Chapter Sixty-Eight: Now Enemies
Wei Rui Xuan.
When Gu Jingxi returned to the courtyard, it was already noon, just in time for lunch, but he didn't see the little girl, or even the two maids, Qingqiu and Ningdong.
He found it strange, so he asked Chunliu, "Did Madam go out today?"
Chunliu respectfully replied, "Madam had an appointment today and left about an hour ago." After she finished speaking, she hesitated for a moment and then asked, "My lord, would you like to have lunch at noon?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingxi frowned slightly, feeling that the usually clever maid was somewhat suspicious. It was already lunchtime, and she was still asking if she wanted to have lunch. Was she supposed to have dinner instead of lunch?
Seeing that his expression was not right, Chunliu quickly explained, "Before leaving, Madam said she wouldn't be back for lunch and told the kitchen not to prepare anything. I asked if we should prepare lunch for the Marquis, but Madam said that you were going out to visit friends today and wouldn't be back by noon, so there was no need to prepare anything to avoid wasting money. I didn't expect you to come back so early."
Gu Jingxi was stunned.
So, did he get home and find no food?
Chunliu glanced at him furtively, unsure if he was unhappy, and asked nervously, "My lord, I will go and tell the kitchen to prepare. What would you like to eat today?"
Since it was already this late, Gu Jingxi didn't want to trouble anyone further, so he said, "No need to trouble yourself. I'll go to the old lady's place today and have lunch with her."
Chunliu nodded: "Yes."
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Before Song Xinning arrived, Meng Jinyao was already waiting in a private room at the restaurant.
However, Song Xinning, who is always punctual, was late today, a full half hour late. Meng Jinyao found it strange, but she waited patiently.
Song Xinning rushed to the agreed restaurant, took a deep breath, and suppressed the resentment and sorrow on her face. She pushed open the door of the private room and saw Meng Jinyao still waiting patiently. She stepped into the private room and said apologetically, "Ayao, I'm so sorry, something came up and I was held up. Have you been waiting for a long time?"
Meng Jinyao shook her head slightly: "I just arrived not long ago. Let's sit down and see what we can eat."
Song Xinning responded and sat down next to her.
The two selected a few signature dishes and instructed the maid to take the menu to the manager.
Song Xinning subtly observed her friend, a look of amazement flashing in her eyes. She had known A Yao for so long, but she had never seen A Yao dressed like this before. She was bright and dazzling, with unparalleled beauty that made it impossible to look away. Previously, A Yao's clothes and jewelry had been prepared by Madam Meng, which had directly covered up three or four tenths of A Yao's beauty.
Seeing that A-Yao's face was smiling, without a trace of gloom, and she looked carefree, she felt relieved and asked hesitantly, "A-Yao, are you alright?"
Meng Jinyao was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said, "It's nothing. The Marquis of Changxing's mansion has treated me well, with good food and lodging. What could possibly happen to me?"
Hearing this, Song Xinning smiled, reached out and pinched her cheek, and giggled, "It's clear that the Marquis of Changxing's mansion hasn't mistreated you. Your complexion is rosy, and you haven't lost weight at all; in fact, you seem to have gained a little weight. Looking at your outfit, compared to the last time I saw you, you finally have the air of a Marquis's wife. Our Ayao looks best dressed like this; even I'm tempted to dress like this."
Meng Jinyao smiled playfully: "Don't worry, Aning, I'm doing fine. If I were having a hard time, I'd probably come to you for help right now."
"I don't want you to ever come to me for help. Our Ayao must always be well." Song Xinning said, giving her a reproachful look. Seeing that she was still smiling foolishly, she snorted twice. "I only went to my maternal grandparents' house in Tongzhou. I just returned to the capital the day before yesterday and heard about your falling out with your family. I was quite frightened by you, so I immediately asked to meet you today. I wanted to see you yesterday, but I had other important matters to attend to."
Meng Jinyao said, "It was only a matter of time before we fell out with them, but they gave me the opportunity sooner."
Song Xinning gritted her teeth, indignantly saying, "Your stepmother is really daring; she even tried to embezzle your birth mother's dowry."
Meng Jinyao's gaze darkened, and she smiled mockingly: "If it weren't for my father's and grandmother's permission, how would she dare to do this? However, they are all birds of a feather. There's just no evidence to point to their involvement, so the blame is being placed on Sun Shi. So what's being said now is that Sun Shi embezzled her stepdaughter's dowry, while they pretend they know nothing, shifting the responsibility to Sun Shi and making her take the blame alone."
Song Xinning was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "That's right, the most important ones are your grandmother and your father." She smiled sarcastically, "Your father likes your stepmother so much, but when something happened, he didn't hesitate to push her out to take the knife for him. It seems that men's affection is nothing more than that."
Meng Jinyao shrugged: "Selfish people act like a loving couple when nothing happens, but they become a shield when something goes wrong."
"I guess all men are this heartless."
As Song Xinning spoke, a hint of sadness flashed in her eyes. She looked up at A Yao, her heart aching: "A Yao, after this incident, you've really fallen out with them. You'll truly have no family left. Your grandmother, you're her eldest granddaughter. People who don't know you might think you're the granddaughter of her enemy. If she hadn't treated you like this, your stepmother wouldn't have dared to treat you like this either. Even if your father ignored you, you wouldn't have suffered so much."
Meng Jinyao smiled bitterly: "Even if this incident hadn't happened, it would have been the same as not having a maternal family, so it wouldn't matter anymore. But now it seems that she's probably not the granddaughter of an enemy." She paused, her red lips moving slightly as she slowly said, "She's directly an enemy."
Song Xinning agreed with this. As things had developed to this point, from the perspective of the Yongchang Marquis's mansion, A Yao was their enemy, an enemy they wished they could tear apart.
She sighed almost inaudibly. Ah Yao had clearly done nothing wrong, but her elders treated her like an enemy, as if Ah Yao's very existence was a sin.
It's utterly absurd. If Ayao really were a jinx, wouldn't everyone in the Yongchang Marquis's mansion have been cursed to death after all these years?
After a moment, she asked curiously, "Ayao, I heard that she and your stepmother are both sick. They were really sick because of you?"
Meng Jinyao retorted, "They are physically weak. When something happens, how can they withstand the strain? Isn't it normal for them to fall ill when something happens?"
Upon hearing this, Song Xinning suddenly realized that she wasn't really sick; she was just faking it.
Meng Jinyao said gently, "A-Ning, let's not talk about them anymore, it's bad luck." As she spoke, she took the initiative to change the subject, "Speaking of which, our A-Ning will also be getting married at the end of the year."
Upon hearing this, Song Xinning lowered her eyes, her expression visibly dimming, and said softly, "Ayao, I'm afraid my wedding can't go ahead as planned."
Meng Jinyao was taken aback: "Why?"
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