"Why are you looking at Ninth Sister as if you want to devour her? Do you have a grudge against her?"

With Nangong Lingyan's question, everyone turned their eyes toward Ms. Bei, clearly seeing the unhidden jealousy in her eyes.

Those unaware of the reason were puzzled and confused.

Those who knew a little of Ms. Bei's mind whispered to one another, looking at her with contempt and mockery.

Especially a few daughters of the county magistrates took pleasure in her misfortune. They knew that Ms. Bei always carried herself with an air of aloofness and pride, never regarding them highly and even often mocking them. Considering Sir Bei was their fathers' immediate superior, they had no choice but to swallow their anger and try to please Ms. Bei. Now that Ms.

Bei had lost face in public, they were naturally gloating in secret.

Long Xuanmo's expression was overcast, his body emitting an icy chill to the bone, his eyes filled with a thick murderous intent.

Yang Mengchen glanced subtly at Long Xuanmo and shook her head slightly. Long Xuanmo quickly retracted the penetrating coldness surrounding him.

The chill came and went so quickly that, although the crowd did not understand why, they did not pay it much mind and merely whispered to each other.

Upon hearing the derisive comments from everyone, Lady Bei's face turned pale then flushed deep red; she tugged at her daughter's sleeve, her eyes filled with warning and helplessness.

Not long ago, she had accidentally learned that her daughter had taken a fancy to Prince Chen, which terrified her to the core.

Both she and her husband were well aware of their place and had no desire for their daughter to plunge into that den of wolves. Therefore, they strictly reprimanded and advised their daughter, even confined her to her room to learn proper behavior. They also secretly hastened to arrange suitors, hoping to marry her off quickly to put an end to her improper thoughts.

This time, her husband came to congratulate Ms. Yang and upon hearing that Prince Chen would also be present, she firmly objected to her daughter attending. But defeated by her daughter's persistent pleading and the promise that she had abandoned any thoughts of marrying Prince Chen, she reluctantly agreed.

To her dismay, her daughter acted against her wishes in secret and her hidden thoughts were exposed by others, which filled her with both annoyance and shame.

The public's disdain made Ms. Bei furious, and Long Xuanmo's indifference, particularly the eyes brimming with rising murderous intent, caused her immense heartache. Her beautiful face lost all color in an instant, and she felt a deep-seated hatred for Nangong Lingyan, who had disrespected her.

Just as Ms. Bei was about to angrily scold her, the voice of Lady Nangong conveniently reached her ears, "Ling Yan, you must not be rude!" The words of reprimand were abruptly swallowed.

This vulgar woman was actually the daughter of the Nangong family, Nangong Lingyan?

Walking slowly to the side of Yang Mengchen and her daughter, Lady Nangong looked at Ms. Bei and then turned to her daughter, her stern voice devoid of any hint of blame, "Ling Yan, today is a joyous day for Ninth Sister's shop. As her elder sister, even if you see something, you must not be rude to the guests, lest you invite criticism of Ninth Sister for lacking manners! Do you understand?"

Yang Mengchen's eyes and brows were tranquil as water, inwardly marvelling in amazement.

Lady Nangong, the mistress of an aristocratic family, was indeed skillful with her words. On the surface, she was instructing her daughter, but in fact, she was suggesting that Ms. Bei was the one lacking manners and etiquette. Such mastery! What surprised her even more was yet to come.

"I understand, Mother," Nangong Lingyan immediately adopted an apologetic stance, then curtsied to Ms. Bei, "I am sorry, Ms. Bei. I was too impulsive just now and offended you. I hope you can forgive me. However, Ms.

Bei, please never again look at Ninth Sister with that devouring gaze. Someone who doesn't know better might think you have deep-seated grudges against her, don't you think?"

Not only did Yang Mengchen take delight in this, but so did Lady Luo and Lady Hua.

Who would say Nangong Lingyan is careless? Her words were quite sophisticated, especially since she maintained full propriety, leaving no room for criticism—truly clever.

The crowd, some gloating over the misfortune and others watching with detached amusement, all found Nangong Lingyan's forthrightness frightening.

Meanwhile, Lady Nangong did not blame her second daughter for her remarks but felt a headache coming on. Her second daughter was too forthright; how could she ever marry her off?

Ms. Bei choked up and couldn't say a word. Her complexion, already pale, turned utterly bloodless. Nangong Lingyan was, after all, the daughter of the world's wealthiest, and even the Emperor showed three parts respect to the Nangong family. She, a mere daughter of an official, could do nothing about it.

Seeing her daughter become the target of public criticism, Lady Bei quickly apologized to Yang Mengchen and Long Xuanmo, then hurriedly pulled her daughter away.

After glancing at Hai Tang, who then left, Yang Mengchen turned to the crowd with a smile, "My apologies for the inadequate service that has caused unwanted disruptions. To express my apology, everything purchased by the ladies and misses in my store today will be given a ten percent discount.

Bai He, Mu Jin, later on, you two will personally handle the checkout for everyone." The last sentence was directed at Bai He and Mu Jin.

"As you command," Bai He and Mu Jin respectfully acknowledged.

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces lit up with joy. They had their eyes on many lovely items, and even though the discount was only ten percent, it would save them a significant amount of silver coin.

Those with a keen mind silently admired Yang Mengchen. This situation had nothing to do with her, yet she had proactively assumed responsibility. Her magnanimity and tactful approach were indeed admirable.

Yang Mengchen personally selected a few outfits and handed them to Lady Hua, "Lady Hua, please go to the fitting room and try these on."

Lady Hua took the outfits and went to the fitting room with a sales attendant, while Long Xuanmo, at Yang Mengchen's indication, stepped outside. He instructed Mo Lei briefly, then waited outside, while Yang Mengchen gave others advice on how to match their clothes.

Before long, Lady Hua came out of the fitting room, and everyone was immediately dazzled by her appearance.

The sky-blue wide-sleeve long dress was embroidered with plum blossom patterns, and the center of each blossom was adorned with tiny rounded ceramic glaze beads. It was overlaid with a smoke pink double-breasted brocade thin jacket, trimmed with snow-white fur and deep red brocade edges, cinched at the waist with an exquisite jade belt, and embellished with delicate pearl tassels on both sides.

She looked utterly dignified, yet ethereal and pure, a complete transformation from before.

"This combination is simply marvelous!" Lady Nangong kept exclaiming, "Mengchen, please pick out a few sets for me as well."

Except for Lady Luo (whose and the Xiao family's clothes were all personally tailored by Yang Mengchen), everyone else looked at her expectantly.

Yang Mengchen, always wearing a gentle smile, matched two or three outfits for each person. After trying them on, everyone seemed pleased, "Ladies and misses, why not follow me to the fourth floor? I will select matching jewelry for you, then take you to the neighboring cosmetics shop for a beauty treatment. I assure you, you'll be radiant and beautiful as fairies."

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