Madam Zheng and several older maids and servant wives were chatting and laughing in the kitchen when they suddenly turned around and saw Ziming approaching.
The smiles on their faces instantly froze.
Ziming tossed the plate of tofu skin aside. “Eldest Miss didn’t have any appetite this morning. Normally she eats bird’s nest porridge for breakfast—who would care for this shabby plate of tofu skin?”
Madam Zheng hurried forward. “Whatever Eldest Miss wants to eat, we’ll make it.”
“I’m afraid that after you make it, someone from another courtyard will come asking for it, and you’ll just hand it over to them,” Ziming could not help but scold. “A bunch of snobbish dogs who only fawn over the powerful! Don’t you know who the true Eldest Miss of the Shunning Marquis Manor is? What a waste of your eyesight!”
Hearing Ziming scold them so harshly, Madam Zheng could not help frowning. “Miss Zi, don’t vent your anger on us. Could it be that Eldest Miss jabbed your mouth with a golden hairpin again, and now you have nowhere to release your anger, so you’re taking it out on us old women?”
When the other servant women heard Madam Zheng say this, they all joined in mocking Ziming.
“We’ve all served in this residence for decades. Ziming, how long have you even been serving by Eldest Miss’s side? Such a temper—aren’t you afraid you’ll bite your own tongue?”
“Even if the Marchioness were here, she’d give us old folks a bit of respect. You’re just a little girl who’s only been beside Eldest Miss for a few years, yet you dare to show off your authority in front of us!”
“The kitchen provisions are counted carefully. Even Eldest Miss can’t have whatever she wants to eat.”
“……”
The group chattered all at once, criticizing Ziming from every direction. Ziming simply could not swallow this grievance, yet she could not outargue them, so she had no choice but to turn around and leave.
When she returned, she saw Bitong arranging Yu Luo’s hair. Unable to hold it in, Ziming exaggerated and recounted everything that had just happened.
As she spoke, Ziming became so angry that a few tears fell.
Yu Luo raised her hand and gently held Ziming’s forearm. “It’s fine. Let’s first go pay our respects to Madam.”
Ziming had never seen Yu Luo remain so calm before.
However, Yu Luo was the master. Since the master reacted this way, it was not appropriate for servants like them to say anything more.
Yu Luo took out a jeweled hair ornament from a box. Bitong quickly received it and pinned the ornament into Yu Luo’s hair bun.
Yu Luo’s long hair was exceptionally beautiful—thick, glossy, and abundant, like clouds piled upon clouds. Because it was so long, it indeed took quite a while every day to arrange it.
Though the jeweled ornament was magnificent and dazzling, it was still not as beautiful as that cascade of dark hair.
After finishing her grooming, Yu Luo took a young maid and went to where Madam Yu lived.
Yu Luo arrived late today. By the time she got there, Liu Yanran had already eagerly moved close to Madam Yu and was chatting and laughing with her.
When Yu Luo caught the cloying scent of that “green tea” act again, she could not help rolling her eyes inwardly.
She did not even look at Liu Yanran. She simply saluted Madam Yu and sat down at Madam Yu’s left side.
Madam Yu wrapped an arm around Yu Luo’s shoulders. “You went to Yanzi Islet with your brothers yesterday? The wind is strong there—you must be careful in the future.”
Yu Luo nodded. “Yesterday the wind really was strong. After I returned, I developed a fever and felt weak with no appetite. I didn’t want to eat anything.”
For some reason, when Liu Yanran heard Yu Luo say this, her eyelids suddenly twitched.
She instinctively felt that whatever Yu Luo was about to say next would not be anything pleasant.
Madam Yu cherished her daughter as dearly as her life. Hearing Yu Luo say this made her somewhat unhappy, and she looked toward the maids following Yu Luo. “How have you been taking care of Eldest Miss? Did you invite a physician to take a look?”
Yu Luo was usually in good health, so hearing her say she felt unwell naturally made Madam Yu extremely worried.
Yu Luo pressed gently on Madam Yu’s wrist. “Mother, it’s not their fault. It’s just that I had no appetite myself. From yesterday until today, I haven’t eaten anything.”
When Madam Yu heard this, she grew anxious and asked Yu Luo what she wanted to eat so the kitchen could prepare it.
Ziming suddenly understood what her own Eldest Miss intended to do.
She had always been a clever girl. Now that things had reached this point, Ziming quickly spoke up. “Yesterday Eldest Miss only wanted something light. She didn’t want any meat or rich dishes—just a simple plate of mild tofu skin. It didn’t even need to be simmered in chicken broth, just mixed with dried shrimp and autumn soy sauce. The kitchen agreed, but when mealtime came, the dish never appeared. When we asked, we learned that it had been sent to Cousin Miss instead.”
Liu Yanran had not expected that this master and servant pair would hold their patience only to set up such a scheme for her.
She opened her mouth, but for a moment did not know what to say.
Seeing Madam Yu’s expression, Ziming added a few more words. “Yesterday Eldest Miss only wanted to eat that. When we asked the kitchen for it again, they said there was none left, so Eldest Miss didn’t eat at all. This morning the kitchen finally sent it—but who wants cold dishes early in the morning? They ruined Eldest Miss’s appetite again.”
Yu Luo said, “Ziming, step down. Don’t talk about this anymore. Cousin came to our home as a guest—what’s wrong with her eating a small dish? Our residence can certainly afford it. Saying such things would only make people laugh at us.”
Liu Yanran: “……”
Yu Luo smiled at her.
Wasn’t it just acting like “green tea”? Who didn’t have a bit of skill at it?
Liu Yanran’s scheme had failed, leaving her suffering in silence. Seeing Madam Yu’s expression grow colder, she quickly shifted the blame to the kitchen. “The kitchen sent it over—I didn’t know Cousin Luo wanted to eat it. If I had known, I would have had someone send it to Cousin Luo yesterday.”
After all, Liu Yanran was a guest. No matter how much Madam Yu loved Yu Luo, she could not say much about this matter.
If Liu Yanran were embarrassed over a single dish, it would only make others laugh.
Madam Yu changed the subject and began talking about other things.
Before long, Liu Yanran took her leave and went back.
Only then did Madam Yu slap the table. “These servants! They don’t even respect the maids of their own household!”
Yu Luo said, “Mother, when servants bully their masters, it’s never a good thing. In a household like ours, there must be proper rules. The kitchen should be a clean place—we can’t allow those filthy old women to run wild.”
Madam Yu listened to Yu Luo’s thoughtful words and nodded gently. She took Yu Luo’s hand. “Luo’er has grown up. You’ve thought of everything so carefully.”
Looking at the face that was exactly the same as her own mother’s from her previous life, a warm current flowed through Yu Luo’s heart.
“Mother, let me punish them this time. If we don’t deal with it properly now, the same thing will happen again next time.”
Madam Yu nodded and assigned several servant women to accompany Yu Luo there.