In a meadow behind the Guo mansion, a woman in a white sundress stood alone in the center surrounded by varying colors of wildflowers. A gentle breeze softly swayed her long ink-black hair. She slowly looked up and enjoyed the rays of the tender morning sun. The crown of flowers she just weaved adorned her head beautifully, making her look ethereal, otherworldly. Her face held an affectionate smile as she weaves another crown of flowers. She looked like a flower nymph happily playing with the sea of undulating vibrant colors before her.
Another girl dressed in mourning clothes stood beside her looking pensive.
"Don't you like flowers?" Li Jing asked without looking at Hua Mei. She kneeled on the soft grass and meticulously look for another stem of a flower to interlace.
Hua Mei sat on the bed of grass and cup her face with both hands then nod. "Hm. I like flowers because my Mistress loves them. But when she left, looking at these delicate things makes me sad."
Li Jing's hand stopped for a while and continued again. She detected a hint of longing on the little girl's voice and a flash of pain hit her heart.
"Don't be sad, it's such a bright sunny day. I'll give you this wreath of flowers, so smile, Hua Mei."
Hua Mei's eyes rounded. "What did you say?"
Li Jing looked at Hua Mei's stunned expression in puzzlement. "I said I'll give you this wreath of flowers."
"No, the last part." Hua Mei said, her voice wobbly.
Li Jing stared at the little girl who still wore mourning clothes. It was obvious who she's wearing them for. A little servant girl who truly misses her Mistress so much so that she would cry when some things remind her of her Mistress.
Li Jing smiled at the sentimental girl, tapped her nose then said in the gentlest tone she could muster, "Smile, Hua Mei."
"Waaaah," Like a dam that burst open, Hua Mei bawled her eyes out. The birds perching on trees flew one by one when the loud noise startled them.
Even Li Jing flinched a bit when she heard Hua Mei's outcry.
"What are crying for?! Stop that!" She commanded. Is this girl planning to rupture her eardrums?
Hua Mei calmed down after a while and wiped her tears. "Mistress- My Mistress used to tell me that."
"To smile?"
Hua Mei nodded. "I miss her."
Li Jing sighed and comforted the crying girl. "We'll get your Mistress back. Isn't that why we're here?" she patted the girl's head. "So, don't cry anymore. You look ugly when you cry."
Hua Mei looked at her for a long time and then slowly nodded. Li Jing shook her head and sighed, where was the calm and collected girl she met on Tranquil Sea Garden?
Their peaceful time was then interrupted by a shrilly voice of a woman. "My, my look what we have here. I wonder why the Guo family likes to take in strays."
"Feng Yi, be nice to jiejie. Although she does look like a stray and dress shabbily all the time, she's still my big sister." Guo Yiyi's soft-spoken tone cajoled.
Guo Yiyi and Zhang Feng Yi brought in a bunch of girls from prominent families of the clan with them in the meadow. Looking at their high and mighty attitude, Li Jing would bet Gou Yiyi's leg that they weren't there for good chitchat.
Li Jing ignored the group and continued what she was doing. Hua Mei who was beside her had slinked inside her shadow, quietly fuming white staring daggers at the newcomers.
Feng Yi stomped her feet when their target ignored them. "Hmph! Yiyi why are so nice to her? Just look at her, a girl with no manners at all. We just greeted her but she ignored us."
"That's right Yiyi. You're so saintly that's why some low-born dare to slight you." Someone said.
"You should just forget about her. Why are we even talking to a bastard-child like Guo Li Jing?" someone from the crowd mocked.
"Shouldn't a bastard-child be punished for slighting the child of the main wife?" someone asked.
Yiyi sighed, "Everyone…My sister has always been like that, so don't take it to heart. We've been teaching her how to properly conduct herself in front of guests but I think you can't teach simple etiquette to lowly… sigh. We even hired professional tutors for her but big sister always misses her classes. Mother had been suffering headaches for a while now because of this. If Father knows about this matter, sister will definitely suffer another punishment so don't tell him, okay?"
