Chapter Forty-Four: Clash Without Worries

  Xiao Zui thanks Huā Zhī Rǎn Xuě for the reward, thank you, thank you, Xiao Zui will try to update more.

  Li Ziqing was sent back by the Empress Dowager, and it's reasonable that Guwalgiya should go see her. Shu Yao encouraged this idea, staring at Guwalgiya eagerly, "Mother, Mother."

  "Don't come any closer, I'll take you there." Gua Erjia found it hard to refuse her daughter. "Jade, even if you go and see for yourself, you won't know what's going on inside the palace. Your cousin will only tell you the most pleasant things - how much the Empress Dowager values her, how much the nobles in the palace like her, and about the princes..."

  "Can't everyone like her?" Shu Yao, being led by Guajia, looked up with a small head and asked: "Mother said that beauty is not the most important thing. If sister and brother are entangled unclearly, the emperor will not forgive sister."

  This is not only applicable to ancient times, but also to modern times. Think about it, which parent would want their several sons to be played around by a woman, picking and choosing among them? Even if they could become emperors, they wouldn't be fools.

  "Your cousin Li Ziqing wouldn't think that the prince has taken a liking to her, she still has some sense about this. Li Ziqing doesn't dare to socialize among the princes, at most she'll just focus on one person, but I'm not sure who it is."

  Shu Yao has a special ability, although it's not reliable when she loses her spirit, but seeing Li Zhi Qing, Shu Yao decides to use her special ability to scan her mind, no matter what, she can investigate clearly about Li Zhi Qing's affairs in the palace, as long as she is willing to think, Shu Yao clenches her small fist, she should be able to know, this is the first time Shu Yao finds her special ability useful, and also the first time she pays attention to it, thinking about how to upgrade her special ability.

  After Gua Lian and Shu Yao entered the house, Li Ziqing sat beside the old lady with a calm expression. The girls from the Duke's Mansion surrounded Li Ziqing, asking her questions one after another. The old lady looked at Li Ziqing with joy all over her face. Shu Yao felt that the old lady's gaze was too flattering, as if Li Ziqing had been covered in gold. It was clear that the old lady loved and hoarded wealth, which Shu Yao had already noticed after returning to the Duke's Mansion.

  Li Ziqing seemed to be very nonchalant about the flattery and fawning of the crowd, but Shu Yao knew that she was secretly delighted. This didn't require any special abilities; anyone could see it. She was pretending to be aloof, which would only encourage people to continue asking her questions, making her seem even more extraordinary and superior to others.

  "Second Aunt, Sixth Sister." Li Zhiqing stood up, and the old lady grabbed her, saying: "You just came back, guarding the Empress Dowager for several days, you must be tired. Zhìyuǎn's wife is kind and doesn't mind empty courtesy, right? Zhìyuǎn's wife."

  Li Ziqing sat down in a timely manner, before Gua'erjia could speak, Shu Yao opened her mouth and said: "Mother, what does it mean that the ritual can be abolished?"

  Guaerjia said: "First go and pay your respects to your mother."

  "Hmm." Shu Yao saw a glimmer of cold light in Guwalgiya's eyes, no one could take advantage of E'niang, and the old lady and Li Qiqing had miscalculated. After Shu Yao made a courtesy to all her elders and sisters, she stood obediently behind Guwalgiya. When Guwalgiya's gaze fell on the first person to be punished by the old lady, Tongjia Shi, the wife of the third branch, could no longer sit still. Even Erguniang, who had always looked down on Guwalgiya, felt uncomfortable. The two women stood up together, "Second Aunt, please sit."

  Madam Nala sat in the corner, afraid that Madame Gualga would let her get up and say: "Mother, I'll go to the kitchen and take a look. The tonic you're stewing is almost ready." Before anyone could stop her, she quickly walked out of the door. She was weak and timid by nature, but Madame Gualga sat in the first seat below, with an imposing presence that shook the entire room into silence. Even the pampered old lady felt a sense of emptiness in her heart. Was this really her daughter-in-law? It seemed that even her own son's marriage to his wife didn't allow her to be happy.

  Li Ziqing looked at Gualgiya who was tasting tea, and felt that she had seen her somewhere before. This aura she had seen on the four consorts in the palace, no, Gualgiya's aura was even stronger. She couldn't help but feel a little regretful, what was the point of having such petty thoughts? Could bowing to someone kill you?

