Cold-faced Empress

After understanding Fu Siying's true intentions, Madam Li couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. With tears in her eyes, she tightly grasped Fu Siying's hand: "Siying, you...you're so good."

Wei Lanling also bowed gracefully: "Thank you, Cousin Siying."

Fu Siying gently shook her head, abruptly pulling her hand back from Xiao Li's grasp. Under Xiao Li's uneasy gaze, she beckoned Qingyin to accompany Xiao Li and Wei Lanling to the clothing store.

"Aunt and cousin, please forgive me. I'll have my personal maid accompany you. After all, I still need to appease my mother so she won't wonder why you haven't come yet."

Suddenly hearing Fu Siying call her "Aunt," Madam Li was quite flattered and dared not make any further requests.

After boarding the carriage, Fu Siying said kindly, "If you see anything else you like in the shop, feel free to buy it."

With a reluctant farewell, the carriage drove off. Watching the carriage slowly depart, Fu Siying stood outside the mansion gate for a long time, her gaze wistful.

Inside the carriage, Madam Li couldn't help but squeeze Wei Lanling's hand tightly: "Ling'er, your cousin is truly beautiful inside and out."

Wei Lanling nodded gently, hesitated for a moment, and said, "It's just a bit unreasonable. We just arrived after a long journey, and you don't even let us catch our breath."

Little Li disagreed: "She's still young, how can she think about so much? We've traveled for so long, what's a little longer? Besides, you saw how the people in the capital were dressed after we entered the city, and we look rather... too shabby. It would be good to change our clothes."

"Ah."

Wei Lanling responded softly. Thinking of Fu Siying's noble lady demeanor just now, she couldn't help but wonder if the new clothes would be as gorgeous and exquisite as Fu Siying's.

Suddenly, the old woman, Wang, who had been silent all along, spat out disdainfully: "You two good-for-nothings, it's just a new set of clothes, look how happy you are. That's the Prime Minister's mansion, there's plenty of money there, what's such a small favor!"

Xiao Li and Wei Lanling exchanged a glance and remained silent.

……

In the main hall of the front courtyard of the Fu residence, Madam Li, Fu Siying, and Fu Yunzhi waited for their distant relatives to arrive.

Li said in confusion, "They should have arrived by now."

Fu Siying remained silent.

Before they could even see Xiao Li, they first saw Fu Rongchen returning home from school.

The boy, with his agile figure, like a wild horse with sleek, glossy fur, burst into the hall.

"Mother, eldest sister, second sister, Prince Mu has executed the entire Ping'an Marquis's mansion!"

"Execute the entire family?!"

Seeing her mother and sister both terrified, Fu Siying also looked horrified. Although she wasn't truly frightened, her jaw suddenly throbbed with pain.

Ever since Mu Wang pinched her chin so hard that day, she felt that her chin was getting sharper and sharper these past few days.

Just as Fu Rongchen was about to explain in detail, he heard his father's furious voice from behind him: "Yes, the entire family must be executed! In the past few days, the Marquis of Ping'an was hastily convicted of thirteen major crimes, including disregarding human life, seizing land, and bullying men and women. He didn't even report to His Majesty for verification before executing the entire family!"

Upon returning home from court, Prime Minister Fu entered the hall, both shocked and furious. He slammed his official hat down on the table: "The Marquis of Ping'an's great-aunt was the late Empress. No matter what, the Marquis of Ping'an's family is still a member of the imperial family. To be so easily wiped out, the Prince of Mu is ruthless and outrageous!"

Prince Mu's madness in disregarding powerful clans and relatives was bound to instill fear. This incident caused widespread unease among the clans and relatives. The Fu family, of course, was also among those threatened.

Fu Siying suddenly said, "Even the Marquis of Ping'an is gone, so don't even think about peace anymore."

Prime Minister Fu glanced at her, then remained silent.

Suddenly, Fu Rongchen let out a strange cry, his raised finger trembling: "Ah, that day!"

Yunzhi blinked: "Which day?"

"Could it be that the day we happened to see Prince Mu's carriage, was Prince Mu rushing to punish Marquis Ping'an?"

Seeing Fu Rongchen's astonished expression, the whole family showed fear. Fu Yunzhi was so frightened that she clenched her fingers and tore off a few strands of the tassel thread.

A nameless, eerie wind swept through the bright sunshine, bringing with it a chilling feeling that the whole family had just rolled on the edge of a knife.

It turns out that King Mu was indeed in a hurry to be reincarnated that day, but not for his own sake, but to send someone else on their way!

Mo Canglan told Fu Siying that she should be grateful that the timing was perfect for her that day. Fu Siying had assumed that Mo Canglan was just as she thought, that he had to be mindful of the Emperor's recent expression of his intention to bestow a marriage upon her, and that if he had acted against her then, it would have been seen as a provocation against the Emperor's authority. Now it seemed that he was in a hurry to handle a major case, which was why he didn't take her, this little shrimp, seriously.

Fu Siying shrugged, dispelling the chill from her back.

It seems she won't need to try to provoke Prince Mu's dislike anymore; keeping a low profile is the right thing to do.

Yunzhi leaned close to Fu Siying's ear and whispered, "Prince Mu is so cruel and treats human life like dirt. Sister, you were lucky to survive that day."

Fu Siying turned to look at Yunzhi, who puffed out her round face and nodded emphatically: "There will definitely be good fortune in the future!"

Just as the family was feeling melancholy, Steward Feng announced loudly from outside, "Master, Madam, Madam Wei and the others have arrived!"

The family hurriedly got up, temporarily forgetting their fear of Prince Mu.

