The Third Young Lady Xiao’s annulment of her marriage on the eve of the wedding quickly spread throughout the Imperial Capital.
Everyone was curious. She had insisted on becoming Prince Qi’s side concubine, and now, before the wedding, she insisted on breaking off the engagement. What was this Xiao family lady playing at?
“Is the Third Young Lady mad? To actually go and break off the engagement!” Madam Lin murmured in confusion. Now that the Old Madam had been sent away, she and the Fourth Young Lady were living cautiously, and Xiao Ling’s situation was even worse. She had finally had a chance to escape the quagmire of the General’s mansion, yet she had willingly given up this opportunity.
“Madam, would Prince Qi’s mansion be better than the General’s mansion?” the Fourth Young Lady asked. She had heard that Prince Qi’s mansion had many women, and Prince Qi’s concubines had even come to the mansion to provoke them.
“No matter how bad it is, it’s better than living under the First Young Lady’s thumb,” Madam Lin said with a sigh. The money the Cen family gave her was decreasing, and she knew it was because her identity had been exposed, and she had no influence in the General’s mansion. The Cen family intended to abandon her. But from a woman of the night, she had entered the General’s mansion as a concubine, and this was her only refuge, with nowhere else to go.
Her only hope was for her daughter to grow up and marry well, so she wouldn’t have to be constrained and fawn over others like her.
“I think it’s better to stay in the mansion,” Xiao Ting mumbled softly. “In the mansion, only the Eldest Sister occasionally bullies us, but if we go outside, anyone could bully us.”
“Outside, others bully us. In the mansion, she could take our lives at any moment!”
“But we’re still alive and well.”
“Shut up, do you think she’s that kind? She’s just avoiding leaving any evidence for others,” Madam Lin said, still resentful of Xiao Man nearly poisoning the Fourth Young Lady. Furthermore, Xiao Man’s ruthless dealings with the Old Madam, even poisoning herself to frame the Old Madam, made Madam Lin fear Xiao Man as if she were a tiger.
Xiao Ting fell silent. Now, she and her mother had no backing in the mansion. Xiao Man was dominant here, and being on good terms with Xiao Man was far safer than being on bad terms.
“I wonder, did the Eldest Young Lady interfere and sabotage the Third Young Lady’s marriage?”
Xiao Ting sighed helplessly. Her mother truly saw the Eldest Sister in the worst possible light, always believing that all bad things were related to her. She didn’t consider that if the Eldest Sister were truly that wicked, they would have been wiped out long ago, leaving no trace.
“The Eldest Sister is recuperating outside and has not returned.”
“She has so many maids, and she’s also on good terms with Prince Qi. Wouldn’t it be easy for her to ruin this marriage?”
Xiao Ting knew that Madam Lin was convinced that Xiao Man was responsible, and no amount of words could change her mind. However, the Eldest Sister was indeed terrifying. Just looking at her with her eyes made her feel a chill down her spine.
Regarding Xiao Ling’s annulment, Xiao Ling was also somewhat uneasy. She had acted impulsively in a fit of passion and gone to break off the engagement. Afterward, she only felt a lingering fear, especially worried about angering Xiao Zhen.
“Miss, the General is here.” Chun Xiang’s face turned pale. The General had come in person, likely because of Miss’s broken engagement.
Xiao Ling was also a little scared and quickly got up to greet him. As soon as she reached the doorway, she saw Xiao Zhen walking in with powerful strides.
“Father.”
“En.” Xiao Zhen glanced at Xiao Ling and sat down in the room. “Sit down.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Why did you break off the engagement?” Xiao Zhen’s voice betrayed no emotion. Xiao Ling couldn’t gauge his attitude toward her annulment, so she gritted her teeth and told the truth.
“A daughter of the Xiao family does not become a concubine to another.”
Xiao Zhen raised an eyebrow, looking at Xiao Ling. He seemed surprised that she would say such a thing. If she had this resolve, she wouldn’t have agreed to marry Prince Qi as a side concubine in the first place. Now, on the verge of marriage, she chose to break it off. It would be difficult for her to remarry in the future.
“Did you think of this yourself?”
“No, the Eldest Sister said this.” Xiao Ling gritted her teeth. “Before, I didn’t understand what the Eldest Sister meant. Now I do. Daughters of the Xiao family, even if they don’t fight on the battlefield, have the blood of warriors flowing through them and have unyielding spirits. How can they be demeaned by others?”
Xiao Zhen heard this and, for the first time, smiled. “Then let it be broken off. Daughters of the Xiao family do not live by men.”
“Yes, Father.”
Xiao Ling watched Xiao Zhen’s receding figure and suddenly felt enlightened. She finally understood why Father favored the Eldest Sister. It was because the Eldest Sister possessed an unyielding spirit and mettle unbecoming of a woman, qualities that Father most admired.
“Third Young Lady, the General isn’t angry.”
“Yes, Father isn’t angry.” Xiao Ling smiled. “The Eldest Sister said that a woman’s world is vast, not just a small courtyard. Stepping out of the courtyard, women can do many things. I want to go out and see.”
“Miss is going on a long journey?”
“En, I want to go out and travel. It’s different from my previous outings. I want to see the outside world.”
Among everyone in the mansion, perhaps only the Third Madam was happy about Xiao Ling’s broken engagement. The Third Madam joyfully chattered to the Second Young Lady, “I told you so, her marriage was never going to work out. She’s done so many bad things, how could the Eldest Young Lady let her happily become a side concubine.”
Xiao Xiang continued to embroider her screen, ignoring the Third Madam. The Third Madam happily spoke to herself, “Now that she’s been jilted before her wedding, her reputation is worse than yours. Coupled with such a mother, she’ll never be able to marry into a good family. At that time, you’ll definitely marry better than her.”
The Third Madam kept rambling, but Xiao Xiang didn’t answer her, which displeased her. “I’m talking to you, why aren’t you responding?”
“Respond to what?” Xiao Xiang’s mind was focused on her embroidery. “Who she marries has nothing to do with us. Madam, the Eldest Sister said it well, ‘all prosper together, all suffer together.’ Xiao Ling’s bad reputation affects all the young ladies of the General’s mansion. Am I not a young lady of the General’s mansion?”
“What does this have to do with you? Her engagement was broken off because she’s not good, not because you’re not good.”
“What good am I? She and I are about the same, pretty much.” Xiao Xiang’s gaze never left the embroidery in her hands. “In the entire General’s mansion, besides the Fourth Miss who is still underage, which other young lady has a good reputation?”
The Third Madam’s face turned pale. “Then your situation is better than theirs.”
“Madam, at this time, it’s best if you do nothing. The Third Miss’s broken engagement is something someone else will handle. Don’t get involved, or you might anger Father and suffer the consequences.”
“It’s not us who will anger your father, it’s the Third Miss.” The Third Madam played with the silk handkerchief in her hand. “Now that Yan Shi is dead and the Old Madam has been sent away, Xiao Ling has no backing in this mansion. This time, she’s doomed!”
Xiao Xiang let out a sarcastic laugh. As long as Xiao Ling didn’t court death, she could live well in the General’s mansion without needing any backing!