Mo Lingzheng narrowed her eyes, looking at the hypocritical old face before her, feeling utterly disgusted and nauseated.
“Grandmother, you’re old and can’t distinguish right from wrong, so don’t try to play peacemaker. After all, to be a peacemaker, one must be upright, kind, and virtuous to command respect.” She pulled Yu Shi’s hand away and pointed to the four servants in the corner. “Are you willing to turn over a new leaf?”
The four she pointed at immediately knelt and begged for mercy. “Young Miss, we know we were wrong. It was Steward Dai and the Second Madam who forced us to mistreat you. Please don’t sell us off. From now on, we will be loyal and obey your orders, never listening to anyone else’s instigations again!”
Mo Lingzheng coldly ordered, “Take the Old Madam and the Second Madam back to their courtyards. If they interfere with me cleaning house again, I won’t go easy on you!”
“Yes, yes…”
The four kneeling servants quickly rose and rushed toward Yu Shi and Qin Wanxiu, who was still sitting on the ground. They dragged them away without giving them a chance to cry out, fearing that any delay would bring Mo Lingzheng’s wrath upon them.
“Old Madam…” Nanny Wu, who was by Yu Shi’s side, anxiously tried to rescue her.
Crack!
A whip lashed fiercely toward her!
“Ah!” Nanny Wu screamed as she fell to the ground.
Before she could struggle to her feet, the second, third, and fourth lashes followed—each one striking her body with brutal force, making her writhe and howl in agony. “Ah… Young Miss… I know I was wrong… Please stop hitting me…”
Mo Lingzheng grew more and more furious as she whipped, but she soon felt it was too exhausting. So, she drew a short blade from her trouser leg and stabbed it fiercely into the back of Nanny Wu’s hand—
“Ah—” A heart-wrenching scream pierced the air, deafeningly loud.
Everyone present, including the Yahang agents, wore expressions of fear, not daring to make a sound.
Mo Lingzheng pulled out the short blade, looking down at Nanny Wu convulsing in pain, her voice filled with hatred. “You old wretch! When my mother was alive, she trusted you completely, yet you betrayed her and bit the hand that fed you the hardest!”
It was no wonder she was so ruthless—these old women in the mansion, relying on their seniority, were the most arrogant and despicable of all!
“Young… Young Miss…” Nanny Zhang was in so much pain that even opening her mouth made her tremble.
Mo Lingzheng didn’t spare her another glance. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she turned to Liu San and said, “You can start counting the people now!”
With that, she sheathed the short blade, dragged the blood-stained whip, and walked into her bedroom without looking back.
Outside, cries, shouts, and pleas for mercy blended into a cacophony, like the howling of ghosts and wolves. But she paid no attention, walking straight to the table and sitting down, even letting out a yawn.
“What a hassle!”
In the books about transmigration, wasn’t every heroine supposed to command the wind and rain? Who was as unlucky as her? Arriving in this Otherworld, she hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep or a warm meal, and now she had to fight with others…
She seriously suspected that she owed the original owner a debt in her past life and was now here specifically to help her collect it!
Yan Si, sitting across from her, raised a brow and asked, “Aren’t you afraid people will say you’re rebellious for acting like this?”
Mo Lingzheng rolled her eyes at him. “I can barely even eat now, and I’m relying entirely on Prince Anren’s support. Why should I bother with filial piety? If they have the guts, let them go complain to my father. If my father sides with them, I’ll just disown him. Who cares? Whoever wants him can have him!”
All she wanted was to help the original owner vent her anger.
As for these cheap relatives, she wasn’t ready to accept them yet!
Yan Si narrowed her eyes and asked again, “You really aren’t afraid?”
“Afraid my foot!” Mo Lingzheng glared at her irritably. “If you think I’m going too far, then go back to Prince Anren’s side! If you want to stay, don’t mention those scumbags to me and ruin my mood. Even if you’re a child, I won’t go easy on you!”
“Mo Lingzheng, come out here!” Suddenly, another angry shout came from outside the door.
Mo Lingzheng slammed the table and stood up, her face livid as she went out again.
The visitor was none other than Zhou Rongkai.
Zhou Rongkai had been tending to the injured Mo Si’an when he heard that Mo Lingzheng was going mad in the courtyard and even planned to sell off all the servants in the estate. He immediately rushed over to confront her.
“Mo Lingzheng, what have the servants in this estate done to offend you that you would sell them all off?”
Mo Lingzheng crossed her arms, tilting her head to give him a sidelong glance. “What are you, to have the right to meddle in the affairs of my estate?”
Her current demeanor—casual posture, scornful expression, and arrogant words—was utterly different from her usual self, leaving Zhou Rongkai momentarily stunned. A strong sense of unfamiliarity washed over him.
“You…”
Mo Lingzheng didn’t give him a chance to speak, immediately launching into a fierce tirade. “You what? A wandering ghost still trying to play gatekeeper in my general’s estate—you’re really like a hanged ghost putting on makeup and flowers, shameless to the core! If your Pingnan Marquisate has no mirrors, don’t you even have piss? Should I find someone to piss a few times so you can get a good look at your own character?”
Back then, the Pingnan Marquis and his wife knew her mother didn’t have long to live and that her mother was most worried about her. So they constantly made themselves seen and put on a show in front of her parents, making her mother believe they were good in-laws and that the Pingnan Marquisate could become a safe harbor for the rest of her life. Thus, before her mother passed away, they arranged the marriage between her and Zhou Rongkai.
The original Mo Lingzheng was a thoroughly traditional woman, and since this marriage was her mother’s dying wish, even though she knew Zhou Rongkai was involved with Mo Si’an, she didn’t dare to break off the engagement with him. She only dared to approach Mo Si’an, hoping Mo Si’an would back off. That was how Mo Si’an ended up drugging her and finding two men to defile her…
“Mo Lingzheng!” Zhou Rongkai flew into a rage, baring his teeth as he charged toward her. He grabbed her by the throat and roared, “Who gave you the nerve to insult this heir like that?”
At that moment, he felt his dignity as a man had been profoundly challenged and insulted. He wished he could snap her neck to assert his authority as her husband.
But the next moment, Mo Lingzheng struck his elbow with a swift chop, forcing his barely tightened fingers to loosen.
What he never expected was that Mo Lingzheng then seized his aching arm, spun around sharply, pressed her back against him, and threw him over her shoulder with a fierce, brutal motion!
“Ugh!” Zhou Rongkai writhed in pain, unable to recover for quite some time.
Mo Lingzheng clapped her hands clean and spat at him in disgust. “Pah! A piece of trash like you dares to lay hands on me?”
Although her original self had few merits, under her parents’ upbringing since childhood, her Qinggong and combat skills were quite decent. Plus, she had learned mixed martial arts in the past. Now, in this Otherworld, she could take on ten opponents at once without batting an eye.
“Mo Lingzheng… I… this heir will break off the engagement with you!” Zhou Rongkai snarled through gritted teeth, his face twisted in fury once he caught his breath.