"Qiaoyue, watch your words. No matter what Lianhe has done, she is still my sister. As the elder sister, it is my duty to be magnanimous."
Song Xilan quickly spoke up to stop her. To any onlooker, this gesture made her seem truly well-behaved, kind, and considerate.
Zhou Junlin frowned, his eyes full of pity as he looked at the woman beside him.
Then, when his gaze fell on Song Lianhe, it turned as cold as ice.
Song Xingfeng's face was grim. It was as if people were pointing their fingers at him, accusing him of failing to raise his daughter properly.
And so, he directed all his anger at his younger daughter. "Today is your sister's birthday! You've only just arrived, and you've already made everyone unhappy. Now leave!"
Song Lianhe slowly lifted her gaze, staring unblinkingly at her own father.
'Now I can more or less understand why the original owner of this body turned out this way. Song Xingfeng was her only source of familial affection in this mansion, yet all he cared about was keeping the peace and having a harmonious family. Whenever something happened, he would either try to smooth it over or only listen to one side of the story!'
'Song Xilan was the light of justice, blessed with a protagonist's halo. In contrast, as the villain, everything Song Lianhe did was wrong…'
'Deprived of affection and ignored by everyone, the original owner had simply given up on herself. Her temperament grew more and more hostile until she truly became the Evil Woman everyone expected.'
She lowered her eyes and gave a soft laugh, speaking slowly. "I haven't even said a single word, yet I've already been saddled with so much blame."
Lifting her gaze, she ignored everyone else and fixed her stare on Song Xingfeng. Word by word, she asked, "So, it's not because I was late. My very presence at my elder sister's birthday banquet is the mistake, isn't it?"
Song Xingfeng was taken aback. "You…"
"I know that you, Aunt, and my sister are the real family. All these years, I've never been able to fit in with you all."
Song Lianhe gave a self-deprecating smile, her voice laced with sorrow. As she lowered her gaze, a shimmer of moisture appeared in her eyes.
Anyone who saw her couldn't help but think, 'How pitiful!'
Before Mrs. Liu could even register her shock, she rushed to defend herself. "Second Young Miss…"
"Aunt Liu, everyone says you are magnanimous, virtuous, and kind. If you possessed even a shred of benevolence, if you truly had my best interests—or my father's—at heart, you would never have called me 'Second Young Miss' today in front of Father's colleagues and family."
Song Lianhe spoke at a calm, steady pace, a far cry from her usual hot-tempered arrogance. Instead, her voice carried a hint of weariness, as if worn down by the years.
The guests below were slow on the uptake, but after her words, they began to sense the underlying meaning.
'That's right. If she were truly a sensible elder who cared for the children, why would she throw a junior into the eye of the storm in front of so many outsiders?'
Having been questioned so publicly, Mrs. Liu was already losing her composure. "Don't you dare speak such nonsense! You're the one who forbids me from using your name and insists I call you 'Second Young Miss'!"
Song Lianhe smiled. "And I don't like how Aunt presents herself as the General Mansion Lady. Don't you wear that 'Lady' title as if it were a crown?"
"You—"
"Aunt, I know you're eager to improve your station, but you need to get something straight. My mother and father were joined by the Holy Emperor's decree, a marriage bestowed by the throne. Even though she is gone, the true lady of this mansion can only ever be her! You, at best, are the second lady… Heh, not so different from me being the 'Second Young Miss,' is it? We have that in common. The difference is, I am the legitimate daughter, while you are merely the concubine who succeeded her."
Publicly humiliated like this, Mrs. Liu's face turned deathly pale and her legs went weak. She longed to rush forward and rip the little slut's mouth to shreds, but in front of all these outsiders, she had to maintain her virtuous image. All she could do was tremble with rage, unable to utter a single word.
Seeing this, Song Xilan immediately stepped in to save her mother's dignity. "Sister, you…"
Before she could finish, Song Lianhe turned to look at her, her gaze cold and her expression unreadable. "Do you know why I make a scene every year on your birthday?"
"You…"
Song Xilan seemed to guess what was coming, and the color drained from her face. She tried to speak first to defend herself, but Song Lianhe gave her no opportunity.
"Your birthday… is the anniversary of my mother's death."
The moment the words left her mouth, the crowd erupted in discussion.
"Heavens, that can't be true, can it?"
"To ignore the anniversary of his late wife's death, yet throw a lavish party for a concubine's daughter?"
"No wonder Song Lianhe makes a scene at her sister's birthday banquet every year. So that's the reason…"
Song Xingfeng's expression stiffened, and his eyes immediately filled with guilt.
Out of respect for his late wife, he hadn't allowed his eldest daughter to celebrate her birthday for the first few years. That was, until Mrs. Liu came to him in tears, and he relented out of pity for his eldest daughter.