Wang Yueniang pouted, wanting to say more but fearing Fourth Miss Wang, so she remained silent.
Shen Yuan glanced at Fourth Miss Wang. She was good at playing the nice one – she had been the first to stir up trouble, but let Wang Yueniang say all the bad things. With Wang Yueniang as a foil, no wonder people praised Fourth Miss Wang as virtuous and refined.
Although Fourth Miss Wang had silenced Wang Yueniang, her resentment hadn’t subsided. Shen Cui’s recent prominence meant everyone in the capital now knew of the Shen family’s Fifth Miss, while Wang Yueniang was forgotten. How could she be at peace, when that fool Shen Cui was inferior to her in every way?
So Wang Yueniang approached Shen Cui and whispered in her ear: “Don’t think I don’t know where you and Ji Cheng disappeared to on the night of the Qixi Festival. Those disgusting men held and embraced you, didn’t they?”
Wang Yueniang’s voice was so low that only Shen Cui heard. Shen Cui’s face changed dramatically, her hands shaking with anger. She turned to slap Wang Yueniang but was blocked.
“Elder Sister Cui, why are you trying to hit me?” Wang Yueniang cried out, frowning as she stepped back.
Seeing Shen Cui’s reaction, Shen Yuan sighed. No matter how upset she was, she shouldn’t lose her composure in front of everyone.
Shen Cui was so angered by Wang Yueniang that tears welled up in her eyes, but she couldn’t express her grievances. She couldn’t explain to everyone what Wang Yueniang had said, and she was even more furious at Wang Yueniang’s audacity to speak of such a hellish deed while being the perpetrator. It was too much.
Back at the Shen residence, Shen Cui flung herself onto her bed and began sobbing. Ji Lan rushed over to find Shen Cui crying heartbrokenly. “What’s wrong, Cui’er? Don’t cry, you’re breaking your mother’s heart.”
Shen Cui turned and hugged Ji Lan, crying, “Mother, you don’t know. Wang Yueniang admitted it. She knows about what happened to Qixi. It must have been her. How dare she say that to me? I hate that I can’t do anything about it.” She began wailing again, trying to cry out all her grievances. “Mother, is there nothing we can do against her? I can’t accept this. I can’t!”
Shen Cui’s pitiful crying upset Ji Lan as well. “Mother knows, mother knows. Be patient a little longer. I will avenge you.”
“Wait, wait, wait. How long do we have to wait?” Shen Cui started to lose her temper.
While Shen Cui could at least vent to Ji Lan, Ji Cheng had no such luxury. No one would comfort her for her grievances, and she didn’t dare tell Yun Niang about this incident – it would terrify her.
Ji Cheng gazed at the moon, thinking of the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, a time for family reunions. She felt homesick. Recently, Ji Cheng realized she might have been mistaken in thinking that marrying into a noble family would protect her from humiliation. The reality might be different. Perhaps there was more security than for those from humble backgrounds, but there were also more complex interests to consider.
It wasn’t that the Shen family couldn’t stand up to the Wang family; it was that no one was willing to speak up for her and Shen Cui. Even Ji Lan wouldn’t, and she was Shen Cui’s mother. But Ji Cheng wasn’t surprised. Hadn’t Yun Niang chosen to sacrifice her for the sake of her father and brother?
Ji Cheng realized that unless she could prove her indispensable value, others would choose to sacrifice her if trouble arose. For instance, if it had been Shen Yuan or Shen Rong involved, the matter wouldn’t have been handled this way.
Ji Cheng couldn’t see a way out at the moment. She couldn’t imagine her future husband would view her as his everything. If something happened, she, the “lowly outsider,” would likely be the first to be sacrificed. Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but remember Ling Ziyun, who had truly cared for her and dared to confront the Zhu family for her sake. In the end, she had let him down.
Now, Ji Cheng felt too ashamed to turn back, yet unsure of the path forward. Her thoughts wandered, leading to sleepless nights that left dark circles under her eyes.
With the polo tournament over, the young ladies’ attention returned to their studies as their teacher, Master Lian, had returned to the capital.
Due to her sleepless nights, Ji Cheng barely dozed off before dawn, only to wake for morning greetings. By the time she reached the study hall, her mind was foggy. As Master Lian hadn’t arrived yet, she rested her chin on her hand, ready to nap. Suddenly, Shen Cui shook her roughly, nearly causing her chin to hit the desk.
“What’s wrong?” Ji Cheng yawned, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Huge news!” Shen Cui’s face was beaming.
Before Ji Cheng could fully comprehend, Shen Cui continued excitedly: “You know how they say karma always catches up? Well, some people get their comeuppance in this life.”
Ji Cheng’s interest was piqued as Shen Cui went on: “Do you know what happened on the day of the polo finals? Wang Yueniang disappeared. Despite all her maids and servants, she was kidnapped. Poor thing, who knows how many disgusting men defiled her? I heard when the Wang family found her, she was barely recognizable as human.”
“What happened?” Ji Cheng couldn’t help but ask.
“It happened last night. I wanted to tell you right away, but your lights were out, so I knew you were asleep,” Shen Cui said gleefully. “By the end of today, everyone in the capital will know about Wang Yueniang’s disgrace, just like what happened to Miss Xiang back then.”
