Startled by Xiao Shuzhi's sudden scream, Xiao Luochi, who instantly regained his senses, looked down at the lotus pond just beneath his feet. It was as if all his strength had been drained away in that moment.
He didn't bother to meet the panicked and worried look in his younger brother-in-law's eyes behind him. Instead, he simply turned around and said, "Let's go!"
...
In the midsummer, the temperature gradually rose, making people feel increasingly irritable.
Shen Li was lying on a rocking chair under the shade of a tree, feigning sleep. Jiao Yue was fanning her beside, while Ming Yue was sitting nearby doing embroidery. The whole small courtyard of Shen Li was quiet at the moment, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.
This tranquility was broken when Han Yue came back from the kitchen with their lunch. Jiao Yue stepped forward and opened the food box, only to find four plates of plain vegetarian dishes. Instantly, she was like a firecracker that had been lit, raising her voice sharply.
"Those people in the kitchen are going too far. They've learned to treat people differently according to their status. Now they only serve our young lady this kind of food?"
Ming Yue frowned and looked at the food in the box. "Sister Jiao Yue, the young lady is still sleeping!"
Jiao Yue glanced at Shen Li, who was still lying on the rocking chair with her eyes closed. She lowered her voice a bit, but it was still much louder than usual. "We can't just let it go like this. I'm going to talk to them!"
Just as Jiao Yue was about to carry the food box and go to argue with the old women in the main kitchen, Shen Li, who had been feigning sleep, suddenly spoke up. "Jiao Yue, don't go!"
"Miss! They're bullying you too much. They see that you've lost the power to manage the household, so they're taking advantage of you. I'm going to argue with them now and see if they still dare to look down on us!"
"It's no use going. Just bear it for a few more days." Shen Li stood up from the rocking chair and walked towards the house. Ming Yue immediately took the food box from Jiao Yue's hand and followed her.
Jiao Yue was left in the yard, fuming with anger. She couldn't help feeling aggrieved for Shen Li. Since Shen Li had lost the power to manage the household, not only the people in the kitchen but also all the servants in the Shen Mansion had become opportunists, treating them badly on a daily basis.
But her young lady had never treated those people badly when she was in charge of the household. Now that she had fallen from power, they all rushed to step on her.
Jiao Yue silently encouraged herself in her heart. Just bear it for a few more days. Just bear it. Let's see how long they can keep being so smug.
Of course, not everyone in the Shen Mansion was a fair-weather friend. There were still a few people who treated Shen Li with the same respect as before. Concubine Su was one of them.
No matter what, Concubine Su would bring Shen Zhen to Shen Li's yard every day and sit there for more than half an hour. Sometimes she would chat with Shen Li about this and that. Most of the time, Shen Li would be dealing with her own affairs, while Concubine Su and Shen Zhen would sit there doing embroidery.
One day, Concubine Su cut the thread with scissors, smoothed out a pair of embroidered shoes in her hand, and after looking at them with satisfaction, she walked up to Shen Li and handed them to her.
"Miss, my embroidery skills are just so-so. These shoes may not be very good. You can just wear them reluctantly."
Shen Li looked at the pair of soft silk shoes with a dark blue upper that Concubine Su had handed over in surprise. "Concubine Su, you're being too modest. They're very well made. I like them very much."
Shen Li didn't decline. She took the shoes and looked at them carefully several times.
Concubine Su saw Shen Li holding the shoes and smiled reassuringly. She knew that since Shen Li had lost the power to manage the household, her treatment in the mansion had dropped drastically. She wanted to comfort her, but seeing Shen Li's calm expression all the time, she slowly swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.
As if seeing what Concubine Su was thinking, Shen Li continued reading and asked, "I wonder how the decoration of the East Courtyard is going?"
"Madam Second has been busy preparing the dowry for Miss Second for more than half a month. She's been too busy to spare any time. I haven't seen Madam Second for several days."
Shen Li nodded to show that she had heard.
"Miss, you don't have to be sad. Fate is the most mysterious thing. It will come when the time is right." Concubine Su hesitated for a moment and said it in a more euphemistic way.
"Thank you for your concern, Concubine Su."
Shen Li's tone was neither cold nor warm. Concubine Su couldn't figure out what was on Shen Li's mind, so she closed her mouth and stopped talking. After a while, she led Shen Zhen back.
Shen Li didn't really care about what others thought, but obviously others didn't think so. They thought she was sad just because she didn't say anything.
Half a month ago, Emperor Dongling issued an imperial edict, conferring Duan Chuchu as the legitimate princess of the Fourth Prince, Shen Miao and Wu Qihuan as the side concubines. Sun Xiuru, the legitimate daughter of the Prince of Hejun, was named the legitimate princess of the Seventh Prince, and He Yimeng, the legitimate daughter of Prime Minister He, was named the legitimate princess of the Tenth Prince. In addition, each of them had two side concubines, all of whom were the legitimate daughters of court officials.
Shen Li had always shown that she didn't care about these things, but there were always some people who thought she was just pretending to be strong and wanted to expose her "pretense".
"I haven't seen elder sister for a long time. I've really missed you!" Shen Miao smiled sweetly at Shen Li and then sat down on the seat below Shen Li on her own. Although her words sounded kind, there was full of pride and mockery in her eyes when she looked at Shen Li.
Shen Li didn't even lift her eyelids. She just followed Shen Miao's words and said, "I've missed you too, younger sister."
"I know elder sister has been very idle recently, so I came here specially to catch up with you."
"Elder sister, come and help me choose which of these more than ten kinds of fabrics is the most suitable to make into clothes for me to wear when I go to the palace to thank the emperor, the queen and the imperial concubine on the second day after my wedding?"
"Little sister is extremely beautiful. No matter what you wear, you'll look gorgeous."
Hearing this, Shen Miao touched her hairpin complacently. Shen Li raised her head and followed her hand. She saw a ruby butterfly-on-flower gold hairpin slanting in Shen Miao's hair. The handle of the hairpin was made of gold, and the head was a flower made of gold filigree. Two round pearls were inlaid on the two antennae of the butterfly, and two rubies of the same size were on its wings.
"The hairpin on your head, little sister, is very unique."
Shen Miao gently touched the hairpin on her head and said shyly, "Really? I don't think so. The style of this hairpin is a bit old-fashioned. But it was sent by the Fourth Prince. The thought behind it is very precious." When Shen Miao said this, she deliberately emphasized the words "Fourth Prince" and "thought".
Shen Miao said these words deliberately. She knew in her heart that Shen Li had once been in love with the Fourth Prince. Even though Shen Li's status was much higher than hers, it was she who would finally marry the Fourth Prince, while Shen Li got nothing.
"Congratulations, little sister, on being so favored by the Fourth Prince! But since little sister is so beautiful and favored by the Fourth Prince, why did the Fourth Prince only confer you the title of a side concubine instead of marrying you in as the Fourth Princess in a grand wedding procession?"