Xinhe’s lips curl into a cryptic smile as she flicks a stone from her sleeve. The stone, seemingly small, bounces off the horse before her which she intended to start galloping. Despite its small size, Xinhe’s force was considerable, and the impact terrified the horse into a frenzied gallop.
The horse carriage couldn’t keep up, quickly toppling on the side. The horse, greatly frightened, powerfully snapped the reins and bolted, leaving its master behind.
The screams of Ji Xiulan and her maids from inside the carriage, as well as the smashing sound of the carriage flipping over, rang across the scene. It was a grand spectacle to behold.
Shulan, for a moment at a loss, could only stare wide-eyed and stand dumbfounded.
Perhaps the commotion was too loud and it quickly drew the attention of many villagers who came to watch.
"Oh my, what happened here? The carriage has overturned, I hope no one’s been killed!"
"Who knows? This is Ji Xiulan’s carriage. She was just being haughty with me, and now she’s met with disaster— it must be retribution!"
"Humph! Who can argue with that? She had it coming!"
Talk aside, the villagers were of a kind nature and couldn’t just stand by and watch someone die. Despite the chatter, many of them hurried to check on the people in the carriage.
But before they could get close, Ji Xiulan, in a sorry state, crawled out of the carriage. Her face was hideous, and in her rage, she pushed away the maids and villagers who had come to help her, yelling, "All of you, get lost! You useless things, can’t even drive a carriage properly, why do I even keep you around?!"
The two little maids and the young manservant immediately knelt to the ground, banging their heads and begging for forgiveness. "We don’t know what happened, how the horse suddenly took fright. It’s usually the most gentle horse in the mansion! Begging for mercy from Ninth Lady!"
"All of you scram!" It was unclear whether she was yelling at her servants or the villagers.
The villagers’ expressions immediately soured. They had only meant to help, and while it was understandable for Ji Xiulan to scold her servants, she had no right to yell at them. They weren’t her servants!
"Hey, what kind of attitude is this?" The hot-tempered Aunt Wang was itching to rush up and confront her.
But at that moment, Xinhe came forward: "What happened? How could a fine carriage just flip over like that?"
This innocent gaze was subtly laced with a sly hint of schadenfreude.
Upon seeing Xinhe’s reaction, Ji Xiulan knew this must be her doing and immediately clenched her teeth in rage. "Ji Xinhe, you wretched woman!"
Yet Xinhe merely approached her, her smile deepening and her eyes dim, she whispered, "Mind your words. Have you already forgotten my earlier warning? Displease me, and you won’t get away easy."
"You!" Ji Xiulan was suddenly filled with fear and didn’t dare to let the curse that had been on the tip of her tongue out.
Xinhe continued to smile and whispered in her ear, "This time... this was payback for you intentionally hitting me with the carriage. If there’s one thing about me, it’s that I’m vindictive. The next time you want to provoke me, think carefully first."
Ji Xiulan’s eyes bulged in rage, her words filled with frustration, "Ji Xinhe! You’ve got some nerve! I’m from the Sun Family..."
Xinhe raised an eyebrow, "The Sun family’s what? There are seven ladies in the Sun Family, lose one of them and it won’t hurt, right? You better weigh your options carefully."
Having spoken, she smiled coldly, pivoted on her heel and walked away.
Leaving Ji Xiulan on her own, gritting her teeth in rage, but her fear of Xinhe kept her from uttering any harsh words at her, directing this frustration to vent only on her own servants instead.
Shulan and Xiaoyu watched them, beads of cold sweat emerging on their backs. Only after they followed Xinhe to a safer distance did Shulan whisper, "Thank goodness this servant is lucky to serve a master like you. Or else, serving that mad woman, I’d either die from her beatings or go mad myself."
Xinhe chuckled, "Now you realize my merits? But when I reprimand you, you are not happy."
"This servant dares not. Please feel free to issue any orders, even to jump into a pot of boiling water or walk through fire for you. After all, this servant is devoted to you in this lifetime!" Shulan said determinedly.
Xinhe just smiled and shook her head, not saying anything more, and proceeded towards the farmstead.
——
Since the new house was set up, Xinhe entrusted all the furniture and decoration tasks to Xiaoyu, as she wasn’t knowledgeable in these areas and had no spare time to manage them. As for Marquis Mu, his indifference to such matters was even more pronounced. His residence, the Prime Minister’s mansion, was simply and casually maintained. It was clear he didn’t care for such things.
Moreover, affairs in the capital must be complicated. He would spend most of his days in his study, with documents and letters from the capital constantly being delivered. The frequent comings and goings of Ling Feng and other secret guards became a common sight.
Luckily Xiaoyu was a capable maid and handled things very efficiently. In no time, she arranged everything in the new house and personally picked some obedient and honest servants from the market.
With everything ready, Xinhe decided to move without any further delay.
She didn’t have much luggage when returning from the capital, even less for Marquis Mu. That man seemed to barely care about his personal belongings!
The couple’s belongings were fewer than Xiao Bei’s, mostly due to Xinhe’s habit of constantly getting him new things, especially writing materials and books which were in plenty.
Three carriages set off from the village in a mighty procession. After half an hour, they reached the new residence in the town.
When the carriage stopped, Xinhe lifted the curtain to take a look outside. The first thing she saw was a large golden signboard for the "Mu Mansion".
Looking at the signboard, Xinhe couldn’t help having a slight smile creep up on her lips. This was her husband’s residence.
"Why are you smiling?" Marquis Mu leaned in to ask.
Xinhe lightly snorted, "It’s nothing."
She couldn’t tell him what she was thinking. Otherwise this man’s pride would reach the skies and he would get too conceited!
Marquis Mu chuckled and proceeded to help her off the carriage.
The servants at the door had been waiting. They all bowed respectfully, "Greetings to the master and madam."
Perhaps they weren’t yet familiar with their new master. The newly purchased servants were visibly trembling, with a few especially timid ones shaking even in their calves, their heads bowed not daring to look up.
Xinhe nodded, "Hmm."
"Madam, please enter the mansion. The servants will take care of the luggage." Xiaoyu said.
"I trust you with this task. Take care of our things... and also..." Xinhe glanced at the new servants. After a pause she continued, "you are also in charge of training and managing them. From now on, all matters of this household will be under your supervision."
All the servants were taken aback by this statement. Did it mean that the major authority of the mansion’s inner courtyard was going to be handed over to a servant? What did this signify?
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