Shen Ying wanted to scare Shen Wan so that Shen Wan would reveal her true colors and she could recover her losses, but not only did she fail to do so, she was also angered by Shen Wan. If she wasn't afraid of being accused of being at odds with her sister, she would have left alone long ago. At this moment, she could only suppress her anger and go to the west courtyard with Shen Wan.

They arrived at Qingyi Garden, where Shen Rong lived, in silence.

Inside the room, Shen Rong leaned against a large pillow, her eyes reddening.

She has always enjoyed lively gatherings, but ever since the incident on the alley, she has hardly left the courtyard, and rarely even leaves her room.

No one could tolerate her being asked why she married her cousin, who was a womanizer, cockfighter, and dog walker!

Her eldest and second eldest sisters married princes, and her second eldest sister, in particular, might even become the Crown Princess or Empress in the future. Even her fourth younger sister, who was far less capable than her, was betrothed to the heir of the Duke of Wei. Only she was stuck in a quagmire.

Unable to bear the strange looks from others, and thinking that she would be married into the Wu family in three days, she wanted to end her life.

Just as she was grieving, a maid came in and said, "Miss, your eldest and second aunts have come to bring you some dowry."

Almost the instant the words reached her ears, a terrifying hatred flashed in Shen Rong's eyes.

She lived a miserable life, so they shouldn't even dream of being glamorous.

"Let them in!"

The maidservant left, just as Shen Wan and Shen Ying reached the steps. The maidservant curtsied and made way for them.

Shen Ying and Shen Rong were closer, so Shen Ying walked ahead, while Shen Wan lagged two steps behind.

Since Shen Rong's accident, Shen Wan has never seen her again. In fact, if this were not Shen Rong's courtyard, she would not have recognized the thin person leaning against the large pillow as Shen Rong.

That incident dealt a significant blow to Shen Rong, but it was all their own doing, and Shen Wan suppressed her sympathy.

Shen Ying looked at Shen Rong and said, "Third Sister has finally agreed to see us."

Shen Rong did not speak.

Shen Ying took the brocade box from Lv Liu and handed it to Shen Rong, saying, "This is a dowry I prepared for you, my third sister."

The brocade box is quite large, and you can tell at a glance that it comes from Jinbaoge.

Shen Rong accepted the brocade box.

Open.

The brocade box contained a pair of gold hairpins inlaid with rubies, along with a pair of gold bracelets.

Not long ago, Shen Ying also gave Shen Wan a dowry gift, which was a gold hairpin. Today, she is giving Shen Rong such a dowry gift, which definitely shows that she has some intention of making amends.

After Shen Ying finished giving the dowry, she looked at Shen Wan and said, "My dowry is far less than that of my eldest sister. The dowry that my eldest sister gave to my third sister must be no less than mine."

Shen Wan didn't like hearing this. Her expression was indifferent. "Sending gifts is all about personal feelings, not about competing with others."

As she spoke, Shen Wan took the brocade box from Yin Shuang's hands.

The brocade box was less than half the size of the one Shen Ying gave Shen Rong, and it looked quite inconspicuous.

Shen Ying pouted and said, "It's a bit stingy for the eldest sister to give the third sister this."

Shen Wan glanced at Shen Ying and said, "You haven't even opened the brocade box yet, and you're already so sure that what I gave you isn't as valuable as yours?"

Do I need to open it?

You can tell just from the brocade box!

Shen Wan only refuted once before handing the brocade box to Shen Rong.

Shen Rong also looked down on the brocade box that Shen Wan had given her, but she was happy to see Shen Ying and Shen Wan fighting, so she accepted the brocade box.

However, when she opened it, Shen Rong was stunned.

The box contained not jewelry, but a silver note.

Shen Rong glanced at Shen Wan first, and then unfolded the stacked silver notes. The face value of the silver notes really shocked her.

Five thousand taels.

Shen Rong looked at Shen Wan in disbelief. Shen Wan said, "Prince Ling has a leg ailment. He really didn't have time to go to the market to choose some jewelry for Third Sister in order to take care of him. So he just gave her the silver notes. Third Sister can go to the market and choose some jewelry she likes herself later."

As she spoke, Shen Wan glanced lightly at Shen Ying, who felt a burning sensation on her face as if she had been slapped several times.

Shen Wan, however, had no intention of letting her off the hook. "Second sister, the jewelry you chose is exquisite, and it comes from Duobao Pavilion. I doubt you could buy it for five thousand taels."

Every lady from a prominent family in Kyoto knows the prices of jewelry at Duobaoge.

Even the most expensive jewelry doesn't cost five thousand taels.

The amount Shen Ying gave was at most one thousand taels.

She's so stingy, giving away a thousand taels of silver as a joke, yet she gives away five thousand taels in silver notes. I don't know where she got the courage.

Pian Yinshuang came in with them and kept the brocade box in her hand the whole time, so there was no possibility of it being switched. Otherwise, Shen Ying could have said that she was mocking and provoking Shen Wan, which is why Shen Wan was so generous. This time, she really brought shame upon herself.

Shen Wan didn't linger. "Prince Ling is waiting for me, so I'll be leaving now."

Shen Wan turned and left. Even after she stepped out of the beaded curtain, she could still clearly feel the hatred in the eyes that followed her, as if they wanted to devour her alive.

Once outside the courtyard, Yinshuang couldn't help but say, "Of the four young ladies in the manor, the second young lady and the third young lady are the closest. The second young lady only gave a set of jewelry, but the princess gave five thousand taels. That's too generous."

Shen Wan said, "I was worried that my second sister would give more than she should, and I was afraid of giving people something to talk about. So I gave it away. Originally, I was planning to ask my second sister not to take back those jewelry pieces, and I would give them all to my third sister so they could argue about it. I didn't expect the money to come back. I only took five thousand taels from the money she gave me and gave it to my third sister. In fact, I saved some money."

Yinshuang said with a black line, "Your Highness, you're too good at comforting yourself."

The mistress and servant chatted casually for a while. After they walked away, a pale pink figure emerged from behind the rockery and hurried into the courtyard.

After leaving the West Courtyard, Shen Wan returned to Qinghui Courtyard. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she saw Xie Jingyan watching the koi by the lotus pond.

Hearing footsteps, Xie Jingyan turned around and looked at Shen Wan. Shen Wan asked, "Why aren't you inside? Are you bored?"

This woman...

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!