Chapter 1108: Chapter 1110: Exploiting the Remarks of Foolish Crowds_1
On the way here, Ming Liu had already told Sister-in-law Li what the mistress wanted to see her about.
Thinking about it now, what she did earlier was indeed inappropriate.
Even if she couldn’t carry all the dishes in one go, she could have simply made another trip. Why go to the trouble of involving Cao Lingling in this matter? She really must have been out of her mind.
Well, she might as well just admit her mistake honestly to the mistress later.
As she entered, Yang Chuxia was about to drink some tea.
She sat there as if she didn’t see Sister-in-law Li at all, fiddling with the tea flowers with the lid of her teacup.
And the longer Yang Chuxia remained silent, the more frightened Sister-in-law Li became.
This mistress, though only in her teens, was certainly not soft-hearted. Sister-in-law Li really wanted to slap herself a few times right now.
Finally, just when her heart felt like it was about to leap out of her chest, an icy voice came.
"Sister-in-law Li!" With just a faint call, Sister-in-law Li immediately kneeled down.
Yang Chuxia’s eyes flickered, but instead of letting her stand up, she continued, "My son and I call you ’sister-in-law,’ but have you really acted in a manner worthy of that title?"
"Mistress, this servant is wrong, this servant is wrong, indeed this servant was confused," she blurted out.
"Hmph, your confusion doesn’t matter much, but if it were to implicate my son, your ten lives wouldn’t be enough for what I would demand." She paused and then continued, "What exactly is Cao Lingling up to? You have been in Mianyang longer than I have, so you should know better than me. Yet, you let her get involved with the food. If she had put something in the food, who would know? Are you unhappy with me, wishing for my quick demise?"
Overwhelmed by Yang Chuzia’s accusations, Sister-in-law Li felt her heart could stop any second, as she continued to kowtow fervently.
"Mistress, this servant was foolish for a moment and dares not repeat it, mistress..."
"Enough!"
Seeing her kowtow incessantly was becoming somewhat obnoxious to Yang Chuxia.
"Tell me, what exactly is going on with Cao Lingling."
This was a matter that she still hadn’t figured out. How was it that Cao Lingling was still in Mianyang and had actually become a maid?
When it came to Cao Lingling, Sister-in-law Li also felt her teeth itch with hatred, never having seen someone so shameless.
"Mistress, Cao Lingling is simply intolerable. The young master had abducted her and her brother, but she escaped halfway, and moreover, returned to Mianyang. After she got back, she didn’t come straight to the county yamen, instead, she made a scene in the streets, blocking our young master and accused him in front of the people of Mianyang County of trying to drive them out after claiming she came to Mianyang to seek refuge with relatives. The brother and sister duo together caused such a stir that the crowd sided with them and pushed the young master to take them in," she reported.
"So the young master took them in just like that?" Cao Lingling was quite cunning to use public opinion to pressure him, Yang Chuxia realized.
Sister-in-law Li nodded, "The young master initially took them in temporarily, planning to find a time to send them away. But after that incident, Cao Lingling became very shrewd, and she somehow got involved with the wife of the Lord Principal Clerk. That lady began visiting our residence every few days. The young master was worried they might cause another ruckus if he sent them away and they returned, which would be embarrassing for him, so he had them stay with me to keep an eye on them."
Seeing that Yang Chuxia’s displeasure seemed to have dissipated somewhat, Sister-in-law Li continued, "Before you arrived, mistress, there were very few servants in the house. There was just a young maid, me and my husband, and the two brothers, Li Wen. I usually take care of the kitchen and sweep the courtyard. Being just one person, I couldn’t handle it all, so I asked for the young master’s permission to buy another maid."