Lu Xiang was thinking about something as she walked towards the Old Madam's Fuyuan Hall. Suddenly, someone rushed out from the side, causing her to stagger two steps back.
That person did not stop. As he ran, he looked behind him.
"Third Sister, I'm sorry."
Lu Xiang rubbed her aching shoulder. "Brother, why are you running?"
Lu Chao said, "Running for my life. I'll talk to you later. The hag is about to catch up."
Lu Xiang: "…"
Just as she wondered who he was talking about, she saw a woman rushing over with a stick in her hand. She scolded fiercely as she ran. "Lu Chao, you bastard… Stop, stop right there."
Lu Chao turned around and ran even faster.
Lu Xiang was speechless. "You call your wife a hag? Lu Chao, are you even human?" she thought.
As though Qiao Jingru realized that it was unsightly of her to be chasing after him with a stick in her hand, she gritted her teeth and stopped running. She was so angry that she was panting.
"Sister-in-law," Lu Xiang greeted Qiao Jingru with a faint smile.
Qiao Jingru's angry face froze. She looked at Lu Xiang as if she had seen a ghost and sneered. "The sun must have risen from the west today. The arrogant Third Miss is actually willing to lower herself and call me sister-in-law. Who are you putting on an act for? Hmph!"
Lu Xiang watched as Qiao Jingru spoke non-stop before turning to leave without another glance at her. She sighed helplessly at that sight.
Arrogance…
Qiao Jingru was right. In her previous life, she felt that she was the legitimate daughter of the first wife, so she was not close to her siblings borne by the concubines. She acted high and mighty all day long, as if none of them were worthy of talking to her. As time passed, no one liked to take the initiative to play with her.
So much so that when Lu Mingzhu entered the manor, she was the only one who was not afraid of her cold attitude. She came to please her time and time again, making her happy. With that, she was stupid enough to give her heart to Lu Mingzhu.
Qiao Jingru and her brother had gotten married half a year ago. When she had just married into the family, she had been very pleasant to her too. However, she had treated her coldly. Qiao Jingru had been pampered by her own family, so naturally, she stopped being friendly after that. She didn't care much for her either. As such, everyone just treated each other civilly.
However, she started to fight with Qiao Jingru under Lu Mingzhu's instigation after she entered the manor. How could Qiao Jingru tolerate it? Hence, their relationship worsened, which was why Qiao Jingru had mocked her earlier.
"Miss, don't be angry. Young Madam is angry with the Eldest Young Master. She's not fighting with you on purpose." Yun Zhe thought of her Miss' relationship with Young Madam and quickly persuaded her, afraid that she would chase after her to quarrel.
"Okay." Lu Xiang naturally could not go against Qiao Jingru like she used to.
Yun Zhe heaved a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, Qiao Jingru's personal maid, Liang Chen, ran over and bowed to Lu Xiang. "Our Young Madam is in a fit of anger right now. Third Miss, please don't blame her."
"Liangchen, come back. You don't have to go up to her just because of her status," Qiao Jingru roared.
Without waiting for Lu Xiang to respond, Liang Chen ran back to her mistress.
Qiao Jingru poked her in a fit of anger. "Are you crazy?"
Liang Chen: "Young Madam, Third Miss is quite polite to you today. It's not fair for us to vent our anger on her, right?"
"Which eye of yours saw her being polite to me?"
"She took the initiative to greet you…" In the past, she always had her nose in the air.
"Heh, is that being polite? She's clearly laughing at me."
"Mistress, are you thinking too much into it?"
"Whose maid are you? Siding with others instead of me. Lu Xiang has bewitched you."
"Mistress, you know that I'm loyal to you. Even if Third Miss has bewitching soup, she can't bewitch me at all. Don't be angry. I will make snowflake pastries for you."
"Tsk, who does Lu Xiang think she is to get me to be angry with her?"
"Of course. I'm referring to the Eldest Young Master. The Eldest Young Master is young and impetuous. It's inevitable that he's playful."
"…"
Lu Xiang and Qiao Jingru walked in the opposite direction. Liang Chen's coaxing voice gradually disappeared.
Liangchen was right.
Lu Chao was indeed too playful. He abandoned his family for a b*tch and ended up becoming a cripple…
And this ending was all thanks to Madam Liu and her daughter.
Soon, Lu Xiang arrived at Fuyuan Hall.
Before they even entered the house, they could already hear laughter coming from inside. The most ear-piercing sounds were emitted by Madam Liu and Lu Mingzhu.
Lu Xiang took a deep breath and walked in.
Greetings by the servants sounded out in the courtyard one after another, so the people who were chatting and laughing in the room looked out and saw Lu Xiang walking over slowly.
Her exquisite face was fair and bright. The sunlight shone on the side of her face, adding to her radiance. The corners of her lips were slightly curved, and her faint smile was generous but appropriate. She looked gentle and elegant, but also with a hint of childishness that made her look delicate and lively.
Under everyone's gaze, Lu Xiang walked into the house and knelt down in front of the old lady. "Greetings, Grandmother."
The old lady was dressed in a maroon outer cover and a sapphire blue dress. A string of jade beads hung around her neck. The moment she saw Lu Xiang, her sharp eyes filled up with a faint gentleness. "Quick, get up. You're still sick. Why aren't you resting in your room? Are you feeling unwell?"
Every word was filled with concern for Lu Xiang.
Lu Mingzhu sat at the side and clenched her handkerchief in jealousy.
Lu Xiang stood up with Yun Zhe's hand and smiled at Old Madam. "Thank you for your concern, Grandmother. It's all thanks to the ginseng that you asked Nanny Wen to send over. I have already recovered and I'm here today to thank you."
Her voice was soft, and her eyes were filled with admiration as she looked at the old lady. The old lady's heart was about to melt.
"Child, there's no need to stand on ceremony with me. Come to my side." The Old Madam said as she waved at Lu Xiang. She's in a good mood.
Lu Xiang sat beside the old lady and smiled sweetly at her.
She still remembered that in her previous life, after she recovered from her illness, her only purpose here was for Lu Mingzhu.
Because Lu Mingzhu had cut herself to save her, how could she not take the opportunity to put in a good word for her in front of her grandmother then?
But now… that would be wishful thinking on her part.
Lu Xiang's gaze swept across everyone in the room. She seemed to be a little high and mighty sitting beside the Old Madam. However, in everyone's hearts, she had always been such an arrogant person, so it was not surprising.
"Every time I come to Grandmother's place, Aunt Yao will definitely be here when Aunt Liu is around. It seems like the two of you are really close… Ah, Grandmother, Father hasn't given Aunt Liu a status yet. It's okay for me to call her that, right? After all, she was brought back by Father out of the blue…"
She was just short of saying that she was a mistress and not even an official concubine.
Madam Liu's smiling face suddenly froze. She never expected Lu Xiang to mock her like this. The fire in her chest almost spewed out of her mouth.
"This b*tch… What was she doing?" she thought.
Yao's heart skipped a beat when Lu Xiang looked at her with a faint smile. For some reason, she felt guilty, but she quickly regained her senses.
"I don't understand what the Third Miss is saying. As a member of the Lu family, I naturally want to have a good relationship with everyone. Moreover, hasn't the Third Miss always liked Aunt Liu? Why are you saying such harsh words today?"
Yao said with a smile. As she spoke, she shook her head gently as though she was silently criticizing Lu Xiang for turning hostile so quickly.