Minister's Estate:
"Scum! Absolute scum!"
Yun Feiwan stood in the courtyard dressed in the attire she had worn while dancing at Yihong Brothel. Before her stood Father Gu, his face a mask of incandescent rage.
He pointed a trembling finger at her, his voice hoarse with fury:
"A newlywed bride returning home on the second day, dressed like this! What kind of decency is this?
How could our honorable Minister's Estate ever produce a shameless daughter like you?"
Xuantian Ze sat nearby, watching coldly as his wife was berated by her family, even chiming in with sarcastic remarks:
"Father-in-law, it is a joyous occasion, there is no need to be so furious.
Perhaps Wanwan is younger and was a bit too pampered at home, making her somewhat unrestrained. I should actually thank Father-in-law for 'sending' me such a charming wife."
His words dripped with irony, and he even managed a subtle jab at Minister Gu himself.
Given Xuantian Ze's vengeful nature, he undoubtedly harbored a deep grudge against the Gu family for substituting the bride right before the wedding—especially when the substitute was someone who had managed to infuriate him on the very first day.
"Yes, yes, indeed..."
Father Gu frantically wiped the cold sweat from his brow with his sleeve. In officialdom, a higher rank could crush you completely.
Even though Xuantian Ze was crippled, and he hadn't wanted to marry his legitimate daughter to him, the man was still an imperial prince, and his status was undeniable.
It would be fine if the prince let it go, but if he decided to hold a grudge...
That was a capital offense that could land him in prison!
Now his only hope was that Yun Feiwan could manage to please her husband, or at the very least, that the prince would vent his anger on her, as long as the Minister's Estate remained untouched.
Father Gu raised his head, cautiously observing Xuantian Ze, trying to gauge his mood from his expression. The atmosphere grew tense and suffocating.
"Father, Mother, who has come back? Why is it so lively out here?"
Amidst the silence, a gentle yet playful female voice drifted from afar, accompanied by the crisp sound of little bells. A flash of pink appeared in everyone's field of vision.
Yun Feiwan lifted her eyes to look. It was a petite and lovable young girl.
Her face wore an expression of pure, harmless innocence, completely devoid of hostility. This must be the legitimate older sister who had schemed to make her take her place in the marriage.
According to the plot, Gu Ruoxi would team up with the male lead Xuantian Ze in the early chapters to ruthlessly torment the female lead.
One played the green tea younger sister, the other played the loyal puppy boyfriend, pouring every bit of dirty water onto her.
And today happened to be the beginning of all these misunderstandings.
"Xier, why have you come out? Your body hasn't fully healed yet, you should be resting properly."
Gu Matriarch's words pulled Yun Feiwan back from her thoughts.
She pulled Gu Ruoxi's hand with deep affection, her eyes filled with a tenderness Yun Feiwan had never received from her.
"I saw how lively it was out here today, so I just wanted to come out and play for a bit~"
Gu Ruoxi pouted her pink lips slightly as she coaxed the matriarch, swinging her hand:
"After falling into the water the other day, I was unconscious until last night. Lying down all this time has made my body feel so stiff and tired!
I'm fine, just let me walk around for a bit~ Cough, cough..."
"You child, who knows which heartless wretch pushed you into the lake? They must be simply jealous of our Xier's talents and reputation."
With that, Gu Matriarch cast a subtle, sideways glance at Yun Feiwan. The implication could not have been more obvious.
She might as well have carved the words 'concubine-born daughter pushes legitimate sister into the lake' right across Yun Feiwan's forehead!
"Mother~ don't blame little sister, she also...
Ze... Brother Ze... It's you!"
Gu Ruoxi acted as though she had only just noticed Xuantian Ze standing nearby. Her innocent, wide eyes instantly welled up with a thin mist of tears, making her look utterly pitiful.
"You... you're married!
Brother Ze, I'm so glad..."
She forced a smile that looked far worse than crying, feigning congratulation while her tone was laced with desolation:
"Little sister liked Brother Ze so much, and now her wish has come true. As her older sister, in my heart...
