The next morning, Ms. Qian got up lazily.
Madam Ruan knew the importance of the matter. Since the Marquis had inquired about it, she should get it done as soon as possible, at least to show that her attitude was correct.
Reluctantly, Madam Qian got up, slowly washed and brushed her teeth, and dawdled as she changed her clothes before finally getting into the carriage and arriving at the Ningyuan Earl's residence.
At this time, in the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion, Zhou, Wang, Liu, and Liu's two daughters, Shi Ling and Shi Lei, were paying their respects to the old lady in Xifu Hall. Upon hearing that Qian had come to visit, the old lady asked her two granddaughters to leave.
The maid led Madam Qian in.
As soon as she entered the door, Madam Qian ordered someone to bring in the gift box, and with an arrogant air, she paid her respects to the old lady.
Zhou moved to a lower position to make room for Qian.
Qian gave a forced smile and thanked her, then sat down without hesitation.
Zhou's expression changed slightly, but she didn't say anything and sat down opposite him.
Sitting next to Madam Qian, Madam Wang glared at her unfriendly upon seeing her like this, skipping all formalities and getting straight to the point: "Has Madam Hou come to apologize?"
The implication was that he disapproved of her attitude; she had come to apologize but acted as if she were condescending.
Madam Qian covered her mouth with her handkerchief and smiled, "Mrs. Shi is joking. I haven't done anything wrong, so why should I apologize?"
The expressions of everyone present immediately changed.
Madam Qian looked around, then, remembering the Marquis's instructions, she changed the subject and said, "But it's also my fault for not being proper in my manners and for not serving properly, which led to the young lady falling into the water. Our Marquis's mansion should bear some responsibility." She pointed to the gift boxes that had fallen together and could not fit on the table, and said, "The young lady's body is delicate, it's always good for her to take better care of herself."
Hearing this, Wang was so angry that her teeth itched, and she stared straight at Qian with her big, round eyes.
Madam Qian felt a shiver run down her spine under her gaze. She sat down, clutching her chest, and said, "It's quite frightening to look at people like that, Madam Shi." She turned to the side and hid half of her body next to Granny Ruan, as if that would embolden her.
Looking at the pretentious Qian Shi, the old lady felt a pang of heartache. If she weren't worried about completely offending her and ruining her granddaughter's future, she would have pretended to be unwell and chased her away.
When Madam Qian turned around, she saw the old lady's dark face and was also unhappy. It was as if she liked coming here. If it weren't for the Marquis's instructions, would she have come here?
Zhou looked coldly at Qian, who held her chin up and looked down on everyone, and gave a cold snort.
The Earl had already told her about what happened in court yesterday. As the head mistress of the Earl's mansion, Zhou knew about the fact that someone from the Vice Minister's residence came the day after the incident. Considering that the Zhou family had encountered this incident in just two days, and looking at the self-righteous Qian, Zhou felt only amusement.
Nowadays, the imperial court is no longer ruled by nobles; Confucian civil officials are the pillars supporting the entire country. Although my family is also a scholarly family, only two or three of our members have achieved success. Unlike the Wang family, although no one from the Wang family has ever held an official position, her ancestors have been educating and nurturing people. Some who couldn't advance due to poverty were even given support by the Wang family, ensuring their talents weren't wasted. Countless children who benefited from the Wang family's teachings now stand in the imperial court.
Wang was the only daughter of the Wang family's direct line, with two older brothers. However, Lan'er was the only girl among the grandchildren of the Wang family's direct line, so it was no exaggeration to say that she was the apple of the eye of the entire Wang family.
Zhou sneered inwardly. If this matter did not end with a solemn wedding, the day Lan'er entered the family temple would be the beginning of Qian's and her niece's suffering.
Wang was unaware of her sister-in-law's thoughts. At this moment, she was glaring at Qian and said resentfully, "She was clearly pushed into the water, and no one came to fetch her. Madam only says that she was not taken care of properly. Isn't that a bit of shirking responsibility? Or does she think that sending these pieces of junk is the end of it?"
Madam Qian pursed her lips, thinking that since it was junk, they shouldn't take it. It was ginseng and deer antler that had been paid for annually, and there were only a few boxes in the manor. The Marquis had ordered someone to bring four boxes over at once.
Seeing that Qian remained silent, Wang harbored resentment in her heart.
Seeing the way Wang looked at her as if she wanted to devour her, Qian felt that Wang was really ungrateful.
She has already condescended to come and apologize. It's true that her daughter fell into the water, but she rescued her. Is it really necessary to be so rude and disrespectful?
Seeing that she remained silent, Madam Wang laughed in exasperation, "It seems your family has no intention of giving us an explanation?"
Madam Qian grinned and snorted, "Look at what you're saying. Who would have thought that your second young lady couldn't even stand properly? If something happens to her, who can you blame?"
Seeing her speak like that, Madam Wang simply didn't hold back and said directly, "If you were standing properly, you wouldn't have fallen into the water. If it weren't for your cousin being pushed around by someone, and the old woman stopping the maid from helping, how could my daughter have fallen into the water?"
Qian had been deliberately downplaying this point, but now that Wang had brought it up, she coughed uncomfortably.
Madam Wang continued, "It was your young master who brought the person ashore, you were the ones who pushed the person, and you were the ones who saved the person. Don't I think this was a setup by you to ruin my daughter?"
Upon hearing Wang's words, Qian immediately panicked. Her first thought was that the Earl's Mansion was trying to use this opportunity to entangle the Marquis's Mansion. Although she only had a vague understanding of the matter, she was certain that the Heir Apparent had absolutely nothing to do with it. Besides, her relationship with the Earl's Mansion was merely a matter of courtesy; she had no grudge against them, so why would she want to harm them? This Wang was truly despicable, actually dragging the Heir Apparent into this matter.
Madam Qian's face changed drastically when she thought about what would happen if these words reached the Marquis's ears, and the thought that Zhu Xian might still be as angry as he was last night. She immediately ignored the glances that Granny Ruan was sending her and quickly tried to explain, "You're going too far with what you're saying. What do you mean by 'setting up a trap'? You came to my residence with Madam Liu. You said at the time that it was just a spur-of-the-moment visit. I'm not a god, how would I know you would come? Besides, I'm not stupid. Even if I were setting up a trap, I wouldn't do it in my residence."
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