Chapter 259

259 Drunk

Even if she had the favor of the magistrate, how long could it last?

Mo Ruyue saw the pride and confidence on her face. She raised her eyebrows and said indifferently, “I don’t drink.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a soft sneer came from beside her. That was not what she had said when the magistrate and some officials had toasted her that night.

The woman’s face instantly darkened. She stared at Mo Ruyue unkindly and said, “Lady Qin wasn’t like this when she was drinking at night. Do you not want to drink, or do you not want to give me the face to drink with me?”

!!

“Since you already know that I’ve drunk, you should know that I can’t hold my liquor anymore. The magistrate has allowed me to stop drinking, but you still want me to do you a favor and drink your wine. Are you not taking my alcohol tolerance seriously, or are you not taking the words of the magistrate seriously?”

Mo Ruyue retorted unhurriedly.

The woman was stunned and didn’t know how to reply to her. She hesitated for a moment before saying, “Lady Qin was at the male guests’ side just now, how could we, the people at the female side, hear the words of the magistrate.”

“Moreover, when Lady Qin returned, she did not inform Lady Duanmu. This seems to be against the rules.”

She had already regained her composure after saying her first sentence. She looked much more confident, especially after seeing Lady Duanmu’s expression. She felt that she had found a way to deal with Mo Ruyue.

“I’m afraid that’s just what you think. I’ve already greeted Lady Duanmu before the banquet started and even drank with her. What are your intentions in pushing Lady Duanmu out to talk about this now?”

Mo Ruyue still spoke unhurriedly, but her words were sharp. It was obvious that she no longer intended to use a defensive posture and had begun to take the initiative to attack.

She had endured for an entire night and no longer had the patience to endure it. Since someone had already delivered themselves to her door to ask her to leave early, why not go with the flow and give up this opportunity to offend the magistrate?

“What do you mean by that?”

As expected, that woman couldn’t stand being provoked. When she heard this, her expression became even uglier. After questioning Mo Ruyue, she immediately turned to Lady Duanmu and said, “Madam, I absolutely didn’t have the intention to offend Madam. I hope that Madam won’t be incited by this Lady Qin.”

Idiot.

Mo Ruyue said in her heart.

This sentence had really pushed Lady Duanmu into a situation where she had no choice but to stand up and speak. Such a stupid person could actually sit in the position of the official’s wife for so long. One had to say that her dog-shit luck had really lasted for a long time.

Sure enough, the calm expression on Lady Duanmu’s face disappeared. A trace of disgust flashed across her eyes, but it soon returned to a smile.

“What are you saying? Lady Qin was only speaking the truth, how did it become a provocation? Mrs. Cen, don’t tell me you’re drunk just because you drank a few more glasses.”

“Yes, yes, yes. I did drink a little too much. The wind just now made my head feel a little dizzy. I’m afraid I’m really drunk.”

Madam Cen immediately changed her words after getting a way out.

“Since you’re drunk, then go back early and rest. Why don’t you take a rest in my residence’s side room?”

Lady Duanmu “enthusiastically” asked again.

“No, no, no. I’d better go back and rest. I won’t trouble Lady Duanmu.”

Madam Cen’s arrogance was immediately gone. She could afford to offend Mo Ruyue, but she couldn’t afford to offend Lady Duanmu. At this time, she could only hope to quickly settle the matter and not cause any trouble. She didn’t dare to continue pestering.

“But it seems to me that you still want to toast Lady Qin. The wine in my Duanmu residence is so good that you can’t help but want to share it with Lady Qin.”

Lady Duanmu’s next sentence brought the topic back to the conflict just now. However, her status was much higher than that of Madam Cen, and no one could find any fault with the reason she came up with.

“Lady Duanmu, I, I just admire Lady Qin’s ability, so I want to be closer to her. I have no other intentions. Just now, Lady Qin also said that she can’t hold her liquor anymore, so if I toast again, it’s a bit presumptuous.”

Madam Cen had no choice but to slap herself in the face. Then, as if she was afraid that Lady Duanmu would make a fuss out of this matter again, she immediately said to Mo Ruyue, “Lady Qin, I’m sorry, I can’t drink too much, so I’ll take my leave first.”

“Madam, the adults have sent this small one to ask. The womenfolk here are so lively, did something interesting happen?”

A manservant’s voice suddenly came from outside the reception pavilion. It turned out that the female guests’ movements had reached the male guests and attracted Duanmu Xize’s attention. Thus, he had specially sent someone to investigate.

“Oh, go back to the old master and tell him that the wife of county officer Cao, Madam Cen, can’t hold her liquor anymore and wants to go back to rest. We had a few jokes and let her go back.”

As Lady Duanmu spoke, her gaze swept past the pale-faced Madam Cen and landed on Mo Ruyue.

This Lady Qin wasn’t easy to get along with. If she wanted to use her status to suppress her, she wouldn’t be able to do so if she didn’t have enough weight.

“Yes, I’ll go back first. I’ll have to trouble little brother to help inform my master when he sees him.”

Madam Cen forced a smile. Now that her mind was in a mess, her form of address and attitude were also in a mess, and she had become a joke to others.

After sending away the manservant who came to ask questions, Lady Duanmu’s interest seemed to have waned. She waved her hand at Madam Cen and said, “Since Madam Cen can’t hold her liquor, she won’t be able to stay any longer. Mrs. Liu, please send Madam Cen out.”

A kind-looking woman stood out from behind her and responded with her eyes lowered. then, she looked up at Madam Cen. “Madam Cen, please.”

This look was like a cold sword that seemed to be able to pierce through one’s heart, making Mo Ruyue let out a low “huh” when she saw it.

From the looks of it, this Madam Liu should be quite a character. The position of the magistrate was not small, but he might not be able to raise such a servant.

From the looks of it, there were many capable people in the Duanmu residence.

Whether good or bad, Ye Jingzhi was one of them, and so was this Madam Liu.

However, these two people were not of the same mind as Duanmu Xize. It could be considered his sorrow.

Madam Cen didn’t dare to delay and quickly left with Madam Liu. She didn’t even bother to look at Mo Ruyue.

Originally, she was full of anger and wanted to find fault with Mo Ruyue, but in the end, she embarrassed herself and couldn’t even get back her capital. In the end, she had to go out dejectedly. She was afraid that in the future, her husband’s family would also be implicated.

With this incident, she had originally wanted to make things difficult for Mo Ruyue, but she quickly restrained herself and didn’t dare let anyone see it. She was afraid that she would follow in Madam Cen’s footsteps.

Some people were thinking about Lady Duanmu’s attitude toward Mo Ruyue just now. It looked like she had spoken a few words for her, but then she brought the topic back to the original one. Such an ambiguous attitude was the complete opposite of Master Duanmu’s way of flattering Mo Ruyue.

Everyone had their own thoughts, but they still had smiles on their faces. The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.

Mo Ruyue didn’t care about the undercurrents on the table and under the table. She took this opportunity to say that she wanted to sober up and left the table to go to the garden.