Chapter 354 - Confliction Between Sisters at the Flower Appreciation Party
Chapter 354 Confliction Between Sisters at the Flower Appreciation Party
Ning Xueyan and Ning Yuling did not take the same carriage, but each took a carriage, heading for the Lord Peace’s Manor.
“Miss, there are many carriages outsides, and some noble childes had come,” Qingyu said to Ning Xueyan in surprise when she lifted the curtain of the carriage and had a look. They were told that only the Second Young Lady and the Fifth Young Lady were invited, but judging from the situation, it was obvious that Commandery Princess Xianyun did not only invite female guests.
“The Lord Peace’s Manor is Empress Dowager’s family, so the flower appreciation party held by Commandery Princess Xianyun must be different from those held by the Young Ladies of other manors. It’s normal for her to invite some noble childes.” Ning Xueyan explained gently with a smile.
She had heard about this in her previous life. Most noble Young Ladies only invited the Young Ladies they were familiar with to enjoy flowers, but obviously, Commandery Princess Xianyun was not one of them. Except for sending invitations to some noble Young Ladies, she also invited some male imperial family members. As she was Empress Dowager’s family, all the princes and noble childes would come at her invitation.
Therefore, the flower appreciation party Commandery Princess Xianyun held was more lively than that of any other noble Young Lady held.
“Miss, Prince Yi is also here!” Qingyu looked outside and suddenly reminded her in a low voice.
Ning Xueyan was surprised that Ao Chenyi would have come to attend such a party more for girls. However, it also showed how extraordinary Commandery Princess Xianyun’s status was.
“Are you the Young Lady from the Lord Protector’s Manor? Please get out of the carriage,” Someone outside said. Qingyu jumped out first and then she turned around to help Ning Xueyan get out of the carriage. Xinmei got out of the carriage following Ning Xueyan. Ning Yuling’s carriage was ahead of Ning Xueyan’s, so she had already gotten out of the carriage for some time. Ning Xueyan took several quick steps and caught up with her.
The older female servant who came to greet them and the people outside could not help but brighten up their eyes.
It was the parking lot of the Lord Peace’s Manor, so anyone who got out the carriage or got off the horse would stop here. It was normal that the two charming Young Ladies attracted many people’s attention when they showed up.
One of them, who was wearing a bright red dress and the luxurious coat had the perfect figure and a face as beautiful as a peony. However, the gloomy look on her face much lessened her original bright temperament.
At first glance, the other one looked a little paler than the girl in red. Both her clothes and her face looked pale. As she was too slim, she looked charming but weak. Obviously, she was too young and had not fully developed yet. However, if people looked closely, they would find that her facial features were extremely delicate and the girl in red could not compare with her at all.
The pale color added a touch of coldness to her delicate charming.
“How beautiful the sisters are! Which manor are they from?”
“I don’t know. I never heard of a manor with such beautiful girls of such different styles!”
“An older female servant asked just now. She was told that the sisters were from the Lord Protector’s Manor.”
“I’ve heard that the Young Ladies of the Lord Protector’s Manor are very beautiful, but I didn’t expect that any two of them would be so gorgeous. It’s said none of the Young Ladies from the Lord Protector’s Manor won in the Beauty Contest. I couldn’t imagine what kind of Young Ladies could be chosen if these two were not selected.” A few noble childes joked in a low voice when they saw the sisters.
Ning Xueyan seldom showed up in public. Although Ning Yuling was favored in the backyard of the Lord Protector’s Manor, to train her so that she could become a blockbuster in the future, Madam Dowager did not allow her to go out often. Therefore, except for attending the banquet at the Cold Mountain Temple and met some people there, very few outsiders had ever seen her.
Ao Chenyi’s carriage rushing over from behind. As soon as they saw the spacious and luxurious carriage, several servants ran over. After the carriage stopped, a servant who wanted to flatter Ao Chenyi was going to serve him, but at the sight of the eunuchs with gloomy looks on both sides, he gave up the idea to come closer.
A eunuch had knelt on the ground and waited outside, propping himself with his arms. Ao Chenyi got out of the carriage and stepped on his back before landing. He looked up at Ning Xueyan from behind, who was walking into the inner courtyard of the manor and narrowed his eyes before shifting his gaze to those noble childes who were talking about Ning Xueyan and Ning Yuling. Under his cold glance, all of them shut up and lowered their heads.
“Your Highness, this way please!” The Princely Heir of the Lord Peace’s Manor hurried over from the crowd.
Ao Chenyi nodded and walked into the outer courtyard of the manor.
Ning Yuling also heard what those noble childes said just now. Her gloomy face lit up with pride finally and looked much more cheerful than before.
After walking for a while, they suddenly heard someone calling them gently from behind, “Second sister! Fifth sister!”
The two stopped and looked up. It was Ning Ziyan who was coming over with a smile from behind. In a purple dress, she looked very slim. It seemed that she had just gotten out of the carriage. Ning Xueyan did not expect that they would have met Ning Ziyan here.
Since they had seen her, they had to wait for her and come in with her.
They greeted each other after Ning Ziyan catching up with them and then walked inside together.
“I have planned to visit Third Sister and Fifth Sister, but I was too busy and didn’t have time. Don’t take it so seriously about the loss in the contest. Our grandmother won’t mind the trouble and she will find a good match for you,” Ning Ziyan said with a smile as if she cared about her younger sisters very much.
However, the meaning behind her words was kind of vicious. She was hinting that it would be difficult for Ning Xueyan and Ning Qingshan to find an ideal husband after their loss in the contest.
