"I'm heartless? Grandmother, you're calling me heartless? Where am I heartless! I'm just stating facts!
From the moment things started going wrong in the manor, with one disaster after another, with continuous bad luck, so many men died, leaving us women as widows and the children fatherless, and we fell into such a state, it all started with Huangfu Yue's appearance. It's all Huangfu Yue's fault...
You can't shield her just because she's your granddaughter!" Yang Yuqing, covering the face that had been struck, looked dazed. Once she came to her senses, she yelled at Consort Dowager Zheng with a mix of grievance and anger.
How dare this old hag hit her!
She had never been hit in her life. Her family doted on her, and they never even scolded her, let alone hit her.
The first time she was cursed at was after she came to the prince's manor, by this old hag.
After arriving at the manor, this old hag would scold her from time to time, which was infuriating.
Before, she tolerated it, thinking she was an elder and a consort dowager, and since everything in the household was managed by her, she endured. But now, she had gone too far, slapping her across the face, and in front of so many servants, causing her to lose all face. It was truly excessive.
She couldn't endure it any longer!
The kind are bullied, the horses are ridden! She couldn't be weak any longer. She wanted to let everyone know how formidable Xu Yuqing was, and that Xu Yuqing was not to be trifled with.
Otherwise, if this old hag continued to hit her often, and others felt she could be hit without consequence, everyone would start bullying her.
Thinking this, Xu Yuqing glanced at Consort Dowager Zheng, who was so angry her face had turned green and her eyes seemed about to spew fire. She subtly pinched her own thigh, drawing tears...
"My husband, my poor husband, you died so tragically... A person who brings death came to the manor, killing you and your brothers, killing your father, yet you wouldn't let me speak, and even hit me... Wuwu...
My husband, you're dead, and now others bully me as a widow, with no one to support me, beating and scolding me arbitrarily... Wuwuwu... I don't know what they'll do to me in the future, I don't know if they'll try to kill me... Wuwuwu...
Husband, why don't you come and take me and our daughter away, so we don't have to suffer in this world..." Xu Yuqing cried out loudly, shouting for her deceased husband, her crying incredibly exaggerated.
Consort Dowager Zheng was so angry she felt like spitting blood, and Huangfu Yue's brows furrowed into the character '川'.
Her fists clenched...
"Ling'er, get up. Since your paternal great-grandmother cannot tolerate us, why don't we both die and go find your father, to be reunited with him in the underworld... Wuwu...
There's a big pillar here. If we hit it hard, we'll surely die, and then we can go find your father... Wuwuwu..."
Seeing that Consort Dowager Zheng and Huangfu Yue did not apologize or try to appease her, Xu Yuqing cursed them silently and cried even louder and more intensely.
She even reached out and pulled up her daughter, who was stunned by her side, and headed towards a nearby pillar to crash into it.
"Yuqing, what are you doing! Don't be foolish!" Zhu Jiayi quickly went to hold her.
Zhong Liangshu secretly glanced at Consort Dowager Zheng and Huangfu Yue before quickly going to pull Xu Yuqing as well, scolding the servants for being dead and asking why they were just standing there, urging them to stop Xu Yuqing together.
The servants, jolted out of their shock, also rushed to stop Xu Yuqing.
"Let me go, don't stop me, let me take my daughter to die. It's meaningless to be alive anyway... They won't even let me speak!"
Xu Yuqing struggled for a moment as if to break free, then stopped, and started crying loudly again, her sobs conveying immense grievance and pity.
"You say I can't even speak, what's the point of living? It's worse than death, I might as well die and make room for others, so some people can do whatever they want...
Since there are people raising crows, they will eventually kill everyone in the manor. It's better for my daughter and me to die early and be reborn!"
Xu Yuqing cried while looking at Consort Dowager Zheng and Huangfu Yue, clearly implying to everyone that she was referring to them, the grandmother and granddaughter, and that they were forcing her to take her daughter to die.
Consort Dowager Zheng and Huangfu Yue saw everyone looking at them and became even angrier, their faces as cold as frost.
They stared coldly at Xu Yuqing, their gazes so chilling they could freeze someone to death, making Xu Yuqing shiver and swallow nervously.
But she quickly suppressed her fear, telling herself there was nothing to be afraid of. What could Consort Dowager Zheng and Huangfu Yue do, even if they were furious? They couldn't eat her.
