Chapter 63

Tao Sheng never thought her issues with the Shen family would be exposed in public this way. The grievances between her and the Shen family were complex and could not be explained in a few words. If she sat down and detailed them, it would take half a day to finish. She sighed softly and said, “I didn’t think that much at the time. I just wanted to be quiet.”

Seeing that Tao Sheng was unwilling to say more, Princess Qing understood.

It seemed that she didn’t like the Shen family and had no desire to return at all.

There must be more to the story, but it was unclear if it would be revealed today.

After seeing Shen Ruojin faint, Biqin cried and hugged her, begging Madam Guan to help.

No matter what, the one fainted on the ground was her daughter-in-law, at least for now. Although Mrs. Guan felt ashamed, she had no choice but to borrow a room from Princess He’en to settle Shen Ruojin and find a doctor to treat her.

Even if she wasn’t the daughter of a marquis, she was still the wife of the Prince of Lingguo. Mrs. Guan’s request was not unreasonable.

Princess He’en responded, “Come here, send the young lady to the chaise longue in the flower hall to rest first, and then find a doctor to take a look.”

Biqin came forward and, while supporting Shen Ruojin, secretly pinched her arm to inform her.

The situation was not favorable for Shen Ruojin, and Old Madam Shen had not come. Ningyuan was not far from the Shen family, and when Fang started to cause trouble, she feared something might happen. So, she quickly ordered the driver to go back to Ningyuan Marquis Mansion to invite Old Madam Shen over.

The old lady had devoted her life to her daughters and was the family’s strongest supporter of Shen Ruojin. Now that they were at a disadvantage, only Old Madam Shen’s arrival could turn the tide.

With one of the heroines of this drama collapsed, everyone lost the mood to enjoy the flowers. They felt that something significant would happen when Shen Ruojin woke up, so they gathered and waited for the doctor to arrive.

At this moment, a girl in a rose-red, flowered, chest-length skirt approached and said to Tao Sheng rudely, “I remember now. You are the one who ignored the news of Shen’s engagement and didn’t even congratulate her. Shen’s sister always greeted you with a smile, but you didn’t even bother to respond and even lied to us that you didn’t know her.”

Tao Sheng looked carefully and recognized that this girl was one of the sisters who stood beside Shen Ruojin during their last meeting.

This person had spoken to her in the same rude tone last time. Now, two or three years later, she was still so superficial and arrogant, showing no progress.

The girl was obviously one of Shen Ruojin’s staunch supporters, and her voice grew louder: “Your personality is really strange. It’s obvious you come from a small town and have no upbringing. Is it that when the Wenyuan Marquis Mansion found out about this, they refused to accept you because of your rude behavior and instead accepted the gentle and polite Sister Ruojin?”

Tao Sheng looked at the other girl coldly and asked, “Which master’s daughter are you?”

The young girl, who had been acting proud, shrank back.

Why was Luo Taosheng asking about her origins? Was she planning to embarrass her in front of the emperor?

“She is Miss Xue, from the family of Mr. Xue, the military officer.” Zhang Xinyue was shocked by what she had just heard. Since she was close to Tao Sheng, she guessed a bit about Tao Sheng’s past with the Luo family. Now that she was over her shock, she quickly jumped in.

“You are Shen Ruojin’s follower. If you want to act like her, that’s your choice. It doesn’t mean everyone has to follow her. She’s just a fake who has taken over. Do we, Ah Sheng, have to be nice to her?”

While they argued, Old Madam Shen walked in.

Seeing Shen Ruojin still unconscious, she fell to the ground and cried, “My Jin’er, what happened to you? Who hurt you? Tell me, and I’ll take care of it.”

It was unpleasant to see Old Madam Shen crying like this, hinting that she was blaming the banquet host and Princess He’en. Although Tang Yizi didn’t like her selfish grandmother, she gritted her teeth and went to support her: “Sister was just angry for a moment; it’s okay, don’t worry, grandma.”

“How can I not be sad when your sister is like this?” Old Madam Shen raised her voice, “Who told others about what we discussed at home? And who made her like this? Tell me!”

Tang Yizi wanted to convince Madam Shen to calm down and deal with this after the banquet, but she didn’t expect her grandmother to ignore her advice and show off her power instead.

Tang Yizi let go of Old Madam Shen’s hand and said nothing more.

Old Madam Shen got more annoyed when no one responded to her. She remembered what someone had told her earlier and walked over to Tao Sheng with anger: “Did you plan all this? You’ve always been selfish and resentful of our love for Ruojin, so you arranged for someone to hurt her.”

“Mrs. Shen, you need proof for your accusations.” Tao Sheng replied coldly, “If it was me or if there was fighting in the Guan family that exposed this, you’ll find out if you ask.”

Old Madam Shen had been taking things for granted for a long time. She didn’t consider that this was not the De Shou Hall in the Wenyuan Marquis Mansion, where she usually had control. Many people were watching, and the noble ladies wouldn’t confuse right and wrong like the Shen family did.

Seeing this, Biqin quickly approached Old Madam Shen and whispered what had happened. Old Madam Shen’s face darkened.

Madam Guan had always looked down on the Shen family. She thought they weren’t respectable. If her son hadn’t insisted on marrying Shen Ruojin, she wouldn’t want to be related to this family.

But given the current situation, if they wanted to save face for the Guan family, they could only team up with Old Madam Shen.

“These children are saying different things, and it’s a real headache. I’m confused by what they’re saying,” Madam Guan said. “You are the wife of the Marquis Wenyuan’s mansion. You are respected and knowledgeable. What is going on? Please tell us.”

“Honestly, we knew we took the wrong child,” Old Madam Shen said. “We were so happy to have our granddaughter back then, but when we met Tao Sheng, we saw she has a strange temper. No matter how we tried to persuade her, she wouldn’t agree to return. If we announced the truth and Tao Sheng didn’t come back, we would lose our original daughter. We didn’t want to lose a good girl for nothing.”

“Also, Jin’er has always been sensible, educated, and lovely. Everyone in the family likes her. Not just me, but even my father, mother, and brothers want to keep her. Since Tao Sheng doesn’t want to return, and Ruojin is willing to live with us, we never made it public for the children’s sake and the reputation of the Marquis’s Mansion.”