Chapter 658: Chapter 265 My Mother-in-law is a Loyal Servant (Part 9)
Wei Yuanniang lay on the carriage floor, feeling the slight sway of the wagon.
Her thin, small body rested on a thick stack of soft bedding, which still held the scent of sunlight.
The pain in her head was not as unbearable as before, and although the wounds on her face still burned, the pain had lessened a great deal compared to the heart-wrenching torment of yesterday.
She seemed to have escaped back from the brink of the Ghost Gate.
Although the familiar shouting of the soldiers and the weeping of relatives were still in her ears, she no longer had to walk the hard road or endure Nanny Zhao’s disdain.
Even though Nanny Zhao hid it well, Wei Yuanniang always sensed that this aged nanny, who was so favored by her mother, did not truly like her despite the respect and affection she showed on the surface.
In truth, even her own mother, the Matriarch of the Marquis Mansion, didn’t seem to love her from the bottom of her heart.
While at the Marquis Mansion, her mother treated her well, and she received better treatment than many of the other girls of her age.
But being treated with such status did not mean she was her mother’s only or most beloved child.
Not to mention others, even the look in her mother’s eyes when she beheld Feng Yanting, the child of the Feng Family, was full of loving tenderness and pity.
Outsiders said that her mother’s fondness for Feng Yanting was in order to elevate Nanny Zhao’s status.
But Wei Yuanniang didn’t think so; deep in her heart a voice told her: your mother truly loves Feng Yanting, and it has nothing to do with anyone else!
After the catastrophe at the Marquis Mansion, Wei Yuanniang was terrified and fled with her mother and Nanny Zhao on the journey to Capital City.
Perhaps due to the shock or the change in environment, Wei Yuanniang became increasingly aware of her mother’s aversion and dislike for her.
And Nanny Zhao, her mother’s confidant, also began to show her distaste openly.
Wei Yuanniang didn’t understand the reasons, but she had an ominous premonition.
Yesterday, the birth mother of her younger sister and the once-favored personal attendant Aunt Zhu, who had come with the dowry, was harassed by a soldier.
Her younger sister, who was just three months younger than her, was terrified and wept loudly, while Aunt Zhu screamed in resistance.
The combined cries of mother and daughter deeply pierced the tired and despondent people of the Marquis Mansion.
The Grand Madam was so angry that she almost fainted; Aunt Zhu wasn’t just any concubine, she’d born the Marquis a daughter.
If she were to be dishonored by a coarse and lowly soldier, then, then the Marquis Pingnan’s face would truly be trampled underfoot.
Mrs. Zhang, Wei Yuanniang’s mother, exploded with suppressed negative emotions and carelessly charged to grapple with the soldier.
The Second Old Master, the Third Old Master, and several young masters – after all, they were grown men – couldn’t bear it any longer and, supporting their shaky bodies, joined the fray.
Normally, such chaos was not suited for Wei Yuanniang.
Although young, Wei Yuanniang knew to seek benefit and avoid harm—cold as it may sound, Aunt Zhu was not her birth mother, so there was no need for her to risk harm to aid a mere concubine.
She was still a child.
If she truly charged in headlong, she wouldn’t be of any help and would only get hurt herself.
Wei Yuanniang wanted to escape, but she was held by the hand by Nanny Zhao.
With Mrs. Zhang rushing to confront the soldier, how could her most trusted aide merely stand by and watch?
Thus, at the first opportunity, Nanny Zhao charged in.
With her eyes and heart only on Mrs. Zhang, she hurried to protect her mistress, completely forgetting Wei Yuanniang was still in her grasp.
Dragged along like a sack of broken linen by Nanny Zhao, Wei Yuanniang hadn’t even steadied her small frame or wriggled free from Nanny Zhao’s grip when Captain Qian charged toward them, whip in hand.
His whip came straight for Mrs. Zhang, who, in her panic, instinctively tried to dodge backward.
As she dodged, she didn’t forget to grab a nearby "object" to shield herself.
"Ah!!" Wei Yuanniang let out a piercing scream as her whole small body was sent flying by the whip.
It hurt!
A burning pain!
Wei Yuanniang had never felt such agony; even her fingers and toes curled up from the pain.
Then, she was harshly thrown onto the ground and passed out immediately.
Wei Yuanniang thought she was going to die, but slowly, she woke up again.
Upon waking, her first sensation was pain, as if her entire face had gone numb with a throbbing ache.
Then, Wei Yuanniang found herself being carried on the back of Nanny Zhao, with her face wrapped in white cloth.
However, her mother still remained cold toward her.
There was no love, and certainly no guilt!