“Y-you you you…” the old madam was so furious she couldn’t even speak.
Lin Feifei continued her pitiful, tearful performance. “Auntie, we’re all one family. Why must you go this far? How will we ever get along in the future?”
She wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes and added, “At most… at most, I’ll have Mother return all your shops and estates to you.”
“Ha…” Madam Xu actually laughed from anger. “Now you feel wronged?”
Her smile vanished in an instant, replaced by ice-cold hostility. “Do you really still think I’m the same foolish Xu from eight years ago? The one you tricked into handing over control of her dowry with just a few words about ‘family’?”
She looked at Lin Feifei with disdain. “Second Miss, over all these years you haven’t learned a single good thing. Instead, you’ve perfectly inherited your mother’s shamelessness, her irrationality, and her habit of never listening to anyone else. To someone who didn’t know better, you’d look like some country bumpkin woman!”
“Aunt… how can you humiliate me like this… sob…” Lin Feifei sobbed even harder.
But Madam Xu didn’t care at all. She even clicked her tongue. “Tsk tsk tsk. Look, where am I wrong? You may be a concubine-born child raised as a legitimate daughter, but you’ve learned the manners of an improper concubine to perfection. Not a trace of proper noble grace or dignity.”
Lin Feifei suddenly fell backward and collapsed onto the ground, making Madam Zhang scream in panic. “Feifei! My daughter—Feifei!”
Madam Xu said calmly, “I’ve said what I came to say. Mother, sister-in-law, I’ll take my leave first.”
She curtseyed slightly and walked out step by step.
Lin Youyou also curtseyed and followed her out. As she passed the unconscious Lin Feifei, she deliberately—or perhaps not—stepped heavily on one of the hands resting on the ground.
From the corner of her eye, she saw the hand twitch in pain. Pretending not to notice, she continued walking, leaving Madam Zhang’s cries and the old madam’s angry scolding behind.
Madam Xu glanced at her helplessly. “You…”
Lin Youyou smiled lightly. “I just wanted to see whether she was really unconscious or pretending. Now it seems she’s quite selfish—she didn’t even care about her own mother.”
“Stay away from her in the future,” Madam Xu warned.
“That might be difficult,” Lin Youyou replied. Over the past few days since returning, she felt she had used more brainpower than in all her previous ten-odd years combined. As expected, none of the young ladies in the capital were simple.
“Why?”
“Because of the Second Prince.”
“What does he have to do with this? Isn’t he your fiancé?” Madam Xu suddenly stopped walking, her expression turning cold.
“Exactly because he is my fiancé, I can’t easily get rid of Lin Feifei,” Lin Youyou said helplessly. “After all, someone told me they’ve been secretly meeting for years.”
“How could this be…” Madam Xu was shocked. “He’s your fiancé—how would she dare?”
“What’s so strange about it?” Lin Youyou’s eyes turned deep and unreadable. “If she wants to climb up the social ladder, the fastest and best way to get close to the Second Prince is through me—her ‘sister’ and his fiancée.”
“…That’s true.” Madam Xu fell silent. Indeed, the easiest way to reach high status was through connections closest at hand.
“So Mother,” Lin Youyou continued, a strange smile in her eyes, “who do you think tried to kill us in Peach Blossom Village? Lin Feifei—or the Second Prince?”
Madam Xu went silent. She didn’t know either. The only people who would want them dead were those two—and the most likely culprit was Lin Feifei.
After all, if she wanted to marry the Second Prince, she needed a substantial dowry. That gave her motive to eliminate Madam Xu. And as for wanting to kill Lin Youyou… that motive was even more obvious.
Madam Xu’s face darkened completely. “I understand. When your father returns, I’ll discuss this with him properly. Since the Second Prince is not a good match, we’ll find a way to break off this engagement.”
“You don’t need to worry. Go back to your courtyard first.”
“Alright, Mother.” Lin Youyou smiled and left.
She would never be like the passive heroines in romance stories who never speak up and suffer in silence, only to be tortured by misunderstandings.
Ridiculous. What are family for? Strong family backing exists to be relied on.
Besides, those “villainess” or “side character” types always know how to complain and never let themselves suffer—how carefree they are.
She decided she would be someone who speaks directly too.
Feeling cheerful, Lin Youyou went back to make something delicious.
After she had cooked for her parents a couple of times, her small kitchen could now get anything she wanted—no need for her to search for ingredients herself anymore.
From this, it was clear her father was also a true foodie.
Thinking about it, she quickly decided what to cook and got to work. Qingli and Qinghe helped her.
Qinghe sounded gentle and delicate, but in reality she was a chubby, straightforward girl with some martial skills and great strength.
So Qinghe handled the fire, while Qingli took care of the more delicate tasks.
The kitchen soon filled with heat and fragrance. Qinghe and Qingli couldn’t help but sniff the air—her cooking was far better than the manor’s head chef. Serving the young lady was truly a blessing.
Not long after, Qingcao arrived and respectfully said, “Miss, Madam says that the master and his colleagues are discussing matters in the study in the front courtyard. She asks you to prepare more food to send over.”
“Alright, tell Mother I’ll have Qinghe deliver it once it’s done,” Lin Youyou replied without looking up, busy frying food.
“Yes, Miss. I’ll go back now.”
“Mm.”
“Qingli, pack three plates of pickled cucumbers I made.”
“Alright.”
Once everything was ready, Qinghe took the food boxes to the front courtyard, and Qingli took another box to Madam Xu’s main residence.
Lin Youyou returned to her room with her own portion. As a young lady, she normally did not go to the front courtyard—especially when male guests were present—and even more so with an engagement in place, she knew to avoid any impropriety.