Chapter 486: Chapter 455, The Entire Family Completely Defeated_1
Madam Chen glanced at Daohua. Although her daughter-in-law’s words were unpleasant, the eldest Miss Yan nevertheless publicly embarrassed the host, making it difficult for them to save face, which was also a thorny issue. After pondering for a moment, she said with a smile.
“Miss Yan, please don’t be angry. Our family has just arrived in Ningmen Prefecture and there’s still a lot we haven’t sorted out. The matter of sending out invitations was managed by this old woman. You see, once you get to a certain age, you become unreliable, always forgetting things. Your family’s invitation was actually written first, but I simply forgot about it. I am truly sorry.”
Hearing this, Madam Li and Madam Dong’s faces changed.
When an elder apologizes to a younger person, no matter the reason, it reflects poorly on the younger; if this got out, Daohua would surely gain a reputation for being disrespectful to her elders.
Just as Madam Li was anxiously thinking about how to smooth things over, Daohua spoke up again.
With a smile, Daohua said, “Madam Chen, you flatter me. Just now, I was merely following up on what Madam Chen said to explain why we were late. You’re apologizing to me so formally, anyone would think I was being arrogant and domineering.”
Between the lines, she was suggesting Madam Chen was taking advantage of her age and status.
“Honestly, even though our family received the invitation only yesterday afternoon, with Lord Chen being the Inspector personally appointed by the Emperor, and you being the Emperor’s wet nurse, how could my family dare to be disrespectful?”
Between the lines, she was saying the Chen Family was throwing their weight around.
“Let me tell you the truth, we got up before dawn today, just afraid of being late. But just as we were about to leave, the Little Prince arrived. Once he came, we naturally couldn’t leave him behind, so we waited, and before we knew it, it was already 11:00 AM. We still have no idea what the Little Prince was doing to delay us so much. Should I send someone to inquire?”
Xiao Yeyang, I’m sorry, but you’ll have to take the blame first, to temper those who rely on Imperial connections, lest they think they can bully us!
As Daohua spoke directly without beating around the bush, Madam Chen’s smile grew increasingly stiff. As the Emperor’s wet nurse, even noblewomen in the capital would show her some respect. Being publicly confronted like this was an experience she had not had in a long time.
Madam Chen narrowed her eyes at Daohua, who kept mentioning the Little Prince. Even if she was angry, she had to swallow it, as she was the Emperor’s wet nurse indeed, but in front of the Imperial Family, she was still a servant, her smile strained as she said, “It’s nothing important, there’s no need to inquire about the Little Prince.”
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With a hidden smile in her eyes, Madam Dong glanced at Daohua, then spoke up to change the subject with a smile, “Why hasn’t the feast started yet? I’m really getting hungry.”
Snapping back to reality, Madam Chen quickly replied with a smile, “We were waiting for you to be seated.”
Madam Dong took Madam Li to sit down and said to Madam Chen with a smile, “Speaking of being late today, it’s partly our fault. Su sister, Zhou sister, and I all stay at the Yan Family’s house. As you must know, when there are more people, there are more delays. Isn’t it only natural that we would be a bit behind?”
Madam Chen nodded with a smile, “That makes sense.” She quickly steered the conversation away from the topic.
Seeing that the adults had sat down, Daohua also led Yan Yihuan and the other two, sitting at another table along with Dong Yuanyao, Su Shiyu, and Zhou Jingwan.
After sitting down, Dong Yuanyao nudged Daohua with her elbow, “You’re really bold to say what you did.”
Daohua: “I merely stated the facts.” The Chen Family is not only powerful but also bullies the weak and fears the strong, her family came at the same time as the Zhou and Su families, yet Madam Chen only singled out her mother. If you don’t put such people in their place the first time, in future interactions, they will take advantage of you.
Yan Yihuan and Yan Yile looked at Daohua in admiration, and although Yan Yishuang was not as obvious, she felt some of her rebelliousness towards Daohua dissipate in that moment.
Over the years, she had always felt that all she lacked compared to Daohua was the status of a legitimate daughter, which made her secretly competitive.
But today, facing the Chen Family’s difficulties, seeing her elder sister dare to confront and fight back, she realized the difference between them was not merely academic. At the very least, she didn’t have the boldness of her elder sister.
At that moment, Chen Jiarou came over, smiling as she said, “There are no seats left elsewhere, may I sit with you all?”
Daohua was talking with Dong Yuanyao and Zhou Jingwan, and none of the three paid any attention.
