After returning home, Minglan immediately confessed the mud incident to the old lady. The old lady lay on her side on the Luohan bed without saying a word. Minglan was a little worried and asked, "Grandma, do you think your granddaughter did something wrong?"
The old lady shook her head, stroked Minglan's soft hair, and said slowly, "You did nothing wrong, and the fourth girl won't go and complain, but..." Minglan took a deep breath and waited for the old lady to continue, "It's easy to avoid an open attack, but difficult to guard against an arrow from the dark."
Minglan pondered for a moment, then understood. She looked up and said, "The day after tomorrow, when Daddy takes his morning leave, I'll send him my new pair of shorts. Just pretend the old ancestor doesn't know about this."
The old lady nodded.
On this day, Sheng Hong was on his day off. After teaching Chang Feng and Chang Dong to study hard in the morning, he put on his casual clothes and wrote a few words and recited a few poems in the study in the inner house, to show that he had not forgotten his literary roots after serving as an official for so many years.
At this time, Minglan came with a lovely smile on her face. Sheng Hong frowned and looked a little cold, but Minglan seemed unaware of it. She took out her newly made shoes and handed them to her father, asked the maid to help Sheng Hong put them on, and then stood aside, smiling and waiting for praise.
As Sheng Hong put on the thick velvet shoes, he felt the softness and comfort of the soles of his feet. He felt a warm feeling in his heart. He thought of Minglan, who had done so much for him every year since she was a child. She was very filial. He said, "My child is very well-behaved."
Little Minglan ran over happily, pulling Sheng Hong's sleeve and talking about this and that, chattering about some of her little daughter's interesting stories. Minglan was a good speaker, and when she talked about the interesting things, Sheng Hong couldn't help laughing.
Minglan said with a bitter face, "...This embroidery needle is no easier to handle than a pen. My daughter holds it tightly, and it's disobedient. But if I put a hard thimble on it, it will be obedient! Humph, my daughter finally knows that it is also a bully who only fears the strong and bullies the weak!"
Then she spread out a pair of chubby little hands for Sheng Hong to see, and saw many needle holes on some of her fingers.
Sheng Hong was both angry and amused, and somewhat touched. He pointed at Minglan and joked a few times. Minglan acted coquettishly and was very endearing. Seeing his little daughter's obedient and lovely appearance, Sheng Hong moved his lips a few times, and finally couldn't help asking, "The day before yesterday, when you went to Guangji Temple, why did you throw mud at your fourth sister?"
Minglan's heart sank. Here it comes!
Then he opened his confused eyes wide, looked at Sheng Hong blankly and said, "Is this... what Fourth Sister said?"
Sheng Hong was speechless for a moment. That night, when he went to rest at Aunt Lin's, Molan came to him crying and complaining. Aunt Lin also cried heartbrokenly. Sheng Hong was very angry and wanted to scold Minglan, but Aunt Lin persuaded him: "...Master, the Sixth Miss is the old lady's favorite. If you punish her for Miss Mo today, Miss Mo will be even less favored by the old lady in the future! How will we live? Master, as long as you understand our grievances, I will be satisfied. Let's not talk about this matter anymore."
She kowtowed repeatedly, begging Sheng Hong not to bring up the matter, and went on to tell him how Minglan, relying on the old lady's favor, looked down on Molan, and so on, all in a blatant way. At the time, Sheng Hong had agreed in anger, deeply dissatisfied with Minglan. He held it in, only to feel angrier the more he thought about it. But today, seeing Minglan's innocent and filial behavior, he felt fond of her and couldn't help but let it out.
"Don't worry about who said it! Just tell me whether it happened or not!" Sheng Hong advised kindly, "It's just a quarrel between sisters. If you are wrong, just apologize to your fourth sister."
Unexpectedly, Minglan remained silent, tears as big as beans fell one by one. She bit her lip but said nothing. With her big eyes wet, she choked out a sob and said, "Daddy, do you really think I am such an unreasonable person?"
Sheng Hong thought about how Minglan's behavior had been steady and pleasant over the past few years, and hesitated, "Could it be that she has other feelings?"
Minglan was afraid that Molan would tell on her and she would die without knowing how she died. Now that everything was revealed, she felt relieved.
She raised her head, looked at Sheng Hong with admiration, and said, "Father, please go and call my fourth sister over. No matter what happens, I have to be here before I can talk."
