Han Liang respectfully said, "Fourth Madam, the things and the people have been delivered. From now on, they will be at the disposal of Fourth Madam and Third Miss. This servant has other matters to attend to and will take his leave first."
Du Caiyue nodded, and the steward Han Liang led her out, taking two people with him to the front to report the matter.
Du Caiyue stared at the seven or eight servants standing in the hall, momentarily stunned, not knowing what to say. They had never been used to being served, and even Hailing did everything herself. Now that so many people had suddenly appeared, they were not used to it.
Rouge glanced at the Fourth Madam, then walked to the center of the hall, her cold gaze sweeping over everyone. The people in front of her all knew that Rouge was not someone to be trifled with. They had heard that she had previously beaten up the people brought by the Second Miss, which showed that she was ruthless. Now, looking at her expression, which was even more stern, no one dared to speak and all lowered their heads.
Rouge's cold voice rang out: "Now that you've come to Qinfang Courtyard, you're servants of Qinfang Courtyard. Don't keep thinking about this master or that master and cause trouble for no reason. If I find out, you'll all be punished. Don't think that just because your masters are masters, we're easy to deal with. Remember, you are servants of Qinfang Courtyard now. Madam and Miss are your masters. If you really become traitors, you'll be punished severely."
After Rouge finished speaking in a cold and ruthless manner, some of the people in the hall trembled in fear, but dared not delay and quickly replied, "Yes, Sister Rouge (Miss Rouge)."
"Alright, you can all go now."
Rouge waved her hand, and the group breathed a sigh of relief and quickly withdrew, bringing silence to the hall.
Fourth Madam Du Caiyue looked at Yanzhi and said with concern, "Yanzhi, this is strange no matter how you look at it. Why would the Emperor betroth Ling'er to the Crown Prince? If anyone should be betrothed, it should be the eldest daughter."
"Alright, Madam, don't worry, Miss will make her own decisions."
Rouge comforted Du Caiyue, and from the back room, Hailing's voice could be faintly heard calling, "Rouge, Rouge."
"Madam, Miss is calling me. I'll go over there for a moment."
Rouge greeted Du Caiyue, who nodded and then became worried again. How could she not be worried? Ling'er was her precious daughter, and she didn't want her to suffer any harm. But now she was inexplicably betrothed. Not to mention anyone else, she couldn't even get past the eldest young lady. She would definitely not let Ling'er off the hook. What should she do now?
Inside Hailin's room.
A woman with dark circles under her eyes sat on the bed, glaring resentfully out the window until Rouge walked in, at which point she looked away.
"Ugh, ugh, how hateful! Doesn't she know I haven't slept all night? I'm so tired, what's going on?"
Hailin started to complain. Although she covered her head with a thin quilt, she could still faintly hear the sounds. Finally, she couldn't stand it anymore and got out of bed with panda eyes.
"The general sent people to repair the house, and the vegetables in the yard were tidied up and replaced with fashionable flowers and plants. He also sent a lot of other things, along with several servants."
Rouge reported that these things did not please Hailing. On the contrary, her eyes were filled with disdain. This man was so pragmatic. He did this only to prevent gossip from affecting the Jiang family. The Crown Princess of the Great Zhou Kingdom was living in such a place. If word got out, he would lose face. That's why he sent people over. Last night, he wanted to change their courtyard, but she said she didn't need it, so he sent people to renovate Qinfang Courtyard...
Chapter 013 She is a chess piece
In the room, Rouge helped Hailing get up. Suddenly, she noticed that another glass bead had lit up on Hailing's fair and delicate arm, which was as white as lotus root. She couldn't help but exclaim with joy.
"Miss, another one of your jewels has lit up."
Hai Ling was startled at first, but after listening to her words, she knew that she was happy. She quickly took Yan Zhi's hand and whispered to her what was inside the red glass bead.
As Rouge listened to Hailing's words, her beautiful face first showed surprise, then excitement, and finally her eyes sparkled.
"Miss, that's wonderful! If that's true, then we won't be afraid of them anymore."
