She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Everyone was stunned by Liu Ruojiao's actions; her behavior was truly impolite and unbecoming of a respectable person.

The next moment, they were stunned by Shen Qingtan's birthday gift.

Inside the box was a folded embroidery piece, one side of which showed a white pheasant perched on a plum blossom branch.

They thought they were mistaken, since there was only one embroidered face.

Moreover, Shen Qingtan is renowned in the capital for her being well-educated, virtuous, and kind. It would be absolutely impossible for her to use a birthday gift to subtly mock her at the Lady of Yongyi's birthday banquet.

Liu Ruojiao's expression changed. She grabbed the embroidery and unfolded it. It was still a pheasant standing on a plum blossom branch. It was not a misunderstanding at all.

This embroidery stung the eyes of Lady Yongyi; her smile froze, and her hands trembled with anger.

Pheasants were a hidden pain in her heart, and a taboo subject for her.

Because her father named her Xu Zhishi, the wives of officials in the capital jokingly called her Zhishichu, which is another name for chicken. Over time, some people even mocked her as a wild chicken.

Although the Xu family ancestors had served as third-rank officials, their fortunes declined with each generation, and they were considered a fallen official family, living a very poor life.

In order to marry into the Earl's family, she worked hard on the virtues of women and was almost a model for women in the capital. She also cultivated a good relationship with the niece of the late Earl Yongyi, and it was through the niece's matchmaking that she was able to marry into the Earl's family.

Others laughed at her, saying that she had become a pheasant that had flown up to a tree branch.

But after she entered, she realized that the Yongyi Marquis's mansion was just an empty shell, all show and no substance.

Shen Qingtan deliberately sent her such a birthday gift at her birthday banquet; it was practically a cruel joke on her!

"Big sister, why did you give such an embroidery to your aunt?" Shen Mingzhu feigned surprise, frowning. "Aunt praised you for being filial a while ago, saying that your embroidery skills are very good. Could you have embroidered an embroidery for her birthday yourself this time?"

When she saw the shocked expressions on Liu Yue and Ting Xue's faces, and then looked at Shen Qingtan's feigned composure, her heart finally settled.

Shen Qingtan probably could only guess that they would deal with her at the Yongyi Marquis's residence. She never expected that they would find out that the birthday gift she prepared for the Marquis's wife was an embroidery, and then deliberately switched it with this pheasant embroidery.

She glanced at the screen out of the corner of her eye and saw a very important person sitting behind it. This person was very particular about etiquette and filial piety.

If Shen Qingtan's actions offend the nobles, then she can forget about ever getting along well in the circle of officials' wives.

“Elder sister, you always act with great method, leaving no room for criticism. You would never make such a simple mistake.” Shen Mingzhu glanced at Lady Yongyi, seemingly trying to cover for her: “Is there some other story behind this pheasant?”

The word "pheasant" was deliberately pronounced in a high tone, causing Lady Yongyi's face to turn ashen.

Shen Mingzhu was completely unaware that her use of the word "pheasant" had offended Madam Bo, and only thought that Madam Bo was angry because of the embroidery that Shen Qingtan had given her.

She said to her aunt, "Aunt, please don't upset yourself. Let my eldest sister explain first..."

"She did it on purpose!" Lady Yongyi pressed one hand against her heaving chest and pointed angrily at Shen Qingtan with the other: "Even a country bumpkin like you understands this principle, how could she, a lady raised as a matriarch of a prominent family since childhood, not understand it?"

Shen Mingzhu's face stiffened when she heard the Lady of Yongyi call her a wild girl.

Lady Bo glared angrily at Shen Qingtan: "I think you've climbed up the social ladder by marrying into the Duke's family. You were recently made Lady of the Heir Apparent, and now you look down on me, your aunt."

Liu Ruojiao glared at Shen Qingtan with eyes blazing with fury: "Elder cousin, although my family can't compare to the Duke's mansion, we are still a marquis's family, and my mother is a Lady of the Imperial Decree personally bestowed by the Emperor. If you humiliate a Lady of the Imperial Decree like this, then in your eyes, are all other Lady of the Imperial Decree just like pheasants?"

The other guests watching the play immediately changed their expressions upon hearing this.

The ladies present were mostly noblewomen, and they frowned deeply as they looked at the pheasant embroidery.

“Second Madam Zhao, although you are the eldest granddaughter of the Duke’s family and your status is much higher than that of the Earl’s family, so what? You can’t go beyond filial piety, can you?”

"Isn't that the truth? In my opinion, all the good reputation she's cultivated is just an act. Now that she's climbed up the social ladder, her true colors have been revealed."

"I used to envy the Duke's family for being able to marry a woman of such virtue and talent as her. Now it seems that my ancestors must have burned incense to be lucky, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to marry her."

The First Madam glanced coldly at the crowd: "We've only mentioned the pheasant once, and the pheasant on the embroidery hasn't said anything yet, and so many people are already getting restless? Don't you think you've touched a nerve?"

She originally wanted to wait for Shen Qingtan to explain, but seeing that these gossipy women were going too far, she couldn't help but stand up and step forward.

The people who were talking looked as if the First Madam had grabbed them by the neck, their old faces turning red with suffocation, and they were very unhappy.

"Hey, Madam Zhao, what are you saying? We're just stating the facts."

"She dared to give her own aunt a pheasant, so why would she be afraid of our gossip?"

“Sister-in-law, you’re being protective, but this isn’t the way to do it. She’s not just the lady of the house, but the future mistress of the house. She has to speak reasonably and convince everyone.”

The second wife stepped forward and said, "If it's a misunderstanding, we will apologize to our niece-in-law. If it's not a misunderstanding, she has to give the aunt an explanation."

Shen Qingtan took a step forward, blocking the way for the First Madam. Before she could speak, Madam Shen's voice came from the doorway.

“My dear in-law, you don’t need to protect Tan’er. If she does something wrong, she should be punished. This is a rule set by our ancestors.”

Upon hearing the news, Madam Shen arrived, her face stern, and reprimanded Shen Qingtan: "Kneel down!"

When everyone saw Madam Shen coming to reprimand Shen Qingtan, they all straightened up, wanting to see how she would explain the embroidery.

Shen Qingtan stood ramrod straight, her gaze cold as she looked at Madam Shen: "Why should I kneel?"

"Shen Qingtan, how much of the etiquette and way of dealing with people that the Marquis's mansion taught you have you learned?"

Madam Shen said angrily, "How dare you humiliate your aunt like this at her birthday banquet? This is a violation of filial piety. Kneel down and kowtow to your aunt to admit your mistake."