The Devious First-Daughter

Ning Xueyan unexpectedly encountered Concubine Ma on the road. Looking at the delicate Concubine Ma saluting her, Ning Xueyan stepped back with a cold smile on her face and said, “Is this the Concubine Ma who poisoned me? She looks quite delicate!”

Mother Qin, who accompanied Ning Xueyan to Bright Frost Garden to fetch some things, also stepped back carefully while frowning.

Ning Xueyan’s words were harsh and made Concubine Ma feel humiliated. She looked up at Ning Xueyan in disbelief. Concubine Ma had never met Ning Xueyan before. But, she had seen Ning Xueyan twice from afar by chance and felt that Ning Xueyan was an emaciated girl. She did not expect Ning Xueyan to humiliate her directly as soon as they met.

“Fifth Young Lady, I made a mistake with your medicine so that… Please forgive me.” Concubine Ma stood up while holding her maids and saluted Ning Xueyan again, keeping a low profile.

“I dare not receive your apology. Because of a misunderstanding, you dared to put poison into my medicine, which almost killed me. If I carelessly offend you next time, you may poison the entire Bright Frost Garden.”

Ning Xueyan showed sarcasm on her face and her eyes fell on Concubine Ma’s beautiful face. Being stared at by Ning Xueyan, Concubine Ma felt that she was almost drowned in the endless darkness, and immediately looked away subconsciously.

“Fifth Young Lady, it’s… it’s my fault. Please forgive me. If you do not forgive me, I… I’ll kneel here forever.” Concubine Ma suddenly threw herself down on her knees, bowed her head in tears, and knocked her head on the ground heavily.

Anyway, everybody would think that Ning Xueyan had gone too far if they saw the pregnant Concubine Ma kneeling here with her head bowed and sincerely asking for Ning Xueyan’s forgiveness.

Seeing that, Mother Qin slightly frowned.

Ning Xueyan hid the coldness and indifference on her face. She went up to support Concubine Ma with a slight smile on her face. “Concubine Ma, what are you doing? You overwhelmed me with more than I deserve.”

Although Ning Xueyan said this with a smile, Concubine Ma dared not regard her words as a joke. She stood up, grabbed Ning Xueyan’s hands, and said with tears in her eyes, “Fifth Young Lady, I… I was a fool. How… how could I think that you asked servants to humiliate me? I…”

Concubine Ma was very sad and sobbed while covering her face with her handkerchief.

“Concubine Ma, take care of yourself. No matter what you’ve done, now your body is the most important.” Mother Qin could not help coming over and supporting Concubine Ma while comforting her.

Ning Zu’an only had one son, so Madam Dowager paid great attention to the pregnant Concubine Ma and even pardoned Concubine Ma for murdering the Young Lady of Lord Protector’s Manor. It showed that Madam Dowager was eager to have another grandson.

“Concubine Ma, your health is very important. Take care of yourself and don’t run around. If something happens, who can afford it?” Ning Xueyan showed her concern to Concubine Ma while quietly pulling her sleeves away from Concubine Ma’s hands.

“Fifth Young Lady, my birthday is in five days. First Madam will hold a birthday party for me. I hope to see you then.” Concubine Ma stopped crying, put down her handkerchief, and sincerely invited Ning Xueyan, as if she really wanted to dispel her former enmity with Ning Xueyan.

“Oh, mother will celebrate your birthday. No wonder a stage is being set up in the garden recently. Is a theatrical troupe going to sing there?” Ning Xueyan asked with a smile.

Ning Xueyan encountered some outsiders along the way and deliberately avoided them. The maid told her that they were setting up a stage. Ning Xueyan did not remember the happy event that they were going to celebrate, but now she knew that they were going to celebrate Concubine Ma’s birthday. A concubine’s birthday should be celebrated like that. It seemed that Concubine Ma was valued by the whole manor.

“Yes. The First Madam said I should be happy every day because I’m pregnant and forget the unhappy things of the past. So she invited a theatrical troupe to make me happy,” Concubine Ma explained softly while looking at Ning Xueyan through her watery eyes. Concubine Ma was really beautiful. No wonder Ning Zu’an was so fond of her recently and stayed in her courtyard almost every day.

And he even directly ignored the fact that Concubine Ma had poisoned his daughter.

“Has the Spring Theatrical Troupe been invited? I’ve heard that some actors of that theatrical troupe are very good at singing,” Ning Xueyan asked casually.

Concubine Ma’s smile suddenly became stiff and her hands unconsciously shuddered as she held her handkerchief. And there was panic in her eyes. But then she said while moving to hide her mistake, “Yes… You also know the Spring Theatrical Troupe.”

“I didn’t know them. But Mother Han went to the countryside and found out some interesting things about the Spring Theatrical Troupe. I didn’t know it was anything interesting until she told me…” Ning Xueyan said in a soft voice while looking at Concubine Ma’s face. “If you’re free one day, we can have a talk.”

Since Concubine Ma wanted to bury the hatchet, it was normal that they would have a talk one day.

