Chapter 80 Reigning Supreme
Leaving some people behind to guard the courtyard, Qingling went out with Taoye and Louyue, along with several maids.
We entered the largest restaurant on East Street, ordered several good dishes, and sat down in a private room on the second floor.
The food was served shortly, and Yao Qingling began to eat.
Dongpo tofu, steamed lion's head meatballs, honey-roasted pigeon, pickled radish and duck soup, stir-fried bamboo shoots with pickled mustard greens...
The dishes were very flavorful, and Qingling, who hadn't eaten breakfast, ate an extra half bowl of rice.
Finally, she left the sour duck soup to drink slowly.
Lou Yue silently noted it down, noticing that her master seemed to prefer sour dishes.
But she remembered that before, her mistress didn't really like sour flavors; she preferred sweets.
When did it change?
Lou Yue stared blankly at the sour duck soup, but Xia Chan felt that her master was looking out of the building, not at the scenery, but as if he was waiting for someone.
But it doesn't seem like it either.
Tao Ye had been informed last night and roughly knew that Yao Qingling was watching the show.
It seems that the nobleman's villa is located on East Street.
East Street is dominated by the properties of the powerful and wealthy, with few idlers. If someone is hidden here, it would be difficult for the government troops to enter the mansion and search it.
Then they heard voices coming from the private room next door: "Something big happened at Hengwu Villa today. Someone wrote something on the gate. Ha... They dare to write on the gate of the Duke of Shen's family? They're tired of living."
Another voice asked doubtfully, "Is Zhou Zhining really hiding in Hengwu Villa?"
"Whether it's true or not, we'll find out once we go in... but I wonder, who can get in?"
Even though the Duke of Shen was a veteran of three reigns, and the Prefect himself came with troops to investigate, he could only wait outside the gate.
Then a few more soft whispers came through, but they were too faint to make out.
Qingling slowly finished the last sip of soup, put down the bowl, and wiped her lips with a handkerchief.
So that villa belonged to the Duke of Shen?
Yes, nowadays, anyone who dares to hide Zhou Zhining must have immense power; the first reason Zhou Zhining approached Zhan Xingzhuo was because they were engaged, and the second important reason was Zhan Xingzhuo's family background.
Yao Qingling vaguely remembered that the Duke of Shen had a son who was from the same school as Zhan Xingzhuo.
This powerful backer was found quite well.
I wonder how Duke Shen will face the challenges ahead?
Yao Qingling, accompanied by several maids, strolled around the nearby shops, looking here and there, touching and looking at things.
She bought a lot of porcelain this time and also listened to some of the public's reactions.
As she expected, even before the gate of Hengwu Villa was opened, passersby saw the large characters written on the gate.
The doorman was in a panic, and the manager hurriedly ordered people to wipe off the words, but because they were painted on, they were difficult to remove.
The news spread quickly among the people, and before long, many people flocked to East Street to see the excitement at the villa.
The wide streets were cordoned off and almost completely blocked.
Of course, government officials also came to investigate.
They didn't know if Zhou Zhining was inside or not. Some people, caught up in the moment, said they wanted to help the government arrest her. They led a group of men and rushed inside, where they fought with the guards.
The morning was chaotic; afterwards, Lady Shen, the Duchess of Shen, personally arrived and forcibly suppressed the disturbance.
Now, guards are stationed at the entrance of the villa, and no one can enter; there are also people watching outside, and everyone entering and leaving the villa is being monitored.
Yao Qingling thought that Zhou Zhining must be like an ant on a hot pan right now, and she probably had no mood to play the zither anymore.
Qing Ling gave a cold smile and returned to her residence with a pile of newly purchased porcelain.
...
The Marquis's residence now presents a different scene altogether.
As soon as the old lady returned to the mansion and sat down, Madam Ma took ginseng tea from the maid and served her.
"The food is ready in the kitchen. Let's go to the flower hall for a simple meal first. We'll have a reunion dinner when the Marquis returns in the evening."
The old lady slammed the teacup down, clearly displeased.
When Ma was at the post station, he told her some bad news—Yao Qingling had divorced him on her own.
She has been back at the Marquis's residence for several days, and she throws tantrums and smashes things every day.
With such boundless energy, why didn't they go to the post station to pick her up? Even Ma's niece came, but she didn't. They didn't respect this old woman at all!
