Against the Current - Chapter 14

Chapter 14 - Dispute

Xuezan gripped Cao Lihuan's wrist and shouted loudly, "Stop this nonsense! Do you really expect me to go and invite the Old Matriarch here?"

Hearing the words "Old Matriarch," a flash of fear crossed Cao Lihuan's face, but she immediately put on a careless attitude and retorted, "Even if you invite the Old Matriarch, I am not afraid. In fact, I was just looking to find her old ladyship and have her settle this score. How can a brazen servant who dares to bully her masters be allowed to stay around..."

Before she could finish her sentence, a voice called out, "Who carries such a grand air that they must bother the Old Matriarch?" Walking out from the courtyard entrance was a noblewoman in her mid-thirties, of medium build, with a porcelain-white face that was both beautiful and dignified, radiating an aura of grace and high nobility. She wore a sky-blue soft satin tunic embroidered with exquisitely understated fallen plum blossoms, paired with a snow-white long skirt. Her hair was neatly coiled into a glossy tilted bun, pinned only with a pair of jade hairpins whose sparkling, crystal-clear emerald depth made it instantly clear they were items of extraordinary quality.

The moment Xuezan saw the newcomer, she called out in fearful awe, "First Madam." Cao Lihuan instinctively stopped her actions, straightened her posture, and smoothed down her clothes and hair. Seeing someone emerge, Xianglan scrambled up in a single motion, quietly retreating to a corner neither too close nor too far, standing respectfully with her hands folded, thinking to herself: With such attire and deportment, coupled with how unfamiliar she looks, this must be Madam Qin of the First Branch, right? What magnificent poise. Judging by her age, she should be in her early forties this year, yet she still looks like she's in her thirties.

Madam Qin quietly swept her gaze across the scene, first noticing Liubei—who lay upon the ground with disheveled hair, untidy clothes, and a tear-streaked face—and then looking at Cao Lihuan with her loosened hair. With a heavy voice, she asked, "What is the meaning of this?"

The fierce expression had not yet faded from Cao Lihuan's face. Pointing directly at Liubei, she said loudly, "I came with good intentions to welcome my Eldest Uncle and his family back, yet this little wretch blocked the doorway and refused to let me in. On top of that, she even dared to raise a hand against her master and call me out by name to hurl abuse!"

Seeing this state of affairs, Madam Qin already knew in her heart who was standing before her, yet she feigned ignorance. Looking at Cao Lihuan with a slight frown, she asked, "And you are..."

Xuezan said in a low voice, "She is the cousin the Old Matriarch just mentioned to you."

A look of realization dawned on Madam Qin's face. Glancing indifferently at Cao Lihuan, she said, "You should address me as your cousin-in-law." Cao Lihuan opened her mouth to speak, but Madam Qin raised a hand and said, "Enough, come with me first." Taking two steps away, she turned her head back to look at Liubei and instructed, "Don't let her lie on the ground; help her up and take her back to her room. If the Old Matriarch happens to see this later, what kind of spectacle would that be?" With those words, she headed toward the side parlor.

With no other choice, Cao Lihuan had to follow Madam Qin, her heart boiling with suppressed fury. She had long since gone out of her way to flatter the Lin family's Second Branch: Lin Changzheng's brother Lin Changmin was a military man whose mind remained entirely focused on the army, acting as a completely hands-off master at home who never interfered in domestic affairs, while the Second Branch's Madam Wang was slippery and evasive, always wearing a smiling yet distant expression no matter how hard Cao Lihuan tried to please her. Old Master Lin lived in reclusion, and Old Matriarch Lin disdained her. Zhao Yuechan did have a bit of a friendship with her, but though Cao Lihuan had sent her plenty of gold and silver jewelry, silks, and trinkets, Zhao Yuechan had hardly fulfilled any of the things she promised! Now that the First Branch had returned, it was clear from the situation that Madam Qin was back in charge of household affairs. Cao Lihuan had long since prepared to come over and curry favor to establish close ties. Because the maids and servants in the manor usually addressed her with superficial respect as "Miss Cousin," and due to her naturally flamboyant and vain disposition, the nervous and anxious feelings she had harbored when first entering the manor had long since faded away over time. She had begun to view herself as a proper young lady of the Lin family, casting aside all sense of being an outsider—never expecting to run into such a debacle today. In particular, Liubei's harsh words had driven her to a rage of humiliation. Old grudges and new grievances compounded together, causing Cao Lihuan to deal Liubei that vicious slap, and her boiling sea of anger had yet to calm down.

Xianglan followed closely behind Cao Lihuan. When they reached the entrance of the small parlor, she obediently stood outside to keep watch. She watched Xuezan and a young maid help Liubei inside, with Xuezan speaking in a soft, measured tone: "Fortunately your hair is thick; having a clump pulled out doesn't even show much..." Liubei whimpered softly as they entered one of the side rooms.