But instead of being happy, Concubine Ma became scared and her face turned pale. She hurried to say, “Fifth Young Lady, I’m going to thank Madam Dowager now. So I don’t have time to accompany you. In five days, I’ll invite you to come and have a talk with me.”

“My mother is so kind to you. In this manor, no one gets the same treatment as you. Not only does my father like you, but also my mother likes you very much.” Ning Xueyan slightly smiled. She did not stop Concubine Ma from leaving, but took two steps back and said those meaningful words.

Hearing that as she was going to leave, Concubine Ma stumbled and almost fell.

“What’s wrong with you?” Mother Qin urgently asked. Madam Dowager attached great importance to the baby that Concubine Ma was about to give birth to. So nothing was allowed to happen to Concubine Ma.

“Nothing. I just tripped. Fifth Young Lady, I’ll leave first!” Concubine Ma explained. Then she hurried to Bright Clouds Garden with her maids, as if there were people chasing after her. Seeing Concubine Ma walking so fast, Mother Qin worried that she would fall.

Looking at Concubine Ma’s back, Mother Qin asked with doubt, “What’s wrong with Concubine Ma?”

“I don’t know. Maybe she thought of something important and wants to tell my mother, so she’s in a hurry. Alas, how can she walk so fast now? What if she runs into someone by chance?”

Ning Xueyan smiled casually and went to her Bright Frost Garden with Mother Qin.

A few days prior, Ming Feiyong had asked for some old objects of Madam Ming. So today, when Ning Xueyan greeted Madam Dowager in the morning, Madam Dowager remembered and asked Mother Qin to fetch some from Bright Frost Garden.

“Yes, Concubine Ma is indeed a reckless person. Otherwise, how could she make so much trouble? Fortunately, you’re all right. The doctor said that you’ll recover as long as you rest more and take in more nourishing food.” Mother Qin smiled wide and spoke good words for Concubine Ma.

But was Ning Xueyan all right? If this Ning Xueyan had been the former Ning Xueyan, she would have already died!

Madam Dowager and her henchmen were getting better and better at lying through their teeth.

Fortunately, she was not in a hurry now. Since Madam Ling wanted to show her importance to Concubine Ma, Ning Ziyan should return home on Concubine Ma’s birthday. Were Madam Ling and Concubine Ma trying to frame Ning Xueyan in five days?

Unfortunately, there was no perfect plan and Madam Ling’s mistake was right in front of her eyes.

“Madam Ling, I hope you can bear what’s going to happen,” Ning Xueyan thought in her mind.

“Yes, Concubine Ma seems to be straightforward. It’s not unreasonable that my mother likes her so much. People will think they are sisters if they don’t know their relationship!” Ning Xueyan said with a smile on her face.

Seeing that Ning Xueyan smiled when she talked about Concubine Ma, Mother Qin thought that Ning Xueyan had forgiven Concubine Ma. “Yes. But anyway, she did something wrong and hurt you. After she gives birth to the child, she will be asked to apologize to you. We can’t slight you.”

Mother Qin saw what Ning Xueyan had done recently, and clearly knew that the girl in front of her was no longer the submissive Fifth Young Lady. Mother Qin used to be Madam Dowager’s maid and came here when Madam Dowager married into Lord Protector’s Manor. Later on, she became one of the stewardesses. Mother Qin had been here for many years, so she knew Ming Feiyong well. Now Ming Feiyong had returned to the capital, and the Fifth Young Lady was no longer helpless.

So she began to curry favor with Ning Xueyan.

“There’s no need to punish her. It’s just a misunderstanding,” Ning Xueyan said with a smile on her face while waving her hand.

A few moments later, they arrived at Bright Frost Garden. Ning Xueyan asked Mother Han to pack up some old jewelry and clothes of Madam Ming and then asked Mother Qin to bring them to Ming Feiyong.

When Mother Qin left, Mother Han could not help crying while holding the open jewelry box.

Only a few pieces of jewelry were left in the jewelry box, and most of them were silver. Who could believe that Madam Ming, who was born into a noble and rich family, did not leave any precious jewelry?

“Young Lady, it used to be full of jewelry ornaments. Later… some were taken away by Madam Ling and some were exchanged for medicine for you.”

Mother Han spoke sadly while stretching out her hands to wipe away the tears on her face.

How could she not get angry when her respectable and magnificent Young Lady came to such an end?

“Mother Han, don’t cry. They’ll return everything they took away. It’s not the right time yet.” Standing in front of the window and looking at the cloudy sky, Ning Xueyan spoke calmly. But no one saw the coldness and blood-thirst in her ink-like eyes.

Looking at Ning Xueyan’s thin back, Mother Han suddenly felt sorrowful. Who would have thought that the Fifth Young Lady was the only daughter of the Legal Wife, and that the Eldest Young Lady and Eldest Childe just were illegitimate children?

“Mother Han, don’t feel aggrieved. They’ll give back everything soon!” Ning Xueyan chuckled and comforted Mother Han, as if she could see Mother Han’s expression.