Mu Jinyuan helped her mother walk toward the courtyard where they lived, with Mu Jinxia and Wan Niang following not far behind.
She felt as if a hateful gaze had been fixed upon her the entire time. Yet, when Mu Jinyuan turned to look, she was met only with Mu Jinxia’s watery, innocent eyes, looking every bit like a guileless little rabbit. In this life, however, Mu Jinyuan would no longer be fooled by Mu Jinxia’s innocent facade. She imagined Mu Jinxia must be cursing her viciously under her breath.
This was only just the beginning.
By the time they returned to the Side Courtyard where they lived, Xiao Shuning still could not believe that she had escaped punishment. Judging by Old Madam’s demeanor earlier, she had been fully prepared to spend the entire night kneeling in the ancestral hall. Yet, it had all been resolved in just a few short sentences from Yuan'er.
"Yuan'er, are you truly alright?" Xiao Shuning studied Mu Jinyuan with a strange look in her eyes. It seemed as if something about her daughter had changed.
"Mother..." Mu Jinyuan took Xiao Shuning’s hands, feeling the very real presence of her mother by her side. She had a belly full of words she wanted to say, but she forced them back down. Ever since her mother had married into the Mu Mansion, her spirit had been worn away by the Old Madam. She had lived a life of rigid adherence to rules for so many years; if she were to repeat what Chunxing had told her, she feared her mother would not be able to bear it.
"My child has suffered a grievance." Xiao Shuning could sense the profound sorrow emanating from Mu Jinyuan. She assumed her daughter was simply shaken by the events of the previous day. While her heart ached for Mu Jinyuan, Xiao Shuning also felt a glimmer of relief—Yuan'er had handled the situation exceptionally well. Although the Old Madam had always discouraged her from contact with her own family, if not for Yuan'er seeking help yesterday, who knew how the situation might have ended? She would have to prepare a substantial gift to express her gratitude another day.
"If we could change to a larger courtyard, I wouldn't feel so aggrieved anymore."
"Ah?" Xiao Shuning was somewhat bewildered by Mu Jinyuan’s sudden leap in logic.
"Mother, don't you think the courtyard we live in is too shabby?" Mu Jinyuan scanned the area. There was only one main room and two side rooms; it leaked rain in the summer and let in the wind in the winter. It was clear that the courtyard occupied by Wan Niang and Mu Jinxia should have been hers and her mother's. Yet, when they had first arrived at the mansion, those two had claimed this Side Courtyard was too damp and cold, making them fall ill. Her father had said they were pitiful and had contracted long-term illnesses in the countryside, urging her mother to be generous and cede the main courtyard so they could recuperate. That was no recuperation—it was a cuckoo occupying a magpie’s nest! They were nothing but rats hiding from the light, yet they enjoyed the honors due to a legal wife.
She would take back everything that belonged to her and her mother.
"Yuan'er, you’ve never been a vain person. Why are you suddenly talking about this?" Xiao Shuning frowned.
"Such a useless thing! Can't even do the smallest task right!"
A clamor suddenly erupted outside. Mu Jinyuan told her mother to rest and walked out. She intended to seize the leverage over these people in the Mu Mansion bit by bit, showing her mother the truth that her sincerity had never been met with anything in kind. If she told her everything at once, she feared her mother wouldn't believe her and might even think she had gone mad.
Following the noise, Mu Jinyuan found the source of the trouble. It was Mother Xu, the Old Madam’s personal servant, who was rolling up her sleeves and beating a scrawny young maid kneeling at her feet. Mu Jinyuan looked closely and realized this was the same maid who had reported Chunxing for stealing her personal clothing the day before.
"You can't even clean a slop bucket properly? Did we buy you just to eat for free? Since you can't clean it with your hands, then lick it clean with your tongue!" Mother Xu had already caught sight of Mu Jinyuan as she stepped out of the courtyard. She was deliberately reprimanding this ignorant little maid right in front of Mu Jinyuan. Chunxing was a maid she had raised and planted by Mu Jinyuan’s side, and a relative to boot. She had only been away for a single day, and Mu Jinyuan had gone and had her killed just like that. She couldn't swallow this insult, and she needed to re-establish her authority over the servants, or they might forget who to listen to after being frightened by Mu Jinyuan.
"I know I was wrong. I will clean it properly. I will make sure you are satisfied, Mother Xu." The scrawny maid kowtowed in terror.
But Mother Xu stood with her hands on her hips, head held high, and stepped on the girl's hand. "You're useless for everything! What good are you?"
"Mother Xu, such a temper. No wonder the little maid can't clean the slop bucket—have you been eating too much goldthread, or perhaps gorging yourself on too much meat and fish?" Mu Jinyuan gripped her handkerchief, deliberately keeping a distance from her.
Mother Xu’s face instantly turned the color of a pig’s liver. "Eldest Miss, you are the legitimate daughter of the house. How did you learn to insult people with such hidden barbs? And I am merely disciplining a servant according to the rules. I’ve only used a little bit of force—not like the Eldest Miss, who dares to draw a knife and kill someone..."
Mother Xu was accustomed to being a tyrant in the house. Whenever things didn't go her way, she would beat or scold the servants, calling them "cheap bones" who needed to be treated harshly to be kept in line. She had used this excuse to install many of her own relatives in the mansion. Who would have expected Mu Jinyuan to suddenly assert her authority as the Eldest Miss yesterday and send away not only Chunxing but several other connected relatives as well? How could she not be furious?
*Slap!* Mu Jinyuan raised her hand and struck her across the face.
Mother Xu stumbled back several steps, pointing at Mu Jinyuan in disbelief. "You dare hit me?"
Mu Jinyuan raised her hand again, and Mother Xu hurriedly covered her face in terror.
"Since Mother Xu knows I am the legitimate daughter of the Mu Mansion, do you truly think you have the right to criticize me for disciplining a servant? Are you so old that you've forgotten you are nothing but a servant yourself? An old bone soon to be buried in the dirt!"
"You!" Mother Xu was indignant. How could she be mentioned in the same breath as these lowly servants? The master had been raised on her milk!
"Me, what? A servant dares to talk back to the Eldest Miss like this? Shall we go before the Old Madam and debate who doesn't know their place, and see if you deserve a beating?" The coldness in Mu Jinyuan’s eyes was piercing.
Mother Xu’s triangular eyes darted about. She knew that if this truly reached the Old Madam, she would be in the wrong.
"A misunderstanding, this is all a misunderstanding." Mother Xu’s expression shifted instantly into a fawning mask. She smiled and explained, "This old servant was just frustrated by this useless maid. I spoke without thinking, please forgive me, Eldest Miss."
Mu Jinyuan glanced carelessly at the maid, who kept her head pressed to the ground, not daring to draw a full breath. "Since all the servants in my courtyard have been sold and I have no one to serve me, let her come to my courtyard instead."
This maid had helped her by pointing out Chunxing yesterday. Seeing her tortured like this by Mother Xu was likely a result of her actions. Since she wasn't one of Mother Xu’s people, she could keep her by her side to observe whether she was worth keeping.
Having learned her lesson, Mother Xu played along. She laughed subserviently and agreed, "The Eldest Miss is taking pity on you, hurry up and thank her."
Mu Jinyuan pulled up the small maid, who was so thin she was nothing but skin and bones, making her head look disproportionately large. Her face was streaked with tears, looking rather comical.