His transformation was indeed fast enough. Luo Lan raised her bright eyes and glanced at his face calmly. Then, she raised her brows slightly and scolded him:
"Butler Xu, you're such a big shot! Today is my first day on the job. Do you need me to invite you three times before you come?"
"I dare not."
Butler Xu rolled his eyes in disdain. Although he was dissatisfied in his heart, he did not show it on his face.
"Don't dare?"
Luo Lan suddenly raised the whip and lashed the ground in front of him with a "snap". The moment dust rose, Butler Xu was so scared that he stepped back repeatedly.
She raised her voice and said coldly:
"If the roots are not straight, the seedlings will be crooked. You, Housekeeper Xu, have been so indifferent to me, no wonder these servants are so bold. I just arrived today and don't want to make enemies with you, but you all remember this. Next time I will pass the order, anyone who is a step late will not blame me for being blind."
Hearing her words, everyone looked at each other in confusion, even the two self-righteous cooking maids were a little stunned.
They even suspected that the new princess was not an ordinary person, otherwise how could she dare to treat them like this in the palace.
Luo Lan turned to Butler Xu and said:
"From today on, the prince's meals will follow my recipes. No mistakes are allowed."
Butler Xu looked at the whip in her hand and nodded in fear, "I understand."
She looked at the two cooking maids again and said, "You two, from today on, the prince's meals will be lighter, with less salt and oil, but the taste cannot be any worse."
Although the two maids were unwilling, they could only nod in agreement.
She looked at Ruyi and the other three maids again, "You guys, clean all the rooms in this palace. You have to clean every day from now on. I won't pay you for nothing."
One of the girls muttered to herself when she heard this:
"Who can clean up so many houses? Besides, no one will live there even if they are cleaned up!"
Luo Lan suddenly frowned and looked at her. She slapped her palm with the whip in her hand and walked towards her with an angry look.
"If you have something to say, speak loudly so that everyone can hear you. Don't whisper in secret."
The girl quickly closed her lips and lowered her head, not daring to speak.
Luo Lan glanced at the servants again, and with a flicker of his brows, he gave the order directly:
"Can't you see how dirty the palace is inside and out? I don't care what you do on weekdays, from today on, you guys must clean the entire palace yard every day. Don't let me see dust and garbage everywhere."
The servants were quite obedient. Although no one wanted to respond, no one spoke out either.
Luo Lan raised her bright eyes again and glanced at everyone calmly. Although these people were listening to her, they must be very dissatisfied in their hearts, because they all felt that they, the princess, would not be able to show off for long, and would even have to accompany the prince to death soon, so they must be waiting to see the show.
Thinking of this, she walked back and forth in front of the crowd with her whip, raising her voice again.
"As you all know, the prince is seriously ill and will not live long. I received the reward silver and naturally want to die. Therefore, I don't care about death, let alone living. As long as I am the princess, I must act like a princess. If any of you do not accept it, you must keep it in your heart and don't let me see it. Otherwise, I will definitely exercise my rights as a princess. I am a heartless person. If you make me angry, I dare to kill anyone. Don't say I didn't warn you."
Hearing this, everyone took a deep breath. After all, the woman in front of them was also a princess. No matter what her identity was or how long she would live, she was the princess that Concubine Chang had agreed to.
Therefore, everyone bowed with dissatisfaction and said, "We will follow the princess's instructions."
There was a glint of disdain in Butler Xu's eyes. He had been in charge of this palace for three years and had been the only one in power for three years. Now it was taken over by such a girl. Naturally, he was not convinced. But he could wait. When this girl passed away with the dying prince, everything would be under his control.
Just as he was pondering, Luo Lan's sharp eyes suddenly turned to him, "Butler Xu, please show me the household accounts later. You have been working as a butler for so long and it's been hard. As the princess, I should share some of the burden with you."
Hearing this, Butler Xu was suddenly a little flustered. Where did he get the accounts? He had been living a life of luxury in the palace for so long, and most of the salary allocated by the court to the palace was pocketed by him, leaving only a small portion for the palace's expenses. Otherwise, how could the palace only have these few servants who were to his liking?
Seeing him keep his head down and remain silent, Luo Lan spoke again, "What's the matter? Is there something difficult for Butler Xu? Or is it that there are no accounts in this palace?"
Seeing that his thoughts were seen through, Butler Xu hurriedly bowed his head and clasped his fists, saying:
"Your Highness, you're joking. How could there be no accounts in the mansion? They're just a little messy. I'll sort them out carefully before handing them over to Your Highness. Otherwise, I'm afraid You won't understand."
Although Luo Lan knew that this must be his delaying tactic, she could wait. She would not die in three or five days like these servants thought.
So she raised her eyebrows and whispered, "Okay, then give Butler Xu ten days. Not only will he have time to sort out the accounts, he'll even have time to start over."
Ten days?
Butler Xu secretly rejoiced, could she survive for ten days?
However, he still agreed hurriedly with a guilty conscience.
She disdained to talk to these people who looked down on others, so after telling the prince what he wanted to eat for lunch, she turned and left.
After Luo Lan left, the servants were immediately in an uproar.
The little girls came to Butler Xu to complain.
"Butler Xu, look, my arms are covered in whip marks. You have to take charge of this for us!"
"That's right, she's just a country girl that Concubine Chang bought into the palace. Why is she so arrogant towards us?"
"With so many of us here, are we still afraid of her? Butler Xu, you have to make a decision!"
"Yeah! Why don't we rebel against her together!"
Butler Xu was still thinking about how he could finish the accounts in ten days, so the nagging of these women made him wave his hands in annoyance.
"Stop arguing. The imperial physician came last time and checked. The prince might pass away someday. By then, she'll just be a burial companion. Why are you so anxious? Get back to work!"
Leaving these words behind, he turned around and left quickly.
Although he was not afraid of the new princess, he was also afraid that she would find out what he did in the palace.
Every few days, an imperial physician or eunuch would come to the palace to check on the prince's condition. If this woman made up a story and sued me, my good days would be over!
Seeing Butler Xu walking away, Ruyi, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke.
"With so many of us, are we still afraid of a woman and a dying person?"
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