CHAPTER 186: CHAPTER 4: STRIFE BETWEEN LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE OFFSPRING (PART 4)

Li Shumeng has not come yet, and that personal maid is still serving Li Shuning.

"Xiaolan, go downstairs and get some snacks for the second young lady; you don’t need to serve here anymore."

Xiaolan was secretly delighted; she was worried that something might happen, and she wouldn’t be able to explain. Now that she wasn’t present, there would be no suspicion on her.

After Xiaolan left, Li Shuning immediately put the incense into the Qiankun Ring and then casually took another type of incense from the room to light up.

She also opened all the windows, sat by the window, and casually picked up a book to read.

When Li Shumeng came in, she saw Li Shuning sitting by the window reading a book.

Li Shumeng sneered in her heart. Such a cold day, and she left the window open. What nonsense.

She sniffed; there was incense in the room, and she smiled.

"Sister, I’ve come to see you."

"Second sister hasn’t been to see me before. Is there something today?"

"Sister, it was my ignorance before; don’t blame me. Sister, I heard that Grandfather is preparing to marry you to the Fifth Prince."

"Oh, how did you know about Grandfather’s affairs? Second sister, don’t blame me for saying this, but you shouldn’t pry into matters you shouldn’t, and don’t overextend yourself."

Li Shumeng was secretly resentful. What nonsense, how dare she reprimand her. Just wait, you’ll be crying later.

Li Shumeng moved closer to Li Shuning, but because the windows were open, the incense had already been blown away by the wind.

No matter how close Li Shumeng got, it was of no use.

Li Shuning frowned slightly, "Sister, keep a distance, the scent on you is strange, I’m somewhat allergic to this smell. You’re still young, it’s better to cut down on cosmetics."

Li Shumeng hung her head silently. She was puzzled; why didn’t Li Shuning faint?

Could it be that Xiaolan didn’t light the incense?

No, impossible. Since Xiaolan was bribed, she naturally had leverage over Xiaolan, and Xiaolan wouldn’t dare disobey.

Moreover, if Li Shuning already knew the incense had issues, she wouldn’t have let her inside, and would have already called Grandmother and the main family member to make a decision.

Could it be that what was written in the novels is false?

The mixture of the incense and the fragrance on her couldn’t form an intoxicating effect? She had spent considerable effort on these two items and had used up all her savings to produce the antidote.

Li Shumeng was a bit anxious; this was a crucial step. If Li Shuning was fine, then all her subsequent plans couldn’t proceed.

Although Li Shuning asked her to keep a distance, Li Shumeng moved even closer, and even grabbed Li Shuning’s hand: "Sister, I know my mistakes before; please don’t dislike me."

Li Shuning withdrew her hand, smiled slightly: "Sister, you’re joking. How could I dislike my sister? By the way, Grandmother mentioned a cousin would be visiting; shall we go see her?"

Li Shuning didn’t give Li Shumeng a chance to refuse and pulled her along.

Li Shumeng was reluctant but couldn’t go too far, for fear of arousing Li Shuning’s suspicion.

She rolled her eyes but followed along, thinking there might still be opportunities on the way.

Just out the door, they encountered Xiaolan, and Li Shumeng’s personal maid.

Whenever Li Shuning goes out, she always takes maids with her, so a large group proceeded towards the old madam’s Shaonian Courtyard.

From Li Shuning’s Yunsheng Courtyard to the Shaonian Courtyard, they passed by a small lake.

Li Shumeng stood on Li Shuning’s right, with Xiaolan behind Li Shuning.

The two ladies walked ahead, and when passing by the small lake, Li Shumeng pretended to slip, intending to fall onto Li Shuning.

But Li Shuning’s spiritual power was so strong that she sensed it immediately.

Before leaving her courtyard, Li Shuning had already let go of Li Shumeng’s hand.

At that moment, she suddenly quickened her pace; when Li Shumeng lunged, Li Shuning was already ahead.

Li Shumeng ended up falling hard, directly onto the ground.

Li Shuning turned back, surprised: "How careless, is second sister okay? Did you hurt yourself?"

The maids following behind rushed forward to help Li Shumeng up.

Li Shumeng almost shed tears.

She originally intended to push Li Shuning harshly into the lake.

At that time, she could have claimed that Li Shuning had jumped into the lake to kill herself.

It was such a cold day; if Li Shuning fell into the water, it would be really uncomfortable.

Although there were so many maids around, what could they do? Li Shuning unexpectedly sped up, causing her, in her desperation, to fall hard, injuring her knee, and even scratching her palm. Fortunately, she didn’t fall into the lake.

Despite the pain, and her face contorted, Li Shumeng forced a smile: "Sister, I’m fine, just lost my balance because the path is a bit slippery. Luckily, I didn’t bump into you, or I’d feel guilty."

Seeing that Li Shumeng was struggling to stand stably, Li Shuning quickly ordered a servant woman to carry Li Shumeng back to her Rumeng Pavilion.

With this delay, Li Shuning was late to see the old madam.

Upon seeing Li Shuning, the old madam was overjoyed: "My eldest granddaughter is here, come, this is your cousin from the Lin Family, introduce yourselves."

The girl was the youngest daughter of the Lin Family, named Lin Mumu, beloved in the Lin Family.

After meeting Lin Mumu, Li Shuning awkwardly said: "Mumu sister, Second Sister was meant to join us, but she fell along the way and couldn’t come."

The old madam asked a few questions, and Li Shuning explained the situation. The old madam was slightly angered; young ladies of noble families are raised delicately, how could one fall while walking ahead? Judging by the eldest granddaughter’s account, thankfully, she walked fast; otherwise, she might have been implicated by the second granddaughter.

This is quite reckless...

Later, the old madam bypassed An Xin, directly dismissing several of Li Shumeng’s maids and replacing them with new ones.

Li Shuning was glad and relaxed; that fall of Li Shumeng’s was severe enough. It wouldn’t heal quickly. As for Qianqiu Mountain, whether she could go would depend on her skills.

Wasn’t she eager to marry the Fifth Prince? She wanted to see what good it would do her.

On Qianqiu Mountain, there’s a temple that is quite famous. It’s said that the Fifth Prince often visits Qianqiu Mountain because there’s an enlightened monk there, and the Fifth Prince frequently goes to listen to him discuss Buddhist doctrines.

Li Shuning still underestimated Li Shumeng.

After some time, despite her knee injury not fully healed, Li Shumeng dragged her sick body to Qianqiu Mountain and told An Xin she was going to offer prayers.