The Old Dowager held the invitation card, but instead of opening it immediately, she examined it carefully all over, then gently caressed it with her hand adorned with a jade ring. The smile blooming at the corners of her lips was both relieved and satisfied.
Her most beloved Meng Ge’er truly had capabilities! Ever since the legitimate eldest son returned home, good fortune had come one after another—first they moved to a new home, then her son gained the Emperor’s favor, and now even Great Zhou’s nobility were beginning to extend invitations to their family.
Didn’t this represent that the Qin family’s status had once again entered the upper echelons, no longer needing to read others’ expressions?
What the Old Dowager feared most was that the Qin family would decline under her generation.
If that truly happened, she wouldn’t have the face to meet the Qin family ancestors even after closing her eyes forever.
Now everything was fine—the weight on her heart could finally be lifted.
Seeing the Old Dowager caress the invitation more tenderly than she treated her own grandchildren, everyone had their own thoughts.
Qin Yining shook her head with amusement, saying nothing. She supposed that being able to live such days again, the Old Dowager’s heavy burden could finally be set down.
Only after the Old Dowager had admired the invitation enough did she unfold it to read the contents inside, then sighed with a beaming smile: “This Madam of Loyal and Brave Marquis seems to be a harmonious person.”
Harmonious?
Qin Yining recalled Madam Lu’s beautiful face and arrogant demeanor, truly unable to connect the word “harmonious” with her.
This woman was no easy mark—if she were to attend the banquet, she’d need to prepare thoroughly in advance just in case.
“The Old Dowager speaks truly. We’re all newcomers here, so presumably those who would actively seek to associate with us must be easy to get along with,” Qin Huining smiled as she chimed in.
The Second Madam also said: “It’s fortunate that Elder Brother returned, otherwise we’d still be staying at the guest house right now—how could we have such good fortune?”
The Old Dowager favored Qin Huaiyuan, so naturally she enjoyed hearing people praise him. “Second daughter-in-law speaks correctly—this time we indeed owe much to Meng Ge’er.”
The Second Master and Third Master exchanged glances, both quietly lowering their heads to drink tea. In any case, these two had long accepted their fate—their mother’s heart was simply biased beyond measure. Fortunately, their elder brother treated them extremely well, and he was indeed outstanding. Though these two brothers sometimes felt sour about it, they harbored no hostility toward Qin Huaiyuan.
However, Han’s Second Madam said: “It’s just that this Madam of Loyal and Brave Marquis doesn’t handle things very appropriately—only sending an invitation for Yi Jie’er to go, but what about the other girls in our family?”
Hearing this, Qin Yining only glanced at Han’s Second Madam without offering any rebuttal.
When she had first returned to the residence, Qin Han had helped her considerably. Over time, Qin Yining discovered that Qin Han was an extremely magnanimous and straightforward person, so she was quite close to this cousin brother. Though Han’s Second Madam sometimes showed petty airs, she wasn’t a bad person. However, today’s thoughtless words would inevitably create awkwardness in people’s hearts.
Sure enough, the smile on Qin Huining’s face became somewhat stiff as she replied with a bitter smile: “Second Sister-in-law jests. I’m an adopted daughter, and Eighth Younger Sister is a concubine’s daughter—naturally we two can’t ascend to such high platforms and can’t compare to Fourth Miss’s dignity.”
Hearing this, the Second Madam frowned and glared at Han’s Second Madam.
Nanny Qin, standing behind the Old Dowager, also shook her head secretly.
Eighth Miss glanced sideways at Qin Huining and smiled innocently: “This isn’t really a matter of legitimate versus concubine-born status at all. They’re properly inviting someone to a banquet, presumably for Elder Uncle’s sake. Elder Uncle only has one legitimate daughter—Fourth Sister. Isn’t it perfectly natural for Madam Lu to only send an invitation to Fourth Sister?”
Qin Huining’s smile nearly couldn’t hold up under Eighth Miss’s retort.
She truly didn’t understand what Eighth Miss was thinking. Among the girls now, aside from Qin Yining, only Eighth Miss was truly Qin family blood. Didn’t she want to compete with Qin Yining?
She was only held back by her adopted daughter status—otherwise she would have long ago found ways to avenge past humiliations.
The Second Master coughed lowly and said: “Eighth girl speaks correctly. Though these days we no longer need to do needlework to supplement the household, you girls should still properly stay in your rooms learning embroidery—that’s the proper way. Don’t meddle in outside affairs without reason. This is only in front of family—if you were to act so petty in front of outsiders, wouldn’t you fear being laughed at?”
The Master disliked Qin Huining’s behavior, so his tone was naturally stern.
Qin Huining was scolded until her face turned red, burning with embarrassment. She lowered her head, not daring to speak, though tears of grievance spun in her eyes.
Qin Yining shook her head helplessly. If she were Qin Huining, she would now honestly prepare for marriage. Believing that the Qin family, for the sake of their own reputation, wouldn’t choose a bad husband for her, she could spend her whole life peacefully living her own quiet days—how wonderful that would be.
But she couldn’t see through this and refused to give up hope.
Having already decided to attend the banquet, before Qin Yining could act, the Old Dowager was already urging her to go change clothes and dress up.
Qin Yining called Ji Yun to her side and asked in a low voice: “What exactly is this Madam Lu’s background? When I saw her in the palace last time, she seemed even more dignified than Princess Anyang, and Princess Anyang even had to call her ‘elder sister.'”
Ji Yun had stayed in the capital for a long time and understood the capital’s personnel very well. Hearing this, she whispered: “Miss doesn’t know—this Madam Lu is a legitimate daughter from a branch of the Lu family lineage. The Lu family lineage is a great family with over a hundred years of history. Even during the Northern Ji Kingdom, they were already deeply rooted. Their family’s enterprises spread throughout the nation, involving all kinds of industries, with connections and influence that cannot be underestimated.”
“When the Emperor first raised his army, without the Lu family lineage’s economic support, he probably couldn’t have conquered this territory of the capital city. Therefore, the Emperor also values the Lu family greatly. People from the Lu family living outside all have quite high status and position.”
“Madam Lu was originally betrothed to General Mi. Oh, you might not know—General Mi, the Prince, and Marquis Dingbei were brothers who fought together, with life-and-death bonds. However, General Mi was of farming background, plain in appearance, and more than ten years older than Madam Lu. Madam Lu never liked General Mi. Even though General Mi loved and cherished her greatly, she was never satisfied. Relying on being from the Lu family lineage and knowing General Mi wouldn’t do anything to her, she began openly keeping male lovers.”
“Male lovers?” Qin Yining stopped applying rouge, turning back to look at Ji Yun in astonishment.
Ji Yun said: “Miss, don’t disbelieve it—this is all true. General Mi was always wearing green clouds above his head. Later, after he died in battle and was posthumously enfeoffed as Loyal and Brave Marquis, Madam Lu became the Marquis Madam and acted even more unscrupulously. Many people outside say that General Mi died in battle partly because he was angered to death by Madam Lu. A dignified man having to be suppressed by such a wife until he couldn’t hold his head up—with his in-laws having too much power and the Emperor’s regard for the Lu family, General Mi could only find release through death.”
Qin Yining listened with mouth agape, only nodding after a long while and sighing: “She truly is a formidable woman.”
This kind of person had no bottom line—she needed to be extra careful.
After grooming and dressing properly, Qin Yining took Ji Yun and Qian Yun with her, riding in a carriage to the Loyal and Brave Marquis residence.
As soon as they reached the front gate, a clever maid came forward to bow: “Are you Miss Qin? Madam specifically instructed this servant to come welcome you inside.”