Yao Qingqi was overjoyed as she looked at the spilled tea on the table.
She added fuel to the fire, saying resentfully, "Mother said the family would have a reunion dinner. But when Yao Qingling returned to the manor, Mother sent someone to invite her. Did she come to eat?"
"We had a whole table of people waiting for her, and we had to urge her three or four times, but she had already gone to bed long ago."
"I don't want to wait for her to eat anymore." Yao Qingqi grabbed the old lady's arm and shook it coquettishly. "Grandmother, I'd rather not eat this reunion dinner."
Upon hearing this, the old lady's face turned even more unpleasant, and she even coughed in anger.
Ma Peizhen hurriedly stepped forward to pat his back and comfort him: "Madam, please don't get upset, your health is important."
A cold glint flashed in his eyes.
The worse the old lady coughs, the better. When her uncle comes back, she can complain to him, and Yao Qingling won't be able to act so arrogantly.
This also serves as revenge for her being confined to the Pear Terrace Courtyard.
The old lady was surrounded and coaxed by her granddaughters, and finally felt some relief, praising them as good children.
Madam Ma then placed the son born to her eldest daughter-in-law, Madam Lu, into her arms and said with a smile, "Mother hasn't seen Bang'er in a long time. Hold him, doesn't he look a lot heavier?"
The old lady was naturally delighted to see her great-grandson. She held him in her arms, refusing to let go, and personally carried him to the flower hall for dinner, even feeding him.
Madam Ma managed to appease the old lady, thinking to herself, "This whole house is full of people on my side. Yao Qingling is just a teenager. Don't think that just because she's been married into the Duke's mansion for three years, she can come back and rule like a king!"
Hmph, she's nothing, just an unwanted woman from another family. She should be locked up in an empty courtyard until she's forgotten, until she dies.
Halfway through the meal, the butler announced that Yao Qingling had returned to the mansion.
Only then did they realize that Yao Qingling had gone out.
Ma thought, "Perfect, Yao Qingling has two more crimes to add to her list."
The old lady returned to the manor, such a big matter, but she didn't care about it and only cared about her own carefree life; a person who had just divorced returned to the manor without any shame, freely entering and leaving the gate and parading through the streets, making the Marquis's manor lose face.
Mrs. Ma put down her chopsticks, her smile a mixture of embarrassment and difficulty.
She said to the housekeeper, "Now that Miss Qingling has returned, tell her to come to the flower hall, meet her grandmother, and kowtow to her."
The steward went out to call for help, and Madam Ma turned back to the old lady and added, "This child is really ignorant. After going to the Duke's mansion, he spread the Duke's scandals everywhere, and now that he's back in the Marquis's mansion, he still doesn't know how to restrain himself."
She sniffed and made a bitter face: "Outsiders who don't know the situation would think I don't care about her and have spoiled her. Being my aunt... is so difficult."
Third wife Madam You glanced at her and secretly pursed her lips.
The old lady had already heard many of Yao Qingling's "misdeeds" along the way, and she sighed angrily, saying, "Princess Deyang is kind and loves her because she lost her parents at a young age, so she has spoiled her. What does it have to do with you? Just eat your food, I'll teach her a lesson later."
As they were talking, Yao Qingling came over.
Upon entering the flower hall and seeing the old lady, he bowed to her and said, "Greetings, Grandmother."
The old lady looked at her coldly and indifferently, never saying a word to let her get up.
Qingling bent her knees, and soon her legs became sore and weak. Her body swayed and she looked like she was about to fall at any moment.
Taoye stood anxiously at the door.
Miss is a woman with two bodies, how can she be treated like this!
Tao Ye was anxious to think of a solution, but before she could come up with one, she saw Qing Ling straighten up.
There were no extra chairs at the dining table, so Qingling asked someone to bring another chair.
Her self-serving decision left everyone speechless.
The old lady, in particular, watched as Yao Qingling sat down calmly, without changing her expression or feeling any remorse.
Just as they said, Yao Qingling is disrespectful and arrogant!
"How dare you!" The old lady slammed her hand on the table, startling Bang'er into tears. The room was filled with the child's loud wailing.
The others remained silent, their eyes lowered, seemingly stunned by the old lady's anger; in reality, they all kept one eye open, watching Yao Qingling's performance unfold.
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