Matriarch Rules, Scumbag Begs - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Entering the Mansion in My Sister’s Place

The capital city’s winter had little snow, but this year’s heavy snow had been falling continuously for three days.

Shen Qiuci wrapped herself in a bright red fox fur cloak and walked slowly in the snow.

Halfway through her journey, she overheard some young servants discussing on the side of the road:

“Something’s happened in the Danyang Marquis’s mansion! The lady who went back to her parents’ home to recuperate from an illness for two years is probably going to die!”

“You’re talking about the one who fell from the pavilion and became paralyzed, only able to move her eyes?”

“Who else could it be?”

“I just saw the servants in the Marquis’s mansion preparing funeral banners and paper money. I think her fate has come to an end.”

“When the Shen family is wiped out, the Shizi¹ will be left without an heir.”

The cold wind whipped through the snowflakes like knives, cutting into Shen Qiuci’s neck.

She tightened her cloak and quickened her pace slightly.

When she arrived at the entrance of the Danyang Marquis’s mansion, Shen Qiuci stopped, looked up, and gazed at the golden plaque hanging high above the gate. Then, with a cold tone, she instructed her maid, Xia Shang:

“Go knock on the door.”
“Bang bang bang.”

The urgent knocking sound started, and after a short while, the heavy redwood door slowly opened.

The housekeeper who poked his head out looked lazy, fiddling with a funeral banner in his hand. However, when he raised his eyes and met Shen Qiuci’s gaze, he turned pale with fright.

“Eldest wife²!? How did you…”

How could this be! Eldest wife had been paralyzed in bed for two years, wasn’t she already at the end of her rope?

But the person in front of him was radiant, wearing a red cloak, with her black hair styled in an elegant bun.
A few strands of hair fell loosely by her temples, highlighting her porcelain-like skin. Where could one see any signs of illness?

Especially those deep brown phoenix eyes, which had hidden their former timidity and now seemed to hold a sharp edge. They stared at him fixedly.

That gaze was cold to the bone, full of pressure, making people feel intimidated.

He involuntarily took a few steps back and eventually stumbled, falling into the snow.

Shen Qiuci saw that he was scared pale and couldn’t help but find it somewhat amusing.

“Where is Shizi?”

“He’s… he’s gone to the Jiangyue Tower with Xue Xiao’niang to drink…”Shen Qiuci gazed straight ahead, not looking at him again, and only instructed in a cold tone:

“Go tell him I’ve returned.”

Now that she had returned, taking on her elder sister’s identity, the entire Hou’s mansion wouldn’t be able to have a single day of peace!

After the housekeeper ran away in a flurry, Shen Qiuci heard Xia Shang’s soft voice:

“Second Miss, it’s cold and snowy outside, let’s go back to the room and wait?”

Shen Qiuci nodded silently and followed Xia Shang’s guidance to the Bi Xi Hall, where her elder sister used to reside in the Marquis’s mansion.

Along the way, the servants in the Marquis’s mansion saw her and panicked as if they had seen a ghost.

The maids who were originally holding funeral objects to prepare for the ancestral hall stood frozen in place, watching Shen Qiuci’s steady footsteps and whispering to each other:

“The famous doctors in the capital city diagnosed her and said Eldest wife wouldn’t live long, wouldn’t survive more than two days. The Shizi told us to prepare for the funeral.”

“She’s been bedridden for two years, unable to move. How can she be like a normal person now?”

“Do we still need to prepare for the funeral?”

These discussions were carried on the wind and reached Shen Qiuci’s ears, piercingly sharp.She took a deep breath, her hands involuntarily clenched into fists, and suppressed her anger without erupting.

When she arrived at the Bi Xi Hall, it had clearly been half-turned into a funeral hall. All the furniture was covered in dust. Shen Qiuci told Xia Shang to call the servants to clean it up.

After a flurry of activity, when Shen Qiuci came out of the room, the Bi Xi Hall was already empty of servants.

Looking at the funeral decorations, although they had been cleaned up, the snow in front of the door was still trampled and messy, with no signs of being swept.

Even the Huangli wood table in the hall was covered with a thin layer of dust.

She used her fingertips to scrape off some of the dust and rubbed it between her fingers. Then she asked Xia Shang:

“Is this how they’ve cleaned it?”

Xia Shang was currently wiping the furniture with a cloth:

“The servants in the mansion have always been like this. Ever since the eldest miss had a miscarriage and the Old madam and the Shizi became cold towards her, the servants started to slack off.”

