To think that for all these years, even though the master never lacked for beauties, they were all either concubines without status or concubines who had been promoted from maids, none of whom really mattered.
This sudden introduction of a second wife, although the status of our own madam was secure, still required caution.
Secondly, it was also to give this second wife a show of strength. With her many years of experience in the inner house, she knew the master only cared about beauty, never about status. He would lift someone to the heavens when he favored them, but once he was bored, he could cast them down into the mud.
If this second wife gained favor and lacked a sense of reverence, and if she didn’t get along with our own madam, that would be unacceptable!
Upon arriving at the Wang Family Courtyard, she already looked down on it after just one glance.
Seeing Lady Qian’s obsequious behavior only increased her disdain for the second wife, and her words became even more disrespectful, also trying to assert dominance.
Who would have thought that the future second wife, whom she had been speaking of, would suddenly come out and say something?
And that old granny from who knows where, daring to hit her face with a shoe she had worn, and even cursing at her?
Must be tired of living, huh?
Sister Hu was just about to display her authority and scold them for disrespect when a force knocked her over.
Then her face exploded in pain.
Old Granny Zhang was straddling Sister Hu, grabbing her hair, and slapped her several times.
Sister Hu was furious and in a panic, feeling both rage and annoyance. Since she started serving by the madam’s side, years had passed and she had never been humiliated in public .
To think she was actually getting slapped around by a common country woman.
She struggled and said, "You... do you know who I am? I am the Sister Steward by the Magistrate’s Lady’s side, you dare lay hands on me, are... are you tired of living?"
"Slap—" What answered her was a loud smack across the face.
"Pah! What are you, a pie? What about you being the pie by the Magistrate’s Lady’s side? Are you made of gold? The one getting slapped is you!" Old Granny Zhang was even more enraged. What about being the Magistrate’s Lady’s pie, isn’t it still meant to be eaten? And yet she dares claim superiority over her?
The two maids who had come with Sister Hu finally came to their senses and clumsily tried to pull Old Granny Zhang off of her.
Wang Yongzhu stepped forward, and with one hand each, tossed the two maids into the corner, "Who dares to touch a hair on my mother, try and see!"
The two maids came to their senses and, scared witless, huddled in the corner, not daring to even take a deep breath.
Lady Qian’s mouth dropped open; how... how could this girl be so strong? And looking at Wang Yongzhu walking towards her, a chill ran down her spine, and she turned to run.
But having taken only a few steps, Wang Yongzhu caught hold of her clothes, and then she could no longer move.
Wang Yongzhu said with a cold laugh, "Running for what? Didn’t you just say you wanted to talk? Come on, let’s have a good chat, shall we?"
Lady Qian’s legs gave way and she broke into a cold sweat, "Little sister, little sister, I was wrong! Please let go, can we talk this out nicely?"
Over there, Old Granny Zhang, having heard Wang Yongzhu’s words, suddenly realized, without an insider, an outsider cannot intrude!
Listening to that old woman’s words, it was the wretched Lady Qian who had led her daughter to the back door of the county yamen to be secretly presented to someone, and that’s why the old granny had come knocking today.
Indeed, this whole mess was stirred up by that damn second son and his wife!
Right then, she shoved Sister Hu aside and spat on her face before rolling over and charging at Lady Qian. She slapped Lady Qian twice and kicked her twice more, causing Lady Qian to clutch her belly and howl for her mother.
Inside the side room, Father and Mother Qian had already been woken by the noise. They had been secretly watching from behind the door, and seeing Old Granny Zhang daring to strike even the Magistrate’s Lady’s Sister, how could they muster the courage to come out?
So, they didn’t dare to breathe too loudly.
But now, seeing their own daughter being beaten to the point of wailing, how could they, as parents, stand by? They rushed out the door quickly.
Mother Qian reached out to grab Old Granny Zhang’s hair but was shoved to the side by Wang Yongzhu and landed on her bottom, crying out, "Ow!—You damned little wretch, how dare you push me! My back—"
Wang Yongzhu responded with a slap, immediately swelling up half of Mother Qian’s face: "Try cursing one more time, I dare you?"
Mother Qian swallowed the rest of her curses, turning to see Father Qian standing there dumbly, and furiously pounced on him: "You good-for-nothing, your wife is getting beaten and you’re just standing there? Not even daring to let out a fart! What use do I have for marrying such a useless man—"
Father Qian actually wanted to act, but how could he not see Wang Yongping and Jinhoo looming in the room, ready to pounce. Wang Yongping had even rolled up his sleeves, clearly indicating whoever dared to move would be who he’d deal with next.
How could his old arms and legs stand a chance against them?
Caught off guard by his wife’s sudden attack, several scratches appeared across his face, and in anger, he slapped her, making Mother Qian’s face symmetrically swollen.
Sister Hu finally caught her breath, wiped off the saliva on her face with her sleeve, her expression as black as the bottom of a pot, and got up from the ground. Not even bothering to dust off her clothes, she burst out indignantly: "Well done! Bravo, Scholar Wang! Bravo, Scholar’s Lady! You’ve got some nerve to treat me this way! This is a slap in the face to our Madam! I’m going back to tell our Madam right now, you just wait—"
With that said, she hastily grasped the hand of the First Maid, who had carefully run over, and fled as if being chased by demons, not touching the ground with her feet.
Once she was outside the Wang Family Courtyard, Sister Hu felt as though she had escaped to the heavens, touching her painfully disheveled scalp and looking back at the courtyard with a gaze filled with venom.
A fine job Wang Family had done, she thought bitterly; She had lost face here completely, but the Wang Family wouldn’t have any good days ahead either! They wanted to send the younger sister into the master’s backyard? Dream on!
With her mind made up, Sister Hu scrambled onto a carriage, urging the Coachman to drive towards the County Yamen’s back courtyard.
Back in the courtyard, Father and Mother Qian were entangled with each other while Lady Qian, having been beaten by Old Granny Zhang without the power to fight back, could only curl up and beg for mercy.
Jinchai was horrified by the scene before her eyes, wanting to save her mother, but confronted with Old Granny Zhang’s ferocity, she didn’t dare approach.
Looking around and after pondering for a while, she finally remembered and started banging desperately on the door of the room where Wang Yongan had rested the night before: "Dad, Dad, save me! Save Mom! She’s being beaten to death!"
But the room was dead silent, with no response whatsoever.
Wang Yongzhu sneered—did Wang Yongan really think he could pretend nothing was amiss by hiding in the room?
She climbed the steps in two strides and glanced at Jinchai: "Move—"
Having just seen Wang Yongzhu nonchalantly tossing two women into the corner, Jinchai no longer dared to block her path and shrank back a long distance, trembling.
Wang Yongzhu raised an eyebrow: "What’s the matter? Got the guts to sell off your sister but not the guts to open the door?"
Then she heard the sound of someone inside holding their breath.
She waited for a bit, and still, there was no movement. Wang Yongzhu raised her foot and kicked the door open, which banged against the wall and made a loud