Lu Changju curled her lips, “Sister-in-law, how can you be so stupid? Your second sister is so good at making money, yet you can’t even learn one-tenth of her abilities? You even squandered all those shops she had accumulated before! If you hadn’t ruined those shops, how could big brother possibly not have enough money to take a concubine? When all is said and done, isn’t it still your own fault?”
Nanny Wu was simply furious. What kind of sin had Third Miss committed to encounter such an unreasonable family? If only she had known earlier, why bother scheming against Second Miss? Alas…
Qin Feifei was even more infuriated, nearly fainting from anger.
Although Lu Changxuan was impatient with Qin Feifei’s pitiful and wretched appearance, that didn’t mean he enjoyed seeing his own mother and sister behaving so crudely.
When all was said and done, Ju’er was still the best—elegant like autumn chrysanthemums, emanating a subtle fragrance that inspired respect in others.
Moreover, Qin Yaoyao was actually quite good too. At the very least, she had never caused him any worry, and everything at home was orderly and thriving.
…
After Old Madam Lu and Lu Changju had thoroughly humiliated Qin Feifei, they departed triumphantly.
Qin Feifei collapsed on the bed, crying her heart out. Nanny Wu comforted her for a long while, then advised her to return to the Qin residence. Only then did Qin Feifei wash her face, apply her makeup, and take the children along with Nanny Wu and the others. Taking advantage of Old Madam Lu’s absence, she returned to the Qin residence.
Although the old madam had previously declared that Qin Feifei could not return to the residence except on special occasions, now that she had arrived at the gates holding her child and crying pitifully, no one truly dared to stop her. They hurriedly went to the inner courtyard to inform Dong Shi.
Dong Shi, trying to discern the old madam’s intentions, realized that her anger at the time had merely been due to Qin Feifei’s shameless behavior. Now that several months had passed, she surely couldn’t really forbid her legitimate granddaughter from returning, could she?
She had even tacitly allowed Qin Yunyun’s house arrest to be lifted. Since Qin Feifei was married out, the old madam’s anger should have subsided, and it was time to allow her to visit. Nevertheless, Dong Shi personally went to Xuan Hall. She didn’t see the old madam but met with Nanny Gu.
After Dong Shi explained the situation, Nanny Gu went in to report to the old madam. When she came out, she told Dong Shi: “The old madam needs to rest quietly. When Third Young Madam returns, she won’t see her.”
These words were cleverly phrased, and Dong Shi understood immediately. She promptly had the gates opened and welcomed Qin Feifei inside.
However, as soon as Qin Feifei saw Dong Shi, she launched into a tearful complaint, which made Dong Shi regret her decision.
She had originally thought that since Third Young Master was now among the most outstanding talents of his generation, and Third Young Madam had some capabilities to push aside her second sister, maintaining good relations with Third Young Madam would provide additional support in the capital. She hadn’t expected that she was actually returning to her natal family for reinforcements—where had all those capabilities gone?
“Sister-in-law, he actually has a lover outside and wants to bring her in as a concubine! What does he take me for? What’s hateful is that my mother-in-law and sister-in-law actually say it’s all my fault, and they want to elevate her to equal wife status. What do they take our Qin family for…”
Qin Feifei’s eyes were red as she wiped her tears, naturally not mentioning anything about Qin Yaoyao.
Dong Shi felt somewhat troubled. If Lu Changxuan and Old Madam Lu were like this, weren’t Qin Kaile and Xu Shi the same? Lu Changxuan only had two concubines, while Qin Kaile already had three concubines.
However, Old Madam Lu’s words were indeed too excessive. Dong Shi knew something of Old Madam Lu’s character, and during the eight years Qin Yaoyao had been married, Dong Shi had heard about Old Madam Lu’s affairs.
“Third sister, don’t worry. They absolutely wouldn’t dare to take an equal wife. Forget about others—the Imperial Censor alone would seize upon this point relentlessly. Even if Old Madam Lu were willing, Third Brother-in-law couldn’t possibly be so foolish.”
