No Evil Lady in the World (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 15
However, Meiana stood there blankly, only blinking her eyes. Rubbing her tired eyes and sitting on the sofa, Sediloi looked up at Meiana, who was standing there dazed.
“Did you not hear what I just said?”
It was more a tone of curiosity than reprimand. To Meiana, that made it feel even more unnatural.
No, more than unnatural, it was… how should she put it? It felt profoundly unfamiliar, as if she had never experienced anything like it before.
Meiana spoke.
“Do you always treat your servants like this?”
Sediloi, not understanding her words, slightly furrowed his brow.
“What do you mean by that?”
Meiana answered, looking at the empty sofa.
“It’s just surprising that you’d tell a servant, and not even a high-ranking one but a mere maid, to ‘sit and talk.’”
“It’s not going to be a short conversation, is it? If we stand the whole time, it’ll be tiring for you and for me, looking up at you. I’m someone who values efficiency. Unless it’s dictated by law that nobles sit and servants stand, in my house, I do as I please. So, sit.”
It was a reasonable statement. Meiana nodded as if she had heard satisfactory terms of negotiation and replied.
“Then I won’t decline.”
As she neatly gathered her skirt and sat on the sofa, Sediloi was once again enveloped by an indescribable, peculiar feeling. Their first meeting had already been a striking experience, but Meiana was truly a unique young lady… unlike any other women Sediloi knew.
Despite Sediloi’s intrigued gaze, Meiana didn’t seem to care at all. Or rather, to be more precise, she seemed to have no interest whatsoever in the Sediloi sitting in front of her.
Just moments ago, when he told her to sit, she had shown a flicker of interest, but that trace had already vanished, washed away like it was never there.
Meiana spoke.
“Shall I speak first? Or would you, Your Grace, like to start?”
Sediloi, as if he had been asked a difficult question, leisurely rubbed his temple with his fingers. Then, crossing his long legs diagonally and sitting up straight, he responded.
“According to Master Beiman, you were complaining and finding fault with the ‘proper and excellent education’ provided for Ariante.”
“Did he really say it like that? Or did Your Grace perhaps…”
“Perhaps what?”
“Water it down a bit?”
“If you must ask, I’d say it was considerably watered down.”
Meiana let out a chuckle, as if she had expected as much. Sediloi, surprised, stared at her intently before continuing.
“According to Butler Joslin, you seem to be ‘neglecting’ Ariante too much.”
“That’s also a watered-down expression, isn’t it?”
Sediloi didn’t deny it.
“Quite heavily watered down, yes.”
Meiana chuckled briefly, as if she had anticipated it.
“That might be how the butler sees it.”
“What do you mean? I need a more detailed explanation.”
Meiana finally straightened her posture, placing both hands neatly on her lap. In an instant, her demeanor changed. It was as if she had become a different person, exuding a highly intellectual and sharp air. And somehow, she seemed to be cynically observing the entire situation.
“Let me say first that it’s not true that I’m ‘neglecting’ the young lady. I don’t know exactly what the butler told Your Grace, but I’m neither trying to ‘corrupt’ her nor allowing her to do ‘bad things’ unchecked.”
Sediloi blinked with an intrigued expression. Her words almost perfectly matched what Joslin had said. Though she couldn’t have known, Meiana had, with sheer insight, seen through every complaint Joslin had grumbled about.
After a brief silence, Sediloi asked.
“Then why do you think Joslin told me that?”
“Because what Butler Joslin wants is for me to make the young lady follow her daily schedule perfectly, without missing a single thing.”
“Exactly. Isn’t that why I hired you?”
Meiana tilted her head deliberately, as if to say, “Is that so?” and boldly met Sediloi’s gaze.
“What Your Grace asked of me was to assist Lady Ariante so she could live without any discomfort, wasn’t it?”
“Those two things aren’t different.”
“No, Your Grace. Regrettably, they are entirely different. To be precise, the ‘noble comportment’ that Butler Joslin or Master Beiman wants only makes Lady Ariante unhappy. At least for now.”
Sediloi said.
“That’s quite a bold statement.”
“Is it?”
“No one has ever said such a thing to my face before.”
He paused, his expression unreadable, as if waiting for something, lightly biting his lower lip. Sediloi couldn’t fathom what Meiana wanted.
All the maids who had served Ariante so far had said similar things.
[I can’t do this anymore.]
Sediloi said.
“I don’t think Ariante lacks anything.”
“Of course not materially. Probably every fine thing in the world is prepared for her. From delicate lace socks to extravagant jewels, from pearl combs to toy birds adorned with real sapphires. If she wanted, she could have even more.”
“Yet you say Ariante is unhappy? I can’t make sense of it.”
