The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

The atmosphere grew tense and eerie once again. An Mi raised an eyebrow with interest. How could she not know what Madam An was wary of? Madam An was notoriously jealous. In her past life, Jin Qiaoyu had gone to great lengths to successfully move into the ancestral home. But in this life… An Mi had already made up her mind. She was determined to give them a push!

It's only lively when there are many people in the An family mansion!

An Mi frowned, looking troubled. "Father, according to our family rules, only the matriarch can live in the ancestral home. Fifth Aunt, she..."

An Mi paused at this point, not continuing, but stopping short of saying more. She laid out the rules of the An family so bluntly. Although it seemed like she was defending Madam An, An Mi knew that it would have different effects on different listeners.

Ostensibly speaking up for Madam An, he was actually helping Jin Qiaoyu out.

Sure enough, the already furious Master An's face became even more fierce, his thick, dark eyebrows furrowed into a tight line, as if he were about to explode at any moment.

Jin Qiaoyu was a perceptive person, and seeing this situation, she naturally wouldn't do nothing. She twitched the corner of her mouth and said, "Brother Feng, since Sister says it's not okay..."

"What do you mean it's not okay? With me here, it's not her place to make decisions!" An Yuefeng's anger finally erupted at this moment.

Madam An was shocked to hear such words from Mr. An, and her face turned even uglier. "Master, you...you really want to treat me like this for this woman? I am the mistress of this house."

An Yuefeng, who was thinking about how well-behaved and sensible Jin Qiaoyu was, and also thinking about their past, felt even more disgusted when he saw Madam An's opposition. "It's decided then. Qiaoyu and Xianglan will live here. If you don't want to live under the same roof as Qiaoyu, then move to another courtyard."

Having said that, he flicked his sleeves and strode towards the hall exit. Reaching the door, An Yuefeng suddenly stopped, as if remembering something. He turned back to the women in the room, each with a different expression, and said, “I returned because I heard about the embroidery competition being held by the young master of the Liu family. Our An family started with an embroidery workshop and has always been known for our exquisite embroidery skills. Since it’s an embroidery competition, our An family must have a place to shine. Xinlian, Xinhe, Mi’er, and even Xianglan, all must participate. If you win first place, I will reward you handsomely. Do you all understand?”

Both mothers and daughters, who were just moments before caught in resentment and anger, joy and triumph, temporarily suppressed their emotions.

"Don't worry, sir. Xinlian and Xinhe will do their best and will not let you down." Madam An forced a smile, reverting to her dignified demeanor as the mistress of the house, as if nothing had happened.

“Yes, Brother Feng, you’ve seen Xianglan’s embroidery skills before. Didn’t you also praise her hands as exquisite?” Jin Qiaoyu echoed, her smugness subtly proclaiming her victory in the confrontation with Madam An.

An Yuefeng nodded in satisfaction before turning to leave the hall. Without the male head of the An family, the atmosphere in the hall instantly became even more eerie. An Mi observed the people present. Although they all wore smiles, it seemed as if a thousand knives were shooting out from beneath those smiles.

Thinking of her earlier failure, Madam An gritted her teeth and remained silent for a long time before finally speaking, "Qiaoyu, now that Master has allowed you to move in, we sisters must get along well from now on."

So what if she moved in? Just because she couldn't stop her from moving in doesn't mean Jin Qiaoyu can stay for long! How could Yu Fangfei tolerate such a tiny speck of sand? She'll deal with her sooner or later!

"I'll need to take good care of you, sister." Jin Qiaoyu nodded to Madam An, appearing delicate and harmless.

As An Mi watched the two wives exchanging pleasantries, she suddenly remembered something and her eyes lit up. "Eldest Miss, Fifth Miss's embroidery is the best I've ever seen. Father just said that Miss Xianglan's embroidery skills are outstanding. I wonder how amazing it will be?"

Anonymous words are undoubtedly a subtle way of igniting another war.

Not to mention An Xinlian's strong will, even An Xinhe was determined not to tolerate Feng Xianglan being stronger than them!

Sure enough, An Xinhe scoffed disdainfully, "What tricks can a featherless chicken in the wild play? Amazing? In my opinion, it's just going to make a fool of itself!"

That slap was because of Feng Xianglan. Now that her father wasn't here, how could she miss the chance to humiliate her?!

Feng Xianglan was always confident in her embroidery skills, and her mother was one of the top embroiderers in the fiefdom of the King of Bohai. How could she tolerate An Xinhe's humiliation? However, unlike An Xinhe, she was not impatient. She tugged at the corner of her mouth and smiled instead of getting angry, "Sister Xinhe, how about we have a competition?"

"Let's compete then! Who's afraid of who!" An Xinhe raised her chin confidently. "How do we compete?"

"The Embroidery Competition...who will emerge victorious!" Feng Xianglan knew that the Embroidery Competition was a crucial battle for her and her mother to gain a foothold in the An family. A mere chicken in the wild? Feng Xianglan's grip tightened. So what if she was burdened with a child? So what if she was living under someone else's roof? She would absolutely not allow anyone to have the chance to look down on her!

"Fine, it's settled then. Let me tell you, if you lose, see how I deal with you!" An Xinhe wanted to retaliate tenfold, a hundredfold, for that slap from earlier. Once she had a legitimate reason, let's see how her father would still protect this bitch!

The two young ladies were vying for power, as were Madam An and Fifth Concubine. Although the hall was quiet, an unseen tension had already filled the room. An Mi thought of the Embroidery Appreciation Gathering and frowned slightly. Thinking about her plan, her gaze fell on Feng Xianglan's beautiful face. Things were getting more and more interesting!

She is now even more looking forward to the embroidery appreciation event.

According to the rules of the Embroidery Appreciation Association, the first round of participants submits their pre-prepared works, and the second round is the on-site embroidery. In recent days, An Xinlian, An Xinhe, Feng Xianglan and others have been preparing their own works. On the contrary, An Mi, taking advantage of the fact that everyone's attention is not on her, secretly leaves the mansion every day and does not return until very late. No one knows her whereabouts, let alone what she is doing.

On the day of the Embroidery Appreciation Gathering, a large crowd gathered outside the An residence early in the morning, heading towards the gathering. The An sisters, An Xinlian and An Xinhe, and Feng Xianglan were all present, as was Yu Fangfei, the matriarch of the An family. Of course, she would not be absent from such a grand occasion.

Inside the carriage, Madam An, Yu Fangfei, gazed at Jin Qiaoyu, who was seeing Feng Xianglan off. Their eyes met, and Yu Fangfei smiled brightly. Seeing Jin Qiaoyu look away dejectedly, the smugness in her eyes was even more evident, and her smile became even more hearty. Hmph, no matter what, she's just a concubine. At an event like the Embroidery Appreciation Gathering today, Jin Qiaoyu has no right to attend!

This Jin Qiaoyu, she has already sent a message to her brother who is an official to investigate her background. She wants to see which fox den this vixen came from!