Seeing her still trying to argue even as she faced death, He Yunze's dark eyes gleamed with deep disdain:
"You took the silver that originally belonged to Ruo'an from the divine physician Qihuang and distributed it to the servants. If the power to manage the household is not in your hands, then where is it?"
"The evidence is now irrefutable that you sent spoiled food, inferior charcoal, and black-hearted quilts to Ruo'an's courtyard. All the servants in Guanyunxuan can testify to this!"
“Song Xizhi, you have done wrong, yet you show no remorse. Grandmother, even Ruo'an has been treated so harshly by her. I really don’t know what your brother’s life is like in private! The Marquis’s ancestral hall was built for stubborn people like you!”
He spoke each word with force and conviction, venting all his heartache for Song Ruo'an in this life and his dissatisfaction with Song Xizhi in the previous life.
Madam Huang covered her mouth in surprise, her playful gaze fixed on Song Xizhi: "In the past, the servants in the manor mistreated Yun Ce. I punished all the offending servants and declared that this matter must never happen again in the Marquis's manor."
“Mother, since Yun Ce says that the matter of servants mistreating their masters has resurfaced, then you must deal with it severely and without leniency!”
She was happy to see Song Ruoan mistreated, but if Song Xizhi was the one who did it, then she should be punished, and the power to manage the household might fall into her hands.
It's a classic case of two birds fighting, while a third party reaps the benefits!
Upon hearing this, Song Xizhi remained silent, but instead turned his gaze toward Old Madam He.
Then everyone heard Old Madam He's deep voice: "The power to manage the household has always been in my hands. Even if the eldest son's wife decided to distribute the money to the servants, she did not take away the power to manage the household."
"I manage everything in the Marquis's residence and have never instructed the kitchen or steward to mistreat any courtyard."
She spoke with a heavy gaze, giving He Yunze another deep look before shifting her gaze to Madam Huang:
"According to your words, it's a certainty that I mistreated Song Ruo'an. Yun Ce, are you trying to open the ancestral hall and punish me by barging into Wanxiang Hall like this?"
Caught off guard by these words, He Yunze's eyes widened in surprise, completely taken aback.
He stood there in astonishment, looking at Song Xizhi's calm and composed demeanor, and that strange feeling in his heart rose again.
The reason he was so certain just now was because he had never considered that there was such a possibility: that the vain Song Xizhi had not used Ruo'an's money to take advantage of the servants' affection and seize the power of the steward.
"How is this possible? How could Song Xizhi possibly give up the power to manage the household?"
"She must have been the one who mistreated Ruo'an! After all, she was her ex..."
He Yunze wanted to say that she had done such a thing in her past life, but he swallowed the words back.
Song Xizhi squinted at He Yunce's ever-changing expression, looking on with anticipation for a good show.
"It is true that I distributed the embezzled money from the legendary physician Qihuang to the servants. However, the servants learned the truth and complained that Song Ruoan had embezzled public funds and pocketed their monthly allowances. I did this in order to quell public anger."
"Of course, my grandmother also asked me if I would accept the power of housekeeping, but I didn't want it because I thought it was better to avoid trouble."
Upon hearing this, Madam He slumped back into her chair, her expression now showing a hint of anger: "Just as I thought!"
“When Xi Zhi told me this before, I didn’t understand! But just a few days later, someone jumped out to frame her!”
“If it weren’t for the fact that I’m still in charge of this household, your sister-in-law would definitely be unable to defend herself because of your words!”
Madam He's voice was deep and somber, and He Yunze felt that he was truly speechless.
The situation before him was beyond his expectations, and he felt that Song Xizhi must have used some other means.
He gritted his teeth: "But Ruo'an hasn't received proper food for a long time, and the yard is full of cheap charcoal. That's a fact. If no one is deliberately abusing her, what other explanation is there?"
The vast Wanxiang Hall fell silent for a moment before He Yunze continued, "Grandson believes that Grandmother did not do this, but besides Grandmother, who else in the manor would want to mistreat Ruo'an?"
As he spoke, he shifted his suspicious gaze to Song Xizhi's face.
Song Xizhi was also a little curious. She shrugged and said, "If you're upright, you have nothing to fear. I have no evidence to prove that I didn't do it, but you have no evidence to prove that I did it either."
"If this is enough to prove that I abused Song Ruo'an, then tomorrow Guan Moxuan will also use inferior charcoal. Would that prove that it was you, He Yunce, who abused your brother and sister-in-law?"
"You!" He Yunze's chest heaved with anger at her sophistry.
But at that moment, someone rushed to the door, gritted his teeth, and knelt down in front of Old Madam He.
"It was this old servant who did it. I took advantage of the fact that the Second Young Master was not dining in the manor these days and sent spoiled food to Guanyunxuan. It has nothing to do with the Eldest Young Madam. If you want to punish someone, then punish this old servant!"
The clumsy old cook in the small kitchen stood before Madam He, tears welling in her eyes.
Her appearance surprised everyone present.
Song Xizhi tilted his head in confusion, feeling that the face looked somewhat familiar.
Old Madam He looked at her suspiciously: "You?"
He Yunze gritted his teeth and sneered, "You're just a cook, yet you have such great abilities? Not only did you deliver spoiled food, but you also delivered inferior charcoal and tattered quilts? You really think you can control the Marquis's mansion with your own hands!"
He Lao Madam He listened and also felt that it was somewhat strange.
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