Nuandong was not timid by nature, but Mrs. Xia forbade her to fight back. Moreover, her father did not care and would certainly not support her and her three sisters, so Fen Zhiqiu and Fen Zhidong became more and more presumptuous.
"Hmph, Nuandong, why did you run back here instead of attending to the young miss?" Fen Zhiqiu said as she pushed Nuandong.
Fen Zhiqiu, well-fed and strong, pushed Nuandong, causing her to stagger.
Nuandong steadied herself and said with a flushed face, "Cousin, I am on my way to the young miss!"
"Heh, with that foolish look, you were probably chased away by the young miss!" Fen Zhiqiu, seeing the new clothes on Nuandong, was consumed with jealousy.
She had thought that this job should have been hers, but to her dismay, it had been given to Nuandong.
How could she not be angry?
"No, that’s not true. The young miss asked my sister to come back and bring us to her. My sister was definitely not chased away!" Nuanchun quickly retorted.
After all, she was defending her own sister.
In this family, only their sister and mother truly cherished them. Their father breathed the same air as their grandparents and wouldn’t care whether they lived or died.
Despite being young, the children understood everything.
Upon hearing this, Fen Zhiqiu became even more enraged and raised her hand to hit Nuanchun. "You impudent girl, how dare you talk back!"
Nuandong quickly grabbed Fen Zhiqiu’s wrist, "Third cousin, whether you believe it or not, the young miss did ask me to come back and fetch my sisters to see her. If you obstruct us further, and the young miss later asks why we were late, I will definitely tell her the truth. You know father’s methods, so don’t blame me for not warning you!"
Fen Zhiqiu knew all about father’s methods; a maid had once dared to strip and climb into father’s bed, and he had thrown her onto the street without a stitch of clothing to wear.
Since then, no maid had dared to climb into bed, nor approach father too closely.
It seemed that there were no favorites around the thirty-year-old master.
Fen Zhidong quickly pulled Fen Zhiqiu aside, and Nuandong promptly left with her three sisters.
Fen Zhiqiu stomped her foot in vexation.
Fen Zhidong said ominously, "We can’t do anything to Nuandong, but what about her mother..."
Hearing this, Fen Zhiqiu got an evil idea.
When Nuandong arrived with her three sisters, Hemei, Henuan, and Shi Jiayu were sitting at the door, eating sweet melons. They paused when they saw the four fresh-faced children, but it was Yun Jinnian who stood up, "Nuandong!"
Nuandong quickly approached with her three anxious sisters and knelt down, "We greet the young miss!"
"Stand up, all of you!" Yun Jinnian spoke gently.
Because of Nuandong, Yun Jinnian felt an extra fondness for the several little maidens.
"There are pastries on the table, go help yourselves!"
The pastries and fruit on the table were of the finest quality, usually unseen, let alone tasted.
The three young children were still so young, especially Nuanqiu, who licked her lips and eagerly looked at her elder sister.
"The young miss told you to take some, so go ahead," said Nuandong, glancing at Yun Jinnian with caution. Seeing her smile, she felt a bit relieved.
"Sit down and enjoy your meal!" Yun Jinnian instructed the four sisters to sit and poured tea for them.
The four sisters sat down obediently but remained very restrained.
Yun Jinnian asked them their ages and what they liked.
"I can weave!" Nuanqiu declared with a childlike voice, her face flushing red.
Yun Jinnian smiled, "That’s really impressive. Can you weave some for me?"
"Sure, young miss! The weavings I make are very pretty, and the ones my elder and second sisters make are even prettier!" Nuanqiu continued, her face reddening again.