Song Zhiyu glanced at the maid in green, her tone calm yet imbuing the maid with an invisible pressure, "You say she stole something, do you have any evidence?"

"She's a repeat offender. There's no one else like her, so we don't need any evidence at all." The maid in green, unaware of Song Zhiyu's identity, remained arrogant.

"I didn't steal it, you framed me!" the woman retorted, her eyes wide.

Green Sleeve is Granny Ji's daughter, and in this unruly manor, the mother and daughter are the ones who call the shots.

Ever since she was sold into this estate, Green Sleeves has been targeting her intentionally or unintentionally, and she has repeatedly tolerated it in order to avoid revealing her identity.

But Green Sleeves went too far and even tried to take her life.

She has not yet avenged her father and mother, nor has she avenged the souls of the hundreds of unjustly killed members of her Su family. She must not die!

Therefore, she could only grasp at Song Zhiyu as her lifeline, risking her own life for a glimmer of hope.

Fortunately, fate was kind to her.

"You stole my hairpin, and everyone here can testify to that." Green Sleeves said smugly. Her mother was the manager of this estate, and if she wanted Su Ying dead, Su Ying would die.

Who told that shameless woman Su Ying to dare seduce her man?

Su Ying glared angrily at Green Sleeve, no longer backing down. "This hairpin is clearly mine. You took it away by force, but I never expected you to turn around and bite me, cruelly trying to kill me."

“Miss, Su Ying swears to God that every word I have said is true, and there is not a single falsehood.”

"The hairpin in Green Sleeve's hand was originally mine. There's a character 'Su' engraved on it; that's proof." Su Ying looked at Song Zhiyu with hopeful eyes, feeling somewhat reassured.

All her jewelry was engraved with the character "Su," a gift from her mother when she was born.

She hadn't told the truth before because no one would stand up for her, and it would be useless for her to say anything more.

But now, she trusts Song Zhiyu completely.

*

Upon hearing this, Granny Ji and Green Sleeve's faces instantly darkened. The two glared fiercely at Su Ying, wishing they could tear her apart.

They thought Su Ying was easy to bully, but they never expected that she would outsmart them.

Song Zhiyu gave Lu Bai a look, and Lu Bai instantly understood. She rolled up her sleeves and snatched the hairpin from Green Sleeve's hand. Sure enough, she saw a small "Su" character on the hairpin.

"What else do you have to say?" Song Zhiyu picked up the hairpin and displayed the side with the engraved words to everyone. The truth was now clear.

“A hairpin doesn’t mean anything. At most, I’ll just say I misjudged her.” Green Sleeve choked, never expecting that Su Ying, whom she had bullied for so long, would turn around and bite her back.

"It's true what they say, a barking dog bites," Green Sleeve glared at Su Ying, her anger rising even more at the sight of Su Ying's pitiful appearance.

Song Zhiyu played with the hairpin in her hand, her fingertips gently stroking the character "Su" on the hairpin, her eyes flashing slightly.

If she had only suspected Su Ying's identity before, after carefully examining the hairpin, her suspicions were now confirmed.

Unexpectedly, Consort Su, who was extremely favored by the Prince of Li in her previous life, was hiding such a big secret.

Thinking back to the shocking "grain transport embezzlement case" three years ago, and combining it with some clues she found from Prince Li in her previous life, Song Zhiyu suddenly felt that the whole thing was starting to become interesting.

Song Zhiyu's gaze lingered on Su Ying for a moment before turning to Lüxiu. Seeing that she still looked indignant, he said with a half-smile, "You and Su Ying are both maids in the Marquis's mansion, yet you dare to openly use private torture and attempt to take her life."

According to the laws of the dynasty, anyone who arbitrarily accuses another of theft or uses vigilante justice to murder another is punishable by flogging. What, do you think you're above the law?

As soon as the words were spoken, Green Sleeve and Granny Ji's expressions changed drastically.

But old ginger is spicier. As if she had thought of something, Granny Ji lost her composure for only a moment before reverting to her arrogant demeanor.

"Second Miss, this is just a little squabble between two maids, why make such a big deal out of it?"

A few days ago, Li, the old nanny who serves Madam, wrote to this old servant, saying that Madam really likes the girl Lüxiu and intends to promote her to serve her. You wouldn't want to go against Madam's wishes, would you?

She specifically mentioned Shen's mother in order to use her name to suppress Song Zhiyu.

Song Zhiyu was not valued in the Marquis's mansion, and no matter how much she tried to please the Marquis and his wife, it was all in vain.

Green Sleeve was someone the Madam had taken a liking to, and she had even personally asked for her. Song Zhiyu probably wouldn't dare to go against the Madam's wishes and upset her.

Granny Ji raised her chin and gave Green Sleeve a reassuring look, clearly confident of victory.

After all, everyone in the Marquis's mansion knows how much Song Zhiyu cares about his wife and sons, valuing their affairs more than his own, let alone displeasing them.

Song Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, a slight chuckle escaping her lips.

She understood perfectly well what Granny Ji meant, but it was a pity that Granny Ji had used her methods on the wrong person.

Song Zhiyu's lips curled slightly, and he drew out the last syllable, "Since it's the person Madam wants..."

Under Granny Ji's smug gaze, Song Zhiyu suddenly changed the subject, catching everyone off guard, "Then naturally I can't do as she wishes."

"You know that's good..." Granny Ji suddenly came to her senses, her smugness turning into disbelief, and she even doubted that she had heard correctly.

Song Zhiyu turned the tables on them, and said leisurely, meeting Green Sleeve's murderous gaze, "If Mother knew that Green Sleeve's character was so despicable, she probably wouldn't be willing to keep her by her side to serve her."

Filial piety is paramount; naturally, I can't just stand by and watch her raise a tiger that will become a threat.

If you want to use your mother to pressure her, you have to see if she agrees.

Enraged, Green Sleeve lunged at Song Zhiyu, cursing as she did so. A deep malice flashed in her eyes as she slashed at Song Zhiyu's cheek with her sharp nails. "You bitch, who told you to meddle in other people's business?"

"You're nothing but a lowly bastard from the countryside. The Marquis and his wife don't even want to acknowledge you. What right do you have to act so arrogantly in front of me?"

With Granny Ji protecting her and no master above to restrain her, she had long been arrogant in the manor and naturally looked down on Song Zhiyu, who was not favored by her father and brothers.

"Miss, be careful!"

Seeing Green Sleeves rushing towards them like a madwoman, Lu Bai's pupils suddenly contracted, and she cried out in alarm.

Just as she was about to shield Song Zhiyu behind her, in the blink of an eye, Green Sleeve flew out like a rag and crashed heavily to the ground, without even touching her young lady's skirt.