Before Lin Wangshu could finish, Zhou Yuhu, seated on the other side of the table, impatiently interjected. Her voice, naturally shrill, sharpened further, laced with a biting acrimony: “Oh, Elder Sister-in-Law, you make that sound easy. Can defiance ever be unintentional?”
“You, as a benevolent stepmother, have cherished her like your own child and defended her constantly, but look what she’s been spoiled into!”
Zhao Qiyun, unable to restrain herself, approached Zhou Yuhu, her eyes red and her voice tearful: “Third Aunt, you wouldn’t know, how could my mother dare discipline Elder Sister? Elder Sister possesses a naturally auspicious Fate and the dignity of a Commandery Princess. It’s a tremendous blessing that she hasn’t devoured my mother alive yet.”
Madam Qian, the Second Mistress, seated at the second family’s table, rolled her eyes. She started to speak but was firmly restrained by the Second Master. She suppressed her comment and returned to eating.
Zhao Qiyun continued to choke back tears, her voice dripping with wronged emotion: “Take today, for instance. Grand Tutor Liu’s legitimate granddaughter merely came to ask Elder Sister for a small favor. It would have been acceptable if Elder Sister had refused, but instead, she ordered people to drag the girl out of the manor like a dead dog.”
“My mother, unable to bear the sight, tried to advise Elder Sister, asking her not to damage the reputation of our two families. But Elder Sister, upon hearing this, merely rolled her eyes and cursed my mother, calling her the remnant of a criminal official’s family who was unworthy of disciplining her.”
“Yun’er!” Madam Lin gently chastised, feigning slight displeasure. “You are becoming utterly reckless. How can you speak such improper things in front of your elders? Stop at once.”
This performance, witnessed by Zhao Yuanjiang, only served to confirm Zhao Qihuang’s arrogant and overbearing nature.
“What utter rubbish is this talk of Fate? The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, feats of strength, disorders, or spiritual beings! I believe it is pure nonsense!”
Zhao Yuanjiang had spent the past few years in the ancestral home, away from the capital, and still assumed Zhao Qihuang was the little girl who had once trembled under his command, ready to be molded and manipulated. Spittle flew as he roared, “If she is indulged like this any further, I predict she will cause a monstrous disaster sooner or later!”
Lin Wangshu lowered her lashes, her slender fingers gently twisting her handkerchief, affecting a look of helpless reluctance. Yet, out of the corner of her eye, she subtly glanced toward the Old Madame in the main seat, as if silently communicating, “See? I warned her about this long ago.”
Seeing her demeanor, Zhao Yuanjiang grew even more stifled with anger, utterly disappointed. He turned to Zhou Yuhu: “You! Go fetch that copy of *Lessons for Women* that Hui-jie usually reads, and make her properly learn some discipline.”
Zhou Yuhu’s eyes darted around. First, she glanced at the Old Madame in the main seat, who had remained silent and hadn’t even lifted her eyelids. Then she looked across the table at Elder Brother Zhao Yuanshan, who was intently eating. He looked entirely detached, clearly giving his tacit approval. With this confirmation, she twisted her body, rose, and rushed out.
Zhao Yuanjiang had nearly vented his fury, having sprayed spittle across the table, and was now panting heavily as he glared at Zhao Qihuang. Just then, Zhao Qihuang slammed her chopsticks onto the table. The ceramic utensils struck the rim of the gilded bowl, startling everyone present.
She looked up, a cold, mocking smile playing on her lips: “Third Uncle, rather than showing off your official authority here, you should take it to the imperial court.”
Zhao Yuanjiang’s face flushed crimson with humiliation and rage. “Impudence! What are you saying?”
Zhao Qihuang paid him no mind and continued calmly, addressing the table: “Today, Grand Tutor Liu’s granddaughter, Liu Wanru, did indeed come to see me.”
Zhao Yuanjiang scoffed: “Do you think admitting it makes everything fine? Too late! Today, I absolutely must make you properly study the words ‘Reverence and Prudence’ in *Lessons for Women*, so you can understand discipline and propriety.”
Zhao Qihuang did not look at him, turning instead to Zhao Qiyun, a cold sneer playing on her lips: “Perhaps you should first ask Qiyun exactly what kind of ‘small favor’ she claims this was?”