Fu Siying waved her fan, revealing a sweet smile, and followed her father and mother to greet them outside the mansion.

As soon as they stepped out of the mansion, they saw Madam Li, dressed in black, and Wei Lanling, dressed in white, standing smiling beside the carriage.

Upon seeing the two figures, one in black and one in white, the Fu family members were all stunned, a chill running down their spines.

Although Xiao Li was smiling, her underlying sorrow lingered, giving her a gloomy appearance. Dressed in black, she appeared even more sinister, resembling a cunning and scheming old witch.

Despite her youthful age, elegant appearance, and smiling demeanor, Wei Lanling, dressed in white, revealed a cunning and unpredictable nature by glancing at the crowd from time to time.

Fu Yunzhi's voice was already trembling with tears: "Sister, sister..."

Fu Siying, who was walking at the back, pretended to be puzzled: "What did you see that made you react like that? A distant relative came to visit, and you cried tears of joy?"

Having said that, he raised his fan and walked to his mother and father's side.

Upon seeing the black and white figures, Fu Siying gasped in shock, raising her fan to point at Xiao Li Shi and Wei Lanling, trembling uncontrollably.

"Black...black, white!"

She was so frightened that she couldn't speak, but the Fu family all knew what she meant.

Black and white! Two venomous snake spirits, exactly matching the omens of Fu Siying's nightmare from many days ago!

Madam Li quickly pressed Fu Siying's head into her arms, not daring to let her daughter see any more. Prime Minister Fu, on the other hand, frowned deeply, looking at Madam Li and Wei Lanling as if facing a formidable enemy.

Poor Li Shi and Wei Lanling had no idea why the Fu family members looked so horrified and their eyes filled with fear.

Looking at her bewildered half-sister, Madam Li whispered to comfort Fu Siying, "Don't panic, don't panic, it's just a coincidence. Your aunt has just become a widow, so it's natural for her to wear black. Your cousin is observing mourning for her father, so it's only right that she wears white!"

Fu Siying hugged her mother and wept bitterly, crying, "No, no!"

Little Li cried out helplessly, "Eldest sister, Siying, what... what is this?"

Madam Li was preoccupied with her daughter and had no heart to welcome her half-sister into the family. If it weren't for concerns about saving face and the desire for a convenient arrangement, she would have been ready to drive her half-sister's family away!

"Come in," Li said sullenly, pulling Fu Siying to the side and gesturing for Xiao Li to bring Wei Lanling and Wang into the room.

Ms. Li, feeling timid and uneasy, thanked them and quickly took her daughter's hand and stepped forward.

When the others arrived, the sharp-eyed Fu Yunzhi pointed at Wei Lanling and screamed, "Snake! Snake! Mother, snake!"

All eyes immediately turned to Wei Lanling.

Wei Lanling hurriedly looked down at her new clothes. Indeed, the faint dark pattern was scale-like, but she and her mother both thought it was very elegant and dignified. Why were the Fu family members so frightened?

When Prime Minister Fu and Madam Li saw that the clothes worn by Madam Li and Wei Lanling were indeed patterned with snake scales, they dared not harbor any illusions. They hurriedly blocked the entrance to the mansion, their intention to prevent Madam Li and her daughter from entering was clear.

Upon hearing that Yunzhi had discovered the pattern on the clothes was a snake pattern, Fu Siying cried even louder.

"Mother, it's a snake! It really is a snake. A black snake! A white snake!"

Li glared angrily at her half-sister: "How could you and your daughter wear such clothes!"

Little Li was so frightened that she was completely at a loss: "Is it...is it because Siying and Yunzhi are afraid of snakes? Eldest sister, I...I didn't know!"

Wei Lanling's almond-shaped eyes were brimming with tears, filled with shame and indignation: "Cousin Siying, what do you mean by this? Aren't these the new clothes you ordered for me and my mother?"

Upon hearing this, Fu Siying abruptly pulled away from her mother's embrace and looked at Wei Lanling in disbelief: "What did you say? These clothes were custom-made for the two of you?"

Madam Li also expressed her surprise and annoyance: "Siying, didn't you say you were going to give us a gift, which is why you made Lanling and me rush to the clothing store to change into these two new outfits?"

"I told you to change into these clothes?" Fu Siying trembled with anger, pointing at Xiao Li and Wei Lanling: "You're spouting nonsense!"

Instantly, Xiao Li's expression turned to shock, and Wei Lanling revealed a look of resentment.

Prime Minister Fu and Madam Li sensed something amiss. Prime Minister Fu asked, "What do you mean by that, Madam Wei? When did my daughter, Siying, send you to the clothing store to change into new clothes?"

“It was just half an hour ago!” Little Li hurriedly explained, “When we arrived, Siying opened the door to greet us. Siying said that ever since she received the letter, she had secretly prepared new clothes for us at the clothing store behind my elder sister’s back, and asked us to go to the clothing store to change before coming back to visit us.”

Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Fu looked at Fu Siying in surprise: "Siying, is what Lady Wei said true?"

Fu Siying nodded through her tears, her face streaked with tears: "What you said is true, but... but!"

Before she could speak, Wei Lanling suddenly knelt down in front of everyone with a "thud".

"Uncle and Aunt, if my cousin hadn't said she wanted to show her filial piety and obedience to Aunt and asked my mother and me to praise her in front of Aunt, why would my mother and I have gone to such lengths to buy new clothes from that clothing store frequented by noble people?"

Wei Lanling cried, her face streaked with tears, looking both pretty and pitiful: "Lanling doesn't know what cousin's intentions are. My mother and I are newcomers here and have never met cousin before. Why would cousin go to such lengths to frame us?"