Chu Zhao galloped into the household, startling everyone in the Chu family.

Chu Lan wasn’t home. Chu Tang was still running behind. Aunt Jiang Shi was looking after Chu Ke, who was exhausted from his arduous journey.

Hearing that Chu Zhao had returned, Jiang Shi became even more angry.

“Your father is just like this—harsh words but a soft heart,” she said angrily. “Why did he have someone release her? If she wants to live in a prison cell, let her stay there.”

Chu Ke lay on the soft bed, being fed a bite of candied fruit by a beautiful maid, saying lazily: “She doesn’t mind losing face, but we still do.”

Jiang Shi sneered: “She is she, and we are we. If you all conduct yourselves well, you won’t be dragged down by her wherever you go.” Speaking of her own children, her face filled with smiles as she personally fed Chu Ke a bite of fruit. “Your sister at the Liang estate still receives exceptional courtesy, practically eating and staying together with Miss Liang.”

Not only was there no negative impact, their relationship was even better than before.

Indeed, with Chu Zhao as a comparison, everyone liked Chu Tang even more.

“Mother, you should go quickly and see,” Chu Ke urged. “Now that she’s back, you can bind her and take her to the Liang family.”

Although it wouldn’t implicate him personally, apologizing to others on someone else’s behalf was still an unpleasant affair. Jiang Shi sighed deeply: “My fate is truly unfortunate—how did I end up with such a sinful trouble?”

After instructing Chu Ke to rest well, she finally came out, waiting for Chu Zhao to come pay her respects. But after drinking a full cup of tea, she still hadn’t seen anyone come.

“What is she doing?” Jiang Shi asked. “Does she need to bathe and burn incense first?”

A matron sent someone to inquire. Before long, she returned with a strange expression: “Miss Ah Zhao is… resting.”

Resting? Jiang Shi was stunned for a moment, then in the next instant stood up: “She can actually sleep? Because of her, everyone in this household has been on edge and unable to eat or sleep in peace.” She pressed her hand to her chest. “She infuriates me.”

The matrons quickly surrounded her, patting and soothing: “Madam, don’t be angry.” “She’s had no one to discipline her since childhood—no sense of propriety.” “Madam can teach her slowly.”

“Have me teach her—she’s all grown up and set in her ways, and now they want me to teach her,” Jiang Shi said, pressing her chest. “Back when Old Madam was alive, she didn’t look down on her origins and treated her as our family’s child, personally raising and teaching her. Second Uncle refused, saying he’d teach his own child himself. Later, when I arranged a marriage match for him—that young lady was so good, she could have married over and helped raise the child—Second Uncle also refused. And now? The child has been raised this way and thrown to me. How am I supposed to teach her?”

Speaking of Second Master’s affairs, the grievances of the Eldest Master and his wife could go on for three days and three nights. The matrons’ ears had grown calluses from hearing it, so they hastily offered consoling and flattering words.

“If I don’t manage it, who will?” Jiang Shi sighed deeply. “After all, an aunt still has the word ‘mother’ in the title.”

Having spoken, she led people to find Chu Zhao.

Before she arrived, Chu Tang returned, running until her face was flushed red, gasping for breath, and covered in fragrant perspiration.

“Mother!” she called out, blocking her way. “Don’t go looking for her. Chu Zhao has gone mad—she’s already been to the Liang estate.”

Jiang Shi quickly supported her, too concerned to listen to her words, raising her hand to carefully wipe away her sweat, eyes full of distress: “Why did you run yourself into this state? Didn’t the Liang estate provide a carriage? You should have had the family come pick you up—”

Chu Tang pulled down her hand: “Mother, there was no time to worry about carriages. Chu Zhao caused a huge scene at the Liang estate gate. Not only did she not apologize, she acted as if she were there to condemn them, and even said she would file a complaint against the Liang family!”

She recounted what Chu Zhao had said to Jiang Shi. Jiang Shi and the surrounding matrons and maids were shocked and incredulous.

“She’s… truly gone mad,” Jiang Shi could only think this. Otherwise, how could she say such things?

That was Minister Liang!

Moreover, Miss Liang was in the process of discussing marriage. Although the Liang family hadn’t publicly announced it, keeping it hidden, there were no secrets in the capital—especially in the inner quarters where even the slightest disturbance spread everywhere. The other party was reportedly the Xie clan of Dongyang—the natal family of the Crown Princess.

