Chapter 15: Not Humiliated Enough

Since Xie Qiqi was brought back, she had watched her mother repeatedly show favoritism toward Yue Yue. She no longer cared about past grievances; what she wanted to know was whether her mother would stand by her this time.

Yue Huijuan’s face darkened, and she spoke angrily, “Qiqi, even your second brother says you’re not worthy of Wei Ling. Why do you keep making a fuss?”

Xie Wenyuan said firmly, “Qiqi, we’re not negotiating with you. The Wei family has already broken off the engagement. Whether you agree or not, this marriage is over!”

Xie Qiqi stared blankly at Xie Wenyuan’s face, which resembled their father’s portrait.

Their father was strict and impartial, decisive and unyielding. Xie Wenyuan had inherited about seventy percent of his character.

They truly were not consulting her; they simply feared she might cause trouble upon hearing the news, so they summoned her to warn her.

“Mother!” Xie Qiqi looked at Yue Huijuan, her voice choked, “What did I do wrong?”

Why treat me like this?

In other families, if anyone dared to break off an engagement without reason, the mother or brothers would surely confront the other party, wouldn’t they?

But her own mother and brothers hadn’t uttered a single word of reproach to the Wei family, only forcing her to give up the marriage that was rightfully hers to Yue Yue!

Are they truly my mother and brothers?

Yue Huijuan saw the tears in Xie Qiqi’s eyes and felt irritated inside. She replied perfunctorily,

“Qiqi, don’t overthink. Don’t worry, Mother will find you a good match again, and we’ll send you off with honor.”

“That’s settled then. Tomorrow, Mother will send the official matchmakers to your residence to select some suitable candidates. Once you’re satisfied, Mother will arrange for you to meet them.”

Yue Huijuan felt even better about her plan as she said this, smiling warmly at Xie Wenyuan and Xie Wentao.

“Wenyuan, Wentao, you must also keep Qiqi’s marriage in mind. If you know any suitable young men, you can bring them over for her to consider.”

Yue Yue wiped her tears, glanced timidly at Xie Qiqi, and whispered, “Thank you, sister, for allowing me and Brother Ling to be together...”

“If sister doesn’t mind, Brother Ling knows many talented young men. I’ll ask him to keep an eye out for you as well...”

Xie Qiqi saw Yue Yue, hidden from the eyes of her eldest brother and mother, flash that proud and provocative smile toward her.

Her words seemed to be for her benefit on the surface, but in truth, they were a lofty grace.

Having Wei Ling—the very one who had broken off the engagement with her—find a husband for her? Was that not humiliation enough?

Clenching her fists tightly, Xie Qiqi turned to leave the suffocating room.

At the doorway, Cui’er came in carrying a wooden basin, blocking her path.

Cui’er smiled as she pressed the basin into Xie Qiqi’s arms.

——

“Fourth Miss, just in time. Madam hasn’t had her massage or poultice today. Your skills are excellent, so please take care of her!”

Seeing this, Xie Wenyuan rose and said his goodbyes, “Mother, please rest early. We will take our leave now.”

Passing by Xie Qiqi, Xie Wenyuan scolded her with a stern face.

“Mother injured her leg. Instead of running around all day, you should learn from Yue Yue and come to care for her more often.”

“A wife should be virtuous. Qiqi, ‘virtuous’ no longer applies to you. If you gain a reputation for being unfilial, who would marry you? You’d better behave yourself.”

Xie Qiqi gripped the wooden basin tightly.

Her eldest brother wielded a sword in battle; he couldn’t fight with weapons, but he knew exactly how to strike at the heart with words!

Xie Wentao followed behind, gripping Xie Qiqi’s shoulder hard and leaning close to whisper,

“Qiqi, I know you’re cunning. You’re surely unhappy about the broken engagement today…”

“I warn you—if you keep your nose clean, fine. But if you dare cause trouble for Yue Yue, I won’t go easy on you!”

The sharp pain in her shoulder almost made Xie Qiqi stagger, and by the time she steadied herself, Xie Wentao had swaggered away.

