Arc 2: Part 7
"Eldest Miss, we would never dare to deceive you! Everything we've done was strictly under your orders, please see the truth —"
"The truth?" Tong Su interrupted, "So you're admitting that it was my sister who ordered you to insult me?"
"Of course not..."
The old women felt as though they were mute, with bitter complaints that they couldn't voice. They were at a loss for words.
Tong Su's clear gaze shifted back to the ashen-faced Xiao Qingwan. She feigned confusion and asked, "Sister, why are they not being punished for deceiving you like this?"
This damn Bai Zhu!
Why is she so tactless!
Xiao Qingwan's anger rose again, she was ready to storm off, but Bai Zhu insisted on getting an explanation.
She couldn't just leave. This wretched girl had the skills she needed in the kitchen, and Xiao Qingwan needed her to secure her place in the Xiao household.
Xiao Qingwan's bright eyes were filled with fury. She clenched her fists under her sleeves and, in her wrath, kicked the kneeling old women. With an icy face and cold tone, she barked:
"Guards! These wicked servants have dared to disrespect the second miss. According to Xiao household rules, bind them and give them thirty heavy blows!"
Upon hearing the order, the guards hurried forward, seizing the old women.
Terrified and pleading, the old women cried, "Eldest Miss, you can't — it was clearly you who —"
"Silence them!" Xiao Qingwan snapped, her chest heaving with agitation and fury. "Gag them, and after giving them a potion to mute them, sell them off!"
The guards looked up, somewhat astonished. "Eldest Miss?"
Thirty lashes were a standard punishment, but the additional muting and selling seemed excessive, didn't it?
A fierce look flashed in Xiao Qingwan's eyes. She knew her punishment was excessive and it would tarnish the image she had established in the Xiao household as a kind and virtuous lady.
Yet, she feared the old women revealing the truth even more. Biting her teeth in determination, she made the harsh decision, effectively disposing of her insiders.
"Bai Zhu, are you satisfied now that I've done this? Are you willing to return to the mansion with me?"
Tong Su obediently lowered her eyes. "All right."
The old women were dragged away, and their screams of pain could be heard outside the courtyard. Xiao Qingwan stared at Tong Su's face suspiciously, scrutinizing her closely.
The more she thought about it, the more uneasy Xiao Qingwan felt.
Recalling the previous conversation, why did it feel as though Bai Zhu was pushing her into a trap, making her dig a hole and then jump into it?
Glancing across at Tong Su, she saw a 15-year-old girl standing in the cold wind with a slim figure, dressed in coarse clothes stained with dirt. Despite that, the young lady's face was clean and strikingly beautiful. She hung her head slightly, showing no spirit or attitude, only seeming more timid and silent.
Impossible!
Xiao Qingwan denied the thought instinctively.
When did Bai Zhu possess such cunning as to outmaneuver her?
Perhaps it was just that Bai Zhu had been raised foolishly by herself, leading to her saying the wrong things without sense, causing the current situation…
Comforting herself, Xiao Qingwan suppressed her doubts, flicked her sleeve, and turned around, saying, "Bai Zhu, let's go."
"Okay, sister."
Tong Su nodded gently, obediently following Xiao Qingwan onto the carriage.
Watching the receding figure of the manor, she raised her eyes and showed a slight smile.
A proud and conceited Xiao Qingwan, with the help of her knowledge of a past life, and an obedient, weak, and foolish Bai Zhu.
In the end, who had really schemed against whom remained to be seen.
After all, she was quite skilled at playing the part of a weak creature to deceive a predator!
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