Qin Feifei naturally understood this principle and knew that Old Madam Lu was purely trying to disgust her. Now that she had cried her fill and much of her anger had dissipated, when Dong Shi spoke this way, she went along with the consolation.
After Dong Shi comforted her for quite a while, Qin Feifei finally freshened up and applied her makeup again, then went to visit Xu Shi.
No one knew what the mother and daughter discussed, but soon it was lunchtime.
Currently at the Qin residence, although the household hadn’t officially divided, during regular meals each branch ate in their own quarters. Only when the old madam wanted to dine with everyone, or when important guests arrived, would everyone eat together.
Since Qin Feifei had returned and the old madam had allowed her to visit, this was equivalent to the old madam’s anger having subsided. Therefore, at noon, Dong Shi had word sent to each branch that they would dine together at lunch.
At the dining table.
Seeing Qin Shuying arrive fashionably late, Qin Feifei’s jealous gaze remained fixed on her throughout. It was all her fault—if she hadn’t caused the Lu residence’s shop business to fail, how could she have fallen to today’s situation?
However, now that her engagement to the Liu family had been broken off, let’s see how she could still be so smug.
Since Qin Yongtao and Qin Kaiyu often took their meals at their posts and only occasionally returned home, and they happened to be absent today, only one table was set. The first, second, and third branches totaled ten people.
Except for Concubine Miao who stood serving Dong Shi, the other nine people were all seated. Qin Wei was somewhat unhappy—at this full table, only she and Eighth Aunt were concubine-born daughters. Since Xu Shi wasn’t present, Concubine Li didn’t need to serve either, leaving only her own concubine standing there alone so conspicuously, looking as humble as could be.
Dong Shi only chose to discuss food, dishes, and weather. Zou Shi followed these two topics, while Qin Yue, Qin Feifei, and Qin Yunyun occasionally chimed in. The rest sat there like mute gourds.
Qin Lulu knew her place, and since everyone’s topics were peaceful, she didn’t speak much. After all, having one more person like her didn’t matter, and having one less wouldn’t matter either.
Qin Shuying and Qin Fangfang were like invisible people, only showing faint smiles.
Qin Wei had matters weighing on her mind and didn’t want to speak.
Seeing Qin Shuying’s calm expression as she ate methodically without showing any signs of sadness, Qin Feifei gradually became angry. After taking a bite of shad fish, she sighed: “Sister-in-law, this shad fish tastes really good. I haven’t had any for a long time. What’s the price like in this season?”
Dong Shi said: “Third sister, you’re truly blessed to have this opportunity. Master just received this the day before yesterday. This shad fish is expensive—the residence hasn’t bought any for a long time. The last time we bought some was when second brother returned home. I remember it was about four taels of silver per jin.”
Qin Feifei was startled: “Today’s fish must weigh over two jin—that’s more than ten taels of silver!”
Dong Shi said: “Exactly.”
Ten taels of silver was equivalent to a first-class maid’s annual wages in the residence.
Qin Feifei smiled bitterly: “I’m truly embarrassing myself in front of sister-in-law—nowadays even a single shad fish is worth my amazement.”
Ziteng, who was standing aside serving, narrowed her eyes.
Dong Shi didn’t respond. She was a clever person who understood what Qin Feifei was hinting at, and she wouldn’t fall for this trap. Although after Qin Shuying’s broken engagement, Dong Shi no longer regarded Qin Shuying as highly as before, this didn’t mean she would serve as someone else’s weapon.
Having been used once and thoroughly slapped down by Qin Shuying for it, she didn’t want to be played for a fool again in the future.
Seeing that Dong Shi wouldn’t take the bait, Qin Feifei felt somewhat annoyed. Just then, Qin Yunyun spoke up: “Third sister, you’re still a legitimate daughter of our Qin family, and third brother-in-law has received important appointments. How could you possibly not afford shad fish?”