As she worked, Nanny Qi told her to take a break, to eat some cakes, drink some water, and rest so as not to tire herself out.
While eating cake, the conversation unintentionally turned to the night His Majesty arrived at the entrance of the Side Hall and the near miss of revealing everything.
Recalling the incident, she looked toward Xiao Linzi, "Eh, Xiao Linzi, weren’t you keeping lookout at that time? How is it that His Majesty got into the yard and you didn’t come to report?"
Xiao Linzi, who had been wearing a grin, felt that the weather was quite pleasant today, having enjoyed a piece of cake given by his master, was savoring it when he heard the question. His smile instantly froze on his face.
Scratching his head, he said, "Master, I was on the lookout indeed, but before I could report, His Majesty discovered me."
"Didn’t I teach you to run as soon as you spot His Majesty? Run before he spots you, how could you not report?" Xiao Linzi, why are you so dull? I can’t seem to teach you.
Scratching his head again, Xiao Linzi replied, "To reply to my master, I too thought to do that, but I hadn’t spotted His Majesty when His Majesty and Steward Zhang discovered me first. As soon as I realized His Majesty was there, I ran at once, but then I was chased by Steward Zhang the whole time, and His Majesty..."
Lian Hua was full of question marks as she listened, "Wait a minute, you were on lookout and didn’t spot anyone, but His Majesty and Chief Steward found you first?"
"Eh, that’s not right, that’s not right, how could His Majesty discover you first?" Lian Hua couldn’t figure it out. How could someone on lookout by the main gate be discovered first? His Majesty is indeed amazing, but can he really be that amazing?
Unable to understand, she simply asked, "Xiao Linzi, tell me about the scene at that time, how did you keep lookout?"
So Xiao Linzi began with the time he started his lookout, but Lian Hua interrupted him, asking him to skip the early parts, and to start from just before His Majesty’s arrival.
Xiao Linzi explained that he was counting pebbles, and just as he got to a certain number, he heard a noise from the direction of the Imperial Garden and looked up to find His Majesty. He broke into a run, hesitated briefly, but ultimately decided to run...
Lian Hua frowned as she listened—Xiao Linzi was assigned to keep lookout, yet he had the audacity to squat in the middle of the main gate counting pebbles!
Her gaze upon Xiao Linzi grew colder.
Well done, this young eunuch was clueless enough. Such a manner of keeping lookout was practically like setting himself up as a target to be discovered. Too foolish.
She gave Xiao Qing a look and gestured with her hands. Xiao Qing immediately understood and stepped out to find a rattan cane.
Xiao Linzi caught sight of Lian Hua’s hand signal and immediately stammered to a halt.
In such situations, Nanny Qi simply enjoyed the show without a word, sitting with a smile and letting Pang Ya massage her shoulders, as comfortably idle as a rich, old matron, allowing the children to frolic around her, evidently finding the scene very pleasing.
Xiao Jizi just facepalmed—unsure whether to look anymore. He’d questioned the dummy that night already and knew the whole story. The dummy was too dense, perhaps a good scare from the master might make him a bit smarter.
Seeing Xiao Qing leave, Lian Hua turned and sharply said to Xiao Linzi, "Continue, and don’t you dare stop!"
This foolish young eunuch hadn’t picked up any of her cleverness; it wouldn’t do not to discipline him. In her
Xiao Linzi could only stammer as he started his tale again, explaining how he had run at full speed the moment he got the chance when Steward Zhang suddenly bellowed to stop him and chased after him. Ignoring the shouts, he continued to run, at which point Steward Zhang threatened to break his "dog" legs...
Upon hearing this, Lian Hua nodded in approval, "Not bad, not bad at all, defying authority—that takes bravery. Steward Zhang did seem a bit too fierce there, hmm..."
After thinking for an instant, she decisively gave up on seeking revenge for Xiao Linzi, as she couldn’t favor one side over the other. Steward Zhang usually treated her well, and it was Xiao Linzi who had acted foolishly—he deserved it!
She said, "Then carry on~"
Being praised had cheered up Xiao Linzi a bit, spurring him to continue with enthusiasm. He eagerly recounted how His Majesty had called out to stop him, and despite Steward Zhang asking him why he was running and His Majesty questioning the reason too, he had remembered his master’s words and did not betray his master.
Lian Hua nodded repeatedly in agreement; the young eunuch had done well to remember her instructions and had kept her secret—very good, very good.
Seeing Lian Hua’s reaction, Xiao Linzi became even more pleased, and couldn’t help but show a shy smile. He was just about to reveal that His Majesty had inquired about what the master had been up to that day, poised to continue his story.
Meanwhile, Xiao Jizi, who had been standing aside, suddenly had a shiver run down his spine. Oh no, he remembered this fool was about to let slip to His Majesty what the master had been doing.
Oh no, if he allowed this fool to continue, the master would certainly realize that His Majesty had found out about her preparing the gifts, and that would be terrible. She wouldn’t just lose face with the master but also peel off a layer with His Majesty.
No sooner said than done, Xiao Jizi took a swift step forward, raised his hand, and slapped Xiao Linzi across the face, interrupting what he was about to say, and shouted:
"Idiot, you dare to laugh after shirking your duty? The offense is even more severe! If it weren’t for your failure to keep a proper lookout, how could His Majesty have reached the Side Hall before the master knew, forcing her to hastily hide things, acting like a thief almost getting caught!"
Xiao Linzi was taken aback; he was smiling because the master had praised his bravery and agreed with his resistance to Steward Zhang, without betraying his master!
Lian Hua was also startled—oh right, as she listened on, she had nearly forgotten they were in the midst of seeking an explanation for wrongdoing.
Hmph, that young eunuch was clearly at fault; he had failed even to keep a proper lookout, nearly causing His Majesty to spot what she was up to!
She still remembered the panic of not finding something to cover with at that time; if not for her quick thinking to use a cloak for concealment, His Majesty would have seen her preparations, ruining the surprise!
With these thoughts, Lian Hua instantly felt an itch in her teeth, stood up with her hands on her hips, and said, "Xiao Linzi, under the tyranny of Steward Zhang, you kept to the righteous path, and you held firm when questioned by His Majesty, remembering my words. Your bravery and fearlessness are commendable, and I have taken note of that!"
Just as Xiao Linzi was recovering from Xiao Jizi’s words and was about to smile at Lian Hua’s praise.
Lian Hua’s tone shifted, "However, you failed to fulfill the task given to you. During your duty, you brazenly counted stones and dared to neglect your responsibilities—escaping the death penalty would be difficult enough, let alone sparing you from a living punishment—"
Xiao Linzi’s eyes widened in shock. Was his mistake really so grave that neither death nor a living punishment could be spared?
Xiao Qing, who had just entered, stopped dead in her tracks with her mouth agape. What had happened, was the master planning to kill Xiao Linzi?!!
Pang Ya hissed in surprise, halting her massage of Nanny Qi. She knew Master Lian didn’t seem as weak as she appeared, but she hadn’t expected her to be so ruthless!
Nanny Qi frowned, the young lady was... learning bad habits?
Xiao Jizi, who had just relaxed in shifting the attention away, tensed up again, realizing his mistake, he quickly corrected, "Master, it’s ’the death penalty may be spared, yet the living punishment remains unavoidable’..."