"Besides, I didn't see any women or children who had fallen. It was clearly your coachman! He was driving recklessly on Le Bao Street, startling my carriage and giving me a fright!"
The woman who fell had already left with her child; where could she be found now?
Gu Yaoniang was also speechless.
Guo Yunwei feigned magnanimity: "Normally, a lowly commoner like you who disturbed my carriage would be severely whipped. But..."
Her eyes darted around, and she smiled broadly: "Since you've tried so hard to please me, just kowtow and admit your mistake, and I'll let bygones be bygones!"
Gu Yaoniang was taken aback.
She was puzzled as to why Guo Yunwei seemed to be full of hostility towards her from the very first time they met.
At this moment, she was naturally very angry, but when she got to the top of her anger, she was also very puzzled by the little girl's thought process - just what kind of family is the Guo family that would raise such a spoiled and naive little girl as Guo Yunwei?
This bewilderment and shock even outweighed the anger in my heart, and there was a hint of amusement in it.
Gu Yaoniang stared at her intently, smiled rather kindly, and asked, "What if I don't?"
Seeing her so calm and composed, Guo Yunwei felt provoked and her face turned cold. Suddenly, she drew her whip again and swung it at Gu Yaoniang with her uninjured hand.
Everything happened rather quickly, and Bitao screamed in fright.
Fortunately, Guo Yunwei's dominant hand was injured, so her left hand was not as comfortable to use at this time, and its strength and accuracy were not as good as her right hand.
Bizhu reached out and narrowly caught the whip just before it touched Gu Yaoniang's cheek.
When Guo Yunwei saw that Bizhu had grabbed the whip, she cursed, "You audacious, lowly servant!"
He then tried to pull the whip back.
Bizhu didn't let go at first, and the two were locked in a stalemate. She was naturally strong, and if she didn't let go, how could Guo Yunwei possibly win against her?
But after persisting for three more breaths, just as Guo Yunwei exerted her strength to snatch the whip back, she released the whip from her hand, bowed and admitted her mistake, saying, "I offended Madam Guo just now, this servant knows her mistake."
Guo Yunwei, who was holding a long whip, suddenly lost her ability to resist. She lost her balance and fell backward. Her servants from the Guo family hurriedly reached out to stop her, and she finally managed to regain her balance.
The crowd watching the spectacle disliked her unreasonable behavior, and when they saw her get the short end of the stick, bursts of laughter erupted, making Guo Yunwei feel extremely embarrassed.
After regaining her footing, she lashed the riding whip on the ground a few times, making a buzzing sound as it cut through the air. Then she was about to step forward and swing the whip at Gu Yaoniang again.
At that moment, a stern male voice rang out: "Nonsense! Stop it!"
Before Gu Yaoniang could react, Guo Yunwei froze upon hearing the voice, unable to raise the whip in her hand.
Lu Zhaoan walked out from the crowd, his face stern and his brows furrowed, displaying his usual aloof demeanor: "What is Cousin Guo doing?"
Guo Yunwei was clearly unhappy with Lu Zhaoan's obstruction, but for some reason, she seemed to be somewhat afraid of Lu Zhaoan, and hurriedly stuffed the whip in her hand into the hand of a maid next to her.
She put her hands behind her back, feigning obedience and ingratiation, and her tone became much gentler, but her words were still very domineering: "Their carriage almost crashed into mine, but they refused to apologize. I'm trying to reason with them."
How could Lu Zhaoan not know Guo Yunwei's character?
He didn't ask Guo Yunwei, but looked at Gu Yaoniang: "Really?"
Before Gu Yaoniang could speak, the enthusiastic onlookers started talking all at once. After listening for a while, Lu Zhaoan got a general idea of what had happened.
Guo Yunwei looked embarrassed and turned to glare at the onlookers who had spoken earlier, silencing them with whispers among themselves.
Lu Zhaoan's expression remained largely unchanged; he simply stared blankly at Guo Yunwei without uttering a single word.
Guo Yunwei, who had initially been arrogant and indifferent, gradually became uneasy and anxious under Lu Zhaoan's gaze.
Finally, he angrily flicked his sleeves and scolded the Guo family's servants: "Everything's alright now, why aren't you leaving! What are you doing here? Don't you have any sense?"
As he climbed onto the Guo family's carriage, the Gu family's coachman, being very perceptive, drove the carriage on Le Bao Street to avoid the Guo family's carriage, thus bringing the farce to an end.
Gu Yaoniang stared in disbelief.
Guo Yunwei was furious. She beat the maidservant beside her severely in the carriage, making the little girl's eyes fill with tears, but she dared not cry out.
She said resentfully, "That Gu Yaoniang! Does she think she's really capable just because someone fawned over her for a few days?"
Meanwhile, Gu Yaoniang had arrived at Jinyulou and was drinking the Five Red Soup that Yu Erniang had prepared for her.
Yu Erniang placed the tray on the table, glanced around to see if there were any men in the room, and decided not to be too direct. She simply whispered in Gu Yaoniang's ear, "My lady should be resting today! Why did you come to the brothel?"
Gu Yaoniang smiled and gently shook her head: "It's alright, I know what I'm doing."
Yu Erniang still disagreed, but knowing that Gu Yaoniang had her own ideas, her words were useless, so she could only leave with unease.
Lu Zhao'an, unaware of the reason, only noticed that Gu Yaoniang's face was somewhat pale and haggard, assuming it was due to the fright she had just suffered, and thus offered words of comfort:
"Guo Yunwei is just a bit arrogant, but she always acts with a calculated mind. Since she didn't do anything to you in person today, she won't make things difficult for you behind your back. You don't need to be afraid. If you need anything, you can come to me."
But then he saw Gu Yaoniang looking at him with a half-smile, which made his heart skip a beat. He quickly explained, "The second matriarch of the Lu family is the Empress's mother. She comes from the Guo family. Guo Yunwei sometimes visits the Lu family. I've met her a few times and know a little about her, but we're not very close!"
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