Aunt Wu said, “If the situation is serious and causes major losses, Yujing Garden will dismiss the person. But if it’s minor, they can be given another chance.”
Without waiting for Yun Manxia to speak, she scolded Xiao Mei, “Why aren’t you apologizing to Madam yet? Luckily, you only took a few flowers this time—it’s not serious. Otherwise, you would’ve been kicked out!”
Xiao Mei hurriedly said, “Madam, I was wrong. Please forgive me this once!”
Yun Manxia curled her lips mockingly.
Entering her room without permission and stealing her things, yet in Aunt Wu’s words, it was merely “taking a few flowers”?
“So the management at Yujing Garden is this lenient?”
Aunt Wu replied, “If Madam doesn’t believe me, we can ask Ninth Master and let him decide!”
Yun Manxia looked at her with cold eyes and said nothing.
The living room fell into a silence so deep that even breathing felt loud.
The servants were secretly shocked.
They had originally thought this new Madam was just an ignorant young girl—but now it seemed they were all wrong!
If nothing else, just her presence alone was far from ordinary.
Somehow, she even carried a faint resemblance to Ninth Master’s aura.
“Fine. This time, I can give you one chance and let it go,” Yun Manxia finally said after a while, her tone calm as she addressed Xiao Mei. “But if there’s a next time, your ending won’t be as simple as leaving Yujing Garden!”
Xiao Mei instantly relaxed. “Thank you, Madam!”
She didn’t take Yun Manxia’s warning to heart at all.
Yun Manxia stood up.
How could she bear to let Bai Hedu be caught between her and Aunt Wu?
Letting Xiao Mei off once was nothing. Later, she had plenty of ways to deal with her.
“Your bonus for the past few months will be deducted. No objections, right?”
Before leaving, she said to Xiao Mei.
Xiao Mei’s face stiffened, but she forced a smile. “No objections…”
Inside, she was filled with hatred.
The bonuses at Yujing Garden were extremely generous—even more than regular wages. She had borrowed a lot of money and was counting on that bonus to repay her debts…
After Yun Manxia left, Xiao Mei was pulled outside by Wu Xiaoya.
“Don’t worry, Xiao Mei. You were punished because of me this time. I’ll compensate you for the deducted bonus,” Wu Xiaoya said.
“Xiaoya, you’re so kind.” Xiao Mei was moved, completely forgetting that the flowers she stole were all for Wu Xiaoya.
Wu Xiaoya said, “We’re good friends! But I feel like you won’t be able to stay at Yujing Garden for long. Yun Manxia is narrow-minded. She agreed to my mom this time, but later she’ll definitely find a way to drive you out!”
Xiao Mei’s expression changed.
Seeing her reaction, Wu Xiaoya sighed. “You worked so hard to get this job through connections. Thinking about it now—it’s really unfair…”
Xiao Mei’s eyes shifted several times before she suddenly said fiercely, “Then we’ll just make sure she gets kicked out first!”
Wu Xiaoya secretly smiled.
The matter with the flowers wasn’t a big deal, so Yun Manxia didn’t mention it to Bai Hedu. He already had so many things to handle—there was no need to trouble him with such trivial matters.
From the remaining half bouquet, she picked out some flowers, intending to press them into a book. But then she realized she didn’t have any books. All her old ones had been left at the Yun house, and her university books were still in her dormitory.
She went to knock on the study door.
Lin Shen opened it and tactfully stepped aside.
“Ninth Master, Madam is here.”
“What is it?” Bai Hedu set aside his work and looked at her.
Yun Manxia hid her hands behind her back.
“Husband, do you have any books you don’t need? Can I borrow a few?” she asked obediently.
She had changed into a fresh outfit—a light blue dress that highlighted her long, slender legs. Her eyes were bright, her appearance graceful and elegant.
Bai Hedu paused briefly, then nodded. “Yes. Come in and take them yourself.”
Yun Manxia walked in, and after only a few steps, the flowers she had hidden behind her were revealed.
Bai Hedu was slightly surprised. “You kept them?”
Yun Manxia felt a little embarrassed. The flowers were already wilting, yet she still kept them…
But meeting his faintly astonished gaze, she still said, “You gave them to me—how could I throw them away? I’m going to press them in a book to preserve them!”
Bai Hedu fell silent, looking at the girl with a deeper gaze.
At dinner, the two of them ate together.
Yun Manxia had thought he only agreed that one time, but now it seemed he intended to dine with her from now on. She felt secretly happy.
After the meal, just as they were about to leave the table, Bai Hedu’s phone rang—it was Old Madam Bai.
Sitting nearby, Yun Manxia vaguely heard the old lady saying she had gone to a temple to pray for a jade Guanyin for him. She would send it over tomorrow and told him to wear it properly for safety and protection.
Bai Hedu responded gently, “Alright.”
At the end, the old lady cautiously asked, “That girl from the Yun family has moved into Yujing Garden, right? How is she?”
Bai Hedu paused and glanced to the side. His expression softened slightly. “She’s very good.”
It was the first time he had given a positive evaluation. For the previous ones, he had always been indifferent and dissatisfied.
The old lady was overjoyed. “Good, good! As long as she’s good. You two should get along well!”
Then she added, “It would be even better if you could give me a great-grandchild soon!”
Yun Manxia hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but she still caught that sentence faintly. Her cheeks instantly flushed, and she turned her head away awkwardly, pretending she hadn’t heard anything.
Bai Hedu tilted his head slightly, looking at the tips of her reddened ears. His gaze deepened, but he didn’t respond. After a few casual words, he hung up.
“Weren’t you going to continue making bookmarks?” he said. “Go on.”
She still had half of them unfinished from earlier.
“Oh… okay!” Yun Manxia ran upstairs.
At the corner of the stairs, she glanced back down and quietly touched her ears.
Aside from embarrassment, she also thought of Old Madam Bai and couldn’t help feeling surprised.
She hadn’t expected that even before meeting her, the old lady would already like her so much—her tone was full of kindness.
Thinking of her previous life, the old lady had never treated her kindly. Calling it dislike would be putting it lightly.
But that was only natural.
In her previous life, she had run away from the marriage from the very beginning. Even after being brought back to Yujing Garden, she had never shown Bai Hedu any warmth. She ignored everything he did for her and even stole his confidential information more than once to give to Bai Chengxuan…
How could the old lady possibly like someone like that? The fact that she hadn’t killed her was already out of consideration for Bai Hedu.
The next afternoon, the person sent by the old lady arrived. But unfortunately, Bai Hedu had left Yujing Garden for urgent matters half an hour earlier.
The visitor carefully held an antique box, opened it to check, then handed it to a servant and said—
“This is the jade Guanyin personally obtained by the old lady for Ninth Master. Be careful—don’t drop it!”
Xiao Mei’s eyes flickered as she stepped forward. “Give it to me. I’ll take it to Madam and have her pass it to Ninth Master.”