A shrill yet somewhat harsh female voice came from outside the mourning hall.
She was clearly here to watch the show, and every word that came out of her mouth sounded extremely snide.
Qu Yue turned her head. The sweat dripping from her forehead slightly blurred her vision, but she could still recognize that overly arrogant face at a glance.
Mu Yao, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis Mansion, was a beauty with bold features. She had a proud and overbearing personality and often bullied Qu Yue for her fallen family status and the fact that she had no husband to support her.
Therefore, Qu Yue tried her best to avoid her.
But if the other party deliberately picked a fight, she simply had no chance to run.
Supporting herself up with her delicate hands, she raised her sleeve to wipe away the crystal - clear sweat and corrected, "All these are genuine."
Mu Yao, however, seemed to have heard the most ridiculous joke in the world. She put her hands on her hips and walked up to the burial items that Qu Yue had just sorted out. She picked up a round jade box with a mandarin duck handle and weighed it in her palm.
"Hey! Miss Mu, be careful!" Qu Yue was shocked and nervously stretched out her hand, ready to catch it at any time.
The more Mu Yao weighed it, the more excited she got, and Qu Yue's heart also fluttered nervously.
When she checked the items yesterday, she found that Mu Wang had purchased the burial items according to the highest - level burial configuration, and each item was bought at a high price.
If one was broken, not only would she have to pay for it, but more seriously, if the guests came and saw that the burial items were incomplete, it would surely damage the reputation of the Marquis Mansion.
Mu Yao curled her lips arrogantly. "Be careful? It's a fake. It's not a pity if it's broken."
Qu Yue was already annoyed by her casual attitude, and after hearing the word "fake" several times, she became even more furious.
These items had been selected by her and Mu Wang twice, so there couldn't be a mistake.
She had the confidence and straightened her back to retort, "Miss Mu, you have no evidence. How can you say this is a fake?"
Mu Yao turned the round box around with a look of disgust. "Just find an expert to take a look. The color is dull and the patterns are sloppy. How can it be a real one?"
"No, this was... "
Just as Qu Yue was about to explain, a series of hasty footsteps were accompanied by an angry question. "What's all this noise early in the morning?"
"Father, Mother, you're just in time!"
Mu Yao held out the round box in her hand. "Sister - in - law has even prepared fake burial items!"
Mu Qing, the old marquis, immediately pulled a long face. His thick black eyebrows knitted tightly together. "Fake?"
His deep voice, tempered by years, was full of dignity.
Qu Yue shivered in fear.
Mrs. Song also stepped forward with a cold face. She took the round box from Mu Yao's hand and squinted to examine its authenticity.
After a careful inspection, she suddenly raised her arm and threw the round box hard in Qu Yue's direction!
"Good for you, Qu Yue!"
A loud crash broke the solemn silence in the mourning hall.
The porcelain - white fragments scattered everywhere, splashing into every inconspicuous corner.
Qu Yue's mind was still blank. The shock when the round box was thrown at her was still pounding in her heart, making her breathe rapidly.
If she had reacted a little slower, she would have been knocked unconscious and fallen to the ground by now.
Seeing that she dodged, Mrs. Song was instantly enraged. She walked quickly while raising her hand. "How dare you!"
Snap!
A clear slap resounded through the mourning hall.
Qu Yue instinctively closed her eyes, waiting for the pain to come.
But after a while, there was no pain on her cheek. Instead, there were gasps from around.
She timidly opened her eyes, and what came into view was a lean but powerful back.
Qu Yue was surprised and called out his name, "Mu... Mu Wang!"
The man who was called felt a buzzing in his ears. His left cheek, which had been slapped, was burning with pain.
He stuck out his tongue against his cheek and rubbed the face with five clear palm prints. "Mother, why did you hit her?"
Mrs. Song usually valued Mu Wang the most. She quickly withdrew the hand that had hit him and stepped forward worriedly to check his injury.
"Wang'er, are you... okay?"
Mu Wang reached out to push her away. The ponytail on his hair crown swayed slightly as he shook his head. "I'm fine."
Afraid that Mrs. Song would trouble Qu Yue again, he grabbed her wrist and walked to the side.
His feet stepped on the fragments of the fake item, but a cold look appeared in his gentle almond - shaped eyes.
He looked up at his family across from him. "What's going on?"
Mrs. Song pointed at Qu Yue. "It's all her fault!"
"I told her to buy the burial items yesterday, but she just used these fakes to deceive me!"
"She can't even arrange her own husband's funeral properly. Can't you see what kind of person she is?"
Mu Yao chimed in, "Brother, the Marquis Mansion allocated money for her to go out and buy. She just bought these fakes to deceive us. Where did the money go?!"
"We must ask sister - in - law properly today and find out this sum of money."
Qu Yue shook her head, wanting to refute that the Marquis Mansion had not allocated any money at all, but the words were swallowed back.
She couldn't say it.
Mu Wang squatted down, picked up a fragment from the ground, felt it between his fingertips, and then held it up to examine the quality.
After a long while, he let out a cold snort. "Fake?"
Mu Yao responded, "Brother, you can see it too, right?"
Mu Wang threw away the fragment. "Indeed, it's fake."
His gaze fell on Qu Yue, mixed with a faint mockery, which made Qu Yue's heart instantly turn cold.
It was impossible. When she arranged the items yesterday, all the burial items were still genuine.
So, did Mu Wang deliberately set her up?
Qu Yue's nose felt sour. No wonder he had asked her to choose the burial items yesterday. It turned out that he had prepared this!
He had chosen the fakes early on and was ready to replace them!
Qu Yue's heart seemed to be thrown off a cliff and shattered into pieces.
But before she could be sad, she was mostly angry.
She forcefully broke free from Mu Wang's fingers that were holding her wrist and took several steps back in succession. "Mu Wang, I know you hate me."
"You can use any means to drive me away, but not at your elder brother's funeral."
"He's your elder brother!"
Qu Yue's usually soft voice burst with anger at this moment. Several obvious blue veins bulged on her fair neck. "No matter what, you shouldn't make fun of him!"
He was a hero who died on the battlefield. He should be buried properly, not with fake burial items!
The solemn questioning echoed in the mourning hall. Both the old marquis and Mrs. Song were shocked.
Qu Yue, who was always gentle, could be so angry?
Mu Yao stood on one side, with her arms crossed, looking extremely gloomy.
Mu Wang also didn't expect Qu Yue to be so angry. His gaze fell on her red - rimmed eyes, showing a bit of pity.
She was just like a rabbit that was about to bite in anger.
Mu Wang said "hey" several times in succession. "Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Can you listen to me finish?"
Qu Yue was breathing rapidly, obviously extremely angry.
"It's fake now, but when we bought it, it was genuine."
Mu Wang's eyes swept across the three people opposite and he covered his lips and coughed lightly. "Yesterday, I went with her."
Mrs. Song suddenly raised her voice. "What?!"
She had clearly sent someone to follow Qu Yue. How could it turn out to be Mu Wang?
Mu Wang said firmly and forcefully, "If you question her about buying fakes, you might as well question if I'm blind."