Yan Yihuan and the other two just kept their heads down and ate.
Seeing this, Su Shiyu had no choice but to say with a smile, “You are part of the host family, of course you can.”
Chen Jiarou took a seat next to Su Shiyu.
Then, Daohua and the other two stopped talking and looked at Chen Jiarou.
Chen Jiarou smiled and said, “We are new here, if there has been any lack of hospitality, I hope you sisters won’t take it to heart.”
With a faint smile, Su Shiyu replied, “You are being too serious, Miss Chen.”
Chen Jiarou looked at Daohua across from her and said with a smile, “The moment I saw all the sisters, my heart was filled with joy. We must gather together more often in the future.”
“Especially Big Sister Yan, when I was in the capital, I was used to seeing gentle and demure girls. Today, seeing Sister’s eloquence, it’s truly an eye-opener.”
Upon hearing this, Daohua raised an eyebrow.
In this era, girls were expected to be quiet and dignified; being sharp-tongued wasn’t really a compliment. Was Miss Chen trying to retrieve some dignity for her grandmother and mother?
Dong Yuanyao glanced at Chen Jiarou and laughed, “Miss Chen, did you not see me? I believe I am just as eloquent as Yiyi.”
Zhou Jingwan interjected, “And me too, I’ve won several arguments against Yiyi. And Sister Su, when Sister Su starts talking, both Yiyi and Yuanyao would have to retreat, right, Sister Su?”
Su Shiyu pursed her lips in a smile, “That’s because I was in the right, which is why I could suppress you all in our verbal exchanges.”
Dong Yuanyao looked at Chen Jiarou and continued, “Exactly, having the truth on your side allows you to go anywhere uncontested. Without it, no matter how loudly one shouts, it’s just bluster; a single poke would burst that balloon.”
Zhou Jingwan chuckled and nodded along, “Exactly, and yet some people still think others are fools or blind, acting as if we can’t tell who’s right and who’s wrong.”
Daohua gave Zhou Jingwan a surprised look and an approving ‘not bad’ glance.
Zhou Jingwan pompously raised an eyebrow.
Please, she too had grown up in the complex world of the back courtyard, where mastering verbal sparring, though not to any refined degree, was a piece of cake for her.
Chen Jiarou’s smile stiffened. Were these ladies implying that her family was impolite? She offered a somewhat embarrassed smile, “The relationship between the sisters here is really good.”
Daohua looked at Chen Jiarou and said with a smile, “That’s because each of us is straightforward, so naturally, we get along.”
Chen Jiarou smiled and said no more, fearing a direct rebuttal.
The incident in the back courtyard was reported to Defu by a Hidden Guard, and upon hearing it, Defu immediately told Xiao Yeyang.
After Xiao Yeyang came to know of it, he told Yan Wenkai and Yan Wentao.
As a result, Chen Jiayou was in a sorry state.
As the host, he had to toast the guests anyway, and after drinking a round, he was dragged over to their table by Yan Wenkai, who proceeded to ply him with drink after drink.
Every time Chen Jiayou wanted to refuse, he would receive a stern look from Xiao Yeyang, forcing him to reluctantly drink up.
In the end, seeing that Chen Jiayou was nearly knocked out, Yan Wenxiu, not wanting to make too much of a scene, finally intervened and stopped Yan Wenkai.
After Chen Jiayou was helped down by a servant, Yan Wenkai grumbled, “Big brother, why did you stop me? Lady Chen and Madam Chen bullied our mother and sisters in the back courtyard; my pouring Chen Master’s drinks was justified.”
He had expected his older brother to scold him, but instead, he heard, “Even if you wanted to vent, you could have done it privately. Doing so openly at someone else’s feast turns what could be a just cause into rudeness.”
Yan Wenkai looked at Yan Wenxiu in surprise; he hadn’t expected him to say such a thing.
Yan Wenxiu frowned and ignored his foolish younger brother.
The Chen Family’s contempt for his own did not please him either.
Chen Hong, seeing his son being made utterly drunk, was quite annoyed, but he didn’t say anything because he realized that it was the Little Prince’s doing.
Even he himself was not spared from being forced to drink by the officials present.
During the feast, upon learning about what happened in the back courtyard, Chen Hong inwardly cursed his wife for mishandling the situation.
The Yan Family’s lack of respect was all caused by his own wife! Now, having lost face, he still needed to find an opportunity to mend the relationship between the two families, which was truly vexing.
