Qin Wenjun was quite angry at her words.
When did she elope with a man? This person is falsely accusing her without any evidence; it's despicable.
She was about to retort.
Xiao Qingyin gently patted the back of his hand.
Xiao Qingyin gave her a reassuring look, then turned to look at Meng Qi.
"You are Minister Meng's eldest daughter, Miss Meng, right? Even if I were your sister, this is still going too far."
Is having a sister who eloped something to be proud of?
Are you shouting this so loudly because you're afraid others won't know about it?
It is said that family scandals should not be aired in public, but your Meng family is different; you seem eager to expose everything.
Minister Meng was the Minister of Rites, yet he had such poor upbringing?
It truly broadened my horizons.
Meng Qi didn't expect that Xiao Qingyin didn't care about Meng Ke's scandal at all, but instead started lecturing her.
But she couldn't very well refute those words.
He was immediately both angry and embarrassed.
Her face flushed red and then turned pale.
Xiao Qingyin continued, "Miss Meng is already quite old and a married woman. She must understand these principles. Yet she insists on smearing her half-sister in front of others, who doesn't even know where she is or what suffering she is going through. Her heart is truly despicable."
Seeing that his dignity had been stripped away, Meng Qi disregarded everything else and pointed at Qin Tianci, saying:
"If she hadn't eloped with a man, how could she have had a child? The child is only about four years old. Considering the time of pregnancy, it matches the time she disappeared back then. How could I have slandered her!"
These are all facts, okay?
Upon hearing this, Xiao Qingyin showed a hint of pity.
"Miss Meng, after all this talk, you still treat Wenjun like your second sister? It seems you are indeed quite ill. You should find a doctor to see her as soon as possible. Early treatment leads to a faster recovery. Don't delay, or it may become incurable."
Meng Qi was so angry she almost vomited blood.
You're the one who's sick!
She's perfectly fine.
After not seeing her for several years, Meng Ke has become quite capable, managing to convince Xiao Qingyin to treat her as one of her own and protect her.
If she continues arguing, she doesn't know what kind of madwoman she'll be portrayed as.
Xiao Qingyin is no pushover.
She swallowed her anger for the time being.
He forced a smile and replied, "Perhaps I really have mistaken you for someone else. This Miss Qin really looks so much like my second sister, don't you think, Lord Bai?"
She looked at Bai Yanzhang with a questioning expression.
Whether Xiao Qingyin admits it or not doesn't matter much; it's enough that Bai Yanzhang admits it.
She refused to believe that Bai Yanzhang would still have any feelings for Meng Ke after knowing that she had eloped with a man and had a child.
Bai Yanzhang said indifferently, "I don't remember what Miss Meng looks like anymore, so I can't tell if Miss Qin looks like Miss Meng."
Upon hearing this, Qin Wenjun felt a slight pang of pain in her heart.
He doesn't even remember what she looks like?
That's true. He doesn't even know how many girls he's patronized at the brothel. Beautiful women are commonplace to him. How could he possibly remember someone as ordinary as her?
She's the only one who can't forget the past.
While she was grieving, Meng Qi was overjoyed.
Bai Yanzhang indeed believed Meng Ke's story of eloping, and now he doesn't even bother to look at Meng Ke.
This was truly an unexpected bonus.
A hint of doubt crossed Xiao Qingyin's mind.
If Bai Yanzhang truly didn't care about Qin Wenjun, why did he show such hatred in front of the emperor a few days ago? Was that also something he did on purpose?
If that's the case, then this person is far too cunning.
She kept it in mind, planning to have a proper talk with Qin Wenjun later.
However, she has no intention of letting Meng Qi off the hook right now.
“Miss Meng,” she said, looking at Meng Qi with a smile, “since you admit that you mistook someone for someone else, you’d better not make up stories about Wenjun later, or I’ll just think you’re having a fit of hysteria and I’ll have to give you some medicine.”
Meng Qi's expression changed slightly.
This is clearly a threat.
She was forbidden from publicizing Meng Ke's scandals.
Meng Ke is truly blessed.
She gritted her teeth and replied, "Don't worry, Miss Xiao, I won't confuse the two of them."
"That's good."
Xiao Qingyin smiled slightly and left with Qin Wenjun and Yi Shuihan.
Meng Qi's frustration lingered for a long time.
After returning home, she went straight to the Buddhist hall to find her grandmother and embellished her story about bumping into Meng Ke at the temple.
"...Second sister, relying on Miss Xiao's support, not only refuses to return home, but also falsely accuses me of being crazy. I don't mind suffering some grievances, but I'm afraid she will take her illegitimate child and swindle people outside, causing trouble for our Meng family."
Upon hearing this, Madam Meng was both shocked and furious. She immediately summoned the clan elders and removed Meng Ke's name from the family genealogy.
They assumed she had died outside long ago.
Even if Qin Wenjun comes knocking on their door in the future, they will never acknowledge her.
Meng Qi was still not satisfied.
She had often mistreated Meng Ke in the past, fearing that Meng Ke would gain power and trample her into the mud.
He racked his brains for a while and came up with a plan.
Unaware that she was being targeted, Qin Wenjun gave Tianci a bath and changed his clothes after returning to the Marquis's residence from the temple.
Then they washed his dirty clothes and Bai Yanzhang's cloak together and hung them out to dry in the yard.
She was quite surprised when the gatekeeper announced that a girl named Cui'er had come to see her.
Cui'er was her former maid in the Meng family.
The eldest daughter of a noble family is usually paired with one mother, two first-class maids, and two second-class maids.
The concubine's daughters were served by two maids.
She was not favored, and the maids assigned to her were all leftovers from other families.
Her two maids were either lazy and unwilling to work, or they were always looking for easy tasks and avoiding hard ones.
Cui'er was more diligent than the other one, so she spent more time with her.
She was considered her trusted maid.
After she leaves the Meng residence, the two maids will likely be reassigned to other courtyards.
Their relationship as mistress and servant was not deep to begin with, which is why she hadn't thought of Cui'er in the past few years.
She had just met Meng Qi today when Cui'er came looking for her, so she became wary.
Cui'er's clothes were similar to before, but she looked much fairer.
Qin Wenjun noticed that Cui'er's nails were neatly trimmed and painted, suggesting that she was living a good life.
But as soon as she saw her, she started wiping away tears.
"Miss has caused me so much suffering."
Cui'er sobbed.
"The young lady left without saying a word, leaving behind me and Zhu'er."
Zhu'er quickly found a way to be transferred to the kitchen, but the maid couldn't bear to part with her mistress and stayed alone in the courtyard.
Every day after cleaning the yard, he would lean against the door, eagerly waiting for the young lady to return.
But day after day, year after year, the young lady never returned, and the servants grew old waiting.
If it weren't for the young lady taking pity on me and telling me she saw you at the temple, I'm afraid I would have been waiting in the courtyard until the end of time.
Qin Wenjun waited until she finished crying before saying, "Your young lady has mistaken me for someone else. I am not your young lady."
Cui'er's eyes widened, and she suddenly stepped forward, grabbing Qin Wenjun's sleeve and rolling it up to her upper arm.
Pointing to the faint white scar on her elbow, she said, "Miss, don't try to fool me. You were tripped by the eldest young lady and fell to the ground, injuring your elbow. It was I who applied the medicine for you."
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