"That's right! Could it be that Second Sister secretly taught Feicui to do this? Does she really want to be Princess Jing? Sister trying to steal her sister's fiancé, how shameless!"
"She dared to say such things about Third Young Lady right to her face, she's truly too bold and reckless!"
Feicui didn't know that Su Mei had already tampered with her when she hit her earlier. Now seeing everyone accusing her, Feicui could only look at Murong Xinlian for help, "Miss, it was really her who hit me!"
"Feicui, kneel down!" Everyone's words also reached Murong Xinlian's ears. She didn't expect Feicui to be so stupid, almost ruining her plan.
Anyway, all the servants who were watching just now had heard Feicui's shout of "useless". At this moment, if she didn't punish Feicui, everyone would think that it was her, the master, who was secretly instigating Feicui to be so arrogant. To protect her own reputation, she could only sacrifice Feicui now.
"Second Sister..." Feicui didn't know what had happened, and wondered why there was such a chilling look in Murong Xinlian's eyes, "Second Sister, I'm being wronged!"
"Kneel down! Apologize to Third Young Lady!" Murong Xinlian's tightly clenched fist was hidden under her sleeve, nails cutting through her tender palm. This Feicui, utterly useless in accomplishing something but causing trouble instead.
No matter what the truth behind today's incident was, the image she had painstakingly maintained has now been damaged. It seemed that she had no choice but to severely punish Feicui in order to silence the wagging tongues of everyone else.
"Third Young Lady, it was Feicui who made the mistake–" Knowing that Murong Xinlian was furious, Feicui knelt stiffly in front of Murong Qiqi, although she didn't admit it, she had to acknowledge that she had been caught in Murong Qiqi's hands.
"Please forgive this servant, Third Young Lady!"
"Feicui has committed a crime by disrespecting her superior. Punish her with twenty strokes, deduct her wages for six months. Third Younger Sister, do you find this satisfactory?" Not waiting for Murong Qiqi's reply, Murong Xinlian directly announced Feicui's punishment.
Murong Qiqi looked at these two master and servant acting, but didn't expose them. Instead, she spoke up for mercy.
"Second Sister, isn't this punishment too heavy? Feicui is still injured, her head bleeding, she needs to see a doctor. Besides, she has followed you for so long, even if she hasn't done any great service, she has put in hard work... How about punishing her with ten strokes, and noting the other ten strokes, and then deducting just one month's wages? Second Sister, how about this punishment?"
Murong Qiqi's act of pleading for mercy was unexpected by everyone. They originally thought that Third Young Lady would certainly be relentless, and punish Feicui severely, however, she unexpectedly spoke up to plead for Feicui.
At this moment, the image of Third Young Lady suddenly grew taller in everyone's eyes. To withstand twenty strokes, even a strong young man would have to lie in bed for a while. Additionally, six months' wages, although not much, were still a significant income for the servants.
"Third Young Lady is truly kind-hearted!"
"Yes, even though Feicui framed Third Young Lady, she still returned her with kindness. Third Young Lady is truly kind-hearted!"
Murong Qiqi's kindness instead highlighted Murong Xinlian's "cruelty", punishing the maid who had followed her for so long without hesitation. Comparing the two young ladies, it was obvious who was good and who was bad. The servants in the manor naturally had a new evaluation in their hearts.
"Okay, let's do as younger sister says! When we return, I'll be sure to educate her properly!"
Murong Xinlian now hated Murong Qiqi to death. For the truth of the matter, it was her who told it; now pleading for mercy, it was also her who opened her mouth. Despite how hard Murong Xinlian had worked to maintain her image, it only took a few words from Murong Qiqi for everyone to change their opinions of her and even make her appear vicious as Second Sister.
Endure! Endure! Murong Xinlian suppressed the hatred in her heart and showed a smile, "Younger sister, there's a moon viewing party at Huxin Pavilion tonight, you must come! Even if it's just for me to apologize to you, you have to accept the invitation!"
"Alright! Thank you, sister, I will definitely be there on time!"
The farce ended with Feicui receiving ten strokes.
In Ou Xiang Yuan, Feicui lay on the bed, having just been whipped ten times. Every slight movement caused her excruciating pain. "Miss, I really didn't say those nonsense words, it's all Third Young Lady framing me!"
"I believe you!" Murong Xinlian personally applied medicine to Feicui, "It's been five years, and Third Younger Sister has actually improved. Feicui, don't worry, I'll definitely get revenge for you today! Just wait and see! Tonight, I'll make her regret everything she did today!"
As Murong Xinlian's confidant, Feicui was also in the know about her and Wu Min's scheming plans. After hearing Murong Xinlian say this, Feicui forced a smile on her face despite the pain, "Miss, you're right. Just bear with it for now, and tonight, we'll make her cry so much that she won't be able to cry anymore!"
"He—" Feicui's words obviously pleased Murong Xinlian.
Murong Qiqi, just you wait! After tonight, you will be ruined, and the identity of Princess Jing you rely on will vanish like smoke. Only I, Murong Xinlian, am the best candidate to become Princess Jing. You are not worthy!
In the evening, Murong Qiqi, as promised, arrived at Huxin Pavilion.
Huxin Pavilion was located in the west part of the Prime Minister's Mansion. Before she even arrived, Murong Qiqi heard laughter coming from the Pavilion, with Murong Qinglian's voice the loudest, "Sister Duanmu, is it true? Is the Ghost King really that scary?"
"Of course it's true, he has killed eight of his wives! They say those women died in a horrible way, all died on their wedding night, and the blood in their bodies dried up! Everyone says it's the Ghost King who drank the blood of the brides. He has to marry a new bride every year and consume fresh blood to sustain his life..."
"Ah, how scary!" Hearing this, the young ladies in the pavilion screamed. "Don't talk about this anymore, it's too frightening!"
At this moment, Murong Xinlian saw Murong Qiqi coming and immediately greeted her enthusiastically, "Third Younger Sister is here, why don't you come over! Hurry up, everyone is waiting for you!"
"Second Sister, hello!" Murong Qiqi let Murong Xinlian lead her by the hand and entered Huxin Pavilion.
Besides Li Yunqing, whom she had met before, the sons and daughters of the Four Great Families were all present. Bai Mufei and Bai Yiyue, siblings of the Bai Family, Duanmu Hongchen and Duanmu Yiyi, siblings of the Duanmu Family, and Shangguan Wuji of the Shangguan Family, including Murong Jun, the only man of Murong Manor, were all there.
It seems that Murong Xinlian's circle of friends was quite extensive!