If they dared to hit her, she would immediately put on another act of wailing and lamenting, claiming she was forced to take her daughter to crash into a pillar and commit suicide.
She didn't believe they wouldn't be afraid!
"Yue'er, why don't you drive this crow away? Don't keep this crow. My old family says crows are the souls of the dead and bring death and disaster. Keeping it is too dangerous." Zhu Jiayi looked at her sister-in-law and advised.
Looking at the black crow with blood-red eyes perched on her sister-in-law's shoulder, a deep fear flashed across Zhu Jiayi's beautiful face.
In fact, she had taken Xu Yuqing's words to heart, finding them quite reasonable.
The manor had been experiencing continuous misfortune, so many men had died, turning them into widows and orphans, and then being raided and exiled. It was definitely related to this crow, and the crow had caused it.
"Yes! Yue'er, hurry and drive this crow away. Don't keep it anymore. If you keep it any longer, I'm afraid, as Second Sister-in-law said, we will all be killed." Yang Wanqian also advised, her face filled with fear, so much so that tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Exactly, Yue'er, for all our sakes, please don't keep this crow." Zhong Liangshu nodded in agreement and suggested, "If you want to keep a pet, you can keep kittens, puppies, or little white rabbits!"
Huangfu Yue looked at Consort Dowager Zheng. She noticed that Consort Dowager Zheng wasn't looking at her or advising her like her sisters-in-law, but was still staring coldly at Xu Yuqing, a glint of amusement in her eyes, and a warmth flowed through her heart.
If Grandmother had advised her like her sisters-in-law, she would have felt uncomfortable.
"My father and brothers' deaths, the misfortunes our manor has faced, and our current predicament have nothing to do with Xiao Hei, because I only met it this afternoon and took it as my pet. Don't blame the manor's misfortunes on it!" Huangfu Yue said loudly to her sisters-in-law.
She should have clarified earlier that she only met Xiao Hei and took it as her pet this afternoon. She felt a bit guilty for Xiao Hei being wrongly accused.
"Who are you trying to fool! You met this crow this afternoon and took it as your pet? Hmph, even a three-year-old wouldn't believe that. We were with you all afternoon, and we hadn't even seen a single crow feather before that.
Don't try to fool us with lies that even an idiot wouldn't believe just to keep this crow.
Huangfu Yue, I ask you, how much do you like this crow? Why won't you drive it away? To keep it, to continue raising it, you're resorting to such lies!
You like this crow so much, is there something wrong with your brain! Are you sick!" Xu Yuqing pointed at Huangfu Yue and cursed, calling her by name.
Huangfu Yue clenched her fists. She really wanted to hit someone.
Suppressing her anger, Huangfu Yue said, "I met Xiao Hei and took it as my pet when you were all poisoned and unconscious. You were able to detoxify yourselves, and it played a part in that. After helping me detoxify you, Xiao Hei flew away."
To make her sisters-in-law accept Xiao Hei and not force her to drive it away, Huangfu Yue claimed that Xiao Hei had contributed to their detoxification, hoping they would be grateful to Xiao Hei.
"Is that true? Don't lie to us?" Yang Wanqian said, suspicion flickering on her face.
"Your words sound like a lie, you..." Xu Yuqing snorted, her face full of disbelief, but before she could finish, Consort Dowager Zheng interrupted.
"Yue'er doesn't lie! Don't you forget who saved us, ensuring we didn't suffer, providing us with good food and drink, allowing us to stay in inns, and even letting some people buy new clothes and shoes." Consort Dowager Zheng shot a glance at her second daughter-in-law as she said the last sentence.
"Everyone, don't forget that our current comfortable situation is all thanks to Yue'er, all Yue'er's merit! You keep pressuring Yue'er, aren't you afraid of chilling Yue'er's heart and making her not want to bother with you anymore!"
Consort Dowager Zheng looked at her granddaughters-in-law, her voice carrying a clear tone of reminder and warning.
Zhu Jiayi and her sisters-in-law, hearing Consort Dowager Zheng's reminder and warning, were instantly scared, including Xu Yuqing.
Xu Yuqing inwardly cried out, 'Not good.' How had she not considered that if she angered Huangfu Yue too much, and she abandoned them, they would be in dire straits?
What should she do?
No, she had to quickly find a way to salvage the situation, to make Huangfu Yue not resent her, and to continue to care for her and treat her well as before.
If Huangfu Yue could hear her thoughts, she would surely scold, 'You're dreaming!'