Chapter 179 - Enmity (1/2)

Out of the remaining watermelons in the store, Xiaocao chose the two that had the highest concentration of spiritual energy within them. She carefully took them off of the shelf and personally brought them over to the counter. She needed to make a good impression on her godmother. Lady Fang, on the other hand, felt bad having such a small and fragile little girl moving the watermelon and commanded her maidservants, “Linglong, Zhenzhu, why aren’t you two going over to help?”

Yu Xiaocao was a bit embarrassed in front of Lady Fang and had a bashful smile on her face when she raised it up to look at the woman. She was usually chirpy and talkative but she didn’t quite know what to say to the woman in front of her.

Lady Fang lowered her head and gently looked at the shyly smiling little girl. She used the handkerchief in her hand to lightly clean a bit of dust that had inadvertently been smudged onto that cute little face. She then stroked the little girl’s glossy and dark hair. The little girl’s eyes, which had previously been a bit anxious, immediately brightened and looked as dazzling as a bunch of stars. It made her somewhat common looking face become lively and energetic.

“Little girl, how much would it be for these two watermelons?” After seeing the young girl’s sincerely smiling face, Lady Fang surreptitiously glanced at her niece’s gloomy expression and became much more cheerful. The older woman’s expression and mood clearly showed that she was trying to tease Xiaocao!

Yu Xiaocao came closer to the woman again as she kneaded at the corner of her clothes with a blush on her face. She quietly said, “We’re all family, there’s no need to talk about payment for the watermelons, right? I’m giving these two watermelons to you, Godmother, to show my filial respect to you.”

“Oh? You can’t just make an assumption that anyone is your godmother. Aren’t you afraid that you might have mistaken her identity?” Lady Fang teased the little girl as if she was the Perisan cat at home. Her expression and tone all held a hint of laughter.

Yu Xiaocao deliberately used an uncertain tone and hesitated before she asked, “May I ask...are you a part of the Fang Family?”

Lady Fang seemed to be smiling as she slowly replied, “There are many people surnamed Fang in this world, are you telling me that every Lady Fang is your godmother?”

“My godfather told me that my godmother is beautiful, magnanimous and has a sweet-tempered personality while being resolute. She’s kind but also courageous. Godfather also said that we are like two kindred spirits and would get along splendidly. At first glance I could tell that you are an amiable lady and my intuition told me that you are my godmother!” Yu Xiaocao cleverly flattered the older woman as she tried to please her.

Xia Furong, whose attention was still on Prince Jing’s second son, suddenly became alert after hearing Xiaocao say, “You are my godmother”. Her almond shaped eyes opened wide and she glared fiercely at Xiaocao. She instantly noticed that the little girl was dressed plainly, had an average looking appearance, and a shy manner that bespoke of her lowly birth.

She sneered and remarked drily, “Can you call anyone your godmother? Little girl, you already know how to try to climb the ladder at such a young age. You are truly too unscrupulous ah!”

Her aunt disliked people who schemed the most. If she could lead her aunt down the wrong line of thinking with her words, then it didn’t matter if her uncle recognized the little girl as his adopted daughter. The mistress of the General’s Estate was still her own blood aunt!

Yu Xiaocao could sense the pretty young maiden’s hostility towards her. She felt a bit puzzled inside, ‘We’re total strangers to each other, so why is she deliberately trying to discredit me?’

Lady Fang had never seen the harsh side of her niece before. Usually, her niece always seemed innocent, cheerful, and had a good understanding of others. The words she said today, why did they seem so mean? She started to recall that her niece often tried to please her and that the young girl also insinuated that she saw the general’s residence as her second home…

Lady Fang was familiar with inner yard politics and had also personally experienced the infighting and scheming of the Xia Family’s wife and concubines. Within a wink, she grasped what her niece was trying to do and immediately became unhappy. Apparently the simple and innocent appearance of her niece was a special act especially crafted for her ah!

Lady Fang’s gaze at Xia Furong became stricter and she mildly said, “Furong, this is the adopted daughter that your uncle personally recognized himself. Her name is Yu Xiaocao and she’s not quite ten this year. Yet, she can already support her family all on her own. Hasn’t our current emperor extolled that women should strive for self-improvement and independence? I believe Xiaocao is a shining example of that!”

When Yu Xiaocao heard her godmother supporting her and even complimenting her at such a high degree, she hurriedly interjected humbly, “Godmother, you praise me too much! Without the help of my parents and siblings, I wouldn’t be able to do anything! Godfather also helps me very much. For example, this store has such a good location. If it wasn’t for the previous owner regarding godfather so highly, we absolutely wouldn’t have been able to buy it…”

“What?!” Xia Furong raised her voice and a jealous expression twisted her face, “Uncle bought this store for you? Aunt, a store in such a good location must be at least a thousand taels! How could a country bumpkin like her possibly have enough money to buy something so expensive? When Uncle took up the imperial envoy post, he only took a couple thousand taels along with him. Is it possible that she took bribes from other people to pay for this?”

Xia Furong had accompanied her aunt for a full two years and naturally knew that her aunt hated officials who took bribes. She even constantly warned her uncle that he shouldn’t take small benefits and end up losing the emperor’s trust. If something like that truly occurred, this little panting dog would never be able to be liked by her aunt. Thus, wouldn’t she be one step closer to her dream of becoming a young lady of a general’s household?