Sheng Hong thought for a moment, then waved his hand and asked the maid to invite Molan. Molan arrived soon. She was writing in Shanyueju. When she heard Sheng Hong calling her, she picked out a few pieces of calligraphy that she was proud of, intending to show them to her father. However, when she entered the study, she saw Minglan with red eyes and Sheng Hong who kept trying to comfort her. Seeing Minglan crying pitifully, Sheng Hong no longer felt angry with her. He just thought she was a child who didn't understand. He advised: "Why are you crying, silly child? It's just a piece of mud. Even if you made a mistake, your sister will forgive you..."
When Molan heard this, her heart suddenly turned cold.
No matter how Sheng Hong tried to persuade her, Minglan remained silent, only crying softly. When she saw Molan coming, she immediately stood up, tears in her eyes, and asked, "Daddy said that I threw mud on my sister the day before yesterday, but my sister said it?"
Molan immediately raised her eyes to look at Sheng Hong, as if asking, "Father, why did you break your promise?" Sheng Hong's face turned awkward, and he put on his fatherly manner and said, "You two sisters are here today, so just say whatever you want to say!"
Minglan stepped forward and tugged at Molan's sleeve, shaking her weakly and crying, "Tell me, tell me, if there's anything wrong, you're the elder sister, so why did you go and complain to Daddy, and now you're silent!"
Mo Lan was forced by Sheng Hong's gaze, so she gritted her teeth and said, "Yes, you threw it, didn't you?"
Minglan gently wiped away her tears and asked, "Well, sister, please tell me what we argued about that made me so arrogant as to throw mud at you?"
Molan blushed and said vaguely, "It was just some quarrel." When asked what the quarrel was, she couldn't say.
Minglan turned to look at Sheng Hong and said aggrievedly, "Fourth sister and I have never had an argument in all these years. Even if there was something, it would have been resolved the next day. Father, think about it. What serious matter has happened that I must embarrass my sister in public?"
Seeing Molan being so coy, Sheng Hong became suspicious. Remembering the bickering between Molan and Ruolan every other day, he glared at Molan and shouted, "Are you slandering your sister?"
Molan felt even more insecure after being yelled at by her father. She hurriedly wiped her eyes but said nothing, intending to buy time with her tears. Unexpectedly, Minglan retorted, "No, father, I did throw mud at my sister, but I have a clear conscience."
Sheng Hong was confused upon hearing this. Minglan, with a calm and composed expression, recounted the events of that day in a few words. Her words were clear and crisp, and Molan blushed more and more as she listened. Sheng Hong, however, grew angrier and angrier. He couldn't help but slam his fist on the table and cursed, "You ignorant thing! There are so many men gathered in that plum forest, and you dare to rush in! How can you be so shameless?!"
Molan's knees buckled, and she immediately knelt down, sobbing. "...How dare I? I was just looking at the Nine Dragon Wall because it was so elegant, so I wanted to finish it all in one go. My sisters were so rude, and I got angry, so I went on!"
Seeing Molan crying bitterly, Minglan quickly knelt beside her. She tugged at Molan's sleeve, looking sad and aggrieved, and said, "Sister, you're so confused! No matter how beautiful the Nine Dragon Wall is, is it more important than Daddy's reputation? Daddy is so cautious in his official duties and as a person. As his daughters, we can't share his worries, but are we going to bring shame to our family?! Most of the people in Plum Forest are well-known young masters in the capital. If they see you, then, then..."
Minglan could no longer speak, her voice choking with sobs. She turned her head and covered her face with her hands, crying. Sheng Hong was so angry that he knocked over a tea bowl with one palm, and the shattered porcelain pieces flew to the ground. His face was ashen, and his wrists were shaking uncontrollably. He scolded Molan, "Why are you crying? You've grown up so much in vain, and you're not as sensible as your sister! I don't know where you learned this perverse idea. Do you think everyone else is stupid? You shameless thing, and you still have the nerve to complain about your sister!"
This was the first time that Molan was scolded so harshly by Sheng Hong, and she cried even harder.
Minglan didn't rest either. She crawled a few steps on her knees to Sheng Hong, tugged at the corner of her father's clothes, tears welling in her eyes as she spoke bitterly, "I just thought my sister was confused for a moment. I was afraid that if it got out, Grandmother would blame her, so I kept it a secret, not even telling Grandmother. I thought we were blood after all, and even if we had a quarrel, it would be over the next day. Who would have thought... my sister would actually tell on me behind my back?!"
Minglan was heartbroken and crying bitterly. She turned to look at Molan and asked softly, "Fourth sister, fourth sister, why do you treat me like this?!" She looked heartbroken as if she had been betrayed by her closest flesh and blood.
