Chapter 71 Framed
Aunt Li saw Second Madam coming to the backyard from a distance, so she came up and said:
"Oh, who was it? It turned out to be Second Madam. I pay my respects to Second Madam. Second Madam, thank you for being so elegant and coming to visit the garden."
Zhiqiu's face turned pale when he saw Aunt Li being so arrogant and rude.
"Who are you trying to seduce in broad daylight, dressed like this?"
Mengxi looked at Aunt Li, who had no sense of being someone else's mistress, and sighed inwardly, thinking that the Second Master's taste was too vulgar. He treated her like a treasure, which made her feel sick. It was a waste of her intelligence to fight with such a person. She glanced at Zhiqiu and stopped her from continuing.
"Is this Aunt Li's flower shop?"
"No, this was originally a lawn. Second Master saw that it was open and close to the gardens of the concubines, so he ordered people to prune it and plant some flowers. In this way, everyone can come out for a walk and enjoy the flowers after dinner and get together. My garden is over there, the one full of chrysanthemums, and the smaller one to the west is the Jade Garden."
Aunt Li pointed and talked at the same time. Seeing that Second Madam was just looking in the direction of her finger and had no intention of speaking, she continued.
"How come Second Madam has the time to come here today? It's true. Second Madam is free every day and has plenty of time. Unlike me, I have a miserable life. I have to serve Second Master every day. Second Master likes the fragrance of flowers. The chrysanthemums in my garden will not bloom for another one or two months, so I came here to pick them so that I can go back and fumigate the house."
Aunt Li smiled arrogantly as she spoke. After hearing Aunt Li's words, Mengxi felt a little disgusted and said lightly:
"It is the duty of a concubine to serve the Second Master. Aunt Li dares to complain about her miserable life. Aunt Li has the master in her heart. If Aunt Li really doesn't want to serve the Second Master, for the sake of our master-servant relationship, I dare to report to the old lady and send Aunt Li away, so that Aunt Li will not feel wronged in my Xiao family."
When Aunt Li heard this, her face immediately twitched. She was so proud for a moment, but she was caught by the Second Mistress. Thinking of her methods, this Second Mistress usually seemed to be silent, but when she really wanted to take action, she was so bold that it was beyond belief. Because of the matter of Hongyu, the Second Master had been tormented into submission by her. She seemed not to be afraid of the Second Master at all. If things went wrong, she would really dare to torment herself out of the house. Thinking of this, she hurriedly stepped forward and bowed to the Second Mistress again:
"What are you saying, Second Madam? I am a dumb person and I cannot speak. Second Madam, please forgive me. How dare I complain? I will do my best to serve you. Please forgive me."
"It's good that Aunt Li knows this. The value of a person lies in knowing one's duty. You should serve the Second Master well. If the Second Master makes any mistakes again, even if I don't punish you, the old lady will not let you off easily. Do you hear me?"
After Mengxi finished speaking, without waiting for Aunt Li to speak , she turned back to the angry Zhiqiu and said:
"Go back, there are no good flowers to appreciate"
Aunt Li was so angry. It was because the Second Master doted on her that he came to her every day. The two of them were very affectionate and whispered to each other. She wanted to come here to show off and irritate the Second Madam, but how come in the Second Madam's mouth she was just a servant serving the Second Master, and the Second Madam just casually threw the Second Master to her for safekeeping?
Seeing Second Madam about to leave, he was speechless for a moment. He looked up and saw a figure in the distance. His eyes lit up and he hurriedly called Second Madam, who was about to turn around and leave, and said:
"Oh, Second Madam, this is the phoenix hairpin that Second Master gave to me yesterday. Do you think it's beautiful?"
As Aunt Li spoke, she took off the phoenix hairpin on her head and handed it to her. Mengxi looked up and saw a flash of cunning in Aunt Li's eyes, which became clear in an instant. This made her smell a hint of danger. She looked Aunt Li up and down, and really couldn't imagine what a phoenix hairpin could do to her.
Could it be that this hairpin was stained with poison powder? Damn, if you dare to use poison in front of her, you are really in the wrong place.
