"Imperial Physician, is my mother alright?"
"Miss, there's no need to worry. Madam Hou is just overworked and her anger is a result of her impatience. She just needs to rest and recuperate. I'll prescribe a medicine for her. As long as she takes good care of herself, she'll recover quickly. But Madam Hou must avoid overexertion and getting too angry. Keep your mind calm and clear-headed, and you'll recover faster."
"Thank you, Your Excellency."
"Please take care, Your Excellency."
Pei Jing saw the head of the Imperial Hospital out of the room, and then had her personal maid wrap a large red envelope for him. She smiled as she saw the guest off, but when she returned, her face instantly fell.
"Bang bang!"
Pei Jing slammed his fist on the table in a fit of rage.
"How exactly do you serve your wife?!"
"Madam has always been in good health, how did she become so ill?"
"Grandma, you've been wronged! We servants have always been devoted to you, working diligently and conscientiously, and have never slacked off for a single day!"
The head maid and the storeroom maid knelt at Pei Jing's feet with tears in their eyes, and all the other maids in the room also knelt and kowtowed tremblingly.
"Uncle, you're innocent! You're innocent!"
"quibble!"
"When I came back for the Chinese New Year, my wife was full of energy and looked radiant. How long has it been? She's become skin and bones."
Pei Jing was furious when he saw Wen Shi's gaunt face; she wasn't this thin when they ate the New Year's Eve dinner.
"The imperial physician also said that Madam's condition was caused by extreme anger. Well, you lowly servants dare to make Madam suffer!"
"You've gone too far!"
Slap him!
Pei Jing waved her hand, and the old women behind her pounced on the maids in the room like wolves and tigers. The head maid and the storeroom maid were the first to be attacked. Pei Jing's servants grabbed them by the collar and slapped them several times, making them see stars and bleed profusely.
"Grandma, spare my life!"
"It's really not us who made your wife suffer, it's really not us..."
"We servants are innocent..."
The other maids and servants were also beaten, and the room was filled with wailing and cries of injustice.
Wen Shi also slowly woke up. She watched the maids and servants being beaten without saying a word, her eyes darting around, not daring to look at Pei Jing.
Seeing her like this, Pei Jing also sensed that something was wrong.
She knew her mother's temperament; if these servants had really made her sick, she wouldn't be in this state.
Pei Jing told the old women to stop, and then called the head maid and the storeroom maid to him.
"What exactly happened! The old lady has been out of the picture for a long time. The madam has been in charge of the household affairs for more than 20 years. She has always been the one to make decisions in the household. Apart from you, who in the entire household dares to make her suffer?"
Upon hearing her words, the head maid and the storeroom maid did not rush to answer. They looked at Madam Wen, their expressions hesitant.
Wen Shi was embarrassed and covered her face to prevent Pei Jing from seeing her expression, since this was not something to be proud of.
Pei Jing frowned in displeasure. "What's going on? Why are you being so secretive?"
Seeing Pei Jing's determined attitude and knowing that the situation couldn't be kept secret any longer, the head maid and the storeroom maid exchanged glances and then rattled off Jiang Shuwan's actions since entering the mansion.
"Grandma, you have to help Madam! The young mistress is really something. She's only been in the mansion for half a year, and she's already taken over half of the household management. Now, even the old lady has given her control of the accounts."
"What kind of wife lives such a miserable life? She even has to be mindful of her daughter-in-law's attitude when it comes to withdrawing money."
"And last time, the young mistress instigated the old lady to investigate the madam's accounts, which not only made the madam pay 100,000 taels of silver to the public, but also caused a rift between the madam and the marquis."
"In all my years of service, I have never seen a daughter-in-law like you, young mistress. You are always at odds with your mother-in-law and have no respect whatsoever!"
"And the servants in the Marquis's mansion are no good either. They all side with the young mistress. The young mistress is really good at winning people's hearts. Now that the madam is at home, she is not well received by the old lady above, and the servants below are also going against her."
"The wife has no status at all now!"
"This time, Madam was made sick by the young mistress. You don't know, today, in front of the third wife, the fourth wife, and the aunt, the young mistress publicly mocked Madam as an old fox, which made Madam faint from anger."
"This servant dares not lie to you, Madam. This is not the first time Madam has been ill. She was sick once before, also because she was angered by Young Mistress!"
Upon hearing these words, Pei Jing was completely stunned.
"What!"
Who are you talking about?
"Young mistress? Yan Zhi's new wife whom he just married at the end of last year? The daughter of that fifth-rank official surnamed Jiang?"
"It's her." The two old women nodded frantically.
Pei Jing looked at Wen Shi lying on the bed in disbelief. Wen Shi curled up and covered her face in embarrassment. She still didn't say anything, but looking at her like that, what was there not to understand?
They can't even subdue a little brat; they've lost all face and dignity, it's utterly shameful.
"OK!"
"You heartless whore, how dare you be so rude! A slut like you, being allowed into my Pei family is a stroke of incredible luck for her past lives. Not only is she ungrateful, but she also dares to bully her mother-in-law. Shameless, despicable wretch!"
"I never agreed to her marrying into the family in the first place. What good can come from a third-rate, lowly family? She has no character or morals! She's a despicable person!"
"Madam was the same. Back then, in order to welcome her into the family, she even kept it a secret from the old lady. Before the old lady even returned from Jingshan, she secretly arranged the marriage. You have no idea how many people were saying that the mother and son of our Marquis's family were not on good terms during that time. Everyone was waiting to see our family make a fool of itself. Fortunately, the old lady said at the clan banquet that the heavy snow had delayed the time and praised that Jiang girl highly. Otherwise, who knows what people outside would have said!"
"That's fine, you've married her, so be it, as long as you're happy. But how come you can't even handle a lowly woman?"
Pei Jing was so angry that he trembled all over, veins bulged on his forehead, and his eyes turned bloodshot with rage, as if they were about to spit fire. His fingernails dug deeply into his palms.
"How dare she, a lowly woman, climb over your head and act so arrogantly?"
"How would I know? She's just the daughter of a low-ranking official. She has no experience and no background. I even investigated her beforehand. She's not even as good as her wretched sister. At least her sister can recite a couple of pretentious poems. She can't do anything. How would I know she's so capable?"
As she spoke, Wen started panting heavily again, looking as if she was about to collapse.
Pei Jing quickly stepped forward to pat her back and help her catch her breath.
"Why should Madam get angry over such a vile person? She's a junior. Just find an excuse to slap her twice, and she won't dare to fight back."
As she spoke, she gestured for Jiang Shuwan to come over, but Madam Wen quickly grabbed her hand. "No way! I'm known throughout the capital for my compassion. I rarely scold my servants for their mistakes. How can I face anyone if I slap my daughter-in-law like that!"
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