Mrs. Lu smiled faintly and said, "If that’s the case, Mrs. Lin, you can go down and wait. I will send the letter over once it’s ready!"
Mrs. Lin also did not want to stay too long in Zhou Jingyi’s room, fearing contamination, and having seen the person she came for, it was enough to report back, so she nodded agreeably and followed the leading maid downstairs.
"There’s really not a single good thing in the Shi family!" Mrs. Lu could not help but grind her teeth and curse.
Zhou Jingyi chuckled lightly, and said indifferently, "Sister-in-law, there’s no need to lower yourself to the slave’s level! Which slave doesn’t adjust their behavior according to who is in power? With my husband away and my mother-in-law venting her anger on me, the blame falls on me, and the slaves curry favor with those above while stepping on those below, why would they take me seriously!"
Mrs. Lu’s eyes moistened, and she sighed lightly, "It’s true, a husband is indeed a woman’s sky!"
If Sang Wan were here, hearing their conversation would only make her empathize more, because there was no need to look for examples from others or make comparisons, her experience in two lifetimes vividly confirmed this very principle.
Realizing her words might have rubbed salt on a wound, Mrs. Lu regretted her spoken words and quickly said with a smile, "My dear sister, hurry and write the letter so we can dispatch that old lady—it’s the proper thing to do!"
"Okay!" Zhou Jingyi cheerfully got up then sighed softly, "This time we managed to deceive them, but what if they come back again after a year—"
Mrs. Lu pondered for a moment, then smiled, "What’s so difficult about that? Isn’t our grandmother celebrating her birthday in May? After the New Year when the weather is warmer, you can just stay with grandmother for a while. They surely can’t go and fetch you from there, can they? There are also two unmarried cousins at grandmother’s house, so you won’t feel bored!"
Zhou Jingyi clapped her hands with joy and said, "Sister-in-law, you are truly clever! After the New Year, I will go!" The sisters-in-law shared a smile.
Mrs. Lin carefully packed up Zhou Jingyi’s letter, took the return gifts prepared by the Zhou family, and hurriedly set off on her return journey.
Second Madam Shi, seeing that Mrs. Lin hadn’t brought the person back, was indeed furious, berating loudly right from the start.
Seeing her anger, Mrs. Lin did not dare to provoke her and waited for her to vent her initial rage before seizing an opportunity to hastily present the letter and reiterated what she witnessed at the Zhou family’s house. Of course, she skipped over the harsh words from Mrs. Zhou—mentioning that at this moment would only add fuel to the fire, and she would be the one scolded. Instead, she exaggerated how courteous the Zhou family was and reiterated Zhou Jingyi’s severe condition that she couldn’t get out of bed, explaining it this way and that.
Second Madam Shi was skeptical but couldn’t resist Mrs. Lin’s earnest swearing to heaven and earth, and with the return letter in hand, she finally let it go, yet sneered, "Remember this! After the New Year, you’ll go again, and you must bring her back! She can’t be sick every time, can she?"
Mrs. Lin quickly agreed with a forced smile, but internally she lamented and decided that if Second Madam Shi did not remember to bring it up again later, she would definitely not mention it herself. Mrs. Zhou’s temper was such that talking to her was truly humiliating, and she did not want to go there again!
The situation in the second house was causing restless anxiety, and the main family also had its difficulties.
One morning, Third Madam Shi got up and went out, intending to speak with Mrs. Wang, but not expecting the entrance to be slippery and without a carpet laid, she slipped unintentionally, screaming as she fell towards the steps, instinctively pulling her maid Yingfang along, resulting in both of them tumbling down together.
Fortunately, Third Madam Shi only scraped a bit of skin on her wrist, but Yingfang was not so lucky, having fractured her left thigh and bruised her right elbow.
Mrs. Gui and others quickly helped Third Madam Shi up, then she scolded loudly, "What are you slaves doing! Knowing it’s cold and slippery, how could you not even know to lay a carpet? If Third Madam were hurt, could you afford the consequences!"
The several coarse maids tasked with cleaning exchanged looks, each of them silent.
Mrs. Gui, being a trusted confidante and often issuing orders around Third Madam Shi, was outraged to see the maids standing there as if dazed, not even coming forward to kneel and apologize. Pointing at them, she yelled furiously, "What are you standing there dazed for? Kneel down and apologize!"
The maids, unwilling to obey the commands of a randomly authoritative figure, looked at each other without moving. One, somewhat kinder-hearted, responded, "Madam, you are mistaken; that wasn’t our duty to manage, we didn’t even know about it!"