted away by the attendant to have her hand bandaged under everyone’s gaze, completely losing her chance to create an “accident.”
Meng Xizhou picked up the bow from the ground, weighed it in her hand, and strolled casually to the shooting line. She didn’t even bother to aim carefully—just casually nocked an arrow, drew the bow, and with a swift “whoosh,” hit the bullseye dead center!
“Bravo!” Jiang Jiyue led the cheers. “As expected of our alpha wolf! That posture shows your skills haven’t dulled a bit!”
Immediately, some of the young ladies protested playfully: “Sister Jiyue, that’s not fair! Everyone knows Xizhou’s archery is the finest! Letting her shoot like this is no different from handing her the win outright! It’s not fair to Second Miss Meng either!”
Jiang Jiyue clapped her hands as if suddenly enlightened: “You’re right! We should add some difficulty to make it interesting!”
She turned to Meng Xizhou, grinning like a cat that got the cream. “What do you say, Xizhou?”
Meng Xizhou raised an eyebrow in playful cooperation and set down her bow: “Oh? And what do you suggest for fairness?”
Lei Rui cheerfully produced a black silk blindfold: “Simple—blindfolded shooting! That’s true skill, and thrilling enough!”
“Blindfolded?!”
Those two words struck like thunder in the ears of Meng Nanyi, who had just finished having her hand bandaged.