Lin was about to go with the steward to the side room to check the accounts, but she was a little worried. She said to Lin Qingwan, "Your grandmother and second aunt don't get along with me. Be careful and ask Yanwan for advice on everything. Don't make decisions on your own."
Lin Qingwan thought to herself that asking her was tantamount to courting death.
"I understand." She nodded in agreement.
Despite her obedience to the rules, Madam Lin remained uneasy, yet she couldn't find fault with her, and hesitated to speak.
Jiang Mingyun led Jiang Yanwan and Lin Qingwan to the backyard. There was a charcoal brazier in the pavilion, and curtains covered the front and back, so it wasn't too cold.
"Sister Qingwan's clothes are so beautiful, especially this cloak. The only one that can compare to it is Sister Yanwan's begonia red fox fur coat."
"It was a gift from King Jing."
Jiang Mingyun remained silent at the dinner table, but the moment she opened her mouth, she was stabbing Jiang Yanwan in the heart.
Jiang Yanwan has used up all the patience she's had for the past ten years. Her second aunt and grandmother praised Lin Qingwan all night, and now it's Jiang Mingyun's turn. Who does she think she is!
“Since Sister Yun likes it so much, why don’t you ask Qingwan for a reward?” Jiang Yanwan took a sip of fruit tea and smiled at Lin Qingwan. “Sister Qingwan shouldn’t be reluctant to give Yun’er a gift, right?”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Mingyun was overjoyed and looked at Lin Qingwan expectantly, "Really? Sister Qingwan?"
Lin Qingwan pulled her cloak tighter, the fur collar making her jade-colored earrings stand out even more, but it couldn't compare to the mocking and cold smile on her lips.
Jiang Yanwan, that idiot, made Jiang Mingyun see through their feigned harmony with just one sentence.
She said, "Didn't Father just say that we can tell Mother what we need on the estate? Sister Yun'er can also tell Mother if she wants a cloak."
Jiang Mingyun was stunned, her eyes filled with disappointment.
Jiang Yanwan said, "Qingwan, this is the first time you've met Yun'er. She likes you so much. You're practically family. Why would you need to go through the accounting for a cloak? It would be a laughing stock if outsiders found out."
Lin Qingwan wouldn't indulge her, "If you want to take me, you take me. I'm thin and weak, and I get cold easily."
Jiang Yanwan choked, and the fruit tea in her mouth suddenly didn't taste sweet anymore.
She forced a smile. "I've given Yun'er quite a lot since she was little. She's my older sister, so Qingwan can't be stingy. Besides, I just wanted to give her this. Yun'er just likes this one of yours."
"Right, Yun'er?" Jiang Yanwan looked at Yun'er with bright eyes.
Jiang Mingyun smiled innocently, her small eyes fixed on Jiang Yanwan's snow-white fox fur coat. "Sister Yanwan, this is also top-notch."
"Sister Qingwan is thin; if she gives me her cloak, I'll freeze."
"Sister Yanwan is in good health, she will definitely be willing to give it to me."
Jiang Yanwan's eyes widened. When she saw Jiang Mingyun reach out to touch her fox fur coat, her face showed disgust, and she instinctively dodged. Jiang Mingyun chased after her, his sleeve knocking over the tea, spilling it all over Jiang Yanwan.
The white fox fur coat suddenly had several unsightly marks.
Jiang Yanwan's eyebrows shot up as she glared at the innocent-looking Jiang Mingyun, an uncontrollable rage burning within her.
Jiang Mingyun hunched her shoulders and said tremblingly, "I'm sorry, Yun'er didn't mean it."
Lin Qingwan couldn't suppress the smile on her lips and said coolly, "They're all sisters. Miss likes Yun'er so much, she shouldn't be angry with her, right?"
Jiang Yanwan laughed angrily, "Of course not."
"I'll go tidy up the side room. Qingwan, you sit with Yun'er for a while."
She turned and left, her footsteps so heavy they seemed to leave dents in the paving stones.
Upon reaching the side room, Xia Yan quickly wiped away the traces with a damp cloth, but the fruit tea was too sweet and the fox fur stuck to it was difficult to clean.
Jiang Yanwan simply took it off, saying, "I'm not wearing it anymore, I'll throw it away when I get back."
Xia Yan said angrily, "They think you have a good temper, so they ganged up on you."
Jiang Yanwan was angry, but thinking of Jiang Mingyun's personality, she raised an eyebrow and said, "Hmph, Lin Qingwan doesn't know what that girl is capable of."
"Jiang Mingyun is a madman."
Inside the pavilion.
Jiang Mingyun poured Lin Qingwan more hot tea. "Thank you so much, Sister Qingwan. Otherwise, she would have spoken ill of me to my uncle and aunt and made my mother scold me."
Lin Qingwan remained silent.
Jiang Mingyun leaned closer and whispered, "Does Sister Yanwan often bully you? She pretends in front of others, but she's actually petty and malicious."
Jiang Mingyun took her arm again, "Are you happy that I helped my sister get rid of her?"
Lin Qingwan remained calm and said, "Where did you see her bullying me?"
"You're the one who spilled the tea, and I don't need you to upset her."
Jiang Mingyun wasn't annoyed; instead, her eyes crinkled with laughter. "There's no one around now, so you don't need to be afraid, sister. I won't tell anyone."
From the moment she retorted to Jiang Yanwan following Lin Qingwan's lead, Lin Qingwan knew that Jiang Mingyun was not as innocent and harmless as she appeared, and she became even more vigilant.
Not wanting to argue with her about this, she asked, "Grandmother said the plum blossoms are blooming beautifully, but my sister hasn't taken me to see them yet."
Jiang Mingyun's smile faded slightly, and she tilted her head, "Sister, do you really want to see?"
It was as if they weren't looking at plum blossoms, but at something shameful.
Lin Qingwan sensed something was wrong, but Jiang Mingyun was holding her arm and pulling her out of the pavilion. "I'll take you there."
The plum garden is very large, and the plum trees are pruned like graceful beauties. When illuminated by lights, they are truly beautiful.
The fragrance of plum blossoms wafted through the air, rich yet cloyingly sweet. Lin Qingwan quickly covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, but when she turned around, Jiang Mingyun and the maid were nowhere to be seen.
Behind me were plum trees stretching as far as the eye could see, and even the path I had come from was gone.
Lin Qingwan knew something was wrong, but she couldn't go forward or backward. Instinctively, she moved forward because there was a house with lights on not far away.
It felt like being in a maze, with every step beyond my control. The rich aroma filled my nostrils, and soon I felt weak in my limbs, as if I were drunk.
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