Chapter 608

Chapter 615: Fury (Part 1)

"They can't even manage the people around them—what else are they good for?" Lady Eleven said coldly. "Just follow my instructions." Her tone was resolute.

Bai the Steward dared not hesitate and immediately withdrew to personally seek Lord Xu's approval.

Lord Xu was in the middle of a conversation with Zhu Anping and Shao Zhongran when Bai the Steward requested his presence. Surprised, he stepped out, and as he heard the details, his expression gradually turned solemn.

"Since the mistress has given the order, and this doesn’t involve external affairs, hand the matter over to her for handling."

Bai the Steward was inwardly shocked but bowed and complied. Within a quarter of an hour, he had identified which stewards oversaw the guilty servants. He had them all bound and brought to the moon gate—the stewards seated on benches, the servants pressed to the ground in a row—before carrying out Lady Eleven’s orders to administer the beatings.

The crack of bamboo on flesh echoed outside the moon gate.

Among the stewards, some sat shamefaced and stayed silent, others angrily demanded to see the marquis, and a few even shouted, "Might as well beat us all to death!"

The servants trembled at first, enduring the strikes without protest, but when they heard the stewards shouting, some burst into loud sobs, while others cried, "I’m innocent!"

The commotion of curses and wails at the moon gate drew the attention of the entire Xu household. Some sent maids to investigate, while others peeked from a distance.

Only then did Lady Eleven summon Song Mama and point out the two matrons on duty that day. "Such people are no longer fit to serve. Send them out of the estate at once." She gave a cold smile. "Since you disregarded my words, I need not spare your dignity."

Having served in the Yongping Marquis’s household their entire lives, they were nearing honorable retirement. Being expelled now—how could they show their faces? How would they live afterward?

The two matrons had not expected Lady Eleven to show no mercy. They scrambled forward, kowtowing before her. "Mistress, we were blinded by greed. We didn’t know better and committed this grave mistake. Please, for the sake of our past service to the elder madam, spare us this once. We’ll serve you and Sixth Young Master with all our devotion, working ourselves to the bone—"

Lady Eleven didn’t let them finish. She waved at Song Mama, signaling her to remove them immediately.

"Since you served the elder madam, you should have known better what to do and what not to do. Clearly, you weren’t clouded—you grew arrogant from serving her and disregarded my orders, showing no respect for the young masters. That makes it all the more necessary for me to discipline you properly on her behalf."

As she spoke, Song Mama led in several strapping servant women. The moment Lady Eleven finished, they swarmed forward and dragged the two out.

The estate buzzed with the scandal.

"What is she trying to do?" The Second Lady frowned slightly. "Bypassing the marquis to punish the outer courtyard stewards—doesn’t that confuse the separation of inner and outer household matters? Whom should the stewards obey now? Where does the marquis’s authority stand?"

The Fifth Lady, however, laughed heartily.

"Serves them right! These shameless servants only know how to flatter and please, caring nothing for their masters’ safety." She paused, then added, "Though, this might create a rift between her and the outer courtyard stewards. I didn’t expect Lady Eleven to act so rashly this time." Her gaze shifted. "Still, every coin has two sides. Using the stewards to make an example while her son and daughter-in-law are away, and making sure the whole household knows—by the time the daughter-in-law returns, she’ll have no choice but to hear of it. When they meet later, the daughter-in-law will have to mind her steps."

Seventh Lady instructed a maid to wipe Ji Geer’s hands, which were smeared with pastry crumbs, and chuckled. "I don’t think Eleven Sister has such intricate thoughts. It was just a coincidence. Any mother would be furious in such a situation."

"True," the Fifth Lady agreed, then asked Nanny Shi, "Where’s Shen Geer? Where has he run off to now?"

Nanny Shi said with a smile, "He said he was going to play with Sixth Young Master."

"Go fetch him back," the Fifth Lady said. "Can’t he see Ji Geer is here?"

Nanny Shi made to obey, but Seventh Lady intervened. "Ji Geer is timid—even if you let him out, he wouldn’t dare run around. Let him stay here and listen to us talk."

The Fifth Lady sighed. "Your A'Ji is so well-behaved. Not like my two—one’s always off gallivanting, and the other cries the moment I’m out of sight."

"Isn’t that why parents dote on the youngest?"

The Fifth Lady chuckled, personally wiping the hands of Cheng Geer, who was quietly eating snacks beside them. She and Seventh Lady chatted about domestic trifles while waiting for the maids they had sent to the main hall to return with news.

The elder madam, however, grew troubled.

Sitting by the window on the heated platform bed, the elder madam gazed silently at the lush green camphor tree outside for a long while, her expression inscrutable.

Madam Du quietly placed an antique "Magu Offering Longevity" teacup before the elder madam and said softly with a smile, "Didn’t you also say that the fourth madam acts with discretion? She knows her limits. You needn’t worry."