Guo Yiyi's world sounded like she truly cared for her sister but the underlying meaning was hard to miss. When everyone heard Guo Yiyi's words, their impression of Guo Li Jing turned for the worst. Uneducated, arrogant, overbearing, unfilial bastard-child. How dare she refuse the goodwill of the main family? Those were the thoughts running on their heads.
Seeing the disdainful looks cast towards Li Jing, Guo Yiyi felt delighted and cheery but she still wore an anxious look on the outside.
Feng Yi tilts her head up in a lofty manner and sneered. "What should I do, Yiyi? I'm not as understanding as you. My mouth might slip up if your sister won't beg and apologize to me."
Yiyi shot her sister a concerned look but the slant in the corner of her mouth was hard to miss. "Jiejie, why don't you kneel and beg Feng Yi to forgive you. If Father knows about you not attending your classes, he will surely make you kneel again in the ancestral hall. Hurry and beg Feng Yi."
Li Jing continued to ignore the one-sided conversation of the bunch of nitwits and inspected the masterpiece she just made. She lifted the crown of flowers and smiled. Perfect.
Li Jing: Hua Mei, it's beautiful, isn't it?
Hua Mei: It is beautiful, Milady.
Assassin Li Jing: These house flies are really irritating. Why don't we just kill them?
Disturbed Hua Mei: We can't, Milady. It will disrupt the balance of this plane. The chief God may suspect something is up and investigate. He might find us and scatter your soul.
Wicked Li Jing: Bummer. We can't kill them but we can still mess with them, right? Do you know where flies love to play?
Distressed Hua Mei: Milady… You're too malicious.
The both of them can talk telepathically when Hua Mei enters her shadow. When such a useful perk exists, it would surely come in handy in the future.
Guo Yiyi and Zhang Feng Yi looked very displeased when Li Jing continued to ignore them.
"You-!" Feng Yi advanced and tried to snatch the wreath of flowers from Li Jing but failed miserably. She wasn't able to catch her footing on time. Tripped onto something and landed face first in a mushy and foul-smelling thing. Half of her face was covered with it. Feng Yi slowly lifted herself and wanted to faint on the spot when she saw where her face fell in.
Cow dung.
Everyone gasped in shock but no one dared to come forward and help.
"Feng Yi!" Yiyi rushed to her friend's side and tried to help her but when the foul smell reached her sensitive nose, she retched on the spot.
One covered in cow dung, the other retching up her breakfast, chaos descended on the once quiet meadow. Someone ran for help while someone felt faint and passed out on the ground.
Everyone was too occupied with helping the Feng Yi-Yiyi pair they didn't see Li Jing's shadow stretch and contract on the ground.
Wicked Li Jing: Good job, Hua Mei.
Accomplice Hua Mei: I feel like a criminal, Milady.
Wicked Li Jing: Don't worry, you'll get used to it soon.
Accomplice Hua Mei: ...
"Yiyi meimei, Feng Yi, why are the two of you kneeling on the ground?" Li Jing said, her sweet voice laced with mockery.
Feng Yi glowered at her with a face smeared with excrement.
"Oh gosh! Feng Yi, didn't your mother teach you not to play with yucky things?" Li Jing said in fake shock.
Feng Yi glared daggers at her, "Guo Li Jing!"
"Yiyi, are you ill? What happened?" an anxious voice approached them.
Li Jing glanced at the other newcomer. She wanted to roll her eyes heavenward. Another fly had swooped in.
Zhang Yong came up to them. He rushed forward when he saw his fiancé retching and was shocked and a bit disgusted when he saw his sister's face.
Zhang Yong glance at Li Jing, his eyes softened a bit. "What happened here, A- Jing? Why is my meimei covered in cow dung and A-Yi retching?"