Inside the parlor, Madam Qin sighed and said, "The Old Matriarch was just talking to you a moment ago, saying how pitiable you are to have lost both parents at such an early age, with an older brother you can't rely on either, and she instructed me to look after you more closely on ordinary days."

Internally cursing, Cao Lihuan thought: Look after me more closely? Utter nonsense! That old hag probably wishes I would vanish into thin air immediately. With a cold sneer, she retorted, "If the Old Matriarch wanted to look after me, why wouldn't she let me in? Instead, she had two maidservants block me at the entrance, throwing around 'the Old Matriarch's command' at every turn and calling it a 'family banquet'—treating me like a total outsider! If the Old Matriarch treats me this way, which of those dog-eyed, condescending maids could possibly hold any respect for me or treat me with the reverence due to a proper mistress?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Qin's expression instantly darkened. Sitting down heavily in a chair, she fell silent. After a long while, she slowly spoke: "Today truly is our Lin family's family banquet." She enunciated the four words "our Lin family" with deliberate weight. "Although men and women are seated at separate tables, there are no folding screens used. You are grown up now, and with your impending marriage, the young gentlemen of the family are also growing up; it was feared that sharing the same space for a meal might be improper, which is why you weren't called over. However, the Old Matriarch gave orders to send four of your favorite dishes to your quarters, along with two plates of pastries, intending for you young girls to join her for the midday meal tomorrow."

Cao Lihuan said, "The Old Matriarch is certainly thoughtful." Her tone dripped with sarcasm.

Madam Qin's expression grew even darker. "The Lin family places the utmost importance on rules and propriety. Even though your surname is not Lin, you nonetheless address me as 'cousin-in-law,' so I shall brazenly pull rank and offer you a few words. You are also from a family of standing; you ought to carry yourself with the deportment of a young lady. Regardless of what those maids might think in their hearts, on the surface they still respect their superiors. Even if you encounter a rare insolent slave showing disrespect, you should report it to the senior housekeeper wives or matrons—why bother degrading your own noble dignity by brawling directly with a maid? No matter how lowly Liubei is, she is still a servant in the Old Matriarch's chambers. Hit the dog and you still must look at its master; by striking Liubei, weren't you essentially slapping the Old Matriarch across the face? You are about to be married off soon; if word of today's events gets out and ruins your reputation, how will you ever establish your footing in your future husband's household?"

With a frosty face, Cao Lihuan stiffly replied, "My conduct is upright and my actions are proper. When it comes to my deportment and manners, who could possibly pick fault or ruin my reputation? In Yuczhou, I was a famously dignified young lady—if you don't believe me, Cousin-in-law, go ask around. If that maid hadn't pushed things past all limits today, would I ever have lowered myself to strike her? Her mouth was full of base, despicable words, bullying me precisely because my parents are dead and I have no one to rely on, to the point that even a mere maid dares to climb over my head."

Having lived to her advanced age, Madam Qin had never encountered a younger generation member who dared to talk back to her with such unbridled arrogance—especially when she was offering well-intentioned guidance. She was so angry she actually laughed, and said, "Fine, fine, fine! So the young lady's meaning is that you did nothing wrong today, and the only one in the wrong is that maid? But since that maid was acting under the Old Matriarch's direct orders, does that mean the one who was wrong is the Old Matriarch?" Without waiting for Cao Lihuan to answer, she abruptly stood up, walked right over to Cao Lihuan, and with a trace of a smile on her face, said, "There's an old saying that 'excessive kindness breeds resentment,' and today I finally understand the truth of it. Since the cousin feels that all of us have wronged you, and that the Old Matriarch's utmost care for you has instead given rise to hatred, in that case you might as well pack your belongings and head back home. Our Lin family may not care about adding an extra pair of chopsticks and a single box of dowry items, but we certainly never raise ungrateful ingrates!"

Cao Lihuan froze in utter shock. She had never in her wildest dreams expected Madam Qin to tell her to leave right to her face! Gritting her teeth, she protested, "You're chasing me away? How can there be such a cousin-in-law in this world who drives her own niece out of the house the very first day she arrives!"

Madam Qin maintained her faint smile, though the chill in her eyes remained hidden beneath the surface: "I'm afraid I don't understand the cousin's meaning. Clearly, it is you who hold contempt for the Old Matriarch and harbor resentment toward us. This is the Lin residence, and you are not a member of the Lin family. Sending you back home is only right and natural."

Left gaping and utterly dumbfounded, Cao Lihuan stood rooted to the spot. Accustomed as she was to running roughshod over everyone, she had never imagined that Madam Qin would utter such words and humiliate her so thoroughly on the spot!

Watching the changing colors on Cao Lihuan's face, Madam Qin let out a silent, inward sneer. Walking over to the doorway, she turned back and softly said, "Hurry back and pack your luggage. Later on, I'll have someone prepare a carriage to send you off." With an elegant, swaying grace, she swept out of the room.