Chapter 63: Auntie (Part 2)

  Mrs. Ma saw Mingxia dressed in new clothes, looking radiant and completely different from when she was a maid. Her demeanor and expression were dignified, and she was young and beautiful, with a gentle disposition and good at understanding people's intentions. How could Old Master Yao not be pleased with her? Moreover, Mrs. Ma also understood seven or eight parts of Mingxia's cunning and cleverness, so it was no wonder that she could charm men. Thinking this way added fuel to the fire in her heart. Her rationality told her to be virtuous and magnanimous, not to make things difficult for Mingxia, but her emotions refused to listen to reason. She deliberately made Mingxia kneel for a cup of tea before pretending to suddenly remember and laughing as she let her get up.

  Ming Xia did not report to Master Yao, but everyone's eyes were on the commotion in the main courtyard. What can be hidden from gossip? After learning about it, Master Yao was furious and not only rewarded Ming Xia with clothes and jewelry to appease her, but also explicitly ordered that she would no longer need to report to Madam Ma. He also told the two maids that if Madam Ma made Fourth Concubine kneel again, they should inform him and stop it; otherwise, he would fire them!

  After thanking Madam Ma that day, Mingxia went to visit Yao Cunjia and her three sisters at their residence.

  For Yao Cunjia, her own biological mother was already gone, and even the position of mother had been occupied by others. Having another aunt would not make a difference to Mingxia, without any malice, she let her stay for a while, gave her two pieces of satin and two pairs of gold hairpins as a gift for meeting, and let Green Lotus and Green Leaf politely send her away.

  In the Luomei courtyard, in front of the maidservants, Yao Cunhui also had an attitude similar to that of Yao Cunjia, with a smile that was polite but distant. Mingxia's words and actions did not reveal any difference towards Yao Cunhui either, doing everything according to her duties as a concubine, making it impossible for anyone to find fault in anything.

  Rong's mother sighed in admiration, and if she had changed to someone else, because of Yao Cunhui's reminder, today would have been different. How could Mingxia be so perfect? It seems that the second young lady has found the right person, indeed a clever one, who knows when she will come in handy!

  After chatting for a while, Yao Cunhui also gave gifts to Yao Cunjia. Mingxia was about to bid farewell when Mao's wife happened to walk into the house with gentle steps, calling out "Hui'er". Her eyes sparkled as she turned her gaze to Mingxia and smiled: "What a coincidence! I've met the new daughter-in-law today!"

  "The maidservant has seen the second mistress!" Mingxia smiled awkwardly and hastily stepped forward to curtsy.

  "Come on!" Mr. Mao raised his hand and smiled: "I didn't have so many rules in the past, no need to be too polite!"

  "The second mistress is kind and generous, but the concubines must remember their own place and not be presumptuous or slight the second mistress!" Ming Xia said with a gentle smile.

  "Listening to her talk, it's really a blessing!" Mrs. Mao lifted up her handkerchief to cover her mouth and smiled in praise. The more she looked at Mingxia, the more pleasing she found her. Thinking of the expression on Mrs. Ma's face, which was clearly stifling her discontent while trying to put on a virtuous smile, Mrs. Mao's mood became even more delightful.

  "Second Aunt, how come you have time to come today? Is Fourth Sister doing better?" Yao Cunhui asked with a smile, while also beckoning Mingxia: "Fourth Aunt, don't rush off, sit down and chat for a bit, Second Aunt isn't an outsider!"

  Mr. Yao was spoiling Mingxia, and Mingxia had more contact with people at home, getting along well with Mrs. Mao, which must have been what Mr. Yao liked to see, so Yao Cunhui smiled and said.

  "Hehe, Second Miss's temperament is the easiest to get along with, Fourth Aunt doesn't need to worry so much!" Mrs. Mao first greeted Mingxia and smiled at Yao Cunhui: "Thank you for remembering, Yuner has recovered a lot!"

  "That's good, tomorrow I'll go with my sister and third sister to take a look at her. If Fourth Aunt has nothing else going on, she can come along too, it's only right that we should pay our respects to Fourth Miss." Yao Cunhui said with a smile, ordering Hong Lian and Hong Zhi to refill the tea cups again.

  Ming Xia glanced at Mao Shi, saw that Mao Shi's eyes were filled with smiling expectation, and nodded in response. The three of them chatted for a while longer before Ming Xia left the Luomei courtyard to go see Yao Cunmei in the Qionglin Garden.

  Walking on the road, Ming Xia couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine, knowing that real trouble had arrived.

  Yao Cunmei is Ma's biological daughter, originally a maid by Ma's side. Overnight, she became Ma's rival. Yao Cunmei was someone who wouldn't be tolerated even by those with no temper, let alone being a spoiled and arrogant person!

  She was thinking to herself, and her feet couldn't help but slow down. Mingxia wasn't afraid of people like Ma who were hypocritical and hid knives in their smiles, but someone like Yao Cunmei who was completely unscrupulous made her feel a bit uneasy.

  Yao Cunmei had been holding back her anger for a long time, but Mingxia had been staying in the outer courtyard's study before moving into the Pomegranate Mountain House, under the protection of Old Master Yao. Yao Cunmei couldn't find fault with her even if she wanted to. Knowing that Mingxia would be visiting her three sisters after meeting with their mother today, she returned from paying respects to Madam Ma early in the morning and waited with a stern expression.

  No one knew that after waiting left and right, no one came. Yao Cunmei gradually became impatient and even more angry, thinking that Mingxia was deliberately making a show of herself, first sweeping away the face of Ma Shi, and now wanting to give herself a boost! Who would have thought that Mingxia had coincidentally encountered Mao Shi at Yao Cunhui's place and was delayed.

