A good omen for a good person

  "What's all the shouting about!" A man's low growl came from inside, seemingly embarrassed, but this voice made Xian Yi let out a sigh of relief.

  Xian Yi tidied up her clothes and hastily retreated to the side, and before long, the curtain inside was opened by someone, and a pair of men's shoes appeared on the steps.

  "You're here too? Did your wife make you come?" The man on the steps was both surprised and angry, with an unnatural awkwardness.

  Xian Yi didn't dare to raise her head, and respectfully said: "Madam heard that Aunt Cao's place was short of supplements, so she let the servants come over to ask, to see how much was lacking, and also to let the purchasing department prepare more for next time."

  Of course, this is just a superficial talk. The old master and Xian Yi both understand the truth in their hearts. Given the temperament of the madam, it's already an endurance not to drive the child away. However, Xian Yi couldn't directly say that the madam had sent her to scold, so she just needed to change her words to get past the current situation.

  The old master can only follow this statement, originally he was in the wrong, now what time is it, he should be outside handling official business, but he not only returned to the mansion early, but also didn't say a word to his wife, and ran to the concubine's room. Moreover, this concubine is pregnant, this matter is easy to say but hard to hear, he originally had three points of inferiority complex towards the first lady due to their different backgrounds, now it has increased to seven points, and he knows that the first lady will not let go of this easily. So he can only force himself to take over the matter, but after all, he needs to find a way for both parties to save face, at least give the old master an excuse to step down. However, the person in front of him is not a good choice, first, her mother was originally under the thumb of the mother-in-law, if she were to deal with her daughter, it would also be a slap in the face for the wife, secondly, this servant girl is cunning and hasn't even entered the house, nor has she seen anything, so there's no way to grasp any evidence.

  Finally, the old master, with a fiery temper, flung his sleeve and said: "What's worth making such a fuss about? You're not afraid of offending Lady Cao. Alright, since your wife meant well, I won't pursue this further. But that little maid over there can't be let off lightly, or else people will say the mistress's maid has no discipline."

  Xian Yi Yuan had mentally prepared himself, but he still felt a pang in his heart and could only say: "Thank you, sir, for your mercy."

  However, in a moment, two women came from outside and said that the lady had heard that the third-class maid in her courtyard had offended the old master, and she was uneasy at heart. Although she didn't come personally because of her physical condition, this maid couldn't be lightly forgiven. She wanted to execute Xiang Er in Cao's courtyard. Xian Yi looked at these two women, tall and strong with a fierce aura, they were usually in charge of punishing the servants in the lady's courtyard, and they were all holding wooden boards. It could be seen that the lady was furious. Her anger couldn't be directed at the maids, but this matter involving the old master also couldn't be explicitly stated. So, she simply made it clear that no one would be spared, including herself. She sacrificed a maid and slapped the old master and Cao a loud slap on the face. It's worth noting that Cao was still pregnant, and they were going to beat the slave girl with wooden boards in her courtyard under broad daylight, which might startle the fetus.

  The old master must have thought of it too, even Cao's wife rushed out with a swollen belly, her face pale, I guess in these years the big madam looked gentle, but didn't expect that Chen's nanny couldn't hold back now, and her true nature was so ferocious.

  "Master!" Madam Cao's eyes brimmed with tears as she gazed at the old master, her eyes full of entreaty.

  The old lady hadn't spoken yet, when the incoming wife said: "Madam said that if the old master feels this place is not suitable, or has grievances against Madam, then Madam will only go to Old Lady's place to apologize."

  This is still okay, don't look at the old lady looking down on this daughter-in-law, and doting on her son, but she has always been clear about the difference between legitimate and illegitimate children. If the old lady knew that he had returned early and no one noticed him sneaking into the concubine's room, the old lady would not stand on his side, and it would not be just a matter of losing face at that time.

  "You... you go back to the house." The old master frowned tightly, feeling annoyed and frustrated. He shouldn't have been softhearted for a moment, listening to Cao's mother not being well, he came to see her first, ending up with this situation now.

  The two old women saw that the master didn't stop them, so they directly pushed aside Cao's wife and entered the inner chamber. In just a few steps, the outer room heard the sound of Yun Shuang crying loudly and begging for mercy inside. She had wanted to step forward and say a few words, but she swallowed them back, as Master and Mistress were both in a rage. If she spoke again, she feared that Yun Shuang would lose her life, and she herself wouldn't be able to wash her hands clean, so why bother getting involved further?

  Yun Shuang was dragged out with tears all over her face and disheveled hair, as soon as she saw Xian Yi, she cried out loudly: "Sister Xian, I didn't mean to, I wasn't on purpose, ah, I was just being kind-hearted, I'm innocent, save me, save me..."

  "What's wrong with you, my girl? Do you still have any respect for your master in those eyes of yours?" The old master, enraged, flung his sleeve and shouted: "Beat her severely, let her learn a lesson."

