Chapter 22 Returning Home Alone
"Mingyue is back home today and would like to meet the old lady, the mistress, and the aunt." As soon as she entered the mansion, Liu Mingyue bowed to several people.
If her identity was now that of a crown prince's consort, these people should be the ones to pay respect to her, but how could the people in Zhou's residence really regard her as a crown prince's consort? In her previous life, she suffered this loss.
"Oh, you married into the Marquis's Mansion. Even though you are from there and represent the reputation of our Zhou Mansion, you can't please your husband and return home alone. You are really embarrassed."
Liu Mingyue bowed and looked up, and what she saw was a white-haired old lady scolding her harshly.
Liu Mingyue smiled bitterly in her heart. It seemed that some people's meanness would not change no matter how polite she was.
The one who scolded her was the grandmother of the Zhou family. Although she was an elder, she was not kind at all and was extremely mean. Liu Mingyue and her mother had lived in the mansion for many years, and she had always looked down on them.
Next to the old lady stood a well-dressed lady. Her hair was neatly combed and she wore a set of eye-catching red gold headpiece on her hair. She would only wear it when meeting guests. It was obvious that they all thought Tan Zhuoyan would come.
The woman glanced at Liu Mingyue and said sarcastically, "Your grandmother is right. You are now a new bride and you should learn how to win your husband's heart."
"Yes, I took note of what Grandma and the mistress said." Liu Mingyue responded politely, lowering her eyelids to hide the coldness in her eyes.
This woman is the mistress of the Zhou family, Zhao Yinlian, and the charming girl standing next to her is Zhou Baili.
Among those waiting for her in the courtyard, the old lady, the mistress, and the legitimate daughter stood in front, while the concubines and concubines stood at the back. Those standing at the back were, in order, concubine Bai, concubine Zhao, and concubines Zhou Qianqian and Zhou Xiaoxiao.
Liu Mingyue's gaze swept across them and softened when it fell on the woman standing at the end.
Her biological mother, Aunt Liu from the mansion, also looked over. After the mistress finished speaking, she stepped forward and asked, "Madam, are you okay?"
She wanted to hold Liu Mingyue's hand, but when she raised her hand slightly, she felt it was not in accordance with the rules, so she put it down.
"I'm fine." Although Liu Mingyue got married three days ago, she was reborn on the wedding day. In fact, she hadn't seen Aunt Liu for a long time.
The woman in front of him was wearing a dull moon-white dress without even a dark pattern, just the plainest satin possible. She only had two silver hairpins in her hair, but even so, it couldn't hide her elegance.
Aunt Liu had a pair of narrow and long phoenix eyes, curved eyebrows, affectionate eyes, red lips, and a sweet breath when she spoke, making people want to focus all their attention on her.
Although Aunt Liu is already over 30 years old this year, she is still as beautiful as ever, but there are a few more wrinkles at the ends of her eyebrows.
"Okay, let's talk in the flower hall. Do you want everyone to wait here for you to chat?" The old lady snorted unhappily and turned to walk towards the flower hall first.
Aunt Liu pursed her lips, but she was still very surprised to see her daughter come back: "Madam, please."
Liu Mingyue nodded, her eyes fell on Aunt Liu's waist, but she didn't see her wearing the jade pendant, her eyebrows jumped. But the jade pendant should not be lost at the moment, she would find a chance to ask her mother where the jade pendant was.
She was about to follow the old lady into the flower hall when Zhou Junyuan stopped her and asked coldly, "Why are you the only one back home? Why didn't the prince come?"
Zhou Junyuan's question made Liu Mingyue want to laugh. Why didn't the prince come? Didn't everyone know?
"On the night I first married into the Marquis's mansion, the Marquis took off the red veil and left in anger. He then ordered everyone to move all the objects in the house to the study. The prince was not happy with my substitutionary marriage, so he did not want to accompany his daughter back home."
Liu Mingyue turned sideways and answered indifferently. In her last life, she had tried to cover it up ridiculously, but in this life, she just said it directly. What was there to be afraid of? She was not the only one who was embarrassed!
"The prince is your husband, you should give him more advice instead of letting the couple become estranged." Zhou Junyuan looked at the ugly stepdaughter in front of him with some annoyance, but he felt that these words would indeed have no effect on her.
"My daughter will." Liu Mingyue said in a serious tone, with a rather distant attitude towards her stepfather.
When Liu Mingyue was first brought into the mansion with her daughter, Zhou Junyuan's attitude towards Liu Mingyue was quite good. Later, he gradually became colder and often spoke coldly to her. He also lost his initial enthusiasm for Aunt Liu within a few years.
The corner of Zhou Junyuan's mouth twitched. The substitutional marriage was advocated by the Zhou Mansion, and he expected that this move would make the Marquis' Mansion dissatisfied. However, he did not expect that the Marquis' Mansion would not even do a superficial effort, and the prince was unwilling to even accompany the bride back home.
"Useless." Zhou Junyuan cursed and walked straight past Liu Mingyue and Aunt Liu with a dark face.
Zhou Baili followed behind, but stopped after taking two steps forward, and looked Liu Mingyue up and down with disgust and disdain without any hesitation.
"Sister, you are looking at me like that. I wonder what you like in me and want to have it?" Liu Mingyue avoided her gaze, raised her eyes to meet hers, and asked casually.
In the past, if Liu Mingyue wore slightly better clothes and jewelry, Zhou Baili would take her away if she saw them. This had happened countless times since she was a child, but now that Zhou Baili was older, she had to be more respectful and rarely robbed her of her things.
When Liu Mingyue brought up the old story again, a hint of embarrassment flashed across Zhou Baili's face, but that guilty feeling was soon replaced by malicious ridicule.
"I saw the birthmark on your sister's face. Tsk tsk, it will be all over her face when she grows up. With your looks, even the ordinary families in the capital would not want to marry you. It's already a high marriage for your sister to marry the prince."
Mocking Liu Mingyue, Zhou Baili couldn't help laughing: "Although the prince is unwilling to accompany my sister back home, it is also because my sister is as ugly as a demon and the prince is unhappy. But my sister still has to be a good concubine of the prince and treat her husband well in the future."
Zhou Baili felt that she had stepped on Liu Mingyue's sore spot, and she wished she could speak more viciously to make Liu Mingyue suffer.
So what if the Dingbei Marquis's family was of high status? Not only was the prince lame, he was also incapable of human conduct, which meant that he was completely useless.
Liu Mingyue was not welcomed after marrying into the Marquis's Mansion, and she could not have children. So what was the point of living in a distinguished Marquis's Mansion? Wasn't it just a waste of time?
"Hearing what my sister said, I think that my sister knows how to be a wife very well." Liu Mingyue waved the round fan in her hand, her brows slightly frowned.
Zhou Baili was enjoying herself by mocking Liu Mingyue and didn't notice the hidden meaning in the other person's words. She raised her eyebrows and sneered.
"My mother taught me the virtues of a woman and the ways of being a wife since I was young. I understand them clearly, unlike some people who lack education."
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