Lin Yaoyao carried the pastries into the house and was filled with envy when she saw the furnishings.
As expected of a young lady from the Duke's mansion, she uses the best of everything. Even the porcelain vase for arranging flowers looks incredibly valuable. Sooner or later, all of these things will be hers.
Concealing the jealousy in her eyes, Lin Yaoyao smiled and said, "Madam, I apologize for disturbing you."
"Miss Lin, what brings you here?" Shen Zhiyi was standing by the window, stroking a hand warmer.
"I've been in your household for so long without paying my respects, I'm so sorry," Lin Yaoyao said in a soft voice. "I made some pastries myself, and I'm bringing them to you."
Hongrui immediately stepped forward to catch it.
"If the young mistress likes it, I will make it often in the future."
“You are a special guest of your mother, how can we let you cook all the time?”
"Young Madam seems... to particularly dislike me?" Lin Yaoyao lowered her head slightly, and a hint of red appeared in her eyes as she spoke. "Did I do something wrong to annoy you?"
Chen Zhiyi frowned slightly.
"I didn't expect that the Lady of the Marquis would have a dispute with you because of me. It's all my fault."
"If you really don't like me, young mistress, I can leave..."
Shen Zhiyi chuckled softly, "Then pack your things and leave."
“I…” Lin Yaoyao was stunned, tears welling up in her eyes.
Shen Zhiyi's words always seemed to defy her expectations. She pursed her lips, took two steps forward, and asked, "Is it because I've taken over your courtyard that you don't like me?"
"That courtyard was where the Lady Hou invited me to stay. She was so kind as to ask me to stay, and I couldn't refuse."
"I know I don't deserve it!"
"Young Madam, I am an orphan, new to the capital, with no one to rely on. The Lady of the Marquis took me in out of kindness. Please don't let my situation cause any estrangement between you..."
"If it's really my fault, you can hit me or scold me as you please."
As Lin Yaoyao spoke, she stepped forward and grabbed Shen Zhiyi's arm. "Young Madam, I really have nowhere to go. Please have pity on me."
Shen Zhiyi frowned, a look of disgust flashing in her eyes.
Green Lotus was furious and stepped forward to try to pull her hand off her girl's arm. "What are you doing? Let go of my girl."
"Young Madam, please have mercy on me—"
"Let go!" Before Green Lotus could even exert any force, Lin Yaoyao's body floated lightly and fell to the ground with a cry of pain, her eyes instantly filling with tears.
"The meaning of sinking branches!"
The old woman, who had come to return the account book, saw this scene and immediately rushed in, shouting angrily, "What are you doing?"
"Madam Hou, please don't blame the young mistress. I fell down by accident." Lin Yaoyao looked delicate and weak, with red eyes, truly pitiful to behold.
"Nonsense! I clearly saw it was her maid who pushed you!" The mother-in-law immediately helped her up and glared angrily at Chen Zhiyi.
"Yaoyao is the one who saved my life, and this is how you treat her? Don't you have any respect for me as your elder?!"
"It really wasn't the young mistress's fault." Lin Yaoyao seemed to have twisted her ankle, looking pitiful. "I made some pastries and wanted to bring them to her to try and ease the tension between us, maybe..."
"She really hates me!"
Lin Yaoyao lowered her head and wiped away her tears.
"Shen Zhiyi, I never expected you to be this kind of person. It seems your previous generosity and magnanimity were all an act." The mother-in-law sneered. "Two years without a child, do you believe I'll make Yuxiu divorce you!"
"Divorce me?" Shen Zhiyi smiled. "Have him come and tell me himself."
"you……"
If it were in the past, Shen Zhiyi's attitude would definitely have softened if I had mentioned this.
What's wrong with me lately?
It seems like I have absolutely no control over her!
Chen frowned, and just then Song Yuxiu entered the room. Seeing the scene, he frowned and asked, "What happened?"
Before Shen Zhiyi could speak, Lin Yaoyao had already stepped in front of Song Yuxiu, "Young Master, it has nothing to do with the young mistress. I shouldn't have come and made her angry."
"Zhiyi, what's going on?" Song Yuxiu frowned.
“It’s my fault. I saw that the Lady of the Marquis and the Lady of the Heir Apparent had a falling out because of me, so I wanted to apologize to her, but I didn’t expect…” Lin Yaoyao said, her body going limp.
He almost fell to the ground.
Song Yuxiu reacted quickly, reaching out to pull her into his arms, and Lin Yaoyao leaned against his shoulder.
"Your Highness, I've sprained my ankle."
"How did you suddenly twist your ankle?"
"Isn't it all because of your good wife that she had the maid push her?" Madam Chen sneered.
“Impossible, Zhiyi isn’t that kind of person. There must be some misunderstanding.” Song Yuxiu also felt that Shen Zhiyi had been acting strangely lately and wondered what had gone wrong.
Could it be that they've discovered some clues?
“It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have gone back to the manor with the Lady of the Marquis in the first place, but I really have nowhere to stay.”
As Lin Yaoyao spoke, tears streamed down her face. "The young mistress is a daughter of the Duke's mansion. She's beautiful and comes from a good family. I've always admired her and wanted to be close to her, but I never expected..."
"She hates me so much, I don't even know what I did wrong!"
The mother-in-law frowned, "It's because she's mean-spirited!"
Then she looked at her son and said, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and take Yao Yao away to get a doctor to check her foot."
"No need, I'm tough and don't need a doctor." Lin Yaoyao said with a wronged face, trying to straighten up and walk by herself, but then cried out in pain.
Song Yuxiu was heartbroken.
He bent down and picked her up, then glanced at Chen Zhiyi with a reproach in his eyes, "Zhiyi, Miss Lin is my benefactor. Even if you have a grudge against me, you shouldn't take it out on an outsider!"
"If I said I didn't touch her, would you believe me?" Shen Zhiyi's face remained calm.
"I'll take Miss Lin back to her room first. You should reflect on your actions. I'll sleep in the study tonight!" Song Yuxiu sneered.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
