Chapter 154

Chapter 154: A Crushing Defeat Before Cui Lingrong could answer, Old Madame Song brought up the Sun family again—her granddaughter Sun Qinmei was around the same age. "I've already sent someone to inform them. And you call yourself thorough in handling matters, yet you can't even think of your own proper relatives. All our face is lost." "To answer you, Old Madame, Nanny Hu is from the palace. How she teaches, and how many girls she takes on, I must first discuss with her. You say I didn't think of the Su family or the Sun family—well, the Su family I need not mention, for they sought to harm my Yu-jie. As for the Sun family... I was afraid that if Qin-jie came, she would bring shame upon you." Cui Lingrong sat motionless and composed, and her words made Old Madame Song's face flush red in an instant. "Cui Lingrong, you... you dare to talk back to me?" Old Madame Song looked at Cui Lingrong in disbelief. "Your daughter-in-law is doing this for your own good. Think about it—Nanny Hu is a woman of wide experience. She won't only come to our marquis mansion; she'll go to other households as well. If someone from another family asks, 'How are the young ladies of the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion?' and Nanny Hu speaks the truth, wouldn't that harm Qin-jie?" Cui Lingrong said. "You know very well how willful Qin-jie can be." With that, Cui Lingrong sighed. "Very well, since you say I'm not thorough, then let them come." If she stubbornly refused to allow it, Cui Lingrong would leave herself open to criticism. After all, these two families were indeed proper relatives of the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. For the sake of her children, Cui Lingrong had to maintain a good reputation. "If Old Madame has nothing else, your daughter-in-law will take her leave." Cui Lingrong rose and made a bow. By the time Old Madame Song came to her senses, Cui Lingrong had already left. "She... she is utterly insolent!" Old Madame Song was so angry her chest ached. "That Cui Zeyu isn't even her own brother, yet she lords it over me just because Cui Zeyu has a father who's a Duke of Guo. What does she think she is?" Mama Xu tried to soothe her. "It's true that the Eldest Young Madam was in the wrong—no matter what, she should have informed you first. However..." After a moment's hesitation, Mama Xu chose her words carefully. "Qin-jie is lovely, but she is indeed a bit... forthright." She dared not say Qin-jie was willful, so after much deliberation, she settled on a more pleasant term. Old Madame Song glanced at Mama Xu, unwilling to admit that Qin-jie was inferior to others. She insisted stubbornly, "In any case, I've already sent word. There's no way I'm sending them back now." "Yes, yes, and with you watching over things, Nanny Hu will have to show some respect." Mama Xu knew the Old Madame wouldn't swallow her pride to refuse now, so she followed along. "Our Qin-jie will have this opportunity, and with it, she's sure to make a good marriage in the future." "She will marry well, so Cui Lingrong can see that my granddaughter is no less than anyone." Old Madame Song had just finished speaking when a messenger arrived from the Su family, saying they thanked the Old Madame for her kindness, but the young lady had caught a chill and would not be coming after all. In truth, the Su family simply didn't want to come. A governess invited by Cui Lingrong could hardly be expected to treat a Su family girl well. And besides, if anyone were to extend such an invitation, it should have been Cui Lingrong herself. But Old Madame Song, concerned for her grandniece, did not immediately realize it was merely an excuse from the Su family. A messenger also arrived from the Sun family. Song Zhizhi was especially delighted and said that Qin-jie would come to stay first thing tomorrow morning. Hearing that her granddaughter was coming, Old Madame Song had Mama Xu personally prepare a room in Shouan Tang, so that Cui Lingrong wouldn't have the chance to mistreat Qin-jie. As for the matter of Nanny Hu teaching etiquette—Song Mingjin had been doing well with his martial arts training at the Duke of Dingguo's mansion. These past few days, Cui Zeyu had even come to train alongside him. But there were some things he simply couldn't understand. At noon, the Duke of Dingguo's mansion sent over food—two portions in total: one for Cui Zeyu and Song Mingjin together, and a separate one for Lu Weijie. Looking at the meal before him, Song Mingjin was puzzled. "Uncle, when the Duke's mansion sends food, why do they split it into two deliveries? Isn't that a bother? Could it be that Lu Weijie eats something different from us?" What Jin-ge couldn't understand, Cui Zeyu understood all too well—it was the same at the Duke of Dingguo's mansion. In the same