Chapter 111 This Brat
Meanwhile, Meng Jinyao and her companions arrived at the carriage.
Before Gu Jingxi could ask her what she wanted to do, Meng Jinyao asked, "If my husband has nothing else to do after he finishes his duty, shall we go back to the manor first?"
Gu Jingxi was taken aback. Thinking of what her friend had said earlier, she couldn't help but misinterpret the situation and felt a little flattered: "Madam, are you here to pick me up after my shift?"
Meng Jinyao was taken aback when she heard this. Why would Gu Jingxi need her to pick him up after his shift?
After a moment, she quickly shook her head and explained, "No, it's because our carriage broke down. We happened to be not far from the Dali Temple, and it was almost time to finish our shifts, so we came to see if my husband was also going back home and wanted to do him a favor."
Gu Jingxi replied gently, "I'm also going back to my residence, so let's go back together."
The master and his four servants boarded the carriage. Luckily, the carriage was big enough, otherwise it would have been crowded for four people to sit on it.
Although Gu Jingxi was gentle, it was the first time Qingqiu and Ningdong had ridden in a carriage with him, and they were so reserved that they dared not breathe and sat motionless.
The two maids sat like wooden statues, and Meng Jinyao and Gu Jingxi remained silent.
After a long silence, Gu Jingxi suddenly asked, "Where did Madam go today?"
Meng Jinyao replied, "I went back to my maternal grandfather's house to take care of some things."
Her mother was an only child with no siblings. Her maternal grandparents had passed away, but the Zhou family still existed, and there were still several servants managing the house. They were all elderly members of the Zhou family, some too old, some lame, and some missing a hand. They had nowhere to go, and her maternal grandfather, being kind-hearted, had taken the disabled ones into the mansion.
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingxi vaguely guessed that what she wanted to do was probably related to Qiao Mama's son, and asked, "Madam, is the person you found reliable?"
Meng Jinyao nodded and said firmly, "They are reliable. Those who stay are all loyal servants. When my maternal grandfather was seriously ill, he returned their indentures to them. Only these few people did not leave. They wanted to stay without wages, so my maternal grandfather gave them a sum of money to continue managing the house, which was considered their wages."
It was only because the few servants who stayed behind managed the Zhou residence and regularly cleaned every room that the empty house was kept from falling into disrepair, allowing her to have a cup of hot tea and a hot meal when she occasionally returned.
Gu Jingxi nodded slightly: "It seems that Madam has a well-thought-out plan."
Meng Jinyao smiled and said, "I had an idea as soon as I woke up this morning."
Qingqiu and Ningdong listened intently to their conversation, their hearts filled with turmoil. It was only today that they suddenly learned that the eldest young master's death was suspicious and was the work of that poisonous woman, Madam Sun. Madam had never told them about this before.
Not only them, but even the second young master was unaware of this matter.
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The Changxing Marquis's Residence.
All the koi in the fish pond crowded together, opening their mouths to snatch the fish food.
Meng Jinyao stood by the pond, watching with great interest. She then sprinkled another handful of fish food into the pond, and the carp that had just scattered gathered back up at the fastest speed.
"ah!"
Suddenly, a scream came from not far away, attracting Meng Jinyao's attention. She looked in the direction of the sound and saw Gu Xuanyi clutching her forehead in pain, as did Li Wan'er. It seemed that they had just reached the corner and hadn't seen anyone, so they bumped into each other, their foreheads colliding.
Gu Xuanyi was pampered growing up; who in the manor would dare to bump into her?
She covered her forehead, her head buzzing. When she finally saw the other person's face, her anger surged. How dare a lowly concubine offend her?
Enraged, she raised her hand and, without hesitation, slapped Li Wan'er across the face with all her might, yelling, "You lowly servant, don't you have eyes?"
After Li Wan'er entered the manor, although she was not favored by her elders, she had never been slapped. She was always pampered by Gu Xiuming. This slap stunned her. Covering her numb face, she felt wronged and tears quickly filled her eyes. She choked and replied, "Miss, you were walking too fast and didn't watch where you were going, which is why you bumped into me."
The maidservants beside Li Wan'er watched quietly, not daring to utter a sound. After all, this was the legitimate daughter of the eldest son's family, while her mistress, although favored by the young master, was ultimately a concubine. Apart from the young master, none of the masters in the mansion cared about Concubine Li.
Gu Xuanyi glared at her angrily: "Are you saying I didn't watch where I was going and bumped into you?"
Li Wan'er hurriedly shook her head: "This concubine dares not."
Gu Xuanyi snorted coldly: "You still don't dare? You've already hit me, what else do you have to be afraid of?"
As she spoke, she looked Li Wan'er up and down again, covered her face and looked like she was about to cry. She looked pitiful, but she looked just like her father's concubines. They always tried to win men's pity by looking weak and helpless. It was really disgusting.
She retorted sarcastically, "A concubine is just a concubine, a whine-whining, lowly thing. I, a woman of noble birth, was bumped on the head by you, you blind fool, and I didn't even cry. Why are you crying?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Li Wan'er trembled slightly, and the tears that hadn't yet fallen instantly streamed down her face. She sobbed softly, not daring to speak.
When Gu Xuanyi saw that she was still crying, she felt that she was doing it on purpose. When others passed by and saw it, they would think that she had done something to her. She was furious and scolded, "You've become addicted to crying, haven't you? People who don't know will think that I hit you. What can you concubines do all day long besides pretending to be pitiful and making men feel sorry for you?"
"Third Brother is under house arrest now, and no matter how much you cry, he won't see you. I really don't know what kind of bewitching potion you gave him, that he would give up a generous and elegant girl like Third Aunt and choose to elope with a shameless thing like you."
Li Wan'er was stunned. Just a few days ago, she was scolded by Gu Xuanyi's twin brother, Gu Xiuwen, for being shameless. Now, she was scolded by Gu Xuanyi again. It was hard not to suspect that Meng Jinyao had ordered it.
She was also annoyed, and with tears in her eyes, she chuckled softly: "Young lady, even if I accidentally bumped into you, I would apologize to you. But I have no grudge against you, so why do you humiliate me like this? If you want to avenge Madam, then I have nothing to say. Madam is Xiuming's mother, and I should accept whatever she does to me."
Gu Xuanyi was taken aback and said irritably, "Who told you I was going to stand up for Third Aunt? I just can't stand you concubines who cry all the time. Don't think that just because Third Brother dotes on you, you're someone special. Third Aunt wouldn't stoop to tripping up her son's concubines."
As Meng Jinyao approached, she heard this sentence and was quite surprised. She did not expect Gu Xuanyi to speak up for her. But judging from the meaning of the sentence, Li Wan'er probably said something that involved her. As for what she said, it was definitely not something nice.
The last time I saw Gu Xuanyi bullying Gu Xuanling, her arrogant manner was extremely annoying. But this time, seeing her bullying Li Wan'er, I inexplicably found her endearing.
It seems that whether a child's bullying is annoying or not depends on who is being bullied.
She opened her mouth and asked, "Xuanyi, what's going on with you two?"
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