While taking a shower, Lin Qingwan saw that the spot on her abdomen where Jiang Zhenlin had kicked her had spread into a large bruise, with some blood trickling down to her ribs.
Even breathing deeply was painful, but thankfully I had some medicinal oil in my bag.
Lin Qingwan's adoptive father was a traveling medicine merchant who had a lot of valuable items at home, which he kept for emergencies. Unexpectedly, they became her lifeline.
Mu Xue helped her dry her hair. "Miss, the midnight snack is fish soup noodles. I'll bring you a bowl."
Lin Qingwan arrived at the Marquis's residence hungry and cold. She hadn't even been near the table for the reunion dinner, and was indeed starving.
She didn't mince words, "Thank you."
The thick, snow-white fish soup, paired with perfectly cooked thin noodles, was so delicious that Lin Qingwan would have licked the bowl clean if Mu Xue hadn't been there.
"Does Miss want more?" Mu Xue was genuinely distressed that she hadn't even had a proper meal after returning home.
Lin Qingwan was initially worried about being ridiculed, but then she thought, wouldn't she be ridiculed if she didn't order an extra bowl?
She nodded intently, "Yes."
Mu Xue walked back and forth in the kitchen very quickly, worried that the soup would get cold and the dough would clump together.
Lin Qingwan ate with relish, completely unaware that the old woman in the kitchen was already laughing at her for never having seen anything good before.
"A bowl the size of a washbasin, one bowl isn't enough. Tsk tsk, what respectable young lady would eat noodles at this hour?"
"How can the little fish outside compare to the fish soup that has been simmering in the Prime Minister's mansion for hours?"
Jiang Zhenlin felt hungry after leaving Jiang Yanwan's courtyard, so he headed to the kitchen to find something to eat. Before he even entered, he heard a lively discussion inside.
"Let her drink it if she wants. Anyway, there's a whole pot of soup base, and the rest will just be fed to the dogs."
The old women, not holding back, burst into laughter upon hearing this.
Jiang Zhenlin's fists clenched so tightly they cracked, and he suddenly remembered Lin Qingwan's words, "I'm just like you, I have the blood of the Jiang family flowing in my veins." He immediately threw off his robe and kicked the door, the loud bang nearly scaring the old women out of their wits.
He stood there like a fierce demon, then overturned the fish soup pot, splashing the scalding broth onto the women, instantly turning their skin bright red. Even in excruciating pain, they dared not cry out, kneeling on the ground, pleading, "Young Master, please calm your anger!"
Jiang Zhenlin pursed his lips into a thin line, pointed at the thick soup spilled on the ground, and said, "Lick it clean."
The old women had no idea what had gotten into their ancestor this time, so they could only cower and do as she was told.
After more than half an hour, the three of them were too tired to lick anymore and cried, begging the young master for mercy.
Jiang Zhenlin's lips twitched twice. "If I hear you gossiping again, I'll rip your tongues out!"
Huaguang Institute.
After serving Jiang Yanwan her medicine, the maid Xia Yan told her about the two late-night snacks that Ningsi Courtyard was going to provide.
When Jiang Yanwan heard Lin Qingwan eat two bowls of noodles, she scoffed, "The Prime Minister's residence isn't short of money. Let alone two bowls of noodles, even twenty bowls wouldn't be a problem for her."
Xia Yan laughed, "No wonder the Prime Minister brought up the rules as soon as he saw her. How can she compare to Miss?"
Jiang Yanwan took a risky move, and coupled with the rumors she had spread that Lin Qingwan would force her to her death upon her return, she made everyone in the Prime Minister's mansion dislike Lin Qingwan. Her mother hadn't prepared anything for her, and her father hadn't given her a kind look either. Today could be considered her first victory.
She felt satisfied, but then she heard Xia Yan say that Jiang Zhenlin had inexplicably lost his temper. Jiang Yanwan frowned slightly, "It's true that A-Lin has a fiery temper, but he never loses his temper for no reason."
"What did he say?"
Xia Yan thought about it carefully, "I warned the old woman not to gossip."
After saying that, Xia Yan added presumptuously, "Young Master must be doing this for your own good, forbidding the servants from comparing Lin Qingwan to you."
That's true. But...
She recalled the confrontation between Lin Qingwan and Jiang Zhenlin, and the mere mention of having Jiang family blood running through her veins made her uneasy.
"She didn't cry or make a fuss when she came back on the first day, and she didn't even flinch when Ah Lin gave her such a fierce warning and threat." Jiang Yanwan rubbed her fingers together. "I underestimated her."
"I think she's just terrified." Xia Yan didn't take it seriously. "Madam has instructed that you and she should be told to be twins, with you as the elder and her as the younger. You will always be Miss Jiang."
Jiang Yanwan's complexion improved somewhat, but she still couldn't relax. "Keep a close eye on her. Wealth and status are blinding. Now that she's back, she must be unwilling to accept this."
"I'll talk to my mother tomorrow and ask Rong Ma to teach her some manners."
Lin Qingwan, far away in Ningsi Courtyard, was unaware that Jiang Zhenlin had thrown a tantrum, nor that Jiang Yanwan was constantly looking for trouble with her. She only felt that she had eaten her fill and was in a better mood than before. Muxue applied frostbite cream to her and wrapped her hands in a light towel to help her rest.
"I am in the next room. Please call me if you need anything."
Mu Xue's voice was soft, and her round eyes with a small dimple made her exceptionally cute.
Lin Qingwan was grateful and said, "Okay."
The mattress beneath me was thick, so no matter how much I rolled around, I wouldn't feel the wooden planks pressing against my body. The quilt was made of brocade, which felt very soft to the touch and was both light and warm when I covered myself with it.
However, Lin's words lingered in Lin Qingwan's mind, causing her to curl up and refuse to accept this warmth.
The Prime Minister's residence has protected Jiang Yanwan very well.
Only now did she finally accept the fact that her return to claim her family had truly caused trouble for the Prime Minister's household. The relatives she had longed for... treated her worse than a completely unrelated maid.
The mother said she didn't miss her for a single day, but she didn't remember that the woman hadn't eaten or drunk anything all day.
The first hearty meal I had upon returning home was arranged and taken care of by Mu Xue.
Lin Qingwan experienced mild abdominal pain several times during the first half of the night, and only managed to drift off to sleep in the latter half. She dreamt that Cheng Shi was choking her and forcing her to drink poison, and Lin Qingwan awoke with a start, unable to catch her breath.
As dawn broke, there were voices outside.
Lin Qingwan got up and folded the quilt neatly.
Mu Xue came in and took the pale yellow Confucian dress that Lin Shi had given her yesterday to help her change. Lin Qingwan glanced at it and said, "Still wearing my own."
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