Lingzhi was stunned. Hearing this, Nanny Qin let out a cold snort. "The eldest young lady has quite an air. To beat an old servant beside her own grandmother right in her grandmother's courtyard. What great filial piety!"
Xiao Bao'er ignored Nanny Qin's outcry. She stared straight at Lingzhi. "What's wrong? Are you not going to listen to me either?"
Lingzhi's legs went weak with fright and she knelt down. "E...eldest young lady, Nanny Qin is the most favored one beside the old madam..."
"Lingzhi!" Xiao Bao'er frowned and raised her voice. Then she whispered menacingly, "Don't forget whose hands your indenture is in. If I were to sell you off, do you think anyone in this mansion could save you?"
Lingzhi looked up at Xiao Bao'er in disbelief. Seeing that Xiao Bao'er showed no sign of relenting, she steeled herself and slowly walked over to Nanny Qin.
Nanny Qin was still being stubborn. "Eldest young lady, if you beat this servant today and any rumors of filial impiety spread outside, your reputation will be ruined!"
"Beat her!"
Hearing Xiao Bao'er's order, Lingzhi shuddered. But without hesitation, she raised her hand and slapped Nanny Qin, who instantly collapsed to the ground.
The other servants in Ning'an Courtyard were attracted by this commotion, and the courtyard instantly became bustling.
Seeing more people around, Xiao Bao'er lifted her skirt and walked over to Nanny Qin. She took out a handkerchief and pretended to cry. "Nanny Qin, don't you know that Lingzhi is extremely protective of me? I'm in poor health, but you used grandmother's name to make me stand in the corridor as punishment, trying to make grandmother bear the name of being unkind. Now my maid couldn't hold back and hit you in a moment of desperation. Please don't blame her."
After Xiao Bao'er finished this long string of explanations, she slowly fainted.
Nanny Qin was so angry that half of her face turned red. And Lingzhi, who had the blame for slapping Nanny Qin pushed onto her by Xiao Bao'er's few words, stood there at a loss.
The servants in the courtyard were busy helping Nanny Qin up and carrying Xiao Bao'er back to her courtyard. For a moment, it was in a complete mess.
After the chaos, the old madam got to know what had happened from Nanny Qin's exaggerated account. She secretly added another mark against Xiao Bao'er in her heart.
Nanny Qin knelt at the old madam's feet and cried loudly, "This old servant was slapped by that maid beside the eldest young lady. I've lost all my face. This old servant has served you, the old madam, for so long. When have I ever suffered such grievances? Moreover, I was slapped in the face by a junior in the Xiao Mansion. It's a small thing for this old servant to lose face, but isn't the eldest young lady trampling on your face, the old madam?"
Madam Chen of the Xiao Mansion was so angry at Nanny Qin's constant talk about face and dignity that her heart ached. She slapped the table hard. Her angry face made her slanting triangular eyes look even more mean.
"This little slut! If it weren't for the fact that she's still somewhat useful to the Xiao Mansion, with such a lowly bloodline, I would have kicked her out of the mansion long ago! Now she's taken the name of my precious eldest granddaughter for nothing and is acting so arrogantly in the mansion!"
Nanny Qin quickly stepped forward to help the old madam calm down. "Old madam, don't be angry. Take care of your health. It seems that Xiao Bao'er doesn't have much time left. After some time, when we bring back the real eldest young lady, that will be the real time to enjoy family happiness. For now, old madam, please bear with it a little longer."
-----
On the other hand, Xiao Bao'er, who had been carried back to her own courtyard, fell into a deep sleep. In her dream, she saw the old madam hugging a young girl who looked seven - tenths like her mother and had a butterfly - shaped birthmark on the back of her neck.
Her mother and five elder brothers beside her were touched to tears. The maids beside them respectfully called that young girl "eldest young lady".
There was no hidden disgust in the maids' eyes like there used to be when they looked at her.
She was the eldest young lady of the Xiao Mansion. Then who was I?!
Xiao Bao'er really wanted to rush over and question, but something blocked her outside. She could only watch the warm scene inside helplessly. This scene was like a knife cutting at Xiao Bao'er's heart.
In the struggle, Xiao Bao'er woke up. But the voices in her ears made the eyes that Xiao Bao'er had originally intended to open close tightly again.
"Hubby, do you think Bao'er's body won't last much longer?"
"Don't worry, madam. Our daughter is almost of marriageable age. After her coming - of - age ceremony, her fate will no longer affect us. Even if Bao'er were to die right now, as long as we endure for a while and then bring back Zhen'er, everything will be fine."
The deep male voice still carried the former kindness, but the words he said made Xiao Bao'er's heart fall into an ice cellar in an instant.
"I'm relieved then. Now every time I see Bao'er's face, I can't help but feel nauseous. Such a person has taken the identity of our legitimate daughter. It really makes me feel so憋屈."
"Sigh, I feel the same way, madam. If you don't want to see Bao'er, you can just feign illness starting tomorrow. Anyway..."
The voices of the two gradually faded away. But Xiao Bao'er with her eyes closed was already in tears. The tears slid down the corners of her eyes and fell into the luxurious golden silk brocade.
She bit her lower lip tightly to stop herself from crying out.
It turned out that she wasn't the biological daughter of her father and mother. All these years, she had taken someone else's identity for nothing. They had long known where their real daughter was, but for some reason, they hadn't swapped their identities back.
Fate?
Did her father and mother already know that she had the lucky koi fate?
Xiao Bao'er slowly opened her eyes and stared blankly at the exquisite embroidery on the bed curtain. Her body couldn't stop shivering. Her admiration and love for her parents all these years were not fake. So when she suddenly heard such a truth, she just felt extremely sad.
At this moment, Xiao Bao'er had a strong feeling that this huge Xiao Mansion was not the warm and familiar home she thought it was, but a devil's den that would drag her into eternal damnation.
After a while, Xiao Bao'er calmed down. Since the judge had given her a chance to start over and a chance to see the truth clearly, she must seize it firmly.
She didn't sleep all night. When Lingzhi pushed open the door and saw Xiao Bao'er lying there pale - faced with her eyes open and silent, she was greatly startled. For a moment, Lingzhi thought that Xiao Bao'er had already gone to the underworld.
"Miss... Miss... Have you not slept all night?"
Lingzhi carefully knelt beside Xiao Bao'er's bed. She held back her hand that wanted to check Xiao Bao'er's breath and said tremblingly, "Miss, please don't scare this servant..."
Xiao Bao'er turned her face away and struggled to sit up.
Seeing that Xiao Bao'er was okay, Lingzhi let out a sigh of relief. While helping Xiao Bao'er up, she said, "The third young lady sent Yunxiang over early this morning. She said she'll come to chat with you after breakfast."
Xiao Bao'er paused in the act of getting up. She suddenly remembered that in her previous life at this time, she had been instigated by Xiao Jinghui to attend the flower - viewing banquet of the Princess of Lin'an three days later. As a result, she had made a lot of jokes and had been ridiculed by the noble ladies in the capital for a long time.
Just thinking about this made Xiao Bao'er grind her teeth in hatred.
Xiao Jinghui, in this new life, do you think I, Xiao Bao'er, will let you bully me again?