“Yunting, you’re back? And who might this be?”
Qin Mengshuang was just stepping out to the compound gate to wait for Xiao Shan’s return from work—her daily routine at this hour—when she came face-to-face with the two of them.
Yu Wanzhi sized her up calmly. At over forty, Qin Mengshuang had aged remarkably well; she looked barely thirty-something, with scarcely a wrinkle at the corners of her eyes. Her features were plain enough, yet she carried a graceful, gentle air—the kind of woman described as mild-mannered and virtuous.
“Hello there, Auntie. I’m the daughter of a cousin on Second Grandpa Xiao’s side, related through marriage. My surname is Yu. I’ll be staying here for a few days. Please prepare a south-facing room for me. I’d like the bedding and curtains to be patterned with gardenias. And I prefer light, simple meals—do keep that in mind when you cook.
“Oh, and I like sleeping in. Don’t come into my room to clean in the mornings, or I’ll be quite cross…”
Yu Wanzhi didn’t give Qin Mengshuang a single opening to speak. Her crimson lips moved rapidly, one sentence tumbling after another, until she’d nearly talked herself dry.
Qin Mengshuang ground her teeth so hard they ached. “You… you… who are you calling Auntie?”
“Why, you, of course!” Yu Wanzhi blinked innocently. “I’m only eighteen. By the look of you, you must be well into your fifties, wouldn’t you say? My own mother isn’t even forty yet. Is it really so wrong to call you ‘Auntie’?”
She turned to Xiao Yunting, who was watching the scene with undisguised amusement, and spoke in an aggrieved tone. “Was I wrong to call her Auntie? Why is your family’s maid so terribly rude?”
Xiao Yunting shook his head vigorously. “Not wrong at all! If you were any younger, you’d be calling you Grand-auntie!”
He watched Qin Mengshuang’s face twist with rage, his eyes crinkling with quiet delight. As a boy, he’d thrown things, overturned tables, and made a mess of the house on purpose—yet none of his childish tantrums had ever truly riled her. Instead, she’d always managed to catch him out and hold his misdeeds over his head.
As he grew older, his grandfather had often spoken with him plainly. She’s nothing more than a free maid under this roof, his grandfather had told him. Do not attach her any importance. It is hardly worth straining your bond with your father over her.
But seeing this sharp-tongued girl reduce that two-faced woman to such fury with just a few words? He could not help but feel a surge of satisfaction.
Qin Mengshuang watched the two tag-teaming against her, her mask of sweet composure slipping fast. “I am no maid. I am the rightful mistress of this household now. You will address me as ‘Madam Xiao’. Did your parents teach you no manners at all before you left home?”
The girl before her wore fine fabric, yes—but her face and clothes were smudged and unkempt. No respectable young lady of good family would ever present herself in such a state!
If this girl would show her no courtesy, then she need not pretend to be gracious any longer!
Just as Xiao Yunting was about to flare up, Yu Wanzhi pulled him behind her. Far from angered, she stepped forward two paces, beaming brightly.
“Oh? So you’re the one his father took as his second wife after his mother passed!”
“My deepest apologies, truly. Though I’ve heard your own mother was born a concubine. Surely you must understand—in households such as this, a concubine is little more than a servant. Even if one is elevated later, one can never truly shed one’s humble origins.
“So you see—I was not mistaken. You really are no different from a maid! A servant ought to know her place, instead of styling herself ‘Mistress’ so boldly. I can only wonder what sort of skincare you use—your skin may be smooth, but your cheek is truly unparalleled in thickness!”
Yu Wanzhi spoke all the while with a smile, yet her eyes blazed with scorn and disdain. Her words struck Qin Mengshuang straight in her most vulnerable spot.
For years she’d walked on eggshells in the Xiao household, toiling like a beast of burden, until finally she had won Xiao Shan’s heart entirely—all so she would never again have to suffer the contempt of that old man and that wretched boy.
And now, barely two days of peace, and this insolent little upstart appears, every word she speaks cutting straight to her heart! Such insults are more than flesh and blood can bear!
“Yunting—who is this person? Did you bring her here deliberately to provoke me? All these years, as your Aunt—”
Yu Wanzhi cut her off with an impatient wave of the hand. “Hold it. Your claim to be his ‘Aunt’ rings rather hollow when you recall that his own mother was an only daughter, born of the first wife. In days gone by, the child of a concubine would not have been fit to tie the first wife’s shoelaces—and here you are, presuming to speak as her equal! Truly, the world has turned upside down!”
She rolled her eyes openly. In her past life she had never met this poisonous woman face-to-face, yet she had heard all about her from Fu Zhoujing, time and again. Even then, the mere mention of her had made her burn with anger. She had often imagined that if they ever stood before each other, she would not hesitate to strike her down on the spot!
And now—here she was, a girl with nothing to lose, and she cared not a fig for “decorum”!
The pair walked unapologetically into the house and settled themselves comfortably on the large sofa in the main room.
“What are you still standing there for? Go and pour me a cup of tea at once!”
Qin Mengshuang’s composure shattered completely. She stormed over to the sofa, pointing a shaking finger at the girl who issued her orders so imperiously. “Get out! Who gave you permission to enter this house?!”
Xiao Yunting stepped forward and shoved her back several paces, his gaze hard with revulsion. “Point one more finger at her and see what happens. She is my guest. Did you not hear her ask for tea?”
“Precisely!” put in Yu Wanzhi, unashamed and unbowed. “This house belongs to the Xiao—to Grandfather Xiao, and to Xiao Yunting. What voice does a second wife such as you have here? I want tea—brewed to exactly seven parts heat. And when you have finished, you will prepare my room. I mean to rest.”
Yu Wanzhi gave her orders without the slightest hesitation, behaving with such swagger that Qin Mengshuang nearly choked with rage.
At that moment, she hated the old master of the house with every fibre of her being! If only he had not taken that wretched boy to raise by his side from childhood—if only he had not filled his head with stories of his “real mother” Qin Mengxue—then surely Xiao Yunting would have accepted her as his own by now. He would never dare insult her so!
“Aunt Zhang! We have guests—come pour tea!” Qin Mengshuang forced herself to hold her tongue. The old man was frail, she told herself. He would not live forever. And when he was gone, there would be no one left to stand behind that boy. Then she would repay every slight, every insult—every last one!
“Aunt Zhang was assigned by the authorities to care for Grandfather and myself. Who do you think you are to give her orders?”
In years past, the old master had been so overwhelmed with work that he could not bear to leave his grandson in the care of a woman so full of schemes. He had applied to the organization for a housekeeper—and so Aunt Zhang had helped raise Xiao Yunting from boyhood. She was closer to him than a second mother.
Qin Mengshuang ground her teeth until they grated audibly. Her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides. Standing rooted to the spot, her face ran the full gamut of expressions in a single breath.
“Very well. I will pour it myself.”