Chapter 43: If you refuse the invitation, you will be ungrateful.

Cui Lingyan returned to her own courtyard and wanted to rest for a while after lunch, but unexpectedly, Bian sent her personal maid Yao Ma to come over and said that it was Cui Lingyan who spread those rumors and implicated her cousin Qi Shaozhang. Bian felt guilty and wanted to invite Zhan and Qi Ruoruo to have dinner together in the evening, fearing that the two would feel uncomfortable. So she asked Cui Lingyan to accompany them, which would make them seem closer and more comfortable.

"Third Miss, our wife feels guilty. She feels she didn't raise the Second Miss well, which is why all this happened. Third Miss is a member of the Cui family, a family member. I hope you can help smooth things over."

After hearing what Aunt Yao said, Cui Lingyan couldn't refuse, so she nodded and agreed.

Aunt Yao breathed a sigh of relief, bowed, and stepped back.

Seeing Aunt Yao leave, Birou said with some confusion: "Second Madam's behavior is not like her usual temperament. It is really a bit surprising."

Cui Lingyan glanced at her and said, "I find it a bit strange too. Second Aunt comes from a high-class family, and even Mother, her step-wife, seems to look down on her. How could she even think of apologizing to my aunt?"

Birou was a little surprised to hear her speak so bluntly, but she had been serving at Izumo Court for quite some time and naturally knew that the Third Young Lady and Madam Qi had no real mother-daughter relationship. It made sense for the Third Young Lady to say so.

Birou thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps this is just for show. This time, because of the Second Miss, the Marquisate has lost face in front of the Qi family, and they feel guilty about it. Although the Second Miss has suffered the consequences and will be married off to the south, this punishment will probably only quell the anger of Madam and the Qi family. What real benefits will they gain? Madam appears cheerful, but in reality, she's quite scheming. She probably invited Madam to come over this time because she wanted to apologize in person and also to give the Qi family some benefits, putting an end to this matter once and for all, so they won't use it as an excuse in the future."

"A family like the Marquis's isn't afraid of offering apologies or benefits, but rather of owing a debt of favor. Furthermore, the Qi family has already been kind to the Marquis's family, and now the Second Miss has brought ruin to the Young Master's reputation. While the Old Madam may not say it, she must be feeling deeply offended. If the Second Madam can resolve this matter, it would be an explanation to the Old Madam."

After hearing what Birou said, Cui Lingyan felt a little clearer.

Birou is a house-born child who grew up in the Marquis' Mansion. She understands the ins and outs of this better than her, a girl from the Marquis' Mansion.

Thinking of this, Cui Lingyan nodded and said, "In that case, let's pack up this afternoon and go over."

Bi Rou hesitated for a moment and asked, "Miss, would you like to bring something with you? For example, a can of tea. It's better than coming empty-handed. After all, the Second Madam is also an elder."

Cui Lingyan shook her head. "Not this time. The girl from the second house nearly ruined my reputation and pushed me to the brink of despair. If it weren't for Master Lu helping me out, I'd probably still be fidgeting right now, wondering what would have happened. By agreeing to accompany my aunt and the others, she's already thinking of me as a girl from the Cui family. If I bring gifts with me, I'm afraid others will think I'm made of clay, and anyone would dare to bully me in the future."

If it were in the past, Cui Lingyan would definitely act properly and would not want anyone to find fault with her at all.

But after experiencing that dream, she felt that sometimes one should not care too much about what others think. If one keeps lowering one's bottom line, others will not think that one is sensible and obedient, but will only think that one is easy to bully. They may even think that she has a very low self-esteem because she was raised in the Qi family since she was a child. Even if she suffered such a great injustice, she still had to consider each other's face and did not want the elders to find any fault with her.

Cui Lingyan said this, Birou's eyes showed a bit of surprise, then nodded: "Miss, you know what's going on."

She had been serving Cui Lingyan for these days, and now she already knew that although the girl did not grow up in the marquis's mansion, she also had her own unique style of doing things.

Moreover, since entering the mansion, the third lady has never suffered any loss. Perhaps even God has begun to favor the third lady.

She also thought that the girl's wedding with Prince Lu would be coming soon, and that the girl would be the wife of Prince Weiguo in the future, so she didn't have to pay too much attention to these rules. Therefore, she felt that Cui Lingyan's behavior was not inappropriate.

On this side, Nanny Yao came out of Chuyun Courtyard and went straight to the courtyard where Zhan and Qi Ruoruo lived.

After entering the house and paying respects to Mrs. Zhan and Qi Ruorou, and exchanging a few pleasantries, Madam Yao explained her purpose of visit.

Zhan seemed a little surprised, but she also agreed with a smile, but her words were still a little angry: "Second Madam, you are thoughtful. Otherwise, I would have thought that the Qi family was a small family and our Shaozhang would have suffered this undeserved disaster in vain."

Aunt Yao smiled awkwardly, said a few nice words to Mrs. Zhan, and then turned and walked out.

After she left, Zhan's smile faded and she said with a hint of sarcasm, "I thought the Cui family had forgotten about our relationship, and that Shaozhang deserved to be ruined by Cui Lingyin and have his reputation ruined. He deserved to be talked about from head to toe by those people in the capital for nothing?"

"Now I heard that Madam Wen received thirty lashes of the cane, and Cui Lingyin was also confined to her house and not allowed to leave the courtyard. When she had some free time, Bian Shi finally remembered to apologize to our Qi family. It's really rare for her to humble herself and think of the Qi family, her victims."

