Chapter 1408: Chapter 1346: Painstaking Efforts
Madam Wangâs well-intentioned advice was lost on Wu Yining, who felt like exploding at merely hearing her mother suggest she avoid Wufu, a little countryside wench. After all, she was the Eldest Legitimate Daughter! Why should she avoid someone from the countryside?
"Mother, what are you afraid of her for? Sheâs just from the countryside, hardly presentable..."
"Hold your tongue!" Madam Wang snapped sternly. She had not shared all the nasty matters with her daughter and scolded, "Ningning, youâre reaching the age of marriage next year. You canât be so willful, looking only at appearances!"
Wu Yining remained visibly indignant.
Seeing this, Madam Wang, furious, tapped her daughterâs arm twice, speaking earnestly: "Ningning, I have my reasons for saying this. Your maternal family has already fallen!"
Wu Yining froze.
She didnât need her mother to remind her; she already knew her maternal family had fallen. It was precisely because of this that many debutantes who used to be friendly with her no longer were, speaking ill of her and mocking her maternal family behind her back.
And for this reason, she clung tightly to Princess Ping Xi. After all, the Commandery Princessâ noble status made her the most prestigious of all her friends, and most importantly, there was also the Crown Prince Wei.
"Previously, when your maternal family still had glory, when your cousin was favored in the palace, even if you killed that wench, mother wouldnât have batted an eye; there was support behind you to clean up. But now, thereâs none. All you have is the Wu Family. Your father is just a fifth-rank official, and moreover, the Wu Familyâs ancestors started with craftsmanship, so compared to those great families, thereâs no deep foundation!"
Madam Wang elaborated on the risks: "A woman without a strong family backing is at a disadvantage. I donât want you to suffer. If you cause any trouble, does the family have the capability to smooth it over for you?"
Wu Yiningâs face turned pale, and she mumbled, "Mother, is our family really in such a state? Father is at least a fifth-rank official. Even when the emperor selects consorts, he also picks from families of fifth-rank officials. Is our family as waning as you say?"
Madam Wang sneered coldly, "Your father always blames your maternal family for holding back his promotion!"
Wu Yining pouted at this: "Thatâs true. If it werenât for Cousinâs misdeeds, my maternal family wouldnât have been stripped of its title and demoted to commoners. Cousin wouldnât have been banished to the Cold Palace, and Father would have been promoted."
Itâs all Cousinâs fault, and also Elder Maternal Auntâs family, for not keeping their son in check!
Madam Wang, noticing the disdain and contempt on her daughterâs face, felt a chill in her heart and said solemnly, "You must not blame your maternal family; your maternal grandmother and aunts have never mistreated you or your siblings."
Wu Yining pursed her lips.
"Iâm not telling you this for you to resent your maternal family. Itâs just to remind you of the current state of our family. If you donât want it to become worse than it is now, listen to me!" Madam Wang said with a stern face.
Wu Yining said, "Mother, even if thatâs the case, Iâm still no worse off than that young wifeâs child."
"You stubborn child, are you insistent on getting yourself hurt? Even your grandmother suffered under her schemes. What makes you think you have the skills to outwit that wild girl? Do you really want to ruin yourself? Iâm telling you, she has some capable people around her."
Wu Yining furrowed her brows and said, "Do I really have to grovel before her? Mother, Iâm the Eldest Legitimate Daughter. If I have to bow and scrape before some young wifeâs child, I might as well die of humiliation. Besides, Princess Ping Xi despises mistresses and concubine-born daughters the most."