Chapter 200: Frustrated
"Tong'er thanks mother!"
Yuan Zitong's feet were numb from squatting for so long. After Zuo Shi finally asked her to stand up, she hurriedly stood up. However, she was unsteady for a moment and was about to fall to one side. Fortunately, Lian Qiao was there to support her, so she didn't make a fool of herself in public.
Yuan Zitong was secretly resentful, but she couldn't show her anger openly. She knew that her stepmother had only been in the family for a few days and her father was still getting used to her. If she lost her temper, she would probably suffer. Now her father probably wished he didn't have her as a daughter.
"Look, it's all my fault!" Seeing Yuan Zitong almost embarrassed herself, Zuo raised the corner of her mouth with a little pride: "I almost made Tong'er fall. If your father knew about this, I'm afraid he would scold me!"
Yuan Ziyu's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly said, "How can you blame Mother? It was Tong'er who didn't stand firmly!"
Hearing this, Zuo smiled with satisfaction and looked at Yuan Zitong with raised eyebrows: "Tong'er is quite considerate."
"Thank you for the compliment, mother!" Yuan Zitong gritted her teeth secretly in her heart, but had a gentle smile on her face.
"I wonder if Tong'er came to see me for something?" Zuo didn't let Yuan Zitong sit down. She just leaned lazily on the chaise longue and let the little girl massage her shoulders.
Yuan Zitong gritted her teeth secretly, then smiled softly, "Mother, there will be a palace banquet the day after tomorrow. I wanted to ask what we need to prepare and what we should pay attention to."
Yuan Zitong had never been to the palace to attend a palace banquet. Yuan Qilei was a fifth-rank official, and he had no place at the palace banquets in previous years. However, this year, the emperor required officials of the fifth rank and above to bring their families to the palace for the banquet.
Yuan Zitong was a little nervous, fearing that she would make a fool of herself in the palace, so she hurried to seek advice from Zuo.
Zuo choked and looked at Yuan Zitong with her eyes slightly narrowed. She was the concubine's daughter of a fourth-rank official. Although she was qualified to enter the palace for banquets, every time her mother brought her elder sister to the palace for a banquet, she never took her with her. She could only grit her teeth in jealousy alone in the yard. How could she know anything about the rules of the palace?
Could it be that Yuan Zitong knew something and came here on purpose to humiliate her?
Seeing that Zuo Shi had remained silent, Yuan Zitong couldn't help but feel puzzled: "Mother?"
"Oh!" Zuo's face turned slightly cold, and she curled her lips and said, "There are many nobles in the palace, so don't offend them. Okay, Tong'er, go back and prepare your clothes for entering the palace. Mother won't keep you any longer!"
"Yes, mother!" Yuan Zitong responded with lowered eyebrows and left obediently!
After returning to her room, Yuan Zitong wanted to smash things in anger. It was obvious that Zuo Shi didn't want to tell her!
However, Lian Qiao stopped Yuan Zitong's action: "Miss, you can't smash it. We only have this set of teacups in our house. If you smash it, what will you drink tea with?"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Zitong looked at Lian Qiao fiercely. After a long while, she put the teacup in her hand back on the table and sat down heavily again, as if there was a fire burning in her heart.
When she was in the general's mansion before, she had never felt so aggrieved that she couldn't even throw a teacup. At that time, her mother was still alive, Yuan Ziyu's family had not returned from the frontier, and her father had not taken a concubine!
Life at that time was so comfortable and carefree. What did a mere teacup matter to you?
However, ever since Yuan Ziyu's family came back, everything has changed little by little, becoming completely different!
Yuan Zitong's eyes turned red with hatred. Lian Qiao and Yin Qiao didn't dare to breathe and waited cautiously on the side, fearing that Yuan Zitong would vent her anger on them.
"What are you standing there for? Why don't you go find me some clothes for the banquet?" Yuan Zitong saw Lian Qiao and Yin Qiao cowering on the side, and she was immediately furious. She stood up and slapped each of them in the face: "What use do I have for you? You can't even serve others, right? If you make me angry again, I'll sell you to that filthy place!"
"Miss, calm down!" Lian Qiao's heart trembled, and she quickly bowed and said, "I will help you find some clothes right away!"
"I'll go get the makeup box for the young lady!" Yinqiao also bowed hurriedly.
"Hmph!" After cursing everyone, Yuan Zitong finally calmed down a little. She slowly sat back on the Arhat bed and thought carefully about what Miss Huo had said to her that day.
But since that day, Miss Huo has never looked for her again, and she has repeatedly shown her goodwill to her uncle's family, but has been rejected time and time again. Even when her uncle and aunt came to attend her father's wedding banquet last time, they didn't even smile at her.
Even her grandmother became much colder towards her!
All of this was instigated by Yuan Ziyu. If she hadn't been so active, her family wouldn't have been separated from the general's mansion, her mother wouldn't have been thrown into jail and her life or death wouldn't be known now, and she wouldn't have lost the love of her grandmother and mother, and she wouldn't have to endure the torture of her stepmother because her mother was divorced by her father!
Yuan Ziyou! Yuan Ziyou! All this is because of Yuan Ziyou!
As Yuan Zitong repeated Yuan Ziyu's name, the anger in her heart grew heavier and her hatred grew deeper!
"Miss, take a look at these clothes. Which one do you plan to choose?" Lian Qiao came to Yuan Zitong carefully, holding several dresses, and asked in a low voice.
Yuan Zitong turned to look at the clothes and couldn't help but frowned: "Just these few? Why are they all old clothes?"
"Young lady!" Lian Qiao whispered, "We haven't bought any spring clothes this year. Master said we're short on money and need to save money. Young lady has quite a few clothes, so we won't buy any this year. We'll wait until next year."
"Hmph!" Yuan Zitong slammed the table and gritted her teeth, "I knew Daddy doesn't love me anymore!"
As he spoke, tears began to fall!
Now, no one really cares about her!
"Miss..." Lian Qiao felt a little distressed when she saw Yuan Zitong crying. After all, she was the girl who had served him since she was a child. She hurriedly said, "Don't be sad. The master must still love you in his heart. It's just that he just moved into this mansion and hasn't been able to pay attention to you for a while."
"Till now, I'm afraid you are the only one who still feels sorry for me!" Upon hearing this, Yuan Zitong wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, looked at Lian Qiao and said.
Thinking of her current situation, she couldn't help shedding tears. She was already fifteen years old and would be getting married next year. But looking at her stepmother now, it seemed that she was not a easy person to get along with. She didn't know how she would use the marriage to pressure her when the time came.
Yuan Zitong felt extremely unwilling to accept the fact that she, a legitimate daughter, was being tortured by a concubine's daughter.
"Miss, everything will be fine!" Lian Qiao hurriedly advised when she saw this.
"Yes, it will be fine!" Yuan Zitong thought of what Miss Huo said and took a deep breath. She would definitely avenge herself when the time comes.
Zuo was talking to Qiu Hua in the room when a little maid came in and announced, "Madam, Aunt Yan is here."
"What is she doing here?"
A trace of disdain flashed across Zuo's eyes: "No!"
(End of this chapter)
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