Mo Lingzheng had truly gone all out.
Of course, she hadn’t lost her mind. Instead, she was recalling all the experiences the original body had endured over the past three years. Not only had all the servants in the mansion betrayed her, but they had also acted as lackeys for Yu Shi and Qin Wanxiu, this mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pair, bullying and humiliating her, the rightful mistress.
Compared to her fiancé’s fickleness, these ungrateful, treacherous dogs were the most detestable!
“Miss Lingzheng, spare me… This servant knows she was wrong…”
“Miss Lingzheng? Miss your damn head! I’m the only master of this general’s mansion! You blind fool who can’t tell who’s who, I’ll make sure you recognize your place!” Mo Lingzheng cursed while striking harder with the shoehorn.
“Eldest Miss… Master, spare me… Master… This servant will never dare again…” Nanny Zhang trembled all over, spitting blood as she corrected herself.
Mo Lingzheng shoved her hard to the ground, panting slightly from the exertion of her brute force.
She walked to the table, intending to pour a cup of water to calm her anger, only to find the teapot empty when she grabbed it. In a fit of rage, she hurled it at Nanny Zhang—
“Damn it! I’m a famous Sichuan-Chongqing tyrant, and you bunch of spineless worms dare treat me like a mudfish? Watch me finish you off!”
“Ah!” The teapot struck Nanny Zhang squarely on the forehead. She let out a pained cry, rolled her eyes, and fell motionless.
Da Niu and Er Niu exchanged glances.
Da Niu stepped forward to check and said, “Miss Mo, she’s not dead, just unconscious.”
Mo Lingzheng took two deep breaths to calm herself slightly, then asked Da Niu and Er Niu, “Do you have contact information for any slave traders? Go find me a reputable slave agency with strong backing. Tell them I have a big deal here!”
Da Niu and Er Niu immediately glanced at the little figure on the bed.
Yan Si gave a faint nod.
Er Niu promptly replied, “Miss Mo, this servant will go right away.”
Da Niu, meanwhile, dragged Nanny Zhang outside and cleaned up the bloodstains in the room.
Yan Si, his little face tense, asked, “Why are you looking for a slave trader?”
Mo Lingzheng glanced back at him. “All the servants in this mansion were bought by my mother when she was alive. Before she passed, she handed all their deeds of sale to me. Over the past three years, I’ve had enough of these dogs. Today, I must clean house!”
Yan Si wasn’t surprised by her decision. Instead, his gaze toward her grew more complex. “Having been bullied for so many years, don’t you think it’s a bit late to clean house now?”
Mo Lingzheng was taken aback for a moment, then, while tidying the disheveled hair at her temples, she forced a dry laugh. “It’s all because I cared too much about family ties. I always believed that harmony brings prosperity, so no matter how much my grandmother and Second Uncle’s family bullied me, I endured it. But even a clay figure has its limits. After putting up with it for so many years, it’s enough. It’s time to deal with these usurpers who’ve taken over the nest!”
“Is that so?” Yan Si narrowed his pitch-black eyes slightly. “Just now, your swearing didn’t sound like the accent of Tianfeng Kingdom. Where did you learn it?”
“Uh…” Mo Lingzheng’s expression stiffened, her eyes flickering uneasily. But the next moment, she chuckled. “The world is vast and boundless, with countless accents. How many have you, a child, heard?”
She hadn’t lost her temper yesterday because she had just transmigrated and hadn’t fully adjusted. Today, after going hungry and being provoked, she couldn’t hold back and blurted out her hometown dialect…
Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the food box on the table and hurried over to open it, seizing the chance to change the subject. “Da Niu and Er Niu brought so much food. Come and eat quickly! We’ll have to fight later, and you need to be full to have strength!”
Yan Si stared at her intently for a moment longer before slowly getting out of bed.
Mo Lingzheng had anticipated that since Nanny Zhang hadn’t returned, Qin Wanxiu would surely send someone else to fetch her. So, without caring about her appearance, she wolfed down the food. Once she felt somewhat full, she dragged a small chest out from under the bed.
Da Niu approached her and asked, “Miss Mo, what are you looking for?”
Mo Lingzheng opened the small chest and laid out the items inside one by one.
A whip, a short blade, an axe, throwing darts…
“These are all weapons I collected when I was little.”
“What are you going to do with these?” Da Niu asked curiously.
“For fighting, of course! You need a few handy weapons. Relying on fists alone would hurt too much!” As she spoke, Mo Lingzheng tied the whip around her waist like a belt and fastened several short knives to her calves.
“…”
Meanwhile, back at Peony Courtyard.
Qin Wanxiu sat waiting for Mo Lingzheng in the main hall, but to her surprise, she waited for nearly half an hour without seeing Mo Lingzheng arrive—or even the Nanny Zhang she had sent.
She summoned the old steward, Dai Hong, and asked, “What’s going on? Didn’t I send Nanny Zhang to fetch that little wretch? Where is she?”
Dai Hong frowned and replied, “I’m not sure either…” Suddenly remembering something, he added, “Madam, I forgot to mention something. Half an hour ago, people from Prince Anren’s residence came again and brought two maids to Heartfelt Courtyard, saying they were to take care of the young master.”
Qin Wanxiu’s expression darkened. “What exactly does Prince Anren want? First, he said that Mo Lingzheng should take care of the child, and now he’s sending people to care for him. If he isn’t short of hands, why doesn’t he send the child somewhere else?”
It wasn’t that she feared Prince Anren causing trouble—after all, this was the General’s residence, and even as a prince, he couldn’t meddle in the inner affairs of others’ households.
She simply found the child too much of a nuisance!
Like now, when she wanted to teach Mo Lingzheng a lesson, she could only summon her over!
Just then, a maid rushed in and urgently reported, “Second Madam, it’s terrible! Nanny Zhang was knocked unconscious by Miss Lingzheng in Heartfelt Courtyard!”
“What?!” Qin Wanxiu exclaimed in shock and anger, turning to Dai Hong to order, “Gather some people! Today, I’ll make sure that little wretch learns her lesson!”
…
After preparing her weapons, Mo Lingzheng ran back to the table and stuffed a few more pieces of meat into her mouth.
Yan Si stared at her with a dark expression. “Are you a starving ghost reborn?”
Just as Mo Lingzheng was about to retort, she heard hurried footsteps approaching from outside.
Soon, two burly women stormed in, immediately trying to seize Mo Lingzheng without a word.
But the Mo Lingzheng of today was no longer the coward who, despite her martial skills, had been suppressed by filial piety. Prepared for this, she didn’t wait for the two women to lay hands on her. With a swift kick, she sent one flying, and her fist immediately struck the other woman’s face—
“Ah!”
“Ah!”
Amidst cries of pain, one woman landed flat on her back, while the other clutched her face and fell to her knees.
“Mo Lingzheng!” Qin Wanxiu, hearing the scream, rushed in furiously, pointing at her and shouting, “Have you lost your mind today? How dare you recklessly attack people in the mansion! Do you even have any respect for us elders?”
Mo Lingzheng rubbed her fist, which had just exerted force, then drew a whip from her waist and swung it toward Qin Wanxiu!
Although the whip only struck the ground, it still frightened Qin Wanxiu into shrieking and retreating. She pointed at Mo Lingzheng in disbelief, “You… what are you trying to do? I am your second aunt!”