The coachman heaved a heavy sigh of relief as he looked at the unscathed carriage, a feeling of aftershock washing over him.
No sooner had the carriage come to a halt than Meng Chunyan clambered out in disarray, her hair in dishevelment, her clothes wrinkled, and her small face pale with fright.
"Whimper, what happened? How did this come about?"
She had barely whimpered twice when she hastily lifted her head to look at the other carriage, which was in an even more pitiful condition than hers, only to find that its occupants were already leisurely walking away.
Meng Chunyan was stunned. How could this be? Surely her carriage was the better one!
As she pondered this, she suddenly saw a little head stick out from that intact carriage, curiously looking backwards.
Recognizing the pretty face and delicate headpiece with one glance, Meng Chunyan realized who it was.
Wasn’t this the maid she and Jin Lingling had mistakenly thought was the young lady just yesterday?
While Meng Chunyan stood agape, Xia He had already recognized her. With a slight start and a raising of her eyebrows, she left Meng Chunyan with a contemptuous smile before abruptly pulling down the curtain.
Princess Anle had been chatting with Su Qiuyu when she suddenly felt a jolt in the carriage. Worried that something had happened, she quickly instructed Xia He to have a look outside.
After watching Xia He lower the curtain, Princess Anle asked indifferently, "What happened?"
Xia He chuckled lightly: "It’s nothing, there was just a stone. The coachman must have missed it and hit it."
Princess Anle nodded, not pursuing the matter further.
But Qiu Ju, standing beside her, was filled with doubt. The coachmen of the General Mansion were specially trained by the general himself, especially those appointed to Princess Anle, who couldn’t afford to be negligent in the slightest. How could they miss seeing a stone?
Noting her disbelief, Xia He gave her a knowing wink. Seizing a moment when Princess Anle was not paying attention, the two of them whispered to one another.
So that was the situation.
Qiu Ju couldn’t help but snicker. That girl got what she deserved, trying to ram their carriage. Did she not realize who had presented them with this carriage? Even if bandits came to rob them, a knife might not be able to cut through it! What sheer folly!
As for Meng Chunyan, her own carriage had been wrecked, which was infuriating enough, but now seeing Xia He only fueled her rage. That wretched girl called her sister "Miss," so wasn’t she the wretched girl’s maid?
Yes, definitely. And it must be that village girl sitting inside the carriage! How despicable. It was bad enough that she bullied her, but to wreck her carriage too; how could Meng Chunyan swallow such an insult!
What infuriated her even more was that although they had collided at the same time, her carriage had lost a wheel, while that wretched girl’s carriage was completely unharmed, merely jostled about.
No, no! The more Meng Chunyan thought about it, the more incensed she became, stamping her feet in a tantrum and bellowing, "To the Entrance of Rice Flower Fragrance!"
At the entrance of Rice Flower Fragrance, Lin Yuan and Xia Zheng had been anxiously awaiting their arrival. They heaved sighs of relief upon finally seeing the carriage come, fearful that something untoward had happened on the road.
"Mother, why did you arrive so late? I was worried something had happened to you," Xia Zheng said as he personally helped Princess Anle out of the carriage, carefully supporting her while voicing his complaints.
Princess Anle chided him: "It’s just a short distance, what could possibly have happened? You’re just like your father, making a fuss over nothing."
"I can’t help worrying about you," Xia Zheng retorted with a grin, but his smile froze the moment he saw Su Qiuyu following behind. He acted as if he hadn’t seen her and quickly escorted Princess Anle into the house.
Su Qiuyu had just exited the carriage, expecting Xia Zheng to come to her aid. Seeing the mother and son already chatting and laughing as they entered the house, her face stiffened.