Su Ying feigned sudden realization, her surprised expression causing Shen Jinshu a moment of embarrassment. "So that's how it is. Then I'll pay for this for you, Sister Shen. It's just one less piece of jewelry to buy anyway."
If His Highness knew, he might even praise me for doing a good job. Anyway, it's all His Highness's money that's being spent, so Sister Shen, please don't refuse."
Having said that, Su Ying seemed oblivious to Shen Jinshu's displeasure and instructed her maid to pay the three thousand taels entrance fee.
The gatekeeper accepted the silver and stopped stopping people, his tone becoming more respectful than before.
"Miss Shen, please come in."
Miss Yun said, "It's a waste not to take advantage of business that's offered to us."
Since the guest can afford to pay, he naturally has to let him pass.
Shen Jinshu found the smile on the servant's face extremely irritating.
She was only confined for three months, but the king not only took a new concubine, but also allowed this woman to ridicule her and trample on her dignity.
It turns out that all the gentleness and kindness shown to her before were fake. If she weren't still of use, she wouldn't have been able to sit on the throne of the princess.
Thinking of this, Shen Jinshu sneered, "No need, a mere three thousand taels is something I, the daughter of a noble family, can afford."
"But you, Sister Su, are just a dancer by trade, without a powerful family to back you up, so you need money even more. You should keep this money and buy yourself a few more pieces of jewelry."
The two women were worlds apart in status, so why should she lower herself to deal with a concubine, thus unnecessarily lowering her own standing?
Using one's looks to please others is ultimately unsustainable, and a man's favor is fleeting and ephemeral. If one is too arrogant now, one will only suffer a terrible fate later.
Once she entered the Prince's mansion, the first thing she did was to deal with the woman in front of her to vent her anger.
"Xiuyue, give me the money." Upon receiving the order, Xiuyue handed over the silver notes with a less-than-pleasant expression, her heart bleeding with heartache.
Three thousand taels could buy a top-quality piece of jewelry, but now it's just an entry fee.
Once the money was spent, the young lady's private treasury was almost empty, and she had to reduce the amount of jewelry she needed to buy for subsequent banquets.
Not to mention the current situation of the Marquis of Chengen's mansion, which is also in dire straits, and they can't even afford to supply the old lady with her daily bowl of bird's nest.
If the Marquis were to find out that the young lady had spent three thousand taels of silver to buy a chance to enter the Treasure Pavilion, even if he doted on her, he might still be furious and hold a grudge.
After all, most of the silver in the young lady's private treasury was bestowed by the Marquis.
Thinking of this, Xiuyue suddenly raised her eyes and glanced at Song Zhiyu, then pursed her lips with a complicated expression.
Eighty percent of the silver in the Marquis's possession came from the revenue of those shops in the east of the city.
Those shops, once run by the second young lady, were very prosperous, with countless sums of money flowing in like water.
Unfortunately, the shop was later seized by the third wife, who stuffed all her family members into it, and from then on, the business began to decline.
The remaining shops in the mansion were not doing well and could barely cover daily expenses, so they could no longer live as comfortably as before.
"Indeed, Sister Shen is the daughter of a marquis, how could she be short of such a small amount of money? It was I who was ungrateful." Su Ying gave a self-deprecating laugh, her voice somewhat somber, which, combined with her pitiful face, made people feel even more sorry for her.
Seeing this, Shen Jinhua muttered irritably, "It seems you have some self-awareness. A concubine who was once a dancer should call your elder sister Miss Shen. Sister Shen is not someone of your lowly birth who can address you as such."
Shen Jinshu didn't speak, but stood quietly to the side, clearly acknowledging Shen Jinhua's meaning.
"Indeed, I have overstepped my bounds, and I hope Miss Shen will not take offense. However, His Highness has always wanted me to get along well with Miss Shen, and I did not want to disappoint him, which is why I lost my composure. I will not do it again next time."
Su Ying lowered her eyelids in disappointment, concealing the fleeting glint in her eyes, and shifted all the blame onto Prince Li, portraying herself as a delicate and easily bullied beauty.
"Chunmei, let's go, don't disturb Miss Shen's enjoyment." She caught a glimpse of a figure hurrying away in the crowd out of the corner of her eye, her lips curving slightly, but the smile didn't reach her eyes.
I imagine that in about half a cup of tea's time, news of what happened at the Treasure Pavilion today will reach the ears of the Prince of Li.
She could not only use this opportunity to sever ties with Song Zhiyu, but also use Shen Jinhua's words to evoke the Prince of Li's pity, killing two birds with one stone.
Su Ying arrived with a smile, but left looking dejected. The unsuspecting people's gazes towards Shen Jinshu underwent a subtle change.
It's said that Miss Shen is always kind, gentle and generous, but she hasn't even entered the Li Prince's mansion yet, and she's already putting on airs like the Li Prince's consort. This is really too different from the rumors.
Just then, Shen Jinhua sneered at Su Ying's retreating figure, "Those who come from a dancer's background have no manners whatsoever. When eldest sister enters the manor in the future, she'll have to teach her a lesson..."
"Enough, don't say those things again." Shen Jinshu's stern words startled Shen Jinhua, who could only shut her mouth sheepishly.
“We can’t choose our birth, as long as we have a clear conscience. You’ve always been outspoken, but I’ve refrained from scolding you out of consideration for our sisterly bond. Just don’t do it again.”
Finally, in an attempt to salvage her repeatedly tarnished image, Shen Jinshu added a grand-sounding sentence.
Unable to endure the whispers and pointing fingers any longer, she stepped into the Treasure Pavilion.
Song Zhiyu watched the scene unfold with a calm expression, even finding Shen Jinshu's shamelessness somewhat admirable.
She was the one who mocked Su Ying's background, and now she's the one saying that one's background is something one can't choose. She's said all sorts of good and bad things, making Shen Jinhua look like she's caught in the middle.
Shen Jinhua clearly understood her unspoken meaning, and her pretty face turned pale and then flushed, a truly fascinating sight.
If it weren't for offending her uncle over the jade ruyi incident, she wouldn't have needed to curry favor with Shen Jinshu.
Song Zhiyu tricked her into buying a fake jade ruyi, causing her to lose face at Madam Ling's birthday banquet and become the laughing stock of the capital.
Shen Jinshu didn't treat her like a younger sister either. He took all the credit for himself while she took all the blame. What a cunning scheme!
But there were far more things that were even harder for her to accept than that.
"Why are you stopping me?" Shen Jinhua stared wide-eyed in disbelief, not expecting that she would receive the same treatment as Shen Jinshu, having to pay an entrance fee of three thousand taels to enter the Treasure Pavilion.
The servant's expression remained unchanged, but his words were unyielding: "Miss Shen, I'm just following the rules, please don't make things difficult for me."
Shen Jinhua recalled the embarrassing incident at the Treasure Pavilion auction last time, and her already pale face became even more unsightly.
She never imagined that just moments ago she was laughing at Shen Jinshu, but now the tables have turned and she's the one who's embarrassed.
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