"The tricolor rose bush is right here. It has bloomed sixteen flowers today. You can feast your eyes on it."
With a beaming smile, Madam Yao led several close female friends toward the back garden.
As they approached the rose bushes that Yao had mentioned, before the ladies could even admire the flowers, they heard blush-inducing panting sounds coming from behind the bushes.
The smile on Yao's face froze.
He said with an embarrassed expression, "I'm sorry, you've all seen this and made a fool of yourselves. The servants in the manor are really incompetent."
The ladies all expressed their understanding.
“These servants have never read books, how would they know about propriety, righteousness, integrity and a sense of shame?”
"They're uncivilized; they're not much better than animals."
"They probably thought there wouldn't be many people strolling in the garden at this time of day."
"..."
Madam Yao returned a grateful look and said to the maid beside her, "Quickly tell these two scoundrels to shut up and stop making a fool of themselves here."
The maidservant obeyed and left.
He immediately returned, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Madam Yao said angrily, "Why hasn't it stopped yet?"
“Madam, it’s the young master and… the eldest young lady,” the maid stammered.
The ladies' expressions changed slightly.
Madam Yao flew into a rage: "You wretched servant, how dare you slander your master! Guards, drag her away and hand her over to the brokerage to be sold!"
The maid immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"Madam, please spare me! I did not slander you. The people in the room are indeed Young Master and Miss!"
"Nonsense! How could those two do such a thing in broad daylight!"
"Madam, please go and see for yourself, I really didn't lie!"
The maid banged her forehead until it bled, and blood soaked her face.
Yao's face looked extremely unpleasant.
She took a deep breath and looked at the ladies.
“This wretched maid has some kind of relationship with those two beasts, yet she dares to smear our young lady. Please come with me and let's see for ourselves and clear the child’s name.”
The ladies concealed the gossip in their eyes and nodded in agreement.
The group arrived at the side room. The door bolt was already open. Madam Yao pushed open both doors and her expression changed drastically.
"Qingyin, Guangmao! What are you doing!"
The ladies looked over her shoulder and saw two white figures, then immediately looked away.
Yao swayed, as if she was so shocked by the scene that she was about to faint.
“How could they do this? Qingyin is engaged to the heir of the Marquis of Yong’an… It’s all my fault for not keeping a close eye on the child.”
Yao clutched her chest, her face filled with heartache.
The ladies offered gentle words of comfort.
"You can't blame yourself for that. That child was brought back from the countryside, so he probably doesn't know what propriety, righteousness, integrity, and shame are."
"When I first met her at the Marquis of Yong'an's residence, I sensed that she wasn't the type to stay put, and sure enough..."
"Being a stepmother is really not easy. If you speak too softly, she won't listen; if you speak too harshly, she'll say you're being difficult. You've already done your best."
"..."
Just then, a clear, melodious voice rang out behind them: "What are you doing here?"
The ladies were taken aback and turned around to see Xiao Qingyin standing there with a smile on her face, holding a rose in her hand.
Yao's face turned pale instantly.
"W-How did you get here?!"
"I was bored, so I came to the garden to pick some flowers to put in a vase."
Xiao Qingyin smiled.
As if she had just heard the noise in the room, she asked in confusion, "What was that sound?"
Before Yao could answer, she covered her mouth and exclaimed in surprise, "Aren't those Rong-meimei and Mao-gege? What are they doing?"
“That’s not Rongrong!” Madam Yao immediately retorted, then realized she had been too agitated and calmed down. “She’s a servant from the manor.”
"Really?" Xiao Qingyin blinked. "But I remember that Rong-meimei was wearing the same clothes that were on the ground this morning."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Qingrong's hoarse and sinister voice rang out: "Crown Prince, do you know that Qingrong has always been in love with you? After the Crown Princess dies, will you marry me?"
"What 'Crown Prince Brother'?" the man shouted, "I'm your cousin! Open your eyes and see clearly!"
The ladies' faces immediately turned as if a rouge shop had been opened, their complexions displaying a variety of colors.
Yao's legs went weak, and she almost knelt down.
She hurriedly closed the door and turned to explain.
"Don't listen to the nonsense of these two lowly servants! They are not Rongrong or my nephew!"
"Uh-huh."
The ladies nodded perfunctorily.
Upon seeing this, Yao felt a mouthful of blood rise to her throat, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed.
...
"brute!"
When Xiao Shengyuan returned from court, he learned about the garden incident from the steward. Enraged, he ordered Xiao Qingrong to be taken to the ancestral hall and beaten with thirty strokes of the cane.
Xiao Qingrong was already under the spell of the Entangling Silk, unable to move her body. After being hit by a barrage of blows, she was nearly killed.
"How could I have raised such a shameless slut like you!"
Xiao Shengyuan was furious. He grabbed a whip from the wall and was about to use it.
Yao hugged him tightly.
"Master, do you want Rongrong to die? Rongrong is already suffering enough."
"How can she still have the nerve to live after doing something like this? If she had even a shred of shame, she should just hang herself!"
Xiao Shengyuan started cursing.
The thought of the scandal that was about to spread and the stares of his peers filled him with a burning desire to kill this wretched girl.
"Rongrong was framed."
Yao was in tears.
Why is it that every time that little bitch is targeted, it's always Rongrong who suffers?
Heaven is unjust!
"Ha, a setup." Xiao Shengyuan sneered. "Do you think everyone else is blind? To be inferior in skill and still go against someone, it's utterly foolish!"
He couldn't help but think of Yun Wanyin, who never let him worry about household affairs and always managed them perfectly.
Xiao Shengyuan glanced at Yao Shi with disgust and said coldly, "Don't try to dress like her anymore. Ten of you wouldn't be as good as one of her fingers."
Having said that, he turned and left.
Yao was so angry that she trembled all over.
"Mother..." Xiao Qingrong said weakly, "I need the Third Princess... for the antidote."
The binding silk that should have been absorbed by Xiao Qingyin somehow ended up on her, leaving her unable to move even her fingers, as if she were paralyzed.
The thought of spending the rest of her life lying in bed filled Xiao Qingrong with unbearable terror.
When Yao came to her senses, she threw herself into her daughter's arms and burst into tears, crying, "Mother will get it for you, you will definitely get better."
The imagination is rich, but the reality is harsh.
Yao sent a message to the palace, but the Third Princess refused to see her, let alone give her the antidote.
She simply sent a cold message: "Whether she lives or dies is none of my business!"
...
After this incident, Xiao Qingyin was too lazy to stay at the Xiao residence anymore. Without even saying goodbye, she moved to live with Madam Han.
After hearing about Xiao Qingrong, Madam Han repeatedly warned her, "You must be careful of them in the future."
Xiao Qingyin nodded.
"I will."
Looking at the somewhat empty courtyard, she became interested in dressing up and called Yun Shu to go to the flower and bird market.
I picked out a whole truckload of flowers and plants.
We had just brought it back and hadn't even started setting it up when someone came to our door asking for help.
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