From her tone, it seemed she was already used to the situation:

“The eldest miss was gentle and didn’t want to cause trouble, so she just endured it. Over time, they became more and more undisciplined.”

Shen Qiuci stopped Xia Shang from cleaning and asked again:

“How many people used to attend to my elder sister in her room?”

“Twelve people.” Xia Shang replied:

“The one in charge is Liu momo, she’s been sent by the Old madam to attend to the eldest miss. It’s said that she used to serve by the Old madam’s side and was deeply loved by the Old madam, so the eldest miss wouldn’t dare to say a single word of criticism to her.”

Shen Qiuci stretched out her hands to warm them by the charcoal basin and said without any expression:

“Go call them all over here.”

Xia Shang went to pass on the message, but it took two calls to gather everyone.

Shen Qiuci looked around and saw that the Old momo standing at the front was stout and lazy in her movements.

After entering, she didn’t even bow, yawned, and asked Shen Qiuci:

“What instructions does Eldest wife have?”

Shen Qiuci glanced at the dust on the table with lowered eyes and said in a light tone:

“Take a look yourself.”

Unexpectedly, Liu momo just casually glanced at it and said:

“It’s cold, and the charcoal basin is lit in the room, it’s inevitable that some dust will fall. If you find it annoying, just wipe it yourself?”

After speaking, she muttered softly:

“It’s always been like this before. How did she become more and more pretentious after getting sick…”
Shen Qiuci’s face immediately darkened,

“Your job is for me to do, it’s really a waste that the Hou’s mansion fed you to be black and fat.”

As she spoke, she lightly tapped her knuckles on the table,

“Come over, wipe it clean.”

Liu momo, relying on the Old madam’s support, was naturally fearless and still spoke perfunctorily:

“This servant has chilblains on her hands, and it’s even more impossible to touch cold water in winter. Please, Eldest wife, have understanding.”

Shen Qiuci heard this and found it amusing.

A few imperceptible shadows spread in her eyes,

“Liu momo is right.”

As she spoke, she slowly raised her head, looking at Liu momo with a smile in her eyes,

“As the master of the household, I should have understanding for the servants.”

She glanced at the charcoal basin burning vigorously beside her,

“Come, let me take a look at the injury on your hand…”

“A few days ago, I just got some good medicine for injuries, which can treat it and alleviate the pain.”

Liu momo, upon hearing this, proudly raised her thick eyebrows, as if she had grasped Shen Qiuci’s weakness,

She winked at the other servants to show off, and swaggered over to Shen Qiuci, opening her palm and stretching it out.

However, the next moment, Shen Qiuci grasped her wrist,
Swiftly picked up the fire tongs placed in the charcoal basin beside her, and pressed it heavily onto her palm!

A “zi la” sound accompanied the rising smoke, and a smell of char filled the air instantly.

The servants were frightened and screamed in terror, while Liu momo’s face contorted in pain, and she wailed hysterically.

She desperately tried to break free from Shen Qiuci’s grip,

But unexpectedly,

The woman in front of her, who looked delicate and weak, had an unknown strength,

Even with all her might, she couldn’t break free.

Not until the flesh on her palm was almost cooked through did Shen Qiuci release her hand,

“Now your chilblains are cured, and it’s convenient for you to wipe the table.”

After speaking, she inserted the fire tongs back into the charcoal basin and idly poked at it,

“Xia Shang, give her the cloth.”

Liu momo looked at the piece of flesh on her palm that was charred to the point where the palm lines had disappeared,

She was in so much pain that she was sobbing and screaming at the top of her lungs:

“You… you dare to do this to me! You just wait! When the Old madam returns, I’ll tell her about this, and she’ll take care of it for me!”
“Oh?”

Shen Qiuci casually picked up a piece of red-hot coal with the fire tongs,

“Then you might as well guess, which one is faster, the Old madam’s return, or…”

She lightly blew on the coal, making it burn even brighter, and then turned her gaze to Liu momo, her smile growing wider,

“Or me cooking the skin and flesh on your body, one inch, one inch, until it’s all cooked and rotten, which would be faster?”

After speaking, seeing Liu momo’s face filled with panic, Shen Qiuci suddenly acted,

She violently threw the fire tongs to Liu momo’s feet, her expression stern, and shouted loudly:

“Wipe!”

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