The Devious First-Daughter

“Miss, when Third Young Lady returned to her courtyard, it is said that she had smashed all the porcelain items in the room.” Qingyu walked in happily. She had a stronger body than Ning Xueyan had, so she had long recovered as of now.

When she saw that the peonies that she had carefully prepared and was ready to use to show off were all plucked and thrown on the ground, no matter how shrewd Ning Qingshan was, she could not stand it this time and smashed all the porcelain items in the room. When she was in the mansion, Ning Qingshan liked to pretend to be cool-headed, generous, and gentle most, but why didn’t she pretend now?

“Qingyu, keep a close eye on the affairs of the Foggy Courtyard.” Ning Xueyan smiled and folded the wedding robe in her hand carefully. The robe was officially finished, and she had finished her task.

“Since Prince Yi has said so, does Third Young Lady still dare to do harm to you?” Qingyu asked with bewilderment.

The arrival of Ao Chenyi might have broken the plan of Ning Zu’an or even Ning Huaiyuan, but did not break Ning Qingshan’s plan. The two men always considered issues from the standpoint of the Lord Protector’s Manor, but Ning Qingshan would not. By relying on the situation that she was not only the young lady of the Lord Protector’s Manor, she did a few things fearlessly.

Of course, Ning Qingshan would not be so hot-headed to destroy the Lord Protector’s Manor at once. After all, she was now a member and young lady of the Lord Protector’s Manor. No matter who she thought she was, she could not say it, so for the sake of her own good, she could not let the Lord Protector’s Manor fall into serious trouble.

She could not let it fall into serious trouble, but what about small trouble?

Of course, what Ao Chen Yi said meant that he did not want to hear any bad rumors about himself that would prevent the wedding from being held, but what about the thing that was done but was not spread? Speaking of such a thing specifically, Ning Qingshan could really do it.

When she put down the folded wedding robe in her hand, she picked up the box at hand and looked at the women’s wedding robe on the side, which had the same patterns, accessories, and embroidery patterns. At first glance, one could know that they were from the same set. After thinking about it, Ning Xueyan also folded this one and put it on the side. Or Ao Chenyi just wanted to see the wedding robe she had tailored, but did not really want to wear it.

“My Third Sister’s peonies were plucked today, and she also suffered so much injustice, so she will go to my grandma and talk. It’s unavoidable that she will make some trouble.”

“Like Ning Huaiyuan and his companions, Ning Qingshan should also be eager to kill me, but since I am alive, don’t think about making a comeback in this life, Madam Ling!”

“Okay, I see. By the way, just now when I went to the kitchen to fetch the bird’s nest made for you by the kitchen staff, I heard them say that Third Prince will come here to have dinner tonight. Now the kitchen staff is busy in a din,” Qingyu nodded as a reply and hurriedly said as she suddenly remembered another thing.

As soon as Ao Chenyi left, Third Prince arrived. Ning Xueyan pondered, “This should never be a coincidence. If it is not that Ao Mingyu wanted to come himself, it should be that Ning Zu’an invited him to come.

“Since such a thing happened in the Cold Mountain Temple, no matter how thick-skinned Ao Mingyu is, he will not come here straight, so it should be that Ning Zu’an invited him here.

“Ning Zu’an is a sinner himself, but why did he invite Ao Mingyu to come here? What does he want him to come here for? Before now, I never heard that he would come, but he came here after Ao Chenyi went home. It is probably related to Ao Chenyi. Is it about these few peonies?”

Ning Xueyan shook her head in the dark. “This is too much of a fuss. Anyway, it can’t be related to those few peonies. No matter what, Ning Zu’an is a marquis.

“So, what happened after I left? And it also has connections with Ao Chenyi.” After closing the brocade box, Ning Xueyan turned around and asked, “Where is Xinmei?”

“Xinmei had something to do just now and went out, and she has just come back and is outside. Let me call her in,” Qingyu said. She turned around and went out. After a while, Xinmei lifted the door curtain and walked in.

“Send this box to Prince Yi and also find out what Prince Yi said to Madam Dowager at that time,” Ning Xueyan said as she put the box into Xinmei’s hands. Speaking of going to Prince Yi’s Manor, Xinmei was the most suitable person, of course, for it was much easier for her to go to someone. Certainly, she could choose not to go through the main entrance and sent the thing directly. After all, Ning Xueyan did not want more people to know that she had also tailored a wedding robe for Ao Chenyi.

Therefore, she disliked the idea of going straight to Ao Chenyi and sending the wedding robe very much.

Xinmei took the brocade box and looked at the women’s robe Ning Xueyan had put aside, and then she knew that what was in the box was the prince’s wedding garment, so she said with a smile, “Yes, I’ll go right away. You just wait, Miss.” And she also specially blinked at Ning Xueyan, and the latter glared at her fiercely, but somehow, she blushed a little for no reason.

No sooner Xinmei left than Qingyu came in and reported, “Miss, Housekeeper Ruan wants to see you.”

The inner courtyard was originally managed by Housekeeper Lu, the confidant of Madam Ling and also her older female servant who came here with her after she got married. Previously, Ning Xueyan suffered great losses in her hands. Many items in the Bright Frost Garden were obtained by her through embezzling, but after Madam Ling lost power, the clever Housekeeper Lu immediately went to Madam Dowager, saying that she was old and was getting clumsy, so she was willing to buy herself out and requested to resign and go home.

Madam Dowager did not like her to be in charge of housekeeping, but she let her because she was the servant of Madam Ling. Since she was so wise, Madam Dowager did not deliberately put obstacles in her way. She found her indenture from Madam Ling’s place and released her and all her family members, so Ms. Ruan became the housekeeper of the inner courtyard.

