Lilac colored hangings in raised gold thread were held up by a pair of jaded pegs and under the hangings, a mirror enclosed by carved twined dahlia pinnata and marine animals reflected a white face with well-formed brows, red seductive lips and a pair of dark shiny eyes which turned brightly. Sheng Weiqiao who was sitting in front of the dresser got up, "Good. Let's go!"
"Today young master will come back. Would you like one more hairpin in your hair?" The maid Lvqi who was taking care of her dressing said without thought, and for her recklessness, she was already nipped secretly by her partner Lvjin.
As supposed, Sheng Weiqiao mocked coldly at the moment, "Just a son of a mistress! Even if he's brought back now, is he worthy of my hard dressing up?! Does he deserve it!"
Both Lvqi and Lvjin stayed compliant and didn't dare to utter a word.
Everyone knew that Sheng Weiqiao's father Sheng Lanci made a faithful vow in order to marry Madam Feng, saying that whatever happened in this life, he would only stick with Madame Feng and would never have others in his heart!
The marriage that had once moved the whole county now just stepped into its seventeenth year and Sheng Weiqiao hadn't passed her thirteenth birthday, but suddenly Sheng Lanci would bring back a son of his!
Actually Madam Feng didn't have a son herself but Sheng Lanci truly desired a descendant for his family blood. Family Feng was also reasonable. The problem was that the son who was to be back today was in his seventeen also. Counting his age, you'd find that he was born when Sheng Lanci just started his romance with Madam Feng!
You could imagine the mood of this pair of mother and daughter!
Several days ago when Madam Feng received the news, she was intended to pack the baggage and bring her daughter back to her original family. Sheng Weiqiao refused. She thought that since her father had changed, if both she and her mother left, weren't they doing the outsider favor, so that he could take the place to be the new master?!
If someone had to go, it should be the outsider!
So in no case would she accept going back to Madam Feng's parents, and she'd tried all she could to stay. All for the meeting today!
She would love to see what a seductive fairy had her father hidden from them for years!
After scolding the maid, Sheng Weiqiao tidied her the border of her dress, made sure of her appearance and stepped out to the main reception hall.
When she arrived at the hall, every one of family Sheng, except for the eldest branch, was already there. They'd asked the fragrant tea and were chatting in excitement—with mockery towards Madam Feng and Weiqiao in their words.
Seeing Sheng Weiqiao come in, they all shut up awkwardly, including Old Madam Ming.
Only Sheng Weiqiao's second aunt Mrs. Bai, who'd been jealous of Madam Feng for long, caught the chance and failed to hold back her laugh, saying that, "Weiqiao's here? I have to say congratulations to you. Finally, you've got a brother! After you get married, at least you'll have someone to rely on!"
"My parents are both in good health. My mother's family has got plenty of children. I do have many people to rely on!" Sheng Weiqiao wouldn't even bother to turn and look at her straight and she snorted, "How can I rely on a petty outsider? Just because you're from a small family and accustomed to having no reliance, you think everyone is like you, and he can't wait to court anyone they meet?"
"It's the stuff of big brother, just obey his willing. What's the bother to babble here?!" Her second uncle, seeing that the situation went wrong, hastened to stop his wife, "We are just invited by big brother for a cup of tea."
Saying that he opened the cup lid and sipped, and gave his niece a comforting smile.
At the time, Old Madam Ming who sat at the prime position also greeted her with a full smile face, "Weiqiao, come to me and take a seat!"
Family Sheng had been a common rich one before. They became one of the three most powerful families in Nanfeng County, all thanks to the effort of Sheng Lanci. While Sheng Lanci cared the most about his wife and daughter all the time. Even if now Sheng Lanci brought back a love child, his wife left out of anger, and his daughter was indignant also. But before ensuring that Madam Feng and Weiqiao had totally lost Sheng Lanci's affection, even the seniors in family didn't dare to offend Sheng Weiqiao.