manner of adoption, Madam Qin arranged food and supplies for Lu Weijie, and the servants attending him were properly assigned. But she paid no attention whatsoever to Cui Zeyu's courtyard. Even when the people around Cui Zeyu went to request supplies, the stewardess refused. The stewardess said, "The Duchess said that the Second Young Master is a capable man who can earn his own keep, so surely he wouldn't covet the Duke's mansion's meager allowance." Those words were a jab at Cui Zeyu's former identity as a merchant. Madam Qin was deliberately trying to disgust Cui Zeyu. Others simply assumed the Duke of Dingguo had taken a liking to some talent of Cui Zeyu's and therefore adopted him despite his adulthood, but Madam Qin and her people knew the truth—Cui Zeyu was the Duke of Dingguo's biological son. Everyone in the Duke of Dingguo's mansion knew how much Madam Qin hated Cui Zeyu. She wasn't afraid of word getting out; she refused to hear it, and no one dared speak of it to her face. If anyone said the Duke of Dingguo couldn't manage his household properly, she'd be even happier. Her son was dead, so she cared nothing for empty reputation—she only wished for others to speak ill of the Duke. But even so, Cui Zeyu dared not use anything Madam Qin had arranged. Before Cui Zeyu moved into the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, the Duke had people inspect Cui Zeyu's courtyard inside and out, several times over. As for the food, the Duke of Dingguo had specially arranged for a separate kitchen to prepare meals exclusively for Cui Zeyu and himself. Even so, before every meal, Cui Zeyu would test the food with a silver needle, just in case. "His meals are arranged by the Duchess of Dingguo; ours are prepared separately." Cui Zeyu did not hide this from him. Jin-ge was at an age where he should start understanding such matters. "Why?" Song Mingjin asked, then immediately caught on. "I see—Mother said the Duchess of Dingguo doesn't like Uncle, and told me to stay far away from her. Forget it. If she doesn't like us, we don't need her liking either. Uncle, hurry and eat—I still have to go to school this afternoon!" Speaking of school, Song Mingjin couldn't help but sigh. He truly didn't want to go. After a morning of martial arts training, Song Mingjin's stomach had long been growling. He stuffed food into his mouth in big mouthfuls, and after eating his fill, he planned to use the latrine before heading to the academy. As it happened, he ran into Lu Weijie at the latrine entrance. Seeing Lu Weijie, he gave a very deliberate snort. Lu Weijie glanced at Song Mingjin, and as he passed by him, suddenly shoved with his arm. "Hey, why did you bump into me?" Song Mingjin was stocky, so he only swayed slightly. "I didn't even provoke you—apologize to me right now!" He grabbed Lu Weijie's arm. Although Lu Weijie had trained in martial arts since childhood, his strength was no match for Song Mingjin's. He shook his arm hard and said impatiently, "Who bumped into you? Clearly you're the one not watching where you're going!" His mother had said that for now he couldn't compare to Lu Zeyu, but he must not lose to Song Mingjin. Yet this little brat Song Mingjin, who had only just started martial arts training, had better natural aptitude than him. The martial arts instructor praised Song Mingjin far more often than him, which made Lu Weijie extremely resentful. With this comparison lodged in his heart, Lu Weijie found everything about Song Mingjin irritating. Especially today—the martial arts instructor had praised Song Mingjin again. "It was you who bumped into me, and now you're denying it. Oh, I get it—today the instructor said I learn faster, and you're jealous of me, aren't you?" Song Mingjin snorted. "Well, that just means you're not as good as me. That's a fact!" At the word "fact," Lu Weijie's face instantly darkened. He grabbed Song Mingjin by the collar. "Who said I'm not as good as you? I'm way better than you! A good dog doesn't block the road, you know that? Or are you rushing to the latrine to eat shit?" He suddenly exerted force, his fingers scraping several red marks across Song Mingjin's neck. Song Mingjin was not one to tolerate that. He countered by grabbing Lu Weijie's neck. "I was talking to you nicely, and you want to get rough with me? My mother said to reason with people first, but if the other party is a scoundrel, then don't hold back!" Fuming, he flipped Lu Weijie over his shoulder in a throw. Lu Weijie was stunned for a moment, and when he realized Song Mingjin had thrown him, he grabbed onto Song Mingjin's calf, and both of them tumbled to the ground. By the time Cui Zeyu arrived, Song Mingjin was sitting on top of Lu Weijie. Both of them had bruises and scratches, but it was clear that Lu Weijie had suffered a crushing defeat.