  Yun's face turned pale, with a last glimmer of hope in her eyes as she looked at Xian Yi. Then, as Xian Yi shifted his gaze away, the light in her eyes gradually dissipated, eventually becoming a dull emptiness.

  The old master and Aunt Cao couldn't possibly watch the execution in the courtyard, so the old master naturally went to the front yard with a sullen face, probably because he wasn't prepared for a head-on confrontation with the madam. Aunt Cao had already covered her belly and was supported by Lan Mei and Fen He as she entered the inner chamber, even closing the door behind her. In the courtyard, there were only Yun Shuang being punished, the two women beating her, the silent Xian Yi, and some of Aunt Cao's maids. Before the punishment began, the madam's executioner told Xian Yi to return to the main courtyard first, saying it was the madam's orders. As Xian Yi left, she glanced at Yun Shuang one last time, but could only hint to the women to be lenient, before walking away without looking back.

  Yun Shuang was pinned to the ground by two women, who were slapping her with a board. At first, she shouted loudly for help, but gradually lost strength until her consciousness became blurry. All that was left in her mouth was one sentence: "Why didn't you save me..."

  Xian Yi returned to the main house with a nervous heart, and Madame indeed sat in the main seat with a very bad face. Perhaps it was because of Chen's nurse, or perhaps Xian Yi's actions were not provocative, but Madame only let Xian Yi explain the situation clearly. Xian Yi didn't add oil to the fire, she just said what happened, including who said what at that time and what Yun Shuang did. After listening, Madame's face turned black with anger, but in the end, she only scolded Yun Shuang for being foolish and didn't punish Xian Yi.

  Xian Yi calmly walked out of the main house, but found that the little maids around her were no longer gathering around as they usually did. It seemed they all knew that Yun Shuang had been scolded, although this matter couldn't be blamed on herself, but after all, she was the one who chose to go with Yun Shuang together. She feared that afterwards, there would be more gossip spreading.

  As she walked past the side house, Autumn Scene and Winter Scene happened to be carrying things over. Autumn Scene was as usual, but Winter Scene's gaze towards her was even colder than before. Xian Yi simply followed the rules and paid her respects, then brushed past them. This matter that Master had brought up, Madame must have wanted to keep it under wraps. In the end, Yun Shuang would only be guilty of offending the master, and she hadn't controlled the little maids well, nor did she plead for leniency afterwards. It was likely that her accumulated good relationships would also be discounted.

  Yun Shuang was carried back in the evening, with the lower half of her clothes completely ruined and unrecognizable, fresh blood flowing down the wooden board she was on. She had already fainted, her small face deathly pale, almost without color, and barely breathing. Among the four third-grade maids, Yu Shuang was usually the quietest, but because Yun Shuang was a kind person, they got along well. This time, afraid of being implicated, Lu Shuang hesitated for a moment before Yu Shuang took charge, taking care of Yun Shuang from front to back. Xue Shuang was still young, so Sian Yi let her return early, fearing she would be frightened. Actually, the first madam was unhappy and the old master had not returned to comfort her, waiting for Yun Shuang's return, she almost had someone throw Yun Shuang into the woodshed. It was only because Chen Ayi pleaded that they found a doctor to treat her. However, these things would not be spread outside by Sian Yi and the others, as it would not be good to show too much concern for Yun Shuang in front of the first madam, so on the surface, they seemed less enthusiastic than Zeng Ayi.

  This matter was just a minor episode of bickering for the master's family. The old master sulked for two days, but eventually had to come back and apologize to his wife. The mistress cried and made a fuss once, but then forgot about it. However, Concubine Cao was still frightened out of her wits, spending many days in bed, even neglecting her usual schemes. It seemed she had learned her lesson and didn't dare to be so reckless again.

  However, what was a trivial matter to the masters of the house cast a shadow that was difficult to dispel for the maids in the main house. Xianyi had grown up here since childhood and got along well with everyone, whether it was the maids or the young ladies, because she was sweet-tongued and knew how to be cute. However, after this incident, although the older ones still had a good relationship with her, the younger ones felt that Xianyi was inhumane and became more afraid of getting close to her. As for the four third-grade maids, Yunduan became quiet like Yuduan after this incident, while Luduan still liked to ask Xianyi about Jin Fenghua's affairs as usual, but jokes were almost unheard of. Among these people, only Mengdang Snow was consistent in treating Xianyi, and even scolded others when they spoke ill of Xianyi behind her back.

  Xian Yi was indeed disappointed that her usual superficial efforts had been in vain, but she couldn't be too heartbroken about it and simply put it out of her mind. What she was worried about now was that the eldest miss would send someone over again, as it was said that Chun Jing was pregnant, which meant that the eldest miss's health was still poor and Chun Jing wouldn't be able to serve her properly, making the new concubine a pressing concern for both the eldest miss and the madam.

  The maids in the mansion were all lost in thought when the master who had caused the eldest young lady so much trouble arrived, saying he wanted to discuss something with the old master and the second young master. It was probably about this year's imperial examination, so whether they liked it or not, the maids' hearts were all lifted up.