"Okay, help me get up." Hai Ling nodded in agreement. Yes, if she mastered the Eighteen Golden Flower Styles, Jiang Feixue and Jiang Feiyu would probably not be able to bully her anymore.
Yan Zhi was pleased, and her hands were not slow. She quickly helped Hai Ling get up, wash and style her hair. After tidying up, the two of them left the room.
The newly renovated Qinfang Courtyard is brand new. Under the sunlight, the flowers and plants are fresh and the trees are lush. The newly painted pillars of the corridors and pavilions are still wet, and the bright colors are dazzling.
In the yard, the gardener is tidying up the flowers and plants. These plants have just been transplanted, so they need to be carefully cared for, otherwise they will all be wasted.
Looking down the stone steps in front of the courtyard gate, there were several servants. In front of them were four pretty maids, and behind them were four old women. Everyone bowed their heads respectfully, not daring to look at Hailing at the head of the table.
This third young lady is no ordinary person. Everyone saw it last night. She dared to deal with the second young lady and dared to use the imperial edict to whip the eldest young lady. So what about them? Although they were sent by the first madam to monitor the third young lady and the fourth madam, they dared not be careless in front of the third young lady.
"Greetings, Miss."
Under the sunlight, Hai Ling's plump face shone with a soft glow. She squinted her eyes slightly, nodded with a smile, and appeared amiable, giving the impression of a gentle woman. However, the servants in Qin Fang Courtyard all knew that when she became ruthless, she was an absolute ruthless character, so they couldn't afford to cause trouble and get kicked out by her. If they were kicked out, they wouldn't be able to explain it to the Madam.
Hailin didn't make things difficult for these people, and turned to instruct Rouge on the side.
"Make arrangements later. From now on, you'll be in charge of these people. Train them properly. Use them if they're useful, and get rid of them if they're not."
His voice remained calm and collected, but the chill in his words sent shivers down everyone's spines, especially the last word, which made everyone tremble and lower their heads even further, not daring to utter a single word.
Rouge readily agreed, "Yes, Miss, I will handle it. If anyone has ulterior motives, I will call the maids and sell them off one by one. I believe they will find good homes."
What good place could a woman go if she were sold to a brothel? It would be nothing more than a dirty place like a brothel.
In fact, Rouge didn't want to make things difficult for these servants, because they were forced into it. However, if they really had any improper thoughts, they shouldn't blame her for being impolite.
As soon as Rouge finished speaking, the people standing in the courtyard quickly replied.
"Yes, Miss Rouge."
This rouge is the Third Miss's confidante, so they have to curry favor with her and absolutely not offend her, otherwise they'll be in real trouble if they're sold to a maid. Just thinking about it makes them shudder.
Hai Ling glanced at the people in the courtyard. She knew without a doubt that these people were influential figures, planted by those with ulterior motives. Did they think they were fools? Although she wasn't saying anything now, if she found even the slightest flaw, she would kick them all out.
As Hailing pondered this, she led Yanzhi up the steps and into the main hall.
As soon as Du Caiyue saw her daughter coming over in the main hall, she immediately hid her worries, smiled at her daughter, and beckoned her over.
Hailing instructed Yanzhi, "Go and settle those people in. I'll talk to Mother for a while."
“Yes, Miss,” Rouge withdrew, and Hailing sat down next to Du Caiyue. Du Caiyue first smiled and looked at her daughter with affection, but soon frowned and stared at half of Hailing’s face. Although the finger marks on her face had faded a lot, she could still tell that her daughter had been beaten.
"Ling'er, what happened to your face?"
Du Caiyue pressed for answers anxiously, but Hailing, remembering that Jiang Feixue had slapped her the night before, didn't want her mother to know she was upset, so she quickly shook her head: "It's nothing, I probably bumped into a pillar last night."
Although she said that, Du Caiyue could still distinguish between being hit and hitting a pillar. She didn't say anything, but she already knew in her heart that it must have been the eldest young lady who hit Ling'er. Because of the marriage bestowed by the emperor, the eldest young lady was furious and hit Ling'er in a fit of anger. Du Caiyue felt extremely sad when she thought of this, but she was powerless to protect her daughter. Thinking of this, she couldn't say a word.