  A little maid outside the Qionglin Garden saw Mingxia coming along the path and hastily slipped in to report, "Third Miss, Fourth Aunt has arrived!"

  One sentence brought back Yao Cun's resentful glare: "What aunt? Just a cheap little girl!" The little girl was scolded into lowering her head and standing aside, not daring to make a sound.

  Before long, a maid came in and replied: "Third Miss, four people have arrived at the door asking to see you!"

  Yao Cunmei slammed the porcelain tea bowl in her hand onto the table, coldly laughing: "Since she's seeking an audience, let her wait! Wait until Miss is pleased!"

  Ming Xia waited at the gate of Qiong Lin Garden for a whole hour with Hong Yu, but it was Ma Qunfang who saw that things were stuck and couldn't be concluded, so she forced herself to smile and mention it, and Xiao Yatou saw that Yao Cunmei didn't say anything to express her opposition, only then did she go out and call Ming Xia in.

  "Miss has seen Third Miss!" Mingxia carefully stepped forward, kneeled down and greeted Ya Cunmei.

  Yao Cun's resentful and hateful gaze swept over her, sharp enough to pierce through her body. Ming Xia stood still, biting her lip, frozen in place.

  "How dare I! Fourth Aunt is now my father's favorite, how could I possibly accept such a grand gift from her!" Yao Cunmei gave her a big white eye, and seeing what she was wearing made her even more resentful. In the past, she was just a servant girl serving under her own mother, but now she had become her aunt, and if she were to get pregnant and have children one day, they would be her own younger siblings. Yao Cunmei couldn't bear the thought of it, yet she completely forgot that she herself was also the daughter of an aunt.

  "Third Miss, this servant doesn't dare to accept such words! It's only right for a servant like me to pay respects to the miss!" Mingxia replied with her hands hanging down.

  "Is it?" Yao Cunmei seemed to smile but not quite, "So you're saying that you also acknowledge that you are still a slave of the Yao family?"

  Ming Xia nodded slightly, as if a sharp sword had flashed through her mind: "Yes, I have always been."

  "This is what you said yourself!" Yao Cunmei smiled and raised an eyebrow, saying lightly: "Then today, you'll serve me again, how about that?"

  "The maidservant only followed Third Miss's orders and didn't dare disobey." Mingxia felt her scalp go numb, but she could only grit her teeth and endure.

  "How loyal! You're making me feel soft-hearted!" Yao Cunmei hummed and said: "Pour me a cup of tea."

  "Yes," Ming Xia nodded and went forward obediently, holding up the tea bowl with both hands to offer it to Yao Cunmei.

  Yao Cunmei's gaze remained fixed on her, following her movements. She took the tea tray and suddenly raised it, pouring it all over Mingxia's body. In a stern voice, she said: "Have you forgotten your place in just a few days? Can't even understand what I'm saying? Or are you thinking that now that you're of high status, you can be deceitful towards me too? I told you to 'serve tea', not 'hold the tray'. Are you stupid? Are you intentionally trying to provoke me? Don't you look at yourself and see if you're worthy? Even as a concubine, what's the point of putting on airs in front of me? Pour it again!"

  Ming Xia let out a loud cry and hastily dodged, the front of her embroidered jade-green skirt was soaked with a large patch of water. Fortunately, the tea had been left on the side for some time, so when it splashed onto her body, it didn't scald her. Otherwise, a large area of skin on her chest and abdomen would have been ruined.

  The girls looked at each other in dismay, hanging their heads and not daring to move.

  "Hurry up!" Yao Cunmei scolded with a raised eyebrow.

  "Yes, yes." Ming Xia calmed down and held back her tears, took the tea leaves and boiling water, re-brewed a bowl of tea, and carefully handed it to Yao Cunmei with both hands, "Third Miss, please have some tea."

  Yao Cunmei coldly took over, thought for a moment and got angry again. With a "crack" sound, she slammed the tea bowl to the ground and scolded: "What kind of thing is this? Drinking your brewed tea makes me feel sick!"

  Ming Xia unconsciously wanted to dodge back, but she forcibly endured and didn't dare move. Fortunately, Yao Cunmei this time didn't splash her, but instead smashed it on the ground to vent her anger. Except for a few water droplets on her shoe that stung a bit, she was unharmed.

  Yao Cunmei scowled and snapped at her, "What are you standing there like a fool for? Where's that clever spirit of yours from before? Hurry up and clean up the floor for me!"

  "Yes, Third Miss!" Mingxia trembled and squatted down, carefully picking up the broken porcelain pieces on the ground. The fragrance of tea wafted over, refreshing and elegant, but her heart was filled with bitterness, sorrow, and regret.

  She never thought of becoming the concubine of an old man, and she never would have. If she had such a heart, why wait until today? The girl's feelings were too naive, thinking that with the mistress's favoritism towards her, she could always get a good marriage with someone from a similar background! But she was wrong, in the mistress's eyes, she was just a pawn, a pawn that could only listen to its master's words. No matter how unbearable the person was, if the mistress told her to marry him, she had to! If so, why didn't she try to get something better for herself? She was also a human being with flesh and blood, with joys and sorrows. As a slave, she could endure anything, except for the matter of her lifetime, she couldn't! Otherwise, she would lose her entire life, thoroughly and completely. If that were the case, what's the point of living? The mistress only knew to resent her, how could she also know that all this was caused by herself?

  Ming Xia's heart felt a pang of sadness, and she couldn't help but let out a slight sob as she breathed, her body trembling slightly.