“Drawing?” Feng Anning stretched her neck, and when she saw the assignment paper in Shen Miao’s hand, she was also slightly startled, then asked, “Can you do that?”
This was indeed true. Of the four arts—zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting—Shen Miao was genuinely unskilled in all of them. As for drawing, forget about artistic charm; she couldn’t even draw properly.
Seeing Shen Miao not speaking, Feng Anning also quieted down. People were quite strange indeed. Initially, she had disliked Shen Miao, but now that Shen Miao was cold toward her, Feng Anning was instead more willing to talk to her. She felt that the current Shen Miao possessed a special quality that unconsciously attracted people to come closer.
As the two were silent, they saw Shen Yue and Shen Qing walking over gracefully. Shen Yue smiled and said, “What’s the assignment paper in Fifth Sister’s hand? Let me see it too. Perhaps my elder sister and I might be able to think of some ideas.”
Shen Qing nodded: “Indeed. My Second Sister and I drew calligraphy and painting, respectively. What did you get?”
Shen Miao remained silent. Shen Yue smiled as she stepped forward and took the assignment paper from her hand, saying as if casually, “Fifth Sister, don’t be afraid. After all, you have two sisters here. We’ll look after you a bit.”
Feng Anning snorted through her nose. Although she didn’t like Shen Miao before, she also didn’t much care for Shen Yue and Shen Qing. Her mother was a formidable woman, and there were many sisters in their household. She could see at a glance who harbored ill intentions and who was making petty calculations. How were Shen Yue and Shen Qing any different from those concubine-born sisters in their household who sought to compete for favor and love? They merely wanted to use Shen Miao’s stupidity to highlight themselves.
Indeed, as soon as Shen Yue’s words came out, Yi Peilan heard them from the side and sneered: “Shen Yue, why are you saying these things to her? Even if you give her the best ideas, I’m afraid she won’t be able to handle them.”
“Yes, just let Shen Miao prepare carefully by herself,” Jiang Xiaoxuan also laughed.
When the ladies and young misses around heard such blatant mockery, they pretended not to hear, maintaining serious expressions on the surface while the corners of their mouths turned upward.
It was nothing special—every year, Shen Miao was a joke at the examination site. When being mocked became a habit, everything remained unchanged, even though such mockery shouldn’t appear among the children of noble families.
“Don’t speak of Fifth Sister that way,” Shen Yue disapproved. “Fifth Sister is also very dedicated.” She opened the assignment paper, let out an “Oh my!” and looked at Shen Miao with delight: “It’s a painting. Fifth Sister, you and I drew the same assignment.”
Feng Anning looked at Shen Yue somewhat incomprehensibly. What was there to be delighted about just because they drew the same assignment? Shen Miao, however, understood perfectly. Shen Yue probably felt that her stupidity would once again serve to highlight Shen Yue’s outstanding elegance. Moreover, Fu Xiuyi was present today. Thinking of Fu Xiuyi, her eyes darkened.
“What does Fifth Sister plan to paint?” Shen Qing asked curiously. “Why not let Second Sister give you some pointers?” These words were full of goodwill, perfectly portraying the image of an elder sister who loved her younger sister. Others who saw this would only say that Shen Qing was exceptionally caring toward her cousin.
“Thank you both for your concern,” Shen Miao said coldly. “However, since this is an examination, it’s better to follow the rules. If Second Sister helps me, wouldn’t that be cheating? Two people caught cheating would be expelled from the examination site together. Is Second Sister willing to go to such lengths for me?”
After her lukewarm words were spoken, Shen Yue’s expression changed. True, such behavior could be considered cheating, but in the past, everyone would only have said she was loving and kind, without giving it much thought. But with Shen Miao “deliberately” pointing it out, everyone’s gaze toward Shen Yue changed.
At the examination site, one more person meant one more competitor, and everyone wanted to claim the top spot and all the glory. Shen Yue’s good relations with others at Guangwen Hall didn’t mean there weren’t people who envied her. All these young ladies were her competitors, and every year Shen Yue took first place in the women’s section, which naturally bred resentment. If they could catch her in misconduct and get her removed from the competition, wouldn’t that eliminate a formidable rival? Suddenly, those female students who had previously stood with Shen Yue gazed at her with predatory eyes, including Yi Peilan and her group, who were friendly with Shen Yue.
Shen Yue shuddered. She naturally understood the implications. Looking back, she saw Shen Miao watching her with a mocking half-smile, her gaze full of ridicule.
If she backed down now, it would seem that her previous show of goodwill was fake. If she pressed on, there was no guarantee that these students wouldn’t seize on this weakness to prevent her from participating in the competition. Either way was wrong. Shen Yue forcefully suppressed the venom in her heart, glanced at Shen Miao, and smiled with difficulty: “Since Fifth Sister has said so, I dare not presume to be well-intentioned. Very well then.”
Feng Anning couldn’t help but snicker, deliberately saying loudly: “I thought you loved your sister so much, but it seems it was all talk. You were scared off so easily—what was all that about sincerely helping?”
At that moment, the gazes of those young ladies toward Shen Yue became quite meaningful.
Chen Ruoqiu also heard the commotion from nearby. She was somewhat flustered—Shen Yue was still young and didn’t know how to handle the situation. At the same time, she felt a chill in her heart. This Shen Miao could stir up others’ emotions with just a few words, making people follow her lead. What a formidable mouth! Yet she couldn’t intervene—these were children’s matters, and if she, as a mother, interfered, it would be beneath her dignity.
Ren Wanyun and Shen Qing both felt somewhat gleeful. They knew that if Shen Yue was too outstanding, it would also overshadow Shen Qing’s brilliance. If Shen Yue fared poorly, then Shen Qing would be the only one left to uphold the Shen family’s reputation.
Shen Yue looked at Shen Miao. She thought that if this sister had become smarter now, she should speak up to help resolve the situation. After all, they were both sisters from the Shen household—what good would come from word spreading that the different branches of the Shen family were at odds? Moreover, Shen Miao had always curried favor with Shen Yue; if she offended Shen Yue, Shen Miao would have no friends left.
But she waited for a long while without hearing Shen Miao’s response. Shen Yue couldn’t help but speak: “Fifth Sister…”
“Doesn’t Second Sister need to think about what to paint next?” Shen Miao’s voice was flat and emotionless. “As for me, don’t worry about it.”
Seeing that Shen Miao had no intention of helping her out of the predicament, and looking at the slightly mocking gazes of the young ladies around them, for the first time, Shen Yue almost couldn’t control her desire to slap Shen Miao hard. She barely restrained her emotions and said through gritted teeth: “It seems Fifth Sister is already confident. If that’s the case, we’ll see how brilliantly Fifth Sister performs later. It must be magnificent!”
Shen Yue bit heavily on the words “magnificent.” After saying this, she flicked her sleeves and turned away angrily. Shen Qing hurriedly followed.
Feng Anning looked at Shen Miao and asked: “Although it was extremely satisfying, why didn’t you leave yourself a way out? When it’s your turn to perform, she will surely seize the opportunity to mock you harshly.”
“I don’t like to endure,” Shen Miao looked at the chessboard in front of her. Don’t endure, don’t look back, don’t soften your heart.
“Don’t endure, kill instead.” She picked up a chess piece and placed it on the board.