Duchess An was enraged and took a step forward, saying, "Fourth Mrs. Su is kind-hearted, but don't let yourself be deceived by the villain. My daughter Yu Rong was nearly dead today, Qi Country Duke's Mansion must give an explanation."
The ladies in the room glanced at each other, and Lady Jiang's eyebrows slightly furrowed. She wanted to say something but swallowed her words.
She did not know about others, but she knew the character of Fourth Mrs. Su. She was never an unreasonable person. Perhaps there was something hidden in today's incident?
Fourth Mrs. Su ignored Duchess An and stared at Princess Dongli with her dark eyes. "Princess Dongli, even in court trials, both parties need to be heard. How can you make a judgment without asking my daughter Xin Yi a word? Have you already determined that she pushed someone into the water?"
Xui Yurong's heart skipped a beat and she subconsciously glanced at Su Xinyi. Unexpectedly, she met Su Xinyi's expressionless face, and her uneasiness intensified.
She couldn't let Fourth Mrs. Su continue talking, otherwise, who knows what else she might reveal? So she immediately stood up shakily, her face pale, and said with a trembling voice, "Fourth Mrs. Su, I too was at fault in today's incident. Miss Su has just been recognized by the Duke Mansion and is not familiar with the affairs of the capital. It's natural for her to have misunderstandings about me. Fortunately, neither of us was seriously hurt. Let's just let this matter pass."
The crowd nodded slightly. Miss Xu showed generosity, and Fourth Mrs. Su and her daughter seemed a bit harsh in comparison.
Fourth Mrs. Su thought to herself, if it hadn't been for Xin Yi telling her the truth, and just by observing Yu Rong's attitude and listening to her words, she might have thought that Yu Rong was reasonable and even praised her for being magnanimous.
The angrier she grew, Fourth Mrs. Su directly said, "Your words make it sound as if our Qi Country Duke's Mansion is bullying others. Miss Xu, you said that it was our Xin Yi who pushed you into the water, but there must be a reason, right? There were over a dozen young ladies who attended the flower banquet today. Why would she only push you and not anyone else? To be honest, our Xin Yi and Miss Xu have had no previous interactions and bear no grudges against each other. It's truly strange."
As Fourth Mrs. Su said this, the crowd also felt it was odd. Indeed, there must be a reason for pushing someone. Previously, Miss Xu mentioned that the two had a quarrel, but she never mentioned what caused it.
Yu Rong's heart skipped a beat, and her hand clutching the handkerchief involuntarily tightened.
She had been fond of Jiang Zhongqing for years and wanted to marry him, even having her mother probe the Jiang family's attitude. Although Lady Jiang did not openly reject their proposal, she said that education was important and that it wouldn't be too late to discuss the marriage after he became a Scholar.
Becoming a Scholar was uncertain, and even though Jiang Zhongqing was considered a prodigy, it was difficult to say if he would achieve it on his first try.
She believed that the Jiang family was just stalling for time, and their Duke An Mansion, although still a Marquis's Mansion, was not as prestigious as other families in the capital.
As there was no outstanding offspring in Duke An Mansion, and her father was a mediocre, incapable person, their family was just living off their ancestors' legacy and barely maintaining their title.
If she wanted a better life, she would have to marry well. So she put effort into building her reputation and becoming a highly praised maiden among the people.
She liked Jiang Zhongqing mainly because of his promising future. With Jiang Imperial Secretary's support, Jiang Zhongqing would surely have a bright future once he became a Scholar.
She had always thought that Jiang Zhongqing was immersed in his studies and ignorant of romantic matters until that day when she saw the normally cold and indifferent Jiang Zhongqing lend a hand to help the country girl Su Xinyi. That was when her heartstrings instantly tightened.