Chapter 133 A Frightened Bird
The old lady wanted Mengxi to take over the affairs of Xiaoxiang Courtyard. Mengxi was shocked when he heard this. He knew that he would eventually leave the house, so why did he take this job? He was working hard for nothing and was like a slave to others. Thinking of this, he stood up quickly, bowed to the old lady, and said:
"Old Madam, my granddaughter-in-law is still young and has just entered the mansion. She doesn't know much. In the past two months, the eldest aunt has managed the affairs of the courtyard very well. She is very capable. It is better to let the eldest aunt continue to manage it. It won't be too late for my granddaughter-in-law to slowly adapt in a few months."
A few months later, she must have left the Xiao Mansion, Mengxi thought.
After hearing this, Xiao Jun's face turned pale and he looked at Mengxi with a complicated expression. They had been in a cold war until now and he had ignored these things. Today, the old lady said it clearly, and it was a good opportunity to back off. She, who should have been the happiest, was the first to stand up and oppose. Thinking of Aunt Li who had just betrayed him, he began to wonder, is the head of a noble family really so authoritative? Why did he feel abandoned? For the first time, the deep-rooted idea that men are supreme since childhood showed a crack in his heart. He sat there dejectedly, without saying a word.
"Xi'er, this is the rule. If you don't understand something in the future, ask your mother-in-law to teach you. This is settled."
After saying this, without waiting for Mengxi to reply, he stood up and said:
"I've been busy all afternoon and I'm tired. The matter of the Chrysanthemum Courtyard will be dealt with by the eldest wife tomorrow. Let's all go home."
Chun'er and Feng'er had returned to the eldest aunt. Shishu and Shihua supported the old lady and walked out. Seeing that grandma was gone, Xiao Jun also stood up, stopped in front of Mengxi for a moment, and finally walked out without saying a word.
Seeing that the old lady was determined, Mengxi could not refuse and followed the second master out. The eldest aunt wanted to call the second wife, but she opened her mouth and said nothing in the end. She escorted everyone out in a proper manner.
…
Zhang Yifu's two personal maids, Qing'er and Shuang'er, stood in the room, looking nervously at their concubine, who was turning around on the floor . They didn't know what was wrong with this concubine today. Since she was called by the old lady to watch the execution, this concubine has been turning around until now. Isn't she tired? There is no such way to digest food, but seeing that Zhang Yifu's expression was unpredictable, the two maids consciously shut their mouths.
Aunt Zhang frowned. Was it a coincidence that Second Mistress saved the two young ladies? Second Master was poisoned by her, but he was cured by a surprise. This was inexplicable. Today, Second Master's two daughters were poisoned again, and Second Mistress happened to have a pill that could cure it. How could such a coincidence happen? Aunt Zhang would never believe this was a coincidence. Could it be that Second Mistress had been hiding her true identity and had known about Second Master's poisoning for a long time?
She also remembered that when Second Madam first came into the mansion, she had domineeringly taken all the red-hearted charcoal from each room, but did not put it in the bedroom to smell the fragrance, but placed it in the backyard. The more Aunt Zhang thought about it, the more scared she became. The scene of Aunt Li being tortured today appeared in front of her eyes:
The second master did not come. The old lady sat in the middle, the first wife sat at the lower right, the second wife sat next to the first wife, and the concubines and wives of the concubines stood on both sides. Concubine Li had been firmly pressed on a bench in the hall by two maids, ready to be punished. After the old lady briefly explained Concubine Li's crimes, she said to the concubines and wives of the concubines:
"I summoned you here today to watch the execution to give you a warning. If anyone dares to bully the master with favor, harbor ulterior motives, and harm the flesh and blood of my Xiao family, Aunt Li's today will be your tomorrow. You must listen carefully and remember this!"
The old lady spoke in a clear and slow tone, revealing a supreme majesty. Every word was like a pearl, hitting Aunt Zhang's heart one by one, making her tremble with fear, as if she had seen what would happen to her after the incident with the Second Master. Her face turned pale immediately, and she held Shuang'er's hand tightly to stand firm. After the aunts and concubines agreed, the old lady said to the maid in charge of the execution:
"Hands on"
As soon as the old lady finished speaking, the stick in the woman's hand began to crackle and fall on Aunt Li. Aunt Li's howling like a pig being slaughtered was heard from the hall. Gradually, as Aunt Li's voice became weaker, each blow from the woman's stick could bring up a cloud of blood mist and sprinkle blood rain all over the sky. Only the shrill voice of the Second Aunt could be heard:
"Ming'er, did you see that? Your revenge has finally been taken. Now I can go see you with peace of mind."
"Ha! Ha! Ha! Aunt Li, you bitch, you have come to this day. When you killed my Ming'er, did you ever think of this day? Man does things and God sees them. You have committed so many evil things that God will not forgive you! Ha! Ha!..."
The Second Aunt pointed at Aunt Li, who was already a bloody mess and breathing more out than in, and laughed miserably. Then she couldn't catch her breath and fainted.
Everyone in the hall turned pale. Hongyu finally couldn't hold on any longer and staggered to the ground. Xiao Yun's two concubines also fainted. The maids had already come to help them out. Aunt Zhang looked up and saw that the eldest wife, who had seen a lot of ups and downs in her daily life, also had a slightly changed expression and was tightly holding the hand of Ziyue who was serving beside her.
But the originally delicate little person next to her was still sitting there gracefully, which gave Mrs. Zhang an ethereal and vague feeling, as if that person should not be in this world and was just watching all this coldly. Mrs. Zhang felt a chill. Mengxi noticed someone's gaze and looked over. Mrs. Zhang met that calm gaze that seemed to see through everything, and she lowered her head guiltily.
…
Until now, the calm yet all-seeing eyes of the Second Madam were still like a knife, cutting Aunt Zhang's heart and making her like a frightened bird. Facing the blood rain, she didn't even frown. This calmness made Aunt Zhang even more convinced that it was the Second Madam who saved the Second Master. The Second Madam already knew everything about her, but she didn't know why she didn't get angry.
Thinking of this, she finally stopped, turned to look at Qing'er and Shuang'er, and ordered:
"Are there still any of our people in Xiaoxiangyuan now?"
"We originally arranged for two, but when Second Madam gave Hongyu a courtyard, she asked Hongyu to take them with her. A few days ago, we bribed another one, and just when he was ready to start, Second Madam sent him to Concubine Cui."
"It seems that the Second Madam is on guard against me . You go down and, no matter how much it costs, you must find a way to bribe a few more people. It would be best if they are the Second Madam's personal servants. Report the situation in Xiaoxiang Courtyard at any time, especially the movements in the East Wing."
After Aunt Zhang finished speaking, she waved her hand and asked the two maids to retreat. She stood in front of the window, looking in the direction of Xiaoxiang Courtyard. Aunt Zhang gritted her teeth and said fiercely:
"Second Madam, you'd better be sensible and stay in the East Wing like you are doing now, otherwise don't blame me for being cruel. If you really want to stir up trouble in this mansion, then it's either you die or I live!"