Thinking of this, she reached out her hand. She wanted to see what Aunt Li was up to. But before her hand touched the hairpin, Aunt Li fell to her knees with a thud.
"Please forgive me, Second Madam. I missed the greetings because I was serving Second Master. Please don't slap me in the face and give me some face to serve Second Master. I kowtow to you, Grandma. I will never miss the greetings again in the future. Please forgive me, Grandma." As she said this, she really kowtowed.
Mengxi held her hands up in shock. When did she slap her in the face? When did she blame her for not paying respects? What was Aunt Li doing? Just as she was wondering, Zhiqiu's voice came:
"Second Master An"
Mengxi turned around suddenly and found the Second Master standing behind her with a cold face. Due to her body blocking the view, the Second Master did not see the phoenix hairpin that Aunt Li had put into her sleeve long ago. He only saw her stretching out her hand as if she wanted to hit Aunt Li.
After Aunt Li finished bowing, she looked up, as if she had just discovered the Second Master. She quickly knelt down and crawled in front of the Second Master, hugged his legs and said:
"Please forgive me, Master. I will pay my respects to you on time next time."
"Do I need to go and pay my respects to Second Madam every morning and evening, my dear Second Madam?"
While helping Aunt Li up, the Second Master looked directly into Mengxi's eyes and said coldly that he was really angry. He had not provoked her for the past month and let her do whatever she wanted. He just stayed in Juyuan for a few more days. If she didn't like him, she could just say it and ask him to go back to the upper room. He was waiting. He didn't expect that she would be so magnanimous on the surface and let him live in the concubine's room and not care about anything, but would do such a thing behind his back. He sighed inwardly, no wonder there were rumors in the market that she was such a vicious woman.
With the help of the Second Master, Aunt Li stood up and leaned on his shoulder, looking like a bullied wife. The Second Master hugged her in his arms and looked at Mengxi intently.
Mengxi looked at all this calmly and couldn't help but think of a joke from her previous life:
A woman called the architect and said:
" My bed shakes every time a train passes by "
"That's nonsense, let me take a look," replied the architect.
When the architect arrived, the woman suggested that he lie down on the bed and feel the train passing by. As soon as the architect lay down on the bed, the woman's husband came back and asked:
"What are you doing lying on my wife's bed?"
The architect replied tremblingly:
"Would you believe me if I told you I was waiting for the train?"
Yes, some words are true, but sound very false, and some words are false, but they are beyond doubt. At this time, if she tells the truth, will he believe her? She smiled bitterly in her heart. She had been too comfortable these days, too careless, and underestimated the beauties in the second master's backyard.
"I pay my respects to you, Master. If you have nothing else to do, I will take my leave now."
Mengxi bowed to the Second Master and without waiting for him to say anything else, she turned around, supported Zhiqiu, and walked away slowly.
Xiao Jun was stunned for a moment. She was leaving now, not making trouble? Wasn't she a troublemaker? He saw her and Aunt Li standing here talking from a distance, and then he came over. At this time, looking at her back as she left, he felt a little disappointed. He knew that she was as vicious as a snake, but he still had a trace of desire, and his hand unconsciously let go Aunt Li.
When Aunt Li saw that the Second Master had let go of her hand, she hurried forward to salute him and said:
"Thank you, Master, for your help."
After hearing Aunt Li's words, Xiao Jun finally remembered her. He glanced at her and said calmly:
"It is the duty of a concubine to pay respects to the mistress. It is also right for the Second Mistress to punish you. Xiu'er has been a little presumptuous. Remember this in the future and don't break the rules."
After saying this, Erye waved his hand and turned away.
"Second Master, Second Master, I am here to pick flowers for you."
The Second Master said without turning his head:
"Flowers are meant to be placed in the garden for people to enjoy. If you pick them and put them in the house, they will wither soon. It's better if Xiu'er doesn't pick them."
Looking at the Second Master's receding back, Aunt Li stood there in a daze, and actually shed tears of grievance like a bullied wife.