Zhao Yuanjiang was completely dismissive: “What major issue could possibly exist between young women?”
Zhao Qiyun clutched her handkerchief and shrank back behind Lin Wangshu, forcing herself to argue: “Exactly. Sister Liu merely wanted a small favor. Did you really have to throw her out?”
“A small favor?” Zhao Qihuang repeated the phrase. “The ‘small favor’ you speak of was asking me to enter the palace and beg the Emperor to show clemency and spare the entire Duke of Zhenguo’s Estate, who stand accused of treason.”
The two words “committed treason” were like an ice block dropped into boiling oil. The hall fell instantly silent, save for the sound of a pin dropping. Madam Qian of the second family dropped the silver hairpin she was holding with a *clang*; she scrambled to retrieve it, her fingertips trembling. Zhao Yuanshan forgot the food in his mouth, his brows furrowed into a tight knot. Even the Old Madame, who had remained steadily seated in the main position, paused imperceptibly, causing the tea foam to slosh over the edge of her cup.
Zhao Qihuang surveyed the room and stated calmly: “The Emperor’s intentions regarding the Duke of Zhenguo’s Estate are clearer to you all than they are to me. At this critical juncture, anyone who dares to plead on behalf of the Wei family is essentially dragging our entire clan into the water and inviting disaster upon themselves. If you truly believe this is a favor I should grant, then I will enter the palace tomorrow to intercede for the Wei family.”
“Absolutely not!” The Second Master, who had been quietly eating, twisted his thick eyebrows until they looked like two axes. “The Emperor personally issued the decree for the Duke of Zhenguo’s case. Complete execution and confiscation of the entire family are inevitable. Who dares plead for them now? Are they tired of living?”
Zhao Yuanjiang opened his mouth, trying to speak, but Zhao Qihuang’s words had seized his throat. After a long moment, he finally managed to squeeze out: “It can’t be? How dare Grand Tutor Liu’s granddaughter…”
“Why wouldn’t she dare? Perhaps Grand Tutor Liu himself sent her.” Madam Qian of the second family interjected, her voice shaking. “Just the other day, I heard my husband say that the Duke of Zhenguo’s Estate’s associates are still being investigated. Getting involved now is surely jumping into a pit of fire! Yun’er, how could you dare bring such a matter to our household?”
Zhao Qiyun’s face went white with fear. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she choked out, tugging on Lin Wangshu’s sleeve, “I didn’t know it was that serious…”
“Didn’t know?” Zhao Qihuang scoffed. “Do you lack a brain?”
Zhao Yuanjiang looked at Zhao Qihuang, his face cycling between red and white. His earlier posture of aggressive discipline was completely gone. After a long moment, he mumbled awkwardly, “You should have just said so earlier.”
Zhao Qihuang replied: “Third Uncle was so enraged just now, I wanted to explain, but did anyone give me the opportunity?” This single sentence left Zhao Yuanjiang utterly speechless, and everyone else at the table lowered their heads.
The gentle warmth on Lin Wangshu’s face was completely gone. Her fingers gripped her handkerchief as she managed a strained smile: “Yun’er is young and simply doesn’t understand the gravity of the situation.”
The Old Madame said coldly: “If she is ignorant, are you ignorant too?”
Lin Wangshu fell silent.
Zhao Qiyun saw the tables turning. Her eyes reddened, and large tears slid down her face. She sobbed, clutching her handkerchief and wiping her eyes: “I was confused about this, and I didn’t think things through thoroughly, but the Commandery Princess shouldn’t call my mother the daughter of a criminal official!”
Hearing this, Zhao Qihuang raised a delicate eyebrow, casting a half-smile at Madam Lin, and slowly countered: “Oh? Is she not?”
This statement landed like a harsh slap across Madam Lin’s face. Her complexion instantly turned deathly pale. Tears immediately pooled in her eyes, large drops suspended precariously on her lashes, ready to fall. She gently bit her lower lip, adopting the look of someone who had suffered an unbearable injustice, and gazed pleadingly toward the Yongan Marquis Zhao Yuanshan, who sat near the main seat with a sullen face. That man was her husband, Zhao Qihuang’s biological father.