Seeing that the situation was completely out of control, Liu hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over, and her fat body blocked Shen Ruoruo: "Enough, enough! There is no need to make so many twists and turns in children's affairs! Wanwan, your cousin is shy, stop teasing her!" As she spoke, she reached out to pull Shen Ruoruo's hand, wanting to quickly escape from this place, but was stopped by Shen Weiwan with a smile.
"Don't be anxious, auntie," Shen Weiwan stood sideways in front of the moon-shaped door, a bamboo dragonfly spinning a trail of afterimages on her fingertips. "I have something else I want to ask my cousin - your 'lame cousin', since he's a distant relative, why does he keep coming to our house? Is he thinking about the old things my father left behind, or..." She suddenly lowered her voice and said in a volume that only people within three steps could hear, "Is he thinking about this piece of 'fat meat' like you, my cousin?"
"Chen Weiwan!" Shen Ruoruo completely collapsed, screaming and rushing over to grab her, but Shen Weiwan swerved and dodged. In a hurry, the bamboo dragonfly at her hand flew out with a "whoosh" and landed squarely on the hat of the old housekeeper who was passing by. The bamboo blade hit the wings of the black gauze hat, making a crisp "ding" sound.
"Oh! I'm sorry, old housekeeper!" Shen Weiwan apologized hurriedly, and took the opportunity to bypass Liu and rushed to the old housekeeper like a rabbit that had broken free from its reins. "Aunt, cousin, you guys chat slowly, I'll go and apologize to the old housekeeper!" Before she finished speaking, she had pulled Chuntao and disappeared behind the moon cave door, leaving only Liu and Shen Ruoruo under the gaze of the servants, their faces turning pale and blue, like two clay Buddhas melted by the sun.
"Miss, your finishing move is truly amazing!" After running for half a minute, Chun Tao finally caught her breath, leaning against the rockery. She laughed so hard that tears were almost coming out. "Especially that 'lame cousin' and the word 'soft' on the handkerchief. I saw that Second Miss's face was so purple that it looked like blood was dripping out!"
Chen Weiwan took the iced sour plum soup handed to her by Chuntao, tilted her neck back and took a big gulp. The sour and sweet liquid slid down her throat, dispelling some of the heat. "Absolute? This is just the beginning." She wiped the corner of her mouth, and the mud stains from her fingertips left a vague mark on the porcelain cup. "Didn't you see how panicked Liu was when she grabbed the handkerchief - if she really found it, why would she be so panicked?"
Chun Tao suddenly realized and lowered her voice: "Miss, are you saying that the handkerchief was given to him by the Second Miss?"
"What else?" Shen Weiwan sneered and handed the empty cup to Chuntao, a cold light flashing in her eyes. "That cripple Li Xiu wants to cling to the general's mansion, Liu wants to use him to suppress me, and Shen Ruoruo is greedy for the benefits he promised. The three of them got together to act out this drama, thinking they can hide the truth?" She suddenly stopped and looked at the water pavilion not far away - the seventh prince Xiao Yu was sitting by the railing, playing with a black jade chess piece in his hand, his eyes seemed to sweep over them, with an elusive smile on the corner of his mouth.
For some reason, being watched by those eyes made Shen Weiwan feel a little uneasy. She pulled Chuntao and quickened her pace, "Come on, back to the room. Have the servants spread some news on the streets later—saying that the second daughter of the general's mansion and her 'crippled cousin' were secretly having an affair, even giving away a handkerchief embroidered with her name. Also mention the 'good thing' that Li Xiu gave her the pearl."
Chun Tao's eyes lit up: "Miss, if this gets out, the Second Miss will never get married in her life!"
"Marry?" Chen Weiwan raised the corner of her mouth with a cold arc. The sunlight fell on her face through the gaps in the leaves, but it could not dispel the coldness in her eyes. "In my previous life, they made me marry the cripple in place of Shen Ruorou and let me freeze to death in the snow. I will settle this account one by one. Now I just want her to taste the taste of ruined reputation. What's the point?"
Chuntao looked at the fierceness that flashed across her young lady's eyes, and suddenly felt that this warm summer day was a bit chilling.
At the same time, in the pavilion, the Seventh Prince, Xiao Yu, set down his chess piece and tapped his jade fingers against the stone table, making a rhythmic "tapping" sound. A black-clad guard standing nearby whispered, "Your Highness, that Li Xiu is as stupid as a pig. Should we continue to pay attention to him?"
"Of course." Xiao Yu raised his eyes, his gaze as deep as an ancient well. "Don't you think that watching Miss Shen deal with the clowns is much more interesting than reading those lengthy memorials from the Censorate?" He remembered the cunning light in Shen Weiwan's eyes when she tilted her head and said "crippled cousin". The smile on the corner of his mouth deepened unconsciously, "Especially the sentence 'cousin is also called Rou'. How did she come up with that?"
The guards dared not say anything more and could only bow and retreat.
Shen Weiwan had just returned to the courtyard and sat down when the old housekeeper came in holding a gilded lacquer wooden box. The old man's beard trembled slightly, and he was obviously in a complicated mood: "Miss, this is... This is some of the old things left by the general. It was previously kept in the courtyard by the second wife. She said..."
"You said you were afraid a fool like me might lose it, right?" Shen Weiwan raised an eyebrow and took the wooden box. The moment the lid opened, a stale sandalwood scent filled her face. Inside lay several old letters sealed with wax and a black jade pendant in the shape of a tiger talisman. She picked up the jade pendant and felt it was cool to the touch. The lotus pattern engraved on it was exactly the same as the dark pattern on the soft armor her father often wore.
The old butler sighed, his aged face full of guilt: "The young lady is now very intelligent, and this old servant...this old servant was blind before."
Shen Weiwan placed the jade pendant close to her body. The coolness of the jade pendant penetrated her clothes, like her father's body temperature. She looked up at the old housekeeper with a calm expression: "There's no need to talk about the past. But I'll ask the old housekeeper to take care of the key to the warehouse from now on. Don't let someone take my things to please an unrelated 'cousin'."
The old housekeeper's face turned serious, and he bowed solemnly: "Don't worry, Miss, I will save you the trouble!"
Watching the old housekeeper's back as he left, Shen Weiwan walked to the window and half-opened it. The cicadas outside the window were still noisy, but strangely, they made her feel at ease. The jade pendant in her hand felt warm and smooth, the power left by her father.
She would take back the General's estate bit by bit. As for Li Xiu and Shen Ruorou? Their drama had only just begun. And this farce in the capital, which she was leading, she would let it continue until all her enemies paid the price.
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