Housekeeper Ruan was smart. When she was free, she liked to visit the Bright Frost Garden and asked about what the Garden needed or lacked. At the same time, she would ask Ning Xueyan about how to handle some things. It seemed that she wanted to treat Ning Xueyan as her mistress wholeheartedly. If she met difficulties, she would also send someone to ask Ning Xueyan.

“Although Madam Dowager is still the person in charge of the inner court of the Lord Protector’s Manor, she is old and can’t live for too long, but if I can follow Fifth Young Lady to Prince Yi’s Manor and be a housekeeper when she gets married in the future, it will be much better than being the housekeeper of the Lord Protector’s Manor.”

Housekeeper Ruan thought so. Of course, she was particularly attentive to the affairs of the Bright Frost Garden.

When Ning Xueyan let her in, she saluted her respectfully and then stood with her hands and shoulders down on the right-hand side of Ning Xueyan, looking extremely well-behaved and extremely submissive.

Since she was attentive to Ning Xueyan, Ning Xueyan naturally let her have dignity. Wearing a smile, she asked Qingyu to fetch a stool for her. When she let her sit down, she asked, “Is there anything I can do for you, Housekeeper Ruan?”

Housekeeper Ruan said a few words politely and finally sat down on the edge of the stool. Then, she heaved a sigh before Ning Xueyan and said awkwardly, “Fifth Young Lady, Third Young Lady smashed all the precious porcelain items in her room. I thought that the mansion was preparing the dowry for you, so I put many good porcelain items in your place. Now I don’t know what porcelain items I can use to refill the room of Third Young Lady. If I don’t use good items, I’m afraid Third Young Lady will be angry.”

Housekeeper Ruan showed that she was at a loss.

Ning Xueyan picked up the teacup and took a sip. She rolled her eyes leisurely but did not say anything, and listened quietly as Housekeeper Ruan went on. “Ning Qingshan smashed the porcelain items in her room. It seems that she was quite angry. Ao Chenyi picked these few peony flowers and threw them all on the ground. Sure enough, she was infuriated.”

“It is said that a cat slipped into the room, and her maids ran after the cat, so all the porcelain items were broken. However, Third Young Lady was kind and didn’t punish these few maids, so she sent someone to me to get new porcelain items, saying that if the items placed in her room don’t have a good quality, our Lord Protector’s Manor will lose face, when Third Prince visits Third Young Lady in a while.”

Housekeeper Ruan puffed as she spoke, looking aggrieved and depressed.

Of course, people in the mansion got things by quota, especially for a person like Ning Qingshan, who was not comparable to the previous First Young Lady and Second Young Lady. If the two broke many pieces previously, Madam Ling would open her private treasury; even Fourth Young Lady could rely on Concubine Xu, who had some private collections. But Third Young Lady was different because she was an adopted daughter, and no one would provide so many pieces for her, so she had to get them from the public treasury of the mansion.

If it was one or two pieces, Housekeeper Ruan would not be in a dilemma, but it was a roomful of items, which were ten pieces of porcelain at least. Besides, what Third Young Lady meant that she wanted the few best ones, but they had all been appropriated into the dowry of Fifth Young Lady, and Housekeeper Ruan could not make the decision? After thinking about it, she remembered Fifth Young Lady, so she immediately came to the Bright Frost Garden to deliver the message. Housekeeper Ruan became shrewd as she aged. She could see that Third Young Lady and Fifth Young Lady were not in harmony as they seemed.

When she came to the mansion in the beginning, Third Young Lady wanted to bully Fifth Young Lady and framed her later.

Third Prince Ao Mingyu was coming here today, so Ning Qingshan took this as an opportunity to ask the storehouse to prepare a roomful of new good quality porcelain items. Unfortunately, Madam Dowager wanted to curry favor with Prince Yi previously, so she asked Ning Xueyan to pick the few best pieces. What Ning Qingshan meant was that she took a fancy to the pieces Ning Xueyan had chosen, so she especially threatened Housekeeper Ruan, wanting to compete for them with her.

She never thought that many things in her place were part of Madam Ming’s dowry, in fact, but Madam Dowager pampered her wholeheartedly and did not put these things in the Bright Frost Garden. Instead, she put them in her Foggy Courtyard…

Ning Xueyan leaned back, raised her lips slightly, and said as if nothing had happened, “Housekeeper Ruan, please go back first, and I can’t make the decision for this matter. In a while, you can just go to my grandma and report. If the few porcelain items in my hands are required, please let Madam Dowager give me an indication, but my grandma is still taking the afternoon nap. Anyhow, you have to wait for my grandma to wake up and then go and report. Anyway, I’m also going to see my grandma in a while, and you may come by then.”

Since Ning Qingshan used the arrival of Ao Mingyu as her excuse, then it was up to her to show her usual gentleness and calmness in front of Ao Mingyu.

Housekeeper Ruan was smart. Although she did not find out Ning Xueyan’s plan by guessing, she stood up and said respectfully, “Yes, I see.” After finishing these words, she left.

After Housekeeper Ruan left, Lanning came over to clean up the needle and thread on the table for Ning Xueyan, and she couldn’t help asking, “Will Madam Dowager not want to care about this matter in the presence of Third Prince, Miss?”

As for the character of Ning Qingshan, these few maids in the Bright Frost Garden knew it the most clearly. Remembering that Ning Qingshan even had the idea of letting her Miss meet Third Prince privately so as to control her Miss, Lanning just thought that the lesson to Third Young Lady was not enough. Now that there was such a good opportunity, no matter what, her Miss must expose Third Young Lady’s real image, lest that she, who always put on a gentle and kind expression in the mansion but was so vicious in private, should have a chance to act again.

“Well, Madam Dowager will!” Ning Xueyan showed a slight sarcasm on her face. “Madam Dowager usually won’t care about it, but if something unexpected happens…”