Ji Cheng hadn’t known who Miss Xiang was when she first heard about her from Shen Che, but she later learned that Miss Xiang’s experience was similar to what she and Shen Cui had gone through. Wang Yueniang had likely modeled her plot against them on that incident.
Now, hearing “Miss Xiang” again, Ji Cheng immediately understood what had befallen Wang Yueniang.
Shen Cui whispered in Ji Cheng’s ear, “Coincidentally, Wang Yueniang was also sold to Tianxiang Lou. But she wasn’t as lucky as us; she couldn’t escape and was defiled that very night. The Wang family finally found her yesterday, but it was too late. They tried to keep it quiet, but as luck would have it, Prince Ping’s youngest son was there seeking pleasure. He’s close to my Second Brother, so he found out. I can’t wait to see how Wang Yueniang can show her face in public now.”
Ji Cheng said softly, “Yes, it’s too coincidental.” So coincidental that it was suspicious.
“Do you know who did it?” Ji Cheng asked.
Shen Cui shook her head, “I only heard about it last night when I was up late at my mother’s place.”
“It wasn’t our family?” Ji Cheng probed.
Shen Cui shook her head again, “I’m not sure. Even my mother doesn’t know who did it. If it were our family, there’s no reason they wouldn’t have discussed it with my father and mother.”
Ji Cheng disagreed with Shen Cui’s assessment but didn’t argue. Ji Lan might not want to openly confront the Wang family, but the Shen family couldn’t just take such a blow. It was obvious that the Shen family was behind this – they didn’t even bother to change the location, still selling her to Tianxiang Lou. Wasn’t that practically announcing their identity?
Only the unthinking Shen Cui couldn’t be certain who was responsible.
Now, the Shen and Wang families would begin their feud. They might not openly declare war, but everyone understood what was happening behind the scenes.
Ji Cheng sent Ranqian’er out to gather information. By evening, it became clear that news of Wang Yueniang’s incident hadn’t spread through the capital. It seemed those present had either been silenced by the Wang family or had their mouths sealed. However, even the Wang family couldn’t completely control information in the capital, so this matter couldn’t be kept secret forever.
While dining with Shen Cui in Ji Lan’s room, Ji Cheng heard another piece of news. Chen Bin, the son of Marquis Chen of Anping, had gotten into a fight while drinking a few days ago. His leg was broken, and he was barely alive, now reduced to an invalid.
Chen Bin was Wang Yueniang’s cousin. Ji Cheng heard from Shen Cui that Chen Bin often played with Wang Yueniang, so she suspected that Wang Yueniang had asked Chen Bin to harm her and Shen Cui. That’s why Chen Bin met the same fate as Wang Yueniang.
In truth, Ji Cheng suspected Fourth Miss Wang was behind all this. While Wang Yueniang had a bad temper, she was straightforward. Such underhanded schemes didn’t seem like something she could devise. But this time, the catalyst was Shen Cui winning the chance to perform at the Mid-Autumn Festival over Wang Yueniang. Chen Bin was a relative from Wang Yueniang’s mother’s side. All signs pointed to Wang Yueniang, even if Fourth Miss Wang had instigated something behind the scenes. She had merely spoken a few words.
The Shen family had acted against Wang Yueniang, but they couldn’t touch the renowned Fourth Miss Wang as well. That would truly incite the Wang family to fight to the death with the Shen family.
Upon hearing about Chen Bin, Shen Cui cheered, “How satisfying! Evil deeds bring evil consequences.”
Watching the delighted Shen Cui, Ji Lan inwardly shook her head. This child was so naive; it truly worried her about Shen Cui’s future.
Recently, there was a vacancy for the Minister of Works. Ji Lan had been trying to use her connections to see if Shen Ying could be promoted. This was why she had been so tolerant of the Wang family. She had finally managed to get through to Imperial Consort Wang, who, feeling guilty about Shen Cui’s incident, had agreed to mention it to the Emperor. But now, the Old Madam had ruined everything.
Ji Lan felt a surge of resentment. People say the youngest child is the most loved, but she saw that Old Madam Shen only cared for her eldest and second sons, completely forgetting about her youngest.
Ji Lan was truly fed up with the first and second branches of the family. Shen Ying had sacrificed so much for them. Over the years, she had come to understand that because the Second Master held command of the Northwestern Army, the Emperor while trusting him, couldn’t help but be wary. As a result, Shen Ying was held back by his second uncle. No matter how capable he was or how well he performed, he had been stuck at the rank of Lang Zhong with no further promotion.
Barring any unexpected events, Ji Lan feared her son would follow in his father’s footsteps. As long as the second branch held power, the third branch of the Shen family would never rise.
This issue had kept Ji Lan awake for countless nights. She wasn’t without self-respect, nor did she not love her daughter. But for the sake of Shen Ying and Shen Jing, she had swallowed her pride. Finally, Imperial Consort Wang had agreed, but now…
Ji Lan and Ji Cheng shared the same view on this matter – it must have been someone from the Shen family. Moreover, Ji Lan knew that without Old Madam’s approval, her eldest and second brothers-in-law wouldn’t have acted.
Feeling dejected, Ji Lan finished dinner and told Shen Cui and the others to rest early. She then headed to Old Madam’s room. She had wanted to see Old Madam during the day, but the Old Madam had said she would be at Jishi Temple for a vegetarian meal, so Ji Lan had to wait until evening.