I am happy for you both, cough, cough..."
Finished speaking, she raised her head once more, looking pitifully at Xuantian Ze, as if terrified that he wouldn't misunderstand.
"Ruoxi..."
Sure enough, Xuantian Ze's brow furrowed deeply. He wheeled himself forward, grabbed Gu Ruoxi's hand, and asked with anxious concern:
"You actually fell into the water? And you were unconscious until last night?
Are you alright? Did you call a doctor to take a look?"
"I'm fine, cough, cough..."
Gu Ruoxi gently pulled her hand from his grasp, lifting her reddened eyes to look at him with aggrieved vulnerability:
"Brother Ze... cough, cough, I should address you as Third Prince Palace now! Protocol cannot be neglected."
Such an address carried a hint of helplessness and forbidden longing, piercing Xuantian Ze's heart with pain.
As she spoke, Gu Ruoxi sniffled and raised a hand to wipe away a non-existent tear from the corner of her eye, putting on an expression of envy:
"I truly envy little sister, being able to marry such an outstanding man as the Third Prince. You must dote on her greatly, right?"
Hearing this, Xuantian Ze glared coldly at Yun Feiwan, speaking with utter disdain:
"Not every stray chicken can fly up to the branch and become a phoenix. Some people with crooked intentions only deserve to be low-life beasts incapable of stepping into polite society."
Hearing these words, the corners of Gu Ruoxi's mouth curled upward in supreme delight.
Beneath her innocent and pure features, she shot a sharp, malicious glare toward Yun Feiwan where no one else could see.
What was the deal with this inexplicable hostility?
Good grief, she didn't even like the guy, yet she wanted to keep him on a leash, hated the thought of him being nice to anyone else, and actually got happy just hearing him degrade his own wife—what kind of dark psychology was this?
How on earth was someone like this a fellow modern woman who transmigrated from the twenty-first century just like her?
An uncle might endure this, but this aunt certainly wouldn't!
A pathetic female-competition hound!
Yun Feiwan clutched her handkerchief, maintaining a dainty and fragile facade as she strolled over to the pair. Raising her apricot-like eyes, she appeared utterly cowed, yet the words that tumbled from her lips were:
"Look at you, starting to paint cakes in the sky again~ Someone's probably about to cry her heart out over this~"
She glanced left at Xuantian Ze, then right at Gu Ruoxi, her little mouth opening wide:
"Sister, didn't you just chat with your maid in your room yesterday about how to engineer a chance encounter with the Crown Prince outside? How did you manage to fall into the water all of a sudden?
Could it be that my memory is failing me? Hmm... I remember it was that gazebo right behind East Street."
"What a pity, the Third Prince has been thinking of you the whole time, Sister.
Though, come to think of it, someone as outstanding as Sister naturally deserves a graceful and dashing gentleman like the Crown Prince."
"Shut up! You... you're talking nonsense!"
Gu Ruoxi stared fixedly at Yun Feiwan, her panicked expression resembling a monkey trying to pluck the moon from the sky.
She never imagined that Yun Feiwan would dare to speak so bluntly right in front of everyone, giving her zero face!
Had this been before, the female lead would have worried about her parents and her husband, standing aggrieved in place without uttering a single word.
As for now...
Yun Feiwan let out a terribly affected, dainty 'ah', arching her brows like Lin Daiyu incarnate as she covered her cherry lips with her handkerchiefed hand:
"Oh my, aren't we allowed to say things like that? Look at this mouth of mine~ Actually, I did it on purpose!
If Sister feels that little sister was wrong, just scold me right now. Please don't hold it in and let it fester in your heart, or it might make the two of us sisters grow distant~"
"Anyway, you wouldn't dare scold me anyway, tee-hee!"
She had to admit, the Daiyu-style delivery was truly effective, leaving people so utterly speechless that they could only stand there choking with anger, their faces flushed.
Seeing that Gu Ruoxi remained silent, Xuantian Ze widened his eyes in sheer disbelief:
"Ruoxi, what she said...
Is it true? Tell me the truth!"