Qi Ruorou sat aside, her eyes revealing a hint of confusion. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke, "During the days since mother and daughter entered the manor, the Second Madam has appeared amicable, but in reality, she has never taken us seriously. Cui Lingyin has been punished by the Old Madam, and after Cousin Yan's wedding to the Crown Prince, she will be sent to the manor. So, why would Second Madam Bian personally apologize to us? Could she have some other ulterior motive? They say the ladies of these wealthy families have ulterior motives. We can't let her scheme against us!"

Zhan paused holding the teacup in her hand, thought for a moment, and then said uncertainly, "That shouldn't be the case. Besides, didn't she invite Yan to come along? Yan grew up in our Qi family, so she wouldn't want to see us fall into Bian's trap."

"In my opinion, Bian just wants to clear up this matter once and for all, so that our Qi family won't have to use this as an excuse to ask the Marquisate to do anything for us in the future. A noblewoman like her, don't I know what she's thinking? How could she truly look down on a relative like our Qi family? In her eyes, the Qi family is nothing more than a beggar. Perhaps she thinks that giving us some apology will completely resolve this matter."

Qi Ruorou felt a little aggrieved. She had never thought that the Qi family was inferior to the Marquis' Mansion before. Even though she knew it in her heart, she felt that they were relatives and should have the proper respect. No matter how powerful the Marquis' Mansion was, could it really bring shame to the Qi family?

But ever since she came to the capital, one thing after another made her realize that the Qi family was far superior to families like the Ningshou Marquisate.

Just like today, her mother and she didn't dare to personally question Bian and ask her to compensate the Qi family, which would only make her brother suffer for nothing. But Bian humbled herself and sent Madam Yao to invite them to dinner. The Second Madam felt guilty and apologized to them, and she and her mother didn't even have the chance to refuse.

If you refuse, you will be ungrateful.

People like them who come from a prominent family can only let the ladies in the Marquis' Mansion arrange everything for them.

Qi Ruorou subconsciously frowned, feeling somewhat embarrassed. She said with some dissatisfaction, "If the Second Madam really wanted to apologize, why didn't she invite my aunt, your sister-in-law, to accompany her instead of inviting my cousin Yan?"

"It's still bullying after all. She doesn't want to lose face in front of her aunt, her sister-in-law."

Speaking of Aunt Qi, Qi Ruorou hesitated for a moment before speaking, "She also says that the Second Madam looks down on our Qi family. Actually, the Second Madam's fault is not her fault. As the wife of the Marquis of Ningshou, your nephew from your mother's family has suffered such a great injustice. Has your aunt ever said a word in our Qi family's favor? Has your aunt ever argued with your sister-in-law, Bian, about this matter? Even your aunt thinks that the rumors fabricated by Cui Lingyin about my brother are not worth mentioning. If you don't seek justice for our Qi family, how can others not look down on us?"

After hearing her daughter say this, Mrs. Zhan's face turned very bad.

How could she not feel aggrieved these days? On her way to the capital, she had never imagined that the situation would be like this when she arrived at the Marquis' Mansion.

She had assumed that the Qi family had raised Cui Lingyan for so many years, and that the Marquisate owed them some debt of gratitude. Even if they didn't demand anything in return, the Marquisate should still respect them, and mutual respect was the norm. She was also trying to persuade her sister-in-law, Qi, to marry Yan and keep her in the Qi family for the rest of her life.

But she could never have imagined that just a few days after arriving at the Marquis's residence, the marriage that Miss Cui had refused would fall to Cui Lingyan, shattering her plans. She hadn't even had time to mention it, or even to express her feelings. As if that weren't enough, Cui Lingyan, a concubine's daughter, became jealous of Miss Yan's marriage and fabricated a conspiracy between her and Shao Zhang. The rumors spread widely, leaving Shao Zhang humiliated and furious, and he threatened to move out of the Marquis's residence.

All these things made her feel so upset that she couldn't vent her anger.

Hearing her daughter speak directly, how could Qi hold back? She immediately said with a hint of sarcasm, "How can your aunt still consider herself a daughter of the Qi family? She is the wife of the high and mighty Ningshou Marquis. How could she be willing to offend others for your brother's nephew and cause Madam Zhai, the mother-in-law, to have a problem with her? They say a daughter who is married off is like spilled water. It's a pity that your grandmother still thinks about your aunt's daughter every day. If she knew about these things, I don't know how heartbroken she would be."

Qi Ruorou didn't say anything, but subconsciously clenched the handkerchief in her hand, thinking that as a woman, if she couldn't marry well, she would be inferior to her relatives in the future and suffer in vain.

This time, Bian invited them to have dinner with her, which was meant to apologize, but she also wondered if she could ask the Marquis's Mansion to find a marriage partner for her.

Qi Ruorou thought about it in her heart, but was too embarrassed to say it out loud. As a girl, even if she had such thoughts, she couldn't say it out loud. She didn't want to get out and make people laugh at her, or even think she was delusional, coming from a humble family and wanting to marry into a wealthy family in the capital.

Qi Ruorou lowered her head to hide her thoughts, but Zhan was her mother, and she knew what her daughter was thinking just by looking at her. What's more, Zhan also had such thoughts when she came to Beijing.

She thought for a moment, then took Qi Ruorou's hand and patted it gently, saying, "Don't worry, little Rou. Besides your brother, you're my only legitimate daughter, so I'll naturally take care of you. This time, it's the Marquis' Mansion that's wronged us. Since the Second Madam wants to apologize, I'll risk my dignity and use this incident to ask the Second Madam and the Marquis' Mansion to agree to find a good marriage for you in the capital."

Qi Ruorou's eyes reddened, and she was moved. She nodded and said, "I will do as my mother says."