“Master, you’re here! I’ve been looking for you for a long time!”
Lin Mengya saw Baizhi’s slender figure from the distance.
Baizhi came up to them in a hurry. Did something happen in the Qinglan Courtyard?
“What happened? You look worried. Is our house on fire?”
Baizhi was panting and Baishao grabbed her arms and asked her quickly.
“Our house is not on fire! But an evil woman is in our courtyard now! Miss Lin and her servant girls came to our courtyard after you left. Childe Yu is afraid that she might play tricks, so he is keeping an eye on her now!
Lin Mengwu? What did she want?
She must have ulterior motives. She might be anxious and wanted her mother to come here earlier.
“Don’t worry. We’ll know her purpose after coming back and meeting her.”
In the main house of the Qinglan Courtyard, Lin Zhongyu was sitting at the table and silently reading a book on the shelf.
Baiji was careful and put a thick feather cushion on the back of the chair to protect Lin Zhongyu’s back.
All the servants and Lin Zhongyu in the Qinglan Courtyard were banded together. Therefore, all of them were unfriendly to Lin Mengwu.
But it seemed that Lin Mengya didn’t notice their indifferent attitude. She was sitting in the chair and enjoying the tea served by Baiji.
“Hey! Lin Zhongyu, you’re not a kid anymore and shouldn’t come to my sister’s room at will. You should stay in your room and avoid arousing suspicion. You can’t afford to ruin her reputation.”
Lin Zhongyu had refined facial features. Despite that he was still a youth, he was charming and attractive to both men and women.
At this moment, he was wearing a light purple quilted jacket and there was a glazed crown on his head. His eyes were bright and he looked handsome.
But this boy was as proud and arrogant as Lin Mengya and was indifferent to others.
“Those evil-minded people always believe that all the people in the world are as sordid as them. She’s my sister and I’m her brother. Only sordid people like you would spread slanders to ruin her reputation.”
Lin Mengwu was immediately irritated by his words.
She pointed her slender and white fingers at Lin Zhongyu and stared at him with resentment.
“Well, don’t be too complacent! Do you think you can despise others under the protection of my sister? I’ll punish you one day and teach you the rules of the big family!”
The servants had told her that her mother would come to live with them before long.
If her mother were in Prince Yu’s Mansion, Lin Mengya and Jiang Ruqin would suffer humiliating defeats.
At that time, she would become the hostess of this magnificent and beautiful mansion!
Lin Mengwu was triumphant at this thought and stopped arguing with Lin Zhongyu.
Lin Mengya returned to her courtyard and heard what Lin Mengwu said.
Lin Mengwu was ambitious. But she had to first ask for her permission before displacing her as the Princess.
“Sister, you’re finally back. I’ve been waiting anxiously for you.”
Lin Mengwu became soft and weak when talking to Lin Mengya.
She looked virtuous and lovable, which was most unlike her.
But Lin Mengya was very familiar with Lin Mengwu’s personality and strategy, otherwise she might also be deceived and believe that Lin Mengwu was a lovely and soft girl.
“What is it?” Lin Mengwu raised her eyebrows and asked calmly and indifferently. Lin Mengwu couldn’t read her mind.
“Sister, I’m sorry to disturb you. It’s not a big deal and I just want to know whether or not the Prince agrees to bring my mother here.”
Lin Mengwu was well-informed. She must have been irritated by Jiang Ruqin, otherwise, she wouldn’t visit her early in the morning to get further information.
“Well, I’ve mentioned this to the Prince and he also agreed. Your mother will come here after a few days.”
Lin Mengwu nearly jumped up with joy. She tried her best to hide her feelings but her eyes were full of complacency.
Lin Mengwu believed that she could easily replace Lin Mengya as the Princess after her mother came here.
She left Lin Mengya’s Qinglan Courtyard in a rush. She was ecstatic and wanted to tell this good news to Shangguan Qing.
“Sister Princess, why don’t you refuse her? I don’t think we should let wily Mrs. Lin live with us. The daughter is so impolite and vicious and the mother must also be evil-minded.”
Lin Zhongyu was slightly anxious. He was afraid that his sister might be bullied by Shangguan Qing and her daughter.
“It’s OK. Don’t worry. We can’t deal with them if they stay in the house of the Lin family. We can better see through their tricks if they live with us. What are you reading?”
Lin Mengya was not worried about it. In fact, Prince Yu’s Mansion was not heaven for Lin Mengwu and Shangguan Qing.
“I picked it randomly from the bookshelf. It’s nothing special.”
Lin Zhongyu would come into her room and read books in his spare time.
In this way, he could fight off boredom and kill time. Besides, he could also guard the door for his sister.
“You’re old enough to go to school. When I finish my work, I’ll mention this to the Prince and send you to the Taiyin College.”
The ancestors of the Jin Dynasty attached great importance to the cultivation of children.
Therefore, they set up the Taiyin College which was the central teaching institution everywhere in the country.
The college in the capital city was the most famous one. Seven or eight prime ministers were students of this school.
