Chapter 540: Visiting the Bai Family

Chapter 540: Visiting the Bai Family

Madam Fang jumped up from her seat as if startled.

"How dare she defy me!"

Noticing that the surrounding servants and maids were frightened, Madam Fang realized she had overreacted, as though she feared that little brat. She then sat back down.

"If that little brat dares to defy the world and commit such heinous acts, it would be an affront to the gods' will. Then don't blame me and my husband for cutting off all ties and sending her to the Punishment Department of the Holy Church!"

The room fell silent.

Usually, when the Holy Church was mentioned, all citizens of Dongrong would bow their heads in submission, filled with reverence.

However, the Punishment Department of the Holy Church was not a place people longed to go. It was where the Holy Church punished those who violated its commandments.

Anyone sent there would face curses from the Dongrong people and endure 180 different punishments. If they could endure it, the Holy Church would give them a chance to reform. If they couldn't, it was a dead end.

In over a hundred years since its establishment, no one had ever left the Punishment Department alive.

The previous saint who violated the church's commandments fled in fear of entering the Punishment Department, only to be killed on the spot when caught.

Even in death, the Dongrong people cursed him, saying he deserved the Punishment Department.

The Punishment Department didn't just judge nobles; even commoners could be punished if they committed grave offenses against the church's commandments.

And grave unfilial acts were certainly a violation of the commandments.

The servants looked at each other, not daring to breathe loudly, fearing that even a slight sound might anger Madam Fang.

Disloyal servants were also punished under the church's commandments.

After a long while, Mother Liang stepped forward and continued, "My lady is right. After all, Young Miss is extremely difficult to reform. If she were sent there, it would be because she lacks any reverence for the Holy God in her heart, committing the grave sin of unfilial piety, and bringing punishment upon herself."

The other servants quickly agreed.

Madam Fang was pleased with the reactions of those around her. From their faces, she could almost see the reaction Young Miss would have.

That would be the reaction of an unloved daughter!

Madam Fang tossed the torn handkerchief onto the table and gave a disdainful look. "Today, Young Miss left the residence without permission. Mother Liang, when she returns, announce that Young Miss is to be confined to the Wutong Courtyard for a month and not allowed to leave!"

"My lady..." There was a crack in Mother Liang's previously flattering expression.

Have her deliver the order to Young Miss?

Seeing the beaten attendant earlier, she gasped. Those whips left quite a mark!

Now she understood. Young Miss whipped anyone she saw; she had no taboos! Her old face wouldn't survive a single lash!

"Are you planning to rebel too?" Madam Fang's tone turned cold and menacing as she was still angry.

Mother Liang quickly hid her reluctance. "No, no, your servant wouldn't dare. My lady, I will go once Young Miss returns."

Madam Fang regained her authority and nodded with pride.

Standing before the Bai family's modest, run-down home, Madam Shi appeared uneasy.

Earlier, in her excitement, she forgot how humble her home was compared to the Shen family's, despite being cleaned daily. She wondered if Nannan would find it lacking...

"Aunt, are Uncle and my cousin home?" Su Youyue said with a gentle smile.

Hearing this, Madam Shi relaxed her tense expression and felt a bit more at ease. She quickly opened the door and replied, "Yes, they're both home... Their health has been poor in recent years, so they rarely go out."

"What illnesses do Uncle and my cousin have, and what medications do they take?"

While others might ask about illnesses in a roundabout way, Su Youyue asked directly, but her tone was gentle, which made Madam Shi feel no discomfort. Instead, she felt that Su Youyue was showing concern for her husband and son, so she answered.

"It's asthma. Your uncle's had it for seven or eight years, and my son started showing symptoms four years ago... I don't know if my son caught it from your uncle..."

Her answer was quite similar to the information brought by the shadow guards to Su Youyue. She had speculated that it might be chronic bronchitis, a type of asthma, as her mother had mentioned before.

"Asthma isn't contagious. Otherwise, how could I be with them every day and be fine? There could be another reason for my cousin's condition. I've learned some medical techniques at Jiuyuan Pass. Let me take a look at Uncle and my cousin later."

Hearing this, Madam Shi was delighted. "Nannan, you know medicine too? That's wonderful!"

If she could afford it, she would have loved to invite more healers to help her husband»…̀̀̀̀̀̀ B̀ai Rui and her son. Unfortunately, after years of spending all their money on medicine, there was hardly any extra to frequently invite a healer for consultations.

As they were talking, a coughing sound came from the room, followed by a weak but somewhat joyful male voice. "Wife, are you back? Who else is here? Is it Nannan?"

"Mother, is cousin really here?" another young man asked with surprise.

Madam Shi glanced at Su Youyue, her eyes filled with uncontainable joy, and quickly responded, "Yes, they're here, they're here."

As soon as she entered the room, Su Youyue saw two intense gazes looking at her. One was from a middle-aged man sitting on the edge of a large bed, trying to get up. His face had a sickly grayish pallor, and his thin figure was trying to walk over to greet her.

The other gaze came from a young man rising from a small bed. Although the young man was handsome, his long illness had left his face very pale, and his body, lacking the muscle a young man should have, looked like a malnourished sapling.

"Nannan..."

"Cousin..."

As soon as the two stood up, they hurriedly greeted Su Youyue.

Madam Shi knew that her husband and son wanted to appear presentable in front of Nannan, so she helped them to a table to sit down.

However, once they were seated, Madam Shi awkwardly realized that there were only two stools in the room. After all, Bai Rui had been eating by his bed for years, and they had never had guests at home, so she hadn't thought about getting extra stools before.

"Nannan, please wait a moment. I'll go get a stool. I hope you won't think it's too embarrassing..."

Seeing her embarrassment, Su Youyue waved her hand and asked Zhe Ying to bring over the spare footstools from the carriage.

At this point, it would be inappropriate to ask Madam Shi to borrow stools from outside.

Though they were just footstools, they were far better than the two old, worn-out stools in the room. For a moment, Bai Rui felt a deep sense of shame.

If you had told him twenty years ago that one day his niece would visit his home and have to bring her own stool to sit on, he would never have believed it.

Su Youyue, however, remained composed and unfazed, seemingly not bothered by these trivial matters. She explained softly, "I've had a rash on my face for the past two days, so I'm wearing a veil to avoid making it worse by exposing it to the wind."

Upon hearing this, the Bai family unconsciously forgot their embarrassment, and Bai Rui immediately asked with concern, "Is it serious, Nannan?"