Chapter 341 Unyielding Strength
Madam Min Qiao smiled as she looked at Old Madam Min, whose expression had changed.
Old Mrs. Min's face was extremely ugly. She didn't say anything, but just stared coldly at Zhao.
Zhao was never a bold person to begin with, and her previous timidity was not entirely an act; seven-tenths of it was a genuine reaction from being forced to come and slander Min Qiao.
But at this moment, her seven parts timidity had turned into ten parts under Old Madam Min's piercing gaze.
She knew what the old lady meant; she wanted Min Qiao Shi to die.
But such a poisonous oath...
Suddenly, a thought struck Zhao, and she stammered, "This isn't fair. Why should I make such a terrible oath?"
Zhao swore to the heavens, "I also swear that if my maid was not killed by my sister-in-law's people, I will be struck by lightning and die a horrible death."
Old Mrs. Min's expression softened slightly, and she turned to look at Min Qiao Shi.
Everyone else also looked at Madam Min, waiting for her to give them an explanation.
Madam Min Qiao, however, calmly replied, "Madam Zhao is right, it is indeed unfair. Therefore, for the sake of fairness..."
She smiled, then slowly and earnestly said, "I swear, if Zhao's maid was killed by my men, may all my male descendants be slaves for generations, and my female descendants be prostitutes for eternity!"
After solemnly swearing the oath, Madam Min Qiao gestured to Madam Zhao to invite her.
The meaning is clear: it's your turn now.
Zhao was surprised that Min Qiao was so ruthless, and neither were the others.
Seeing that Zhao did not react for a long time, the atmosphere in the room quickly became deadlocked.
"I've given you the fairness you wanted. What? Are you feeling guilty? Are you scared now?"
Min Qiao looked at Zhao with a mocking expression.
Zhao remained silent, biting her lip tightly with a pale face, her eyes lowered, and her whole body trembling.
She could die, or even suffer a fate worse than death; she didn't care what happened to her.
However, she cannot swear on her children and grandchildren.
Even though she knew that the vows she made might not come true, she didn't dare to gamble on that one in a million.
Therefore, even though she felt the gaze that Old Madam Min was casting on her, which was colder and sharper than before, she still did not speak.
Seeing the atmosphere become tense, Madam Min once again tried to smooth things over.
She smiled awkwardly and said, "Oh dear, it's just the death of a girl, how did it escalate to this point?"
"Does the life of a lowly maidservant really matter more than the blood ties and family bonds among us?"
"Fourth sister-in-law, you're wrong too. No matter how that girl died, it's wrong of you to make a scene in front of the old lady today."
"Besides, today is my cousin's first day visiting. It's really not right for you to be so disrespectful to her."
"In my opinion, let's not say anything more. You should offer your sister-in-law a cup of tea and apologize. Let's just let this matter drop."
As she spoke, Madam Min glanced at Old Madam Min, who, despite her displeasure, nodded almost imperceptibly. Then she looked at Madam Min Qiao and asked with a smile, "Sister-in-law, what do you think?"
Madam Min smiled, and just when everyone thought she had agreed, she said in a light tone, "I don't think so."
Everyone froze, hardly believing their ears.
Ignoring everyone's astonishment, Madam Min Qiao continued, "In this matter, either Madam Zhao admits that she is slandering me, or she makes the same oath as me."
"If both sides swear the same solemn oath, won't it still lead to no result?"
The third wife pursed her lips, and just as she voiced her doubts, she heard Madam Min Qiao continue, "Then, we'll go to the government office to report to the authorities and ask them to investigate thoroughly to find out the real cause of that girl's death."
Upon hearing this, the third wife fell silent.
The expressions on the other people's faces also became more serious.
Especially Old Mrs. Min, whose face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
Madam Min Qiao, however, paid no attention to Old Madam Min and looked at Madam Zhao with a half-smile.
The Min family wanted to use Zhao Shi to intimidate her, but Zhao Shi simply didn't have the ability!
Seeing that the situation was not going well, did the Min family want to gloss over the problem again?
Well, that depends on whether she's willing or not!
Since they had arranged for Zhao to perform on stage, and she didn't get a good result, how could they possibly let Zhao leave the stage?
“Niece-in-law, look, this is just a small matter. Why don’t you let it go for my sake?”
Suppressing her anger, Old Mrs. Min kindly advised, "We're all family after all. It's fine to let this little matter go in private. If we take it to the authorities and outsiders see it, won't they laugh at us?"
"Don't you think that makes sense?"
Madam Min smiled and nodded in agreement, saying, "What the old lady said makes sense."
Just as everyone was about to breathe a sigh of relief, Min Qiaoshi continued, as if panting, "But I didn't say that we had to take this to court."
"Moreover, Zhao hasn't even sworn an oath yet, and the matter hasn't reached the point of going to court."
As she spoke, Madam Min Qiao looked at Madam Zhao again.
"Zhao, are you going to swear a solemn oath now and come with me to the government office to report this to the authorities, or are you going to honestly admit that you are deliberately slandering me?"
Zhao clenched her teeth and after a long while, she finally stammered, "But my maid is really dead."
At this moment, Madam Min Qiao finally abandoned her gentle expression and questioned sharply, "Ha, don't you really know how your maid died?"
Ultimately, it was just the Min family wanting to give this newcomer a hard time, to suppress her arrogance, and to tell her to behave herself and not be arrogant in Huizhou City.
Zhao and her maid were merely pawns in the hands of the Min family.
Therefore, the one who truly killed that maid was not Min Qiao Shi, but the Min family!
"I, I..." Zhao covered her face and wept, but in the end, she couldn't say anything.
Just then, the scene repeated itself. The little maid who had previously beckoned Jiang Shi to leave reappeared at the door, waving at Jiang Shi.
The atmosphere in the room was already tense, and Old Mrs. Min was even more furious with nowhere to vent her anger.
Upon seeing that little girl, he was immediately filled with rage.
Before Jiang could leave, Old Madam Min slammed her hand on the table and angrily shouted, "If you have something to say, come in and report it. What kind of behavior is this, sneaking around at the door?"
The little girl turned pale with fright and looked at Jiang Shi for help.
Although Jiang was only a granddaughter-in-law, the management of the Min family's household affairs had already been handed over to her. Furthermore, Jiang herself was a strong-willed person. Therefore, the people below naturally held her in awe.
Even after Old Madam Min had spoken, the little girl still subconsciously sought Jiang's opinion.
Upon seeing this, Jiang's anger flared up immediately.
The little girl's subconscious action, in the eyes of the elders, what good could she possibly do?
Especially the old lady! If she felt that her words were less effective than those of Jiang Shi...
Jiang didn't even dare to imagine what the elders in the house would think of her!
Jiang was furious, but dared not lash out in front of so many elders.
He could only suppress his anger and wink at the little girl.
Fortunately, the little girl wasn't too stupid. After receiving a signal from Dao Jiang, she quickly went inside.
Upon arriving before Old Madam Min, the young maidservant immediately knelt down and reported, "Your Excellency, my sister-in-law from the eldest mistress's family has brought Miss Jiang Er to visit you. They are already waiting in the flower hall."
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