Though the scene earlier chilled her heart, Xie Qiqi still carried the basin to the bedside and began massaging and washing Yue Huijuan’s feet.

Once she dried her mother’s feet and helped her lie down, it was already dark outside.

Xie Qiqi had missed both lunch and dinner and was starving. After paying her respects and taking leave, she intended to find something to eat in the kitchen.

At the gate, she met Madame Zhong, who carried a stack of invitations. Upon seeing Xie Qiqi, Madame Zhong instinctively hid them behind her back.

Xie Qiqi was momentarily puzzled but then dismissed it. After all, no madams or young ladies in the capital ever invited her to their gatherings. Why should she care?

By the time she reached the kitchen courtyard, all the evening meals for each household had long been distributed. The pots, pans, and dishes were all clean and tidy.

Madam Liang, the kitchen supervisor, and a cook had just finished eating. Madam Liang picked her teeth while looking at Xie Qiqi and sneered sarcastically.

“Fourth Miss, no one from your residence came to collect the evening meal. I heard you were out playing, so I had the cooks divide your portion among themselves.”

“Surely you haven’t still missed dinner? Oh dear, what will you do now? The ingredients are all used up, the cooks have left, and there’s no one to prepare food for you!”

But the air was thick with the aroma of chicken soup, which made Xie Qiqi’s stomach growl loudly.

She strode straight into the kitchen.

Inside, Xie Qiqi immediately spotted a row of small stoves in the corner simmering bird’s nest soup, chicken broth, and nourishing porridge.

These were prepared as late-night nourishment for her eldest brother, second brother, and Yue Yue.

Without a word, Xie Qiqi stepped forward and lifted the bowl of bird’s nest porridge.

Madam Liang panicked and rushed over to snatch it away.

“Fourth Miss, that’s a tonic cooked especially for Fifth Miss. You can’t take it!”

Xie Qiqi dodged, but Madam Liang pulled hard.

The bowl wobbled, spilling half its contents onto Xie Qiqi’s hand.

Burning hot, Xie Qiqi instinctively let go.

Madam Liang’s hand was also scalded, and she loosened her grip.

With a loud crash, the earthenware pot fell to the floor, spilling the remaining bird’s nest porridge all over Xie Qiqi’s feet.

Enduring the pain, Xie Qiqi turned to grab the chicken soup. She refused to believe she wouldn’t get to eat today.

But just as her hand touched the pot, Madam Liang shoved her roughly.

Startled, Xie Qiqi grabbed the stove to steady herself, but her momentum was uncontrollable, and she knocked the pot to the ground.

The pot shattered, and the soup along with the chicken spilled out.

Madam Liang gave a warning glance to the stunned cook beside her, who immediately turned and ran out.

“Fourth Miss, have you lost your mind? That’s the late-night meal for Eldest and Second Young Masters! How could you smash it all? How am I supposed to explain this to them?”

Backing away, Madam Liang deliberately knocked over bottles and jars filled with oil and salt.

Seeing that Madam Liang no longer stopped her, Xie Qiqi ignored the mess and continued searching for food.

She spotted a few steamed buns in a basket and quickly grabbed them all into a bowl, then headed for the door.

But before she could leave, she heard hurried footsteps approaching.

Madam Liang ran to the entrance and shouted loudly upon seeing the newcomers.

“Eldest Young Master! Second Young Master! Fourth Miss must be possessed! Look at the mess she’s made in the kitchen!”

Xie Qiqi looked up to see Xie Wenyuan and Xie Wentao leading the way, with Yue Yue and Qiu Ju following behind.

The kitchen was in complete disarray, with shards of broken bottles and jars everywhere, and chicken soup flowing across the floor.

Xie Wenyuan’s eyes widened in disbelief at the scene.

Although Xie Wentao had witnessed Xie Qiqi’s earlier violent act with a knife that morning, he was still stunned by this.

“Has Xie Qiqi lost her mind?”