Molan was a little dumbfounded. To be honest, when it came to crying and being pitiful, she and her daughter had never been defeated. Just when they were trying to be the best in the Sheng Mansion, they suddenly encountered an unprecedented challenge.
Minglan collapsed at Sheng Hong's feet, weeping bitterly. Sheng Hong felt pity for her and helped her up to sit on a chair nearby. Turning back, he pointed at Molan and cursed her fiercely, "You evil creature! Your father always loves and cares for you, yet you are so mean! Your sister tried to dissuade you for the sake of the family's reputation, but you are jealous and waiting for revenge. You are so young, yet you are so cruel to your own sisters. What's the point of keeping you here? Someone, go get the wife!"
Wang was teaching Rulan how to read the fish scale account. Rulan had no patience and was about to give up after making two mistakes. Wang was anxious and was about to scold her daughter, but good news came out of the blue. She hurried to the study, only to see her husband with a sullen face, scolding Molan fiercely, and Aunt Lin kneeling beside him and crying.
After understanding the whole cause and effect in a few words, Wang was overjoyed. Seeing Minglan lying there, almost breathless from crying, she immediately put on the attitude of a loving mother and asked someone to help Minglan go back to rest.
Minglan had no chance to witness what happened later because she was so "too sad". In the evening, Rulan excitedly came to reveal the news, saying that Molan was hit with thirty rulers on each hand, her palms were swollen for half a day, and she was also punished to be grounded for half a year. She was not allowed to read those poems and lyrics anymore, and had to copy "Leaders for Women" and "Rules for Women" a hundred times each.
Originally, Wang wanted to implicate others, but Molan was still tough and insisted that Aunt Lin was deceived and had no idea about it, so Aunt Lin was only punished with fifty strokes of the ruler and was confined to her house for three months.
…
"Did you know about this a long time ago?" After finally getting a day off, Sheng Hong was so angry that he just lay on the bed and groaned.
Wang sat in front of the diamond-shaped mirror, carefully applying the scented honey, and said calmly, "I know. Rulan told me that day."
"Why don't you tell me?!" Sheng Hong pounded the bed angrily.
Wang was in high spirits, having specially changed into a brand new silk gauze gown. The aqua-red Suzhou and Hangzhou silk was embroidered with scallion-yellow lotus leaves and crickets, a truly exquisite piece. She turned around and smiled, "How dare I tell you about what happened in that room? Master will probably blame me for being petty and disliking the fourth girl. How dare I continue to embarrass myself! Not only will I not tell you, I won't let Ru'er tell you either, lest Master blame me again."
The voice was drawn out, as if in a joke.
Sheng Hong choked on his breath. Wang stood up gracefully, sat down beside the bed, and said with a smile, "Now you should know that the fourth girl is no ordinary girl, right? Let me tell you, if we talk about cunning, ten Ru'ers combined wouldn't be half as good as the fourth girl. What a pity, she doesn't use her cunning in the right way!"
Sheng Hong was also very angry, and then he said, "Old lady, don't you know?"
Wang scoffed and said, "The old lady can't tolerate any injustice. If she had known, would she still be fine? ... Tsk tsk, the sixth girl is a good girl. She didn't want to embarrass the fourth girl, so she even hid it from the old lady. What a pity, her kindness was taken for granted and she got bitten in the back!"
Wang was making sarcastic remarks, feeling very happy.
Sheng Hong sighed and shook his head, saying, "This is all thanks to the old lady's good upbringing. The child is filial and sensible, kind and honest, and knows how to get along with siblings." At this point, he suddenly sat up and said angrily, "Don't let the fourth girl meet Lin again, or she will learn all sorts of sneaky tricks."
He was not unaware of Aunt Lin's little actions, but since they were in love, he would tolerate what he could, and scold her severely for what he couldn't, just to prevent her from crossing the line. Sheng Hong thought it was harmless for a concubine to flutter around in the inner house, but when he saw his own daughter doing the same, he was unhappy and decided to separate them.
…
"Don't cry! I know you feel bad, it's all Fourth Sister's fault. Let's ignore her from now on!"
Rulan hadn't wasted a single moment, having watched the long-awaited spectacle for nothing. Seeing Minglan crying out in pain from being beaten, and being scolded with disgust by Sheng Hong, she felt happy and at the same time, she was extremely patient, trying to persuade this great hero. After a long while, she saw Minglan still couldn't stop crying, and she couldn't help but complain, "Why are you still crying?"
Minglan lowered her head and kept wiping her eyes with a wet handkerchief: "Damn, the osmanthus oil Pinlan sent is amazing! I really don't judge by the advertisement, I judge by the effect."
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