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The birthday celebration of the three old gentlemen abruptly came to a halt due to the unexpected incident. The high-ranking officials left the table, filled with questions, while friends and relatives whispered among themselves, looking around at the scene of devastation. Yun Jinxiu, with tears streaming down his face, was supported by the old masters from various households as he staggered away. When he passed by Yun Cheng, he glanced up at him and sarcastically said, "Are you satisfied now..."
Yun Cheng did not look at Yun Jinxiu at all, as if he did not exist in his eyes. The latter left in tears. Madam Sun Rulan was escorting the officials to the entrance of the residence, Second Madam Yue Ziyun was dealing with the chattering friends and relatives, while Third Madam Fu Lianyin led the children and her family back to the Western Courtyard.
"This is really bad luck," Fu Yueze said as he sat down on a chaise longue, looking displeased. "How could such a thing happen during the old man's birthday banquet? That Dai Chun Ni must be either crazy or foolish; isn't she just asking for trouble?"
"Do you really believe that silly girl Yun Ran's words?" Wang Ling raised an eyebrow and teased. "In my opinion, this has nothing to do with Substitute Concubine. But how she treated Hang'er publicly before..." Her expression turned ugly, and her voice became dark. "A woman with such a loose tongue deserves to be slandered; it's just bad luck for her!"
Fu Lianyin snorted coldly through her nose and curled her lips. "Sister-in-law is right. The Substitute Concubine is indeed cheap; she always thinks she's clever but ends up 'lifting a stone only to drop it on her own foot'! However," she cast a complex glance at Yun Ran, filled with disdain, doubt, and more than a little fear, and mockingly said, "Today Fifth Young Lady truly opened my eyes..."
What remained unspoken was: if she could treat the Substitute Concubine this way now, who knows if she would do the same to me in the future for her own selfish reasons? I really underestimated her!
Yun Ran stood at the corner of the door, seemingly lost in thought. Although it appeared she had won a battle, she was still in shock. She didn't even know if she had been possessed earlier to dare publicly slander someone. Even though that person was as unloved as she was—"neither cared for by grandmother nor loved by uncle"—they were still part of the Third House. Wasn't this embarrassing for the Third House in front of everyone?
Most importantly, Yun Yangming would still come looking for her! He was the current Minister of Personnel. He certainly didn't reach that position without skill; how could her little tricks fool him? Just thinking about possible punishment from Yun Yang made Yun Ran tremble all over, completely unaware of Fu Lianyin's gaze upon her.
"Exactly! That Substitute Concubine is just asking for trouble," Fu Yueze took a sip of tea and coldly snorted. "She should deal with Eldest Sister as Eldest Sister; why drag Hang'er into this? No wonder my sister and brother-in-law can't stand her."
"Brother, don't be surprised," Fu Lianyin sneered. "A cornered dog will jump over the wall. Besides, she indeed dragged Fifth Young Lady down with her this time. But if you ask me," she paused slightly, smiling even colder, "Dai Chun Ni's fault lies in always sticking her face out to get slapped. A few years ago, several children from the Duke's residence beat her up like a ghost; isn't that laughable?"
"Oh? That happened too?" Wang Ling asked with a laugh. "For a Concubine to reach this point is truly pathetic..."
"In your opinion, who do you think would do such a wicked thing?" Fu Yueze clearly had grown accustomed to the power struggles among women in the large household and showed little interest in their conversation as he changed the subject. "Who would have such boldness to stir trouble above an official of the current cabinet?"
Fu Lianyin looked around to ensure there were no outsiders before boldly saying:
"If you ask me, besides Fourth Brother, who else could it be!"
Fu Yueze and Wang Ling were both taken aback, exclaiming in unison, "Fourth? Which one?"
"Yun Family, Fourth Room, Master, Cloud City," Fu Lianyin said nonchalantly while waving the handkerchief in her hand. "His grudges and confrontations with the Three Old Lords are not new."
Fu Yueze was startled. "Sister, is that true? This is baseless; you can't just talk nonsense."
"Brother, look at you. Do you think I'm the kind of person who spreads rumors?" Fu Lianyin shot a sideways glance at her brother, defending her character. "Did you not see how everyone was scared stiff at the time of the incident, rushing to help the Three Old Lords? Only the Four Elders stood there like nothing happened. If it weren't for him, could anyone be so indifferent and just watch the show?!"
In the North Courtyard, Yun Jinxiu's bedroom was bustling as the masters and servants helped the old man to lie down by the bed. Yun Jinxiu waved his hand to signal them to leave, and several attendants complied.
Yun Ci sat on the edge of the bed, frowning as he checked the pulse of the Three Old Lords. However, Yun Jinxiu withdrew his hand and stubbornly said, "Don't worry; I won't die just yet."
The three brothers were all taken aback and exchanged glances.
"Third Uncle, please don't say that," Yun Ci said nervously. "You are getting older, and this time you were overly agitated; your vitality has already been severely damaged. You need to take care of yourself."
"Take care? Can I guard against it?" Yun Jinxiu scoffed bitterly, feeling both angry and resigned. "I can guard against outsiders, but 'a family thief is hard to guard against'..."
His words pointed directly at Cloud City. The Master and Second Master understood each other without needing to say more, while Third Uncle Yun Yang thought he was referring to Dai Chun Ni and felt ashamed.
