Chapter 64 - 32 Mrs. Li and Cousin’s Verbal Duel_2

Words : 1342 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

Chapter 64: Chapter 32 Mrs. Li and Cousin’s Verbal Duel_2 Since Mrs. Li’s husband and son both died while saving the lives of the Shi family’s Master and young master, if the Shi family treated her poorly, it would appear unkind in the eyes of others, and to the slaves, it would be heartlessly ungrateful! Gu Fangzi’s body slightly trembled, and she fumbled for words with quivering lips, unable to speak. Sang Wan saw that things were turning sour and knew she couldn’t just stand by. Otherwise, if Gu Fangzi couldn’t save her face and burst into tears, it would seem as if she and Mrs. Li were intentionally bullying her. So she quickly laughed and said: "Mrs. Li, you’ve misunderstood my cousin. She is straightforward and speaks without thinking; she doesn’t mean it like that! You must have misheard! You are the main wife’s servant and the young master’s wet nurse—everyone in this mansion knows and respects you. My cousin definitely meant no offense!" Suppressing the anger in her heart, Gu Fangzi hurriedly laughed along and said: "It’s all Fangzi’s fault for speaking thoughtlessly, no wonder Mrs. Li is upset. Fangzi apologizes to Mrs. Li!" In her hand, Gu Fangzi crumpled the handkerchief into a ball, silently swearing to herself, "Just you wait!" Once she enters the family, she would see how she’ll deal with this presumptuous old thing. Mrs. Li rolled her eyes and clarified: "Cousin has misspoken again! Upset? This old lady doesn’t have such a hot temper to be angry at the drop of a hat!" Then, with an affectionate smile to Sang Wan: "Since the mistress has said so, it would be my fault to make a fuss. The mistress is correct; indeed, the cousin is frank and outspoken, a straight shooter!" However, these words sounded full of mockery no matter how one listened. The one who was easily angered was Gu Fangzi! She was the one who frequently threw tantrums and made a scene in front of Shi Fengju, always driving Mrs. Li to the brink. Gu Fangzi was oversensitive, and hearing this only made her more humiliated, but she dared not speak again, pretending she hadn’t heard anything. Whatever she said, Mrs. Li would find displeasing. Mrs. Li rarely saw Gu Fangzi at a disadvantage, and her spirits rose as she began to praise Sang Wan even more in her presence, and with a smile added: "I have to say, it’s not always good for a young lady to be too frank and direct. What mother-in-law would like a daughter-in-law who’s like a firecracker? A young lady should speak softly, which endears her to others and is pleasant to hear! Not to sound arrogant due to my age, but cousin should learn more from the mistress here. A scholarly family is a scholarly family indeed!" Hearing this, Gu Fangzi’s just-suppressed anger flared up again, and with a cold laugh, she retorted: "Mrs. Li is right; my elder cousin has a nice temperament and a sweet mouth, how could anyone not like her!" "That’s not even the best part yet! Serving the mother-in-law and attending to the husband, the mistress has nothing to be criticized for!" Mrs. Li said with a slight show of pride, lifting her head. What Mrs. Li couldn’t stand all along was how Gu Fangzi recklessly ordered Shi Fengju around, doing this and that. Not to mention what she heard from others, she saw with her own eyes Gu Fangzi ordering Shi Fengju to climb up the plum tree to pick plum blossoms for her hairpin, picky to this and that; her throat parched during a stroll in the garden, demanding Shi Fengju to personally go back to the room to get tea; even making Shi Fengju kneel to wipe off dirt from her embroidered shoes, and such—it choked her heart every time she saw it. Now that she saw Sang Wan’s gentle demeanor and her extra care in serving Shi Fengju, the comparison only made her disdain Gu Fangzi even more. These words of Mrs. Li hit Gu Fangzi right where it hurt the most, making her angrier than any of the previous remarks. She was not only angry but also felt wronged; not just wronged, but even her heart soured. Serving the mother-in-law, attending to the husband—these should have been her duties, not Sang Wan’s! Sang Wan almost felt the urge to hold her forehead. Away from Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Li indeed reigned supreme; her words were as sharp as knives, sparing no concern for Gu Fangzi’s feelings, nor caring if Shi Fengju or Mrs. Wang would be displeased. And that’s exactly what she did. "Look at what Mrs. Li is saying—that’s exactly how it should be! As a daughter-in-law, that’s exactly how one should behave," Sang Wan quickly laughed. Truth be told, it wasn’t Sang Wan’s business to interfere with the quarrel between Mrs. Li and Gu Fangzi, but since it happened right before her, she couldn’t help but get involved. Without any issue, Gu Fangzi was one to make a mountain out of a molehill; given this reason, who knows what sort of pleasant things she might say in front of Shi Fengju. "Exactly, exactly!" Mrs. Li nodded emphatically, smiling cheerfully: "The mistress is the legitimate first wife of the Shi household; of course, you should serve the mother-in-law and attend to the husband! It was silly of this old servant to say otherwise!" With that said, she raised an eyebrow and glanced at Gu Fangzi. The implication was clear: You’re an outsider; I always used to blame you for not taking good care of the young master, rather having the young master cater to you, it seems I was wrong. Understanding Mrs. Li’s implication, Gu Fangzi was so infuriated she felt she might suffer an internal injury. "Mrs. Li, aren’t you tired after talking so much? Please sit down and finish your tea!" Sang Wan laughed heartily, not giving Gu Fangzi a chance to speak, and quickly instructed Hong Ye, "Pour some tea for Mrs. Li!" Except for the occasional grace of the masters, when the masters are sitting, there’s no place for slaves to sit. Mrs. Li served in Ningyuan and couldn’t be too presumptuous in front of Sang Wan. She wouldn’t easily take a seat in Sang Wan’s presence. Instead, there was another small wing room tidied up in the east room, specially arranged for the maids to sit and have tea and rest. Hearing this, Mrs. Li laughed and said: "Since the mistress is gracious, this servant will take a seat, have a sip of tea, and then I shall take my leave!" After finishing, she didn’t even glance at Gu Fangzi and left with Hong Ye. Today, she had sufficiently intimidated Gu Fangzi, and it was time to stop while she was ahead; otherwise, it would appear that she was too aggressive. Gu Fangzi cursed herself internally for being meddlesome. Why did she say that superfluous remark and end up enduring this frustration? She totally deserved it! With her heart both angry and irritated, she was not in the mood to sit any longer. After forcing a few words, she stood up and took her leave. Sang Wan did not insist on her staying and, with a smile, said, "The weather has been rather nice these days. I was thinking of inviting my cousin, along with my third and fifth sisters, to enjoy the flowers in the garden and fly kites together. Are you available, cousin? Hehe, as we talked about earlier, the fifth sister has been looking forward to it, and she even asked me about it yesterday!" Sang Wan was preventing her from going to Shi Fengju to complain out of grievances. If she truly disliked Gu Fangzi, she wouldn’t have taken the initiative to invite her to enjoy the garden. Since she had arranged a gathering, it was clear that she intended to be friendly and close to her; Gu Fangzi had to be cautious with her accusations.

Chapter 64 - 32 Mrs. Li and Cousin’s Verbal Duel_2

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