Unexpectedly, Ning Yuling, who had always been sarcastic, did not say anything this time, but Ning Ziyan, who had always pretended to be generous in front of others, said such words to stab her in the heart.
Ning Xueyan sneered inwardly. Before she could make trouble for Ning Ziyan, the latter could not wait to provoke her. She seemed to be very happy for Ning Xueyan’s loss in the contest and was trying to humiliate her.
“Thank you for your concern, Eldest Sister. It seems that I have no choice but to trouble our grandmother,” Ning Xueyan said indifferently, with coldness and ridicule in her eyes. “It will be great if my marriage would go as well as yours.”
Hearing what she said, Ning Ziyan’s face turned pale and she could not even maintain her smile anymore. Her marriage became a joke in the capital city on the day of her wedding. Everyone thought that it was ominous that she got married after her elder had just died. Afterward, Madam Ling was punished by the emperor and her title as the Imperial Mandate Mrs. was also abolished. In any case, Ning Ziyan’s marriage did not seem to go well.
Ning Yuling twitched the corner of her mouth and showed a hint of sarcasm on her face. She did not say anything, but stood aside and watched them arguing.
Like a phoenix, the queen of birds, she used to be the most favored daughter in the manor, but suddenly fell from the peak and almost lost her life. At the thought of the humiliation she had suffered, she not only hated Ning Xueyan to the extreme but also blamed Madam Ling and Ning Ziyan, thinking that if they tried their best to save her, she would not have been down to this.
She used to be an outgoing person, but because of hatred, she was much more gloomy.
Seeing that Ning Ziyan and Ning Xueyan were tit-for-tat, she did not intervene but watched aside. No matter what they were fighting for, it had nothing to do with her.
”Fifth Sister, it’s said our mother is discussing your marriage. She wants to find a suitable man for you.” Managing to hold her anger back, Ning Ziyan put on a dignified smile and said in a gentle voice, with the demeanor of the eldest sister. However, there was a hint of threat in her words, and in her eyes, people could saw a fierce look.
Her marriage? It seemed that Madam Ling was going to settle her marriage by taking advantage of her loss in the contest. Madam Ling and her daughter would never miss a chance to bully her and they always wanted to trample on her. However, Ning Xueyan was no more the girl who had just stepped out Bright Frost Garden.
“I don’t think our mother will leave a man like Marquis of Ping’an to others!” Ning Xueyan did not hesitate anymore. She curved up her lips with a bloodthirsty coldness in her eyes. “Do you think she will marry me to a man as excellent as Minster Xia’s son? It’s said Sister Ziying’s courtyard is haunting. How about we invite a Taoist to remove the evil spirits?”
Ning Xueyan spat the words coldly, and now her delicate face had turned icy. Ning Ziyan did not expect that Ning Xueyan would have mentioned it and her face immediately became as pale as snow. If it was exposed, her marriage could only be a joke.
She was clear that she would be sentenced to death if she was found out to have murdered people and robbed the other’s fiance.
“You, you… Stop talking nonsense!” The smile faded away from her face and was replaced by rage.
“Eldest Sister, you’re clear whether I’m talking nonsense or not. Do you want to go back to the Cloud Reflection Courtyard and have a look? Maybe Sister Ziying is still waiting for you to talk about your sisterhood years ago with you,” Ning Xueyan said with a sneer. She had been reborn for revenge and now, she did not want to pretend to be close with Ning Ziyan in front of people anymore.
“Eldest Sister, there is no need to argue with her. Fifth Sister is rising high and she is much more distinguished than us now,” Ning Yuling said in a strange tone. Obviously, she was mocking Ning Xueyan for her loss in the Beauty Contest.
“My sisters, to be frank, I’m really indeed more distinguished than you. I only found out a few days ago that Eldest Sister used to be an illegitimate child, and Second Sister is just a concubine’s daughter.” Since they had broken up, Ning Xueyan would not swallow her anger. They were asking for scolding, so she would not show mercy.
She was hinting that Madam Ling used to be Ning Zu’an’s mistress before becoming his concubine and then his principal wife. No noble family would respect such a ‘principal wife’. All hostesses of those noble families had been well-educated for years by their families, so it was no wonder that they could not bear to see a mistress become a principal wife.
The sisters felt like being slapped in the face.
Their face turned pale at the merciless words. Ning Ziyan shouted angrily, “Ning Xueyan, how dare you speak in this way?”
Ning Yuling had an impulse to slap Ning Xueyan. She stared at Ning Xueyan, gasped. If they were at the Lord Protector’s Manor now, she would have rushed over and slapped her.
As they were talking loudly, people who walked ahead and behind them all turned to them, wondering what happened between the sisters. It did not look like they were getting along with each other.
“What am I afraid of? Since someone dared to do this, why should I dare not to talk about it?” Ning Xueyan snorted. Ning Ziyan was good at showing their sisterhood in public, but Ning Xueyan would not give her such an opportunity. She wanted to see what Ning Ziyan was going to do next.
“You, you…” Ning Ziyan was so angry that she felt a little dizzy. For her, her status as an illegitimate child and her marriage were taboo topics, but Ning Xueyan not only mentioned them but also repeated. Ning Ziyan knew that she should stay calm at this moment, but she could not help turning pale and trembling.
“The two sisters are bullying one! The relationship between the sisters of the Lord Protector’s Manor is indeed not as good as the rumors said.” Several Young Ladies who passed sneered and cast at them a mocking look.