At a flower-viewing banquet where spring was in full bloom, the vibrant blossoms in the garden complemented the fragrant trails and adorned hairpins of the noble ladies.
Right at the front, having just stepped out of a carriage and being surrounded and fawned upon by the crowd, was the Old Madam of State Duke Manor, leaning on a dragon-headed walking stick.
She wore a deep purple brocade long robe, embroidered with auspicious character patterns and cloud-crane designs. Her hair was coiled into a high bun, pinned obliquely with an emerald-inlaid dragon-headed golden hairpin, the gemstones at the dragon's eyes gleaming with a mysterious luster.
"Why has the Old Madam of State Duke Manor come as well?" someone whispered.
"I heard that the Lady Zhenguo was afraid the Old Madam would be stifled at home, so she took advantage of this flower-viewing banquet to bring the Old Madam out to stretch her limbs."
"Lady Zhenguo is truly filial."
"Who is to say she isn't?"
Following closely behind her was Madam Xiao.
She wore an indigo-blue damask long skirt, the hem flowing as smoothly as moving clouds and flowing water. Her cuffs were embroidered with delicate lace edging, a rare exotic material that added a touch of novelty and refinement to her attire. A pair of pigeon-blood ruby earrings on her earlobes were dazzling and vibrant, contrasting with her fair skin and making her complexion appear even more ruddy.
Seeing Madam Xiao, Shen Mingzhu's gaze shifted slightly.
Just in time, Madam Xiao looked over in this direction as well.
"I was wondering why I heard magpies chirping when I left the house today. So it is because coming here allows me to meet Marchioness Jian'an. You arrived so early?"
Madam Xiao walked over with a smile.
Marchioness Jian'an smiled and said, "Do pray stop teasing me. I only just arrived as well, merely half a step earlier than you."
After exchanging a few more polite pleasantries, Madam Xiao's gaze fell upon Shen Jiaojiao, who stood beside Marchioness Jian'an. She paused for a moment, then looked back at Marchioness Jian'an.
"Where is that girl Mingzhu? Why isn't she following you?" As she spoke, she glanced around her surroundings.
Shen Jiaojiao had wanted to open her mouth to say something, but fearing it might leave a bad impression on Madam Xiao, she had no choice but to stand obediently by her mother's side.
Even though she had long anticipated that someone would ask about this topic, a trace of awkwardness still flashed across Madam Shen's face.
"Oh? Has Madam Xiao not caught wind of the rumors? I heard that Jian'an Marquis Manor has experienced quite a scandal involving true and false daughters. I only wonder whether this rumor is true or false?"
Walking straight toward them was the Minister of Revenue's Wife. She favored bright colors, wearing a dazzling and eye-catching bright red brocade skirt.
As she spoke, she looked toward Madam Shen, a trace of appropriate bewilderment showing on her face.
Madam Shen nodded at her and said, "Such a matter indeed exists."
She clearly wore the look of one unwilling to speak further.
Yet her unwillingness to speak further did not mean others were not curious.
"The rumor is truly not false, then? In that case, what is to become of Mingzhu?" The Minister of Revenue's Wife leaned her ear closer.
Beside them, Madam Xiao's expression shifted slightly upon hearing the name Shen Mingzhu. "Indeed, why did Mingzhu not come along today? Even if there is no blood relation, that girl was watched by us as she grew up, and having been through such an affair, you should at least have brought her out today to relax her mind."
Shen Jiaojiao's heart tightened in an instant as she waited for her mother's reply.
She too wanted to know what sort of response her mother would give.
Until the matter of the true and false daughters was made public for even a single day, her heart could never find peace. She lived in terror that at this banquet, her mother might retract her words and declare that she and Shen Mingzhu were actually twin sisters.
"Mingzhu has been rather busy these past few days, so she did not come along."
How could the Minister of Revenue's Wife fail to see that Madam Shen was dodging the issue? Yet she was hardly someone who could be dismissed with a single perfunctory remark.