"Third Uncle, are you blaming me? It's my fault for not managing the backyard well enough, leading to this disaster. But I believe there is something fishy about this matter that needs further investigation in the future."
"Don't pretend to be confused when you know full well," Yun Jinxiu leaned against the headboard, looking directly at Yun Yang with cold eyes. "Do you really think this was done by Substitute Concubine? I wouldn't dare let her do it even if she had ten times the courage!"
"Then does Third Uncle mean... Fourth Brother?" Yun You couldn't help but interject. "No, that's impossible!"
"Impossible?" Yun Jinxiu replied with a grim smile that made his face look even older as he trembled slightly. "There is nothing impossible in this world!" After a moment of silence, he murmured to himself, "If he didn't do it, someone else would... A moment's misstep can lead to eternal regret!"
Yun You was stunned and exclaimed, "Third Uncle!"
"You all can leave now, I'm tired and need to rest!"
Yun Ci wanted to persuade a few more words, but Yun Jinxiu had already closed her eyes. The three brothers had no choice but to exit the door, instructing the servants to take good care of the Three Old Lords before returning to their respective courtyards.
At this moment, Cloud City was unaware that he had become the focal point of this incident. He was dining at a high-end restaurant with Yun Kexin, enjoying delicious food and drinks.
"Fourth Uncle, Fourth Uncle, please stop ordering dishes," Cloud City had already called for more than ten dishes and kept adding food to Yun Kexin's bowl. She finally couldn't take it anymore and said, "I can't eat anymore; it's too wasteful."
"This is Fourth Uncle's own, the money is all in the account," Cloud City saw that Yun Kexin was eating happily and gradually forgot the gloom and displeasure from earlier at the banquet. He smiled gently and said, "Seventh Young Lady, don't be polite with Fourth Uncle."
"Kexin is not being polite," Yun Kexin had to put down her chopsticks, pat her belly, and pretended to beg for mercy, "I really can't eat anymore. It's just the two of us, yet you've ordered enough food for five or six people and aren't eating a bite yourself."
Cloud City chuckled lightly. It was nothing; he simply looked at Yun Kexin with warmth. However, when his gaze passed over Yun Kexin's shoulder and he saw a dark shadow in the distance, his smile faded. This change did not escape Yun Kexin's eyes: what did Fourth Uncle see? Was it that shadowy figure again? Soon after, a deep and hoarse voice that sounded like it came from hell slowly reached Yun Kexin's ears:
"It's been too long!"
Yun Kexin wanted to turn her head to look but was stepped on the foot by Cloud City under the table. He calmly smiled and said, "Seventh Young Lady, hurry up and eat. After you're done, Fourth Uncle will take you back."
"Kexin is full." This was already the third time she had said so.
Cloud City took Yun Kexin away. Throughout this process, he deliberately prevented her from looking back. Even when they got into the carriage, he wouldn't let her ask too many questions. She thought to herself: Is this how Fourth Uncle has been living these years? Always being watched everywhere, even the time spent with others strictly regulated? But before the birthday banquet, she saw Fourth Uncle interacting and conversing with some male guests without such circumstances appearing. Could it be that this strange phenomenon only occurs when Fourth Uncle is with certain women?
Yun Kexin's heart raced: Could this be Fourth Uncle's "reason for not daring to marry"?
Thinking this way, they arrived at Duke's Residence. By this time, most of the guests had left. The ladies and children from the First House and Second House were "cleaning up the aftermath." Yun Kexin went over to greet them a few times before following Cloud City back to Western Courtyard.
"Seventh Young Lady, where have you been?" Feng Momo saw two figures coming around the corner from afar. Recognizing one as Yun Kexin and then identifying Cloud City, she continued, "And Four Elders! Where have you all been? You've worried Master and Madam sick."
"Nothing much, Fourth Uncle just took me out to eat," Yun Yun Kexin said as she walked, "I will explain it to Mother, Father later."
Feng Grandma sighed and stopped nagging, following behind the two.
As they entered the main hall, Yun Yun Kexin noticed that Fu Yueze and Wang Ling had not left. She thought they would be too busy hiding after such an "incident," but surprisingly, they stayed. The room was filled with questioning gazes and expressions.
"Where have you been?" Fu Lianyin seemed to just notice their return, slightly lifting her eyelids and slowly asking in a measured tone.
"Third Brother, Sister-in-law, here's the thing, listen to me," Yun Cheng said straightforwardly, "I saw that Seventh Young Lady hardly ate anything at the banquet, so I took her out to grab a bite."
"She hardly ate anything?" Before Yun Cheng could finish, Fu Lianyin's suddenly raised voice interrupted him. "Ha, what a joke! Fourth Master, don't you see who has eaten at this birthday banquet? If Seventh Young Lady hasn't eaten, does that mean we all stuffed ourselves to the brim?" She paused and sharply added, "I don't know about others, but I certainly know whether my brother and Sister-in-law have eaten. If you don't treat them generously, I won't blame you, but you can't act like we are the only ones starving Seventh Young Lady in front of everyone."
Yun Yun Kexin immediately felt anger rise in her chest: Fu Lianyin was becoming more and more arrogant. Yun Yang hadn't said anything yet; what right did she have to lecture others? Who did she think she was! (To be continued...)
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