hapter 25: Servant and Housekeeper
“Young Miss, how can you speak to Madam like that? We all see how good Madam is to you. How can you bully her?”
A maid who usually helps Ning Wanyun tend the garden couldn’t help but speak up for her. Madam is such a good person!
Once the first one spoke up, a second one dared to.
“Yes, Young Miss, this is disrespectful to your elders. Madam has always loved you the most. How could you…” Such a rebellious act. ”
Young Miss, please apologize to Madam. Master will be angry when he comes back.”
These maids dared to speak up for Ning Wanyun mainly because of Shang Yuanlin’s attitude towards Shang Yan over the years. He wouldn’t pay too much attention to her, only asking about her once or twice a day.
Everyone knew that Shang Yan was mediocre, so they naturally felt that Shang Yan was not favored. In addition, the father and daughter had been arguing every day recently. A few days ago, Shang Yan was even locked in the study and beaten. Few people knew the specifics of this incident, and those who didn’t know assumed that Shang Yan had angered Shang Yuanlin.
While Shang Yuanlin and Ning Wanyun weren’t exactly a perfect couple, they treated each other with respect. The master always showed great respect to his wife, occasionally even giving her a gift or two.
The difference in their status was obvious, and standing up for their wife was, in their eyes, a way of disciplining their master’s unruly children.
Little did they know, during the time they were all talking at once, Shang Yan and Shang Yi’s faces had already turned cold.
Aunt Zhao, hearing Shang Yan being criticized, immediately came out of the kitchen and stood behind Shang Yan, glaring fiercely at the servants.
“You dare criticize the young lady? Who gave you the audacity to point fingers at your master! It’s utterly rude!”
“The young lady is the mistress of this house. What she says and does is up to the master. Who do you think you are!”
Her face flushed red, she was furious at the thoughtless servants. She could tolerate their gossip behind her back, but now they dared to act so arrogantly in front of the young lady.
If this were the Xue family, they would have been dragged out and beaten to death long ago!
Ning Wanyun’s attention was indeed drawn to the phrase in her words: “The eldest young lady is the true mistress of this house.”
She pursed her lips, finding it laughable. This loyal servant of the Xue family truly lived up to his reputation; he was a real good dog, as if she, the legitimate wife of a merchant, was dead!
These servants weren’t exactly spineless either; they were momentarily stunned by Aunt Zhao’s outburst. They all worked for the merchant family, and this was the first time Aunt Zhao had ever cursed them so harshly. After recovering, they quickly retorted,
“You work too, why do you talk to us like that!”
“You always look down on us, finding fault with this and that, and you won’t even let us say anything good about the madam. Actually, you just don’t like the madam, do you!”
“Aren’t we being reasonable? We’re just speaking up for Madam. She’s done so much, why should she suffer such injustice? It’s so unfair!”
“We know you favor the eldest young lady, but you can’t be this biased! We have to speak reasonably!”
The white porcelain bowl was smashed, soup splashing everywhere—the table edge, the dish, the floor, all stained with a layer of greasy oil. The chopsticks thrown out later landed at the feet of the maids opposite, startling them into shrinking back.
This scene happened too quickly; one second they were indignantly complaining, the next they were interrupted by this sudden situation.
Shang Yan’s hands were stained with a few drops of soup, which Shang Yi noticed. He pulled out a wet wipe and handed it to her. When the two looked up again, their gazes were like those of frost-covered water, fixed on the group of fools.
He was aloof and indifferent to the outside world, especially after Ning Wanyun married into the family. He had no idea that these maids had been trained so well by Ning Wanyun.
Shang Yan swept her gaze across their faces and let out a cold laugh.
“Are you tired of living? Do you think you can talk to me like that? The Shang family pays me such a generous salary so you can criticize me? You’re not the ones who have the right to push your luck!”
“You think I’m bullying your gentle and kind lady? If that’s bullying, then I’m truly a philanthropist. What does the master’s words have to do with you? If you don’t want to work here, get out of here and stop getting in my way.”
Aunt Zhao listened to Shang Yan’s outburst with increasing satisfaction, straightening her back. Indeed, directly attacking these blind fools was the easiest way.
Madam, you would be happy to see your young lady grow up like this, no one can bully her at all.
Shang Yan was annoyed and grabbed a handful of hair, suddenly feeling a bit thirsty, probably because her anger was too intense.
Then a glass of water appeared in front of her. She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head; it was indeed her sensible younger brother.
Shang Yi had been keeping a close eye on Shang Yan’s condition, so he had prepared water in advance. Since she was leading the charge, he needed to ensure smooth logistics.
Looking at the servants opposite her, who didn’t dare utter a sound, Shang Yan drank half a cup of water to moisten her throat and said sarcastically, “Why are you so quiet now? Weren’t
you very talkative just now?” “Fairness, reason, weren’t you speaking so confidently and righteously? It’s ridiculous! Screw your fairness and reason! You think the world is perfect? Do you live in a fairy tale?”
“Get your things packed and get out of here. I still have the right to kick you out. Let’s see who dares to hire dogs like you who talk back to their master in public. Before I get too angry, disappear from my sight.”
Shang Yan shut up, but the servants didn’t move, all staring fearfully and nervously at their supposedly benevolent and beautiful lady, hoping she would stand up for them.
How laughable.
Ning Wanyun was still being provoked by the scene. Hearing the servants’ cries, her head spun. What a bunch of idiots! How dare they openly curse like that here!
She took a deep breath, forcing a delicate expression, and looked at Shang Yan, intending to put on a show, “Yan Yan, they’ve all worked for the family for many years, if they want to…” ”
If you don’t get out by the time I count to three, I’ll call the bodyguards to throw you out right now, and you can forget about getting your salary this month.”
Shang Yan interrupted Ning Wanyun directly, knowing that Ning Wanyun was just putting on an act for the maids.
Seeing that even their beloved mistress couldn’t help them, the maids realized they had made a mistake and began to cry and beg Shang Yan to be lenient and forgive them this time.
Aunt Zhao rolled her eyes. Forgive them my foot! If they dare to do something like this, they’ll dare to ride roughshod over their master’s head in the future!
“Three.”
Shang Yan coldly counted down.
“Two!”
Without saying a word, Shang Yi tapped his phone lightly, and the bodyguards instantly stood up from every corner of the villa. The maids who had just spoken immediately scattered and ran quickly to their rooms, afraid that if they were a second late, they would be thrown out by the bodyguards.
The chattering crowd disappeared, leaving only one or two slightly smarter maids who had been pretending to be dead. They glanced at Shang Yan’s expression and immediately began cleaning up the mess.
There was no food, but there were still some desserts in the refrigerator. Although they were tired from yelling, it felt good to have vented their anger.
Shang Yan looked at Ning Wanyun, whose face was slightly pale, with a half-smile. “It seems the maids in the house have a good relationship with you; they even yelled at me for your sake.”
“You’re really good at managing the household,”
Ning Wanyun said, a chill running down her spine.
Shang Yi stood up with Shang Yan and instructed Aunt Zhao, “Tell him what happened just now.”
He was referring to Shang Yuanlin, and Aunt Zhao understood his meaning.
Ning Wanyun turned her head and stared intently at Shang Yi, who ignored her gaze, indifferent, as if she were nothing but air.