Chapter 172.1: C.172

Translated by gingercat

Edited by gingercat

When Yaoniang saw Jin Wang’s sneer, she knew she was in trouble.

Indeed!

She couldn’t help feeling a little embarrassed, but she also knew that she was in the wrong. Jin Wang treated her so well, yet here she was, slandering him.

Hold on. Was it slander?

Technically, she hadn’t said anything at all. She only cried and her parents immediately jumped to the conclusion that she was being treated like Man’er, the concubine of the shop owner on their street.

It was mainly because the shop owner and his wife were too inhumane. Those who lived on that street could only shake their heads whenever this matter was brought up and pray that retribution would come.

She recalled how every time she took the initiative to conceed, he would use it as an opportunity to squeeze out as many benefits as possible from her. Yaoniang felt that she shouldn’t indulge in or encourage this habit of his. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

If he had been unwilling to go along with her, Fucheng wouldn’t have stepped forward. He had tacitly agreed to it himself, yet he still wanted to fool her!

Yaoniang replied, steering away from the landmine, “Who said anything about being abused and not given any food? Who said that? Liu’er, did I mention anything about that?”

Liu’er peeked at Jin Wang’s face, then turned to look at Yaoniang again. She shook her head vigorously and said, “This servant didn’t hear anything.”

“See?” Yaoniang clapped her hands together and smiled, “Your Highness, you must have heard it wrong. How could this concubine wrong you like that? This concubine isn’t a white-eyed wolf.”

Jin Wang looked at her from the corner of his eyes and could almost see a tail wagging behind her. She looked just like Huahua, that foolish cat who acts innocent after stealing food and not wiping its mouth.

Silly!

Jin Wang sneered even more obviously, made a sound of acknowledgement, and left.

Only then did Yaoniang start to panic. She wanted to chase after him, but there were so many servants standing around. If she admitted defeat so quickly, she would seem like a coward. Then she thought about how petty he was all the time. Even if it were a small matter, he’d still want her to coax him. At the thought of this, she couldn’t help feeling a little annoyed. But even though she looked indifferent on the outside, she was thinking that if he really was upset, she would just coax him later that night.

It was also because Yaoniang had something urgent to do, so she didn’t chase after him.

Once Hong Chou saw that the Yao Family and the Su Family were gone, she came in.

Yaoniang beckoned at her to come closer before giving her some orders. In the beginning, she hadn’t planned on keeping her family here, but since Jin Wang has spoken, she now needed to make some arrangements.

Hong Chou nodded before leaving to do as she ordered. Now that Yaoniang was in charge of the household and no one from the front yard made things difficult for her, these things were not difficult to do.

On the other side, the Yao Family and the Su Family, led by a maid, walked a long way before they finally arrived at their guest rooms.

These guest rooms were where ordinary guests lived. Naturally, it wasn’t comparable with the residences for distinguished guests, but for the Yao Family and the Su Family, it was a very nice place.

Unlike earlier, after the interaction with Jin Wang and Fucheng, the Yao Family and the Su Family were silent and restrained.

It was probably because they now have a better understanding of the prince’s manor. It wasn’t like any other random place and their arrogance would not be tolerated here. Everything they believed earlier was destroyed by the reality in front of them. They couldn’t help feeling tired and disappointed.

The only person here who could be counted as happy was Mrs. Li.

Even if Su Yaoniang became successful, she wouldn’t have a share. Seeing Su Yaoniang suffering only made her happy. This was why Mrs. Li did not say a single word just now. A rare scene indeed.

The rules of the manor were very strict. As the maid led them to their rooms, if they just stared at something for too long, they would be reprimanded. Once they got there, several maids and mamas came to greet them.

Without any intention to please them, they were only there to do their jobs. After guiding the Yao Family and the Su Family to their respective rooms, they started setting up the tables for dinner.

To the Yao Family and the Su Family, the food looked delicious but with so many people watching them eat, they couldn’t help feeling nervous.

After a quick meal, they went back to their rooms to rest and the servants all left. Only then did the Yao Family and the Su Family sneak out of their rooms to meet together in Su Xiucai and Wu-shi’s room.

“My god, the manor’s rules are really strict. None of these maids even had a smile on their faces.” Zhu-shi pouted.

Mrs. Li gave a contemptuous smile from the side. “It’s not that these maids can’t smile but they are picky with who to smile at. When we visited Jin Wang Manor back in Jinzhou, the maids and mamas all wore flower-like smiles on their faces. But now that Su Yaoniang has fallen out of favour, the maids naturally look down on us.”

These words were unmistakably true, and everyone fell silent.

Zhu-shi looked at her in-laws, and then at her husband and she couldn’t help but say, “So little sister-in-law really fell out of favour? Then did we come here in vain?”

At the thought of this, everyone felt annoyed.

They had come a long way. After being on the road for months, from riding in carriages to travelling in boats, it would be a lie to say that the journey wasn’t tiring. The main thing that kept them going was the thought of the gains they would have upon arrival.

They felt like donkeys being led around with a carrot in front of the nose. A carrot they couldn’t reach. By the time they finally stretched their neck out far enough to bite it, they realized it wasn’t a radish at all. It was only a piece of wood. Disappointment and regret flooded their hearts.

“If you don’t speak, no one will think of you as dumb!” said Su Yucheng.

Zhu-shi wanted to quarrel with her husband, but when she remembered they were in Jin Wang Manor, she immediately fell silent.

“What do you mean by we came for nothing and we shouldn’t have come? If it weren’t for you instigating Yucheng, why would we even be here in the first place? Father quit his job to make this trip. Even if we go back now, he would still need to search for a new job. Whether he can find a new job is still unknown…”