He almost said that the technique was passed down to him and Concubine Du’s daughter.
When outsiders were present, he couldn’t say such things, even though he would soon be divorcing Miss Du.
For the Jie Residence had already lost enough face, it could not afford to lose face once again in the end.
"You know it too?" Madam looked at Concubine Du in surprise.
Miss Du also looked towards Concubine Du, puzzled as to how she was unaware that she knew the full embroidery technique.
Looking at Concubine Du, who was already scared pale.
She glanced at Madam, then at Jie Zhonglin, and suddenly knelt down before Miss Du.
That kneel stunned Zhonglin.
For some reason, this time he did not come to her and help her up.
In the past, whenever she admitted her mistakes, he would stand by her side, pulling her up without a word, not allowing her to act so humbly.
"Big sister, I...I was wrong, I shouldn’t have secretly learned the full embroidery. At that time, when mother was teaching you the technique, I also wanted to learn, so I...I just hid and secretly watched."
Miss Du, with needle in hand, looked furious, nearly piercing her own finger.
And Zhonglin, at that moment, couldn’t describe his feelings.
She clearly said that in the past, when Madam was teaching them full embroidery, she just couldn’t do it well and that was why her embroidery looked so bad, but now it turned out to be secretly learned.
Why did she have to lie to him?
On the other hand, Madam lightly laughed and said, "Secretly learned? Such family techniques are passed down to the legitimate, not the illegitimate. To secretly learn someone else’s family technique is to be sent to the Ministry of Punishment’s Prison, Concubine Du really is audacious!"
Concubine Du, terrified and pale, suddenly fell to the ground, tears rolling in her eyes.
What Madam referred to wasn’t just any prison, but the Ministry of Justice’s Prison. Because the full embroidery was to be offered to the Imperial Court, this skill receives the Imperial Court’s attention.
"Madam, big sister, I didn’t do it on purpose, I was young at the time, I didn’t mean to secretly watch! Please don’t send me to the Ministry of Punishment’s Prison." Concubine Du’s tears fell endlessly as she kept kowtowing to Miss Du.
What place was the Ministry of Punishment’s Prison? It was not a place for women like them.
Miss Du furrowed her brow; she only remembered her late mother always required privacy when she taught her the full embroidery. Moreover, even with hands-on teaching, it was extremely hard to learn, how was it possible for her to secretly learn it?
It was a sheer impossibility.
Yet looking at Zhonglin’s expression, it seemed as if she really had secretly learned the technique.
Zhonglin obviously did not know about these rules concerning women’s embroidery, nor did he know that Madam Du could not possibly pass this skill on to Wanqing. Hence, faced with this situation, he still stood there, dumbfounded.
"How much did you learn?" Miss Du, struggling to control her anger, would have no choice but to hand her over to the Ministry of Justice if she really had secretly learned the technique.
She had already figured it all out, she would leave and grant them happiness, but she didn’t expect such a complication to arise.
Who knew what Zhonglin would think of her now, or whether he would use this issue to trouble her and if he dragged his feet on their divorce, things would certainly get complicated.
Alas! Perhaps in his eyes, she had once again become the villain.
"What Concubine Du also called your mother for many years, she is your sister, just a child ignorant enough to secretly learn embroidery for a few days, and you, a heartless woman, actually intend to send her to the Ministry of Punishment’s Prison," so he might say.
Now, without him uttering a word, she already guessed the words he would have said.
"Just... learned a little bit," said Concubine Du in a low voice.