  Shu Yao lowered her eyes, but her ability kept beckoning Li Zhiqing over and over again. First time, hmm, couldn't see it, okay, second time, hmm, still can't see it. Shu Yao didn't believe it and tried for the third time. Hmm, she finally sensed it. Her head hung even lower, she had to lower her head after all. Li Zhiqing's thoughts were really too ridiculous. Shu Yao struggled to hold back her laughter and took the opportunity to tease her mother-in-law.

  "Sages teach and transform, but if you don't respect your lord father or elder generations, you're no different from beasts. Rituals and music are the foundation of humanity. You, a palace lady-in-waiting, have been in the palace for a while and still don't understand etiquette? No wonder the Empress Dowager sent you back. Mother, it's not me who should be advised, but you'd better be careful."

  Gua Lijia leisurely sipped her tea and said: "Yao'er, you mustn't learn from your cousin."

  Li Ziqing's face turned red and then white, and the girls around her dispersed, all secretly glancing at Li Ziqing. They used to envy Li Ziqing so much, but now they ridiculed him just as much. Li Ziqing suddenly stood up, "Second Aunt."

  Guarjia put down her teacup and shook her head in disappointment, saying: "You still know I'm your second aunt? Niece, let me teach you a lesson as an elder. What's the point of getting so worked up? Am I not allowed to criticize you?"

  Li Ziqing's body trembled with rage, "You... you dare to deceive people too much... what kind of skill is it to scold the mulberry tree in front of the acacia? You are jealous that I entered the palace, while your daughter has ordinary talent, you are jealous."

  "Yao'er, you tell me, what is it about you that's not as good as your older cousin?"

  Shu Yao's eyes were clear and free of impurities, she counted on her fingers for a long time, shaking her head: "Mother, I really can't think of any reason why we shouldn't live with our elder sister."

  Everyone was silent, and you were not as good as Li Zhiqing in any way. But looking at Shu Yao, they couldn't say anything to refute it, and they didn't want to hurt Shu Yao either. What's going on? Shu Yao originally looked very sweet, and she would look even more well-behaved in front of Guagua Jia Shi. With the bonus of her special ability, it was easy for people to have a good impression of her. Moreover, Shu Yao was not competitive or aggressive, but quiet and calm, which made her even more likable than Li Zhiqing.

  "Six sisters." Li Ziqing's face was furious, being looked down upon by the noble people in the palace, she endured it. Several times when she met Fourth Brother Yunzhen, she was ignored, and she also endured it. After all, they didn't know their own good yet. But being spoken to like this by Shu Yao, she couldn't bear it, "Are you crazy?"

  "You're the one who's confused," Shu Yao said. "In terms of status, my mother is a third-rank official in the imperial court and has been entrusted with an important mission by the emperor to go out of the capital as a special envoy. In terms of elder brothers, I have two biological older brothers. My eldest brother has passed the three exams with high honors, and it's not impossible for him to become the top scholar. When people in the capital talk about my eldest brother, they all have to show respect. My second brother is skilled in martial arts and has a wide network of connections. Do you have any brothers to support you? In terms of family background, I am the legitimate granddaughter of the Duke of Loyalty and Bravery, while my cousin is only an outside granddaughter. Can a granddaughter and an outside granddaughter be compared? I have parents and elder brothers who love me dearly, do you?"

  "Li Ziqing was speechless, and Guwalgiya scolded: "Shu Yao, your cousin is a posthumous child, her fate and fortune are not high to begin with. She wants to compare herself to you, can't you just be more tactful?"

  "Hmph." Tung Chi was really unable to hold it in anymore. Kua Erh Chi had indeed gone too far this time.

  The old lady was also very angry, and Li Ziqing happened to be the one who sent it over. Shu Yao said that everything was true, but people who listen to the truth can't bear it. Shu Yao nodded in agreement, her eyes twinkling with a smile: "Sister-in-law is more beautiful than me, but virtue and talent come first, beauty comes second."

  In short, Shu Yao's moral character is better than yours, Li Zhiqing. Although Shu Yao isn't good at speaking, she has heard Big Brother say a lot and can remember two sentences, but when it comes to eloquence, well, she's far surpassed by Zhiyuan - that's the honest truth, one that can kill people with anger.

  Li Ziqing was stimulated and fainted, with only one thought in her mind, was she a Qing dynasty woman?