Hearing a voice that did not support her, Meng Chunyan huffed dismissively, pretending not to hear.
Lin Yuan watched her ostrich-like behavior and couldn’t help but shake her head; Meng Chunyan was truly foolish to the extreme. In her current condition, she should have hurried home to get it sorted out, but instead, she flaunted herself down an entire street.
"Miss Meng, may I ask which carriage hit you?"
Xia He had already told her everything about the morning’s incident without missing a word. Although she hadn’t clearly seen Meng Chunyan get hit, Xia He had later inquired with the coachmen and learned about Meng Chunyan purposefully allowing the carriage to collide with theirs.
Seeing that she was being questioned, Meng Chunyan pointed at the luxurious sandalwood carriage parked beside them, and jeeringly exclaimed, "Which one? Of course, it’s this one! Lin Yuan, don’t even think about denying it. Just now, quite a few people saw your carriage smash into mine!"
"Miss Meng, are you sure it was this carriage that damaged yours?" Challenged every step of the way, Lin Yuan was far from appearing anxious; she crossed her arms and leisurely observed her.
Meng Chunyan’s confidence wavered in the face of Lin Yuan’s calm demeanor. However, upon reflection, she remembered clearly seeing Lin Yuan’s maid sticking her head out; even if Lin Yuan was not inside, it had to be one of Lin Yuan’s family members. Therefore, in her view, Lin Yuan’s relaxed posture was all just a pretense of composure.
Secretly guessing at Lin Yuan’s inner turmoil, Meng Chunyan couldn’t help but take pleasure in anticipation, thinking that soon Lin Yuan would guiltily invite her into a room, treat her to food and drink, and then gently inquire about a resolution. That way, she could rightfully demand compensation—yes, she would take this particular carriage. Although it was not as attractive or luxurious as her own, it was certainly sturdy; it managed to wreck her newly bought carriage, so it must be of good quality.
"Yes, that’s the one!" Meng Chunyan nodded.
But reality often diverges from dreams.
Lin Yuan pointed at the carriage and confirmed again with a smile, "Miss Meng, are you sure it was this carriage that hit you?"
Meng Chunyan grew impatient, "Lin Yuan, are you mocking me? I’ve said it several times already—it’s this carriage. Why do you keep asking me over and over? Are you trying to refuse to admit it? Hmph, fine, if you won’t admit it, I won’t force you. I’m going straight to the Yamen now. I will accuse you of deliberately damaging my carriage and have Master Magistrate throw you into jail! With those skinny arms and legs of yours, let’s see if you can endure the suffering there!"
As she spoke, Meng Chunyan forcefully grabbed her maid and demanded her assistance in getting up.
Lin Yuan watched her act and shook her head, calling out to her, "Miss Meng, please wait."
Meng Chunyan hadn’t planned on leaving. She secretly curled the corner of her lips and turned around, raising an eyebrow: "What, got scared now? Hmph, if you’re scared, you better hurry up and apologize to me. And yes, you have to compensate me too! I am not unreasonable; as long as you give me this carriage that wrecked mine, I won’t hold this against you."
So she had her eyes on this carriage!
Lin Yuan glanced back at Xia Zheng, who was watching Meng Chunyan with an eyebrow raised, the look of someone watching a fool.
And wasn’t she a fool? To set her sights on Princess Anle’s carriage, was it even describable in terms of simple foolishness?
Lin Yuan smiled and said to Meng Chunyan, "Miss Meng, please forgive me, but I cannot agree to your request, I..."
"What? You can’t agree?" Meng Chunyan’s eyes bulged as she stepped forward abruptly, but she forgot about her injured foot. The sudden movement made it even worse, and shooting pain made her grit her teeth.