Or once Sheng Lanci changed his attitude, their affluent life with good clothes and delicious food might not exist anymore.
Following the instructions and seating herself beside Old Madam Ming, Sheng Weiqiao glanced at the seniors and peers and found that apart from Mrs. Bai, they all put on a courting smiley face when caught her eyesight.
Even if Mrs. Bai who was just teased by her didn't dare to look into her eyes now. She felt sour and bitter in heart, "These people fear me so much just for knowing that my father indulges me. It's pitiful that such a good father changes all of a sudden."
She felt depressed for a while and gathered her strength thinking about the current situation. She talked with the others pretending there was nothing. The coquette and her son would be here, so no matter how gloomy Sheng Weiqiao was, she wouldn't manifest that in front of the mother and son!
After they had a cup of tea, and from outside entered a deferential maid. She said, "The master and the young master are back already."
The room where everyone was chatting easily suddenly fell silent. Everyone including Old Madam Ming stopped talking, held back their laughter, kept their eyes forward and waited attentively.
Just a moment, Sheng Lanci's figure appeared at the door.
He was no more than forty and tall, with white cheek, good features, short beard at the chin shaved neatly. He was in an indigo frock of which the collar was a round one, with belt well-fastened and a beige soft hat, stepping in steadily. He set his eyes first to the prime side, not on his step-mother Old Madam Ming, but his daughter Sheng Weiqiao. He gave a loving smile.
Usually, Sheng Weiqiao would have burst into laughter, but for now, she just glimpsed at him with no expression on her face and set her eyesight behind him.
It wasn't the seductive mistress as she supposed.
But a boy in black.
Telling from his appearance, he was around sixteen or seventeen, but already of almost the same height as Sheng Lanci. He was more slender, however.
The complexion of him was so white that almost pale, as if never exposed to the sun all year round. But with blade-like brow extending to his temples, cold eyes bright like stars, thin lips in a fresh color, pretty look accompanied by masculinity and vigor across his body, he was smiling just lightly, but it made others felt like caressed by spring wind. If he hadn’t been the son of her father's mistress, just for his face, Sheng Weiqiao would have held some good feelings for him.
But now she rubbed the teacup in the hand, just leaving him a cold glimpse!
While the boy was amazingly sensitive. When Sheng Weiqiao's eyesight just touched him, he'd already turned and peered at her!
"You must be my little sister, right?" The moment when the brother and sister caught each other's eyes, before Sheng Weiqiao was about to put on a hateful face, the boy already smiled at her friendly, and he said with content, "You're as pretty and gentle as I expected!"
Sheng Weiqiao wasn't pleased at all: Do you think by pretending a good brother you could make me a good sister? Yuck!
With a dark face, she thrust the teacup to the table and sneered coldly, "You're calling whom a sister? All people in Nanfeng County know that my mother has only one daughter, and it's me. Who knows where you're from, and how can you count as my brother? Shameless as you are!"
She set her sharp and arrogant eyesight up and down on the boy and squinted at Sheng Lanci, and she snorted, "Virtue, complexion, credit and comportment. The virtue takes the first place. We meet for the first time but you judged directly my face, so it's not difficult to see that you're like your mother who puts grace at the first. It's understandable since that was how you were given birth, right?"
"She's not my sister?" Evidently the boy had got her meanings that suggested that his mother lured Sheng Lanci with her charm, so that he was born. He winked and looked all the ladies in Family Sheng one by one and after an evaluation he thought he didn't make it wrong, so he turned at Sheng Lanci in doubt, "Didn't you tell me that my sister is gentle and virtuous, speaking softly all the time? Why's she so fierce?"
Before he ended his words, everyone in the room had fallen silent!
"Weiqiao is always the sweetheart of the eldest branch, and Sheng Lanci's indulged her too much!" Old Madam Ming and others drank tea with elegant manner, while they felt exited in heart, "While the son who's brought back today isn't easy-going, either. The son of a mistress and the daughter of the wife had a war when they first met. There is going to be a big scene today!”