Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 11

Chapter 11: What Was Gained

Yun Chu smiled slightly.

She glanced around the entire room. Aside from the four walls belonging to the Xie family, was there anything else here that she had not purchased herself?

Even if these items were thrown out to feed dogs, they would still be of more use than being handed over to this group of ungrateful ingrates.

She spoke up, "Since Wei-ge'er has put it this way, if I, as his mother, were to still have you beaten with boards, it truly would be far too heartless. However, do you even happen to have one thousand taels of silver on you?"

Xie Shiwei was instantly at a loss for words.

He received a monthly allowance of a few taels of silver. Old Madam would give him some pocket money, and Grandmother would give him some as well, adding up to twenty or thirty taels in total. However, he had squandered all of it on reckless spending and could not even scrape together a single copper coin right now.

Yun Chu raised her hand slightly. "If you cannot produce it, then you will just have to make do and scrape together whatever you can."

Tingshuang and Tingsheng stepped forward and began to move the furniture and belongings.

Several minor servants and old maids outside walked in to lend a hand with the heavy lifting.

The originally exquisite bedchamber was suddenly rendered completely empty.

Enduring his pain, Xie Shiwei forced himself to restrain his emotions and asked, "What is Mother trying to do by doing this?"

"Firstly, these possessions barely add up to a little silver, which shall serve as your compensation for the crickets," Yun Chu said slowly and deliberately. "Secondly, books teach us that when Heaven is about to place a great responsibility upon a person, it must first frustrate their spirit, exhaust their muscles and bones, and starve their body... When Wei-ge'er first entered the Xie estate, he was well-behaved, sensible, and obedient. Nowadays, he has become increasingly unruly. I suppose it must be because I raised you with far too much delicate care and spoiling. Starting from today, your food, clothing, and daily expenses shall all be halved. When you finally show some genuine improvement and growth, only then shall things return to normal."

Xie Shiwei burst into loud, bitter tears. "Mother, no! I know I was wrong!"

Yun Chu turned around and left, taking her people with her.

"Mother, do not go! I really will change, I will definitely change! I beg Mother not to treat me like this..."

Xie Shiwei crawled down from the bed, moving on his hands and knees, only to be caught in a tight embrace by Madam He.

"Wei-ge'er, the Mistress is only doing this for your own good..."

Madam He spoke with difficulty as she tried to comfort him.

Compared to An-ge'er, Wei-ge'er truly was far too lacking in sense.

This time, she would simply refrain from running off to complain to Old Madam, hoping that under the strict discipline of the Mistress, Wei-ge'er might genuinely turn for the better.

After Madam He offered soothing words for quite a while, Xie Shiwei gradually cried himself to sleep and finally quieted down.

She walked out into the courtyard and let out a heavy sigh.

Too many things had happened over the past few days—far more than the previous four years combined—and she felt as though she was struggling to cope with it all.

As she walked outside, she overheard a few old maids whispering among themselves in hushed tones.

"Did you hear? Starting from tomorrow, the afternoon melon seeds and tea will be completely gone?"

"That is what the people from the Eldest Miss's courtyard said. They are going to bring this up tomorrow morning. The Eldest Miss is managing the household on behalf of the Mistress for the very first time, yet she already chooses to make an example out of us?"

"How much does a simple cup of tea and some melon seeds even cost? The Eldest Miss simply does not treat us menial servants as human beings at all."

"If the Eldest Miss really is not going to provide us even a single cup of tea, then whatever she asks me to do in the future, I simply will not do it either."

"..."

"What are you all gathering here for in the middle of the night!" Madam He stepped out from the shadows, her voice cold. "Why haven't you scattered and gone back to your work yet?"

Everyone knew she was the most trusted personal nanny by the master and mistress's side, so how could they dare to talk back? Lowering their heads, they hurried off to their respective duties.

Taking advantage of the cover of night, she made her way to Xie Ping's courtyard.

Xie Ping was still going over her ledger. When she saw Madam He approach, her brows instantly knitted in a frown. "Didn't I tell you already? Try to visit my side less often."

She was now the legitimate eldest miss of the Xie estate, and she was quite reluctant to maintain overly close ties with a servant, even if that servant happened to be her own biological mother.

Weighing her words carefully, Madam He spoke up, "Ping-ge'er, I..."

