Of course, everyone naturally felt sorry for Miss Qiaoqiao, who had inexplicably suffered this time.
As a result, some men with tender hearts took pity on Qiaoqiao because of this incident and started taking care of her business. Qiaoqiao was quick-witted and simply played the pitiful role, behaving like a sick beauty all day long. She looked so fragile and lovely, with just one furrowed brow or a single tear, she perfectly portrayed the image of a weak girl, capturing the hearts of many men.
As a result, Qiaoqiao’s value rose.
It could be said that in this farce, apart from the foolish Sun Yaowen, almost everyone else reaped the benefits without being involved.
That day, Madam Chen personally brought the account book of Hua Man Lou for Ji Xinhe to review. Xinhe looked through it and smiled, "Qiaoqiao’s value has risen quickly. This girl is really quite clever."
"It’s all thanks to the master’s good training," Madam Chen said ingratiatingly.
"I didn’t teach her this. Nowadays, she’s actually turned misfortune into a blessing, gaining the label of a ’sick beauty’. By playing the pitiful role and having a unique approach, it seems that she’s quite successful," Xin He laughed and handed the account book back to Madam Chen before continuing, "Take good care of her in the future. Although she has a temper, she still contributes to Hua Man Lou."
Madam Chen smiled and nodded, "I understand. Don’t worry, Master."
"Alright, go back if there’s nothing else."
"Yes," Madam Chen replied before turning around and leaving.
As Ji Xinhe laughed softly, she commented, "Qiaoqiao is surprisingly unpredictable, but that’s fine. Beauties come in all sorts of shapes and styles, and I didn’t expect the sick beauty role. Now that she’s occupied this label, she’ll definitely have a place among the top performers in Hua Man Lou."
"She has only been beaten and will recover in time. Can this really last? It’s not exactly a long-lasting solution," Shulan said disdainfully. Qiaoqiao was arrogant and ignorant, which Shulan didn’t like at all.
Seeing her suddenly gaining a higher status in such an absurd way, acting all coquettish, only made Shulan despise her even more.
Ji Xinhe smiled, "You think she is so foolish? Her injury will indeed heal eventually, but she can always claim to have lingering ailments like weakness, night cough, or chest pain. As long as she can act it out, the label ’sick beauty’ will stick."
Shulan’s eyes widened, "She can do that?"
Ji Xinhe spoke calmly, "As long as she has the skills to act it out, I won’t expose her. It’s up to her."
Shulan closed her mouth awkwardly, not saying anything else, but in her heart, she felt even more resentful toward Qiaoqiao.
Ji Xinhe didn’t have the energy to deal with too much. As long as they didn’t cross her bottom line, with so many girls, where would she have the time and energy to worry about their various personalities? Her position was different now; she was the owner and a symbol for everyone else. No matter how the others behaved, she couldn’t favor any one person. Facing these girls, she couldn’t let her personal preferences determine their positions and fates – that would be a big taboo.
——
At a certain manor in the west of the city, almost all the servants were trembling with fear.
Suddenly, there was a loud "bang" sound, followed by the sound of bowls and plates shattering. The chaotic noise was frightening.
"Get out! Get out, you bastards! Is this the kind of food you serve me? It’s more fitting for pigs! Get out of my sight!"
Sun Yaowen was lying in bed, raging. Not only did he overturn the dishes brought by the servants, but he also began cursing like a madman. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
The servants were too afraid to breathe. This wasn’t Sun Manor, and the remote location meant that the food was as good as it could be. But the young master insisted on comparing it to the delicacies at Sun Manor, which naturally led to him feeling unbalanced.
The more Sun Yaowen thought about the grievances he had suffered these days and the stifling Manor, the more hatred he felt. He had become extremely irritable, but behind that irritation was a hint of despair. He’d taken a wrong step, and now everything had gone wrong. He’d been sent to this remote manor, basically cutting all ties with the Sun family’s fortune. In the future...
At the thought of this, Sun Yaowen’s shouting gradually subsided, and his face turned pale with fear.
The servants took the opportunity to quickly clean up and leave. They didn’t even bother guarding the door, dispersing lazily and ignoring the young master.
As Sun Yaowen was in a daze, the door was suddenly pushed open gently.
Upon seeing someone enter, Sun Yaowen instantly felt that the servants didn’t take him seriously and was about to burst out, "Which blind scoundrel dares to..."
"Young Master Sun, what are you doing? You’re still sick, and yet you’re getting so angry. Be careful, or your illness will worsen." The voice was gentle and tranquil, and very pleasant to the ear.
Even Sun Yaowen was stunned.
The woman entering wore a chestnut-green silk dress, her face half-covered, yet her beauty was still evident. She smiled sweetly at Sun Yaowen.
Under normal circumstances, when Sun Yaowen saw a beauty, no matter how angry he was, his anger would dissipate. However, when he looked at the woman in front of him now, his face remained angry. "What are you doing here?"
"Young Master Sun, why are you so cautious? I just want to help you. Why are you so quick to turn against me? Perhaps, I could help you turn things around?"
Sun Yaowen looked at her suspiciously and scoffed, "You actually want to help me? What trick is Hua Man Lou playing this time?"
"Why not? Young Master Sun, I have something I want to ask of you as well. We don’t necessarily have to be enemies, we could be on the same side." The woman curved the corners of her mouth, her eyes shimmering with an unusual light.
——
Duan Lan and Li Junyan’s marriage had been settled a month ago. However, Ji Xinhe only learned of it today, a month later, through a family letter sent from her father across miles of distance.
Xinhe looked at the letter, doubting her eyes, "Duan Lan actually agreed to marry Li Junyan?"
She believed that Duan Lan couldn’t possibly be so foolish as to not see the woman’s true colors. So why did he agree to this marriage?
"Could it be that Young Master Duan also has been deceived?" Shulan ventured hesitantly.
Behind Li Junyan’s seemingly harmless appearance hid a sinister heart. Shulan knew this better than anyone else, as the woman had once tried to have Ji Xinhe drown in the lake.
The surprise in Xinhe’s eyes had been replaced by coldness. After a long silence, she shook her head faintly, "Impossible."
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