The elder madam let out a long sigh, picked up the teacup, and took a sip of hot tea, her expression easing slightly. "With her acting like this, which steward from the outer estate would dare to approach Jin Geer in the future..." She paused briefly before adding, "But perhaps this is for the best. It’ll prevent a good child from being led astray by those with ulterior motives." Though she said this, a trace of melancholy flickered in her eyes at the thought of the lively and adorable Jin Geer.

This matter was too sensitive.

Madam Du remained silent.

A young maid announced from behind the curtain, "Elder madam, Ge Jin requests an audience."

The elder madam and Madam Du were taken aback.

The cries of protest from the Moon Gate had spread throughout the main courtyard. The maidservants and matrons all trembled in fear, not daring to make a sound.

Zhuxiang strode solemnly down the stone-paved path of the main courtyard and stood firmly beneath the eaves of the Moon Gate.

She fixed them with a cold stare, the stewards and servants who had been beaten bloody, and raised her voice sharply, "The madam sent me to ask you: Did she wrong you in accusing the outer estate servants of forcing their way into the main residence, disrespecting the fifth young master, and inciting the sixth young master to play with firecrackers?"

Her sudden appearance startled both the beaten and the beaters alike. They stared dumbly at Zhuxiang, clad in a resplendent rose-red brocade jacket, as if their voices had been cut off mid-cry. The silence became so complete you could hear the wind.

A steward quickly collected himself and protested, "That day was chaotic, and we each had our own duties..."

Zhuxiang immediately cut him off. "Chaotic? Our household duties are always clearly assigned. How could there be chaos? Unless there’s something our madam doesn’t know about?"

The steward’s unfinished words froze on his lips.

To admit that there had been no order that day would directly implicate Steward Bai. Given Steward Bai’s status, the marquis wouldn't likely punish him, but the same couldn’t be said for them—their earlier outcry had been in hopes that Steward Bai, grateful for their usual deference, might put in a good word for them before the marquis and the madam.

Another steward shot the first a warning glance and hastily amended, "Miss, that’s not what we meant. We were simply too busy at the time..."

Zhuxiang waved her hand, signaling him to stop, and said impassively, "The second young master’s wedding kept the entire household bustling. Why is it that only the servants under your charge forced their way into the main courtyard, while no one else’s did? The madam merely sent me to ask you stewards—do you consider yourselves wronged, to make such a scene?"

The stewards were momentarily speechless.

Zhuxiang’s gaze then shifted to those delivering the punishment. "The madam has ordered that anyone who continues wailing after punishment clearly hasn’t understood their wrongdoing. Add twenty more strokes."

At this, everyone paled.

One steward couldn’t help but protest, "Miss, we are stewards of standing, after all..."

"Standing?" Zhuxiang murmured, her eyes flashed with disdain. "Your position comes from your masters' favor. Without their favor, where would your dignity lie?" She then pointed at the speaking steward and declared, "Add twenty more strokes." Her tone carried an aloof indifference that made everyone shudder.

The beaters hastily bowed and obeyed.

The wide wooden boards whistled through the air before landing with heavy thwacks—now the only sounds to be heard.

Zhuxiang turned and strode back into the hall, standing ramrod straight, only then noticing a faint sweat on her back.

Eleven Miss sat cross-legged on the heated platform bed by the window in the heated chamber, watching as Jin Geer drew a chick. Hearing the commotion, her gaze remained fixed on the pristine Chengxin paper without lifting her head.

"They’ve stopped their clamoring?" Her tone was not only calm but also faintly indifferent.

Zhuxiang bowed in affirmation.

Jin Geer looked up at his mother, his large phoenix eyes brimming with curiosity. "Mother, if they had kept shouting, would you have added more strokes?"

"Indeed," Eleven Miss replied with a smile, smoothing his hair. "Don’t rush into decisions, but once you’ve made one, you must persevere no matter the difficulty." She then pointed at his drawing. "Just like earlier—you weren’t sure what to draw. But once you decided on a chick, you should see it through. You can’t draw the body and head, then abandon the feet because something else comes up."

Jin Geer thought for a moment, then nodded half-understanding. "Then I'll finish drawing the chicken." He lowered his head and carefully dotted four points, completing a whole chicken.

A young maidservant entered timidly. "Madam, Xi Er asks to see you."

Due to Xu Siyu's wedding, Mr. Zhao had given Xu Sizhun and Xu Sijie three days off. When Xu Sijie came to greet Eleven Miss in the morning, she had asked about his plans, and he mentioned he would practice writing at Xu Sizhun's place in the afternoon.

At this time, Xi Er should have been looking after Xu Sijie. What could have brought her here?

Eleven Miss pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "Let her in."

"Madam," Xi Er's face was pale, and her words stumbled slightly. "The fifth young master... the fifth young master seems to have caused trouble."

Eleven Miss was stunned.

Among all the children, Xu Sijie had the most easygoing nature. He was content as long as he had food and drink, and he hardly ever took offense even if someone treated him coldly or distantly. Unlike Xu Siyu, who would dwell on things, or Xu Sizhun, who was sensitive and thoughtful, or even Jin Geer, who was stubborn and domineering, Xu Sijie seldom clashed with others.

He caused trouble?

What kind of trouble could he possibly have caused?