The Grand Commander finally took a clean spoon from the eight-immortal table and "bestowed" it to her.
Holding the little one in her arms, Meng Qianqian folded a clean handkerchief under her chin and then slowly fed her using the handle end of the porcelain spoon.
The little one opened her tiny mouth, impatiently sucking away.
Lu Yuan watched as the tiny one actually started eating. His long, narrow eyes narrowed slightly, clearly surprised.
"Have you taken care of children before?"
He asked nonchalantly.
Meng Qianqian replied, "I have a little brother at home."
Lu Yuan folded his arms and lazily looked at her. "Your little brother, Meng Lang, is only a year younger than you."
He had accurately named her younger brother, likely more informed than her husband, Lu Lingxiao, about such details.
It made sense. Less than a day had passed, yet this most merciless man in the world, who sought her out late at night with a child, must have investigated her lineage thoroughly.
"My cousin."
Meng Qianqian said.
"Your cousin is also under your care?"
"If I'm willing."
The little one smacked her lips, occasionally looking at Lu Yuan, and then at Meng Qianqian, as if listening to their conversation.
Meeting the little one's round, jet-black eyes, Meng Qianqian remarked, "This child looks less than a year old."
Lu Yuan curled his lips arrogantly. "If I say she's a year old, then she's a year old."
Of course—who but him could call a deer a horse?
Meng Qianqian stopped speaking, focusing solely on feeding the child.
Sitting on a bare stool that lacked both a backrest and a footrest, Lu Yuan looked visibly uncomfortable, exuding an aura of coldness and irritation.
It was clear he was restraining himself with great effort.
In the Capital City, probably no one could have imagined that the mighty Grand Commander would one day be silenced by a little milk-drunk baby.
Who knows how much time passed before the little one finally ate her fill, burped twice, and then fell asleep with her tiny chin lifted in a smug manner.
Throughout, neither Meng Qianqian nor the Grand Commander mentioned the Lu Family's planned one-year-old birthday grab ceremony.
Neither cared, and neither bothered.
Meng Qianqian did not know when she herself fell asleep. When she woke up, it was already the next morning, and both the Grand Commander and the little one were gone.
If not for the faint scent of milk lingering in her embrace, she might have thought that the father and daughter had never been there at all.
Catching a cold, she did not go to pay respects to the Old Madam, instead staying in Haitang Courtyard to recover.
Nanny Li stewed bird's nest for Meng Qianqian.
As Meng Qianqian was eating, the stewardess from Feng Courtyard arrived.
It turned out that yesterday Lin Wan'er had selected several bolts of fabric and sent them to the residence.
Early this morning, the delivery had arrived, and the messenger was waiting for payment.
Meng Qianqian said, "Let her settle it herself. Why come to me? It's not as if I bought the fabric."
The stewardess was utterly shocked.
Seeing her lingering, Meng Qianqian asked, "Is there something else?"
The stewardess came back to her senses, speaking with uncertainty, "There is one more matter. Feng Courtyard requires a bowl of blood-red bird's nest every day for Miss Lin to nourish her health and stabilize her pregnancy. However, the bird's nests in the residence are rationed. Take a bowl; get a bowl. Today, Lu Luo went to take some, but there wasn't any left."
As she spoke, she deliberately glanced at Nanny Li, implying that Nanny Li was intentionally making things difficult for Feng Courtyard.
After all, the Eldest Young Madam had been a soft touch for years, known for her generosity and ease of manipulation.
Meng Qianqian set down her spoon and wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. "It was my decision. If Miss Lin wants to eat, let her pay for it herself."
Bird's nest is a rare commodity, brought from far-off places. By the time it reaches the Capital City, a pound sells for thirty taels of silver. Blood-red bird's nest is even rarer; a hundred taels is considered cheap.
The Old Madam eats a bowl daily, sometimes two. Occasionally, the Second Madam and Lu Linglong would also take a few bowls. This doesn't even include the Old Madam's habit of eating and gifting some to her family, amounting to hundreds of taels a month for bird's nest alone.
Meng Qianqian used to refrain from eating it herself, but look at how years of sincerity had fed these ungrateful wolves.
The stewardess eyed the untouched bowl of blood-red bird's nest on Meng Qianqian's table and awkwardly chuckled. "Miss Lin is also contributing to the Lu Family's lineage. How can this silver come out of her own pocket? Besides, you alone can't possibly finish so much; wouldn't it just go to waste?"
Meng Qianqian calmly responded, "Even if I eat half and toss the other half, it's still my business. If she doesn't want to pay, then don't eat."
The stewardess didn't expect the Eldest Young Madam to have such a strong stance and hurried off to report to the Old Madam in the Fushou Courtyard.
The Old Madam was so furious she nearly fainted and sent her trusted nanny to reprimand Meng Qianqian, urging her to not be so ungrateful. Those fabrics were meant for her future great-grandchild, and the bird's nest was for her future great-grandchild to consume.
Meng Qianqian replied, "Since Grandmother cherishes her precious great-grandchild so much, why not pay for Feng Courtyard's expenses? After all, it's not expensive—just seven or eight hundred taels."
"She actually said that?"
"Yes, Old Madam, it's absolutely true. This servant wouldn't dare make things up."
The Old Madam ground her teeth in anger. "That girl has turned the heavens upside down!"
Seven or eight hundred taels? She certainly wouldn't pay!
The nanny asked, "Could it be that the Eldest Young Master took Miss Lin to the banquet yesterday because of this?"
The Old Madam snapped, "As if she didn't wander off on her own! Someone else covered for her, and she's not even grateful. Instead, she cut off their resources… I said from the start we shouldn't marry a girl from a small family. Always fighting and jealous—it's no wonder Lingxiao stays out of her quarters!"
Back in Haitang Courtyard.
Meng Qianqian finished her bird's nest and told Nanny Li, "Once this batch of bird's nest is gone, we're not buying more."
Nanny Li hesitated. "In that case, wouldn't the Old Madam be without any as well?"
Meng Qianqian said, "As I said before, if she wants it, she can buy it herself."
After suffering so much indignity yesterday, Nanny Li could understand any decision her mistress made today.
But venting her frustrations should not cross any lines.
The Old Madam was still the pillar of the Lu Family.
Nanny Li closed the door.
"Miss, tell me honestly, what are you planning? Are you trying to pressure the Lu Family? To seize control over Miss Lin? Or—"
Meng Qianqian shook her head. "Why would I bother with her? As long as she doesn't provoke me, I can turn a blind eye to her."
Nanny Li persisted. "Then why is Miss doing this…"
Meng Qianqian spoke earnestly, "Nanny, years ago, it was the Lu Family that sought my hand in marriage. My grandfather couldn't bear to let me marry far away, but the Old Patriarch assured him time and again that his granddaughter would be treated well and never suffer any grievance in the Lu Family. Over the past few years, I've fulfilled all my duties as a wife, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter-in-law. What I should give and what I should not, I've given everything. But what have I received in return?"
"An unloving husband. A family-in-law that squeezes me dry."
"Nanny, I won't go on like this anymore."
Early in the morning, Lu Lingxiao went to the barracks, and upon returning, he heard about the incidents with the fabrics and the bird's nest.
He frowned. "Let Songzhu Courtyard cover the cost for now."
The servant replied, "Songzhu Courtyard's funds are gone as well. Eldest Young Master, as of today, you are officially broke."
Lu Lingxiao's body shook with disbelief!