Nearly half of the total three sets of bowls and chopsticks, and six or seven small plates, were successfully broken under Qi Xuan's tidying.
The ear was constantly filled with the sound of clinking. Yu Ping, listening from the side, twitched her lips.
This wasn't tidying; it was clearly destruction!
The last plate was thrown into the food box. Seeing him reaching for the teapot on the table again, Yu Ping's forehead twitched, and she quickly reached out to stop him.
"Stop! This teapot belongs to our courtyard!"
Qi Xuan froze and sheepishly withdrew his hand. "Oh."
Yu Ping, not reassured, moved the teapot further away. Just as she was about to speak and chase him away, Qi Xuan leaned closer first.
He glanced outside and whispered, "Yesterday, did the side consort give you any trouble?"
He knew Yu Ping's temperament, and he was even more aware of her feelings for Feng Yinwan.
Lan Qingyuan had been vacant for three years. Now, another woman had suddenly moved in. Yu Ping must have been unhappy, but the order came from the prince, so he couldn't disobey...
Yu Ping was stunned, clearly not expecting him to ask that.
"The side consort has no enmity with me, why would she trouble me?"
She and her mistress were getting along well; they had even slept in the same bed last night.
Hearing this, Qi Xuan immediately relaxed. He glanced at her and then explained.
"You've only just returned to the manor and don't know the side consort's temper. She has always disliked others serving her, and her temper is even more so than the princess consort's..."
As soon as she heard him bad-mouthing Feng Yinwan in front of her, Yu Ping frowned immediately. "Alright, alright, you should leave now."
If he touched any more, even the table would break a leg!
She kept urging him to leave, but as she stepped out, she met her mistress's spectator eyes and was immediately stunned.
"Side consort?"
She wondered if her mistress had heard what Qi Xuan had just said.
Qi Xuan clearly hadn't expected her to be at the door either. Seeing this, he felt guilty and immediately nodded.
"Side consort."
Both of them looked flustered. Feng Yinwan, however, didn't seem to care much. Her gaze drifted to Qi Xuan's face with a hint of inscrutable meaning.
"Is Steward Qi finished tidying?"
Her tone was peaceful, but Qi Xuan felt his heart pounding.
He nodded, his face quickly regaining its solemnity, and said, "The prince's orders have been fulfilled. This subordinate will take his leave."
With that, he picked up the food box and, taking Yu Ping with him, left in a hurry.
Feng Yinwan watched him leave, crossing her arms and clicking her tongue in thought.
Seeing that everyone had left, she was still staring. Yu Ping was puzzled.
"Mistress, what are you looking at?"
There was nothing special about Qi Xuan.
Feng Yinwan's gaze didn't waver as she asked her, "Don't you think he's a little off?"
"Off?"
Yu Ping frowned. "How is he off?"
Feng Yinwan chuckled and turned to look at her.
"He's off in every way."
Yu Ping was even more confused.
Before she could ask further, Feng Yinwan had already walked towards the storage room. Qin Rulian had been thrown there after being taken away earlier.
Following her, they indeed saw her slumped on the ground, looking so disheveled she seemed on the verge of passing out at any moment.
Having been starved for two days and then struck by Feng Yinwan last night, Qin Rulian found it difficult to even move. She had no strength left.
Feng Yinwan glanced at her, then turned to Yu Ping and instructed, "Go get something to eat."
She didn't want the rules she was establishing to be interrupted by the person fainting.
That wouldn't be interesting.
There were still plenty of yesterday's pastries left. Yu Ping quickly brought some over.
Feng Yinwan picked out one of them, relaxed her fingertips, and tossed it over.
"Eat. I'm sure Miss Qin is hungry."
The pastry landed precisely in front of Qin Rulian.
This blatant humiliation infuriated Qin Rulian. She used all her strength to grab the pastry and threw it away fiercely.
Despite her fierce effort, her strength was limited. The pastry only rolled to the doorway before stopping.
Feng Yinwan tutted and used some force to lift Qin Rulian by her hair.
"You have quite a temper, but unfortunately, it can't be eaten."
Qin Rulian winced in pain, and when she looked up again, she saw Feng Yinwan's wrist turn, and a pill appeared in her palm.
Feng Yinwan's gaze swept over her, her eyes radiating a chilling coldness.
"Miss Qin, do you know there's a pill in this world that, after being taken, allows one to go ten to fifteen days without eating, while maintaining absolute clarity of consciousness?"
"In a state of extreme near-unconsciousness, one can feel hunger even more keenly. Tell me, wouldn't that be more agonizing than death?"
When alive, illness and hunger are the most unbearable.
Starvation was already painful, but with such a tormenting pill, it would be like a soft knife, making life worse than death.
But she didn't even dare to die, so how could she dare to live a life worse than death!
Qin Rulian couldn't speak, but her eyes revealed her inner fear.
Feng Yinwan raised an eyebrow and brought the pill in her hand towards Qin Rulian's mouth.
"I'm quite curious to see if this is true. Why don't you try it, Miss Qin?"
Although it was a question, she was holding Qin Rulian's hair with one hand, making it clear this was not a negotiation.
Qin Rulian, in pain, instinctively tried to gasp, her lips brushing against the pill. She immediately closed her mouth in terror.
Feng Yinwan glanced, then raised her hand and pinched Qin Rulian's jaw.
"It seems I'll have to help you, Consort."
Her fingertip held the pill, and as she was about to put it in her own mouth, Qin Rulian, seeing this, began to struggle wildly as if driven mad.
Feng Yinwan watched coldly. Seeing that she was struggling almost to her limit, she loosened her grip and withdrew her hand.
The force on her jaw suddenly receded, and Qin Rulian immediately collapsed onto the ground like a puddle of mud.
Without daring to pause, she quickly crawled to the doorway, grabbed the pastry, and shoved it into her mouth.
It was a very dry rice cake, and it had rolled on the ground a few times, picking up a lot of dust. As soon as it entered her mouth, her throat felt instantly blocked, making her extremely uncomfortable.
Qin Rulian coughed incessantly, but she was afraid Feng Yinwan would force her to eat that terrifying pill again. Her face turned purple from holding her breath, but she didn't dare to spit out even a bit.
After a while, seeing that she was reaching her limit, Feng Yinwan withdrew her gaze and said faintly.
"It seems Miss Qin is very fond of this pastry. Then bring her those few pieces as well."
Yu Ping understood and nodded immediately. "Yes."
After eating several rice cakes consecutively, dryly, without any water, Qin Rulian repeatedly licked her dry, cracked lips, feeling as though she was about to choke to death.
When Yu Ping brought her to the courtyard, Feng Yinwan was pouring tea by the stone table.
The tea was fragrant and aromatic. With just a whiff, Qin Rulian recognized it as high-quality Lushan Yunwu.
Only two boxes had been supplied this year. The Emperor had gifted one box to Ye Tinglan, and the other was in Changle Palace.
The tea poured from the jade pot with a continuous tinkling sound. Its ethereal fragrance splashed outwards with the water droplets. Like parched land begging for rain, Qin Rulian watched and unconsciously swallowed.
However, before she could recover, Feng Yinwan's cold voice rang out in front of her.
"Kneel."