Chapter 287: Is Xiao Fu Bao Disliked? The Whole City Loves Me With Their Lives
Chapter 287: Exposing the Truth in Public
When Qiao Shi spoke, it drew everyone’s attention.
Xu Shi from the Marquis Huaiyang’s family, upon hearing this, nearly lost control of her expression.
However, she quickly regained her composure and smiled as she responded, “The children are older now and have their own minds. I can't always keep them under control. Perhaps…”
She didn’t finish her sentence, but her gaze subtly shifted towards the front courtyard, making her insinuation quite clear.
Maybe Wei Yongmei had a young man she liked and secretly went to the front courtyard to meet him?
Moreover, by mentioning that the child was getting older and had her own mind, she was implicitly suggesting that her daughter no longer listened to her, and there was little respect for her as a mother.
Everyone, experienced as they were, could easily pick up on the deeper meaning in her words.
But none of them dared to comment or agree with Xu Shi.
Those who knew her well understood her character and would never stick their necks out for her. Those who didn’t know her were content to watch from the sidelines, unwilling to get involved.
The atmosphere instantly became tense, with only Qiao Shi and Xu Shi exchanging distant smiles.
Having received a hint, and still holding a grudge against Xu Shi, Qiao Shi was not going to let this slip by easily. She smiled and directly exposed her intentions: “I see Madam Wei looking toward the front courtyard. Are you trying to hint that your eldest daughter has her own thoughts and secretly went to see the young gentlemen? Madam Wei, there’s no need for subtlety. For someone like me, with poor eyesight and hearing, I probably won’t get the message unless you say it plainly. Why beat around the bush? What if I misunderstood and didn’t catch your meaning?”
Xu Shi’s attempts to insinuate something had worked well in the past, but being directly exposed by Qiao Shi without mercy made her face turn ugly.
Still, Xu Shi had to maintain control over her expression. She couldn’t afford to show her anger, especially with the Grand Princess present.
Thinking of this, Xu Shi forced a soft smile, wanting to say something, but was interrupted by the second daughter of the Marquis Nancheng 's family, now Qiao Shi, who spoke with a smile: "I’m not good with words, and if I’ve made Madam Wei uncomfortable, please forgive me. I’m younger, so I hope you won’t hold it against me.”
When Qiao Shi spoke, Xu Shi felt like her head was spinning.
She tried to interrupt, but before she could, Qiao Shi laughed and continued, "Oh, I just remembered! The eldest young master of the Wei family was pressed into the water by several young masters from the Xu family. Quite a scene, I must say! The Xu family certainly knows how to make a big show of things, even bullying the son of the Marquis’s family. Isn’t Madam Wei going to do anything about it?"
After asking this, Qiao Shi quickly clapped her hands, "Oh dear, I forgot, Madam Wei must be too busy taking care of her own son to pay attention to the other matters."
Xu Shi: …!
Xu Shi was nearly driven mad by this remark from Qiao Shi.
She knew full well that Qiao Shi, the second daughter of the Marquis Nancheng’s family, was not known for her intelligence.
Back then, when she had so many noble suitors, she insisted on marrying a poor scholar, and it had caused quite a bit of ridicule.
Of course, the poor scholar had risen in status since then, proving she had made a good choice.
But despite that, Xu Shi was aware that this woman was not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Though she had mentally prepared herself, hearing her words still nearly made Xu Shi lose control of her expression.
What was Qiao Shi implying?
She was clearly pointing out that Xu Shi was neglecting her duties, focusing on her own son and ignoring the legitimate children from the first wife. Was she implying that the eldest son of the Wei family was being sidelined so the son from the second wife could take his place?
After all, there could only be one heir, and if Wei Mingqiao, the legitimate son, was gone, the child from the second wife would naturally take over.
This sort of unspoken understanding existed in many families, and no one ever talked about it openly.
But of course, the masters of each household, along with their matriarchs, were always on guard against such things.
Xu Shi had always believed in her own ability to handle things. But today, she couldn't fathom why she was being targeted by both Qiao Shi and her sister-in-law.
The directness of their words pierced her to the core. She had trouble responding, almost choking on her own words.
Suisui, however, didn’t understand what the adults were saying. The long sentences, accompanied by smiling faces, were laced with sharp intent.
Was this a fight?
But they were laughing.
Wasn’t there a fight?
Yet, the malice was clear, and it hit her like a slap in the face.
It felt even worse than when her aunt was angry.
Suisui didn’t understand. She tilted her little head, pondering for a long time, but still couldn’t figure it out.
As for Qi Wangfei, she didn’t cover Suisui’s ears, not stopping her from listening.
Though she was young, she had grown up in the capital, where survival required at least a little wit and awareness. Without it, one wouldn’t last long.
Thus, from a young age, children needed to be exposed to these things, to learn gradually, even if they didn’t understand everything right away.
Seeing how innocent and cute Suisui looked, tilting her head in confusion, Qi Wangfei thought to herself...
She wanted to live longer, much longer.
Long enough to see Suisui marry and have children of her own, long enough for Suisui to become the head of a household, able to control everything herself. Only then could she leave this world in peace.
Otherwise, even if she died, she wouldn’t be able to close her eyes.
Feng Youtan noticed that Suisui had stopped paying attention to her, and, fuming with frustration, she placed her hands on her hips.
How could Suisui ignore her like that?
It made her so mad!
This was definitely a provocation!
The little girl puffed out her chubby cheeks, letting out a huff here and a puff there, clearly displeased.
Ying Zhi was enjoying the commotion.
Though young, she was clever enough to catch the gist of the argument and understood much of what was being said.
She thought to herself, this was so interesting! So lively! She wanted to see more.
But then, Feng Youtan started grumbling loudly.
Her grumbling drowned out the voices from the argument, making it hard for Ying Zhi to hear the conversation.
This made Ying Zhi very displeased. She turned around, pouting, and quietly reminded her, “Feng Youtan, are you a pig? Why are you always grumbling?”
Feng Youtan, already upset, turned bright red when Ying Zhi called her a pig. She retorted, “You’re the pig! You’re the pig!”
Ying Zhi, not willing to waste time bickering with someone who would cry when she lost an argument, didn’t even dignify her with a response.
Instead, Ying Zhi simply nodded, “Fine, fine, I’m a pig. I’m a pig.”
Feng Youtan was left stunned, her mind racing. Why wasn’t Ying Zhi arguing back?
She was expecting a fight!
But Ying Zhi’s lack of response only made her angrier.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Xu Shi was speaking in a choked voice, trying to explain her difficulties and make the others understand that she had no ill intentions. She wanted to prove to everyone that she had treated Wei Yongmei well.
Of course, as for Wei Mingqiao, that was another story entirely.
Feng Youtan, already irritated by what Xu Shi was saying and further upset by Ying Zhi, suddenly snapped, “Shut up!”
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