However, when she finally stood before her Grandfather's courtyard gate, Yun Pianpian hesitated uncharacteristically.
Usually decisive, she found herself repeatedly adjusting her collar. Even Liu Yun couldn't help but speak softly, "Miss, you look wonderful today. The Duke will surely be pleased to see you."
Yun Pianpian's fingertips trembled slightly, and she whispered, "Grandfather... was there anything unusual yesterday?"
Liu Yun shook her head, "The physician said the Duke's spirits have improved greatly. He was even mentioning you this morning."
But Yun Pianpian's heart remained unsettled—
What if Grandfather realized she wasn't the original 'Yun Pianpian'?
It was a tangled mess she couldn't unravel.
Finally, she gritted her teeth and was about to push the door open when she heard an aged yet gentle voice from inside—
"Pian'er, you've arrived, why not come in? Grandfather's legs aren't convenient..."
Yun Pianpian's heart leaped, and she rushed almost instantly to the bedside.
Duke Yun leaned against the headboard, his complexion ashen, but his eyes were still sharp and clear. The moment his granddaughter approached, surprise erupted in the old man's eyes—
He could sense it!
Not only had Pian'er's Spirit Meridian recovered, but her cultivation had actually reached the Second Tier of Spirit Gathering!
Yun Pianpian's eyes grew warm. She quickly fetched a soft pillow to place behind her grandfather's waist, her tone chiding but unable to hide her concern: "Grandfather, why didn't you call for servants when you got up? Leaning like this must be uncomfortable."
Duke Yun smiled faintly upon hearing this.
What he heard was not a reprimand.
It was his granddaughter's unconcealed heartache.
"How can Grandfather's health be so poor? It must have been very hard on my Pian'er during this time."
Duke Yun straightened his back with forced strength, but in the next moment, he began coughing violently. His withered, branch-like hand tightly gripped his granddaughter's wrist, veins bulging, "That Rebellious Son... *cough cough*... I know everything he did to you..."
The old man had to gasp for breath after every few words, yet he stubbornly refused to stop, "Grandfather... must settle things for you..."
"Grandfather, don't rush," Yun Pianpian quickly stroked the old man's stooped back, suddenly straightening her own posture, her eyes igniting with a brilliant light, "They are just a few clowns causing trouble; why should they trouble Grandfather?"
Her voice was clear and resonant, "Once we cure your body and heal Xiao Wu's eyes, we still have to wait for Father to return..."
She spoke with spirited animation, her eyebrows and eyes tinged with the hope of the rising sun. In a daze, she could almost see that day—
Grandfather teasing a songbird in the courtyard, Father standing by with a smile, holding a scroll, and Xiao Wu brewing fresh tea under the eaves. Sunlight filtered through the Wisteria Flower trellis, casting dappled gold spots upon them.
Duke Yun gazed at his granddaughter's radiant profile and suddenly realized: when did that little girl who always hid under his wing grow into someone so dazzling?
His aged hand gently stroked the top of the young girl's head, carrying the warmth settled by the years.
"Pian'er, rest assured, Grandfather will see justice done for you."
Duke Yun's eyes held both relief and heartache. "Good, good. Our Yun Family children should be like this. Pian'er must have many things to attend to, go on. Grandfather has company here; don't worry about me."
After bidding farewell to her Grandfather, Yun Pianpian's gaze sharpened.
"Liu Ying, bring Fang Hua along." Her crimson lips parted, her voice laced with coldness, "Head to Yun Sheng's courtyard."
Outside Yimei Pavilion, Yun Pianpian abruptly stopped.
The simple courtyard from her memory was now resplendent—the glass wind chimes hanging from the Eaves refracted dazzling, piercing colors in the sunlight.
That was the Birthday gift her Father had crafted for her personally back then.
Her jade-like fingers slowly tightened, and a cold smile curled the corner of Yun Pianpian's lips:
Today, she would take back everything that had been stolen, piece by piece.
Yun Sheng lay on the brocade bed, the bruises on her cheeks looking particularly hideous in the morning light. Last night's humiliation seemed vivid—Yun Pianpian, accompanied by a Maidservant, had burst into her Boudoir and forced her onto the cold floor tiles, slapping her wantonly. The fingers clutching the Brocade Quilt turned white, and the Smell of Blood rose in her throat.
"Yun Pianpian..." she ground out the name through clenched teeth, as if wanting to chew it to pieces. The Elixir sent by her elder brother circulated through her body, barely repairing the damaged Meridians, but it could not mend her shattered dignity.
"Once this Young Miss recovers, I will make Yun Pianpian pay!"
"How do you plan to make me pay?"
Suddenly, with a loud 'bang,' the Carved Wooden Door shattered, flying splinters grazing Yun Sheng's cheek like blades. In the backlight, a graceful figure strode in with the morning light, her plain white skirt billowing in the wind.
