Mei Yanjun furrowed his brow slightly, but still reprimanded Mei Changgong:
"What are you yelling for? Xiaoxue just got home and is only getting used to things. Just have the servants replace a couple of dishes!"
Mei Gongxue behaved herself this time, eating only light dishes and rice porridge.
Mei Changgong could not help rolling his eyes and muttered, "A maid's destiny with a lady's body—she deserves not to be used to good food!"
After finally finishing the meal, Mei Xianghan even took the initiative to offer to walk Mei Gongxue back to rest.
Taohua Courtyard was located in the east and had been specially built for Mei Gongxue by the Old Marquis.
When summer arrived, fragrance drifted in waves.
Especially when the wind blew, petals swirled in the air, and the entire courtyard seemed wrapped in a gorgeous veil of gauze.
Regrettably, it was winter now, and everything was bare.
"Don't worry, Sister, nothing in your courtyard has changed. I've been keeping an eye on it for you all this time!" Mei Xianghan led the way ahead.
Every blade of grass and tree here truly looked just as it had three years ago.
Yet, the moment they pushed open the door, a pile of miscellaneous boxes suddenly came into view, in utter disarray.
Mei Xianghan's face flushed, and she only then remembered, "I've been busy making New Year's Eve dinner for you all day and forgot to move these boxes away."
The two of them were twins. When their father was still alive, he had built two identically sized courtyards right next to each other.
During the three years Mei Gongxue was away, Mei Xianghan had taken it for granted that Taohua Courtyard was her own storage room for clothes, calligraphy, and paintings.
In the past, she always had more things than Mei Gongxue, because whenever their brothers got something good, they thought of her first.
Sometimes, when she ran out of space, she would simply put things over at Mei Gongxue's place.
As time went on, her belongings accumulated more and more.
Later on, she even found Mei Gongxue's things in the way, shoving them randomly into corners while placing her own items in convenient spots.
Although Mei Gongxue felt a lingering grievance, she thought at the time that biological sisters shouldn't fuss over trifles, so she had endured it.
And now...
She stared intently as the servants carried out all those large boxes, leaving not a single one behind.
"Sister, come look at who I brought!"
Like someone presenting a treasure, Mei Xianghan led a maid over.
Upon seeing clearly who the other person was, the tension in Mei Gongxue's expression finally loosened a bit.
It was her former personal maid, Hongxiu!
"I always arranged for her to stay in Taohua Courtyard, just hoping that one day Sister would come back!"
Mei Xianghan's eyes sparkled brightly like a child's, seeming to wait for someone to praise her for her good deed.
Yet Mei Gongxue merely nodded, lacking the imagined emotion, and Mei Xianghan could not help feeling disappointed.
Mei Gongxue looked around the room: the familiar carved wooden bed, the brocade quilt and embroidered pillow, the dressing table, the wardrobe...
Until she saw the Fengming Zither, and her heart felt as though it had been fiercely wrenched by something.
Back then, upon learning that Ji Yunchu liked listening to the zither, she had applied herself bitterly to learning it, all just to please him.
Sometimes, when Ji Yunchu was unhappy, she would play a tune for him, and he would rarely crack a smile at her.
Mei Xianghan had always liked that zither and asked for it several times, but she had never given it to her.
Her eldest brother had even scolded her for not knowing how to yield because of this, and had reduced her to tears, but she had still hugged it tightly and refused to let go!
"You can take that zither away!" Mei Gongxue said.
Whether the zither or the affection—
She wanted neither anymore!
"Really?"
Mei Xianghan was pleasantly surprised in her heart, not only because she liked the zither, but also because of her sister's attitude toward her.
It seemed her sister must have felt her sincere repentance, and she believed it wouldn't be long before her sister forgave her!
"Then Sister, get some rest. I'll accompany you to see Sister-in-law tomorrow morning!"
With that, she skipped away.
Only until she completely vanished did the wave of aversion in Mei Gongxue's heart ease slightly.
"Eldest Miss, the bathwater is ready!" Hongxiu's voice was slightly choked with emotion.
"Thank you for your hard work!" Mei Gongxue grasped her hand and finally managed a smile.
Hongxiu had specially prepared the most fragrant petals and the softest nightgown. Even though she was mentally prepared, when she saw Mei Gongxue's emaciated, scar-covered body, she still burst into tears.
She was still as prone to crying as when she was little.
Yet Mei Gongxue's expression remained calm, because her tears had long since dried up.
She immersed her entire body in the wooden tub, feeling the long-lost warmth. "Cough, cough, add some more hot water!"
"Miss, the temperature is already very high. You'll get scalded!"
"Is that so?"
Then why did she still feel wisps of coldness invading her bones from all her limbs?
Thinking she had caught a chill, Hongxiu specially brought over an extra quilt, warm and fragrant.
Mei Gongxue gently lay down, not knowing when she had fallen asleep, only to wake up at dawn to find her pillow soaked through.
Today was the first day of the Lunar New Year, and the snow had stopped.
"Miss, do we really have to wear a scarf? This is the only one we have, and it's white!" Hongxiu showed a troubled expression.
With it being the New Year, people wore festive clothing to court good fortune; who would wear something white around their neck?
This hardly seemed appropriate!
"Give it to me!"
Mei Gongxue's tone admitted no doubt as she tightly wrapped the white scarf around her neck.
Half an hour later, she arrived at the dining room.
"Xiaoxue, did you sleep well last night? Hurry and sit down to eat dumplings!" Mei Yanjun greeted with a smile.
Mei Gongxue was wearing a red outfit identical to Mei Xianghan's, but what stood out abruptly was the white scarf wrapped securely around her neck.
Mei Yanjun frowned, but said nothing.
"Sister, sit by me!" Mei Xianghan remained very proactive.
Seeing Mei Gongxue seemingly hesitate, she yanked her over, but immediately her smile froze.
"Our clothing sizes are about the same. How come yours is so loose?"
Mei Gongxue did not reply.
Mei Changgong looked up at her words and saw that although Mei Gongxue was dressed festively, she was far too thin, completely bloodless, and wearing a white scarf to boot—somewhat hair-raising.
His expression immediately darkened.
"Sister, you barely paid any attention to me yesterday. Can you call me sister today? Otherwise, it means you haven't forgiven me!"
Mei Xianghan's eyes were red as she whined, hugging Mei Gongxue's arm and shaking it back and forth.
Mei Gongxue looked at her seemingly innocent face and suddenly felt a wave of nausea.
Perhaps her expression of disgust was simply not concealed well enough, for it was caught by Mei Changgong sitting nearby. He directly slammed his hand on the table and roared:
"Are you ever going to finish? You don't even have a single smile on your face! Wearing a gloomy white scarf on New Year's Day, looking like a hanged ghost—isn't that bringing bad luck?"
With that, he directly reached out and yanked off the eyesore of a scarf.
The movement was too fast for Mei Gongxue to react, and she hurriedly covered the marks on her neck with her hands.
In an instant, she felt as humiliated as if she had been stripped bare of her clothes.
Mei Xianghan still asked innocently: "Why is there a circle of scars around your neck?"
Mei Gongxue bit her lip hard to keep her tears from falling, and simply removed her hand:
"They were left by a dog chain. That eunuch Zhao Zhang is impotent, so he used this method to humiliate and torment me at night!"
Every single person at the table froze stiff!
Mei Xianghan's face turned a mixture of shock and shame. "How… how can Sister say such words in front of an unmarried maiden like me!"
Mei Gongxue sneered, "That's right, you are still pure and undefiled, while I am already battered and base."