Guo Yiyi started her Academy Award performance again. She cried sounding like a hyena and leaned to her fiancé's shoulder, looking weak and pitiful. "Jiejie, how could you do that to Feng Yi? We were just talking to you. Why did you viciously trip Feng Yi like that? Just look at her, what will others think if they saw her now. She will be laughed at when someone saw her like this."
Hearing what Guo Yiyi said, Zhang Feng Yi wanted to tear Li Jing to shreds. Guo Yiyi carefully hid the evil leer on her lips. She knew full well that Zhang Feng Yi valued public appearance. If rumor goes out that she fell face first on cow dung, she will surely kill Guo Li Jing. When the Sandpiper and the Clam fight each other, it's the Fisherman who benefits. This is what Guo Yiyi is good at, taking advantage of someone's misfortune.
Feng Yi became incensed, just thinking how much humiliation she will face. Most daughters of prominent families are there to witness her disgrace, just thinking how many tongues would wag after this, she wanted to bury Li Jing in this meadow alive. "You-! You harbinger of bad luck, I'll kill you!"
Feng Yi tried to grab Li Jing but for some unknown reason, she tripped again. And fell on cow dung. Again. Not only was her face covered in cow dung now, but even her hands are also sticky with the foul-smelling excrement. Why the hell does this meadow have so much cow dung?!
Li Jing by-passed the flabbergasted Zhang Feng Yi and advance towards Guo Yiyi, hands folded under her chest emphasizing their greatness. Milky white skin that turned pinkish after sunbathing, luscious curves that make men gaze heated, who can resist Li Jing's charms?
Of course, Zhang Yong wasn't immune. The first time he saw Li Jing's beauty, he was already hooked but it was more intense now. it feels like something has changed with Li Jing. Her allure then was her pure and innocent beauty but now it seems to be enhanced and her demeanor has become ethereal, mysterious, otherworldly.
If he had not gotten Guo Yiyi pregnant with his child. If it weren't for her family and his, maybe Zhang Yong is now pursuing the Jade-like Li Jing.
His eyes lingered on Li Jing's profile longer than what is considered appropriate.
Guo Yiyi witnessed it all, the captivated look on Zhang Yong. She was incensed when she first saw that look in his eyes the moment the bastard-child Li Jing returned home.
Zhang Yong is hers, their child is already growing in her belly, but Li Jing, this bitch, still dared to seduce another woman's fiancé. Ever since then, all Guo Yiyi could think of is how she could make Li Jing disappear for good.
Li Jing knew how her charms affected Zhang Yong but she ignored him and faced the seething Guo Yiyi, a lazy smile on her lips. "On what eye did you see me trip Zhang Feng Yi, sister?"
"You- How can you be so shameless? Everyone in here could vouch that you tripped her. Feng Yi is a renowned model so she walks steadily. Tell me, how can something like that happen if you haven't had a hand in it?" Guo Yiyi said convincingly. She turned her eyes on the women behind her, her eyes conveying deep meaning.
The ladies from the prominent families of the Liu clan looked at each other awkwardly. Though they know in their hearts what truly transpired but faced with the pressure from the daughter of great Adviser Guo, with which their own families thought them to befriend to curry favor in the future, what is a little bit of dishonesty compared to establishing a good connection with Guo Yiyi?
And so, these daughters of the Liu clan cast away the little conscience they had.
"That's right we saw it!"
"Guo Li Jing, you are too overbearing, you tripped Feng Yi but still deny it?"
"How audacious! You can't deny the fact that we all saw it. A girl like you should be punished!"
Hearing what his fiancé said and what the other accuse Li Jing, Zhang Yong looked at Guo Li Jing disappointingly.
Li Jing rolled her eyes. Be disappointed all on your own, buddy. Like I care about the opinion of house flies.
"It seems like you are all having a good time here, please pardon my intrusion." A voice deep and husky with a hint of coldness in it caught their attention.