Chapter Ninety: Provocation

When Lady Zhang asked that question, everyone turned to look at Xu Ruojin's hand.

Inwardly, Xu Ruojin regretted it. Just moments ago she had been busy mixing the wine and had forgotten to cover the burn on her hand.

The ladies in the room had sharp eyes. A casual excuse would not easily get her through this.

Yuan Huiling stood nearby, smiling into her sleeve as she waited for the show.

It was not she who had stirred things up; Lady Zhang had seen it herself.

Lady Yang froze, caught Xu Ruojin's sleeve and lifted it up, revealing the red burn along half her arm. The sight startled the ladies.

"Oh dear, was that a scald? How did it get so bad?"

"What were you girls doing, anyway? You were just sitting down to tea. How did you end up burned like this?"

The ladies spoke over one another. Lady Yang could only resent her own impulsive hand.

Why had she pulled up the sleeve for no reason?

Now, even if she wanted to make up an excuse, it would be hard to spin one.

Lady Liang frowned slightly but said nothing.

As the mistress of the household, the magistrate's wife immediately ordered someone to fetch medicine. "Go quickly and bring the burn ointment from my husband's study. A girl's worst fear is leaving a scar; that is a matter for her entire life. Oh, you girls must have been so careless."

Though her words carried a note of reproach, Xu Ruojin curtsied lightly and thanked her. "You are very kind to worry about me, Madam."

"How exactly did this happen? Tell us."

Lady Zhang waited for her explanation, and the interrogating tone made Xu Ruojin dislike her all the more.

"Thank you for your concern. Once I apply some medicine later, it will be fine..."

Xu Ruojin did not answer directly and sidestepped the issue.

With a sharp crack, Lady Zhang set down her chopsticks. Her face darkened at once as she said with a sneer, "Girls these days are spoiled at home. Setting aside manners for the moment, they won't even answer an elder's question. In our day, if we dared to say half a word in defiance, the ruler or the board would come down on us long ago. Sigh..."

Xu Ruojin had not yet even entered the Zhang household, and even if Lady Zhang meant to rebuke her, she still had to take the roundabout way.

Lady Yang's expression also fell. To criticize Xu Ruojin in front of her was no different from saying she had no manners.

Ordinary matters could be overlooked, but the words "manners and decorum" were Lady Yang's sore point.

Though she had always flattered Lady Zhang and eagerly sought favor with the Zhang family, now that the marriage had been settled, she at least had the confidence to throw a small tantrum.

"I don't know about other families, but I can say with confidence that Ruojin is a good girl. Over the years I have been especially strict with her, and she has always been proper and respectful toward me. She has never disobeyed the instructions or reminders of her elders. That I can guarantee."

"She is obedient, yes, but not blindly so that she has no mind of her own. She knows how to weigh time and place, and she would never stir up trouble for no reason!"

"Y-you..."

Lady Zhang clenched her teeth, feeling as though fire were burning in her chest.

Yet she had no way to take Lady Yang's rebuke and turn it back on her, so she simply turned her head away and did not reply.

Seeing that both ladies had gone cold-faced, the magistrate's wife could only step in to smooth things over. "Now, now, what's all this? Everyone here is fond of the girl. In the end, you're only worried that she has been wronged, worried that Ruojin is too embarrassed to speak up."

Looking at Xu Ruojin, the magistrate's wife went on, "Since we're all here before me, if you truly have been wronged, how could I not stand up for the girl? There's no need to hide it or hold it in. What do you say?"

These words were clearly more in Lady Zhang's favor...

Lady Yang's face became even more strained, but Xu Ruojin remained calm. She had long since expected the magistrate's wife to lean toward Lady Zhang.

Who had made Lady Yang so unwelcome in the ladies' circle?

After all that circling, the matter had come back around to the beginning.

Xu Ruojin felt the ladies' gazes fixed on her. If she did not want to answer, she had no choice.

Lady Zhao and Lady Mo both wore expectant looks. Lady Liang still sat with her dignified smile, giving nothing away.

After a moment's thought, Xu Ruojin looked at the magistrate's wife. "You said it yourself just now: before your eyes, how could I be made to suffer a grievance? It was only a burn that medicine can heal, so I did not wish to make a fuss."

"Just now they said you were with a group of young men..."

Lady Mo spoke softly, but she had exposed the suspicion lurking in Lady Zhang's heart.

The reason everyone kept pressing the matter was that they had once again begun to doubt what Yuan Huiling and the other girls, including Mo Rong, had said earlier.

If the matter were left unspoken, so be it. But once it was bluntly aired, the ladies' expressions grew even more grave.

Lady Yang was so angry she nearly blacked out.

Earlier, Jiang Mingshuang had come over and said a few words, and the matter had already been smoothed over.

Why bring it up again now?

These people were only jealous that the Xu family had climbed into the Zhang family's good graces, and so they were here to sabotage things again and again.

What if she was currying favor with the Zhang family?

Hadn't the Zhao and Mo families also been fawning over the magistrate's wife?

No one was in a position to laugh at anyone else.

And if one compared official rank in her own household, it was even more impressive than the Zhao or Mo families!

Lady Yang did not dare show anger toward Lady Zhang, but she glared at Lady Zhao and Lady Mo for a long time.

Xu Ruojin, however, grew tense at once. She instinctively looked toward the magistrate's wife, only to see her smiling at her. That lofty, superior air made Xu Ruojin feel sick.

Was the spectacle so entertaining?

Did they not find their own thoughts vulgar and contemptible, using her reputation as a toy?

Xu Ruojin was indignant, but a smile still remained on her face. "I had not planned to say anything. But since it has been put this way, it makes it sound as though all us girls were unruly. That would not only stain my own name, but even drag the other girls into it. We were all together just now."

"Mo Rong said she left with Cui Ling first..."

Lady Mo's words made it clear she did not believe her.

The magistrate's wife shot Lady Mo a look. "They're only children. What are you all imagining?"

"Since that is the case, then I shall speak plainly."

Xu Ruojin looked at Yuan Huiling, who stood by with obvious delight at the misfortune. "The redness on my arm was caused by the steam from the wine in the hexagonal pavilion just now."

Yuan Huiling had been about to laugh, but when she saw Xu Ruojin looking at her, she stopped.

The ladies were also looking at Yuan Huiling, as if asking whether it was true.

"Yes, yes, it was scalded by the heat," Yuan Huiling said, looking at Xu Ruojin. "I didn't expect you would actually dare to say it."

"What else could I do?"

Xu Ruojin looked helpless. "I really did not want to say it was because of you that I was hurt, but if I did not speak, the ladies were about to swallow me whole with their eyes. Miss Yuan, I truly apologize."

"Hmph, wha—?"

Yuan Huiling had been about to agree, but then she suddenly stared. "How, how did it become my fault that you were hurt?"

"Isn't that the truth?"

Xu Ruojin fixed her gaze on her.

The sharp light in those eyes made Yuan Huiling tremble inwardly.

Thinking of the threat Xu Ruojin had made at the other table just moments ago, she suddenly understood.

Xu Ruojin meant to have her take the blame and swallow this loss?

Yuan Huiling wanted to denounce her on the spot and tell the truth.

But Xu Ruojin's calm smile made her hesitate.

Wouldn't it... be most disadvantageous for her if the whole matter were laid bare?

The magistrate's wife looked at Yuan Huiling with some surprise. "You? What exactly happened?"

Swallowing hard, Yuan Huiling only felt her forehead ache with anger. Gnashing her teeth, she said, "Yes, it was me. I didn't do it on purpose."