"What kind of reckless address is that?" Xie Ping said with displeasure. "You are a managing nanny in the master's courtyard; you ought to address me as Eldest Miss. Do not always make me remind you."

"Yes, Eldest Miss." Masking her disappointment, Madam He continued, "I heard some maids in the courtyard saying that the Eldest Miss has canceled the daily afternoon tea and refreshments?"

Xie Ping nodded. "That is correct. So what if I did?"

"You cannot do this," Madam He said in a deep, measured tone. "You have only just begun assisting the Mistress with household management. If you make such drastic and sweeping changes right away, you will cause the people underneath to harbor resentment toward you. In the future, whatever tasks you try to carry out, none of them will obey your orders, and they will create countless troubles for you. Do not assume that those menial servants hold lowly positions and dismiss them lightly; they—"

"Enough of that!" Xie Ping's face was filled with impatience. "Mother already said that this method of mine is exceptionally good. Where on earth do you get the qualifications to say it won't work? Mother is the Eldest Miss of the Yun family and understands everything. You are merely a menial servant. Do you think I should listen to you, or should I listen to Mother? I still have ledgers to review and no time to waste chatting with you. Someone come, escort Nanny He out."

A maid walked into the room and made a polite gesture toward the door.

Madam He still wanted to say more, but Xie Ping refused to give her the chance, hugging her ledger close as she walked straight into the inner chamber.

Stepping out of the courtyard, Madam He narrowed her eyes.

She turned the events of the past few days over and over in her mind.

Although the Mistress always had a seemingly valid reason whenever she threw her weight around, for some unknown reason, she faintly sensed that the Mistress seemed to be deliberately targeting her children.

Old Madam and the Madam listened to the Mistress in all things, and the master simply let the Mistress discipline the children as she pleased. At this rate, even if the Mistress were to cripple the children, the Xie family members would likely still believe she was doing it entirely for their future...

Regardless of whether she was just overthinking things, she could not simply sit back and wait for her doom.

An idea began to take shape in Madam He's mind.

Early the next morning, the spring rain outside fell in a fine, steady drizzle, and the crisp, fresh air put Yun Chu in a somewhat better mood.

As Tingshuang combed her hair, she whispered softly, "Late last night, Nanny He delivered a pot of flowers to Concubine Tao on the master's behalf."

Concubine Tao was Xie Jingting's third concubine, a proper secondary wife bestowed upon him by his superior officer. She was currently pregnant and only a little over three months away from giving birth.

Yun Chu selected a hairpin and placed it in her hair. "Continue keeping a close eye on Madam He."

She knew it. With one move after another on her part, Madam He was bound to take action.

In her previous life, an accident befell Concubine Tao's child... and all the evidence pointed directly at her, claiming she had plotted to harm Concubine Tao's baby.

The Xie family members had previously held a modicum of respect for her, but after that incident, her status within the household plummeted to rock bottom...

Concubine Tao's child had not died prematurely, but his brain was severely damaged; he could neither speak nor walk, left in a dull-witted state. It was she who searched everywhere for renowned doctors to treat the child, she who begged far and wide to secure that miraculous physician, and she who stayed up night after night in her clothes to nurse him... But after the child was healed, what did she actually receive in return?

Yun Chu let out a cold, mocking laugh.

In this lifetime, Madam He had made her move more than a month earlier than she did in the previous life. She wondered if the Xie family's fourth young master would even have the fortune to be born alive.

As soon as her morning wash and grooming were completed, Xie Shi'an came over to pay his respects.

Because he had to attend his studies, he was always the first to arrive, waiting dutifully in the parlor until Yun Chu emerged.

Yun Chu exchanged a few casual pleasantries with him. Seeing that he was in no particular hurry to leave for the study hall, she could not help asking, "Is there something else?"

"I am waiting for Father," Xie Shi'an replied. "Father is heading to the Prince of Pingxi's estate and told me to accompany him. Does Mother have any instructions for us?"

Yun Chu said gently, "Just be a little careful along the way."

Xie Jingting valued this eldest son above all others, beginning to pave the way for him at such an early age. Such paternal devotion truly touched her heart.

Unfortunately, Xie Shi'an would never again attain the achievements he had enjoyed in his past life.