Yun Sheng's pupils contracted sharply; the fear of being dominated yesterday instantly swept over her entire body.
"Healed already?" Yun Pianpian's fingertips, carrying the chill of early spring, pinched Yun Sheng's swollen jaw. Her nail dug deeply into the flesh, adding a fresh red mark over yesterday's old wound.
"Recovering quite well, aren't you."
"Fang Hua," she called out casually, "Move everything from my courtyard back here, not a single item left behind!"
Over a dozen rough Old Servant Women surged in. The sandalwood dressing table crashed to the ground, and the Gold-gilded screen split in two during the struggle. When they began dismantling the Xiyun gauze bed curtains, which Yun Sheng cherished most, the young woman finally shrieked and lunged at Yun Pianpian, "By what right—"
"Slap!" Yun Pianpian followed through and delivered a resounding slap to Yun Sheng.
The blow sent her flying back onto the bed. Yun Sheng tasted the Rust Smell between her lips, her ears ringing. Trembling, she raised her Qingyun Sect Disciple Jade Token: "I am a Qingyun Sect disciple..."
"Slap!"
This slap from Yun Pianpian was even harsher than yesterday's.
Yesterday, borrowing a third of Shen Yue's Spiritual Power, she had still held back somewhat. But today was different—her internal Spiritual Power had already recovered by seventy percent. With this palm strike, half of Yun Sheng's face instantly swelled red, blood seeped from the corner of her mouth, and even the gold earring by her ear was shaken loose, clattering to the floor.
Yun Pianpian shook her right hand, the lingering resonance of Spiritual Power making her fingertips slightly numb. She looked down at the wretched Yun Sheng, a cold smile playing on her lips:
"I need to check the time before I hit you?"
She slowly surveyed the surroundings, watching the Old Servant Women carry out the last piece of furniture, before speaking languidly:
"Do I need to report to you when moving my own belongings?"
"Who gave you the audacity to steal my things?"
Before the words even finished, she slapped her again in return!
"Slap!"
This time, Yun Sheng was slapped so hard she tumbled crookedly onto the bed, her hair disheveled, blood oozing from her mouth. She looked up tremblingly, her eyes full of venom, but she froze when she met Yun Pianpian's ice-cold gaze.
Yun Pianpian shook her wrist, then gracefully sat down on the only round stool left in the room, tapping her fingertips lightly on the table, her posture lazy yet exuding an undeniable, oppressive authority.
"This slap is for your habit of theft."
She picked up a teacup and slowly took a sip, admiring the crisscrossing red marks on Yun Sheng's face as if viewing a painting.
"This slap is for your disrespect toward your elders."
When the last piece of patterned mirror was carried out over the threshold, Yun Pianpian suddenly raised her hand and called out to a small Maidservant:
"Wait, leave this one."
She picked up a gold-painted chamber pot and smilingly stuffed it into Yun Sheng's arms, her tone so gentle it was almost eerie:
"Third Sister has difficulty moving around, so this chamber pot... consider it an offering from your elder sister."
Yun Sheng trembled all over. In just two days, she had been humiliated by Yun Pianpian twice! At this moment, she could only clutch the Brocade Quilt tightly, praying frantically in her heart—
Mother, why haven't you come yet?!
"Yun Pianpian! How dare you treat my daughter this way?!"
A sharp, furious roar came from outside the courtyard, followed immediately by a richly dressed woman rushing in while holding up her skirt. Her index finger, painted with Crimson Nail Polish, nearly jabbed Yun Pianpian's nose.
"I wasn't here yesterday, and you dared—"
"Click."
A crisp sound of bone breaking, accompanied by a piercing scream, suddenly echoed throughout the room!
Yun Pianpian held Madam Su's deformed finger, her smile as beautiful as a flower, yet her eyes were chillingly cold:
"Has Third Aunt forgotten her manners?"
"What courtesy is due when a secondary wife meets a Legitimate Daughter?"
Madam Su was sweating profusely from the pain and couldn't even speak. Seeing this, Liu Ying directly kicked the back of her knee, forcing her to drop to her knees with a 'thud'!
Yun Pianpian looked down at her from above, her voice soft, yet every word was a piercing blow:
"Madam Su, you dare address this Young Miss by name?"
"What crime is it to insult the Main Lineage?"
Fang Hua immediately flipped open the household rules book and read aloud:
"According to precedent, a secondary wife who insults the Main Lineage shall receive thirty strokes."
She deliberately paused, then added:
"However... the Ancestral Hall does not accept anyone outside the Main Lineage."
Yun Pianpian smoothed the creases of her sleeve, and as she turned, she threw back a final remark:
"Then we will administer the beating in the Courtyard."
"Remember to wipe the blood clean; don't dirty the Duke's Residence floor."