The lunch was a pleasant one for both the host and guests, mainly because Chen Yuanyao was there. Under Chen Yuanyao's influence, Zuo Qingzhi relaxed and became less reserved than when she first arrived.

After the meal, Xiao Yunying asked them to have tea in the living room to aid digestion, while she went to the kitchen and made several desserts with hawthorn, intending to take them back with her later.

She was worried that Zheng Yunwan wasn't feeling well, so she told her to go back to her room and rest. Since making pastries wasn't tiring, Zheng Yunwan didn't refuse her kindness.

Xiao Yunying placed the chopped pastries on a baking tray, took it to the yard, threw a few pieces of firewood into the bottom of the kiln, and waited for the temperature to rise slightly before putting the baking tray inside.

Just then, she heard footsteps behind her. Thinking it was Chen Yuanyao who couldn't wait any longer, she said without turning her head, "Why did you come out? Have you finished the pastries on the table? Eat less, or you'll overeat."

"Big sister, it's me."

Xiao Yunying straightened up and put the fire tongs aside: "Did you need something from me?"

There were many people around earlier, so Zuo Qingzhi didn't feel anything, but now that she was alone with the other person, she suddenly felt a little lost.

"Big sister, I just wanted to talk to you."

Looking at the girl in front of her, Xiao Yunying thought it over and over and decided that it would be better to make things clear.

"Did the Minister's wife send you?"

Zuo Qingzhi did not deny it: "Mother wanted me to get to know my eldest sister better, but it was mostly my own idea. I often heard Yao Yao mention my eldest sister, so I was very curious about what kind of person she was that could earn the praise of the three Luo siblings."

She smiled sweetly and said, "Now I know, big sister is beautiful, has a gentle and approachable personality, making people want to get close to her without even realizing it. She also has excellent cooking skills, no wonder..."

Even Brother Yuancheng likes you...

The last words were left unsaid. A fleeting look of melancholy crossed Zuo Qingzhi's eyes, but she quickly concealed it: "Big sister, I can sense that you don't dislike me, right?"

Xiao Yunying noticed a momentary shift in her emotions, but she wasn't interested and spoke frankly:

"I don't dislike you, I just dislike Zuo Lanzhi. What she did has nothing to do with you, and I won't hold a grudge against you. I just don't want to have anything to do with your family anymore, so I don't plan to..."

"I knew my feeling was right!"

Zuo Qingzhi relaxed a bit after receiving a positive answer, but he spoke urgently and loudly, as if deliberately interrupting her.

"To be honest, I also hate her. She's always pretended to be pitiful and well-behaved since she was little. She takes advantage of my mother's special affection for her and has secretly taken away so many of my things and bullied me countless times."

Xiao Yunying shook her head helplessly; the girl's intentions were too obvious.

However, she couldn't bear to keep rejecting Zuo Qingzhi's overtures, so she went along with her words and said, "With your personality, you wouldn't just swallow your anger if you were bullied, would you?"

Speaking of this, Zuo Qingzhi's mood dropped. She stomped her toes on the ground and said sullenly, "I definitely wouldn't compromise if it were anyone else, but she is Zuo Lanzhi."

Xiao Yunying had already guessed: "Is the Minister's wife... extremely biased towards her?"

Zuo Qingzhi nodded: "Since I can remember, my mother has repeatedly told me to always give way to my older sister. After I became more sensible, I thought that my mother was especially fond of her because she was not in good health. I can't think of any other reason."

But as we grew up year by year, she showed no signs of illness, which I found strange.

Once, she tried to take the jade bracelet that my grandmother had given me. She already had one, but she still tried to take mine. I couldn't help but run to my mother and cry, feeling wronged. But my mother only said that she would buy me a few more bracelets, but she never said that she would take the original bracelet back.

When I heard what my mother said, I felt even worse. I asked her directly why she always favored my older sister, but she only said that it was because she owed my older sister.

I was too young to understand then, so I just shouted out and told her that it was you who owed her older sister, not me. I am also my mother's daughter. Why do I always have to give in and back down? I also feel wronged.

Who knew that after saying these words, my mother was stunned for a moment, and then she burst into tears. She cried very sadly. I didn't want to see my mother cry, so I tried my best to tolerate Zuo Lanzhi and avoid conflicts with her.

However, after that day, my mother probably spoke to Zuo Lanzhi about something, and she stopped openly bullying me. Since she didn't bother me, I didn't bother with her either.

Mother knew we didn't get along, but she didn't force us to be harmonious. Even the female tutors were hired separately. Although we lived in the same house, I saw her less often than the gatekeeper.

Xiao Yunying listened quietly as she finished speaking, knowing that she still had a knot in her heart because of this matter. She was telling her all this as both narration and venting, so she comforted her, saying:

"The fact that Zuo Lanzhi didn't bully you shows that the Minister's wife criticized her very seriously, and that she still cares about you."

Zuo Qingzhi said with disdain, "What? With her personality, even if Mother speaks sternly, she can only pretend for a few days. Before long, she will show her true colors."

It was only because she overheard her parents' conversation when she was nine years old and learned that she wasn't their biological child that she slightly toned down her temper.

Xiao Yunying was somewhat surprised: "You mean she already knew she wasn't your parents' biological child, and your parents didn't know she already knew that?"

Zuo Qingzhi explained in detail: "On her ninth birthday, she wore the new dress her mother bought for her and came to show it off in front of me. I impatiently said a few words to her, and she got angry and pushed me down."

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