Shen Tangning scrutinized her for a moment, then narrowed her eyes slightly: "Second sister, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want!"
She feigned anger and coldly flicked her sleeve, "I am also my father's daughter. My father has always doted on me. How could he treat me like this? Besides, I am the legitimate daughter. What good would it do him to exchange us for a marriage other than make him a laughingstock and offend the Chi family?"
Shen Xiwei felt a surge of pleasure as she looked at her indignant expression.
Can't they withstand that?
She really wanted to see the seemingly innocent Shen Tangning fall hard into the mud with her own eyes!
But now is not the time.
Shen Xiwei concealed the emotions in her eyes and gave a bitter laugh: "Elder sister, I know you don't want to believe it, but now that things have come to this, I've reaped what I sowed and ended up in this situation. Would I lie to you? Think about it carefully. If Father hadn't given his permission, how could I have dared to deceive everyone on our wedding day and make it go so smoothly?"
Shen Tangning stared at her with a somber expression, and after a long while, she spoke: "Xueqing, help the Second Miss up."
Shen Xiwei sat down, wiping away her tears while stealing glances at her with her reddened eyes.
Shen Tangning seemed lost in thought. She held the teacup, unaware that her slender, pale fingers were reddened by the scalding tea. After a while, she snapped back to reality, gathered her thoughts, and looked over with a complex expression.
"Second sister, you say this was done by Father, then tell me, why would he do such a thing?"
As for her words, Shen Xiwei had already prepared them before she came. Her eyes flickered slightly, and she pretended to be flustered: "I also overheard it from my aunt. My father said that his status in the court has risen, and His Majesty has been dissatisfied with him in recent years and wants to put him in a bad position. If the Shen family and the Marquis's family successfully form a marriage alliance, it will probably make His Majesty even more wary."
As she spoke, she glanced at Shen Tangning's expression, bit her lip, and said cautiously, "But my elder sister's marriage to the Marquis's family has been arranged since childhood, and there is no room for negotiation, so I'm afraid we can only... make things difficult for my elder sister."
Shen Tangning remained silent, her eyes lowered, and no one knew what she was thinking.
Beneath her sleeve, her fingernails suddenly dug into her palm, her eyes turned cold, and a hint of mockery flashed across them.
Shen Xiwei wouldn't be so kind; you can only believe half of what she says.
The Shen family is prominent, but when it comes to true prominence, who can compare to the Xie family, which is at the height of its power?
Her mother, the current Empress, both came from the prestigious Xie family.
The Crown Prince was born to the Empress and had a close relationship with the Xie family. Since ancient times, it has been a great taboo for maternal relatives to seize power. Her father was always good at understanding people's hearts and weighing the pros and cons.
So for the sake of his future, the first person he abandoned was her, then his mother, and then the entire Xie family.
Unfortunately, she understood this principle too late in her previous life.
Shen Xiwei is somewhat clever. Perhaps because she had a smooth life in her previous life, although she married Chi Jingyu as she wished in this life, she was as a concubine. Now she is also disliked by the Lady of the Marquis, and her situation is much more difficult than in her previous life. So she couldn't sit still.
She wasn't so kind as to directly advise her, so she slightly changed her words to alienate her from her father, thus indirectly achieving her goal.
Tears suddenly streamed down her face. Granny Qin exclaimed in surprise, her eyes filled with worry, "Miss!"
Shen Tangning raised her hand to indicate that she was alright, and slowly looked at Shen Xiwei, who also pretended to care about her: "Elder sister, are you alright?"
She forced a smile, trying her best to suppress her emotions, her gaze deep: "Second sister, thank you for reminding me, otherwise, I'm afraid I would have been kept in the dark for the rest of my life."
Shen Xi looked away slightly, feeling a little guilty, and pursed her lips: "I also feel guilty. I can't bear to see my sister being deceived like this, immersed in my father's false love."
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