She was really quite happy to send Xiaoyu to this school.
“I… I don’t want to go to school! I just want to stay with you!”
Lin Zhongyu looked at Lin Mengya and said firmly. It never occurred to him to leave Lin Mengya and see the outside world.
The mansion was ridden with crises and the enemies were staring at his sister. He couldn’t leave Sister Princess alone in this place.
“Alright. We can talk about this later. You should first take care of yourself and try to recover from your injuries.”
Lin Mengya didn’t force him to accept the arrangement. Xiaoyu seemed to be gentle and well-behaved but he was stubborn. In fact, they had similar personalities.
If he loved reading, she could buy more books for him. There were many talented and well-educated people in the mansion. She could find a good teacher to teach Xiaoyu at home.
“Prince, Concubine De wants you to come over.”
Aunt Jinyue stood outside her room and said. Lin Mengya rolled her eyes and smiled coldly.
Jiang Ruqin was fast.
“Aunt, please help me. The four girls became my personal servants since I was a kid. They didn’t make any mistakes and why did Lin Mengya kill them?”
Jiang Ruqin was crying and standing beside Concubine De. She looked pitiable with tears on her pretty face.
She left the garden in a rush and told everything Lin Mengya had done to Concubine De.
Of course, she dramatized almost every detail.
Concubine De got fed up with her tears. But this was her niece and she had to uphold justice for her.
Concubine De didn’t expect that Ya’er was so cruel and decisive. She killed four servant girls for no reason.
“Pay respect to Concubine De. Wish you all happiness.”
The daughter-in-law had just visited her earlier this morning. She entered the room again and curtsied to her elegantly.
Concubine De looked up at her daughter-in-law carefully. But Lin Mengya looked soft and delicate and Concubine De couldn’t believe that this girl was as vicious as the Empress.
“Please get up. I ask you to come over because I’d like to ask you something.”
But Aunt Jinyue whispered to her before she even asked Lin Mengya any questions.
“Qin’er! How dare you be so rude to Ya’er! Your father teaches you to be polite and well-behaved. Don’t you remember his rules?”
Concubine De suddenly switched gears and Jiang Ruqin’s mood fell down to the bottom.
Concubine De originally wanted to question Lin Mengya, but she suddenly changed and started to criticize Jiang Ruqin.
Concubine De’s reaction was totally unexpected. Jiang Ruqin was stunned and looked at her aunt blankly. Her aunt seemed to be disappointed with her but she didn’t know what had happened.
“Mother, please don’t be angry. It was quite unintentional. Please calm down and look after your body.”
Lin Mengya softly comforted Concubine De and there was a sincere expression on her beautiful face.
Lin Mengya walked up to Concubine De and rubbed her chest to help her calm down. Her white waist was exposed and there was black and blue bruising, which was eye-catching.
“You… you framed me!”
Jiang Ruqin finally understood what had happened. This bitch pretended that her waist was wrenched and told Concubine De that it was her fault.
She grabbed Lin Mengya’s wrist with one hand and rubbed her skin hard with a handkerchief. But she suddenly found that the black and blue mark didn’t disappear.
“Let me go.”
Lin Mengya slightly frowned as if it hurt but she had to endure the rudeness of Jiang Ruqin.
“Jinyue, take Ruqin to her room and let her rethink her mistakes. Don’t let her out without my permission.”
Concubine De’s looked at Jiang Ruqin coldly and there was no love and indulgence in her eyes.
This girl was too reckless. She was afraid that Jiang Ruqin would become more arrogant and domineering after getting married.
She originally wanted to ask Yu’er marry her but now it seemed that this was ill-advised.
“Ya’er, come here. You must have been bullied by Qin’er. Jinyue, please take my Yurong cream. This cream is effective against bruise.”
Concubine De didn’t trust Lin Mengya before but now she felt guilty about her daughter-in-law.
Jinyue told her that she had seen many purple and black marks on Lin Mengya’s arms. Jinyue secretly asked her what had happened. But Lin Mengya’s eyes were full of tears and she refused to tell her the truth. But Jinyue was sure that she had been bullied by Jiang Ruqin.
She clearly knew Ruqin’s personalities.
Lin Mengya must have been bullied by Jiang Ruqin and her four servant girls.
These four servants were so vicious and impolite and they got what they deserved. They pushed their master to bully others instead of dissuading her from making this mistake. It served them right.
“I’m fine. Mother, please don’t worry about me. Ruqin is our guest. I’m her sister-in-law and shouldn’t argue with her. It’s all my fault and I must have neglected her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be so angry.”
The blue and purple bruise on her wrist was true, but it was not caused by the hit.
In fact, she used a special herbal medicine. Shopkeeper Wan always gave her various strange medicines and the Oolong grass was one of them.
If you smear it on to your skin, you won’t feel painful or itching but some purple and blue marks will immediately appear on your skin. Only experienced doctors could see the difference between these marks and the real bruise.
Jiang Ruqin hardly went out of her house and she had also been spoiled by her father. Therefore, she knew little about these strange medicine herbs.
