Thirteenth Lady's Comback: Her Everyday Life as a Bystander-Chapter 140 - 22: Aftermath

Nanny Qin had just told Xiang Lian to quickly reveal the mastermind behind it, lest her family be implicated, when the Princely Heir brought Xiang Lian’s parents and brothers over. The three were in quite a sorry state and had been substantially frightened. Xiang Lian’s mother, in particular, pounded on Xiang Lian in anger, saying that it’s one thing she won’t accept fate, but she nearly dragged them down to disaster.

Originally, ever since Gao Yue’s plan to exploit the Song Family and his niece by marriage failed, the Old Madam had feared his involvement with the Song Family and asked the Princely Heir to keep a constant eye on the Gao Family.

The Song Family might have wealth, but they lacked deep-rooted connections; as for Hidden Guards and Death Warriors, those were the stuff of legend, and the Song family didn’t have any. Furthermore, they couldn’t randomly send people out, so after a selection, the Princely Heir had no suitable personnel for this purpose. Ultimately, they befriended some "people of the martial world" through the Yangwei Escort Agency.

This maneuver ended up delaying things quite a bit, so by the time the Fifth Miss and the Gao Family reconnected, Gao Yue had sought to curry favor with Prince Gong, but having failed, he sent people to befriend Xiang Lian in hopes of irritating the Song Family.

When the "people of the martial world" came to the Capital, they coincidentally arrived just as Gao Yue sent people to clean up loose ends—to kill to silence.

Xiang Lian’s parents and brothers were indeed unremarkable, honest folks without ambition, but they had two pretty and ambitious daughters (older sisters). The eldest was previously the daughter-in-law of the housekeeper of the Duke’s grand warehouse, and the great master had sent the whole family to Shanxi to dig coal. The second was this rebellious Xiang Lian.

The Fifth Miss and Bisha knew Xiang Lian harbored intense hatred towards Susu and intended to use her as a pawn. Bisha told her numerous tales of how pampered the maids of Sui’an Hall were, emphasizing Susu in particular. Xiang Lian, dim-witted and easily swayed, compared her situation with Susu’s and became so enraged she wished to get rid of Susu immediately.

Then Gao Yue’s men appeared, presenting Xiang Lian with a scheme involving a charming man—more like a soul mate. To say that Gao Yue was indeed clever; just to bewilder a young maid, he spent time and resources to design a ploy that led the naive maid step-by-step into the trap. If he achieves great things, he surely would be an extraordinary hero!

A soul mate listens to your troubles and concerns, and coincidentally, Xiang Lian’s parents and siblings had left the manor, while Xiang Lian had monthly holidays to go home. The Song Family wouldn’t pay attention to an insignificant maid’s comings and goings, especially since Second Miss disliked Xiang Lian, marginalizing her further and causing her to be even more ignored.

Thus, Xiang Lian was gradually guided into growing more disgusted with the Song Family and Susu, compounded by the "soul mate" unveiling some truths for her, finally giving Xiang Lian her opportunity to vent her frustrations.

Xiang Lian’s extraordinary behavior naturally did not escape her parents’ notice. Additionally, once when Xiang Lian’s mother hadn’t seen her daughter return home for a long time, she sought the help of an old friend, hoping to see Xiang Lian. Who would’ve thought the manor claimed Xiang Lian had already taken leave to go home? This was when Xiang Lian’s mother learned about her daughter’s outings without returning home.

Trying to quell her panic, Xiang Lian’s mother bid farewell to her friend and returned home only to find her daughter still absent. Consequently, she discreetly hid near the Song Family’s back side door, waiting for her daughter, and caught her daughter in high spirits coming home with the secretly accompanying "soul mate."

Already mentioned, Xiang Lian’s relatives were honest people; actually calling them honest was an overstatement, more like cowardly. Xiang Lian’s mother, upon witnessing this scene, clutched her chest and hid, unable to believe her daughter would shamelessly meet with a man in private. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Yet she did not dare call out to her daughter, fearing a ruckus would attract the Song Family’s watchmen. At that point, not only would her daughter’s reputation be tarnished, but she would likely be expelled from the Song Family. Currently, the entire family relied on the second daughter’s monthly wage to survive, how could they afford to displease her?

Xiang Lian, absorbed in affection with her "soul mate," failed to notice her sneaky mother. Instead, it was the "soul mate," Mr. Bai, who had roots as a hoodlum, involved in all sorts of vice and schemes. Possessing a keen sense of observation, he had already noticed someone in the corner, initially breaking out in a cold sweat. Upon closely examining, he realized it was his "mother-in-law," and having known the temperament of this family, Mr. Bai, who had taken enough advantage, understood her silence and knew she truly lacked backbone.