The Crown Princess would become Empress in the future—

Speaking of this, Chu Tang couldn’t help saying: “Mother, about Miss Liang’s marriage match—”

Jiang Shi had already recovered herself and interrupted: “Never mind Miss Liang’s marriage match. If she continues making such a scene, you and your brothers won’t be able to arrange any matches either. She’ll have offended everyone, and we won’t be able to stay in the capital anymore.”

As she spoke, she called the matrons.

“Bring rope. Come with me to bind her and send this lawless, improper creature to the Liang family.”

The matrons responded affirmatively, calling for people in a flurry, fetching rope. But the group still couldn’t proceed, as Chu Lan returned. Seeing this chaos, he shouted to stop them.

“What’s going on here!” he scolded irritably.

Jiang Shi came forward: “Master, this is terrible! Chu Zhao is truly going to be the death of our family.” She recounted what had just happened.

“I’ll personally bind her and take her to see Madam Liang myself. I’ll sacrifice my own face and kneel before Madam Liang—I’m not afraid anymore.”

“Master, you don’t need to go. In our family, only you still maintain dignity.”

Chu Lan’s expression was somber, but strangely he didn’t fly into a rage. Instead, he said: “No need to go. The Liang family won’t receive us.”

……

……

Chu Zhao lived in a small courtyard in a corner of the household. In order to teach her propriety, Jiang Shi had assigned four matrons and four maids, making it lively every day.

Of course, after Chu Zhao caused trouble and fled, the matrons and maids all dispersed. Today her return was sudden, and everyone hadn’t reacted yet. Just as they were about to follow, that A’Le who had originally been cast aside by Chu Zhao actually followed her in and closed the courtyard gate.

“No one is permitted to enter,” she called from inside. “The young miss needs to rest.”

They weren’t keen on serving this young miss anyway. The maids and matrons outside the gate dispersed in a scatter.

A’Le stood guard behind the gate, gripping a door bolt, waiting to hold the pass against all comers. But after waiting for a long time, Jiang Shi still didn’t bring people.

“Nothing will happen,” Chu Zhao said, lying on a rocking chair in the corridor. “Father said when I returned, nothing would happen, so there will definitely be nothing.”

Previously she had never believed in her father, only thinking that Father dragged her down. She had tried every means to please others, thinking everyone was more reliable than Father. She hadn’t known at all that the most reliable person was Father.

Even more ridiculous was that everyone except her knew this.

A’Le looked at Chu Zhao. Unlike the journey where she had seemed weak and pitiful, the young miss’s expression was now indifferent, yet also very sorrowful.

“Miss,” she thought for a moment, then praised: “Just now outside the Liang estate gate, you were so impressive! You frightened them so much they didn’t dare speak.”

That’s right.

This was the young miss she knew. In the border commandery, she had never been bullied.

After entering the capital, the young miss had become a different person. Even when those people spoke unpleasantly, the young miss still smiled while serving tea and water to those young ladies—

Hearing her flattery, Chu Zhao’s face showed not the slightest smile. Instead, her sorrow deepened, her eyes full of self-mockery.

“What use is being impressive now?” she said.

In that life, she had ultimately died so miserably, a loser before the Liang clan as well.

A’Le was both confused and saddened, saying softly: “Being impressive now means we won’t be bullied in the future.”

Chu Zhao looked at her. The past couldn’t be pursued, but now she had the chance to live again—she absolutely couldn’t end up so miserably.

“Yes,” she smiled at A’Le. “In the future, we won’t be bullied.”

……

……

“Master, this matter is just going to end like this?” Jiang Shi, whom Chu Lan had persuaded back to her room, asked angrily. “Do you know what she said just now at the Liang family gate?”

Chu Tang hastily repeated the incident once more.

Chu Lan listened with anger: “This girl is truly outrageous! Just like her father!” But he didn’t stand up to bind Chu Zhao. Instead, his expression became somewhat strange, and he muttered: “So that’s what Minister Liang heard?”

Jiang Shi didn’t understand: “Master, what are you saying?”

Chu Lan sighed deeply: “That Chu Zhao did such a thing today—it’s strange yet not strange, unexpected yet not unexpected.”

He reached for the tea on the table, but Chu Tang snatched it away first: “Father, don’t drink tea yet. Please tell us quickly.”

Chu Lan wasn’t angry at all, glancing fondly at his daughter: “Mischievous child.” He didn’t ask for tea again and continued speaking.

“Today I went to find Minister Liang, intending to tell him that Ah Zhao had been confined to a prison cell by that minor magistrate Deng Yi, and to ask Minister Liang to intervene and demand her release.”

“When I arrived, Minister Liang wasn’t there. They said he’d been summoned to the palace.”