Reborn As The Wicked Little Sister-in-Law - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Properly Praising Wei Chengyan

The two concubines were so blinded by jealousy that they had no brain space left to interpret the meaning of the Seventh Concubine’s coughing.

“The Marquis is truly something; I don’t know what he sees in that fox spirit. In terms of beauty, Old Five and I are the fairest in the manor. In terms of talent, there are Third Sister and Eleven. In terms of dancing, there are Seven and Twelve. That dead fox spirit knows nothing, yet her favor is inexplicably enduring.”

The Fifth Concubine gave a contemptuous smile and whispered, “She’s a fox spirit who knows how to bewitch men. I bet she puts in a lot of effort above and beyond in bed to coax the Marquis into never leaving her side.”

Seeing the conversation spiral into the absurd, the Seventh Concubine quickly intervened, “Stop talking.”

The Sixth Concubine, still in a huff, snapped, “Why shouldn’t I say it? She wants to be the primary wife, doesn’t she? If she can’t even handle this, how does she expect to manage the household?”

As the three concubines spoke, Concubine Lan had already arrived at the main hall, watching them with a faint, inscrutable smile. The three immediately ceased their discussion, and the Seventh Concubine forced a flattering grin.

“There are so many treasures here. Our horizons are low, so seeing them makes us feel a bit envious. Sister Lan, please don’t take our angry words to heart.”

Seeing the Seventh Concubine sucking up to Concubine Lan, the Sixth Concubine looked on with utter disdain, wishing she could curse her out on the spot.

Concubine Lan had no desire to see these three and got straight to the point: “Do my three sisters have some business with me?”

Five, Six, and Seven were actually older than Concubine Lan, but because their rank as concubines was lower than hers, they were forced to call her “Sister.”

The Seventh Concubine replied, “We came to find Ninth Sister to play.”

“Isn’t she recovering from her injury at Muhe Courtyard?”

The Sixth Concubine, realizing Lü Guiyan might have snuck out of the manor, was privately thrilled. “The three of us have searched every corner of the manor and haven’t seen Ninth Sister. She probably left the manor without permission. She’s so young and has never been outside; could someone with ill intentions have taken her away?”

The Sixth Concubine added fuel to the fire: “What is Sister Five saying? Someone taking her away? I think she planned this long ago. I suspect her falling and hurting her leg the other day was part of her scheme—to make us think she’s convalescing so she could sneak out once the manor let its guard down.”

The faint smile remained on Concubine Lan’s face. “And which ‘person with ill intentions’ do my three sisters think would want to abduct my cousin?”

The Sixth Concubine, never one to pass up a chance to cause trouble and see the Lü sisters suffer, pushed further. “That’s hard to say. The manor is so large and there are so many people. Oh, Sister Lan, aren’t you the one managing the household now? Do you really have no leads at all?”

The Seventh Concubine remained silent while Five and Six did most of the talking.

“I have no leads, but we can use another method to deduce who might want to abduct my cousin.”

The three concubines looked at each other and asked in unison, “What method?”

Concubine Lan sat regally in the main seat, her pale, slender hand picking up a white jade teacup from the rosewood table. She said unhurriedly, “You said my cousin’s leg injury was part of a plan. I recall it was He Yu who caused her to fall that day. By that logic, the person with ‘ill intentions’ who wants to abduct her must be either He Yu or the Heir, right?”

“That’s impossible!” the Fifth Concubine blurted out immediately.

Concubine Lan’s jade-like finger rested on the tea lid, sliding it slowly with a look of perfect composure. “This is the result based on your own deductions. Why do you think it’s impossible?”

“Why would they want to abduct your cousin?”

“How should I know? Perhaps they want to use her against me.”

The Seventh Concubine hurried to explain, “Oh my~ we were just joking because we were bored. Ninth Sister is surely hiding somewhere in the manor and just doesn’t want us to know. Let’s stop speculating; Ninth Sister will surely appear at dinner time.”

This comment brought Concubine Lan some small relief; at least one of these three idiots wasn’t completely brainless.

“Will my three sisters be staying for dinner then?”

“No, we’ll head back to our courtyards. We have many things to do and won’t disturb Sister Lan’s rest.”

