Lüdou’s words not only exposed the eldest Song brother’s lie, but also refuted Old Madam Song’s claim that the Prince of Pingyang’s residence had no rules.
The second Song branch immediately became displeased.
Ever since the eldest Song brother had come to the capital, his entire family had been eating and living at the Song residence.
The second Song branch had long been unhappy about it.
Their elder brother had a perfectly good position as a county magistrate, yet he had insisted on coming to the capital to compete with her husband for his livelihood.
Then there were his two nephews. When they saw her own son attending school, they had even made a fuss about going as well.
They clearly had no idea that this was the capital.
It was not some little place like Xianyang!
Never mind how much money it would take to feed, clothe, house, and support such a large family.
What made the second branch even more uncomfortable was that the eldest brother’s family wanted to compare themselves with them in everything.
Song Jiang advised his wife, “Bear with it for now. Things will get better once the Crown Prince ascends the throne.”
“Besides, people in the capital pay great attention to clans sticking together.”
“The Song family has only me here in the capital. We’re far too weak on our own.”
“If Big Brother can also catch the Crown Prince’s eye, then the Song family’s rise will be just around the corner!”
“You women really are narrow-minded and short-sighted!”
The second Song branch had merely complained a few times, yet her husband had scolded her for it.
She had quietly kept score.
Now, upon hearing that the eldest branch actually wanted to pocket those hundred taels of silver, she could no longer tolerate it.
“The money for Song Shuzhou’s medical treatment and medicine all came from the household.”
“Besides, Mother said that your branch would contribute fifty taels, while Mother would contribute one hundred and fifty.”
“So the remaining one hundred taels should be returned to our branch, Big Brother and Sister-in-law.”
Her husband was not home today, so the second Song branch had no fear of tearing off the mask of civility.
The eldest Song brother’s face flushed red.
He had never expected his second sister-in-law to say it so bluntly.
Song Shuzhou heard that the money he had already considered his was about to slip away.
He immediately gnashed his teeth in fury.
“You walking disaster!”
“Ever since you came back, you’ve thrown the entire Song residence into chaos!”
Lüdou cast Song Shuzhou a sidelong glance.
“It was your parents who begged me to come back!”
Song Shuzhou was furious.
He thought that since the Prince of Pingyang was willing to accept money in exchange for releasing the Jinx, it proved that the Jinx was not particularly valued at the Prince of Pingyang’s residence.
Because he was a man and the second son, Song Shuzhou had been spoiled by Madam Song until he became somewhat arrogant.
“You… you wretched Jinx! How dare you talk back!”
As he spoke, Song Shuzhou raised his hand and moved to slap Lüdou.
Ever since Lüdou had followed Duoduo to the prince’s residence, Duoduo had exercised every day and brought Lüdou along with her.
Lüdou’s skills were more than enough to deal with Song Shuzhou.
She immediately seized his wrist and twisted it backward.
With a crisp crack, Song Shuzhou let out a shriek like a slaughtered pig.
“Ah!”
“My hand!”
“It’s broken!”
Song Shuzhou clutched his wrist, tears and snot streaming down his face.
Lüdou released him and stepped back.
“He was going to hit me first.” She put on a wronged expression.
Everyone in the room was startled.
Madam Song rushed over and grabbed her younger son’s hand to examine it.
“Don’t touch it!”
“It hurts! It hurts!”
Song Shuzhou’s face had gone pale.
He stared at the “sister” before him in terror.
This was the second time he had suffered at the hands of the Jinx!
Seeing that his son’s hand appeared to be broken, the eldest Song brother panicked as well.
He hurriedly sent someone to fetch a physician.
“How could you do that to your second brother?” the eldest Song brother scolded Lüdou angrily.
Lüdou blinked and pretended to be innocent.
“When he was about to hit me, why didn’t I see any of you stop him?”
“So, in your eyes, he’s more important than I am!”
“If that’s the case, why did you bring me back?” As she spoke, Lüdou lowered her head sadly.
Seeing how much pain her son was in, Madam Song flew into a rage.
“If you weren’t useful, do you think we would have gone to bring you back?”
Lüdou raised her head, her face full of mockery.
“I knew it. Back then, at the Song residence, you abandoned the Princess in the rear courtyard and left her to fend for herself.”
“How else could you suddenly rush to the Prince of Pingyang’s residence and put on such a touching display of parental affection?”
“So that’s why they say one never visits without a reason!”
“Fortunately, the Princess saw through you long ago. Otherwise, that disgusting face of yours would truly make people sick!”
Lüdou’s words left Madam Song momentarily stunned.
“You foul-mouthed girl! You’re no longer the Princess of the Prince of Pingyang’s residence, yet you keep calling yourself ‘Princess’ this and ‘Princess’ that. Aren’t you ashamed?”
Song Shuzhou finally realized what was going on as well.
He pointed at Lüdou and reminded his mother, “Mother, she isn’t the Jinx!”
“She’s the maid who stayed by the Jinx’s side—the one whose name had something to do with beans!”
The eldest Song brother and Madam Song froze.
The two of them looked at Lüdou at the same time.
“That’s impossible, isn’t it?”
“It’s true!” Song Shuzhou said.
“I mistook her for the Jinx that day too, and ended up being ridiculed by her!”
Remembering the humiliating scene, Song Shuzhou grew even more furious.
Old Madam Song also found it difficult to believe. She narrowed her eyes and carefully examined Lüdou.
She had no impression whatsoever of what her granddaughter looked like.
Still, since the two girls were twins, there should at least have been some resemblance between them, shouldn’t there?
Yet after examining Lüdou, she could not find anything suspicious.
The second Song branch immediately wore mocking smiles.
“Big Brother, Sister-in-law, you spent two hundred taels to bring back a maid?”
“No wonder your niece refused to go with you! If I were her, I wouldn’t want to go either!”
“I’ve truly seen everything now. I never knew a child’s own parents could fail to recognize her!”
Hearing the second branch’s sarcasm, Madam Song became anxious.
She released her son and turned to Lüdou in fury.
“You clearly aren’t my daughter. Why did you admit that you were?”
Lüdou straightened her back.
“You were the ones who said I was and dragged me away by force!”
The eldest Song brother had never imagined that he would mistake someone else for his own daughter.
His face burned with embarrassment.
He raised his hand, intending to hit Lüdou, but when he saw his son’s miserable condition, he did not dare strike her.
“Get out!”
“You’re only a maid, yet you dared to impersonate the Princess!”
“The Prince of Pingyang is truly despicable! I’m going to report him to the authorities!”
Lüdou swept her gaze across everyone in the room and gave a cold laugh before turning and walking out.
Naturally, Song Shuzhou was unwilling to let her leave so easily.
“Father, Mother, she injured me! We can’t just let her go!”
“We should demand compensation from the Prince of Pingyang’s residence!” he shouted.
Madam Song looked toward her husband. The eldest Song brother hesitated.
He had done something disgraceful to the Prince of Pingyang, and his conscience was troubled.
“Big Brother, since you failed to settle the matter, you still have to return the money you spent!” the second Song branch added, fanning the flames gleefully.
Seeing the eldest branch suffer, the second Song branch was delighted. This niece they had never even met was truly a lucky star!
Upon hearing this, the eldest Song brother turned and strode outside.
After leaving the Song residence, Lüdou walked very slowly.
She was waiting for someone from the Song residence to come after her.
She was also waiting for the onlookers to gather and enjoy the spectacle.
Before long, she heard footsteps behind her.
“Stop right there!”