"I heard that Mingzhu has moved out of the Marquis Manor?"
"Oh my, Madam Shen is truly ruthless. Mingzhu was raised by you as your own biological daughter for over a decade. Did you really chase her out of the Marquis Manor just because there is no blood relation?"
Madam Xiao's brows knitted in an almost imperceptible frown.
Madam Shen felt bitter inside.
She certainly did not wish to see her decades of painstaking effort go down the drain either!
Yet surely she could not force Mingzhu to separate from her biological parents?
Besides, she had never harbored any intention of driving Mingzhu away; it was Mingzhu herself who had said she wished to return home to accompany her birth parents. How could she possibly have stopped her?
"No one chased Eldest Sister Mingzhu away from the Marquis Manor, Lady Li has misunderstood. It was Eldest Sister Mingzhu herself who remembered how difficult it was for the Shen Family parents to seek her out, and wished to return to the side of her biological parents to fulfill her filial duties."
Shen Jiaojiao strived to maintain her tone, trying her best not to let her cowardice show.
With that, she raised her eyes to steal a glance at Madam Xiao's expression.
"My, what a glib-tongued little girl."
Shen Jiaojiao's little tricks were simply not worth mentioning before the assembled madams, so the Minister of Revenue's Wife had no intention of sparing her feelings.
This was truly hardly a flattering compliment, and Shen Jiaojiao almost failed to keep herself from turning back with a retort.
Yet the moment she thought of behaving herself properly before her prospective mother-in-law, even though she was grinding her teeth with rage inside, Shen Jiaojiao did not let a single trace of it show on her face.
"I raised Mingzhu to that age, so in my heart I am naturally ten thousand times reluctant to part with her, but I could hardly stop her from seeking her biological parents. Furthermore, since those people raised my Jiaojiao to that age, I should all the more be grateful to them. Therefore, after much deliberation, matters ought to be allowed to return to their proper course."
The Minister of Revenue's Wife let out a sudden chuckle, drawing the gazes of everyone present toward her.
"Why do you all look at me like that? I merely feel that Madam Shen possesses a remarkably magnanimous spirit, able to simply cast aside over a decade of painstaking devotion just like that."
"We have all witnessed for ourselves just how exceptional Mingzhu is as a girl. If I were in your shoes, I certainly could not bear to hand my precious Mingzhu over to others, not even to her biological parents."
Having said this, she turned and strolled away leisurely, the various gemstones embedded in the phoenix tail ornament in her hair swaying slightly with her strides.
Madam Shen's expression turned unsightly for a fleeting moment.
Yet it lasted only an instant before she recovered her previous gentle and steady demeanor.
Shen Jiaojiao looked toward Madam Xiao, anxiety written all over her face.
Had she not made any missteps in what she said just now, surely?
Madam Xiao wore no superfluous expression on her face, though her words carried a faint touch of regret. "What a real pity. I had been thinking that the Mingzhu girl was quite splendid, and since my Yi'er has reached a marriageable age, I was hoping to have Mingzhu become my daughter-in-law."
With that, she cast a glance at Shen Jiaojiao standing beside Madam Shen, and then turned to leave.
Shen Jiaojiao was utterly stunned. Was this supposed to be a good impression or a bad one?
Madam Shen felt an even greater bitterness raging in her heart.
Though she had previously guessed that Madam Xiao might harbor such intentions, Madam Xiao had never stated it outright, leading her to believe she was merely overthinking.
Had she known it would come to this, even if she had to use force, she would have kept Shen Mingzhu in the Marquis Manor! One had to realize that behind Madam Xiao stood yet another influential maternal family.
Yet now, it was too late to say anything. She had already blurted out those words about things returning to their proper course, leaving no room whatsoever for reversal.
Madam Shen heaved a sigh inwardly, yet when she turned her gaze back to Shen Jiaojiao, she began to ponder secretly: Perhaps not entirely!