The servants just shook their heads when they heard Hu Rui'an's question.
Hu Rui'an frowned, then turned to Qinqin. She wanted to silence Hu Lihua's arrogance immediately, so she hurriedly urged her personal maid, "Where is it? Give it to me quickly!"
Qinqin looked at Hu Rui'an with a confused face, then answered weakly, "Second Miss, the jade hairpin... it's not there."
"What?" Hu Rui'an was stunned for a moment, then angrily said, "How can it not be there! Are you sure you've searched properly?"
"Rui'an, why are you so eager to throw dirt on me?" asked Hu Lihua as she stepped forward, placing her hand on her chin and walking around Hu Rui'an before saying mockingly, "Did you put it somewhere in Yufeng Pavilion and now want to accuse me of stealing it?"
Hu Rui'an stared at Hu Lihua with wide eyes. She didn't know when Hu Lihua had become so clever. No! Something was wrong! Did Hu Lihua already know everything?
Hu Rui'an's face turned pale, and her heart pounded. She took several deep breaths to calm herself, then replied in a trembling voice, "Elder Sister, that's not it. I... I'm not accusing you. I'm just afraid the servant hid it in your room, making me wrongly accuse you, damaging our relationship!"
Song Xiuyan's face turned slightly pale with anger. How old was she? Even without hearing Hu Lihua's inner thoughts, she wouldn't be fooled by Hu Rui'an's petty tricks. Only fools would be deceived!
No!
Song Xiuyan glanced at Hu Zhangwei. Seeing her husband's face turning red, she sighed softly. At least her husband was starting to wake up from his foolishness!
She then looked at Hu Haoran and saw her second son's frown directed at Hu Lihua. Her hands suddenly itched. She really wanted to slap him!
"Hah!" Hu Lihua let out a mocking laugh. She stopped in front of Hu Rui'an, crossed her arms over her chest, and said, "Second Sister, your reaction... it makes me suspicious. You're so certain that I stole it. Could it be that you were the one who planted it in my Yufeng Pavilion?"
"Nonsense!" Hu Rui'an immediately denied in a panic, her eyes beginning to well up, and her voice choked slightly, "I... I didn't do it!"
Hu Haoran felt very uncomfortable seeing Hu Lihua bullying Hu Rui'an. He reached out his hand, wanting to defend her, but Hu Lihua's inner voice suddenly stopped him.
[Tch! Of course, you didn't do it, but you asked Qinqin to put that item in my room!]
Hu Haoran's resolve began to waver. He wanted to believe his second sister completely, but Hu Lihua's inner voice had been making him doubt. He finally pulled back his outstretched hand. Fine, let's wait a little longer. He wanted to see what would happen next.
"Rui'an, do you think everyone here is stupid? That they'd be easily fooled by your green tea act?" mocked Hu Lihua.
Qinqin couldn't take it anymore. She stepped forward, her voice loud as she defended Hu Rui'an, "First Miss, please don't bully Second Miss too much! I clearly saw Xixi..."
Slap!
The sound of a slap rang out before Qinqin could finish her sentence. Her face was suddenly thrown to the side, her head buzzing, and a burning sensation spread across her left cheek. She could even taste the metallic flavor of blood at the corner of her mouth.
"When did a servant like you get the right to speak to your master?" scolded Hu Lihua. She quickly wiped her hand as if she had just touched something dirty!
Qinqin felt pain on her face, and her heart was filled with anger. But even if she had ten lives, she wouldn't dare to fight back against her master. In the end, she could only swallow her bitterness whole.
Hu Rui'an's face tensed. Hu Lihua dared to slap her personal maid? Wasn't that the same as slapping her!
But seeing the situation was not in her favor, Hu Rui'an tried to put on a gentle face and said to Hu Lihua, "First Sister, don't blame Qinqin. She might have seen it wrong at that time. I'll apologize to you on her behalf."
Hu Rui'an reached out her hand, wanting to touch Hu Lihua's arm. But Hu Lihua immediately took a step back, avoiding Hu Rui'an.
Hu Rui'an's hand froze in the air. After a moment, she withdrew her hand, gritted her teeth, and spoke with a forced smile, "It seems all of this is just a misunderstanding. First Sister, I'm sorry. I hope this won't affect the affection between us sisters."
"Ha! Ha! Ha! After accusing me, you want to play the family love card to get away?" asked Hu Lihua with a laugh. She then approached Hu Rui'an and said, "Second Sister, you're truly amusing."
"Fisrt Sister, why are you like this? It's just a small matter. Surely, you're not that narrow-minded, are you?" asked Hu Rui'an.
"I am narrow-minded," replied Hu Lihua without denying Hu Rui'an's words.
"You!" Hu Rui'an almost lost her composure. Inside her sleeves, fists clenched tightly, sharp nails digging into her palms. After a moment, she finally calmed down and said, "First Sister, it's all An'er's fault. I'm so sorry. I have many beautiful hairpins. How about you choose a few? I'll give them as compensation."
Hu Lihua sneered. Hu Rui'an had just accused her of stealing a jade hairpin. Now she offered hairpins as compensation. If she accepted, wouldn't that show she truly coveted Hu Rui'an's belongings? That would be the same as admitting she was a thief!
"I don't need your things!" Hu Lihua said, rolling her eyes. She then turned to Hu Zhangwei. Noticing her father hadn't defended Hu Rui'an at all, she decided to try her luck, "Father, your daughter was wrongly accused. If we don't catch the real thief, tomorrow the entire Capital will say I'm a thief! How will people view you, a highly respected General?"
Hu Zhangwei nodded in agreement and said to Tao'er outside the door, "Ask Steward Peng to come!"
"Yes," Tao'er replied.
Hu Rui'an's unease grew. Her face even turned pale at a visible speed. She couldn't find the jade hairpin in Yufeng Pavilion. Most likely, Hu Lihua already knew her plan. Now she was even pushing to catch the thief.
Where? Where did Hu Lihua hide the jade hairpin? Suddenly, she remembered something. Was it in Xiangyu Pavilion? If so, she'd be punished for negligence and for falsely accusing her elder sister!
"Father, there's no need to search anymore. Maybe I was careless and dropped it while walking around," Hu Rui'an quickly said, trying to stop Hu Zhangwei.
"No!"