Concubines Five and Six hated the Seventh Concubine’s cowardice. They shot her several death glares before flicking their sleeves and leaving in a huff. Of the three, only the Seventh Concubine bowed to Concubine Lan before departing.

Once they were gone, Concubine Lan’s smiling face instantly vanished. She commanded Biyu, “Quickly send people to find that troublemaker. You must bring her back to the manor before Wei Chengyan finds out.”

“Madam, there’s no need to worry. I believe the Ninth Concubine knows what she’s doing; she certainly won’t let Wei Chengyan discover her sneaking out. If we send people to search, the people from the other courtyard will surely find out. It’s better to wait and see.”

Concubine Lan was uneasy. She needed Lü Guiyan to act as a shield for her, yet she feared others might use her cousin to threaten her. “You’re right. Those three only came here because they wanted me to send people out to look for Xiao Jiu. Those three wander around all day with nothing to do; I can’t believe they even wandered into Muhe Courtyard.”

Xiao Tan, standing silently to the side, didn’t dare speak. Recently, Lü Guiyan had been looking for the three concubines to play cards, and their relationship was slightly better than before. It didn’t feel like the Ninth Concubine was a spy in the Heir’s courtyard, but rather that she sincerely wanted to be friends with them. If she told Concubine Lan, it might make things difficult for Lü Guiyan, so she decided to keep quiet.

In a private room on the second floor of the Zhou Family Tea House, everyone sat in silence.

This tea house primarily served laborers and travelers; scholars and refined elites were rare here. Given the status of the Mu, Jing, and Wei families, they wouldn’t even walk past such a shop under normal circumstances. Now gathered together, everyone except Lü Guiyan and Zou Shengsheng was dressed in opulence.

Especially the “flowery peacock” Jing Hongyi—a man who wished he could hang every gold and silver trinket he owned on his body and who valued face above all else. Today, in this place, he actually didn’t want to lift his head.

The only one in high spirits was Lü Guiyan. She had brought them to this tea house on purpose. She had clearly said she only wanted to have tea with Zou Shengsheng; since they insisted on following, their embarrassment was no concern of hers.

Lü Guiyan pushed the served snacks toward Zou Shengsheng. “You’ve been working all day and haven’t eaten properly. You have to head back later, so eat something to line your stomach first.”

“Alright, you eat too.”

Zou Shengsheng was gentle by nature. She wasn’t used to eating in front of two unfamiliar men; she picked up a pastry and then set it down again. She hadn’t expected it to be so awkward; she had originally only wanted to have tea with Lü Guiyan and ask her about the capital.

Jing Hongyi kept his head down, fiddling with a jade pendant. Wei Chengyan’s fury was nearly at her throat; she knew Lü Guiyan had brought them here specifically to humiliate her. She vowed to teach her a lesson when they returned, to show her how to behave in public.

Mu Yan, however, didn’t feel the tea house was beneath him. To him, all places were the same. External decor was unimportant; the heart was a person’s most precious possession.

“By the way, I only know you are Chengyan’s Ninth Concubine. I still don’t know your name?”

Lü Guiyan, munching on a pastry, hadn’t expected Mu Yan to take the initiative to ask. According to the male lead’s character setting, he detested the system of concubines; his advice to Wei Chengyan was largely because he couldn’t stand the crowd of concubines in the Marquis Manor.

“My name is Lü Guiyan. Actually, I’m nothing in the Pingyang Marquis Manor. Wei… the Heir only calls me ‘Ninth Concubine’ to show me respect.”

She took the opportunity to praise Wei Chengyan. Currently, Wei Chengyan’s face was so dark it looked like it could drip ink. To prevent being beaten up by her later when they were alone, some strategic praise was absolutely necessary.

Wei Chengyan’s expression softened slightly, and her brow relaxed.

Seeing this, Lü Guiyan continued her praise: “The Heir does not have it easy in the manor. We concubines don’t show her much respect, yet she doesn’t hold a grudge at all. She is always very polite when she sees us.”

This praise even made Jing Hongyi’s face twitch. He looked with a complex expression at the “shy” Wei Chengyan, and then at the sincere-looking Lü Guiyan. He had witnessed scenes where these two were like fire and water—what was happening today?

They were drinking tea, not wine. How could they be this “drunk”?