Chapter 224 Turmoil
Qingling picked up a hairpin and put it in her hair.
Looking in the mirror, she didn't like it, so she took it off and picked out a cloisonné gold hairpin to put in her hair, saying, "Call that girl in, let me take a look."
"Hey." Lou Yue went out.
She led Zhao Yin in.
"Miss." Zhao Yin knelt on the ground, very nervous, not daring to raise her head.
Qingling looked her over; she was very thin, her clothes were very thin, and her fingers, which were resting on the ground, were covered in chilblains, making them look like carrots.
Qingling asked, "You're in the main kitchen, how come you're still so thin? Don't you sneak a few bites?"
Zhao Yin shook her head: "This servant dares not."
“When I was at home, I was beaten by my stepmother for eating an extra bite of sweet potato because I was hungry, and I couldn’t eat for three days. The kitchen in the Marquis’s mansion is very good, but I must remember never to be greedy.”
Lou Yue bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes.
They were all from poor families, sold into wealthy households to work as maids; who wouldn't understand the bitterness of it all? However, she still had family to love her; she voluntarily sold herself to the Marquis's mansion to work because her family had suffered hardship. Zhao Yin was different.
She had a stepmother and a younger brother, so her family didn't want her anymore.
After Zhao Yin came to the Marquis's mansion, her monthly allowance was only a few coins, and her stepmother would ask her for money. She had almost no money saved up.
Zhao Yin didn't have a good time in the Marquis's mansion either. Those people bullied her because they were powerful. Lou Yue saw the head chef surnamed Liu groping her several times, and he always found reasons to deduct her monthly wages. The other maids always gave her more work. She didn't say anything and just silently did the work.
Lou Yue couldn't stand it anymore one time and said a few words in Zhao Yin's defense. Chef Liu was afraid of her and left disappointed. From then on, Zhao Yin kept Lou Yue in mind and always wanted to do something for her.
This time, the head maid of the main courtyard instructed Zhao Yin to do this dirty work. If it were discovered, at worst, it would just be the death of an insignificant, rough maid. Unexpectedly, Zhao Yin remembered Lou Yue's kindness and was willing to be beaten to death by the Marquis rather than let the drug go unhidden.
Qingling understood the whole story and nodded: "So how did you escape last night?"
She didn't have any Chinese medicine, so the Marquis of Zhongyong would definitely be unhappy and would want to take his anger out on this maid, or even kill her to silence her.
Zhao Yin sobbed as she said, "I am friends with Luo Shui, and I hid with her last night."
Qingling asked in confusion, "Who fell into the water?"
It has such a strange name?
“Miss, the dog that fell into the water was Chef Liu’s dog. He likes to eat dog meat and keeps several dogs in the back kitchen yard.”
Qing Ling frowned.
Zhao Yin added, "I'm small and thin, so the dogs will hide me in the doghouse and they won't be able to find me. I'll hurry and find Sister Louyue after dawn."
Yao Qingling: "..."
A doghouse is a place for dogs to live in for the upper class, but for many ordinary people who can't even make ends meet, they don't even have a doghouse.
If she didn't take this girl in, she wouldn't live to see today.
Qingling said, "You're a very honest person, so you can stay at Mulan Courtyard from now on."
With Madam Ma no longer in charge of the household, it would be easy for Yao Qingling to ask for a maid.
No sooner had the matter been settled than a commotion erupted at the courtyard gate.
Qingling went out and saw a burly old woman with several servants blocking the door of the vase flower shop. The people from Mulan Courtyard wouldn't let them in.
When the maids saw Qingling arrive, they said, "This old lady said that a maid stole a gold ingot from her mistress and has run away to our Mulan Courtyard. We need to catch her and take her back."
Qing Ling glanced indifferently at the old woman with age spots: "Your main courtyard always searches my place when something is missing. Well then, let me ask you this: I have an extra item here. Should I return it to you?"
The old woman was startled and subconsciously asked, "What is it?"
Qingling opened her palm, and there was a small yellow paper packet lying in her hand.
The old woman's face immediately turned pale, her eyes darting around. She stammered, "This...this isn't our stuff..." Then she changed her tune, "Nothing is missing from the main courtyard."
Qingling sneered, "Didn't the old woman just say that the gold ingots were lost?"
The old woman said, "Yes, I meant the lost gold ingots, not this thing."
“But my maid said that it was found in the main courtyard, in the garden near the flower hall. I happened to have gone to the flower hall with my maid last night. It was so dark that we couldn’t see clearly. She thought I had lost the sachet, so she picked it up.”
"But when we got back, we found it was actually aphrodisiac powder. How could such a despicable substance appear so openly in a respectable family like the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion!"
Qing Ling's expression changed, and she spoke sharply: "How dare you have such filth appear in the Marquis's mansion! Tell me, who are you planning to harm!"
The old woman was frightened by her cold and stern face.
Nowadays, everyone knows that this woman is not to be trifled with; anyone who messes with her will suffer the consequences.
The old woman smiled ingratiatingly, "Miss Qingling, you can't just say things like that. Well... so many people come and go from the Marquis's residence every day, who knows who brought her into the garden? Maybe your maid is lying?"
Her eyes darted around, but she refused to admit it.
Qingling had anticipated this response and was just waiting for her to say it. She said, "My maid is lying? Then tell me, why would my maid lie like this? What benefit would it bring her?"
"Perhaps it was Miss's maid who was curious and brought it to play with?"
Qing Ling narrowed her eyes. What a cunning old servant.
Lou Yue and the other maids were furious and wished they could tear her mouth off.
They are all still unmarried girls. If such a thing gets out, how will they ever be able to face people again?
According to the rules of the manor, they might even be beaten to death.
"You old hag—" Lou Yue was so angry that she was about to go forward and hit someone, but Xia Chan pulled her back.
Lou Yue took a deep breath: "I think this is what you're looking for, isn't it? You don't have any witnesses to prove that this thing is something we've been hiding, but we do have witnesses."
The old woman's expression changed, and she adopted a accusing tone: "Is it a lowly maid named Zhaoyin?"
"Hey, I didn't say who this witness is, but you called out their name right off the bat. Granny, could it be that this thing is yours?"
The old woman felt guilty but forced herself to remain calm, and said to Qingling in a righteous tone, "After the Marquis discovered the gold ingot was missing, he searched everyone in the main courtyard, but this girl Zhao Yin was nowhere to be found. Everyone knows that none of you in the Mulan Courtyard are good people. She is on good terms with your girl Lou Yue, so when something happened, she naturally came to her for protection. Those gold ingots were divided between the two of them."
Qing Ling took a light breath and chuckled, "Everyone has their own reasons. Let's settle this matter with the Marquis."
The old woman gave a wink to the servant beside her, intending to take Zhao Yin away by force when no one was looking. The people from Mulan Courtyard immediately stepped forward to block her way.
Qing Ling glanced at her coldly: "What, you want to make a move here?"
The old woman knew she couldn't win, but if she didn't handle this matter well, the Marquis would skin her alive!
“Miss, she’s just a lowly maid. Why are you making such a fuss and protecting her? She’s a thief, and your courtyard is full of good things. Keeping her around is like catching a rat in a rice sack.”
"Give that girl to this old servant. I'll deal with her, and then the Marquis's mansion will be at peace."
The old woman was implying to Qingling that since she was living under the Marquis's roof, she shouldn't fall out with the Marquis. It was just a little girl who had died; they should give each other a way out, and life would continue peacefully from now on.
"Miss!" Zhao Yin trembled with fear and knelt down on the ground with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly to Qing Ling. "Miss, save me! Please, Miss, don't hand me over! Please, Miss..."
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