“That’s exactly the problem.”
Meiana tapped the armrest of the sofa loudly and raised her voice.
“Lady Ariante is surrounded by all sorts of luxuries, but she’s not enjoying the things she truly needs. For starters, her clothes and shoes are a problem. I can’t understand why a seven-year-old needs a corset made of leather and silk. And those high-heeled, hard-soled shoes? No matter how expensive the satin or jewels, what’s the point if they’re uncomfortable to walk in?”
Sediloi moved his lips as if to say something, but Meiana gave him no chance to interrupt. She continued without even pausing for breath.
“And there’s too much homework. Master Beiman is excessively strict. Teaching etiquette is important, but did you know he uses physical punishment? Then there’s the issue of meals. Of course, the young lady is a picky eater. But does that mean we just let her skip meals every time? Shouldn’t we take some other measures?”
“Other measures? Are you saying we should fire Master Beiman and hire another etiquette teacher?”
Meiana widened her eyes, as if to say, “Seriously?”
“No, what I’m saying is that the young lady needs time.”
“Time?”
“Time to run around outside, play, wear comfortable clothes and shoes, and do what she wants! She also needs time to spend with friends her age. The ducal estate is grand and luxurious, but no one properly communicates with her. Can you imagine how lonely that must be?”
Sediloi, momentarily speechless, pressed his lips tightly together.
Assuming Meiana’s words were true, firing Master Beiman was a given. Physical punishment? He knew she was strict and particular about education, but laying a hand on a child was something Sediloi himself could not tolerate.
However, he found it hard to readily agree with Meiana’s other points. Comfortable clothes and shoes? Was she suggesting Ariante wear plain cotton clothes and leather shoes?
“I understand what you’re trying to say, but noble children don’t grow up like that. Even if the attire is somewhat uncomfortable, they must endure it. If they don’t strive to embody the dignity befitting their status from a young age, can’t you see what problems might arise later?”
Sediloi’s tone was serious, but Meiana let out a light scoff, as if she had heard the most foolish thing in the world.
“I understand what Your Grace is trying to say. But it’s exactly that kind of thinking that produces broken personalities like Viscount Fobek and his wife.”
A brief silence fell. Sediloi, with a perplexed expression, unsure whether to laugh or be angry, glanced up at Meiana while rubbing his forehead.
“So, what do you propose? We can’t just let Ariante go without any education. I’ll fire Master Beiman, but can you resolve the other issues?”
“That depends on Your Grace’s will.”
“What does that mean?”
“Even if I want to do something for the young lady, unless Your Grace formally permits it, Joslin or Kosha won’t stand idly by.”
“You’re saying you need my permission?”
“At the very least, you should inform Joslin that you’ve allowed me to spend time with the young lady.”
Sediloi turned his gaze away for a moment, deeply contemplating Meiana’s words.
Common sense told him it was absurd. At the very least, Joslin would surely react that way.
Though she was only a butler, not of noble birth, she was one of the few people who knew the ducal estate and the Valterminster family inside and out.
Joslin’s father, and her grandfather before her, had devoted themselves to the Valterminster family, and if Joslin were to adopt an heir, that child would undoubtedly serve the family as well.
More than anyone, perhaps even more than Sediloi himself, Joslin fervently wished for the Valterminster name to shine with honor. For that, she would do anything…
Her disapproval of Ariante’s various antics stemmed from that very reason.
But Sediloi couldn’t help but be troubled by Meiana’s resolute words.
[The young lady is not happy.]Even now, Meiana sat across from him, repeating the same message with her gaze and tightly pressed lips. Ariante was not happy.
And she had every reason to feel that way, Sediloi muttered to himself.
“I’m sorry, what did you say?”
Meiana asked. At that moment, Sediloi shook his head as if startled awake from a doze. Then, without a word, he quietly looked at Meiana.
A strange woman… That was Sediloi’s constant impression of Meiana. For a commoner from the countryside, a woman who had been expelled from a viscount’s household as a maid, she was far too wise, far too confident. That fact kept nagging at him, oddly so.
“…Alright, let’s do it.”
Meiana’s eyes softly blinked.
“Are you serious?”
“I’ll speak to Joslin. And I’ll hire another teacher. But Ariante can’t just play all the time.”
“Don’t worry about that. And if it’s alright, I have one more request.”
“What is it?”
“She’s your only daughter, isn’t she? The young lady, I mean. Show her a bit more love and care.”
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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It was her who made that old lady blind?? What an awful person……or maybe not, but still she is really disgusting.
BOY DONT PLAY WITH ME. OMG NO WONDER THE CHILD IS BEHAVING LIKE LOOSE GOOSE
Very matured. Just blaming anyone but yourself on your inadequacy.