Jiang Zongyuan was irritated by the affairs in the backyard. He simply flung his sleeves and went out.
Concubine Wei hurriedly chased after him.
"Sir, where are you going?"
Jiang Zongyuan walked with his hands behind his back without turning around. "I'm going to the study to attend to official business..."
Concubine Wei was about to say something else when Nanny Qiu blocked her. "Concubine Wei, the mistress wants you to go back and report!"
Today she had behaved so rudely in the mistress's courtyard. The mistress would surely settle accounts with her, and now the master was ignoring her...
She quickly changed her expression. She took off a bracelet from her wrist and stuffed it into Nanny Qiu's hand. "Nanny, this was brought to me by my sister from outside the other day. I think it suits you perfectly..."
Nanny Qiu pushed the bracelet back. "You'd better keep it for yourself, Concubine."
Seeing that her attempt to curry favor had failed, Concubine Wei had to tidy up her hair and walk into the room.
As she entered, she saw the mistress sitting in the upper seat, and Jiang Sihe standing beside her.
"Mistress, I was too impatient today and offended you. I've broken the rules..."
The mistress slammed the teacup on the table with a thud.
Concubine Wei's heart skipped a beat in fright.
"Concubine Wei, since you know you've been unruly today, you surely know how you should be punished..."
Concubine Wei rolled her eyes. "Since I entered the Jiang Mansion, I've known that the mistress is kind - hearted. I know I've made a mistake today and am willing to accept the punishment..."
Concubine Wei's words were quite ingratiating. An ordinary person might really be flattered by her.
But Jiang Sihe had seen many two - faced people like Concubine Wei when she was in the Marquis's Mansion.
The mistress was often bewitched by Concubine Wei. After hearing her humble words, her expression softened.
Just as she was about to speak, Jiang Sihe spoke first. "Mother, Concubine Wei is right. You always seem strict, but you're actually kind - hearted when dealing with matters. But as time goes by, everyone in the mansion thinks the mistress is kind and has neglected the rules!"
Concubine Wei lifted her eyelids and gave the second young lady a disdainful glance. She thought this girl was young, but her mind was not simple...
"The second young lady is quite right!"
The mistress looked up and smiled at Jiang Sihe, then said to Concubine Wei, "Go to the ancestral hall tonight and copy the family rules a hundred times!"
"Yes, mistress!"
Concubine Wei bowed her head and accepted the punishment. She backed out of the room with a bowed body.
The mistress waved for Jiang Sihe to come closer. "Sihe, Concubine Wei is favored by the master and has given birth to the only male heir in the eldest branch of the Jiang family. I've always been lenient towards her, which has only encouraged her to be more and more unruly..."
Jiang Sihe lowered her head slightly. "Mother, do you blame me for speaking out just now?"
"Of course not. You were defending me. How could I not understand?"
The mistress smiled. "Did you already anticipate today's outcome when you proposed to give Ziwanyuan to Concubine Ruan yesterday?"
Jiang Sihe nodded. "Mother, do you think I'm too... too calculating and heartless?"
The uneasiness in her heart made Jiang Sihe unconsciously clench her fingers.
The mistress noticed her nervousness and gently held her fingers. "Sihe, I don't want you to be like this!"
Hearing this, Jiang Sihe's eyelashes trembled slightly and her fingers froze.
"Silly girl, you're only fifteen. You should be well - nurtured in the boudoir, carefree and only focused on having fun. As for the scheming, mother will bear the brunt..."
The mistress meant every word. When she was in the Wang family, her mother, sister, and elder brother doted on her. She had never suffered any grievances in the boudoir.
But after getting married, things were different. So she didn't want Jiang Sihe to be like this now. She wanted her to enjoy the present...
"I'm very glad that you're so intelligent. At least you won't be easily bullied when you get married in the future. But during the few years you stay in the mansion, mother wants you to be more relaxed..."
It was impossible for Jiang Sihe not to be touched. Every word of the mistress came from the bottom of her heart. She was really treated like a daughter.
Jiang Sihe took a deep breath and nodded slightly. "Daughter understands. I'll live each day well and won't use my mind on these things anymore!"
But she also silently thought in her heart that she would use her own strength to protect the mistress.
Although it seemed that the mistress was in charge of the Jiang Mansion, during the days she had returned to the mansion, Jiang Sihe could clearly see that Concubine Wei was suppressing the mistress everywhere.
The second branch was targeting the mistress for some unknown reason. The seemingly strict and severe mistress actually had a hard time in the Jiang Mansion.
...
At night, in the ancestral hall.
Concubine Wei's face was full of anger. Cuiwei was copying the family rules on a low table.
"I'm so angry! The mistress killed two birds with one stone today and punished both me and Concubine Ruan. Why is her behavior different from before?"
Cuiwei didn't forget to reply to Concubine Wei during the break.
"Concubine, the mistress has just got a daughter these days. She's in high spirits, so of course she's different from before..."
Concubine Wei rolled her eyes and asked in a low voice, "What's the situation in Songyu Residence these days?"
Cuiwei replied, "The old lady is still in a coma. Nanny Wen is taking care of her."
"The old lady is really tenacious. It's been several years like this, hasn't it?"
Cuiwei didn't dare to reply to such disrespectful words.
Concubine Wei also realized that they were in the ancestral hall, so she didn't continue the topic about the old lady.
"The eldest young lady was ill the other day. How could the second mistress sit still?"
Concubine Wei felt bitter just thinking about being tricked by the mistress today.
She failed to get Ziwanyuan and was punished for nothing. She just couldn't swallow this humiliation!
It seemed that she had to go to the second branch tomorrow to stir things up. The mistress had had it too easy these days.
The next day, Concubine Wei handed in the family rules copied in her handwriting by Cuiwei to the mistress.
The mistress didn't make things difficult for her and let her go.
She went back, changed her clothes, and then went to the courtyard of the second branch.
"Second Mistress, I heard that the eldest young lady was ill the other day?"
Concubine Wei opened her mouth with a look of concern.
The second mistress was very kind to her. "Yes, but Doctor Lin has seen her. She's stable after taking the medicine."
This Doctor Lin was introduced to the second mistress by Concubine Wei. Many doctors had failed to cure Jiang Ningwei back then, but finally Doctor Lin only gave a few acupuncture treatments and Jiang Ningwei woke up.
After that, Doctor Lin had been taking care of Jiang Ningwei's health. Naturally, the second mistress was very grateful to Concubine Wei.
"Alas, the eldest young lady has really suffered. If it weren't for what happened back then... Alas, it's useless to talk about it now..."
"Now the eldest young lady is already at this age and has never even been out of the house. It's really distressing..."
Concubine Wei's eyes were full of regret. Hearing this, the second mistress couldn't help shedding tears.
Concubine Wei continued to fan the flames. "Now the mistress has adopted the second young lady. Everyone in the mansion regards the second young lady as the legitimate eldest young lady. Who still remembers who the real legitimate eldest daughter of the Jiang Mansion is..."