After Jiang Yanqing left, Feng Yulian stroked Shen Zhenze’s arm and wept bitterly with heartache.
“Ze’er, how are you holding up? It’s all Mother’s fault; Mother failed to protect you. Don’t blame your father or your fourth sister… Sob, sob, sob…”
Seeing Feng Yulian crying like a drowned rat and his beloved second son covered in wounds, Shen Changfeng couldn’t help feeling a wave of remorse.
“Yulian, blame me. I was just blinded by rage and too eager to kill that rebellious wretch, never expecting her to be so venomous that she would use Ze’er as a human shield. Stop crying now, let’s quickly find a doctor to treat Ze’er.”
“Mm, alright.”
Jiang Yanqing waited in the dining hall for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, but no dishes were served.
She asked a maidservant, “Why hasn’t dinner started yet?”
The maid lowered her head, trembling.
“Reporting to the Fourth Miss, Old Master and Madam… Lian Yiniang hasn’t arrived yet, so dinner cannot be served.”
“Oh…”
Jiang Yanqing didn’t say another word. She stood up and walked over to the kitchens.
Zhang Quan, the steward of the kitchen who didn’t recognize her, put on an arrogant front. “Which courtyard are you a newly recruited maid from? The kitchen is a restricted area, you can’t just wander in. Out, out with you.”
“I am Jiang Yanqing.”
Zhang Quan’s head snapped up. Even though he didn’t recognize her face, he had already heard all about her notorious exploits just moments ago.
He hastily backed up two steps. “F-Fourth Miss, please, make yourself at home—”
Having followed her master to study martial arts since the age of five, Jiang Yanqing had always possessed a massive appetite.
In the time it took others to finish a bowl of thin porridge, she had already polished off two steamed buns, a chicken leg, and three lamb chops.
Zhang Quan hovered nearby, flattering her obsequiously. “Fourth Miss, just give the word whenever you want to eat anything in the future. I’ll have the servants prepare it and send it straight to you. The kitchen is full of grease and smoke, don’t let it soil your clothes.”
“All of you, get out.”
“What?”
Zhang Quan acted as though he hadn’t heard clearly.
“All of you, out.”
“Ah?…”
Though completely baffled, Zhang Quan knew that his Fourth Miss was capable of slaughtering a dozen top-tier archers in a single move. He had no choice but to obey, rounding up all the chefs, maids, and old mamas and hustling them out of the building.
Immediately afterward, Jiang Yanqing grabbed a stool and—with a loud bang—overturned the stove.
Flames instantly erupted in every direction.
Chaos broke out among the crowd.
“Fire! There’s a fire! Quick, put it out…”
Only Zhang Quan stood there with tears shimmering in his eyes, gazing gratefully at Jiang Yanqing.
The Fourth Miss is truly beautiful and kind-hearted; she starts fires without hurting a soul… If it were the Eldest Young Master, Second Young Master, or Third Miss, they would have roasted everyone alive right along with the kitchen like a bunch of beasts.
By the time Shen Changfeng and Feng Yulian arrived, the kitchen was already engulfed in towering flames and rolling billows of thick smoke.
Shen Changfeng grabbed Zhang Quan by the collar. “What is the meaning of this? How did a fire break out out of nowhere?”
“Don’t bother picking on innocent people.” Sitting casually on a nearby stone stool while taking a leisurely sip of tea, Jiang Yanqing said, “I set the fire.”
“Why? You burned down your Lian Yiniang’s clothes and beat your second brother half to death, and I haven’t even held it against you. What else are you unsatisfied with?”
The teacup in Jiang Yanqing’s hand shattered with a loud bang right at Shen Changfeng’s feet, splashing tea all over his robes.
“Let’s drop the pretense. Do you think I don’t know you deliberately stalled for time to keep the kitchen from serving me my meal? Since I am the jinx of this Flat-Distant Marquis estate, and I can’t even get a bite to eat, naturally none of you should dream of eating either.”
“Qingqing…”
Feng Yulian dropped to her knees right in front of Jiang Yanqing with a dull thud. “It’s all my fault! I was the one who changed my clothes and washed up, which delayed everything. Qingqing, this has nothing to do with your father. If you want to blame someone, blame me.”
“How could this possibly be her fault?”
Shen Changfeng reached out to pull her up, but Jiang Yanqing moved faster, landing a sharp slap across Feng Yulian’s face.
“Qingqing this, Qingqing that—is my name something a lowly concubine like you has any right to utter?”
Crack. Another slap rang out. “And calling dinner off because you weren’t ready? What kind of thing do you think you are? Living together without a proper marriage, only to be dragged into the estate after popping out three kids—how are you any different from a common prostitute?”
“Jiang Yanqing!” Veins bulged on Shen Changfeng’s forehead. “Although Yulian lacks the title of formal primary wife, she holds the actual status of one!
Back on the battlefield, not only did she save my life, but she also spent five years tending to my every daily need. Afterward, she managed every single affair inside and outside the Marquis estate. In my heart, she is the most important woman of my life, and my true wife!”
“Bah!” Jiang Yanqing sneered in utter contempt. “And what kind of decent catch do you think you are? You married my mother for her wealth, swearing an oath that if you ever failed her in this life, you would die a death without a burial place.
On the very second day after your wedding, you accepted an imperial decree and followed Great General Meng to campaign against the northern barbarians. My mother emptied out her own dowry, guarded your Marquis estate, served the old dowager, and waited for you bitterly through five long years. Out of sheer worry for your safety, she cried her eyes almost blind.
Never did she dream that while living it up with romantic flings out on the frontier, you would ultimately return leading this cheap woman and three wild bastards in tow.
Officially, you have betrayed the imperial court; personally, you have failed your legal wife. A disloyal and unrighteous man like you will sooner or later suffer the consequences of your own oath!”
Trembling with rage, Shen Changfeng roared, “Rebellious wretch! How dare you curse your own flesh-and-blood father? You’re the one who deserves to be struck by lightning!
Since ancient times, what man hasn’t had a wife and concubines? Jiang Yuexi lived with me for five years without bearing a single child, while Yulian extended the ancestral bloodline of my Marquis estate for me. Instead of showing gratitude, your mother harbored schemes to maliciously harm Yulian and the children.
That I haven’t divorced her is already the utmost tolerance I can show. What on earth is she still unsatisfied with?”